DOOM Eternal is the first major shooter to be released in 2020. However, there are several competitors from previous years that could still overshadow DOOM. How will it assert itself?
DOOM Eternal will be released on March 20, 2020, making it the first new AAA shooter of the year. Nevertheless, shooter fans have already been offered quite a lot:
- Only on March 10, 2020, the new Battle Royale mode Warzone in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare launched. It excited players and made such an impact that it stormed Twitch.
- Even the enduring title Fortnite received its second season of Chapter 2 with update 12 in February. The flow of content in the Battle Royale is repeatedly praised, and there is still no end in sight.
So how does DOOM Eternal plan to compete against these opponents? Let’s take a look at what it offers.
DOOM is unique, and it should stay that way
To explain why DOOM can hold its ground against massive successes like CoD and Fortnite, we first want to clarify why the name “DOOM” carries so much weight for comparison. Many of today’s players seem to no longer know this.
The history of DOOM
The DOOM series has always been known for setting new standards and shaping the entire shooter genre. Already with the first part in 1993, a new engine was introduced that allowed for new designs and revolutionized 3D graphics for shooters.
The entire engine, which for the first time allowed the use of simulated verticality, led many post-DOOM games to be seen merely as clones. Many of the graphical features that were adopted were first introduced by DOOM.
With DOOM (1993) came for the first time a hardcore and popular multiplayer mode that excited players: Deathmatch. Although shooters had previously offered multiplayer, DOOM coined the term “Deathmatch”.
The mode in which many players compete against each other and play until one reaches the most kills is still present in almost every shooter today – even in CoD. One could even argue that popular Battle Royale games today evolved from the Deathmatch.
Many subsequent entries in the series have impressed with similar innovations. Doom 64 for the Nintendo 64, for example, was the first to use technology to layer rooms on top of each other.
For the latest entry, DOOM (2016), a new engine was developed again, the “id Tech 6”. This new technology enabled even better graphics, which is particularly delightful for fans in a splatter fest like DOOM.
DOOM Eternal will again receive a new engine – the “id Tech 7”, for an even prettier appearance and up to 1000FPS, if your hardware can handle it.
What makes DOOM so special?
As already mentioned in the previous section, DOOM has repeatedly shaped the shooter genre through innovations. This is also because it has been able to provide players with an entirely new gaming experience.
Brutal and hardcore gameplay: The toughness of the game is something that did not exist before. The toughness is characterized by two things:
- The DOOM series is known for showing particularly bloody scenes. For this reason, many parts ended up on the index in Germany or were even banned entirely.
- The games themselves are truly difficult and require skill and practice.
The difficulty has always been something that DOOM seems to take pride in. Enemies can be dangerous even at lower difficulty levels, but the names of the difficulty levels are indicative:
- The second difficulty level is already called “Hurt Me Plenty” (which means “Hurt me a lot”)
- and the highest “Ultra-Nightmare”, which is exactly as it sounds in DOOM.
This aligns with the idea of facing the hordes of hell and has always been a hallmark of the series.
Unique atmosphere: The developers have early on relied on music that fits the game – metal. The music, often described by many as “screaming with noise” or similar, fits perfectly with its hard riffs and aggressive tempo to the action in DOOM.
This results in an even more intense gaming feel, as you get completely immersed in the scene while playing. The music, particularly the composer Mick Gordon, has become almost as popular as DOOM itself. There is even a running gag within the community: “Cool, the new album by Mick Gordon comes with a free game!” A little taste:
While DOOM naturally attracts metal fans, the music is not primarily for that reason in the game. It simply fits – and can therefore also impress people who usually listen to something different, independent of the soundtrack.
DOOM is simply metal.
Eternal will be hardcore – really, even for DOOM
As usual, the new DOOM Eternal comes in different difficulty levels, from Easy to Ultra-Nightmare. The fact that the second easiest mode is called “Hurt Me Plenty” indicates something about DOOM.
