The cat is out of the bag. Doom: The Dark Ages will launch May 15, 2025and will be the third 'nu-Doom' game from a renowned developer software id. But this game, which is completely confusing is a prequel to the instant classic Doom (2016)a trend established by both the first game in the series will be rebooted, and 2020s Doom Eternal: it will not have multiplayer.
In a round interview chaired by id Software's Marty Stratton (studio director) and Hugo Martin (creative director), the two Doom veterans confirmed that there will be no multiplayer mode, at all, for Doom: The Dark Ages.
Manage cookie settings
“We wanted to get into the campaign,” explained Martin, when asked why this game would launch without a multiplayer element, when both Doom (2016) and Doom Eternal got one . “We were able to balance the single-player element (of Dark Ages) because it was our entire focus.”
The game won't just have you standing and holding your ground like the nearby Doom Slayer this time around, either. As a direct result of committing more resources to the single-player development, we're going to get set pieces that include a “Mech 30-story Atlan” and a “firearm, shotgun throwing cyber dragon”. Yes, really.
“That's something we've been wanting to do for ages, for the last couple of games, really,” explained Stratton, specifically referring to the introduction of the Atlant. In case ' s you're completely unfamiliar with your Doom lore (who can blame you), Atlanteans were massive dual-fuel war machines used by the Night Sentinels in the war against the forces of Hell – you probably look like unprofessional lumps of them in your past playthroughs of Doom games.
Both Stratton and Martin seemed excited about the reveal – and inclusion – of the mech in Doom: The Dark Ages, and suggest that it's a direct result of the Slayer to pilot one of these Evangelical sized beasts allowed more development time. the single-player elements of the game.
In conjunction, the two also boast that it's the “biggest play area ever in a Doom game”, and showcased a number of dungeons, caves and bonus fights that you can engage in if you get lost you off the beaten path. “You control the pace of the game,” Martin laughed. “You control where you go, who you fight, and what goals you pursue.” Again, the developers cite being able to focus completely on the single-player aspect of the game as the reason id could pump this content into the story and the world
I'm not complaining; in a world where we see multiplayer games moving at a rate of knots, and live service slop take up more and more space on the virtual storefront, it's a breath of fresh air to see single-player game modes in games getting so much focus from a prolific developer. It might be something both Sony and blizzard can learn from them in the coming months and years.
Doom: The Dark Ages launches on May 15, and will launch on Xbox Game Pass for PC and Xbox Series – but will also come to PlayStation 5.
