Bethesda announced that DOOM Eternal would be getting an update that promised to add even more content to the game, including a brand-new campaign for single player, as well as enhanced demons and other things that had players excited for this free DLC.
What Bethesda didn't tell us, however, was that this update would include an anti-cheat system. In fact, Bethesda fully omitted this information when they revealed all of the elements that would be included in Update 1; and this is very deliberate, since they knew that it would stir the pot.
To be more specific, Update 1 of DOOM Eternal has added the Denuvo Anti-Cheat system, causing PC players to express their disappointment in the developer — and they have every right to complain, Denuvo Anti-Cheat is installing a kernel-mode driver as soon as players boot up the game.
This is problematic, since the Denuvo Anti-Cheat system collects information from the PC's operating system, and how it interacts with DOOM Eternal — which, allegedly, are sent to Amazon servers. If this sounds extremely sketchy, is only because it is.
The Denuvo Anti-Cheat system was implemented in order to prevent players from cheating online, but the problem is that this is not an optional install, as the game cannot even be played in Single Player mode without forcing players to install it. On top of this, those who did install the update complain about performance issues since the update went live.
PC Gamer reports that DOOM Eternal has received a bunch of negative reviews on Steam since Update 1 went live last night, revealing that at the time of writing the game had received 267 negative reviews. As of this writing, the game currently has over 850 negative reviews.
Bethesda better address this issue fast, or they will be alienating their own fanbase even more than they already have with dodgy practices like this one.
DOOM Eternal puts you in control of the DOOM Slayer as you blow apart new and classic demons with powerful weapons in unbelievable and never-before-seen worlds. Experience the ultimate combination of speed and power as you rip and tear your way across dimensions with the next leap in push-forward, first-person combat.
DOOM Eternal is currently available for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
Nintendo Switch version expected to release soon.