Doom: The Dark Ages review: demon slaying to metal riffs

Philipp Rüegg

9-5-2025

Translation: Jessica Johnson-Ferguson

Pictures: Philipp Rüegg

The Doom Slayer’s back, roughing up hordes of demons with the help of a dragon, a mech and a shield – not that he’s hiding behind it.

Doom reinvented itself back in 2016. Its classic gameplay was enhanced with resource management, more freedom of movement and wonderfully gory Glory Kills. It was also a colossal comeback for id Software, which, since the Bethesda takeover, had failed to restore the status it had enjoyed in the 90s.

Doom: The Dark Ages is the third part of the new series and marks another new beginning. The game’s a prequel and tells the story of how the Doom Slayer came into existence. It also bids farewell to the acrobatic skills of its predecessor and focuses on a more down-to-earth gameplay – literally. Thanks to a new shield, things still feel dynamic.

Admittedly, the story’s complexity is roughly at the level of a picture book, but it still adds a little spice to the game and makes the raid through the 22 levels a little more exciting. It’s a shame Prince Ahzrak is a bit pale – both in character and design, which reminds me of a generic Marvel antagonist towards the end of the game.

It also acts as a buzz saw you can throw at opponents to temporarily incapacitate them. Or you can just charge at them with it. Weaker groups can even be pulverised this way. Incredibly satisfying.

There are also new melee weapons to go with the shield. Starting with a gauntlet, there’s a mace that comes into play later on. The latter proves particularly effective against armour. However, you can only use it for a limited time before it needs topping up. You do this by successfully warding off blows, for example. It’s especially worth going into close combat with larger opponents, as they launch attacks that can be countered more frequently.

Fights become real rhythm games. As you constantly have to collect health and ammunition, you never stop. Especially on larger battlefields, when the game throws hordes of enemies at you, you just have to keep moving.

Even without the acrobatic moves, Doom: The Dark Ages loses none of its dynamics. Fortunately, the excessive resource management featured in Doom Eternal has been simplified. You get health through Glory Kills, among other things. That’s what the bloody finishers are called when an opponent’s on the brink of death. Ammunition’s acquired when you go into close combat.

Then there’s the type of demon that’ll keep sending out new droves of enemies as long as it’s alive. Or the kind that remains bulletproof until you’ve taken out enough weaker demons to make their energy shield disappear. Of course, your reflexes, aiming accuracy and the force of your weapons are still more important than tactics.

I like the design of two other «weapons» better. What I’m talking about is climbing onto the back of the mecha dragon, which you get to do every once in a while. Although these dragon moments are no more than mere fairground shooting gallery interludes with small evasive manoeuvres, they’re definitely a welcome change to the first-person shooter sprees.

And then there’s the Atlan mech. A gigantic monster you can use to fight skyscraper-sized demons. Here too, the gameplay is very shallow. Hitting, dodging and trampling to the ground with miniature tanks.

As the game progresses, the mini puzzles, which often only take a few moments to solve, become a little trickier. That’s when your spatial sense is required. But the search is worthwhile, as you often get gold for the secrets you uncover at the end of a mission. I spent more time on this than I’d have thought – especially with the pressure of writing a review.

What’s a shame is that all the searching slows down the otherwise perfect flow. Especially in larger areas, which offer a lot of hidden opportunities, I found all the searching a bit tiring. But it’s the only way you can collect enough resources to fully upgrade your weapons and shield.

The dark world is brought to life by the latest id-Tech 8 engine. The grotesque monsters I dissect with my murder weapons are beautifully designed. I was even more impressed by the varied areas. From extensive spaces in the shadow of mountain ruins, to ancient, dusty hellscapes, to H.R. Giger-like alien worlds. There’s a lot on offer. The ray tracing lighting effects create a wonderfully menacing backdrop.

I tested the game on PC. I didn’t notice a single bug during the entire time I was playing. Loading times are extremely short. Unsurprisingly, the game runs very smoothly with an RTX 5090, including all the details and 120 fps. On the ROG Ally X, on the other hand, I can’t get above 30 fps, even with low details. It’s possible that the CPU is the limiting factor here.

_Doom: The Dark Ages was provided to me by Bethesda. The game’s available for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S starting 15 May.

Philipp Rüegg

Senior Editor

Philipp.Rueegg@digitecgalaxus.ch

As a child, I wasn't allowed to have any consoles. It was only with the arrival of the family's 486 PC that the magical world of gaming opened up to me. Today, I'm overcompensating accordingly. Only a lack of time and money prevents me from trying out every game there is and decorating my shelf with rare retro consoles. more

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