DOOM: The Dark Ages Reviews
The level designs are overly drab, and the vehicle sections wear out their welcome, but the actual battles against hordes of demons are as fun as ever, and you’re given tons of awesome tools and toys to unleash on them.
DOOM: The Dark Ages has managed to distance itself enough from Eternal to avoid being overwhelmed by its legacy and create its own that lives up to what the series needed: a third installment that feels like a DOOM, but not the "nth" DOOM. Almost like a fascinating mix between a first-person shooter and a hack and slash, id Software has created something unique... again.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
DOOM: The Dark Ages reimagines the series' approach by offering unique and highly personalized gameplay supported by simple yet engaging additional systems. The Slayer's carnage is as immersive as ever, but the shadow of past installments partially overshadows the final result, which falls short of memorable status.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
In an attempt to one up the already hellacious shooter series, one that reached new adrenaline highs in 2020’s Doom: Eternal, developer Id Software turns every dial up to 11 from right Chapter 1. The battles are faster and more ferocious. Hidden lore becomes glitzy cutscenes. Our hero rides a mechadragon, for God’s sake. Every single piece of it is an exercise in maximalist escalation, trying to find a ceiling to a timeless shooter hyper violent glory. It reaches that height, but comes up against a hard truth: There’s nothing left to climb once you’ve reached the top.
DOOM: The Dark Ages is a fun and flashy shooter stuffed with engaging content - it's a thrill-ride from beginning to end. In the shadow of DOOM Eternal, though, the more varied set-pieces and methodical combat cause its flame to burn just a bit less bright than I was hoping for.
After Doom Eternal proved somewhat divisive among fans, Doom: The Dark Ages should be a Doom game everyone can appreciate. It’s fast and hard hitting, featuring robust combat systems that make learning their ins and outs fun and empowering. I daresay it’s even better than Doom 2016, and is a must-play title for everyone interested in Doom, first-person shooters, and action games as a whole.
Getting used to Doom: The Dark Age's combat loop takes some time, but once it clicks, it becomes a real joy.
Doom: The Dark Ages is an exciting evolution of the franchise, capable of surprising with its more structured narrative approach and gameplay innovations, without losing the brutal and metallic identity that has always distinguished the saga.
Review in Italian | Read full review
I’ve mentioned some minor problems and disappointments, but I mean what I said at the top. This is the most impressive Doom game iD has developed. The ingenuity and evolution of its gameplay, while remaining true to itself, is outstanding, along with an epic campaign to complement it. The Doom Dance in The Dark Ages is addictive, and I’m stoked to continue playing.
In just under 10 years, id Software has created three very different Doom games, with 2016’s being the most pure, Eternal being the most expanded, and The Dark Ages easily being the most bone-crunchingly heavy metal.
The Dark Ages has some of the best combat in Doom history, but dull new features make it the weakest of the modern Doom games.
DOOM: The Dark Ages goes for something slightly different as it turns back time for a medieval assault on hell's legions. Not every change pays off, as the introduction of a mech and dragon adds very little to the overall experience. However, when The Dark Ages gets to the FPS action, there aren't many who do it better than id Software. Take some time to adjust to DOOM: The Dark Ages, and you'll discover another fantastically ferocious first-person shooter.
id Software once again found a way to reinvent the DOOM formula, adding new gameplay elements such as the thoroughly enjoyable shield saw. DOOM: The Dark Ages is nonstop, adrenaline-fuelled thrill ride from start to finish. This blockbuster demands your full attention as the best FPS this year so far.
We're unsure if the game's additions are enough to compensate for what's been lost from Doom Eternal, but the foundation of slaying hordes of demons in visceral and bloody battles remains as fun as ever.
Doom: The Dark Ages is a fantastic addition to this rebooted Doom franchise. It borrows from and builds on most of the aspects that made Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal so great. It stays true to the roots and offers exciting and fluid combat mechanics, while diving into a backstory that stands alone as a narrative but can also let the sickos geek out on some of the details. What it does best is just capture the hyper cool feel of being the "only one they fear" and delivering soundly on sprinting from one story beat to the next at a breakneck, metal pace.
Doom: The Dark Ages nails that feeling of "classic Doom in a new era," thanks to its relentless combat, interesting if not perfectly suitable levels, and hordes upon hordes of demons.
DOOM is and will always be synonymous with the FPS. Each new installment shows us that the genre can go beyond what many are accustomed to, and with DOOM: The Dark Ages, id Software once again shows its mastery. The level design is more open, placing a strong emphasis on exploration and allowing each player to create the experience they enjoy most. Shields and melee weapons encourage aggression and constant movement, utilizing classic concepts from the series and rearranging them in a way that feels innovative.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
It's not just a DOOM in iron armor: it's another beast.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
The passages that most clearly distance themselves from this beating heart are also the most dissonant, but the average quality of the experience still stands at very high levels. Yes, perhaps The Dark Ages is a less organic product than the previous Eternal, but we find it impossible to free it from the threshold of excellence.
Review in Italian | Read full review