We knew heading into the Xbox Developer Direct that id Software's Doom: The Dark Ages would take up a significant portion of the show, in part because it was expected to almost be ready to make its arrival on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. Now that has been confirmed.
id Software and Bethesda has revealed that Doom: The Dark Ages will debut on May 15, 2025, all while also confirming a slate of additional details. We now know for a fact that the game is a prequel that happens centuries before Doom (2016), that it offers a more powerful and traditional take on the Doom Slayer, where the aim is to directly take the fight to enemies instead of acrobatically moving around like in Doom Eternal, and that there's a bigger focus on storytelling and single-player content.
This medieval war on Hell is regarded as a bit of a return to form for the series, which should delight long-time fans. It also has a more grounded approach that should make it more accessible, all while the prequel nature makes it the perfect place for new players to hop in. It will feature difficulty sliders that you can tweak to suit the gameplay to your needs, a slower-paced, bullet-hell-like structure, returning and also refreshed enemies, and new tools like the Shield Saw that Petter tells us more about in his preview of the game.
During the Developer Direct presentation, id Software's Marty Stratton and Hugo Martin unleashed a slate of explanations for what they hope to achieve with Doom: The Dark Ages, such as that this game will feature the "biggest, baddest demons" yet, and the "most ridiculously overpowered weapons we've ever created." This includes three melee weapon options that span a spiked mace, iron flail, and an electric gauntlet that will make pummelling demons all the more effective when combined with the throwable Shield Saw. With an improved Glory Kill system that puts more control in the player's hands and enables finishers to be performed with greater ease, this is all part of the "only in Doom" mission statement.
The levels will take the Doom Slayer to new biomes and locations, some of which are described as sandbox-like areas "full of war and riches" that offer an experience that is the "largest play space ever in a Doom game." These will be packed with familiar and refreshed enemies, and to help you chew through the hordes, you can expect to be able to ride a fire-breathing dragon at times and even pilot one of the enormous Atlan mechs, which id promises are not niche systems either and that both pop up multiple times throughout the story and have improvable elements.
id also specifically states that Doom: The Dark Ages will offer an experience that makes it stand out like a "summer blockbuster event," and part of that comes from the more focussed storyline that has "taken the narrative out of the codex and into the cutscenes."
Needless to say, Doom fans and shooter lovers have something very special to keep an eye out for when Doom: The Dark Ages debuts on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S on May 15.