First of, ♥♥♥♥ Xbox and Microsoft. They literally just ruined one of the most prestigious and greatest developers in videogame history. Not only ID Software is a case study for FPSs and history of this entertainment industry, but also have NEVER flopped. The latest releases have been the best modern shooters, critically acclaimed, great sales, technical prowess, revolutionary gameplay and using one of the best videogame engines out there... and all of this is still not enough to keep the studio afloat?
Doom Dark Ages is great. Eternal was peak FPS, but you cannot expect such a high bar to keep being surpassed in each title, nor is it called Eternal 2. Ironically, it feels that they´ve improved further in Revelations, so it shows they still "had" the talent to do so (RIP ID Software as we knew it). Its different and some approaches did not hit the right spot, but gameplay wise is still incredible, with additions that were fresh and brutal (And IMO, better than Doom 2016).
An odd factor of this game is its narrative. Doom was never about a deep story, and almost literally nobody cares. So the decision of putting some emphasis to it feels off, but if done properly could benefit the game even further. Thing is, it didn´t do that much: All characters are flat, forgettable and the plot feels constantly irrelevant. But the good thing is: almost every cutscene feels crafted to make the Doom Slayer look as badass as possible. So don´t expect nothing serious, it manages to provide more spice to the moving between scenarios, but not much more.
All it´s technical factors are magnificent. ID Tech keeps looking flawless. It´s true that it did not turn out as optimized as Eternal, but for a modern release, its very optimised and runs smooth as butter in many PCs. Graphically is breathtaking: The shield dents spinning, gore, buildings, particles and textures are sharp, highly detailed and brutal. Besides, the artistic choice is incredible and different from other Doom games: A medieval approach to the Doom franchise makes it even more metal than ever, being both faithfully to their original designs as much as giving them a more pointy and metallic approach. The redesign of the demons and the Slayer looks incredible and better than ever. And the brand new cosmic horror approach was great. Ofc is a personal matter, but is undeniable that is quite well done: The world, creatures found and their art differs from other creatures while feeling according to the entirety of the art direction.
For this section sound design is even better. The Doom Slayer has always felt brutal, but this game manages to crank that ♥♥♥♥ up even more: Every single step, falling from high points, the clanking of the shield against enemies, the echoes of the shotgun and new weapons are just ear candy. Besides, all the supernatural elements are as satisfactory too. So listening to this game at high volume will make everything not only feel more epic, but a stronger composition overall.
To that we add the music. Sadly, it does not reach Mick Gordon´s albums, and Eternal is still iconic. That being said, is not bad. Actually is great and makes everything more intense, as it should do. The bad part is that is not a separate incredible part of the game, as the other two titles managed to do. Still, this is closer to traditional metal than ever, leaving that electrical/techno approach that the last game had. So, it´s not as strong, but it not only suffices but you will find yourself a couple of times headbanging, so is still incredible for FPS standards, just not as good as the ones before.
Now the gameplay standpoint. Overall, is brutal, more parry-focused and slower than Eternal, which is a design choice and not a mistake. If you manage to understand this as another Doom game and not a 1:1 sequel of Eternal, you will have the time of your life. The description given of "The Slayer as a tank" is quite accurate: Is slower, the punches much more impressive, and it incentivises a horizontal approach to combat: Defend/Parry, counterattack, shoot and avoid. This feels incredible, the feedback of the controller is fast. If you played Eternal you may be expecting more crazy jumping, but its clear that the OG Doom games are closer in the combat feeling.
Besides that, the shield is an incredible addition: The parries feel effective and provide an incredible amount of benefits in-game, and the system of throwing/retrieving the shield ensures that the game is still focused in mid-range combat. I would have liked more move sets from the enemies to offer other parry windows, but I think that for the average player there are more than enough. Besides, they can be quite OP in late-game.
The melee weapons improve that synergy of the shield with the other player´s actions: It´s the new justification of the closer approach of the ammo/shield/health, and it offers some spectacular visuals. The decision to remove glory kills the way they worked on Eternal may sound bad, but I do think they are still there, just less time inducing and cinematic (Which is good or bad depending on your opinion). The three options are interesting and provide very different feelings in combat, so great addition.
To all of this, is clear that the new guns are great. Most are just the medieval counterpart of the games before, but the chain gun and skull-gun are the highlight of this game. They are incredible, visually satisfying and brutal to use. All weapons are useful and potentially effective, but not all of them will be relevant for your playstyle.
The other three additions are interesting and refreshing, but odd. The more "open" approach to the levels make sense for the horizontal approach of the Slayer movement, but I do still think that the verticality of Eternal is superior. Still, for its new design concept, works pretty good. The exploration was quite discreet on its differentiation so is not as tiresome as many may think, but I do personally prefer the linearity of the previous ones. Besides that, the level design on itself is still as flawless for fun as only ID Software manages to do so: Every fighting scenario is a festival of blood and pacing well done.
Now, the Dragon and Mech areas felt off. Satisfying, true: Moving in both and traversing the world is great, and its linear areas assure is well implemented... but clearly not reach the fun that the Slayer shooting offers. I do think they have a lot of potential, and the reason why they felt boring is the rather poor variety of objectives: They feel repetitive and demonstrate that, if they added more areas similar, it would have been an issue. Still, combat and movement are satisfactory and if they have a chance in the future to still test out some more interesting missions and objectives, while keeping them short and non intrusive, would work out even better.
So as a summary, Doom Dark Ages is a great game. The fact that is not "As good as Eternal" is a underwhelming reason of critique: TDA is still one of the greatest FPSs of the latest years. It has made a series of decisions which improved the core gameplay even more, with parries and melee. But, others were not as good: Story is irrelevant, the dragon and mecha areas were decent but not great, and the more open level approach is a mixed bag. But those are still small factors for a full campaign FPS: Shooting feels excellent, weapons are brutal, enemies force you to put your most, audio design and music keep your blood pumping, the new artstyle and era look magnificent, and overall as good as a DOOM should always be.
I´m truly sorry for the layoffs, cause this studio was, for the videogame as an art AND industry standpoint; one of the best studios under the inept wings of Xbox. It is still out there, but the damage was heartbreaking. Wish all the best for ex-devs and current devs on ID Software, cause they made the favourites FPSs of a huge amount of players.
