Info about DOOM: The Dark Ages:

Official game description:
PREORDER
========
Pre-order now to receive the Void DOOM Slayer Skin at launch.
PREMIUM EDITION
===============
Get a head start on slaying demons with the Premium Edition, including up to 2-Day Advanced Access\* and the campaign DLC\*\*. You’ll also receive the Digital Artbook and Soundtrack, and the Divinity Skin Pack, which includes matching skins for the DOOM Slayer, dragon and Atlan.
INCLUDES:
\- Base Game
\- Up to 2-Day Early Access
\- Campaign DLC
\- Digital Artbook and Soundtrack
\- Divinity Skin Pack
\*Actual play time depends on purchase date and applicable time zone differences, subject to possible outages.
\*\*DLC availability to be provided at a later date.
About the Game
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**BECOME THE SLAYER IN A MEDIEVAL WAR AGAINST HELL**  
DOOM: The Dark Ages is the prequel to the critically acclaimed DOOM (2016) and DOOM Eternal that tells an epic cinematic story of the DOOM Slayer’s rage. Players will step into the blood-stained boots of the DOOM Slayer, in this never-before-seen dark and sinister medieval war against Hell.  
**REIGN IN HELL**  
As the super weapon of gods and kings, shred enemies with devastating favorites like the Super Shotgun while also wielding a variety of new bone-chewing weapons, including the versatile Shield Saw. Players will stand and fight on the demon-infested battlefields in the vicious, grounded combat the original DOOM is famous for.  
**STAND AND FIGHT**  
Experience an epic story of the DOOM Slayer’s rage in this cinematic and action-packed story. Bound to serve as the super weapon of gods and kings, the DOOM Slayer fends off demon hordes as their leader seeks to destroy the Slayer and become the only one that is feared. Witness the creation of a legend as the Slayer takes on all of Hell and turns the tide of the war.  
**DISCOVER UNKNOWN REALMS**  
In his quest to crush the legions of Hell, the Slayer must take the fight to never-before-seen realms. Mystery, challenges, and rewards lurk in every shadow of ruined castles, epic battlefields, dark forests, ancient hellscapes, and worlds beyond. Armed with the viciously powerful Shield Saw, cut through a dark world of menace and secrets in id's largest and most expansive levels to date.

Release date: 14 May, 2025

Categories: First-Person Shooter, Single-player Story, Real-time Combat, Horde Combat, Exploration, Tactical Combat, First-Person Melee Combat, Vehicle Piloting


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics: No data
- Time-to-fun: No data
- Player Archetypes: No data


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Engaging and Innovative Gameplay (weight 0.79): Players consistently praise the game for its fresh, varied, and engaging gameplay, which introduces new mechanics while staying true to the series' core. The combat loop is described as addictive, satisfying, and offering more strategic depth, making it a standout entry in the franchise.
- Superior to Doom Eternal (weight 0.73): Many players consider this game an improvement over Doom Eternal, citing a more balanced pace, less complex mechanics, and a more grounded combat experience. It's frequently lauded for not being a mere sequel to Eternal but a distinct and successful evolution.
- Impactful Weapons & Combat (weight 0.64): The game's arsenal is highly praised for its unique, powerful, and satisfying weapons, including new medieval-themed additions. The combat system, blending ranged and melee attacks, feels visceral and impactful, with players enjoying the freedom to experiment with different loadouts.
- Excellent Performance & Graphics (weight 0.47): The game receives high marks for its stunning visuals, impressive graphics, and exceptional optimization. Players report smooth performance even with high settings and ray tracing, making it a technically polished and visually appealing experience.
- Innovative Shield Mechanics (weight 0.4): The new shield and parrying system is a major highlight, adding a fresh offensive and defensive layer to combat. Players find it incredibly satisfying to use for blocking, parrying, dashing, and attacking, making them feel like an unstoppable force.
- Customizable Difficulty & Parry System (weight 0.4): The game's highly customizable difficulty settings, including sliders for game speed and parry windows, are greatly appreciated. The parry mechanic itself is found to be generous, satisfying, and adds significant depth to combat, catering to various player skill levels.
- Empowering Doom Slayer Experience (weight 0.28): The game excels at making players feel like the powerful and unstoppable Doom Slayer, with a design that emphasizes weight, brutality, and destructive force. Cinematic cutscenes and character design further enhance this power fantasy, making every action feel impactful.
- Varied Level Design & Mech/Dragon Segments (weight 0.21): Players enjoy the varied and well-designed levels, which encourage exploration and strategic thinking. The inclusion of mech and dragon segments is seen as a welcome change of pace, adding variety and spectacle without overstaying their welcome.

