What does Doomworld think of the Beta?

So now that the Beta is over I thought it would be interesting to hear what the users of this forum think of the new game's MP Beta. There are a few Doom communities on the internet and all of them have quite different views on Doom and even expectations from the new game. I consider Doomworld to be quite different from other Doom communities and gaming communities in general and would like to know that the consensus around here is.

http://strawpoll.me/7276291

EDIT:

I also respectfully ask non-Doomworlders not to vote. I am interested to see what THIS community thinks of it. I think finding what the consensus of this site is important because we are the basically the heart of the game.

I voted "It's good but it needs more polishing/balancing".

- It was quite fun, I like the new game mode. Weapons need some rebalancing. Movement could either be a little bit faster, or introduce sprinting mechanic with fatigue (won't happen that late in the development).
- Won't judge graphics, as it seems like the game ran on "low" settings.
- Was surprised by the level of polish, or better said, lack there of, both regarding performance and over all game. Month away from release, and somehow the alpha felt more polished. Somehow strange.
- Maps are great.
- Not sure what to make of the Demon rune or the Revenant in this case. It's quite allright that it gives games/score the chance to swing back and forth between teams, but what I dislike is the zero-skill-kills the Revenant gives you (similar to Gauss rifle). I guess the Revenant will be the mobile, shooty Demon (the Prowler the lurking glass cannon, Baron the melee fighter tank, Mancubus the long range tank), in this role, it shouldn't have one-hit-kill weapons. I like the idea put forth here that it's missiles only do 50 damage (I would go even further down with the damage), because it then still has to work together with it's team (Revenant softening guys up, rest of the team going in for the kill).
- Overall presentation of the game feels very good.
- Weapons mostly feel great (dislike the feel of the Plasmagun...it feels similar to the Doom 3 one, where firing it is somehow not that much fun to me).
- Not yet sure what how to feel about the hacking modules. Gladly, they don't have that much impact to the game. Hope it stays that way.

My summary: little bit dissapointed by overall level of polish, but had great fun with it and am looking forward to May!

tuo said:

I voted "It's good but it needs more polishing/balancing".

- Was surprised by the level of polish, or better said, lack there of, both regarding performance and over all game. Month away from release, and somehow the alpha felt more polished. Somehow strange.

My summary: little bit dissapointed by overall level of polish, but had great fun with it and am looking forward to May!

It doesn't mean they finished the beta just a month away from release, it could be an earlier build.

Hofmann said:

It doesn't mean they finished the beta just a month away from release, it could be an earlier build.

True, we don't know from which date the build is.

I really enjoyed it, they need to fix the issue with more than two people on the same connection playing, also they still have not changed self damage the rockets deal. That's my biggest complaint of the game so far.

A question to others: in basically every game I played, there was one player with Ping "0".

As the game is not player-hosted, but server-hosted: why did that happen?
Did anyone else catch this? It was always exactly one player. Could of course have been someone from id (as pings seemed to be rounded...in most cases I had ping 50, together with couple others...I mean "exactly" 50, not 50ish).

I didn't play the beta, but it looked cool. I did get a beta code, though, for an Xbone I didn't have.

I really liked it, I want more stuff though

I'm really looking forward to the campaign but I do have a few concerns (level design and level amount, good levels don't matter if there are only 7 of them)

It was fun but I felt that it was less polished than the Alpha. Was it just me or did the graphics take a huge hit since then?

Weapon balance seemed to be a little more off as well; especially the Rocket launcher.

I am indifferent about Loadouts and could go either way. Perhaps players could start with a weapon of choice (Shotgun, Pistol, Repeater!) and then move on to hunt for a second and third weapon. Also, dead players should drop the weapon they were holding.

I miss the repeater. I felt that it was better than the HAR and I hope it makes a return.

Demon was OP and so was the Gauss Rifle. But I think that is intended.

I didn't like the Hack Modules. Game would be better off with out them IMO.

Damage numbers seem to be distracting. Should just be an option.

Speed could use a boost!

More testing is needed!!! One quick beta will not be enough imo

Zemini said:

Rocket Launcher felt overpowered

you must be the hands down the very first person ever to think so

Your are right in that a lone Rocket launcher is underpowered and weak. It only hits for 45 damage I think.

However when you have a team of 6 players firing rockets all at the same time, it can clear out an entire room easily. It just felt annoying be on the receiving end of that scenario on almost every match.

All I am saying is that weapon needs some special balance. Personally if I were to remake it into a power weapon that can only be found on the map.

I'll start with the positive. It's most original element is the demon runes. They're a genuine twist on recent gameplay ideas like the Titans of Titanfall. It is a lot of fun being the demon. And fighting the demon has an appropriate fear factor. I feel like someone should make a proper arena FPS that incorporates this idea, because it really is a great one and fits perfectly with the vibe of id games.

However, beyond the runes, Doom is a fairly uninspired game. By current standards and by id standards especially.

There's nothing particularly bad about it. It's competent. But in a field with such fierce competition and innovative design choices, the new Doom feels woefully inadequate.

