Summary
Fans are understandably excited regarding the recent announcement ofDoom: The Dark Ages, with the upcoming standalone game being the first new experience in the iconic and longstanding franchise sinceDoom Eternalin 2020. The brief reveal trailer for the project was jam-packed with fascinating details and gameplay elements, with the game clearly being centered around huge influences from the Medieval period.
Alongside exciting new weapons and mechanics like mech-suit combat and mounted dragon exploration,Doom: The Dark Ageswill tell the story of the Doom Slayer’s time in the land of Argent D’Nur. This makes the title a prequel to 2016’sDoom, with many references and gameplay sequences based around Argent D’Nur also being present inDoom Eternal. Some players might be understandably confused about how exactlyThe Dark Agesfits within the massive timeline of the wider franchise, which dates as far back as its 1993 debut release, andThe Dark Agesactually occupies a timeline blind spot that has existed for a long time.
Doom: The Dark Ages Offers a Narrative Bridge Between the New and Old Identities of the Franchise
The 2016 release ofDoomis considered to be a soft rebootof the franchise, offering an easily accessible story for new fans of the franchise while still maintaining narrative links to the originalDoomtitles that dominated the gaming industry throughout the 1990s. The Doom Slayer, or “Doomguy,” that fans control throughout these rebooted games is in fact the same protagonist from the originalDoomtrilogy andDoom 64, but the narrative links between these two eras of the franchise have always been a bit cloudy.
Doom 64was the last that fans saw of the original Doomguy for almost 20 years, with this 1997 title ending with Doomguy willingly remaining in Hell to battle the forces of evil for eternity. This story was finally continued with 2016’sDoom, which begins with the franchise’s protagonist entombed and trapped in an elaborate sarcophagus. This implies that the demons of Hell somehow managed to contain Doomguy to stop his merciless onslaught, andDoom: The Dark Ageswill tell the story of how exactly this happened.
FromDoom Eternal, it is known that Doomguy fought in hell for what could easily be centuries, due to the realm’s unusual temporal make-up, eventually driving the space marine to the brink of insanity. Somehow,Doomguy was transported to the world of Argent D’Nur, an ancient land of humanoids that owe their existence and powerful technology to ancient God-like beings known as Wraiths.
Doom: The Dark Ages Will Give a Deeper Dive Into Argent D’Nur and the Night Sentinels
Doomguy would quickly be adopted by the Argenta humans, specifically into their warrior-caste known as Sentinels, with Argent D’Nur being embroiled in a ruthless invasion by the demons of Hell. Thanks to his fighting experience and knowledge of Hell,Doomguy quickly rose through the ranks of the Sentinels, being granted ancient powers of strength and endurance and earning the moniker “Doom Slayer.”
Doom: The Dark Ageswill allow fans to see just how influential the Doom Slayer wasin Argent D’Nur’s war against hell, and will finally offer a clear narrative link between the beloved earliest entries to the franchise and their modern counterparts. Officially occupying the previously blurred timeline betweenDoom 64and 2016’sDoom, the upcomingDark Agesis aiming to offer fans a fascinating insight into fresh forms of exploration, weaponry, scale, and societies that will want to stand out against the wider franchise.
