Fans Want a Feature From the 20-Year Old Classic ‘Day of Defeat’ to Return to Modern FPS Gaming

The FPS community has always been among the most popular genres of gaming. Franchises like Halo, Call of Duty, and Counter-Strike have helped the genre retain its massive global popularity over the years. However, the evolution of mainstream FPS gaming hasn’t been as smooth as it seems. There have been quite a few rough patches along the journey. And now, fans have rooted for a breath of fresh air in the experiences offered. Well, who knew one might have to go back 20 years to find the ‘hidden potential’ of the FPS future with Day of Defeat? 

Day of Defeat might bring back a lot of golden memories of early eSporting days. The 2003 release tactical-shooter classic laid the foundation for the popularity of Valve as a gaming brand. Meanwhile, Day of Defeat still remains one of the most enjoyed FPS experiences of its time. But why’s the 20-year-old title under the spotlight again? One of its features is being hailed as the much-needed innovation in FPS gaming today. 

The respawn mechanic in Day of Defeat might have been a game-changer 

Day of Defeat, developed by Valve Corporation, had a very simple yet effective respawn mechanic. Respawn mechanic simply refers to the process of players getting access to the same gameplay after being eliminated. A Reddit user hailing praise for the respawn mechanics of Day of Defeat wrote, “Every 12 seconds, all players on the map that died within the last 12 seconds respawn at the same time, in their respective corners of the map. (so it could take 12 seconds to respawn, 3 seconds, or even less than a second; it just depends on when you died).”

This 20 year old FPS game reveals untapped potential in modern fps gaming
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It’s fascinating to consider an FPS game’s respawn system from an analytical standpoint. R6 Siege and Counter-Strike have a single life every round and spawn alongside your team, albeit they might not respawn for a few seconds or even minutes. CoD has an instant respawn, while Halo has a five-second one. Although the spawn-with-teammates functionality was just implemented, Overwatch’s agonizing 10-second wait still occurs when you spawn alone. 

Why do the fans think a simple DoD-inspired respawn feature is the need of the hour? 

There are plenty of perks that the FPS fanatics associate with a simpler respawn feature, like the one used in Day of Defeat. Some of these benefits include the players feeling more free to express themselves as the threat of being shot while spawning is brought down to a minimum. Also, the respawn feature helps the players increase the frequency of their battles, making the team play more engaging and immersive. 

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As the Reddit discussion went viral, a lot of fans expressed their desire to experience a new-age title inspired by a similar global respawn feature. It wouldn’t be surprising if a big-label developer tries to cater to this demand. It might unfold a whole new set of potential in FPS gaming. Red Orchestra, Gigantic, and Hell Let Loose are some other examples of titles that have tried to implement a similar strategy. 

It will surely be interesting to see if the Day of Defeat can continue to inspire FPS titles even today.

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