Where it tries to be old-school, it does so half-heartedly (load-outs rather than weapon pick-ups, no advanced movement physics, hack modules). Where it tries to be modern, it doesn't have any originality. It copies things like double-jump, mantling, and melee, but doesn't add its own twist to them. In fact, where games like Halo 5 and Titanfall spiced things up in this area, Doom is rather basic.

Then there's the weapons. They're ok, but nothing special. The knock-back physics of rockets are gone, and so is their lethality. All weapons have been balanced because that's the way it has to be with load-outs. But this means gameplay often lacks interesting asymmetrical elements.

The maps are ok, but again, I think they're a victim of the gameplay design. You can't soar up multiple levels with a rocket jump, or fling yourself across great gaps with strafe jumps, and this really affects the way the maps feel and play out. The verticality is diminished, and like the skill ceiling, flattened out. People have to move about the map in a fairly predictable and clunky fashion.

All things considered, I just don't think the MP offers very much given the options (past, present, and future) people have today. I mean, for Doom fans and people just looking for a new game to play for a bit, it will scratch the itch for a little while. But I don't think it was unreasonable to expect something really great from id given their history and the history of Doom. But the new Doom isn't great, or even really good for that matter. It's a passable game in an ocean of other passable games and many other superior ones.

TheGamePhilosophe said:

many other superior ones.

really beg to differ

also doom isn't quake, rocket jumping has no place here

You have a point but how can they innovate when people have preconceived notions of what the game is supposed to be? For example, some people are angry that this game is not Quake 3 Arena 2. How can you innovate in a game with such a legacy without pissing people off? What new things can you bring that would fit in Doom?

Regardless, people play Doom for the Single Player.

The only thing I feel they need to change is that they need to nerf the Gauss Cannon and the Vortex Rifle. The Gauss Cannon felt way too easy to aim and the Vortex Rifle charges too fast.

It was good and a lot of fun. My main concern for multiplayer is the loadouts, movement speed, and some near useless guns, but other than that it was a blast to play. Maybe reduce the splash damage range of the Gauss cannon cause that thing is ridiculous.

DooM_RO said:

You have a point but how can they innovate when people have preconceived notions of what the game is supposed to be? For example, some people are angry that this game is not Quake 3 Arena 2. How can you innovate in a game with such a legacy without pissing people off? What new things can you bring that would fit in Doom?

Regardless, people play Doom for the Single Player.

There's no way to make everyone happy. But I think if you make a great game, people will get on board regardless. That also often involves taking risks. Id has done neither here.

In my view, I would have liked to see them embrace their roots more strongly. Some say that would have been foolish. I guess we'll never know.

But for example, why didn't they just make the double jump equivalent to the rocket jump (yes, yes, I know, Quake, not Doom...whatever)? That would have definitely stood out and been very true to their roots. It could have also opened a more dynamic map set-up and weapon asymmetry because with advanced movement comes advanced tactics. Is that just infeasible with a controller? I doubt it.

But for example, why didn't they just make you eat dog food to regain health (yes, yes, I know, Wolf, not Doom...whatever)?

This article pretty much sums up how I feel about the Beta.

http://kotaku.com/theres-something-not-quite-right-about-the-new-doom-1768917952

I think it may be this type of deal:

   i______i              i______i
   I______I              I______I
   I      I              I      I
   I______I              I______I    
  / OLD  /I              I\  NEW \
 (______( I              I )______)
 I I    I I    DOOM      I I    I I
 I      I                  I      I

geX said:

This article pretty much sums up how I feel about the Beta.

http://kotaku.com/theres-something-not-quite-right-about-the-new-doom-1768917952

That's an interesting article.

I'm just gonna go ahead and copy-paste what I already said in an older thread:

The movement is PERFECT. It's like classic Doom and Metroid Prime had a really bloody baby.

The guns are all really punchy and satisfying, and the glory kills don't break up the pace at all.

I freaking love this. I think I might actually preorder now, something I'm almost universally against doing.

I have, in fact, preordered it. The beta definitely has a few balance issues, but hell if it isn't a good time.

Here's a really good match. Same loadout I used. It's quite devastating.

DooM_RO said:

people play Doom for the Single Player.

*scratches head furiously*

Doom's multiplayer has always played a massive role in it's appeal. From what I've seen so far, it looks damn good. Definitely looking forward to it, will be the first time I've dropped cash for a game since I bought a Wii U.

geX, that article is actually pretty interesting. It seems the writer isn't trying to be overly harsh, which is a tad worrying. The comment section is just painful though, some moron is claiming MP was "modded into Doom" and that it "didn't come stock". Why do morons who know nothing about a topic insist on spreading misinformation?

geX said:

This article pretty much sums up how I feel about the Beta.

http://kotaku.com/theres-something-not-quite-right-about-the-new-doom-1768917952

The guy is playing multiplayer and complaining how it doesn't feel like Doom. What a fucking idiot.

