Game Insider - Best of 2018 Best of 2018 | Page 26

Players once again take on the role of the
Doom Slayer, the iconic ancient warrior who
battles the demonic forces of Hell from a
first-person perspective. If you happen to have
played DOOM, which released in 2016 then you
might be excited to learn that developer id
Software is pulling out all stops with DOOM
ETERNAL, in an effort to somehow surpass its
predecessor.
The game continues its predecessor's
emphasis on "push-forward" combat,
encouraging the player to aggressively engage
enemies in order to acquire health and ammo.
The player has access to various firearms, such
as the Combat Shotgun, Super Shotgun, Heavy
Cannon, Rocket Launcher, Plasma Rifle, and
Ballista. Melee weapons such as a chainsaw, the
"Crucible Blade" energy sword and a retractable
arm-blade can also be used.
The arm-blade provides the opportunity for a
larger variety of quick and violent "glory kill"
executions. The Super Shotgun is now equipped
with a "Meat Hook", which slingshots the player
towards an enemy, functioning as a grappling
hook in both combat scenarios and
environmental navigation. Armaments including
missiles, grenade launchers and flamethrowers
can also be attached to the Doom Slayer's
armor.
New movement mechanics such as wall-
climbing and dash moves will also be
introduced. Creative director Hugo Martin has
stated there will be twice as many demon types
as in the 2016 reboot. There are new types of
enemies, such as the Marauder and Doom
Hunter, while others, such as the Pain Elemental,
Arachnotron, and Archvile, will be reintroduced
from previous Doom entries.
A new system called "Destructible Demons" is
featured, in which enemies' bodies become
progressively destroyed and deteriorated in
combat as they suffer damage.
For the first time in the series, the game will
feature an asymmetric multiplayer mode called
"Invasion", in which players can join others'
single-player campaigns, fighting against them
as demons. This mode can be turned off by
players who wish to play the game solo. In
addition to Invasion, the game features other
standard multiplayer modes.
While id Software will be handling all
developmnt efforts of the game for PC,
PlayStation 4 and Xbox, the Nintendo Switch
version of DOOM ETERNAL is beig developed by
Panic Button, thankfully Marty Stratton and
Hugo Martin both returned to serve as the
game's directors.
The game is the first to be developed with
the id Tech 7 engine, which features ten times
the geometric detail and texture fidelity of
idTech 6. According to Stratton, the team aimed
at making a "Doom universe", featuring larger
and more varied locales, including "Hell on
Earth", for players to explore. Unlike its
predecessor, id Software is developing the
game's multiplayer component in-house, as
opposed to being outsourced to the previous
game's multiplayer developer Certain Affinity,
with the goal of making the experience more
"social" and "connected" with the single-player
campaign.
At the moment, while there is no set launch
date, DOOM ETERNAL is expected to launch
sometime during the 2019 calendar year. We'll
have more for you on the Slayers next outings in
the coming months.
"There are new types of enemies, such as the
Marauder and Doom Hunter, while others, such
as the Pain Elemental, Arachnotron, and Archvile,
will be reintroduced from previous Doom entries.