#flawed analysis

Fists:

Doomguy's hands always had their own slot and were basic melee attacks, with Berserk giving a damage boost and lasting until the level ends.

He had brass knuckles in his left hand but people forget this.

(And despite being silent, they still alert enemies)

D3's fists are kinda similar but Berserk makes them more devastating (Pretty sure they even lock the player into this, while making you faster and invulnerable) and are temporary while you hear screams and have a weird blurry thing in your vision.

And the D3 marine's hands are naked (While the RoE engineer gets his hands decomposed by the Artifact lol).

2016/Eternal make them a dedicated button (One has a generic "gun butt" animation and the other finally uses a fist) and Berserk is obviously more devastating.

The main thing here is the Glory Kill mechanic and Eternal then adds in the Blood Punch.

Eternal's default fist is weak but it's still strong enough to break cracks in walls i guess.

I think in early versions of Doom, there could've been a knife but we all know about the rifle bayonet blades.

Honorable mention? Even D3's flash light was kind of a melee weapon.

And of course: Doomguy is left handed (Or actually uses both hands).

Chainsaw:

Starts off as a basic "brrrrr" melee weapon (Which doesn't have a "knockback" effect on killed enemies like other weapons do) that can kinda stunlock enemies.

In vanilla Doom, i think the Chainsaw replaces the Fist unless you pick up Berserk (Please don't tell me this is another Mandela effect situation).

D64's is faster and has a unique double blade design (And eventually the Doom Hunter carries a tribute to it).

D3 is almost like the classic in 3D (And from what i recall, was devastating).

2016/Eternal make it rely on fuel tanks and instakill enemies for ammo pickups with cool animations, though Eternal also gives it one rechargeable pip for the sake of fodder enemies.

But there's different levels of how much fuel is required based on enemy categories.

Almost every 2016 enemy can be chainsawed but Eternal prevents chainsaw use over super heavies, bosses and most ambient except Tentacles.

(They also make it tied to a dedicated button)

In D2RPG, you could use this to destroy corpses for stuff and the previous RPG game had an axe.

Honorable mentions? Crucible and Sentinel Hammer kinda.

Pistol:

Doom's starter weapon, which is serviceable enough until you find other/enough weapons.

In D3 it was alright since i'm pretty sure it had seperate bullet ammo from the Assault Rifle and Chaingun (Each had their own ammo i think?).

Xbox version of RoE also attachs a lantern to it.

2016 makes it a unique laser gun with infinite ammo whose shots can be charged and upgraded to deal more damage (And the MP had another laser pistol but red).

Eternal had its pistol cut, even thought it has a cool "repeater"-like fire that made it seem satisfying.

Honorable mention: The Holy Water Pistol from D2RPG which scares most demons, can be refilled from some water sources and can even heal the player.

Assault Rifle/Machinegun:

From the iconic box art, to Doomguy and Zombieman's sprites to the unused variations of rifles in the alpha/beta versions, this idea was destined for Doom.

D3 finally had an assault rifle and it was alright, even had an ammo counter screen and a sound effect/signal/feedback for when ammo in a clip is low.

2016 adds one that sort of fills the classic Chaingun role and can be upgraded with Micro Missiles (Whose no-reload upgrade makes a great combo with the Rich Get Richer rune) and Tactical Scope (Whose upgrades are more damage, faster movement and piercing enemies).

As for Eternal's Heavy Cannon: Percision Bolt can lead to explosive headshots and its Micro Missiles will obviously have more damage/less time based stuff but even Heavy Cannon kills lead to a temporary Micro Missible buff with Primary Charger).

Honorable mention? I think 2016's files has an unused Nail-gun somewhere, as a cut weapon.

Also, the Burst Rifle/Repeater from 2016 MP.

Visually? Heavy Cannon is red and looks huge but D3 has the tiny screen counting ammo.

Chaingun:

Its design was probably inspired by the similar weapon in Wolfenstein 3D and it took until D3 for the Assault Rifle to become the basic bullet firing weapon while the "Chaingun" becomes more akin to what Quake 2 introduced.

In the classics, it's a basic fast firing weapon whose first shot or two can be accurate, hence why people use it to snipe enemies or shootable switches.

Though naturally, it gets less accurate the further you are from your targets.

D3 added both reloading and a wind up mechanic (Both being present seems a bit too much but at least the damage it delt was fine).