Common complaints:
- Gameplay Divergence from Previous Doom (weight 0.94): Many players feel the game deviates significantly from the established 'Doom' formula, particularly compared to Doom (2016) and Doom Eternal. Criticisms include slower combat, reduced mobility (lack of dash/double jump), absence of traditional glory kills, and a less satisfying weapon system. The game's overall feel, art style, and music are also perceived as a downgrade, leading to a less engaging and 'Doom-like' experience.
- Pacing and Narrative Issues (weight 0.67): The game is heavily criticized for its poor pacing, with frequent and lengthy cinematic cutscenes that disrupt the action. Players find the story uninteresting, generic, and often confusing, with unmemorable characters. Open-world level design, excessive collectibles, and repetitive mission structures contribute to a feeling of tedium and bloat, making the game drag on unnecessarily.
- Repetitive Gimmick Levels (weight 0.45): The inclusion of mech, dragon, and turret sections is widely disliked, with players finding them tedious, repetitive, and shallow. These segments are seen as unnecessary filler that break the game's flow and detract from the core 'Doom' experience, lacking depth and excitement compared to the main combat.
- Over-reliance on Shield/Parry Mechanic (weight 0.43): The new shield and parry system is a major point of contention. Players find it overused, clunky, and often inconsistent, leading to a more defensive and slower combat style that clashes with Doom's traditional aggressive gameplay. The forced slow-motion during parries and the inability to parry while weapon-swapping further disrupt combat flow and reduce player agency.
- Unsatisfying Weapon System (weight 0.33): The weapon arsenal is criticized for lacking variety, impact, and meaningful upgrades. Many players find little incentive to use the full range of weapons, often relying on one or two dominant guns (like the super shotgun). Slow weapon switching animations and the absence of weapon mods further contribute to a less dynamic and less rewarding combat experience.
- Disappointing Soundtrack (weight 0.3): The game's soundtrack is widely regarded as a significant downgrade from previous Doom titles. Players describe it as generic, unmemorable, and lacking the intensity and unique 'metal drive' that defined the franchise. Poor mixing and inconsistent presence during combat further detract from the immersive experience.
- High Price for Content (weight 0.24): Many players feel the game is overpriced for the content offered, especially given its perceived shortcomings and lack of replayability. The absence of multiplayer, master levels, or other extra modes at launch makes the high price point (e.g., $70-80 USD/EUR) difficult to justify.
- Poor Technical Performance and Bugs (weight 0.14): The game suffers from significant technical issues, including frequent crashes, poor optimization, and inconsistent frame rates, even on high-end hardware. Players report various bugs, such as display issues, input lag, and game-breaking softlocks, which severely hinder the overall playability and enjoyment.

Gameplay feedback:
- Shield-Centric Combat & Mechanics (weight 0.78): The game introduces a versatile shield as a core mechanic, fundamentally changing combat. It's used for blocking, parrying, throwing, dashing, and even solving environmental puzzles, shifting the gameplay from pure offense to a more tactical 'stand and fight' approach. This new system is central to mastering the game's challenges.
- Diverse Arsenal & New Weapons (weight 0.27): The game features a wide array of weapons, including returning classics and innovative new additions like the Skull Crusher and Chain-Ball. Many weapons are designed to complement the new shield mechanics, offering varied combat options and contributing to the game's brutal, medieval-inspired aesthetic.
- Larger, More Open Level Design (weight 0.18): Level design shifts towards larger, more open, and sometimes semi-open-world maps, contrasting with the more linear and vertical layouts of previous games. These expansive environments encourage exploration for secrets and upgrades, though some players find them too large or lacking in consistent action.
- Redesigned Glory Kills (weight 0.11): The traditional 'Glory Kills' from previous Doom titles have been largely replaced or significantly altered. While some quick melee finishers and jump-triggered executions remain, the frequent, invulnerability-granting animations are less prominent, impacting the combat flow and resource management.