In DOOM Eternal, the name is the program. I, as someone who often plays shooters and is fairly good at it, have struggled while playing. I died in the first level of DOOM Eternal, and that was not much more than the tutorial on “Hurt Me Plenty”.
What makes DOOM Eternal so hard? The difference from previous DOOM entries is that in Eternal, the enemies are always equally intelligent. This means they always have the same behavior patterns.
That was different in the past. They became smarter as the difficulty increased, which meant you always had to readjust to them. Now, the difficulty only changes the damage taken and dealt.
This leads to a particularly nasty start in DOOM Eternal. Only DOOM veterans will likely get through it without major injuries. The advantage, however, is that the game becomes more enjoyable with longer playtime – even on Ultra-Nightmare.
DOOM comes at just the right time
What can speak for the success of DOOM Eternal is the timing of its release. Now, in spring 2020, hardly any new games and no new shooters of this magnitude are being released.
What else is coming out? If you take a look at our list of game releases for 2020, you will see that there have been hardly any new releases prior to DOOM Eternal and it will also be a while before anything else comes out.
On April 24, Predator: Hunting Grounds will be released, but other notable shooters are not on the horizon. Only Valorant is set to enter beta at some point in 2020.
DOOM Eternal thus has the opportunity to set a milestone once again, as it will remain the only new shooter with fresh ideas for the foreseeable future.
How will DOOM assert itself? In DOOM Eternal, the developers and publisher Bethesda are relying not only on the fanbase of the cult shooter, but are also exploring new paths.
One of the trailers contains a lot of story (for a DOOM) and tells more story than one is used to. But this story is surprisingly well-received. A new, apparently successful way.
In the latest TV spot for DOOM Eternal, Bethesda has also dispensed with the heavy music in the background and instead opted for light hip-hop – something that can appeal to a whole new audience.
Fans of DOOM Eternal already know what to expect. But to attract new players and expand the player base, this is a quite useful strategy. More players lead to several advantages:
- more active multiplayer
- more possible content for later due to increased revenue
- greater media success, also through word of mouth
- new ideas for DOOM in the future thanks to new impulses from the community
DOOM Eternal offers things that CoD and Fortnite do not
To compete against the strong franchises Call of Duty and Fortnite, DOOM Eternal delivers several features that are either absent from or not found in the same way in the other two games.
Many options for character development
This is how DOOM Eternal ensures progress: In Eternal, there are several features that allow players to improve and customize their characters. Eternal offers, for example:
- Runes, of which three can be equipped at the same time and can grant special abilities
- Weapon mods – two per weapon with various effects
- Upgrades for the Praetorian Armor
- Passive talents via Sentinel Crystals that influence ammunition, health, and armor and grant perks
- The DOOM Fortress, a flying fortress that you continuously expand throughout the campaign
- Unlockable weapons and equipment like flamethrowers and ice grenades
It should be possible to achieve all progress in one playthrough, but it is nearly impossible. Only truly good and attentive players can manage that.
What do the individual systems bring? Each of the progress features advances you in different ways. Improvements to Praetorian Armor and Sentinel Crystals, for example, increase your chances of survival.
Runes and weapon mods ensure that you deal more damage and can defeat enemies more effectively. Some of them even allow you to stun certain enemies, making them vulnerable to immediate death via Glorykill.
What’s particularly interesting is the Fortress. Here you receive some of your equipment, exhibit found records (which should pacify even the critics of the TV spot’s music), rearrange your skills, and start new missions.
Since there are tons of secrets in DOOM Eternal, it’s worth coming back and exploring the ship repeatedly. Behind almost every displayed item lies a story – and in the “Man Cave” of the Doomslayer, there are numerous Easter eggs and a PC waiting to be fed with floppy disks for a secret game.
Customize your Slayer: Besides various upgrade options that can influence your playstyle, you also have the opportunity to change your appearance. You can unlock or receive various skins for this purpose.
