Doom slayer, Doom Guy, the Hell Walker, whatever you want to call him, the main character of the hit videogame series Doom is, perhaps, one of the most iconic badasses in all of videogame history. First introduced to fans in the original Doom game back in ’93, Doom Slayer has been razing Hell and terrorizing demons for over two decades. While his backstory has been slim, it has lent an air of mystique to the character that very few heroes can match (with respect, of course, to Halo’s Master Chief).

Sure, some of the worst video games have overpowered characters like the Doom Slayer in their repertoire, but Doom manages to balance the John-Wick-levels of badassery with some of the most difficult gameplay known to gamers. But while Id Software has kept mum about the recent incarnation of the Doom Slayer’s history, eagle-eyed fans have pieced together facts and information about Hell’s worst enemy throughout the years. Here are some things you might not know about the Doom Slayer.

Doom Slayer Secrets: Doom Slayer Comes From a Family of Heroes

Doom Slayer in full battle gear

Doom and the Wolfenstein series bare some similarities, in that the main antagonists channel the forces of Hell for their nefarious purposes. But the similarities don’t end there: according to Hall and Romero, Id Software’s co-founders, Wolfenstein protagonist William “BJ” Blazkowicz is actually the Doom Slayer’s great grandfather.

In fact, BJ Blazkowicz is also the father of another Id hero: Commander Keen of the Commander Keen series of side-scrolling games. While Commander Keen doesn’t share Doom or Wolfenstein’s dark story, it has been confirmed that the Commander himself is the father of Doom Slayer.

Whether we’re going to see a Doom x Wolfenstein x Commander Keen will always be up for speculation, but if we do get it, it’s going to be an insane ride.

Doom Slayer Secrets: The Doom Slayer is Known by Many Names

While the Doom Slayer has never been named in any of the games, various characters have referred to him as:

  • Doom Slayer
  • Doom Guy
  • Doom Marine
  • Hell Walker

And as it turns out, all these names refer to the same person. In tie-in novels, he’s been named as Flynn Taggart, although many fans don’t consider this canon anymore. For the Doom 3 tie-in novel, he was called John Kane. Meanwhile, the 2005 film Doom had him named as John “Reaper” Grimm, although we don’t like to talk about that dumpster fire (with respect to Dwayne Johnson and Karl Urban, whom we both love).

Doom 2005 - Dwayne Johnson and Karl Urban

Of course, some fans argue that Doom Slayer, Doom Guy, and Doom Marine are 3 different people: the Classic Doom games saw Doom Guy as a leftie, with his trusty pistol being fired from his left hand. In Doom 3, we see a much younger Doom Guy than what’s portrayed in the first two games.

However, to clear up the confusion, take note that the Doom timeline isn’t as linear as the games. To make sense of the understandably confusing storyline, it’s best to play it in the order that developers intended: Doom 3, Doom 1, Doom II: Hell on Earth, the 2016 Doom reboot, and 2020’s Doom Eternal.

Doom Slayer Secrets: Doom Slayer is Practically Immortal Now

If Doom Slayer seems like an unstoppable killing machine that neither rests nor eats, that’s because he is: at some point in time, the Doom Slayer was blessed by the Seraphim with superhuman strength, agility, constitution, and combat skills. Add on his legendary “Praetor Suit”, and he becomes the walking nightmare of any infernal being. Sure you’ll need some pretty serious hardware to see the Praetor Suit in all its glory (we take a rundown of the best Ryzen processors that will be able to achieve this), but trust us, it’s worth it.

Doom Slayer with a pistol

Throughout the games, the Doom Slayer can receive powerups that provide with him with even further abilities. It’s a common mechanic in videogames, but to make it make more sense in the world of Doom, Id Software explained it in such a way that only the Doom Slayer can access these powerups: if they were to be used by mortals, the sheer power of the powerups would drive them mad.

Doom Slayer Secrets: He’s Every Bit a Warrior

At 6ft and 180 lbs of muscle, the Doom Slayer is as intimidating to humans as he is to demons. Couple that with his superhuman powers, near-invulnerability to damage, superior tactics, access to extremely powerful weapons, and an unbreakable spirit, and the Doom Slayer becomes an unstoppable killing machine that can cleanse both this world and Urdak from demonic presence.

Doom Slayer hologram

The Hell Priests prophesied the coming of the Hell Walker, and that he would be the one thing that could end their reign of terror, but that’s, of course, assuming you’re not a noob: the classic Doom games were notoriously difficult to master (with 1996’s Final Doom being renowned for its difficulty), and the 2016 reboot and the 2020 sequel are no exception. Just try to make sure not to get overwhelmed by melee attacks and you should be fine. Of course, it helps if you have one of the best gaming laptops under $1,500 on your desk, considering the game’s substantial hardware requirements.