I
have
to
give
props
to
id
Software
–
this
is
the
third
DOOM
game
in
this
new
series,
and
so
far
each
one
has
felt
distinctly
different.
Still
DOOM,
sure,
but
with
major
gameplay
differences.
It’s
a
ballsy
choice
because
there’s
already
a
divide
among
the
fanbase,
some
preferring
the
simpler
DOOM
2016
while
others
view
DOOM
Eternal’s
difficult
but
rewarding
resource-management
and
shooting
as
peak
FPS.

DOOM:
The
Dark
Ages
does
not
buck
this
trend
of
changing
things
up.
It
ditches
the
constant
weapon-swapping
of
DOOM
Eternal,
eases
off
the
accelerator
just
a
touch,
and
is
without
a
doubt
the
easiest
of
the
trilogy.
Perhaps
it’s
something
of
an
overreaction
on
id
Software’s
part
to
Eternal
because
of
players
getting
filtered
by
systems
and
difficulty,
even
while
others
adored
it.
Simply
said,
I
think
if
you
liked
DOOM
2016
but
bounced
off
of
DOOM:
Eternal
then
I
think
you’ll
enjoy
The
Dark
Ages.

Available
On:
Xbox,
PC,
PlayStation
Reviewed
On:
PC
Developed
By:
id
Software
Published
By:
Xbox
Games
Studios

Review
code
provided
by
keymailer
and
Bethesda

The
Dark
Ages
is
set
somewhere
between
the
events
of
DOOM
64
and
the
2016
DOOM
soft
reboot,
or
in
other
words,
it
takes
place
between
the
Doom
Guy
opting
to
stay
hell
and
the
sarcophagus
we
find
him
in
at
the
start
of
DOOM
2016.
Going
in,
I
actually
assumed
it
would
be
an
origin
story,
showing
(rather
than
telling)
how
the
relatively
powerful
Doom
Guy
became
the
God-like
Doom
Slayer.
It
does
address
this
a
little,
but
for
the
most
part
this
is
the
Slayer
with
all
his
insane
power,
albeit
technically
canonically
weaker
than
we
have
seen
him
in
DOOM:
Eternal.
Not
that
you
can
tell.

This
also
feels
like
the
most
story-heavy
of
the
new
DOOM
games,
adding
quite
a
lot
to
the
lore
and
introducing
a
bunch
of
characters.
And
yet
I
struggle
to
find
much
to
say
about
it
because
the
way
it
is
written
and
delivered
is
forgettable.
At
about
the
halfway
point,
the
plot
hits
a
new
level
of
crazy
and
my
brain
shut-off,
refusing
to
take
in
any
more
information,
even
while
the
game
launched
into
a
lengthy
cutscene
by
the
series’
standards.
I
respect
id
for
trying
to
inject
more
plot
into
DOOM
and
I’m
sure
the
lore-lovers
out
there
will
be
happy,
but
I’m
here
to
deliver
shotgun
blasts
to
skulls,
not
to
ponder
a
fleshed-out
DOOM
universe
where
I
have
to
remember
people’s
names.

During
the
build-up
toward
release,
id
Software
were
sure
to
describe
this
as
a
slower
game
featuring
a
Slayer
more
akin
to
a
tank
than
the
fighter
jet
he
was
in
DOOM:
Eternal.
“Stand
and
fight”
they
cried,
emphasizing
the
extra
focus
on
smashing
shit
in
the
face
rather
than
just
shooting
shit
in
the
face.
And
yes,
it
is
probably
a
slower
game
overall
compared
to
Eternal,
but
that’s
kind
of
like
saying
a
street-legal
Lamborghini
is
slow
compared
to
an
F1
car
–
absolutely
true,
but
both
of
them
are
still
fast
as
fuck.
The
Dark
Ages
is
not
a
slow
game,
and
is
actually
more
consistent
in
its
speed
thanks
to
the
sprint
button.
Now,
I
can
go
fast
whenever
I
damn
well
please,
and
can
still
parry,
shoot
and
hurl
my
shield
while
doing
so.
The
generous
range
on
the
shield
bash
also
makes
it
laughably
easy
to
get
up
close
and
personal
to
a
demon’s
face.
And
then
it’s
skull.
And
then
brains.
And
then
the
open
air
on
the
other
side.
Point
is,
while
I
did
sometimes
stand
and
fight,
a
lot
of
the
time
I
was
blitzing
around
the
levels
like
I
had
commitment
issues
and
the
ground
was
a
frustrated
girlfriend.

The
Slayer
has
picked
up
some
new
tricks
for
this
game,
rocking
a
chainsaw
shield
like
he
watched
the
MCU
and
decided
to
cosplay
as
Captain
America,
except
without
the
aversion
to
decapitating
enemies
with
a
flying
death
frisbee.
Hurling
the
shield
is
as
easy
as
tapping
a
button,
and
it’ll
decimate
fodder
enemies
without
even
slowing
down.
For
bigger
enemies,
the
shield
will
chew
into
their
flesh
for
a
few
seconds,
leaving
them
stunned.
It
can
even
be
used
to
blast
apart
armour
when
it
starts
to
glow
in
a
satisfying
show
of
sparks
and
armour
shards.

