Doom The Dark Ages review: Rip and Tear until it is done

Doom The Dark Ages brings with it some serious expectations. After all, the Doom franchise is one of the most beloved first-person shooter series of all time, and it revolutionized the multiplayer FPS genre. While the games have since shifted to being single-player experiences, Bethesda hasn’t forgotten what makes these games fun. Doom 2016, Eternal, and The Dark Ages all bring something a little different to the table. However, I think this iteration is ultimately my favorite.

There’s just something satisfying about controlling the Doom Slayer, picking up a shotgun, and blasting every demon in the face with it. Doom The Dark Ages takes it a step further, making the game as accessible as you could ever want. Whether you want it to be easier or harder, that’s really up to you. I’ve previewed the game previously, but that was hands-off. Once I got hands-on, I couldn’t bring myself to stop.

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Doom The Dark Ages feels like a real tribute to classic Doom in the modern gaming space

Doom The Dark Ages genuinely feels like a classic Doom game, that’s for sure. While 2016 and Eternal brought with them things to make them unique, The Dark Ages feels more like the classic Doom games I remember. There is a story, and it’s a good one, but the emphasis on grounded gameplay and total carnage was what I appreciated. I won’t spoil the story for you, but do I really have to?

It all starts here, with an aesthetic that blends traditional Doom, Wolfenstein, and Castlevania (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

You probably know the basis of any good Doom story by now — the Doom Slayer shows up to help humanity and obliterate the forces of Hell by any means necessary. There are 22 glorious, carnage-filled stages, mixing up the standard exploration with the Cyberdragon flying stages, and Atlan giant robot fights. These shake the gameplay up without overstaying their welcome.

One thing I appreciate about Doom The Dark Ages is the simplicity of it all. There’s no annoying missions like rescuing someone and escorting them to safety. Our version of rescuing people is picking up the Super Shotgun, and blasting waves of evil forces in the face.

Hello, game changer! (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

The gameplay is exactly what you hope it will be: A nice array of weapons, unlocked in a decent amount of time, so you can blast away at enemies, while also swapping in for melee. One feature I’m glad stuck around, though, is getting more health pickups when you’re low on health. I tend to be incredibly greedy and aggressive, which led to several fights at very low health!

You don’t have to struggle or stress about ammo, either, since melee hits recover ammo for all gun types. That might be my favorite feature in the game. You’re free to go wild and run whatever guns you want, because ammo is just a skull crack away.

So many demons to kill, so little time (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

If I had one complaint though, about the basic gameplay of Doom The Dark Ages, the melee kills and glory kills were pretty standard. I was hoping for a bit more variety, to see some really sick animations. They were fine, and they did their job, but I wanted more bone breaking, arm ripping, stuff like that! However, there is one thing worth talking about: Parrying.

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Doom The Dark Ages’ parry system doesn’t feel forced or inadequate

Maybe it’s because I’ve spent 60+ hours playing the incredible Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, but I’m starting to wear out on all this parrying! Maybe it’s going to lead me to actually playing Soulslikes, but we’ll see about that. Doom The Dark Ages has parrying, of course, and it’s pretty essential to success in combat.

Normally green, I swapped parry attacks to blue to make them easier to distinguish (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

Certain attacks are parryable, which have a different color than normal shots. Parrying deflects attacks back at the foe, and through the various Shield Runes, can have some incredible effects. I had no problem with the parry timing in the game, but, thankfully, you can adjust it to be tighter or easier. While parrying is in the game, and I feel the burnout on that a little bit, I am grateful that it isn’t frame-perfect, Dark Souls 3 parrying.

I don’t think parrying in Doom The Dark Ages is shoehorned in thoughtlessly, either. It makes sense, it feels good, and it keeps you sharp and paying attention in combat. Even if there are 15-20 demons on the screen, you still have to keep an open eye for parrying, instead of thoughtlessly holding down the fire button.