2016 still has wind up but it kinda shoots within that part, while Eternal gets rid of it (Though in E3 2019, i think it still had wind down after firing) and paints its bullets blue for fun.

2016 has the Gatling Rotator (Which can be upgraded to be incendiary i think) while Eternal has the Energy Shield.

Mobile Turret is 3 barrels in 2016 and 4 in Eternal (And Eternal's version can be upgraded to let you move faster).

Ammo is technically required to use Eternal CG's Energy Shield, but it's cool that this feature can even become a projectile.

Visuals, the Eternal chaingun looks like it shoots energy but the 64 one also has those holes in the barrels and shot blue first.

Combat Shotgun:

In early sprites, the end of the barrel had a "thick ring" like thing around it.

A basic weapon that seems to be consistent.

D64 has no proper reloading animation.

D3's iteration is infamous for its spread and damage output.

2016 is recovered from the cancelled Doom 4.

Its alt fires are the explosive shot (When fully upgraded, there's cluster bombs it seems) and Charged Burst (When fully upgraded, if you succeed on this triple fire then the next fire will deal more damage i guess).

Eternal replaces these with the Sticky Bomb (Its capacity is later increased to 5) and Full Auto (It can reach a point where it makes enemies drop shells and increase movement speed).

Eternal SG's Full Auto could've had a "Rapid Hit Scale" feature.

I like how Eternal's design is more "honest" about its alt fires.

Super Shotgun:

In pre-release versions, there's an unused design that even had a frame similar to one of the base SG's reloading frames.

Classic SSG has vertical spread while base SG doesn't.

RoE brings back the SSG which was absent from the main game and i guess it was alright, sort of compensating for the main SG (And because the SSG's workings, it's like one of the few weapons that technically has no "reloading").

Eternal's is obviously the most unique one, from its Sentinel design to the meathook (And its Flaming Hook upgrade).

2016 looked out of place in a setting with very advanced tech, which is a contrast to older SSG's fitting the low tech aspect of Doom's future.

And 2016 could've also been upgraded to shoot really fast and penetrate enemies that even the "shoot one shell at a time" mode of firing becomes OP.

Meanwhile, D64's kinda had a pushback effect on you and again, no proper reloading animation.

And i guess the PS1 port made it look ugly but then the Final Doom PS1 port fixed it.

Rocket Launcher:

In some early versions, there was an unused sprite for a sideways "missile launcher".

The classic RL fired in a fast enough pace and later versions fire rockets in a slower speed.

In some cases, you can "rocket jump" to push yourself to a different place but then there's the infinite height stuff to consider (For better or worse, depending on the situation).

In vanilla Doom, if you use the wallrun bug to outrun your rockets, they go through you.

D64's RL can also kinda push the player back like the SSG in the same game.

I also think D64's rockets spawn a bit differently from the player compared to the D1/2 version.

2016 is slow but introduces Lock-On Burst and Remote Detonation.

One can be upgraded to reach multitargeting and the other can make detonated rockets drop pieces of sharpnel and even not destroy the rockets in this mode.

For Eternal's versions: One gets feedback to indicate proximity and can falter enemies, while the other also has a multitarget sort of thing.

I think Lock-On Burst also has differences in each game, where one has rockets deal less damage but the other doesn't.

Eternal's RL also has the projectile coming from the RL's model itself, which i think was discovered by BloodShot9001 in a video.

Eternal's is the most unique visually because of its Cultist/open chamber design and even its rockets have a different skin compared to the ones in the rocket ammo pickup.

I think Eternal also has a smaller radius for its rocket projectile compared to classsic Doom.

Grenades:

I like the look of D3 grenades because of how low-tech they look.

They have the typical "bounce of walls/floors but instantly explode when touching enemies" idea as expected.

They also have a bit of a timer so you can throw them a little later to time your attacks.

(I think they're based off Q2 grenades)

2016's Frag Grenade looks a bit more like a sci-fi M67 but it works as a side item and it can slap enemies before exploding.

And Inventory items can recharge, even if there's still pickups.

Eternal's Frag Grenades are sphere shaped (Which means different physics) and can be used without interruption thanks to the shoulder based Equipment Launcher.

Upgrades include decreased cooldown, faltering effect, making enemies drop scatter bombs and a double fire before recharge.

