The recent launch ofDoom: The Dark Agesreally highlights the amount of creative avenues that are still available for such a longstanding franchise. The game acts as a prequel to 2016’sDoomand features a wildly different setting and core premise to what fans have come to expect. Its story explores the Slayer’s role as an intimidating ally to the Night Sentinels of Argent D’Nur during their battle against the forces of Hell, a setting littered with a mixture of sci-fi and Medieval themes that give way to some truly fresh experiences.
WhileDoom: The Dark Agesstill features the tense and fairly fast-paced gameplay that has made the franchise so successful since its debut in 1993, the involved enemies of the title are also something that the game desperately needed to get right. Over the years, theDoomseries has featured a wide cast of demons within its pool of enemies, ranging from common fodder to unfathomable entities, andThe Dark Agesis not afraid to add a twist to these otherwise familiar faces. Alongside thematic redesigns to pre-existing foes,Doom: The Dark Agesfeatures a wide selection of brand-new demonic enemies, giving the game an extra level of flare and distinction.
Doom: The Dark Ages' New Enemies Stamp a Big Mark on the Title
Doom: The Dark Agesdoes well to feature the vast majority ofDoomdemon-types that fans have come to know and love over the years, with the likes of Hell Knights, Mancubi, Cacodemons, Arachnotrons, and Lost Souls making frequent appearances throughout the game. Many of these returning classic enemies have been redesigned to matchthe unique time and conflict in whichThe Dark Agestakes place, yet most still serve the same familiar roles during combat.
The Dark Ageswould have felt empty without these returning enemies, yet the game really shines with how it bolsters its lore and setting with the implementation of brand-new demons for players to rip and tear. Many classic demons have been repurposed inThe Dark Ages.The iconic Pinky now appears as a larger mount, with Pinky Riders offering a deadly and chaotic presence on any battlefield.
Many ofThe Dark Ages' returning demons feel different thanks to the game’s reliance on its parry system, with most demons offering new move-sets that can be directly countered by the player.
New variants of the iconic Imp are also scattered throughoutThe Dark Ages, with the Imp Stalker appearing taller and bulkier, much like the original portrayals of Imps throughoutthe originalDoom,Doom 2, and evenDoom 64. Stalkers are smarter and more imposing versions of the redesigned Imps which also appear in the recent project; Nightmare Imp Stalkers are a near-invisible variant that is born from Hell and the mysterious cosmic realms.
Some of The Dark Ages' New Demons Are Already Established by the Franchise’s Wider Story
Agaddon Hunters are one of the most interesting fresh additions toDoom: The Dark Ages, being ancient warriors thatact similarly toDoom Eternal’s Marauders. The reanimated corpses of Agaddon Hunters are also the source ofEternal’s Doom Hunter enemies, so Agaddon Hunters make the most ofThe Dark Ages' nature as a prequel in this way. Meanwhile, the uniquely designed Komodo demon is an example of a completely new enemy for the franchise; the reptilian Komodo Champion even appears as a challenging boss-level demon.
Some ofThe Dark Ages' most memorable gameplay sequencesoccur when the Slayer is in control of a giant mech soldier, and id Software smartly uses this to showcase some colossal enemies in melee and ranged combat. While Titans have appeared before inDoom,The Dark Agesfeatures the Cyclops Titan variant, which has been cybernetically augmented in trueDoomstyle to be a towering mixture of flesh, steel, and grafted weaponry. The Cosmic Baron is the last example of a major new enemy type inThe Dark Ages, similarly born from interdimensional fusion like the Nightmare Imp Stalker. The Cosmic Baron offers a Lovecraftian twist to the usual Baron of Hell demon types that players have seen over the years. The designs and in-game purpose of demons have always been at the heart of what makesDoomtick, andThe Dark Agesfeatures some excellent fresh faces to the usual beloved lineup of the franchise’s iconic enemies.
