If you’re like me, you probably had a joygasm watching that DOOM Eternal gameplay trailer last week. A big highlight for me (and I’m not the only one) is seeing that you can now literally rip and tear demons using the new tech. Or, as creative director Hugo Martin called it, ‘destructible demons’. PCGamer managed to sit down with Martin to get details on the new system, which essentially allows you to see the physical destruction of demons as you shoot, kick and punch them into oblivion.
According to Martin, the system is “purely visual flair”, but it also affects the game in terms of its feel. So much that, when you go back and play DOOM, it’s “really hard to play it” because of the tech’s absence. “We feel like [the new system] has such an impact on the power of the weapons, the power of the player, it feels amazing.”
Martin also says that demon destruction isn’t limited just to their flesh and bones. For the cybernetically-enhanced enemies, you can essentially disable their primary means of attack by targeting their weapons! Granted, they’ll still be able to attack you, “but that you would alter the effectiveness of [their] attacks”. It doesn’t work for all enemies, mind you. As Martin puts it, “[it’s] mostly if the opportunity presents itself and it feels intuitive. We don’t want to crowbar that stuff in.”
The system will probably undergo some tweaks before the game unleashes Armageddon next year, but damn it if it’s not going to blow everyone away. PC gamers had better start saving for that new video card.
