Update 6.66 Released - Impressions

[AtimZarr1]

 

Update notes from Slayer's Club

 

Highlights:

 

- Horde Mode

- Two Master Levels (Mars Core and The World Spear)

- Battlemode 2.0 (playable Dread Knight, Stronghold Immora-themed map, rank-based matchmaking)

- Controller weapon re-binding

- Full Auto mod buff

- TAG2 encounter adjustments

- Option to select between the two main menu tracks

 

---

 

Impressions:

 

Horde Mode

 

Horde Mode feels quite fresh, somewhat similar to Arcade Mode from Doom 2016 but featuring curated arenas, challenges, and encounters. While you start off only with the base Shotgun, you earn a random weapon at the end of each arena encounter. Seems like a cool way to keep things fresh on repeat attempts - however, I am a bit concerned there's no option to start a Horde Mode attempt with a full kit instead. While Classic Mode is a fun way to try a Master Level, I don't find it as fun as having all the weapons available like it is normally. I think a similar thing might happen here, where fighting a Tyrant / Doom Hunter with only a base Shotgun + one other weapon is going to get old fast. At the least, there should be a choice between starting from scratch and starting with the full arsenal - divided by leaderboards of course. And speaking of options to add, I do also wish there was some sort of endless/survival version of Horde Mode.

 

Regarding the gameplay, I actually quite enjoy Horde Mode. Most of the encounters are interestingly designed and you get some enemy compositions you don't see in the campaign or Master Levels - like a possessed Pain Elemental + a Marauder, or a Buff Totem blocked by a set of four Turrets, or a small room full of Prowlers and Screechers. The gameplay is divided into different encounters - Arena, Blitz, Bonus, and Traversal. The arenas are standard fights divided by distinct waves. Sometimes, Bounty-marked demons spawn that you kill quickly to earn more points and a special power-up to use later. Most of the Bounty Demons weren't too challenging to get under the time limit. One of the last Bounties are two Doom Hunters and you have 110 seconds - which is hilariously long if you're aware of the "solved Doom Hunter meta", which is two Blood Punches + SSG -> Lock-On Burst -> Staggered Doom Hunter. Blitz rounds were actually really fun. You have to kill as many demons as possible within a time limit. One of the first ones involve Hell Knights spawning down both sides of a hallway and there's the interactable damaging blade in the middle for you to try to bait the Hell Knights into. There's also the Prowler + Screecher room mentioned earlier. The bonus rounds are accessible if you perform well enough - and they can either be a coin collecting challenge or a different Blitz round - the coin collecting is decently interesting. You have to collect all the coins in the arena, though you need to be a bit familiar with your surroundings, because it's possible for you to be awkwardly looking for the last coin for a bit longer than you should. They also place an enemy or some to harass the player. One challenge had a Cursed Prowler, and another challenge had a Blood Maykr + Tentacles. The other bonus rounds are bonus Blitz - which sounds like a fun idea except they all seem to be just Quad Damage + Cueballs + high health demons. It's an interesting challenge the first time, but it feels repetitive quite fast. And having all the bonus Blitz rounds having the same setup didn't help much either. And finally, Traversal rounds are basically dedicated platforming bits. These are entertaining to complete as well, but that depends on how much platforming you tolerate in Doom Eternal. The later Traversal rounds actually do get a bit tough/strict.

 

Horde Mode notably showers the player with Extra Lives. I had something like 30+ by the end of my run, only using two and missing out on four, I believe. It's understandable why because Horde Mode is a bit of a commitment since you have to start all over if you die and I don't think they wanted players to feel discouraged to lose all their progress. Because of this, and a few other reasons, Horde Mode felt a lot easier compared to the two new Master Levels. There are two "end goals" of Horde Mode (besides beating it once of course) - which are leaderboards and cosmetics unlock. The leaderboard makes Horde Mode feel similar to Arcade Mode, even featuring the same medal system - Slayer, Gold, Silver, and Bronze. I got Gold on my first completion, but I was apparently considerably off from Slayer - so it'll be interesting to see what the "meta" develops for min-maxing Horde Mode score. The cosmetics unlocks take a lot longer to unlock than I had anticipated. Defeating Horde Mode once for me only unlocked 2-3 parts of the Classic Doom 2 Marine Master Collection of 10 - and there's a whole Biker Slayer Master Collection after that as well. So it seems they're trying to put a carrot on a stick to encourage players to retry Horde Mode again and again to be able to unlock these two Master Collections completely. It does feel a bit grindy compared to how unlocks are handled in the rest of the game, but I don't really mind.

