Doom: The Dark Ages Revelations - Creating A Flying Tank
Doom, the granddaddy of FPS, turns 30 this year, and to celebrate, we are getting one hefty expansion for The Dark Ages titled Revelations. After being announced at the Xbox 2026 showcase and given a surprisingly close July 8 launch date, we haven’t gotten too much of an idea as to what it would include apart from a new Spear melee weapon and some classic Doom levels re-done for the modern age. Well, thanks to ID Software and Bethesda, I got to sit in on a press roundtable with Hugo Martin and Marty Stratton from ID as they went over what is coming and what has changed in the world of the Doom Slayer.
The first thing is, well, the Khan Maker is more than a little pissed off with the Slayer, so they banish him to some sort of lower hell for all eternity, just to keep him out of their business. Of course, the Slayer isn’t going to stand for that. The problem is, most of his gear, including his trusty shield, broke during the banishment, so he finds himself a bit on the under-equipped side. Luckily, the Slayer finds himself a sexy new spear and heads off into hell to find a way home. Of course, his chosen route will involve killing hundreds and thousands of demons, but hey, we wouldn’t want it any other way.
As far as the story goes, that’s pretty much all the info we got, but it did lead into some discussion regarding the spear. It replaces the shield from the main game (though you will have access to the shield), and it lets the Slayer do some seriously nifty stuff. The spear allows for new grappling moves, more aerial acrobatics and a decidedly more vertical approach to combat than the one found in the base game. To my eye, it looked fluid and graceful (though quick) as opposed to the more frantic combat from Doom Eternal. There is going to be a lot to master here, and from what Marty was saying, the spear does feel a little underpowered at first, but he insists it is one of the coolest things they have ever created and implores everyone to take the time to upgrade and learn the new weapon.
As for game length, roughly 10-12 hours seems to be the consensus, which is a healthy expansion by anyone’s standard. About 70% of that is made up in the campaign mode, with the remainder in end-game challenges, exploration and unlocking. There seems to be a real carrot being dangled in front of the Doom fans with the end-game stuff. There are tonnes of things to unlock and discover, including Master levels, new modifiers for the Ripatorium (version 3.0) and even new ways to traverse the campaign levels that will allow players to revisit old areas in fresh ways. I think it will really appeal to those who just can’t get enough of the combat, but want something more to tackle than simply playing the game over and over again.
What really struck me during the presentation, however, was that both Marty and Hugo came across like proud parents having raised the perfect demon-killing son. There was genuine belief that they had created something pretty special with this expansion, and the joy they felt from simply talking about it was evident. That sort of enthusiasm is often pretty rare in these group presentation settings, with most running in line with standard PR playbooks. Here it just felt like two super excited creators who couldn’t wait to share their creation with the world. It is hard not to get caught up in that sort of emotion, so I left the show with a smile and a new eagerness to put on the Slayer’s helmet once more.
Having just played through Doom (2016), Doom Eternal and being halfway through The Dark Ages over the last month, I have to say that I am excited about what Revelations is bringing. Luckily, I don’t have long to wait. It’s out next week, on the 8th of July, to be exact. So grab your shotgun and get ready, Doom fans; the Slayer is back again, and he is looking to tear up hell in new, exciting and gory ways.
