With a host of gameplay innovations – some controversial, others expected – incredible new weapons, newly concocted realms, and a techno-medieval setting DOOM: The Dark Ages is going hard. “The best DOOM game we’ve ever made” claim id Software. Well, there’s undeniably a ton of promise that DOOM Slayer’s latest war against Hell will deliver by the bucketload. Here’re 15 things we can’t wait to do once we load up DOOM: The Dark Ages. Experience the new setting DOOM has been married to heavy metal hellscapes since its earliest incarnation, but for DOOM: The Dark Ages id Software are throwing a new aesthetic into the mix, and it’s a union forged with such perfection that it beggar’s belief it’s not happened sooner. Yes, we’re talking about DOOM: The Dark Ages’ medieval setting, a concoction of gothic spires and techno demons. A pared-down colour palette The Dark Ages may be, but for a fresh-faced battleground it’s ideal for DOOM Slayer’s latest war on hell.    Wield the Shield Saw Most publicised of DOOM: The Dark Ages’ new medieval weaponry is the Shield Saw, a steel-plated slab for DOOM Slayer to block, parry, and repel his demonic attackers. The Shield Saw underpins The Dark Ages’ revamped combat philosophy (which we’ll get into in the next point) but most excitedly this shield is edged by a saw-toothed blade to brutally gouge, slice, and chop the meat and metal off The Dark Ages’ armour-fused demons. In action, the Shield Saw’s flesh-shredding destruction is eye-popping viscera. Get to grips with The Dark Ages’ combat DOOM 2016 modernised the series’ marquee run and gun (or rip and tear as the more primeval description goes), DOOM Eternal introduced shooting to platforming and puzzles. DOOM: The Dark Age’s reinvents the wheel again, and arguably it’s the most divisive of its innovations. The combat philosophy here is stand and fight, or block-and-parry as is likely how DOOM Slayer will be approaching battling. With sprinting optional – a first for the series – The Dark Ages’ combat will be stately, more nuanced; demanding different sort of skills to those DOOM players are accustomed. There’s a chance this combat change won’t resonate, but we’re eager to try it out none the less. Perfect parrying DOOM: The Dark Ages’ new focus on parrying will likely be polarising, with detractors perhaps believing combat mechanics such as these belong in FromSoftware titles only. However, assessing stand and fight suggests combat here harbours a different rhythm, built upon the same fast-paced foundation but with an eye for deliberate movement rather than freewheeling. Especially true of larger foe, it seems as though DOOM Slayer must aggressively block, parry, and deflect attacks, simultaneously weaving through projectiles to get up close to his enemies before his fists, shield, or guns take care of the rest.     Fire the Reaver Chainshot Unlike any weapon featured in DOOM games prior, the Reaver Chainshot is an iron mace ballistic capable of bone-crunching destruction. As described by id Software Game Director Hugo Martin, the Reaver Chainshot is “an ancient tool from dimensions beyond our own” capable of turning the insides of DOOM Slayer’s enemies into “demonic pulp”. It has a rapid-fire light attack, but the meat of this brutal vessel is its Chaos Sphere, a retractable metal orb which viciously punctures holes in demon flesh.  Explore the new Cosmic Realm The Cosmic Realm is another new, totally unexplored biome for The Dark Ages players to sink their teeth into. A menacing, Lovecraftian dimension harbouring dark secrets whilst inhabiting the game’s most intense adversaries. It’s an ancient landscape too, constructed of crumbling architecture and shapeshifting portals all bathed in sickly green and purple glow. Fight the Cosmic Baron Twin-bladed brute the Cosmic Baron is one such adversary stalking the Cosmic Realm, and skirmishes with this creature promise to be an abrasive test of determination. Relentlessly attacking, the Cosmic Baron unleashes a swarm of attacks capable of blocking DOOM Slayer’s projectiles whilst ripping through his precious health. Parry skill becomes paramount; the best way to overcome the Cosmic Baron is to deflect his attacks with precision, then to pray for an opening. Fight the redesigned Cacodemon Of course, amongst DOOM’s most iconic enemies the Cacodemon is returning in DOOM: The Dark Ages, with its redesigned form more closely resembling the original Spider Mastermind what with its dangling tentacles and brain-like crown. A Hell versus Cosmic Realm hybrid will be making an appearance too, a powerful tyrant of telepathic terror capable of psionic shield attacks and devastating close-range strikes. The Dark Ages’ Cacodemon doesn’t appear to be the fodder it once was.   Fly the Mecha Dragon What is a medieval setting without dragons. And of course, this being DOOM, the dragons present in this feudalist hellhole are mountable flying gunships able to spew fire into the face of Cyberdemons. Breaking up the standing and fighting are these dragon flying sequences, with hovering demonic motherships the target. Destroying their defences before boarding and blasting out of the sky from the inside sounds to be an enveloping gameplay loop, although preview build players do report these sections as repetitive. Hopefully id Software have pushed this innovation as far as it’ll go. Pilot the Altan Mech Alongside dragon-mounted dog fighting, DOOM: The Dark Ages harbours another other novel mechanic: mech battling. The Altan Mech in question here is a skyscraper sized bruiser designed to pummel the most massive of Hell’s demonic denizens with its fists. The premise is sound enough, but again preview build players have shared their concerns that these sections are mechanically underbaked. The Altan Mech feels too lightweight, they say, hinting that The Dark Ages’ colossi fisticuffs are less Godzilla versus Kong and more akin to the Power Rangers’ Zords. Experience new glory kills Actually, this point isn’t necessarily something we can’t wait to do out of excitement as, if you weren’t aware, glory kills – as in the enemy-specific finishers which made you feel like the hardest demon slayer of the underworld – are gone in favour of more generic kicks, punches, and shield smashes. For a shooting game with renewed focus on melee combat, reducing unique execution animations feels a misstep. However, remember, underpinning The Dark Ages’ combat is rhythm. id Software believe these more free-form finishers maintain momentum, transitioning from melee strikes to shield swings to executions without any break in the action. Of note: glory kills aren’t gone entirely. They’re present for the game’s more substantial enemies. Explore ‘open zone’ levels Doing away with the series’ linear mission design, DOOM: The Dark Ages also harbour stretches of open-ended gameplay. These open zones are overseen by a commander who, rather than being a figure to tackle immediately, possess a morale meter which must be whittled down by eliminating underlings dotted throughout. You can confront any of the open zone’s individual objectives in whatever order you see fit too, utilising the Shield Saw’s lock-on ability to zip between enemies and environmental cues. Tweak the difficulty settings DOOM: The Dark Ages boasts the most accessibility options of any DOOM game thus far with every aspect of the experience tweakable no matter which of the six difficulty levels you opt for. There’re sliders to adjust parry windows, damage dealt, action speed, and more. Heaps of flexibility is here: opting for a challenging difficulty whilst choosing to soften some of the more granular settings will give the feeling of the ultimate DOOM Slayer to even the most modestly skilled players. Witness cinematic boss entrances and brutal mid-fight transformations From what’s been shown so far, DOOM: The Dark Ages appears to be leaning heavily into spectacle when it comes to boss battles. The glimpses we’ve seen tease grand, cinematic entrances—bosses emerging from clouds of war ash, or towering demons flanked by demons. These aren’t just enemies; they’re events. Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.