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The Doom Slayer shooting the Skull Crusher at a demon during the Doom: The Dark Ages trailer.
FPS Games Doom: The Dark Ages has a new official trailer, and at this point id Software and Bethesda are just holding me down and pouring Doom lore over my head
a gun that fires a metal ball attached to a chain for recall
FPS Games Id says Doom: The Dark Ages is "the best Doom game we've ever made" as it reveals we're leaving Hell for the Lovecraftian Cosmic Realm and getting a gun that shoots a mace on a chain
Doom merchandise divided by white lines
Toys & Collectibles Best Doom merch ahead of The Dark Ages
Doom The Dark Ages
FPS Games Doom: The Dark Ages review: "Some may appreciate the greater focus on close-quarters, but others will find themselves nostalgic for the simple joys of double jumps"
The Doom Slayer shooting the Skull Crusher at a demon during the Doom: The Dark Ages trailer.
FPS Games Doom: The Dark Ages FAQ warns that barrel-stuffing demons might not work as "expected," suggests you try stuffing bigger demons instead
Doom The Dark Ages Doom Slayer and Sentinels
FPS Games 10 Doom The Dark Ages tips and tricks to help you rip and tear
ILL screenshot showing
Horror Games Ill looks like a gnarly cross between Half-Life and The Thing, and its developer has just one goal: delivering "a good f**king horror game*
  1. Games
  2. Action
  3. Doom

17 things that make the E3 Doom footage authentically, disgustingly Doom

Features
By David Houghton published 15 June 2015

When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.

Well Hell-o there!

Well Hell-o there!

Doom isn't just another shooter. It's a very important game with a very specific feel, purpose and tone. It's not just about shooting monsters. It's about shooting a particularly disgusting breed of Hellspawn at a particular speed, while ducking around with a particularly giddy, kinetic sort of movement. Its combat must be deceptively clever, and its violence must be brutal and cartoonish all at the same time. So has this here new Doom got it right? Having fine-toothed my way through all the new E3 footage (campaign trailer, multiplayer trailer, and extended stage demo), I reckon the answer is a resounding 'Yes!'.

I've slow-moed the footaged, and screen-grabbed the crap out of my findings, so click on as we peer through the murk of low-res web-streams to pick out the quintissentially Doomy gems hidden within.

Page 1 of 18
Page 1 of 18
That door noise

That door noise

Skreeeeeee! You know that sound. That shrill, metallic scraping that indicates that you have entered a fresh new room and are ready to Doom your way all over its wretched inhabitants. It's less a sound effect, more a glorious, chest-beating battlecry, and it's in the new Doom trailers multiple times.

Page 2 of 18
Page 2 of 18
The E1M1 music

The E1M1 music

AKA, At Doom's Gate. AKA, the greatest FPS theme music ever written. 'Inspired' by a whole bunch of 'proper' metal, but remixed into something immensely more air-punchingly triumphant, Bobby Prince's E1M1 theme has been modernised (but not too much) for the main Doom trailer, and that officially makes it Doom.

Page 3 of 18
Page 3 of 18
Armour shards

Armour shards

Yup, you can definitely see those in the multiplayer trailer. Thats Dooms dual armour/health system to return then. And speaking of which...

Page 4 of 18
Page 4 of 18
Health packs

Health packs

Those tube-like pick-ups are really rather reminiscent of Doom 3's large health packs. Does that mean that regen is definitely out then? No it does not. But it does mean that collectible health is definitely going to be a thing. ie. Get the hell out from behind that cover, you wuss, and get on with killing some things. And speaking of killing some things...

Page 5 of 18
Page 5 of 18
The Super Shotgun is stupidly overpowered

The Super Shotgun is stupidly overpowered

Perfect. It's just perfect. Glorious, in fact. The first time you see the Super Shotgun splatter a zombie in the main gameplay trailer, it hits a fairly wide group of three and tears through the lot of them with a single shot, evaporating the first and blowing the merry crap out of the other two. That is how a double-barrelled shotgun should work in Doom. We can continue.

Page 6 of 18
Page 6 of 18
Armed zombies are still your standard, low-level goon

Armed zombies are still your standard, low-level goon

This will be your new soldier zombie, I reckon. He's not visibly carrying a shotgun, but he does look like a meaty, but distinctly human, bastard, outfitted with military armour and technology. These will be the guys you'll be mowing down for ammo drops, then.

Page 7 of 18
Page 7 of 18
There is a chainsaw. Oh yes

There is a chainsaw. Oh yes

There is a saw. It has a chain. It is ripping through a monster with disgusting aplomb. Enough said.

Page 8 of 18
Page 8 of 18
It's incredibly fast

It's incredibly fast

Seriously, would you look at how kinetic this thing is. Doomguy is always moving. Doomguy is always moving fast. And most importantly. Doomguy is always moving forward. Moving forward and killing without stopping. All of this is correct.