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Doom The Dark Ages’ weapon and rune upgrades offer plenty of customization

Here’s another feature I really loved about Doom The Dark Ages: Customization! I don’t mean weapon and armor skins, though those are nice. Each ranged and melee weapon has a little skill tree you can invest in, for Gold, Rubies, and Wraithstones. You also have a skill tree for each of the Shield Runes, to shake up what they can do.

Each weapon has important choices to make - thankfully, they aren't permanent (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

Each weapon has a choice or two you can make also, where you can pick a feature that matters more to you. Thankfully, you can swap these at will, so you don’t have to worry that you’ve made a terrible mistake. You also can swap melee weapons at will in battle, by simply heading to the menu, so you aren’t stuck with one for a whole stage if you’re unhappy.

While yes, I mostly used the Super Shotgun, because it’s the best, putting thought and effort into each weapon, and what passives it offers you can be a game changer.

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Each map is vast and interesting, but there’s one minor flaw

The maps of Doom The Dark Ages get pretty massive in scope, and almost all of them have secrets to unlock. However, while the actual geometry and design of the maps are great, it’s the Automapper that I think is missing something. Occasionally, players need to find keys (Blue, Yellow, Red) to progress or unlock a secret.

I'd give anything for a bit more detail, or the ability to apply map markers (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

However, those doors aren’t marked by the automapper — you just have to hope and pray you remember where they were on the map, or take some notes, or something. If I have to backtrack halfway across a map to get a weapon skin, or a doll, or a Codex Entry, I’d really like to be able to place a marker on the map to signify it.

The actual stages themselves are brilliant. Each one was enjoyable in its own way. But trying to remember a tiny passageway miles away after I found a key, now that's unfortunate. I like that the Automapper shows you secrets once you’re in the area, but I feel like the system’s just a tiny bit incomplete. That one little change would make it so much better, overall, I think.

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Doom The Dark Ages looks and sounds stunning

What a beautiful world - that will soon be bathed in the blood of demons (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

There are some truly spectacular maps in Doom The Dark Ages, but I don’t want to spoil any of those late game-moments. Suffice it to say that if you’re looking for something gritty, brutal, and blood-soaked, this is your game. The metal riffs are perfect, and the stages look suitably grimdark and hopeless.

That is, until the Doom Slayer shows up and clears all the demonic trash out of the lives of humans. There is one thing I would like, but that’s just personal preference. I would love an option to hear some of the iconic Doom 1 songs when in battle. If I could just hear “At Doom’s Gate” when battle kicks off, oh, that would get the blood pumping.

I love that the game doesn’t always have music, though. The silence that hangs in the air when simply exploring a map feels suitably eerie. Then, when waves of demons begin to spawn, the music kicks in and shreds your face off. Just as the Doom Slayer intended.

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In conclusion

You can make Doom The Dark Ages whatever you want it to be, and that's fantastic (Image via Bethesda Softworks)

Doom The Dark Ages, at the end of the day, is fun. That’s what really matters here. It’s incredibly fun to just hop into the game, grab a weapon, and blast your way through a map. Do you need to find all the secrets? No, of course not. Some of them do house currency to unlock upgrades for your weapons, but you don’t have to.

There’s no weird microtransactions, nothing intrusive or awkward. It’s just a pure, good, single-player demon-slaying experience. I haven’t had this much pure fun just playing a game in such a long time. It’s a brilliant, violent FPS experience that doesn’t waste your time. This game embodies the “rip and tear” philosophy.

It's also a game for everyone, regardless of skill level. The options have a ton of settings to toggle beyond just the default difficulty. Want to make enemies less aggressive, deal less damage, or the complete opposite? That's open to you, and I think that kind of inclusiveness for a game like this is important. Everyone can enjoy it however they want. Everyone can rip and tear, until it is done.

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Doom The Dark Ages

If you like violence, cool guns, and slaughtering demons, Doom The Dark Ages is for you (Image via Bethesda Softworks || Sportskeeda)

• Platforms: PlayStation 5, PC, Xbox Series X|S
• Reviewed On: PlayStation 5 (Code provided by Bethesda)
• Developer: id Software
• Publisher: Bethesda Softworks
• Release Date: May 15, 2025