But
the
shield’s
real
party
trick
is
its
ability
to
parry
green
attacks,
sending
them
hurtling
back
toward
the
enemy.
This
can
activate
special
runes
and
abilities,
like
triggering
a
bolt
of
lightening
or
causing
a
small
auto-sentry
to
pop
up
on
the
Slayer’s
shoulder.
At
first,
it
felt
odd
to
be
parrying
incoming
attacks
–
like
someone
had
injected
Dark
Souls
into
my
DOOM
–
but
it
quickly
became
second-nature
to
bounce
attacks
back.
It
also’s
probably
the
biggest
example
of
how
easy
this
DOOM
feels
compared
to
DOOM
Eternal.
Even
with
the
difficulty
ramped
up,
death
doesn’t
come
often,
and
the
parry
window
is
beyond
generous
without
heading
to
the
difficulty
sliders
and
making
it
harder.
Even
then,
though,
parrying
attacks
is
a
breeze.
Eternal
wanted
you
to
work
hard
to
feel
awesome,
but
The
Dark
Ages
just
wants
you
to
feel
awesome
regardless.

Fitting
in
with
the
fantasy
aesthetic,
the
cape-wearing
Slayer
has
gained
an
extra
appreciation
for
hitting
things.
Armed
with
a
couple
of
selectable
melee
weapons
unlocked
through
the
game,
the
Slayer
hits
like
a
truck.
Weirdly,
though,
melee
is
treated
like
a
gun
in
that
it
has
“charges”
you
need
to
refill
by
picking
up
ammo.
The
flail,
for
example,
has
three
charges
before
you
run
out
and
can’t
hit
stuff
anymore.
Because
of
that,
I
actually
found
myself
using
the
melee
system
far
less
than
I
was
expecting.

That’s
fine,
though,
because
this
is
a
DOOM
game
and
I’m
here
for
the
gunplay.
There’s
the
usual
selection
of
armaments
to
play
around
with
like
the
iconic
super-shotgun,
which
actually
feels
more
dangerous
than
ever,
along
with
awesome
new
additions
like
a
rapid-firing
machine
gun
that
crushes
skulls
and
fires
the
bone
fragments.
Since
you
don’t
have
to
quickly
swap
between
them
like
you
did
in
Eternal
to
get
ammo,
there’s
more
room
to
grow
attached
to
specific
weapons
and
upgrade
them.
The
downside
to
that,
of
course,
is
that
you
can
find
yourself
sticking
to
just
a
couple
of
guns
rather
than
exploring
the
full
breadth
of
what’s
on
offer.

One
odd
change
is
the
removal
of
awesome
glory
kills,
replacing
with
them
a
weird
kick
that
sometimes
doesn’t
connect
properly
or
doesn’t
even
kill
the
enemy
outright.
According
to
id,
the
idea
here
was
to
improve
the
flow
of
the
gameplay
by
not
locking
players
into
rigid,
lengthy
kill
animations.
I
can
see
the
logic
behind
this,
but
the
glory
kills
never
really
felt
like
they
were
interrupting
the
action,
and
these
weird
kicks
that
have
replaced
them
actually
feel
more
awkward
and
far
less
satisfying.

The
upgrade
systems
feels
decent
in
this
DOOM
and
it
gives
you
a
decent
reason
to
check
behind
every
nook
and
cranny
for
gold
bars.

Overall,
this
DOOM
feels
like
it
sits
in
the
middle
between
DOOM
2016’s
pretty
straightforward
shooting,
and
DOOM
Etenal’s
puzzle-like
action.
I’ve
seen
some
of
the
comparisons
online
and
how
The
Dark
Ages
seems
to
be
almost
as
divisive
as
Eternal
was,
but
all
I
can
tell
you
is
that
I
had
a
blast
for
the
entirety
of
the
10
hour
campaign.
Admittedly
toward
the
end
the
action
was
starting
to
fade
a
little,
purely
because
the
combat
doesn’t
continue
to
evolve
in
the
same
way
Eternal
did.
And
I
found
the
weapon
switching
to
be
a
little
slow.
Those
small
gripes
aside,
though,
I
was
having
a
blast,
even
if
I
would
still
rank
Eternal
has
the
strongest
of
the
trilogy
in
terms
of
pure
game
design,
even
while
probably
having
raw
fun
with
The
Dark
Ages.

