Doom: The Dark Ages – Revelations

Doom: The Dark Ages — Revelations dropped June 7, 2026: new story, mechanics, levels, and demons. Improvement on the base game, or not worth the ask?

It picks up where Dark Ages left off. The Slayer keeps eradicating Hell’s demons until he hits the High Council of Hell. They basically tell him he was bad in life, so welcome to Purgatory. Their bodyguard thrashes him; he wakes broken, gets a shiny new spear, and starts clawing out. Inside is the Architect, an ancient demon who repairs your shield and upgrades weapons, spear, and suit. Levels throw demon waves at your escape while you gather what you need to leave. Meanwhile the Khan Maykr makes her grab for Argent D’Nur. Can the Spayer get out of Purgatory while facing his own sins?

If you liked Doom: The Dark Ages, you will like Revelations. Same rip-and-tear with extra toys, especially the Spear Chain. It is an alternate playstyle you can toggle with the shield once it is repaired. Feels a little monkey’s-paw: I wanted a shield dash, and they said no, you only dash in the movement build. Nitpick. The spear is awesome. After the first level you choose which kit to lean on; you are not locked into movement-only, and levels still force swaps to progress. Spear Chain is the mobile path: dash to dodge, deflect and parry, and grapple like Eternal’s Meathook to swing or close distance. Timed parries and dodges build charges for a ranged spear shot, a heavier stab, or a slam. Dodging and grappling put back some of the Eternal movement I missed while still living in Dark Ages rules. Levels change scenery in ways I liked: ice, more Lovecraftian Cosmic Realm.

I really enjoy the expansion. Sequencing is odd. Four levels you clear, then after the credits you go back for endgame content locked on the first run: challenges for suit and spear upgrades, classic Doom-style pockets where you assemble the ’93 shotgun, time trials for key pieces toward a secret Purgatory boss. Why wall that off until after you beat the DLC? Better to bake it into the campaign: open a path at level end into harder fights for the locked toys, or gate areas on mid-run challenges, Crash Bandicoot gem / no-death energy. As built, you are picking up currencies to upgrade a loadout for a story you already finished. You do not even need to replay whole levels; jump the locked bits and teleport out. Feels like last-minute padding they did not know how to fold in. They kept the crumb upgrade loop too: platinum and blood iron instead of gold. Still hate that system.

I do not play Doom for story. Most people do not. This plot is “don’t think about it,” because if you do, questions pile up. Fight the Council, get banished, break out, tell the Khan Maykr to kick rocks, fight the big guy from the start. Go back for the Council? Can he? Was another DLC supposed to finish that? How much stronger does the Praetor Suit make him when he loses here to things he farms in 2016 and Eternal? Did I leave the stove on? We know Hell does not lose on Argent D’Nur in those games, so what happens to Commander Thira? And would the Slayer not already have the Crucible in this era?

Most of my base-game notes still apply. Soundtrack still lacks oomph. Shame, especially when you get the Praetor armor: that beat begged for a cut into the 2016 score. Play is still fun. Additions are good. I just wish it were longer.