Doom (upcoming video game)

This article is about the upcoming fourth installment of the Doom series. For the first installment, see Doom (1993 video game).
Doom

Splash screen from the teaser trailer
Developer(s) id Software
Publisher(s) Bethesda Softworks[1]
Writer(s) Graham Joyce[2]
Series Doom
Engine id Tech 6[3]
Platform(s) Microsoft Windows
PlayStation 4
Xbox One
Release date(s) TBA
Genre(s) First-person shooter
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Doom (stylized as DOOM and originally known as Doom 4) is the upcoming reboot of the Doom series by id Software following the release of its last title, Doom 3, in 2004. It is slated for simultaneous release on Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One with no confirmed release date. After years in development with almost no news from id Software, it was restarted completely in 2011 with Bethesda Softworks as publisher for the game.

Development

As Doom 4

The game was announced as in production on May 7, 2008,[4] after John Carmack, then lead developer at id Software, hinted it at QuakeCon on August 3, 2007.[5] Id Software's CEO Todd Hollenshead suggested that, like Doom II: Hell on Earth, it will take place on Earth,[6] and will feature gameplay more akin to the original Doom games rather than the horror styled gameplay of Doom 3.[7] In April 2009, Hollenshead said Doom 4 was "deep in development." When asked if Doom 4 would be "a sequel? A reboot? A prequel?", his response was: "It's not a sequel to Doom 3, but it's not a reboot either. Doom 3 was sort of a reboot. It's a little bit different than those."[8]

On June 23, 2009, ZeniMax Media, best known for Bethesda Softworks, acquired id Software and announced that all future id games will be published by Bethesda Softworks, including Doom 4 in addition to Rage and future Quake titles.[9] Carmack said at Quakecon 2011 that once Rage shipped its development team would move to Doom 4 to speed up on that project. Doom 4 might also feature dedicated servers unlike Rage.[10]

On August 1, 2008, John Carmack said that Doom 4 will look three times better than Rage does, intended to run at 30 frames per second; on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3; rather than 60 that Rage targets.[11] In its Windows version, Doom 4 was intended to run at 60 frames per second with state-of-the-art hardware.[12] In 2009, he revealed that the multiplayer component is being developed separately and will run at 60 frames per second.[13] Carmack stated in 2011 that "you can't have 30 guys crawling all over you at 60 frames per second at this graphics technology level because it's painful. -- So, [in single-player] we can have 30 demons crawling all over you on there."[14]

In April 2013, Kotaku published an exposé describing Doom 4 as trapped in "development hell". Citing connections to id, the article claims that Doom 4 has suffered under mismanagement, and that development was completely restarted in 2011. Inside sources described the pre-2011 version, which was to portray the uprising of hell on Earth, as heavily scripted and cinematic, comparing it to the Call of Duty franchise. The pre-2011 version was criticized as mediocre, but the sources also described the new version as "lame" and a "mess."[15] Id's Tim Willits said during Quakecon 2013: "Every game has a soul. Every game has a spirit. When you played Rage, you got the spirit. And [Doom 4] did not have the spirit, it did not have the soul, it didn’t have a personality."[16]

At the 2011 QuakeCon, Carmack mentioned that new Doom will be using a new scripting language that is based on C++, and called it "super-script". This so-called "super-script" is a subset of C++; with features like scheduling and type safety.[10] In February 2012, some alleged screenshots were released on Official Xbox Magazine UK's website,[17] but the images were discredited by id Software's creative director Matthew Hooper.[18] In November 2013, Carmack left id Software to commit to his work at Oculus VR.[19]

As Doom

After the game was sent back to the drawing board, Willits revealed in August 2013 that the next game in the Doom franchise was still the team's focus although he did not make it clear if the game was still meant to be titled Doom 4.[20] On February 19, 2014, Bethesda revealed that access to a beta version of Doom 4, renamed Doom, will be available for those who pre-order Wolfenstein: The New Order on any of the platforms.[21]