Page 9 of 18
Page 9 of 18
It's all about smooth, flowing freedom

It's all about smooth, flowing freedom

Doomguy runs. Doomguy vaults. Doomguy lands and kills a thing. Then he runs to what looks like the end of the level, leaps straight over, and kills a buttload of things 50 feet below him. We are not looking at Doom 3's claustrophobic corridor-horror here. This is big, rangey, omnidirectional combat that allows you to explode out at anything you want wherever it may be. DOOM! And on a related note

Page 10 of 18
Page 10 of 18
There are huge, wide environments

There are huge, wide environments

Praise Satan for this. Giant arenas, a fantastic sense of space and scale, and all the freedom of combat strategy that comes with that. And best of all, that opens the scope right up for...

Page 11 of 18
Page 11 of 18
There are huge, multi-class mob fights

There are huge, multi-class mob fights

This is how Doom combat works. One or two big, scary, f*ck-you monsters as your main targets, throwing down the big fire, and a whole mob of smaller, quicker, more focused mooks making your life a living nightmare by getting in the way, running distraction, and trying to limit your movement. Until, that is, you combine strategy with viscerality, and go all one-man RTS with a chaingun to take them down. Speaking of which...

Page 12 of 18
Page 12 of 18
It's all about massive arsenals and seamless chain-killing

It's all about massive arsenals and seamless chain-killing

Particularly in the Hell-set part of the on-stage demo, Doomguy does not stop. He's ducking, he's weaving, he's decapitating, he's whirling past big enemies to take out their mooks, before coming back to the big guys with bigger guns, and crucially, he's always, always switching weapons. That's a big old weapon wheel right there, and with the game slowing - but never stopping - when he opens it up, that means you'll have total tactical freedom to use what you want, when you want, to destroy who you want, on a second-by-second, monster-to-individual-monster basis.

Page 13 of 18
Page 13 of 18
There are high-level power-ups hidden in tricky places

There are high-level power-ups hidden in tricky places

My, that rich blue glow up there... Could it... Could it be a Soulsphere? AKA the Supercharge pick-up, AKA, 'Watch out goons, I have 200% health and I'm coming through'? Yes. Yes it could. And it is. But of course it's placed tantalisingly in view, but desperately out of reach, up on a high, high platform with seemingly half a mile of non-linear exploration and a couple of impossible-looking jumps between you and it. Of course it is, because that is the Doom way, and this is Doom.

Page 14 of 18
Page 14 of 18
There will be telefragging

There will be telefragging

I haven't seen it happen clearly yet, but there are teleports in Doom multiplayer, so there will be telefrags. Splash.

Page 15 of 18
Page 15 of 18
It's all overpowered melee, all the time

It's all overpowered melee, all the time

Remember the old Berzerk pack in the original Doom? That delightful medical care package that turned you into a flame-eyed brute capable of punching a demon into soup with a single hit? It seems you don't need it any more. Do enough damage to an enemy, and a ludicrous melee mangling is yours for the grabbing. That's just How Things Work now. Because Doom.

Page 16 of 18
Page 16 of 18
There is a Cyberdemon

There is a Cyberdemon

And good Lord, does he look chunky and rather up for a fight this time. Thats how we want our big Doom monsters to look. Huge, imposing, slight cartoonish, and utterly, utterly unintimidated by how expertly weve been slaughtering their minions. New Doom Cyberdemon, you are a thoroughly acceptable Cyberdemon.

Page 17 of 18
Page 17 of 18
And there is a BFG

And there is a BFG

Because that is how you deal with Cyberdemons. DOOOOOOOM!

Page 18 of 18
Page 18 of 18
CATEGORIES
PC Gaming PS4 Xbox One Platforms PlayStation Xbox
David Houghton
David Houghton
Long-time GR+ writer Dave has been gaming with immense dedication ever since he failed dismally at some '80s arcade racer on a childhood day at the seaside (due to being too small to reach the controls without help). These days he's an enigmatic blend of beard-stroking narrative discussion and hard-hitting Psycho Crushers.
See more PC Gaming Features
Read more
The Doom Slayer shooting the Skull Crusher at a demon during the Doom: The Dark Ages trailer.
Doom: The Dark Ages has a new official trailer, and at this point id Software and Bethesda are just holding me down and pouring Doom lore over my head
a gun that fires a metal ball attached to a chain for recall
Id says Doom: The Dark Ages is "the best Doom game we've ever made" as it reveals we're leaving Hell for the Lovecraftian Cosmic Realm and getting a gun that shoots a mace on a chain
Doom merchandise divided by white lines
Best Doom merch ahead of The Dark Ages
Doom The Dark Ages
Doom: The Dark Ages review: "Some may appreciate the greater focus on close-quarters, but others will find themselves nostalgic for the simple joys of double jumps"
The Doom Slayer shooting the Skull Crusher at a demon during the Doom: The Dark Ages trailer.
Doom: The Dark Ages FAQ warns that barrel-stuffing demons might not work as "expected," suggests you try stuffing bigger demons instead
Doom The Dark Ages Doom Slayer and Sentinels
10 Doom The Dark Ages tips and tricks to help you rip and tear
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