DOOM: Unleashing chaos for a demonic video game marketing website.

Platform Web
Role Lead Design / Code
Year 2016
Agency nclud
Collaborators Joe Chrisman, Ramsay Lanier

All work was designed with Sketch, Photoshop, and Illustrator. InVision was used to prototype interactions and transitions.

To generate excitement for the new DOOM game after a 12-year hiatus, Bethesda partnered with nclud to create a high-impact landing page showcasing the game's intense action. The immersive design combined dark, atmospheric visuals with gameplay videos and social media integration to capture the essence of the iconic franchise.

TLDR
The DOOM beta landing page drew customers into the world using storytelling, starting with mysterious images of an empty space station before bringing in the demons and violence that define the game.
Browser controls in the top left Browser controls in the top right

Introduction

Bringing a classic back from the dead.

Since its initial release in 1993, DOOM has been one of the most popular and well-known video game series, influencing thousands of games with its futuristic sci-fi setting, grunting space marine protagonist, terrifying waves of demonic enemies, and over the top bloody violence. Video game fans everywhere still remember typing IDDQD and IDKFA on their keyboards to unlock endless secrets and prevent another fiery death.

But with almost twelve years since the last DOOM, how does Bethesda Softworks show off the new game on the verge of its launch (as well as make fans champ at the bit to play it)?

The single-player demo landing page used heroic cover art and screenshots (along with an easter egg for the classic game art if you type the right cheat code) to entice visitors to download the demo.
Browser controls in the top left Browser controls in the top right

Design & Strategy

Welcome to hell.

Our goal: design a landing page for the upcoming open beta so that everyone could get a taste of the mayhem and frenetic violence that has always been a hallmark of the DOOM games.

We approached it from a storytelling prospective, starting with a dark and mysterious shot of the setting, drawing visitors deeper and deeper into the world before bringing in the demons, blood, and hyperviolence that the series is known for. Incorporating screenshots, gameplay videos, and the latest news and social media into a fully responsive design, the page served not only to show off the beta gameplay and setting but also the DOOM experience as a whole and drive customers to want to immediately preorder the full game.

The “Descent Into Hell” homepage concept uses images, interactive sliders, and video to tell a compelling story while highlighting key weapons and enemies, drawing visitors in and inviting them to explore the chaos and madness of DOOM.
Browser controls in the top left Browser controls in the top right
While designing, we explored concepts for incorporating motion throughout the site. One example was using a constantly glitching logo animation to add to the visitor's sense of unease.
Proposed "glitch" animation of the DOOM logo throughout all interactive DOOM marketing materials

Conclusion

Finishing the job and winning the game.

With almost two million visitors in the three weeks between going live and the beta start date, an average of over a minute spent on page per user, and 77% of game preorders originating on the beta page, the project outperformed every pre-launch goal and metric. After the success of the beta page, our relationship with the DOOM team continued as we worked with them to redesign and rebuild the site's navigation structure and create the “Single-Player Demo” landing page.

Results

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