Honorable mention: The Grenade Launcher from 2016 multiplayer.

And i guess all those other inventory items in both games (MP included) and the fact that Eternal has an unused double Equip Launcher upgrade.

Plasma Rifle:

In early versions, it could shot green stuff instead of blue.

The classic one kinda stands out because of the "recoil" frame that blocks you from shooting when you stop firing.

With how this weapon changed over time, there's the subtle difference between the speed of the projectiles being fired and how fast the projectiles travel.

This might be why people think that in 2016/Eternal it deals less damage even if i'm pretty sure both these recent versions added a subtle splash damage on enemies (And Eternal makes them visually pop).

2016's PR has a faster fire rate than Eternal's, bigger maximum capacity and might do more damage.

2016 PR has a Stun Bomb and Eternal has the Microwave Beam, which was originally going to let you heat up more than one enemy at once.

(Though i think the same beam can hurt another enemy while focused on one you locked it on)

I like how Eternal's Heat Blast can heat up projectiles after use but i think 2016's Heat Blast had a 360 radius damage around the player, so i kinda like that too.

Eternal's Heat Blast also has different levels of power depending on how much you charge it up.

Also note how in some games, projectiles look shiny but in others look like bubbles or something: Do people care about these specific visual differences?

D64's was slower and had an energy tube that made noise while D3's looked weird i guess.

Ballista/Gauss Cannon:

One's a UAC creation and the other is of Sentinel origin, but both are like Doom's take on the Quake rail-gun (There's also 2 other weapons like this in 2016's multiplayer).

Also: Gauss/Ballista jumping is a thing.

People say the Gauss cannon feels more powerfull but to be fair, the Ballista has more unique alt fires.

Both Gauss cannon alt fires feel like "wait until the shot deals more damage and some upgrades enable faster movement" while Arbalist is an exploding dart (Can be upgraded to let you fire the next one in less time) and Destroyer Blade is a powerfull horizontal spread projectile (Its upgrades are pretty much "more damage" and also a bit of falter on enemies).

Honorable mention? D2RPG had a sniper rifle which could deal great damage with headshots but would also wobble around for added difficulty.

BFG9000:

The iconic big gun with the funny name and based off toys (Like some of the others).

Originally meant to shoot "Christmas Lights" that bounced off ceilings/floors, it instead shoots a green projectile that does damage while an invisible tracer system is activated from the player's view and enemies are hit by it if the player is aimed at where the projectile hits.

All this time, this iconic weapon was more of a weird silent shotgun.

Its design also displays 2 things in the upper back area that make it seem like you have to attach it to your shoulders.

D64's variation looks different and is slightly slower but still mostly the same.

D3 redesigns the weapon not just visually but also mechanically, with one example being having unique ammo instead of plasma cells.

And its projectiles have proximity damaging tendrils taken from Quake 2.

You can also not only reload it but charge its projectile, though if you charge for too long, the weapon can explode and kill you.

(There's also the electric chip inside the projectile and the Sabaoth)

2016 simplifies what D3 introduced and gives it its own dedicated button, so it's more of a "panic button" sort of thing.

And its design is clearly inspired by the 2005 movie.

(I think 2016's BFG was originally going to have mods like the other weapons, like a flamethrower attack or the BFG10K from Quake 3)

Eternal's iteration looks different (And is now part of the weapon wheel) but it's still mostly there.

Something i thought about was how you never really see the front of the "classic" style BFG except in D2RPG, That one Symbiote Doomguy doll, Fallout 4's Creation Club Doom thing and i guess Rage 2.

Honorable mention? 2016 multiplayer's Tesla Rocket and i guess the BFG grenade from Doom VFR.

Unmaker/Unmaykr:

One from Hell, the other from Urdak.

And one also uses cell ammo while the other shares ammo with the BFG.

Unmaker starts off weak but is upgraded to fire faster and more shots (Same keys used to shut down those portals in the Mother Demon's stage) while the Unmaykr is already the way it is but requires Empyrean keys from Slayer Gate arenas.

Unmaker is actually hitscan so its "projectiles" are just a visual effect.

I think the reason why the Unmaykr isn't as liked is because of the arena format with mobile enemies, whereas the Unmaker is still part of the classic format where enemies aren't as mobile/smart and because of D64's encounters, a fully upgraded Unmaker can surpass the BFG9000.