Performance notes:
- Mixed Optimization Quality (weight 0.48): Player feedback on optimization is mixed. Many praise the game's smooth performance and stability, even on older RTX cards, citing excellent frametimes and quick loading. However, a significant portion of players report poor optimization, frequent crashes, and performance drops, particularly with ray tracing enabled or after updates.
- Demanding PC Requirements (weight 0.45): The game is highly demanding, primarily due to mandatory ray tracing, which significantly impacts performance. While some users report smooth gameplay on mid-range to high-end systems, many find it requires top-tier hardware for optimal settings and frame rates, especially with path tracing enabled.
- Forced Ray Tracing (weight 0.4): The game mandates ray tracing, which is a contentious point among players. While some appreciate the visual fidelity it adds, others criticize it for its heavy performance cost and the exclusion of non-RTX capable GPUs. There's a strong desire for an option to disable ray tracing for better performance.
- Effective DLSS and Frame Generation (weight 0.37): DLSS and Frame Generation technologies are highly effective in improving performance, especially when dealing with the demanding ray tracing and path tracing features. Many players rely on these to achieve stable and high frame rates.
- Path Tracing is Visually Impressive but Demanding (weight 0.37): Path tracing significantly enhances the game's lighting and reflections, making it visually stunning. However, it is extremely demanding on hardware, often requiring high-end GPUs and VRAM, with some users noting minimal visual difference for a substantial performance hit.
- Fast Loading Times (weight 0.36): The game is consistently praised for its incredibly fast loading times, often described as almost instantaneous. This is attributed to the ID Tech engine, contributing to a seamless gameplay experience.

Recommendations:
- Mixed Value at Full Price (weight 0.49): Many players recommend waiting for a sale or discount, suggesting the full price is too high for the content or current state. However, a significant portion still finds the game worth its full price, especially for fans of the genre or series.
- Strong Recommendation for Fans (weight 0.4): The game is highly recommended for fans of the Doom series and the FPS genre, often described as a 'must-play.' It's seen as a solid addition to the franchise, though some note it offers a different experience than previous titles.
- High Overall Ratings (weight 0.13): A large number of reviews give the game high scores, often ranging from 8/10 to 10/10, with some considering it a Game of the Year contender. Players generally report a great and enjoyable experience.

Other player notes:
- Mixed Reception for Story Focus (weight 0.36): The game places a greater emphasis on narrative and cinematic storytelling, a notable shift for the Doom franchise. While some players enjoy the expanded lore and cutscenes, many feel the story is generic, poorly executed, or simply not the primary reason they play Doom games, preferring gameplay over narrative depth.
- Mick Gordon's Absence Noticed (weight 0.18): The soundtrack receives mixed reviews, with many players expressing disappointment over the absence of Mick Gordon, whose work defined the sound of previous Doom games. While some find the new music decent or even good, it often lacks the distinctiveness and impact that fans associate with the series.
- Varied Campaign Length and Replayability (weight 0.17): Players report a wide range of completion times, from 10-20 hours for the main campaign to 30-70+ hours for 100% completion or higher difficulties. While some find the length sufficient, others note low replayability for the original campaign or feel the game drags towards the end.

