Rip and tear? More like stand and fight.
The Doom The Dark Ages release date is set for 15 May across Xbox, PlayStation, PC, and Game Pass, and will add a host of new accessibility options as part of a strategy to woo new players.
Taking part in a special media event ahead of today’s Xbox Developer Direct, Stevivor was able to view The Dark Ages’ presentation alongside a special Q&A with id Software’s Marty Stratton and Hugo Martin.
The third in the modern-day Doom saga, The Dark Ages will serve as a prequel to both 2016’s Doom and its follow-up, Doom Eternal. Comparisons to either title were plentiful, and most seemed to indicate purposeful course corrections — particularly in reference to Eternal.
“In a lot of ways, the feel of the game is really a return to form,” Martin said. Combat, we were assured, will have an emphasis on power instead of Eternal‘s reliance on acrobatics. Martin added that strafing will once again become a viable strategy.
Almost contradictory to that last statement, Martin summarised each of Doom‘s latest or upcoming iterations. If 2016’s Doom was run and gun, then Eternal was jump and shoot. Now, The Dark Ages is stand and fight.
Strafing or not, most of that new manta of standing your ground is made possible via the Doom Slayer’s new Shield Saw, a new addition that lets you “block, throw, parry, deflect — all from one input,” according to Martin. “It’s contextual; tons of depth on a single button press.”
The shield seems to be particularly useful when it comes to follow-ups — the Doom Slayer can chain a successful parry with one of three different melee options and, of course, a glory kill. Close-quarters combat, however, isn’t your only option.
“Doom has, and always will, be about the guns,” Martin stressed. “And Dark Ages has some of the most ridiculously powerful weapons that we’ve ever created. Mean. Ancient. Brutal torture machines, built to butcher, impale, and shred the minions of Hell with.”
And, as Stratton pointed out, The Dark Ages will offer a host of accessibility options for the very first time, joining other systems that id believes makes the title the most approachable Doom yet. Said accessibility options will let players adjust difficulty, speed, and challenge “to whatever fits them best,” Stratton said. “It’s a Doom for all slayers.”
Oh goodness, and there’s a giant mecha (make that an Atlan) and a “fire-breathing, gatling-gun-toting, cybernetic dragon” too. Yes, please.
You can watch the full Dark Ages presentation above, when available.
If you liked what you saw, you don’t have long to wait — Doom The Dark Ages heads to Windows PC, Xbox Series S, Xbox Series X, and PS5 on 15 May 2025. The title will also be available on Xbox and PC Game Pass.
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