Do you require ray tracing to launch Doom The Dark Ages?

Doom The Dark Ages, one of the most-awaited prequels of the iconic shooter game franchise, is arriving today, May 15, 2025. While the community is eager to see how the title performs with a new engine and cutting-edge visuals, many players are trying to find out whether they need a ray tracing-capable GPU to run this game.

Since most games that have ever had ray tracing had it as an optional feature to enhance your visual experience, many would be surprised to know that ray tracing is mandatory for this game.

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Ray tracing is mandatory for Doom The Dark Ages

Ray tracing is not optional but a mandatory requirement for the game. Bethesda Games has developed this title on a brand-new idTech8 engine, which natively supports ray tracing.

The game brings ray-traced global illumination and reflection to deliver the stunning visuals, which aim to enhance the player's gameplay experience. Therefore, ray tracing becomes a mandatory feature for the game.

Many gamers were seen confirming on Steam's forum that ray tracing is a mandatory part of the title's gameplay (Image via Steam)

According to the minimum system requirement listings on the official Steam page, Doom The Dark Ages will require a ray tracing-capable GPU even for low settings.

Minimum system requirements

Check out the minimum and recommended system requirements for the game from the table below:

Settings	Minimum requirements	Recommended requirements
OS	Windows 10 64-bit/Windows 11 64-bit	Windows 10 64-bit/Windows 11 64-bit
Processor	AMD Zen 2 or Intel 10th generation CPU @3.2Ghz with 8 core/16 threads or better	AMD Zen 3 or Intel 12th generation CPU @3.2Ghz with 8 core/16 threads or better
Memory	16GB RAM	32GB RAM
Graphics	Nvidia or AMD hardware Raytracing-capable GPU with 8GB dedicated VRAM or better (Nvidia RTX 2060 Super or better, AMD RX 6600 or better)	Nvidia or AMD hardware Raytracing-capable GPU with 10GB dedicated VRAM or better (Nvidia RTX 3080 or better, AMD RX 6800 or better)
Storage	100GB available space	100GB available space
Additional Notes	1080p / 60FPS / Low Quality settings, NVME SSD storage required	1440p / 60FPS /High Quality settings, NVME SSD storage required

From the system requirements, it is evident that the title will also not support play on the Steam Deck as that is below the minimum requirements.

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Can you play Doom The Dark Ages on consoles?

Consoles like the Xbox X|S and PlayStation 5 have in-built ray tracing support. Thus, if you are using any of these devices, you can enjoy the game without any hassle.

Since the game is also available on popular streaming platforms like GeForce NOW and xCloud, players with low-end hardware specifications, who have access to these platforms, can also play the title.

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Developer id Software developed the environment and action sequences of the title around the ray-traced global illumination and reflections. Thus, while ray tracing has always been an optional feature in any game that incorporated it, the feature becomes mandatory for players looking forward to jumping into this demon-slaying adventure title.