On June 10, 2014, a teaser trailer of Doom[22] was presented at Electronic Entertainment Expo 2014 as well as at QuakeCon's website and at a new official Doom website. A more expansive trailer was unveiled at QuakeCon 2014 on July 17, 2014, where a closed presentation was made mainly to silence ongoing rumors of the project being in jeopardy.[23] From what was seen in the QuakeCon presentation, the new Doom is to feature mechanics such as melee combat, finishing moves, and the ability to rip someone's arm off and use it to open a biometric security door.[23] Also said to be featured in the game are double jumping and freedom of movement such as vaulting and manteling.[24] The developers also revealed that the game will bring back certain elements that characterized the original Doom games, such as fast strafing, the lack of reloading, and the ability to carry numerous weapons at once. On July 19, 2014, in light of Crytek's recent financial difficulties, it was announced that Tiago Sousa, head R&D graphics engineer at Crytek, was leaving to join the Doom and idTech 6 engine team.[25]

References

  1. ↑ Sinclair, Brendan (June 24, 2009). "Bethesda Softworks' parent company acquires id Software". GameSpot.
  2. ↑ Ogden, Gavin (January 15, 2009). "Doom 4 writer revealed". Computer and Video Games. Retrieved 2009-01-15.
  3. ↑ "Why id Software is calling it "Doom" and not "Doom 4″".
  4. ↑ Jason Ocampo (2008-05-07). "Doom 4 Announced". IGN. Retrieved 2008-05-07.
  5. ↑ Berghammer, Billy (2007-08-03). "QuakeCon 2007: John Carmack Talks Rage, Id Tech 5 And More". Game Informer. Archived from the original on 2007-10-29. Retrieved 2007-08-24.
  6. ↑ DOOM 4 Now in Development, Takes Place on Earth
  7. ↑ "John Carmack Sheds Some Light On Doom 4". The Escapist. 2008-08-06. Retrieved 2010-07-01.
  8. ↑ Tor Thorsen (2009-04-10). "Hollenshead Rages about PC gaming, E3 surprises
    Q&A: id's CEO discusses his studio's new multiplatform strategy, aversion to Wii development, Quake Live, Doom 4, and unannounced projects."    . GameSpot. Retrieved 2009-04-10.
  9. ↑ "Bethesda publishing Rage". Gamespot.com. 2009-12-15. Retrieved 2014-03-01.
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Carmack's Keynote at QuakeCon 2011". Mattc0m. 2011-08-05. Retrieved 2011-08-12.
  11. ↑ "Doom 4 "three times" Rage visual quality". Eurogamer. 2008-08-01. Retrieved 2010-08-02.
  12. ↑ "QuakeCon 08: Quake Live Will Have No Mod Support; Doom 4 to Run at 60Hz on PC, Locked at 30Hz for Consoles". Maximum PC. 2008-07-31. Retrieved 2010-11-30.
  13. ↑ "John Carmack on Rage". CD-Action. July 2009. Retrieved 2010-10-30.
  14. ↑ "E3 2011: John Carmack talks Wii U, PlayStation Vita, and next-gen Rage". Gamespot. 2011-06-09. Retrieved 2011-06-09.
  15. ↑ 4/03/13 9:40am 4/03/13 9:40am. "Five Years And Nothing To Show: How Doom 4 Got Off Track". Kotaku.com. Retrieved 2013-08-17.
  16. ↑ "id Software 'Pushing Boundaries,' Focusing Only on Doom 4". IGN. Retrieved 2013-08-17.
  17. ↑ "Rumour: Doom 4 cancelled, first screenshots leak - Xbox 360 - The Official Magazine". 2012-02-29. Retrieved 2012-02-29.
  18. ↑ "Matt Hooper's Twitter page". 2012-03-03. Retrieved 2012-03-03.
  19. ↑ "John Carmack leaves id Software to focus on Oculus VR". Engadget. 2013-11-22.
  20. ↑ "Id Software and Bethesda's Cancelled 'Doom 4' Just Wasn't 'Doom' Enough". Multiplayerblog.mtv.com. 2013-08-05. Retrieved 2014-03-01.
  21. ↑ "Get Psyched: Wolfenstein release date; First details on Doom beta". Bethblog.com. 2014-02-19. Retrieved 2014-03-01.
  22. ↑ "DOOM Teaser". YouTube. 2014-06-10. Retrieved 2014-06-12.
  23. ↑ 23.0 23.1 "New Doom Game Is Finally Shown Off At QuakeCon 2014".
  24. ↑ "Doom Reboot Unlikely to Be Seen Again This Year".
  25. ↑ "Signs Of The Times – Crytek’s Lead R&D Graphics Engineer Moves To id Software, Will Work On New Doom". DSOGaming. 2014-07-19.

External links