Doom Dev Not Making Multiplayer With Esports in Mind

Developer id Software isn't developing Doom with esports in mind, executive producer Marty Stratton said today.

In an interview with GameSpot at this year's Quakecon event, Stratton said that although competitive multiplayer is a big part of the upcoming Doom reboot, the developer isn't specifically working on esports support. Instead, id is focusing on the multiplayer mode itself, and will reassess esports potential after the game comes out.

He told GameSpot, "We're not developing [Doom] specifically with how we address esports. There's tons of moments, even just watching the [multiplayer matches] at Quakecon, where there's very esports moments in it. It really just illustrates how esports can be born out of that. But we're really [working on] how we entertain millions of people on their couches everyday. So that's really been our focus."

Stratton didn't count out id revisiting Doom and adding esports features in the future, however. He continued, "We have a lot of experience with e-sports on the Quake side. To do that stuff well, it takes some focus. And I can see us going down that path when it catches on with people. I think it's a great title for it, and who knows down the road."

Over the past few years, more and more shooters have included features that directly support esports competitions. Halo 5: Guardians will have a dedicated Spectator Mode for watching matches, and the last few Call of Duty games have had robust shoutcaster features included in their multiplayer modes.

Doom launches in 2016 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. You can check out our Quakecon impressions of the Doom multiplayer here. Quakecon is happening now and will continue through this weekend, so keep an eye on GameSpot for more news about Doom and Fallout 4 coming out of the show.