Doom: The Dark Ages tells the origins of the Slayer between mech battles and dragon rides

Bethesda and id Software are in an unenviable position with the Doom series. Doom is known as the pioneer of the first-person shooter. It redefined the genre with the 2016 reboot by going back to basics with an ultraviolent arena shoot 'em up designed for a modern audience. Fans love the series when it sticks to its roots. They love it slightly less when it tries to go beyond that, as evidenced by 2020's Doom Eternal. Doom: The Dark Ages looks like a game that wants to have it both ways. It appears to stick to the ultraviolence and intense arena encounters of the 2016 reboot, but there are a lot of new ideas in place. Shacknews was recently invited to give Bethesda and id's next blockbuster a try, and it's certainly a blast, even if it could raise the question of what makes a Doom game feel like Doom.

Doom: The Dark Ages is being touted as a prequel to id's 2016 reboot. Before going any further, there's one thing that makes The Dark Ages feel noticeably different from any of its predecessors. Bethesda and id are going to rely much more on series lore than ever before. Rather than rely on optional Codex entries for the story, The Dark Ages will tell its story with a greater number of cutscenes than any Doom game before it. That's because id believes in this story, one that goes into the earliest days of the Slayer. When players meet the Slayer, he will be shown as the ultimate weapon against the forces of Hell, one blessed with the power of the Sentinels, but subjugated by the Maykrs. While The Dark Ages will lead to the events of 2016's Doom, this game's narrative will act as a jumping-on point with no prior knowledge of the lore required.

Four sections of The Dark Ages were playable during this press session. The opening chapter acted as a learning experience and a preview of the battles ahead. Like the previous two Doom games, players will not solely rely on their firearms. Big guns are a major part of the experience, but it'll take more than that to kick some demon backside. The biggest addition to The Dark Ages is the Slayer's shield. The shield can absorb most incoming attacks, but is mainly used as an offensive tool. Players can lock onto enemies with the shield and attack with a Shield Charge, which is capable of clearing out multiple foes at a time.

The Slayer also apparently has a little Captain America DNA in him, because a later point in the demo granted him a shield throw. The shield throw can be used in the field to hit switches and solve some puzzle sections, but it's mainly used in the heat of battle. Some demons will carry metal shields and the idea becomes to superheat those shields with the Slayer's weapon fire before tossing the shield at those enemies to create a big explosion that can clear out any surrounding demons. The shield throw is also useful against larger foes after unlocking the Shield Saw, because that can momentarily stunlock any bigger demon it catches. The downside is that it leaves the Slayer without a shield for a few seconds.

Some demons will come at the player with long-range attacks, which will sometimes include a green hell surge. The green hell surge can be parried with the shield, sending it back to the attacker and opening them up for heavy fire or combos. Combos are executed through melee strikes, which can consist of either a heavy gauntlet or a Flail attack with a mace found later in the game. Melee strikes can be chained together to cause heavy damage and even set an enemy up for a finisher. Notice I said "finisher" and not "Glory Kill," because the Glory Kill appears to be gone in favor of more practical finishing animations. They're still plenty gory, like a few instances where the Slayer will pull out a demon's heart and crush it in the palm of his hand, but don't expect anything on the level of those old cinematic deathblows.

If Doom and Doom Eternal felt like there was a lot of information to retain, in terms of combat flow, The Dark Ages will look to put them to shame. There is a lot to remember during fights, whether it's in the close quarters of an arena or the more wide-open spaces of the planet Argent D'Nur. Players will need to mix up their shooting, shield blocks, shield throws, melee strikes, and parries to stay alive. Some attacks like the shield block and melee have a cooldown or can only be used a certain number of times, so the idea is to execute successful parries or finishers to refresh those resources. Fallen enemies will drop different resources depending on how they're defeated, so the player must keep their attacks varied. This is all without even mentioning the different variety of guns in the game (long-range, shotguns, plasma weapons, and some more off-the-wall ideas), some of which require quick switches depending on which enemy types are around. While it's entirely possible that the information overload can melt some people's brains, there's no denying that when it all flows together, it feels like beautifully violent ballet.

Stages in The Dark Ages are linear, similar to previous entries in the series. With that said, maps can get fairly expansive and nearly every section in the game will have secret areas or interesting side content to explore. It can be easy to miss something, but the game will helpfully show off Point of No Return markers at various points in a chapter. Once a player crosses those markers, there's no going back, which should be enough to prompt a thorough search before proceeding.

While The Dark Ages can feel like traditional Doom in a lot of ways, there are some chapters that get experimental. One other part of the demo introduced a giant mech piloted by the Slayer. There's a greater emphasis on melee combat and parries during these sections that usually involve walking around and throwing hands against Godzilla-sized demons. At one point, the Slayer does get to add a giant Gatling gun, so there's potential for even bigger-scale mech battles later in the game.

Speaking of bigger-scale battles, the Slayer also gets to ride a dragon. A different part of the demo introduced a much grander arena encompassing the skies of Argent D'Nur. The Slayer is tasked with taking down several Hell Carriers from the inside. In order to do so, the dragon has to blast away at their cannons and open up a way for the Slayer to get inside. In a clever twist on the Doom formula, the Hell Carriers themselves are individual arena stages filled with demons, puzzle sections, and secret areas. After destroying each carrier's core, the Slayer would do an epic dive off the exploding vessel and land back on the dragon for another ride.

Bethesda and id are hopeful that all of this will add up to the most complete Doom experience to date. Whether Doom fans find it to be the right amount of Doom or possibly too much Doom remains to be seen. The Slayer is just weeks away from embarking on one of his first journeys. Doom: The Dark Ages will come to PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S on May 15. It'll also be available on Day One for Xbox Game Pass users.

This preview is based on an early PC build played on-site at a private press event held by Xbox and Bethesda. The final product is subject to change.

Ozzie Mejia

Senior Editor

Ozzie has been playing video games since picking up his first NES controller at age 5. He has been into games ever since, only briefly stepping away during his college years. But he was pulled back in after spending years in QA circles for both THQ and Activision, mostly spending time helping to push forward the Guitar Hero series at its peak. Ozzie has become a big fan of platformers, puzzle games, shooters, and RPGs, just to name a few genres, but he’s also a huge sucker for anything with a good, compelling narrative behind it. Because what are video games if you can't enjoy a good story with a fresh Cherry Coke?