If you count yourself among those that pre-ordered Wolfenstein: The New Order, I'd recommend you whip out your calendar as Bethesda has just announced that the Doom multiplayer beta will be available from 10pm ET, March 31stil till 11:59pm ET, April 3rd.
For the rest of us that have no chance of getting in to the closed beta Bethesda has released a multiplayer trailer showcasing demonic transformations, quad damage and plenty of giblets. Here's the trailer, beta system requirements and a bit more information:
After hearing a lot of rumors and speculation about Doom I'm incredibly glad that the multiplayer gameplay is seemingly fast paced, action packed and with low enough kill times to make all weapons usable. Many, including me, were worried that the multi-platform release would result in the gameplay being slowed down to a crawl in order to ensure that the action remains manageable with only two thumbsticks for control. Thankfully, this does not appear to be the case.
While the gameplay in the trailer looked really solid, two annoyances instantly stood out to me. The first of which is the completely monotone announcer who must witness genocides daily to be so nonchalant about one of the players going on a monstrous killing spree. The second are the overly long, pre-baked kill animations which might look cool the first dozen times, but after that simply become an invitation for others to donate rockets to the guy standing in the middle of the room and twiddling his thumbs.
Those small complaints aside, I'd say that my interest in Doom has been renewed. Now to see how exactly it pans out when actual players get behind the wheel, or rather, the rocket launcher.
As for the beta, you will find the PC system requirements and expected features below:
Minimum Spec (720p):
OS - Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 (64-bit versions only)
CPU - Intel Core i5-2400 or better / AMD FX-8320 or better
Memory - 8 GB RAM
GPU - NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670 (2GB) or better / AMD Radeon HD 7870 (2GB) or better
*Please note that the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 750 Ti, and mobile GPUs are not supported for the DOOM Beta. Please check back later for minimum or recommended system specs for the final game
Recommended Spec (1080p):
OS - Windows 7, Windows 8.1, Windows 10 (64-bit versions only)
CPU - Intel Core i7-3770 or better / AMD FX-8350 or better
Memory - 8GB RAM
GPU - NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 (4GB) or better / AMD Radeon R9 290 (4GB) or better
The closed beta will feature the following maps, modes and weapons:
Maps - Heatwave and Infernal
Game Modes - 6v6 Team Deathmatch and Warpath
Demon - Revenant
Weapons - Rocket Launcher, Plasma Rifle, Super Shotgun, Vortex Rifle, Static Rifle, Heavy Assault Rifle, and Lightning Gun
Power Weapons - Gauss Cannon
Equipment - Frag Grenade, Personal Teleporter, Siphon Grenade