Launched over the weekend, the update for the PC version of Doom Eternal includes a kernel-mode Denuvo Anti-Cheat driver that “can be uninstalled at any time” but prompts users to re-install when loading the game. Cue Steam review bombs.
Described somewhat disingenuously in the update notes as a new “feature”, the introduction of Denuvo Anti-Cheat was probably – excuse me – doomed from the start, and not unreasonably. A kernel-mode driver like this works in the operating system’s core, as this user on Bethesda’s forums explains, exposing a user’s PC to potential security exploits. And it’s not exactly like Denuvo’s previous DRM solution was safe from, uh, interference – the same DRM solution which, incidentally, has been in the game since release, but Bethesda forgot to delete a DRM-free executable in the installation folder that circumvents it and has now been distributed online. You can’t make this stuff up.
Inevitably, the update has resulted in Steam users ripping and tearing the game’s reviews with over 4,500 “negative” ratings at publish time.
