After the 2016 reboot of the series, Doom has reestablished itself as the king of fast, hardcore, brutal, and just plain fun first-person shooter titles. We got a sequel in 2020 which is one of the best Xbox Series X games, plus two DLC chapters, but now it’s time to see how it all began. Doom: The Dark Ages will be a new chapter in the Doom saga in a setting we’ve never seen before. As much as the locations and weapons change, the goal of destroying demons in the most brutal ways possible is always a constant. Of all the upcoming Xbox Series X games, such as Avowed and The Outer Worlds 2, Doom: The Dark Ages scratches a very specific itch. Rev up your brand new Shield Saw as we cut into everything we know so far about Doom: The Dark Ages.
You can find Doom: The Dark Ages on our list of upcoming PS5 games and upcoming PC games, but sadly not on the list of upcoming Switch games.
Release date
Doom: The Dark Ages will be ready to rock and roll on May 15, 2025.
Platforms
Despite being owned by Xbox, Doom: The Dark Ages will not be a console exclusive. Doom: The Dark Ages will launch on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC on the same day in 2025.
Trailers
The first official trailer sets up Doom: The Dark Ages and where it fits in the new timeline. Set before the 2016 reboot, the Doomslayer will inhabit a medieval fantasy world donning spiked armor and a long furry cloak, although futuristic elements are still present. Alongside his trusty shotgun, we also see his new weapon called the Shield Saw. And that’s about as much story as the trailer wants to give us before going right into the meat of things: the gameplay.
We do know that the story will be delivered with more cutscenes this time around instead of relegating it to codex entries, though they still exist for deeper lore.
Gameplay
When it comes to gameplay, Doom: The Dark Ages is building upon the wheel rather than reinventing it. The main focus of the trailer is on a few new weapons, mainly the Shield Saw. Not only can it block projectiles as you would hope, but you can rev up the blades and throw it as a projectile that rips through enemies before returning to you like Thor’s Hammer.
Another new weapon is called the Skulkl Crusher which chews up skulls and spews out the bone fragments in a wide cone of death. We also see some sort of laser rifle and gun that impales enemies on walls with massive spikes.
Where things get crazy is when the Doomslayer enters a giant mech to fight tower demons, or mounts up on a dragon to assert some aerial domination.
As detailed in the Developer Direct, Doom: The Dark Ages will tone down the high mobility of Eternal and emphasize players standing their ground. There will be a lot more strafing to dodge projectiles to get close enough to deal damage, blocking, deflecting, and parrying. Each of these moves is triggered through a single button that adjusts what action is done contextually.
Levels will also be more expansive and allow players to explore to find secrets and take on objectives at their own pace, though the game isn’t open world and still features linear levels. The hub zone from Eternal is also gone in favor of a straightforward progression.
The Doom Slayer will also have access to an Atlan mech and dragon mount for specific sequences to give some variety to the gameplay. They aren’t just setpieces, however, as both will have a full suite of mechanics and even boss battles.
This entry also will not have a multiplayer component. Rather than split the team’s focus into two modes, all efforts were put into making the single-player experience as good as possible.
This series is notorious for difficulty, and Doom: The Dark Ages gives you more flexibility to make the game easier and more difficult with many sliders that allow you to tweak aspects of the game such as the speed and parry windows.
Digital Trends got to go hands-on with Doom: The Dark Ages in an early preview and can confirm that it does indeed still look, sound, and feel like a Doom game.
You can check out our full feature for all the details, but the Shield Saw was a standout new addition in our eyes. It allowed us to block, parry, and reflect attacks, but not with impunity. There is a shield meter that drains as you use it and is replenished by attacking. This falls perfectly in line with the series’s focus on aggression and forcing players to use every tool in their tool kit.
Similarly, the melee weapons will cause enemies to drop ammo, but can only be used three times before a cooldown.
We also got a glimpse at the upgrade system. Sentinel Shrines are where you will go to upgrade your Doom Slayer and his weapons. We opted to upgrade the shield to get ammo for a specific weapon upon successfully parrying or attacking with it, and we later added the ability to bounce it between enemies when thrown.
Preorder
Doom: The Dark Ages preorders have gone live so you can make sure you’re one of the first to stomp in a demon’s skull on release day. You can preorder on all platforms through the official site with the following preorder options:
Standard Edition – $70
- The base game
- Void Slayer preorder bonus skin
Premium Edition – $100
- Everything from the Standard Edition
- Up to 2-Day Early Access
- Campaign DLC
- Digital Artbook and Soundtrack
- Divinity Skin Pack
Collector’s Bundle – $200 (Physical only)
- Everything included in the prior editions
- 12″ Doom Slayer statue
- Metal red key card replica
- Steelbook case
