One of the many new things we learned about DOOM Eternal during its gameplay showcase at QuakeCon 2018 was that there will be new extra lives. Fans noticed these, but we did not get any more details regarding them. Id Software revealed some information about this new addition to the game during one of the interviews they had with VG247. They are a fun and unique way to survive in-game and progress further before you die for good.
These extra lives will work as checkpoints, Marty Stratton explained. While the game already had various checkpoints from where the players started after they were revived, these will work differently. You will not be revived at the exact place where the checkpoint was. Instead, you will start again from the point where you died.
That extra life will guarantee that, though. If you die right before the next checkpoint, because of that extra life, you will be invulnerable for a while so you can reposition yourselves without losing the game’s progress. If that were a thing in various other games, our lives would have been so much easier. Especially in DOOM Eternal, that extra life might save you through multiple situations since the game has many more demons now.
Hugo Martin actually said something relevant regarding that, pointing out that the extra lives will work during invasions. Of course, if you die, it is still one more death. However, players will not be punished by going back to where the checkpoint was. Therefore these extra life pickups must be acquired whenever you encounter them. With all these demons and monsters showing up everywhere, it will be a useful safety net for your progress. With all the new universes the developers added to DOOM Eternal, you will be able to explore more of them without cursing a powerful boss you could not kill in the process.