In a short video, Bethesda has already presented numerous cosmetics for this – including a DOOMicorn skin for Twitch Prime users.
Content for everyone – and increasingly so
This content is available during the game: The developers have indicated that the playtime of DOOM Eternal is about 22 hours – primarily referring to the campaign. This is nearly double the length of its predecessor DOOM (2016).
However, you can already ensure variety and extended playtime in the campaign through optional tasks.
Slayer Portals – additional levels during the campaign: For one, there are Slayer Portals – additional areas where you have to slay even more demons. The trick about the portals is that they are essentially part of the campaign. This means that all extra lives and ammunition you waste there will also be consumed.
Moreover, the demons there become increasingly difficult. For every slain Slayer, they grow stronger, similar to a Nemesis system, and bear the names of the defeated players above their heads.
Invasions like in Dark Souls – PvP during the campaign: On the other hand, there is an invasion feature that will come in the future. Anyone who signs up for this option can be attacked by other players during the campaign.
They take on the role of powerful demons and challenge the player with special abilities.
What about the endgame? However, there are also various activities after the campaign to keep players entertained. Specifically, two things stand out:
- The Battle Mode replaces multiplayer and allows for asymmetric PvP – two demons face off against one Slayer
- Master levels increase the difficulty of levels during replay with more boss demons and tougher opponents, regardless of the chosen difficulty
Anyone who really wants to “complete” DOOM Eternal must not only collect all upgrades but also complete all Master Levels on Ultra-Nightmare. That could take a while. In the video from the colleagues at GameStar, you will get a deeper insight:
More content in the future: With the release on March 20, the development of DOOM Eternal is not yet finished. The game will continue to receive more content, almost like an MMO.
What exactly that will be is not yet known. However, there is already a points system in the base game that unlocks new cosmetics gradually. It’s therefore quite possible that a kind of battle pass will come for more content for Battle Mode – or new game modes like the classic Deathmatch mode.
Does DOOM have a chance against CoD and Fortnite?
That DOOM Eternal will sustain itself as long as Fortnite is rather unlikely. At least, it certainly will not reach the player count of the Battle Royale. However, the target audiences only partially overlap.
Nevertheless, the mentioned features are a reason why, at least at the game’s release, many players are likely to give DOOM a chance. Here at MeinMMO, many users are already determined to play it, as our survey shows.
Will be bought right after my vacation! That’s as certain as the amen in church.
Mapache on MeinMMO
I’m really looking forward to the game.
DOOM also has a cult factor that will certainly drive many fans to play it, and the advertising strategy of the new TV spot with different music may even reach a new target audience.
With its unique features that neither CoD nor Fortnite offers, along with its fan base, DOOM Eternal will assert itself. Personally, along with many who have informed themselves about DOOM, I will likely ignore the other shooters at least at launch.
Especially the progress systems are a good thing that motivates playing through, and since they help in easily defeating the tough enemies, these two features strongly interlock. The endgame content then offers something for all who are interested and the portals along with the upcoming invasion mode already give the first playthrough a bit more spice.
Whether and how the upcoming features can regularly draw players back and keep them playing remains to be seen.
How can DOOM Eternal assert itself against Fortnite or Call of Duty?
- DOOM attracts an older player base that associates it with a great shooter experience from the past that modern shooters do not offer in the same form. For these, DOOM is almost a must-buy.
- DOOM can offer a new shooter experience to a younger audience that has grown up with Fortnite, one that they have not yet experienced. Fortnite has made the genre appealing to them in its infancy.
- DOOM, although not a classic service game with constant updates, provides enough content through a variety of progress systems, ensuring hours of engagement. Plus, the super tough challenges offer sufficient hurdles that can be attempted over weeks.
Since DOOM is a shooter with cult status and history, which at this point offers features that other modern shooters do not, Eternal can establish itself alongside the other big titles.
What do you think? Will DOOM Eternal prevail?
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