 

Deag Ranak acts as the announcer for the mode and even has some new voice lines, which is pretty cool. There are also "cutscenes", essentially featuring the Doom Slayer walking out of or into portals. It's a bit strange, especially since they reused animations from other campaign cutscenes. I guess the purpose is to raise the feeling of quality of the mode itself. It just feels so weird and unnecessary. The first "cutscene" is the only one with something happening, and it's unintentionally hilarious - a portal opens, the Slayer walks in, hears Deag Ranak smack talk him, and then he walks back out the portal. It's just so bizarre. Another random addition is a title drop at the ending of Horde Mode. But the interesting thing is (and I'll need someone else to verify this), but it sounded like a new track. I didn't really recognize it, it didn't seem to sound like Levy's TAG menu/ending track.

 

Overall though, Horde Mode feels quite fun and fresh. Some of the encounters are like interesting puzzles to solve. I do wish there was an option to start with a full kit, as well as an option for endless mode. Other than that, I hope they continue to add more gameplay modes in the future. Perhaps Arcade Mode is next? (Probably not).

 

Master Levels

 

The Mars Core Master Level can be quite unexpectedly tough because of the opening areas and their narrow hallways. Unfortunately, the intro segment (the elevator ride down on Phobos) is unskippable, which I imagine is going to be a pain for Ultra-Nightmare repeat attempts. However, I quite enjoyed discovering all the little tricks and traps they've planted in Mars Core - much more than I did for Taras Nabad. Probably mostly because I like Mars Core a lot more as a level, so I felt a bit more invested in seeing what they pulled off at such-and-such parts of the map. There's a number of interesting and unexpected encounters. Like the bridge platforming section becomes a fight. The BFG first-time test area becomes an arena filled with distinct waves of enemies. A massive portals opens in the Lost City of Hebeth, and two Tyrants spawn from its lightning bolts - which is really cool visually. There's also a whole lot of Shield Soldiers - possibly too many, probably to highlight the use of the Plasma Rifle in this level. There's also some amusing callbacks, like an Arch-Vile at the Phobos deck gate entrance (referencing the Quakecon ending for Mars Core) or two Tyrants at the end of the map (referencing the one-Tyrant E3 ending for Mars Core). The level becomes quite difficult by the end of it, but I still enjoyed the Master Level overall quite a bit.

 

The World Spear Master Level is (probably) id Software getting payback for all the "it's too easy" complaining about TAG2. Because this Master Level is brutally difficult. Much more than the Mars Core Master Level and Horde Mode. And I'm speaking as someone who has done Ultra-Nightmare for each campaign/ML of Doom Eternal (I was also playing this on Nightmare, so keep that in mind). Many of the fights required me to take a few attempts to get done, which I don't really mind. However, there are two arenas that feel particularly long and when you die on those - it can be quite annoying. The last fight in particular is quite brutal. That being said, this map also had a lot of interesting changes and new encounter designs. Amusingly, there's a section where you go through the level backwards. Some of the Meathook platforming has been made harder. The small slime arena is much longer now. There's quite the evil part where you're fighting buffed Demons and when you go to destroy the Buff Totem responsible, a shield surrounds the Buff Totem almost immediately. I'm also glad there's two fights inside the World Spear itself - though the specific segments in the World Spear aren't as long as I'd like, but it is nice regardless since I felt the interior of World Spear was underused in TAG2. In any case, The World Spear Master Level is quite fun and nicely designed in many sections, but it does feel quite brutal which is probably going to rub off badly for some people.

 

Battlemode 2.0

 

I actually haven't had the time to test this one yet (I spent nearly 5-6 hours on the singleplayer content alone). However, I am excited to try out the new Dread Knight demon since I felt just adding maps wasn't enough to revitalize the multiplayer population. I am feeling rather cautious about the seasonal-limited cosmetic unlocks though. Especially since they're unlocked by winning and earning win streaks - for both the Slayer and Demons (the two have separate unlockable cosmetics, so you'll have to complete the criteria for both if you're a completionist). On its own, that would be manageable, but these cosmetics are also apparently going to be unavailable to obtain once the season ends - in 30 days from the release of Update 6.66. I do wonder what their long-term plans are for Battlemode - will they continue to add cosmetics each month and, if so, for how long? Horde Mode also has a seasonal-based leaderboard, but besides some fancy nameplates for the top 500, there aren't any time-limited seasonal cosmetics to unlock.

