The following contains spoilers regarding weapon unlocks inDoom: The Dark Ages.
If anything has been made obvious aboutDoom: The Dark Agesand how theDoomfranchise has evolved since its modern reinvention it’s thatDoom(2016) was a blank canvas for id to paint expressive brush strokes on. It’s easy toreflect on id’sDoomrebootnow and see it for how elementary it is in comparison, but as a framework that id could spring forth from there’s seemingly no limit to whatever imaginative aspirations the studio has for the franchise moving forward.
Indeed, whileDoom Eternalcommits to breakneck gymnastics and mobility,Doom: The Dark Agesarguably heads in the opposite direction, encouraging players to more or less go toe-to-toe with Hell’s demonic forces as they block/parry incoming projectiles. A shield and a flail are appropriate for the prequel entry’s dark, medieval fantasy setting as well. But, one seemingly small alteration to gunplay has a colossal effect on how players engage with its intact run-and-gun mechanics: a weapon class pairing system.
Doom Eternal Marries Blisteringly Quick Gameplay with a Rainbow of UI
InDoom(2016) andDoom Eternal, players are restricted to two guns they swap back and forth between and must open the weapon wheel mid-encounter if they wish to swap to another gun before the one they have equipped runs dry. This isn’t a tremendously arduous task on its own, but, especially in games that pride themselves on high-octane speeds and a HUD UX that feeds players all the information they need, the weapon wheel can bog the experience down considerably, even if it does offer a bit of respite via a slow-motion effect.
A lot of emphasis inDoom: The Dark Agesis placed on theDoom Slayer’s brand-new Shield Saw and melee weapons, which don’t replace gunplay but are now equally vital beyond whatDoom Eternalposited with the now-defunct Blood Punch, Chainsaw, and Flame Belch.
In order to perpetually replenish ammo, health, and armor,Doom Eternalhas players juggle these mechanics—all of which contain cooldowns and pickup resources of their own to scavenge amid panicked encounters withDoom Eternal’s Marauders—while also expecting them to constantly leap around the arena like it’s an obstacle course. Therefore, accessing different weapons on the fly is the cherry on top of a dense, multilayered sundae, andThe Dark Agesnot only rewrites the book on what aDoomgame should play like but also offers a clever workaround for the weapon wheel.
Doom: The Dark Ages’ Weapon Class System is a Godsend
Weapon swapping may be slow, and purposefully so, yetThe Dark Ages’ gunplaydoesn’t require players to swap weapons that much, if at all, considering how instrumental the Shield Saw is in tandem with the Power Gauntlet, Flail, or Dreadmace. To be fair,Doom Eternalgives players more reasons to never stick to one weapon for too long since demons have unique weak points that can be easily exploited with different guns.
Doom: The Dark Agesstill features a weapon wheel, but swapping guns is made surprisingly fluid with firearms now belonging to distinguished classes. Befitting a setting with castles, dragons, and other medieval tropes, the Doom Slayer’s inventory now includes ingenious firearms, such asDoom: The Dark Ages’ skull-crushing Pulverizer. And, in what is one of the game’s least sensational yet most paramount new mechanics,The Dark Agesfeatures a class system that pairs two sibling weapons together for better accessibility.Doom: The Dark Ages’ weapon class pairs include:
Every weapon inDoom: The Dark Ageshas a class-related pair besides the Reaver Chainshot and BFC (Ballistic Force Crossbow), and the weapon wheel already accounts for both pairs in a single slot, ensuring that weapon class swapping is a system that players can take advantage of often.
This class system is subtle, and anyone who either prefers the weapon wheel or uses the weapon wheel instinctively can overlook it completely. However, the biggest boon this class system grants players is that they can technically have four guns to swap between—two that are swapped between via the ordinary swap input, and two that are swapped between by swapping to an equipped gun’s sibling with its own dedicated input—and spend less time in the weapon wheel, especially if their weapon selection choices are made arbitrarily.
The Dark Agesnot only rewrites the book on what aDoomgame should play like but also offers a clever workaround for the weapon wheel.
Doom: The Dark Ageshas a different luster and flavor than its predecessors. Still, asDoomcontinues to prove that it can’t be leashed or bottlenecked, many ofDoom: The Dark Ages’ big gameplay changesare in favor of greater accessibility and, crucially, less downtime in the run-and-gun FPS genre that the iconic series is known for.
