Editing Deathmatch (video games) (section)

== History, fundamental changes ==

=== ''Doom'' ===
The first-person shooter version of deathmatch, originating in ''[[Doom (1993 video game)|Doom]]'' by [[id Software]], had a set of unmodifiable rules concerning weapons, equipment and scoring, known as "Deathmatch 1.0".

* Items do not respawn, e.g. health, armour, ammunition; however weapons had a fixed status as available to any arbitrary player except the player who acquired the weapon — i.e. the weapon did not in fact disappear as items do when picked up. The player who acquires the weapon can only collect it anew after respawning (this sometimes leads to lack of ammunition if a player survives long enough, eventually leading to one's death due to being unable to fight back)
* Suicide (such as falling into lava or causing an explosion too close to the player, or getting crushed by a crushing ceiling etc.) did not entail negative score points.
Within months, these rules were modified into "Deathmatch 2.0" rules (included in Doom v1.2 patch). These rules were optional, the administrator of the game could decide on using DM 1.0 or DM 2.0 rules.

The changes were:

* Picking up an object removes it from the map.
* Objects re-appear 30 seconds after being picked up and can be picked up by anyone; bonus objects which provide significant advantages (invisibility power-up etc.) re-appear after much longer delay, some of them may not reappear at all.
* Suicide counts as −1 frag.

Notable power-ups that are featured in most consecutive games include the ''soul spheres''. Although the name and/or graphics may be different in other games the ''concept and feature'' of the power-up remains the same in other games.

=== ''Corridor 7: Alien Invasion'' CD version ===
''[[Corridor 7: Alien Invasion]]'' released by [[Capstone Software]] in 1994.
*The first FPS to include multiple character classes.
*The first FPS to include DM specific maps.

=== ''Rise of the Triad'' ===
''[[Rise of the Triad]]'' was first released as shareware in 1994 by [[Apogee Software, Ltd.]] and honed an expansive multiplayer mode that pioneered a variety of deathmatch features.

*It introduced the [[Capture the Flag]] mode to the first-person-shooter genre as ''Capture the Triad''.
*It was the first FPS to have an in-game scoreboard.
*It was the first FPS to deliver its level of multiplayer customization through a plethora of options affecting aspects of the level played like gravity or weapon persistence.
*It was the first FPS to have voice macros and the ability to talk to players via microphone.
*It introduced a unique point system that awards different numbers of points for different kills (for instance, a missile kill is worth a point more than a bullet kill).

=== ''Hexen: Beyond Heretic'' ===
''[[Hexen: Beyond Heretic]]'' released by [[Raven Software]] in 1995.
*The first to feature multiple character classes with their own weapons; some items also functioned differently based on the class using them.

=== ''Quake'' ===
*''[[Quake (video game)|Quake]]'' released in 1996 by ID Software, was the first FPS deathmatch game to feature in-game joining.
*''Quake'' was the first FPS deathmatch game to feature AI operated deathmatch players (bots), although not as a feature of the released product, but rather in the form of a community created content.
*''Quake'' popularized rocket-jumping''.

Notable power-ups that are featured in most consecutive games are i.a. the [[quad damage]]. Although the name and/or graphics may be different in other games the ''concept and feature'' of the power-up remains the same in other games.

=== ''Unreal'' ===
With the game ''[[Unreal (1998 video game)|Unreal]]'' (1998, by [[Epic Games|Epic]]), the rules were enhanced with some widely accepted improvements:

* spawn protection (usually 2–4 seconds), which is a period of invulnerability after a player (re)enters combat (such as after being killed and respawning); spawn protection was automatically terminated when the player used a weapon (including non-attack usage, such as zooming the sniper rifle). Spawn protection prevents "easy frags" — killing a player which just spawned and is slightly disoriented and almost unarmed.
* "suicide-cause tracking" – if a player dies by "suicide" that was caused by some other player's action, such as knocking him off the cliff or triggering a crusher or gas chamber, the player that caused such death is credited the kill and the killed player does not lose a frag (it's not counted as a suicide). This concept increases the entertainment potential of the game (as it gives players options to be "cunning"), but it at the same time adds complexity, which may be the reason why Epic's main competitor, Id software, did not implement this concept into ''[[Quake III Arena]]'' (just as they did not implement spawn protection).

=== ''Unreal Tournament'' ===

* "combat achievements tracking" – ''[[Unreal Tournament]]'' (1999, by [[Epic Games|Epic]]) added statistics tracking. The range of statistics being tracked is very wide, such as:
** precision of fire with each weapon (percentage of hits to fired ammunition)
** kills with each weapon, being killed by particular weapon, and being killed when holding particular weapon.
** headshots (lethal hits of combatant heads with sniper rifles and some other powerful weapons)
** killing sprees: Killing 5, 10, 15, 20 or 25 combatants without dying is called a killing spree, each greater kill count being considered more valuable and having a unique title (respectively; Killing Spree, Rampage, Dominating, Unstoppable, Godlike). The game tracked how many times has the player achieved each of these titles.
* consecutive kills: when a player kills a combatant within 5 seconds after a previous kill, a consecutive kill occurs. The timer starts ticking anew, allowing a third kill, a fourth kill etc. Alternatively, killing several enemies with a mega weapon (such as the Redeemer, which resembles a nuclear rocket) also counts as consecutive kill. The titles of these kills are: Double Kill (2), Multi kill (3), Ultra kill (4), Megakill (5), MONSTERKILL (6; 5 in the original Unreal Tournament). For comparison, id Software's "Quake III Arena" tracks double kills, but a third kill soon after results in another double kill award.

=== ''Quake III Arena'' ===
This game's approach to combat achievements tracking is different from ''Unreal Tournament''. In deathmatch, the player might be rewarded with awards for the following tricks:

* "perfect!" – winning a round of deathmatch without getting killed
* "impressive!" – hitting with two consecutive shots or hitting two enemies with one shot from the railgun (a powerful, long-range [[hitscan]] weapon with a slow rate of fire)
* "humiliation!" – killing an opponent with the melee razor-like gauntlet (the killed player hears the announcement too, but the fact of being humiliated is not tracked for him).
* "accuracy" – having over 50% of hits-to-shots ratio.

=== Last Man Standing ===
{{main|Last man standing (gaming)}}

The Last Man Standing (LMS) version of deathmatch is fundamentally different from deathmatch. In deathmatch, it does not matter how many times the player dies, only how many times the player kills. In LMS, it is the exact opposite — the important task is "not to die". Because of this, two activities that are not specifically addressed in deathmatch have to be controlled in LMS.

* "Camping", which is a recognized expression for staying in one location (usually somewhat protected or with only one access route) and eventually using long range weapons, such as a sniper rifle, from that location. In standard deathmatch, campers usually accumulate fewer frags than players who actively search for enemies, because close range combat usually generates frags faster than sniping from afar. In LMS, however, camping increases the average lifespan. ''[[Unreal Tournament 2003]]'' addresses this unfairness by indicating players who are camping and providing other players with navigation to campers.
* "Staying dead" – after dying, player representations lie on the ground (where applicable) and are shown the results of the game in progress. They have to perform some action, usually click the "Fire" key or button, to respawn and reenter combat. This principle prevents players who might have been forced by real world situations (be it a sudden cough or a door ring) to leave the computer from dying over and over. In standard deathmatch, a player who stays dead is not a problem, as the goal is to score the most frags, not die the least times. In LMS, however, a player that would be allowed to stay dead after being killed for the first time might wait through most of the fight and respawn when there's only one opponent remaining. Because of this, ''Unreal Tournament 2003'' automatically respawns a player immediately after being killed.