When Doom: The Dark Ages Revelations, the upcoming marketing campaign DLC for final yr’s glorious modern-Doom prequel, was first introduced on the Xbox Showcase final month, one factor jumped out at me: the traditional Doom 2 map seen for a couple of seconds within the trailer. As an enormous fan of the legendary authentic pair of Doom first-person shooters lengthy earlier than I fell in love with the newer trilogy, my curiosity on this DLC all of a sudden skyrocketed. So once I obtained a presentation displaying extra Revelations gameplay from Doom director Hugo Martin and obtained to ask him questions afterward, I instantly requested about that second within the trailer.
“[Revelations] is a celebration of the Doom video games,” Martin mentioned. “We have all the time handled all of the Doom video games as canon. We have now by no means had the possibility to discover who he was because the Slayer. Earlier than he was the Slayer he was a marine, his identify was Flynn Taggart. [So in Revelations] we return within the Nightmare ranges and inform some of the Flynn Taggart story.”
“These are modernized variations,” co-studio head Marty Stratton added, talking concerning the look of the traditional ranges particularly. “Historical past with the graphics turned up.”
My Doom superfan thoughts was being blown in actual time. I’ve learn all 4 of the Doom paperback novels from again within the day. That’s the place “Doom Man” first obtained fleshed out as a personality, together with his identify: Flynn “Fly” Taggart. I felt like Marty McFly first seeing the DeLorean in Again to the Future.
Wait a minute, Hugo, are you telling me that Flynn Taggart – the man from the 1993 authentic and 1994 sequel – and the Doom Slayer from Doom (2016), Doom Everlasting, and Doom: The Dark Ages, are the identical man?
“We do not think about the novels as half of the fashionable Doom sequence – the video games, sure, save for Doom 3,” Martin informed me. “Doom 3 was all the time variety of an outlier fictionally to us however from the beginning of Doom (2016), we needed to tug collectively all of the video games and their fiction. We took the most well-liked parts from the novels and comics: his identify and his well-known traces.”
Martin went on to explain the traditional ranges featured in Revelations: “They’re playable. They’re brief however significant, playable experiences. Half of the theme/narrative method is to really feel it and never watch it. You will play via his reminiscences.”
In order that they’re being selective concerning the canon, as is their proper, however I discover this oddly satisfying as a fan of the previous Doom video games – and people considerably obscure novels. However right here’s what else I discovered throughout my Revelations presentation: particularly, that fellow followers of Doom Everlasting are most likely going to like this DLC.
That’s as a result of the brand new weapon, the Chain Spear, has a grappling hook skill that can be utilized for a ton of aerial maneuvers, a la the good center sport within the trendy Doom trio. One of them particularly permits you to circle round within the air with the chain plunged into your foe whilst you assault. And moreover, Martin confirmed that the Chain Spear may have distinctive glory kills, and extra importantly, that will probably be completely required to outlive within the endgame content material that makes up roughly 40% of this 10-12-hour DLC. Grasp Arenas, Martin mentioned, will likely be particularly key locations to make sensible use of the spear.
You can even anticipate lots of new enemy variants, plus some returning mates. The Archvile was particularly talked about – although right here he’ll summon demons however gained’t resurrect demons, not like within the authentic Doom 2. Oh, and id Software program says that the Ripatorium – the customizable limitless enviornment mode – will get a serious replace for Revelations.
And Martin recommends you full the bottom Dark Ages marketing campaign earlier than leaping into Revelations, because it has the next base issue than the core marketing campaign. It has six ranges complete – 5 plus the Purgatory hub – that you simply’ll do lots of backtracking via. But it surely gained’t be for nothing; these areas are designed metroidvania-style, so that you’ll have the ability to entry new areas inside them as you earn and improve skills in the course of the course of play.
All in all, Martin informed us that Revelations “variety of performs just like the end result of 35 years of Doom.” Doom: The Dark Ages Revelations drops on July 7 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Sequence X|S.
Ryan McCaffrey is IGN’s government editor of previews and host of each IGN’s weekly Xbox present, Podcast Unlocked, in addition to our semi-retired interview present, IGN Unfiltered. He is a North Jersey man, so it is “Taylor ham,” not “pork roll.” Debate it with him on Twitter at @DMC_Ryan.