My Recommendation: Buy Doom Eternal Over Borderlands 3 for Superior FPS Action

If you‘re trying to decide between buying Doom Eternal or Borderlands 3, I recommend going with Doom Eternal for the best single-player FPS experience. While both are great shooters, Doom Eternal excels in delivering thrilling combat, excellent gameplay pacing, and a solid dose of challenge. Borderlands 3 is better suited for those looking for a loot grind treadmill or casual co-op with friends.

Now let‘s dive deeper into how these two blockbuster FPS sequels compare across the key factors for evaluation. Use this comprehensive guide to help decide which one lines up best with your personal tastes and gaming priorities.

Fast and Fluid Combat Goes to Doom

The most important aspect of any FPS is the feel of its combat, and Doom Eternal‘s fighting mechanics are phenomenal. According to IGN‘s glowing review, "Doom Eternal has some of the best first-person combat I‘ve ever experienced".

Doomguy feels powerful yet grounded as you rip through hordes of demons using an arsenal of shotguns, plasma rifles, and BFGs. Movement is swift and fluid, allowing you to quickly dash and double jump between targets. The melee executions called Glory Kills add visceral gore while keeping you in the action. It‘s an addictive combat loop that makes you feel unstoppable.

Comparatively, Borderlands 3‘s combat is serviceable but lacks the same finesse. Controls and shooting mechanics are looser, andDamage numbers flying around make it hard to tell if you‘re landing your shots. While still fun with friends, Borderlands‘ run-and-gun battles don‘t offer the same satisfaction.

Advantage: Doom Eternal

Looting Mechanics Favor Borderlands

One area where Borderlands 3 unquestionably surpasses Doom Eternal is the sheer variety and depth of its loot mechanics. As a looter shooter RPG, Borderlands is all about chasing new gear.

With over 1 billion procedurally generated gun combinations, Borderlands 3 will keep you hunting for the perfect weapon for your build. The four playable Vault Hunters also promote replayability with their unique skill trees to maximize. Doom Eternal has some weapon mods and upgrades, but nothing approaching Borderlands‘ depths of customization.

Reviewers like GameSpot praised Borderlands 3‘s "thrilling loot grind" which even improves on Borderlands 2‘s already addictive formula. If you want an FPS driven by gear quests, Borderlands is the clear winner.

Advantage: Borderlands 3

Enemy Variety and Level Design Go to Doom

Another area where Doom Eternal pulls ahead of Borderlands 3 is the variety and creativity of its enemy roster and level designs. Doom throws over twice as many distinct demon types at you compared to 2016‘s Doom reboot. Ranging from agile Prowlers to towering Mancubus flame tanks, each requires unique tactics to take down.

The environments are also littered with creative hazards and traps to utilize against the horde. Rocket turrets, exposed argent beams, and exploding barrels give battles an element of strategy. PC Gamer praised Doom Eternal‘s "superb level design" and how it encourages you to move and utilize all your tools.

By comparison, Borderlands 3‘s enemy variety feels stale. You‘ll face reskins of familiar bandits and creatures except for a few standout boss fights. Level layouts are also more generic compared to Doom‘s intricately crafted arenas. This gives Doom Eternal‘s combat much more depth and diversity.

Advantage: Doom Eternal

Campaign Length and Difficulty

Length estimates via HowLongtoBeat.com

Another point of differentiation is the length of each game‘s campaign and their difficulty options. As shown in the table above, Borderlands 3‘s story takes nearly 10 more hours to complete and offers two to three times as much total playtime when factoring in side quests and endgame content.

However, Doom Eternal‘s shorter run time is more consistently action-packed due to its higher enemy density. Borderlands has a decent amount of downtime driving between missions in your vehicle.

In terms of challenge, Doom Eternal is the clear winner. Even the default "Hurt Me Plenty" (normal) setting provides stiff resistance, punishing mistakes harshly. Borderlands 3 is fairly easy-going on its default Mayhem 1 difficulty. So Doom Eternal will put your FPS reflexes to the test more.

Advantage: Borderlands 3 for Length, Doom Eternal for Difficulty

Multiplayer and Post-Launch Support

For multiplayer, Borderlands 3 also has some advantages. It supports 2-player split screen on top of online 4-player co-op. Teaming up to loot and shoot is when Borderlands really shines. It also continues to receive substantive DLC expansions adding new story content, loot, and endgame challenges.

Doom Eternal sadly does not have split screen, and its multiplayer Battlemode hasn‘t resonated as strongly. id Software is commendable for adding free content like Master Levels to increase replayability. Still, Borderlands 3 feels like the superior option for co-op and provides more long-term post-launch support.

Advantage: Borderlands 3

Visual Presentation and Soundtrack

Both Doom Eternal and Borderlands 3 are fantastic looking games in their own right. Doom‘s graphics are more photorealistic, showcasing the hellish environment and gore in stomach-churning detail. Borderlands uses a vibrant cel shaded art style that runs smoothly even on lower-end hardware. It comes down to preference, but I give the visual edge to Doom Eternal for impressively bringing its hellscapes to life.

For audio, Doom Eternal again excels with Mick Gordon‘s pulse-pounding metal soundtrack. The hard rock perfectly complements Doomguy‘s rampage. Borderlands 3‘s soundtrack is fittingly quirky for the series but nowhere near as memorable. Doom Eternal‘s presentation of sights and sounds further immerses you into its intense combat.

Advantage: Doom Eternal

Final Recommendation

Given its superior combat, enemy/level design, difficulty, and presentation, I recommend Doom Eternal as the better FPS experience for most players. It offers a refined and intensely fun single-player campaign with Masters Levels and other content padding out the replayability. The genius "push forward combat" philosophy makes Doom Eternal‘s action exhilarating from start to finish.

However, for co-op focused gamers or those who really enjoy the grind for incremental statistical upgrades, Borderlands 3 is a great choice. Just don‘t expect the same level of quality in its core combat or level design. Borderlands is ideal if you plan on primarily playing with friends or have an addictive personality when it comes to loot games.

You really can‘t go wrong with either of these AAA shooters. But if I had to choose only one, it would be Doom Eternal by a hair. Its revolutionary combat sets a new benchmark for first-person shooters. Let me know if you have any other questions about how Doom Eternal and Borderlands 3 compare!