DOOM: The Dark Ages Might Be The Perfect Solution To The Franchise's Greatest Weakness

The DOOM franchise has always pushed boundaries by finding innovative new ways to slay hordes of demons, with DOOM: The Dark Ages being no exception to the rule. While DOOM has experimented with different kinds of weapons over the years, the Doom Slayer still has an iconic arsenal that follows him through each of his appearances in the series. Given that The Dark Ages takes place in a unique setting long before the events of Doom Eternal, it offers much more freedom to rework the Slayer's arsenal of destruction.

Even if some of The Dark Ages' most exciting new weapons have already been revealed, there's still plenty of room for surprise returns or completely new additions when it releases. Although some players might not be a fan of The Dark Ages changes from Doom Eternal, the new style of The Dark Ages fits much better with the expanded storyline and combat direction of this latest prequel. While the more medieval sci-fi campaign for The Dark Ages can help freshen up the aesthetics and weaponry of DOOM's world, its new additions help to fix one of the weakest areas of DOOM's combat system.

Melee Combat Has Always Been Somewhat Lacking In The DOOM Franchise

Forcing Players To Run And Gun For Most Of Each Game

Each entry in the DOOM franchise has upped the ante in terms of how players can viscerally tear apart demons with powerful and unique weaponry,but the melee side of combat hasn't changed much over DOOM's lifetime. This isn't to say there were never any powerful melee options before, as Berserker-empowered punches and a fueled-up Chainsaw can make light work of most enemies Hell can throw at players. While melee combat hasn't seen much drastic change over the years, it has thankfully been expanded with each entry in the newest DOOM reboots.

Players were better off saving their melee attacks for stronger demons or when they needed resources, rather than unleashing them at will.

Although DOOM 2016 didn't add any new melee weapons itself, its new glory-kill system saw the Doom Slayer tearing apart demons with his bare hands in satisfyingly gruesome detail. On top of these visceral glory-kill animations, DOOM Eternal even saw the addition of the powerful Crucible sword and Blood Punch abilities, although reducing the impact of the Slayer's basic melee punches as a byproduct.

While these options added some fantastic ways to take down even the most powerful demons out there, each melee option from the Chainsaw to the Crucible being tied to a charging system gave little opportunity for a more barbarian-style combat experience. With each of DOOM Eternal's satisfying melee weapons being incredibly useful to take down specific troublesome enemies like the Tyrant, Pinky, or Arch-Vile, players were better off saving their melee attacks for stronger targets or when they needed resources, rather than unleashing them at will.

DOOM: The Dark Ages Will Introduce Four New Melee Weapons

Giving Players More Options For Melee Combat Than Ever Before

One of the best ways The Dark Ages corrects this lack of melee choice is by introducing four entirely new melee weapons for the Slayer to unleash. On top of the regular empowered blood punch, players will now have access to the Electrified Gauntlet, a long-reaching Flail, and a powerful Spiked Mace, with players seemingly able to swap between depending on the situation. While these new weapons don't solve the issue of melee options being tied to limited use of charges, they offer even more variety and flexibility for melee combat than ever before, on top of being free to use them for glory-kills.

Where the new melee focus of The Dark Ages shines most is with its fourth unique weapon, combining the functionality of the regular Chainsaw into a plethora of unique moves with the Shield Saw. By charging through walls, parrying attacks, and cutting through enemies, players will likely be using the Shield Saw more than they might expect. The Dark Ages will also see the return of several iconic weapons from DOOM Eternal, which will hopefully include the powerful crucible from the Slayer's days fighting alongside the Sentinels, although the weapon's timeline might make its inclusion tricky to manage.

Close Quarters Combat Will Have A Greater Focus In DOOM: The Dark Ages

Becoming An Unstoppable Force On The Battlefield

Another way that DOOM: The Dark Agesis changing how melee functions is with the somewhat controversial decision to remove the pre-rendered glory kill animations. While the detailed and sometimes goofy animations will be sorely missed, they are being replaced by a more dynamic melee system that functions in a similar way, without breaking up combat as often. Even the Doom Slayer's regular melee attacks are getting an upgrade in DOOM: The Dark Ages, as the recent gameplay showcase during Xbox's 2025 Developer Direct saw the Slayer both punching and kicking his way through the armies of hell with relative ease.

The limited Atlas mech sections ofThe Dark Ages' most recent trailer also showcased more melee combat than expected, easily taking down kaiju-sized demons with well-timed attacks.

While DOOM Eternal encouraged more vertical gameplay with its grappling hook, air dashes, and parkour mechanics, The Dark Ages focuses on expanding the classic horizontal combat of the 90s. With enemies and bosses launching a barrage of slowly moving projectiles, the Shield Saw will be an essential tool as players close the gap between their helpless foes. Given the new setting and gameplay direction to make players feel like an unstoppable tank in DOOM: The Dark Ages, its new melee system and parrying mechanics will pair excellently in the full release.