Well to be fair it is Kotaku

Zemini said:

It was fun but I felt that it was less polished than the Alpha. Was it just me or did the graphics take a huge hit since then?

If you mean tech side...then I'm sorry but beta is polished as hell! I mean of course it should not require gtx 970 to match an XB1 performance...that's ridiculous though.
As for graphics I don't see any hit...Heatwave use more details..it has obviously richer reflections and speculars...it is this BS AA method that blurs everything(
Particles has been enhanced for sure as well. Other minor things. Beta is greater visually!

pros :
- quick to get into a game and start killing. maybe a minute or two in the lobby and then you get to play after a 15 second 'choose your loadout' step

- personal teleporter is great fun. i spent my last day of the beta trying to rack up as many telefrags as i could.

- i felt rewarded for controlling power up spawns, and since some powerups spawn at the same time (power weapon and 'power up' spawn at the same time - 5 seconds after demon rune) i enjoyed the choice of opting to go for whichever powerup i felt i could either reach before others or had the best chance of controlling based on how the game was going but no 1 player could control everything at the same time which made them feel balanced

- start with super shotgun (any weapon you want), pistol/weak weapon starts are less fun imo

- level design was great

- mantling felt good and seemed to have some player input based on where you put your cursor, though certain edges that were partially sloped could not be mantled on, which got me killed a few times via suicide like on the infernal map.



Cons :

- grenade spam, i wish personal teleporter stayed but wouldn't mind seeing both grenade options removed from the loadout replaced with other utility items.

- rocket launcher felt weak

- plasma rifle primary fire felt weak, despite the secondary fire feeling insanely good

- gauss cannons damage range is a bit high, requiring you to have 100 hp and 55+ armor to survive a direct hit. would prefer if the damage range was 100-125 instead, you would still kill any fresh spawning player and anyone with only a little armor but someone who was stocked up to full hp and armor should have a chance to survive at least 1 direct hit from it, even the revenant is less powerful than the gauss cannon straight up, seeing as the gauss cannon is an instant blast and you can dodge rockets or even take 1 shot and survive from the revenant. plus if you kill the rev you get a chance to be the rev now, where as gauss' limited ammo leaves little reward to the player for killing the user if they have fired off a few shots already. not to mention gauss has wall hacks built in to the secondary.

- complainers who are unhappy this game isn't a 1 to 1 port of quake 3 arena with doom skins of the weapons and enemies.

I think it's a lot of fun overall and pretty well thought out, but I have a few criticisms.


Pros:

-First I have to compliment the core mechanics. No reloading, no need to aim down sites, no need to sprint, and the encouragement to collect items around the map make for an experience that encourages constant movement, constant shooting, and ultimately constant fun. Sure, that's nothing new, but it's not seen often these days.

-The maps are designed in a way to make the player feel like they're playing a platformer. Smoothly double-jumping to various platforms, collecting items is fun in and of itself.

-On that note I really like the item pickup sound effects, along with the double-jumping sound effect. They sound very crisp and futuristic.

-The weapon setup is designed for the player to switch weapons quickly within one attack, whereas other shooters are either too slow for that to matter or you're just using the best weapon you picked up. I find that to be pretty unique.

-I like the visual juxtaposition between the dark areas and the colorful, bright, neon item pickups.

-Overall, I think the game is very easy on the eyes, and the high framerate feels great.

-The gore is very satisfying. Blasting someone into gibs with the Super Shotgun or Rocket Launcher doesn't get old.

-Menu music is great of course. I really like the decision to go with a moody, build-up song. It makes me feel like I'm recharging.


Cons:

-Plenty of screen-tearing on PS4. There's no point in aiming for 1080p/60 FPS if the screen is just going to tear all the time.

-Some of the weapon sound effects need to be punchier. The Super Shotgun and Plasma Rifle sound good, but everything else could use more bang.

-Gauss Canon needs to require a bit more aiming precision, as others have said.

-Speaking of audio, I'm a supporter for in-game music. This game is too quiet otherwise. For a game that's all about brutality, speed, and energy, there needs to be music amping us up. I have to play my own music in the background, which really brings the game to another level.

-I don't like the sound effect when landing a shot on an opponent. I find it annoying instead of satisfying. I haven't heard anyone else really complain about this, so maybe it's just me, but I've gravitated towards using the semi-automatic weapons partially due to this.


Neutral:

-The announcer is fine. He could be better (Quake 3), but he could be a lot worse (Destiny).

-The Hack Modules add some strategy, but I feel they could have been implemented better. For example, having multiple tiers for each type of module is overcomplicating it.

-The visual customization allows for some cool looks, but most of the colors and patterns just don't fit the universe.

-Glory kills are satisfying, but watching someone else do them looks kind of wonky.

Console player here, anyone saying that the gauss canon requires more aiming is an ass, you won't believe how many shots I've wasted by shooting floors and walls, and making it harder to aim makes my life harder
So please, the gauss canon's aim is fine, but to be fair it might need a damage nerf for balancing reasons