 

Final Thoughts

 

Horde Mode and the two Master Levels are quite enjoyable to play through with some neat ideas and encounter designs. They sometimes can reach absurd peaks in terms of difficulty (even Horde Mode, which I consider to be the "easier" of the three, has quite the finale in terms of encounter challenge), but I'd rather have that than the other way around since it's much more memorable as long as it's fairly beatable and not absurd. Also, I would not recommend doing all three of these back-to-back, it's pretty exhausting.

 

Looking forward to seeing how they continue to support Doom Eternal (if they even do). More modes and more Master Levels are enough for me really. The scale of this update compared to the ones before does make some wonder if this might be the final update, especially considering Update 6.66 was the last update for Doom 2016. Although I do believe Hugo and Josh have indirectly hinted at something else beyond Update 6.66 they can't discuss.

 

Of note, a large number of leaked cosmetics from a while ago that were datamined to be unlocked via Twitch Prime are actually unlockable in Horde Mode - like the Doom 2 Cover Marine skin, the Praetor Suit recolors, etc. That's pretty nice and supports the theory that a "Twitch Prime" unlockable skin in the future is probably placeholder to be unlocked by something else. Also, there's a "LAN Party" podium that has Classic Doom, Doom 2016, Quake 2, and Quake Champions on computer monitors - which I thought was really cool.

 

I also look forward to seeing how the enemy randomizer mod is made to work with Horde Mode.

 

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EDIT:

 

One of the arenas in The Holt mission of Horde Mode is set in the Exultia / ARC Complex Slayer Gate from the base game. Even though The Holt already has its own Slayer Gate arena from TAG1 they could've used. I'm curious if it's meant to be a reference to Proteh's Horde Mode, which also took place in the Exultia / ARC Complex Slayer Gate as well.

Edited October 27, 2021 by AtimZarr1
Additional thoughts

[Doom-X-Machina]

Master levels are awesome (as always)...
New cosmetics are nice.
 

Horde mode is not what I was wanting or expecting. Much left to be desired. I would've prefered a much more simple approach where it was endless waves of ever increasing difficulty that didnt end until you were dead. I don't like the bonus/traversal/blitz round bullshit. I think that's all completely unnescessary and it actually detracts from the flow and the potential of what it could've been. I may give it another spin, but first impressions weren't excitement inducing.

Battlemode 2.0. It's still Battlemode. It's still garbage. It's not fun, even when you're winning. I hate it. The only way to improve Battlemode is removing it all together.

For me, only the master levels are of any real interest.

And still no deathmatch.

[Frank Harper]

Finished Mars Core ML, and I'm glad to see that it's not 100 demons in small room like Taras Nabad was, and i actually really enjoyed it.

 

Horde mode is awesome and i wonder if it will resieve updates in future. Also anyone managed to get all golden coins in coins round? Because I'm not fast enough and always get 2-3 silver coins no matter how hard i try. Is that even possible?

[Chezza]

I've completed Mars Core last night, definitely a challenge and had me feeling exhausted by the end of it. However the encounters were simply difficult without pulling off the BS tricks like some other levels.

 

Also - am I mistaken or were there two turret enemies?? I destroyed them fairly quickly.

[Zemini]

Been only playing battlemode this week.

 

Good Things:

New Map

New Demon

Skins!

 

Bad Things:

Match Making is broken.  Unless Id intends new players to be going up against top 100 players every other match it is very hard to get wins.  Problem is compounded by the OP Dread Knight.

 

Rewards are timed which would not normally be a problem but we only have 4 week, and you need to regularly beat top players to get the skins.  Streaks seem to be required to get all the skins which means you have to win 4 of 5 matches in a  set.  New players will not be able to do that for months.  Skins should never be this hardcore in my opinion.  Let the top players get their badges and titles.

Edited October 28, 2021 by Zemini

[Arbys550]

I liked the new master levels and horde mode, although I also would have preferred a simple endless wave mode instead, like someone mentioned above. I do get a bug in classic mode on the new master levels where my weapons aren't mastered, which is annoying. I played them on a file with 100% completion too, so that's not the problem.

[AtimZarr1]

On 10/27/2021 at 4:04 PM, Chezza said:

Also - am I mistaken or were there two turret enemies?? I destroyed them fairly quickly.

 

I believe so. I figured they were like the statues in the Taras Nabad Master Level, so I didn't even know you could destroy them. That's pretty interesting.