(But in situations with less space for the BFG tendrils and some encounters with super heavies, you might end up giving the Unmaykr a chance)

And the Unmaker is blatantly Hellish while the Unmaykr looks like another sci-fi gun because of Urdak's aesthetic: If Urdak had more to its theme or if Doom has a different type of Heaven, i guess this weapon could've looked even more "Christian" than the Holy Water Pistol.

Honorable mention? 2016 MP's reaper i guess.

And also the Dark Claw from the Doom Bible.

Of course, never forget the original Unmaker from the same document that was supposed to hurt pure demons the most, former humans the least and cybernetic demons partially.

Edit: It's also worth mentioning that "Unmaker" is a name from the Doom bible while in the D64 files, the gun is called something akin to "Laser gun" and there's a screenshot of early D64 and a leaked sprite that suggest an early design of the weapon: Which looks like a flamethrower somehow.

Soul Cube:

Because it also shows up in D2RPG and has a different design in it (Is it from the same lore? I dunno).

But does it heal you in D2RPG? I also dunno lol.

Honorable mentions? I guess the Siphon Grenade from 2016 and the RoE Artifact.

Extinguisher:

Yes it was in 2 games: DRPG and Doom VFR and in both it's used to put out fires.

Though in DRPG it's part of the arsenal and in VFR it's used like once i think.

Anyway:

This didn't turn out as good as the demons one, because weapons are a different area.

There's still areas/data i overlooked like ammo pickups amount and how the player automatically switches to another gun in certain cases.

Or stuff outright wrong and misremembered.

Maybe i could update this post to add more info, who knows.

As far as resources go:

BloodShot9001

DOOMGUY BOT

Decino

Doomwiki

UnderTheMayo

elysiumgaming2866

tsiripas

FIST:

Has its own keybind as is a simple move that makes enemies drop health pick ups when punched, as in D4 fashion

1st slot: EGM SIDEARM:

Pistol whose design sort of resembles D3 and 4

Has infinite ammo and shoots laser instead of bullets

Alt fire is a lantern, which could resemble D3 BFG edition but it's actually based off D3's duct tape mod (Or at least Xbox version of D3RoE)

Menu option turns off intinite ammo, so it uses bullets as ammo, obviously

2nd slot: COMBAT SHOTGUN:

D64 look but still has a normal reloading animation

Alt fire is D4's grenade shot, costing 4 shells

Drops shell casings.

2nd slot: HOLY WATER PISTOL:

From D2RPG

Main fire deals low damage but makes most foes cry and run like cowards, while instantly killing LS's (Originally, it just stunned them and dealt more damage on LS's and maybe Archies too but less on zombies, but i might be wrong)

Second alt fire refills your health but wastes more water

To refill its ammo, just stand on most liquid textured floors (Originally it was filled with water tanks/fountains and using toilets)

When you refill with water, you may heard a sound that is RPG related

Has its own bindable key

3rd slot: SUPER SHOTGUN:

Has D2's design but with different sprites, animations and Doom Eternal’s meathook, which seems based off the Doom alpha/beta bayonet rifle blades and painted gold

Primary fire is the same

Secondary fire shoots the meat hook and if it hits an enemy, they’re stunned and the hook brings the player to said enemy, which has a lot of traversal potential

Meathook has time based delay if successfully used, hence the lights in the weapon indicating how much time left

If you miss, you can shoot it again

It also works on UV co-op players

The movement itself is not as complex or “web slingy” as Eternal’s

Meathook can also bring some gameplay breaking issues at times, so be considerate

Can show up in Doom 1 sometimes, by replacing Shotty placement

Drops shell casings

3rd slot: FIRE EXTINGUISHER:

Doom RPG weapon that can put up Lost Souls, fireball projectiles and even flames/fires from certain props

Second fire can save you from Archvile's fire attack (I think originally it was mainly used to put up fires blocking paths and deal more damage on LS's and Archies)

Has its own bindable key

4th slot: ASSAULT RIFLE:

Doom 3's machine gun, which sort of resembles classic Doom's chaingun, but apparently it fires one tick faster, due to complaints of it sounding weak

Alt fire is D4's micromissiles, which wastes a lot of ammo and they have a short delay when sticking to enemies before exploding

Drops bullet casings

4th slot: CHAINGUN:

