Doom Eternal's Soundtrack Controversy, Explained

Id Software and Doom Eternal executive producer Marty Stratton has issued a public statement about its current relationship with Doom Eternal composer Mick Gordon after weeks of speculation that there was some kind of trouble between the two parties over the recently released Doom Eternal soundtrack. After a slight delay, the Doom Eternal soundtrack part of the game’s collector’s edition was released on April 20, a month after the game was released. But fans quickly found something amiss with the sound mixing leading to a backlash against id Software and in particular id’s lead audio engineer Chad Mossholder. [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/03/12/doom-eternal-launch-trailer"] The controversy began in April when a viral Twitter thread highlighted the sound-mixing for the newly released Doom Eternal soundtrack. Twitter users @thatADCDguy posted side-by-side visual comparisons of the BFG Division track from Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal and noted that the mixing for the Doom Eternal version was less dynamic. Gordon responded in a tweet that he didn’t mix those and if he did, he would have done differently. A supposed social media DM from Gordon also seemed to indicate that he would no longer be working with id Software going forward.

I didn't mix those and wouldn't have done that. You'll be able to spot the small handful of tracks I mixed (Meathook, Command and Control, etc...)

— Mick Gordon (@Mick_Gordon) April 19, 2020

In a lengthy post on the Doom Eternal subreddit, Stratton attempted to clear the air as to why the soundtrack for the new shooter was not fully mixed by composer Mick Gordon’s whose award-winning work on Doom 2016 has defined the rebooted Doom series. The reason for this was because of some complications on the production side of things, and according to Stratton, a shifting deadline. After agreeing with Gordon on the contract for a soundtrack by early March, Gordon reached out to id requesting an extension. “On February 24, Mick reached out to communicate that he and his team were fine with the terms of the agreement but that there was a lot more work involved than anticipated, a lot of content to wade through,” Stratton writes. “He apologized and asked that ‘ideally’ he be given an additional four weeks to get everything together. He offered that the extra time would allow him to provide upwards of 30 tracks and a run-time over two hours[.]” [ignvideo url="https://www.ign.com/videos/2020/03/24/doom-eternal-final-review"] Stratton says that id agreed to the extension with a new deadline set for mid-April. However, once April arrived Stratton says “we grew increasingly concerned about Mick delivering the OST to us on time. I personally asked our Lead Audio Designer at id, Chad [Mossholder], to being work on id versions of the tracks” as a backup plan. Mossholder would mix music Gordon previously submitted for use in-game into soundtrack form, which requires a different kind of sound-mixing. Stratton says that as the deadline approached Gordon was the one who suggested he and Mossholder combine the work they both completed into a full soundtrack, leading to the final version of the Doom Eternal OST that includes tracks mixed by Gordon and tracks edited by Mossholder using Gordon’s original music he previously submitted for use in-game. [widget path="global/article/imagegallery" parameters="albumSlug=10-best-id-software-weapons&captions=true"] “As for the immediate future, we are at the point of moving on and won’t be working with Mick on the [Doom Eternal] DLC we currently have in production,” says Stratton. “I’m as disappointed as anyone that we’re at this point, but as we have many times before, we will adapt to changing circumstances and pursue the most unique and talented artists int he industry with whom to collaborate.” The ending to Stratton’s statement makes clear that, as far as the DLC is concerned, Gordon will not be involved with music for that. It’s unclear if the two parties will collaborate again, but this episode appears to have frayed the relationship between the two parties somewhat. This would be a shame as our Doom Eternal review highlights the music, but there are times when production issues can affect a working relationship. IGN has reached out to Gordon for a statement. [poilib element="accentDivider"] Matt Kim is a reporter for IGN.