 

---

 

Just wanting to add screenshots and videos about the in-game look for the upcoming Doom 64 and Quake Slayer skins that were leaked in Update 6.66. Love the little details they put onto the podiums for each as well, plus Ranger's rocket jump animation is pretty hilarious. Hopefully we're one step closer to a Doom 3 skin...

 

 

Both skins have interesting references in their animation names.

 

- Doom 64 marine's Idle Animation is called "Rumble Pack", likely a reference to the Nintendo 64's "Rumble Pak" device.

- Doom 64 marine's Intro Animation is called "Power Play", possibly a reference to the "Power Player Super Joy III" devices that resembled a Nintendo 64 controller or a reference to Nintendo's "Now You're Playing With Power" marketing slogan for the NES.

- Doom 64 marine's Victory Animation is called "Altar of Pain", a reference to Doom 64's MAP12 of the same name.

- Quake Ranger's Idle Animation is called "Slipgate Marine", a reference to Ranger's Quake Champions' in-game title.

- Quake Ranger's Intro Animation is called "Rocket Jump", a reference to the rocket jump mechanic introduced in Quake.

- Quake Ranger's Victory Animation is called "Quake Champion", a reference to the series' latest game: Quake Champions.

 

- Doom 64 marine's green and red color variations might be a reference to the Marine NPC bots in Doom 64 - that were also green, red, and aqua. Not sure on Quake Ranger's skin color variations, but the teal version could be a reference to Crash from Quake 3 - who was also had teal-colored armor.

 

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Video showcases by Doomguy Bot with recolors and animations:

 

 

 

Edited October 30, 2021 by AtimZarr1
Some more information and added screenshots

[chemo]

Jesus fucking Christ, the Dread Knight is completely broken. If one manages to catch you while it's in Berserk mode (which it can activate almost immediately at the start of the round), it's pretty much a guaranteed game over. Like, maybe I just suck, but almost every time it's the demon that does the most damage and deals the killing blow. I haven't been this angry at a game in a long time. The sad part is, I've actually been having a lot of fun with the Battlemode updates otherwise, but that one demon completely ruins the gamemode when playing as a Slayer.

 

And yeah, the new Battlemode-exclusive rewards shouldn't have such tight unlock criteria (though the Dread Knight being a complete streak-killer doesn't help).

Edited October 30, 2021 by chemo

[scalliano]

It's more of a Gauntlet than a Horde. Like, the Twelve Trials of the Doom Slayer.

 

The Doom2Guy skin is boss though...

[VentoliN13]

Will there ever be more add-ons for Doom 64 on ps4 like there is for Doom I & II?

[whatup876]

7 hours ago, VentoliN13 said:

Will there ever be more add-ons for Doom 64 on ps4 like there is for Doom I & II?

Most of the things happening around the recent ports of 1/2 are bound to some limitations, not just technological but also because of GPL licensing, due to the state of Doom's source code and consoles.

Though there was a new episode but if i recall, Nightdive is no longer working on that port for similar reasons as Blood Fresh Supply: something to do with contract experitations but anyone with more knowledge feel free to correct me.

 

I feel like anything more "old school" could result in a spin off that's actually a "boomer shooter" like Prodeus, Amid Evil, Dusk, Wrath or Postal Brain Damaged.

[Frank Harper]

Wow... I am in top 100 in horde mode (on playstation), finished SGN and Taras Nabad ML on Ultra Nightmare and apperently I`m not good enough to get even 1 streak as slayer in battlemode. Checked leaderboards and there only 273 people that managed to get at least ONE streak. Don`t gonna spend my time and nerves to complete battlemode series. If it was only wins it would be fine, but with streaks requirement this is simply impossible for me.

[igg]

Just played Horde mode. How am I supposed to fight spirits without having a plasma gun? 

[chemo]

1 hour ago, igg said:

Just played Horde mode. How am I supposed to fight spirits without having a plasma gun? 

Spirits will "retreat" if they have no enemies to possess (they won't go after the basic zombies). If you're persistent and/or prioritize the demons they're targeting you'll make it through.

[Chezza]

Finished playing both master levels and horde mode. Yup Master levels are good challenging fun, but always has me exhausted by the end of them.

 

Completed horde mode in a single sitting and also exhausting. It's interesting, but not what I was expecting. I'd prefer horde mode to be simple non stop mode (or eventually an ending) with all the weapons I want. Maybe some optional modes to gradually acquire them. Having random areas and random demon spawns would suit me better than random challenges and guns.

Edited November 1, 2021 by Chezza

[Quasar]

Mars Core master level is fantastic and fun but World Spear is bullshit and crashes all the time so I keep losing my progress and it makes me think about uninstalling the game again til they fix that shit.

