The Cacowards are an annual online awards ceremony which honors the year's most prominent "Doom WADs", video game modifications of the 1993 first-person shooter Doom. Such modifications may be single levels, level packs, or "total conversions" featuring gameplay that significantly diverges from traditional Doom. Although generally focusing on classic Doom games (Doom, Doom II and Doom 64), modifications for other Doom-engine based games such as Heretic, Hexen and Strife have also been featured. Since 2004, the Cacowards have been hosted at doomworld.com, a Doom fansite.
| The Cacowards | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Awarded for | Doom modifications of outstanding quality |
| Presented by | doomworld.com |
| First awarded | 2004 |
| Website | www |
History
editIn 2003, Doomworld celebrated the 10th anniversary of Doom with "10 Years of Doom", a series of articles and reviews written by Mike "Cyb" Watson and Andrew "Linguica" Stine, discussing the history and legacy of the Doom modding community across the prior decade. The event was continued in 2004 as the Cacowards, with an emphasis on discussing the year's most notable contributions to the Doom modding community.[1] The name of the Cacowards stems from Doom's "Cacodemon" monster, whose likeness is present in the award's design.
Categories
editThe primary category of the Cacowards is the Top Ten, which discusses ten of the most notable Doom WADs of the year.
- Multiplayer Awards: Awarded to exemplary multiplayer-oriented WADs.
- Gameplay Mod Awards: Awarded to high-quality mods which modify or transform Doom's base gameplay, such as by adding or altering weapons and enemies.
- Mockaward: Awarded to the "best comedy WAD of the year"; such WADs are often designed with humorous intent, with a diminished focus on gameplay balance and longevity. The Mockaward category was discontinued in 2017.[2]
- Mordeth Award: Awarded to the year's released project with the longest development time. The category's name references Mordeth, a total conversion mod for Doom which has been in development since 1997.[3]
- Worst WAD: Awarded to WADs of exceptionally low quality. The Worst WAD category was discontinued in 2011, following concerns that the category rewarded users for low-effort content.[4]
Legacy
editThe Cacowards have been critically praised as a resource for high-quality Doom modifications. Commenting on the event, PC Gamer stated: "If you want a direct route to the best Doom maps and mods, the place to go is the Cacowards."[5] Rock, Paper, Shotgun shared a similar sentiment, commenting that the Cacowards are "often a handy pointer towards good and fun new things."[6] Numerous award recipients have received additional commendations by journalists covering the Cacowards, who often review highlights from the year's ceremony.[7][8]
See also
edit- Brutal Doom – 2011 Cacoward winner in the "Gameplay Mod Awards" category[9]
- Sigil – 2019 Cacoward runner-up[10]
- List of WADs – Examples of the most popular and historically significant WADs, many of which have won Cacowards
- Cyriak (Mouldy) – Winner of 2012 and 2014 Cacowards[11][12][13]
- MyHouse.wad - Winner of a 2023 Cacoward[14]
References
edit- ^ "Doomworld -- The Cacowards". doomworld.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
- ^ "Doomworld -- The 2017 Cacowards - Other Awards". doomworld.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
- ^ "The Mordeth TC Site - Back In The Days". mordeth.doomworld.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
- ^ "Doomworld -- The 18th Annual Cacowards". doomworld.com. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
- ^ "Why I Love: Doom WADs". pcgamer.com. January 14, 2015. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
- ^ "Doom Over The World: The 2015 Cacowards". rockpapershotgun.com. December 10, 2015. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
- ^ "2015 Cacowards". PC Gamer UK. March 2016. Retrieved April 15, 2018 – via Internet Archive.
- ^ "Celebrate 24 years of classic Doom modding and mapping with the annual Cacowards". pcgamesn.com. December 10, 2017. Retrieved April 15, 2018.
- ^ "Doomworld -- The 18th Annual Cacowards". Doomworld. Archived from the original on 2011-12-11. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
- ^ "Cacowards - Runner-Up Spotlight". Doomworld. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
- ^ Ryerson, Liz (29 January 2018). "The Doom Mod That Best Describes Our Uncanny Reality". Vice. Retrieved 5 January 2020.
- ^ "Doomworld -- The 19th Annual Cacowards". Doomworld. Archived from the original on 2013-01-07. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
- ^ "Doomworld -- The 21st Annual Cacowards". Doomworld. Archived from the original on 2014-12-25. Retrieved 2020-12-27.
- ^ "2023 Cacowards". Doomworld. Archived from the original on 2024-01-20. Retrieved 2024-01-21.