PlayStation 5 Critic Reviews

Doom: The Dark Ages is AAA gaming at its best, with huge set pieces and memorable moments around every corner of the beautiful environments that only add to the highly-polished and heavily-addicting gameplay. Id Software hasn't held back any punches in creating one of the most grandiose and large-scale games in recent memory, utilizing their big-budget funding to create a 100% user-focused experience that makes the player feel immensely powerful without forgoing a sense of challenge or difficulty. The classic Doom formula has been deconstructed and reformed into a techno-medieval bloodbath, with gaming's original one-man army going on an unbridled rampage of demon-slaying destruction that somehow tops the scale of the iconic franchise yet again.

The game may not be perfect, but it is a really meaty fiesta of fighting. Tearing demons asunder will never not be cool as hell, and for that reason alone, I can easily see myself coming back to DOOM: The Dark Ages time and time again – especially after a particularly stressful week.

Once again, Doom delivers one of the most frenetic and satisfying FPS experiences around. The latest sequel turns the Slayer into a human tank, an unstoppable force against the demonic hordes, offering relentlessly challenging, non-stop action. id Software nails it with spectacular set-pieces and excellent level design in a fresh yet familiar evolution of the franchise.

DOOM: The Dark Ages is a fantastic experience from start to finish. Mixing up the gameplay of its predecessors drastically, while still feeling like DOOM.

DOOM: The Dark Ages is the most badass DOOM has ever been. A killer soundtrack, first-person melee combat better than it has any right to be, and the most intriguing version of The Doom Slayer we've ever seen.

In all the ways that matter, Doom: The Dark Ages is a pure power fantasy, loading you up with outlandish weaponry and lethal powers and unleashing you on the horde.

id Software once again found a way to reinvent the DOOM formula, adding new gameplay elements such as the thoroughly enjoyable shield saw. DOOM: The Dark Ages is nonstop, adrenaline-fuelled thrill ride from start to finish. This blockbuster demands your full attention as the best FPS this year so far.

There's no doubt about it, DOOM: The Dark Ages is one of the best games of the year, one of the best FPSs of the generation, and an experience you absolutely have to play. Completely ignoring this title is blasphemy you shouldn't commit.

Doom: The Dark Ages is a fantastic addition to this rebooted Doom franchise. It borrows from and builds on most of the aspects that made Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal so great. It stays true to the roots and offers exciting and fluid combat mechanics, while diving into a backstory that stands alone as a narrative but can also let the sickos geek out on some of the details. What it does best is just capture the hyper cool feel of being the "only one they fear" and delivering soundly on sprinting from one story beat to the next at a breakneck, metal pace.

Doom: The Dark Ages is modern Doom executed better than ever. It’s a bloody, challenging, and strategic thrill ride that tested my skills, forced me to catch my breath, and always had me asking for more. With the Shield Saw and other great additions, id Software gives me something I didn’t know I wanted, proving once again that this legendary series can still evolve in ways we haven’t even dreamed of.