[Coopersville]

99% of the time horde modes feels lazy and tacked-on, but having one in Doom Eternal feels right to me. I'd much rather the demon killing and Mick Gordon'ing never end.  

[igg]

5 hours ago, Quasar said:

Mars Core master level is fantastic and fun but World Spear is bullshit and crashes all the time 

I'm also experiencing random crashes/freezes after updating to 6.66. It looks like this: 

 

[Quasar]

3 hours ago, igg said:

I'm also experiencing random crashes/freezes after updating to 6.66. It looks like this:

For me the game just up and exits w/no warning.

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

Horde mode is a pretty big disappointment. Would have much preferred a Gears of War style mode, with the goal being to survive endless waves of enemies. Preferably in maps made specifically for horde mode.

[Doom-X-Machina]

3 hours ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

Horde mode is a pretty big disappointment. Would have much preferred a Gears of War style mode, with the goal being to survive endless waves of enemies. Preferably in maps made specifically for horde mode.

+1

 

Gears Of War did Horde mode right.

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

2 hours ago, Doom-X-Machina said:

+1

 

Gears Of War did Horde mode right.

That's what's funny about the Xbox 360 era of AAA shooters - I always thought the campaigns were overrated (even if they were still pretty good sometimes), but the other modes were great fun.

 

GoW had decent-good campaigns, but horde mode was very fun solo or multiplayer.

 

CoD had mediocre campaigns but I invested hundreds of hours into the zombies mode.

 

Halo had pretty good campaigns, but I mainly played Firefight and other multiplayer modes.

 

Resident Evil (if that counts) had mercenaries.

 

So it's ironic what has happened to DOOM. Originally the godfather of deathmatch, it now boasts a creative and innovative single player experience, but its multiplayer offerings are almost universally ignored or disliked due to the fact that it just isn't fun.

 

Battlemode might be going for something new, but that doesn't matter when it just isn't enjoyable to play. It is one of the most boring multiplayer modes I've ever tried, and it feels like something from 2012 where every game had to have a tacked-on multiplayer mode with nothing but empty servers not even two weeks after release. As you said, removing it and focusing efforts elsewhere is the best course of action at this point.

 

And with horde mode, how did they manage to botch such a simple concept? It's not even an actual horde mode.

 

I hope id learns from this and returns to their roots next time.

Edited November 6, 2021 by TheMagicMushroomMan

[jazzmaster9]

4 hours ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

I hope id learns from this and returns to their roots next time.

I feel the opposite, i feel like id needs to learn from this and refine it. Make it something that is worthy of other multiplayer modes instead of just doing what was done before (back to roots) and instead innovate like they did with the singleplayer which feels very different from classic Doom.

 

There is something that needs to be learned from battlemodes misteps, but, imo, its not by back peddaling to what works 

Edited November 6, 2021 by jazzmaster9

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

24 minutes ago, jazzmaster9 said:

I feel the opposite, i feel like id needs to learn from this and refine it. Make it something that is worthy of other multiplayer modes instead of just doing what was done before (back to roots) and instead innovate like they did with the singleplayer which feels very different from classic Doom.

 

There is something that needs to be learned from battlemodes misteps, but, imo, its not by back peddaling to what works 

The thing is, why not have both? If they're planning an intricate and unique multiplayer mode with several new features, playable characters, etc., surely it wouldn't be too difficult to add a standard deathmatch mode to please both parties. 

 

One of the biggest problems with 2016 and Eternal's multiplayer is that it just isn't satisfying to kill people, which really takes away from whatever fun there is to be had. Whatever they do next, they need to polish better. If they can't tackle something new like Battlemode to the point where it is actually fun to play, I'd actually prefer that they backpedal to something reliable and refine it better. I'd rather have something that works than an admirable failure that is entertaining for ten minutes. I think modern id's talent simply isn't on the multiplayer side of things.

[jazzmaster9]

51 minutes ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

If they can't tackle something new like Battlemode to the point where it is actually fun to play, I'd actually prefer that they backpedal to something reliable and refine it better. I'd rather have something that works than an admirable failure that is entertaining for ten minutes. 

 

51 minutes ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

I think modern id's talent simply isn't on the multiplayer side of things.

Again, have to disagree here with both of these.

There aren't really  a lot  out here similar to Battlemode so id was pretty much trying untested ground. obviously it didn't work, doesn't mean they have to abandons the idea completely and Play it safe.