DOOM:
The
Dark
Ages
breaks
up
the
frantic,
gory
action
in
a
number
of
ways,
including
introducing
a
few
semi-open
spaces
(don’t
worry,
they
aren’t
massive)
where
you
can
spend
some
extra
time
tackling
optional
stuff,
finding
secrets
and
even
fighting
bonus
bosses
for
upgrades.
But
the
big
way
it
likes
to
break
up
the
action
is
by
tossing
you
into
a
mech
or
onto
the
back
of
a
dragon.
Yes,
you
read
that
right
–
the
Doom
Slayer
gets
to
go
all
Pacific
Rim
and
beat
the
shit
out
of
demons
using
giant
mech,
and
then
ride
around
on
fantasy
dragon
decked
out
in
cybernetic
augments.
Somewhere,
sometime,
14-year-old
me
is
doing
one
hell
of
a
happy
dance.

The
pure
spectacle
and
scale
of
both
the
dragons
and
the
mechs
is
absolutely
fantastic.
The
first
time
you
punch
a
building-sized
demon
or
soar
through
the
skies
on
a
drag
is
epic.
However,
in
terms
of
gameplay
both
types
of
section
are
a
little
weapon.
The
mechs
are
decent,
having
you
just
punch
the
shit
out
of
demons
and
then
dodge
attacks
before
unleashing
power
moves.
It’s
fun
in
a
mindless
way,
but
toward
the
end
of
the
game
the
novely
has
worn
off.

As
for
the
dragons,
flying
around
feels
good
the
moments
where
you
are
chasing
down
demon
ships
by
hurtling
through
tight
corridors
is
a
lot
of
fun,
especially
because
the
sense
of
speed
is
so
good.
Combat
is
less
fun
because
you
lock-on
and
then
awkwardly
hover
in
place,
dodging
big
glowing
attacks
and
holding
down
the
fire
button
until
whatever
it
is
dies.
When
I
imagine
dragon
combat
in
my
head,
hovering
in
place
and
dodging
to
the
side
is
not
what
I
imagined.
But
I
do
like
that
the
dragon
levels
often
have
you
landing
and
going
on
foot
as
well.

One
thing
I
do
miss
is
the
levity
of
the
past
two
games.
Neither
DOOM
2016
or
Eternal
were
comedic
games,
by
any
stretch
of
the
imagination,
but
each
of
them
had
funny
moments.
The
Dark
Ages,
though,
takes
itself
100%
seriously
at
all
times
outside
of
the
absurdity
of
the
violence.

One
aspect
where
the
story
does
not
fail,
though,
is
its
never-ending—nay,
almost
overly
tryhard—quest
to
make
the
Slayer
the
most
badass
of
badasses,
a
walking
bastion
of
indomitable
power
draped
in
so
much
aura
that
even
Chuck
Norris
would
think
twice
about
fucking
with
him.
In
fact,
the
game
puts
so
much
effort
into
ensuring
that
the
Slayer
is
the
baddest
thing
walking
that
it
can
border
on
being
cringey,
but
that’s
just
part
of
the
fun.

You
hear
those
slamming
drumbeats
and
those
pounding
guitar
rhythms?
yeah,
DOOM:
The
Dark
Ages
still
goes
hard
on
the
metal,
giving
us
an
adrenaline-pumping
soundtrack
designed
to
fuel
gym
sessions
and
ultra-violence.
But
between
Eternal
and
this
game,
composed
Mick
Gordon
left
amidst
a
heap
of
controversy,
and
while
still
excellent,
this
new
soundtrack
is
definitely
missing
something
special.
DOOM
2016
and
Eternal
both
had
a
little
extra
flair
that
the
Dark
Ages
is
missing.
That
said,
I
do
wonder
if
its
the
knowledge
that
Gordon
is
composing
that’s
making
me
like
it
a
little
less.
If
I
hadn’t
known
that
Gordon
had
left
going
into
The
Dark
Ages,
would
I
have
even
noticed?

In
terms
of
performance,
The
Dark
Ages
generally
ran
pretty
well.
It’s
another
game
that
requires
a
ray-tracing
capable
card
right
out
of
the
gate,
something
which
seems
set
to
become
the
norm,
so
that
might
be
a
sticking
point
for
anyone
running
an
older
GPU.
Provided
you
meet
the
requirements,
though,
it
runs
smoothly
enough.
I
had
one
crash,
but
otherwise
the
game
was
stable
and
held
a
consistent
framerate.
In
short,
I
don’t
have
any
major
complaints,
although
I
did
note
some
problems
being
reported
on
Steam,
so
as
always
do
your
homework.

Will
it
split
the
fanbase
again?
Absolutely.
The
Dark
Ages
makes
big
swings
—
slower
pace,
less
difficulty,
more
story,
fewer
glory
kills
—
and
not
everyone’s
going
to
be
into
that.
But
for
my
money,
it’s
a
worthy
continuation
of
id’s
mission
to
keep
DOOM
evolving.
It
might
not
be
peak
Slayer,
but
it’s
still
a
brutally
fun
time
that
earns
its
place
in
the
series.
Just
don’t
expect
to
be
challenged
the
same
way
Eternal
did
—
this
one’s
more
about
feeling
powerful
than
becoming
powerful.