Emotions:
- Satisfaction (weight 0.3): Players are highly satisfied with the game's core gameplay, including its fluid combat, gun feel, and innovative shield/parry mechanics. The stunning visuals, engaging story, and excellent soundtrack also contribute significantly to a positive overall experience, often leading players to feel they received good value for their money.
- Disappointment (weight 0.19): Many players express disappointment due to perceived deviations from previous DOOM titles, particularly regarding the music quality (absence of Mick Gordon), changes to glory kills, and the inclusion of 'boring' mech and dragon levels. The story is often criticized as unengaging, and some feel the game lacks replayability and content for its price, leading to a sense of regression from its predecessors.
- Frustration (weight 0.14): Frustration primarily stems from technical issues such as frequent crashes, poor optimization, and bugs preventing achievement completion. Gameplay mechanics like the parry system are sometimes found tedious or disruptive, and the inclusion of forced ray tracing or high hardware requirements also causes significant annoyance for some players.
- Excitement (weight 0.13): Players are excited by the game's fast-paced, brutal combat, innovative shield mechanics, and overall exhilarating experience. The medieval atmosphere, powerful weapons, and potential for future DLC also generate significant hype and a sense of anticipation for what's next in the franchise.
- Enjoyment (weight 0.05): The game is widely enjoyed for its fun and engaging combat, the feeling of being a powerful Doom Slayer, and its medieval aesthetic. Players appreciate the level variety, exploration, and the overall immersive experience, often finding it more enjoyable than previous installments after adapting to new mechanics.
- Appreciation (weight 0.03): Players appreciate id Software's courage in innovating the DOOM formula, their responsiveness to feedback, and their commitment to making each game unique. The game's mature design, accessibility options, and high production values are also frequently acknowledged and valued.
- Joy (weight 0.02): Joy is expressed through the sheer fun of demon slaying, the rewarding feeling of mastering combat, and the overall immersive experience. Players often describe the game as a favorite, enjoying continuous play and the satisfaction of completing challenges.
- Anger (weight 0.02): Anger arises from perceived poor game design choices, such as the shield mechanic ruining the 'vibe' or unfair enemy encounters. Technical issues like unplayable crashes and poor optimization also provoke anger, as does the high price point for what some consider a flawed or incomplete experience.
- Admiration (weight 0.01): Admiration is directed towards the game's stunning visuals, the capabilities of the id Tech engine, and the studio's courage in reinventing the gameplay formula. Players admire the craftsmanship, passion, and innovation demonstrated by the developers in creating a unique and powerful experience.
- Boredom (weight 0.01): Boredom is primarily caused by repetitive gameplay, particularly in mech and dragon sections, and a perceived lack of variety in combat encounters. Some players find the puzzles and collectible hunting tedious, leading to a loss of interest halfway through the game.
- Confusion (weight 0.01): Players express confusion regarding the game's story direction, new lore elements, and unexpected design choices that deviate from previous DOOM titles. Some also struggle with initial gameplay mechanics or map navigation, leading to a sense of being overwhelmed or lost.
- Mixed feelings (weight 0.01): Mixed feelings stem from a combination of enjoyable aspects, such as visuals and performance, contrasted with disappointments like narrative depth, gameplay changes, or the soundtrack. The game's slower pace and specific mechanics, like parrying, are often polarizing, leading to an ambivalent overall reception.
- Love (weight 0.01): Love for the game is expressed through deep appreciation for its unique gameplay loop, grounded combat, and overall crafted experience. Players often declare it their favorite DOOM installment, enjoying the franchise's classic movement feel and the innovative parry system.
- Nostalgia (weight 0.01): Nostalgia is triggered by the game's classic shooter feel, its medieval atmosphere reminiscent of older DOOM titles, and the overall sense of returning to childhood gaming experiences. Players appreciate elements that evoke memories of Doom 1993, Doom 2016, and other classic FPS games.
- Surprise (weight 0.01): Players are surprised by the game's unexpected quality, often exceeding initial low expectations or skepticism. The effectiveness of new mechanics like parrying, the game's performance on older hardware, and the successful integration of elements like dragon riding contribute to pleasant surprises.
- Concern (weight 0): Concerns revolve around the game's high price, perceived lack of optimization compared to its predecessor, and potential difficulties for low-end PCs. Some players also worry about the game's direction moving away from traditional shooter elements and the future of id Software.
- Hope (weight 0): Hope is centered on the anticipation of future DLC, content updates, and potential fixes for existing issues. Players express a desire for a trilogy completion and continued innovation from id Software, looking forward to what the developers will bring next.
- Annoyance (weight 0): Annoyance is caused by specific gameplay mechanics, such as the parry system being perceived as 'dumb' or repetitive. Other factors include large, uninteresting levels, boring music, and minor inconveniences like complex weapon switching or underutilized characters.
- Awe (weight 0): Awe is inspired by the game's brutally beautiful visuals, unique art style, and immersive soundtrack. Players are impressed by the high production values, the terrifying portrayal of the Doom Slayer, and the overall presentation and scope of the game.
- Anticipation (weight 0): Anticipation is primarily driven by the upcoming DLCs and future game mode updates. Players are eagerly looking forward to new content, expansions, and seeing what id Software will develop next for the franchise.}