I will always advocate for trying something new than being formulaic because you know it will make the most money, especially in the triple A industry.

the Open World Formula of Far Cry 3 worked very well and was a smash hit... now we have Far Cry everything with their games.

 

I do agree with atleast adding a more traditional deathmatch mode, bit i hope its not the Doom 2016 one.

Edited November 6, 2021 by jazzmaster9

[Doom-X-Machina]

5 hours ago, TheMagicMushroomMan said:

CoD had mediocre campaigns but I invested hundreds of hours into the zombies mode.

 

COD:MW3's survival mode was wicked fun also.
Another great take on a horde/wave/survival approach which has sadly been covered by the sands of time.

[Caffeine Freak]

Beat Mars Core Master Level on Nightmare, both on regular and Classic mode. That was really enjoyable.

 

World Spear, on the other hand... still struggling to get the flow of things. It's going to be a journey, for sure. I mean, I'm sure this will change as I actually figure out how to play the level properly and step up my game, but Holy Christ, the fight in the first huge courtyard (with the giant tentacle) can just straight up go FUCK itself. It's an absurd fight length for something that's only 10 minutes into the level, something like 4 massive distinct waves of enemies. I'm sure my insistence on always playing Nightmare isn't helping, but that level is ridiculous. Trying to keep the raging swears to a minimum.

 

Haven't quite gotten around to Horde Mode yet. All in all, quite pleased with the update so far though.

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

2 hours ago, jazzmaster9 said:

I do agree with atleast adding a more traditional deathmatch mode, bit i hope its not the Doom 2016 one.

That's pretty much all I want, and as you said, something that isn't 2016 quality. It had potential but the actual combat felt so mushy and spongy compared to what you would expect.

 

I'm all for trying new things and taking risks, but I think deathmatch should be a staple of DOOM multiplayer, and it shouldn't take that much time and money to integrate it into the game if they already have all the resources set up for battlemode or whatever they're going to do next. I don't want the series to turn into comfort food like Far Cry, I just want the option to play things that are somewhat integral to DOOM's heritage, like deathmatch.

 

At this point though, it's hard for such things to gain popularity so I understand the need for something new. I won't knock Fortnite and battle royale stuff, but that's what is popular at the moment and it's hard for an "old fart multiplayer mode" to gain traction, especially considering the fact that DOOM's target audience is much smaller than other popular multiplayer games. I could actually see a F2P DOOM multiplayer game working out well.

Edited November 6, 2021 by TheMagicMushroomMan

[AtimZarr1]

On 11/4/2021 at 2:31 AM, Quasar said:

Mars Core master level is fantastic and fun but World Spear is bullshit and crashes all the time so I keep losing my progress and it makes me think about uninstalling the game again til they fix that shit.

 

Not sure what your set-up is, but I just got this message when launching Doom Eternal today. Might be a relevant work-around for now.

 

 

---

 

As an aside, I hope id Software is able to figure out how to implement a checkpoint system for Master Levels / Mission Select (I believe Hugo has mentioned there are technical issues/reasons why one isn't in for these modes already). The Master Levels are quite long and a checkpoint system not only offers a chance to take breaks in that regard but also makes crashes a little less annoying to deal with.

[chemo]

On 10/30/2021 at 4:20 PM, chemo said:

Jesus fucking Christ, the Dread Knight is completely broken. If one manages to catch you while it's in Berserk mode (which it can activate almost immediately at the start of the round), it's pretty much a guaranteed game over. Like, maybe I just suck, but almost every time it's the demon that does the most damage and deals the killing blow. I haven't been this angry at a game in a long time. The sad part is, I've actually been having a lot of fun with the Battlemode updates otherwise, but that one demon completely ruins the gamemode when playing as a Slayer.

 

And yeah, the new Battlemode-exclusive rewards shouldn't have such tight unlock criteria (though the Dread Knight being a complete streak-killer doesn't help).

Alright, now that I've had time to think about it, the problem isn't that the Dread Knight is overpowered, it's that the Slayer is underpowered.

 

In particular, his movement is gimped as hell compared to the Campaign (no air control, initially poor dash recharge time, etc). Now, I've always had this as a major gripe with Battlemode, but the Dread Knight accentuates this problem further since your lack of options when dodging or escaping danger makes the DK's berserk a major achilles heel (and not in a way that feels fun or balanced).

 

Like, I get it, the demons deserve a fighting chance too, but I hate how Doomguy's legs feel all stiff in this gamemode. Is it not possible to balance the demon side around a faster, more nimble Slayer?

Edited November 8, 2021 by chemo