Design mostly represents D64 and 3, but painted blue

Primary fire is obvious, more damage at the cost of waiting times (I thnk it also uses a beta D3 sound)

Second fire: D4's turret mode, unleashing three barrels to do more damage at the cost of ammo (It also prevents you from walking instead of just walking slowly)

Drops bullet casings

5th slot: ROCKET LAUNCHER:

Design represents D1, 64 and 3

Firing sound is Eternal related and fused with 3 firing sound

Alt fire is from D4, detonating rockets in mid air that can drop fragments that deal damage (Based off an upgrade for this alt fire in the game)

5th slot: GRENADE LAUNCHER:

A weapon from D4's multiplayer DLC

Like a traditional GL, its grenades either bounce around and explode shortly after or explode on impact with enemies

Second fire is a gas grenade, that drops short lasting gas, that continues to hurt enemies (Or sometimes you)

Grenade sprites may be Duke Nukem related, while the green cloud is probably from Hexen

In D4, the official GL shoots a harmless smoke bomb but D4's MP has a Plasma Rifle whose alt fire is an harmfull energy floor like a Cybermanc attack

6th slot: PLASMA RIFLE:

Design and sounds represent classic Plasma gun and D3/4 (Could resemble all versions, actually)

Has no recoil

The screen on the weapon shows bars being filled when firing, this is so when they're full, you can use the alt fire

When each bar is filled, there’s sounds from Eternal being used

Alt fire is D4's heat wave, which seems to be composed of stronger Plasma balls than a simple Plasma wave

It also affects your surroundings in a 360 degree angle, something that 2016’s heat wave did but not Eternal

6th slot: LIGHTNING GUN:

D4 multiplayer weapon, whose primary fire is a string of electricity that shocks enemies and wastes a bit more ammo

Alt fire is borrowed from the Plasma gun in D4, which is a harmless projectile that stuns enemies

6th slot: GAUSS CANNON:

D4 weapon, that is pretty much a Quake Rail Gun, kinda

Design sort of represents the original BFG9000 or at least early sprites and the toy they used for it

Primary fire even has that spiral effect from Q2 and Skulltag

Second fire is just a scope for the sake of balance and maybe a page taken from the Vortex Rifle (Its design still resembles one of the Gauss Cannon's alt fires)

If you're too close, it can cause splash damage and hurt you

7th slot: BFG 9000:

Design represents D64 and 4

Uses separate ammo from Plasma gun (Argent core)

Main fire may deal a bit more damage than usual and the projectile can damage enemies nearby, as inspired by D3/4

Second fire is a stream of BFG balls based off an unused BFG fire (It can even bounce on floors/ceilings) but there's no red projectiles

7th slot: UNMAKER:

Doom 64's hellish weapon whose design also represents the Reaper (D4 multiplayer DLC) and because it's originally nameless, it's technically nicknamed after a Doom bible weapon

Like the original, it starts off as an odd cousin of the Plasma rifle, but once you pick up the demonkeys, it fires faster and gets to shoot three projectiles at once (Though it may not be entirely faithfull, at least if you look at that video by Decino or the ClassicDOOM channel)

Said demonkeys can spawn next to BFG/Unmaker spots and in D64 maps (Consolation Prizes), they're where they're supposed to be

Demonkeys also unlock and upgrade an alt fire, where you charge up 1 to 3 laser beams

7th slot: SOULCUBE:

Doom 3's magic cube whose design is based off Doom 2's spawn cube and it smoothly shakes on screen when used

Once picked up, enemies start dropping "soul essance" and you need at least 10 of those to make the weapon work (May be based off D4's MP mode called Soul Harvest)

Once you got 10 souls, you can use the Cube to instantly kill one enemy and they'll drop ammo/health/armor like in D4 fashion

Despite being a BFG replacement, it can replace chainsaw in rare occasions (E2M5, Map 10)

Has its own bindable key

8th slot: CHAINSAW:

It's design and sounds mostly resemble later designs but it's technically just a yellow chainsaw, so it may not matter that much

Primary fire is the same, while second is just a strong and slow swing attack

Press the FIST key and you get an attack that makes enemies drop health goodies

8th slot: FIRE AXE:

Doom RPG's axe, which normally had a black head and yellow handle, but who cares

Primary/second fire: Slow melee attack that makes enemies bleed and drop health for a while, but zombie types die instantly