id Software’s DOOM: The Dark Ages promises a lot, from bigger levels and the largest “most expansive” campaign yet, to a heavier, tankier Slayer. Its weapons are no different, with game director Hugo Martin hyping almost every weapon as created “from scratch.”
Martin and producer Marty Stratton spoke to PC Gamer for its 408th issue, with the former noting, “I think only the shotguns are the same. The Plasma is so different, so the rest are brand new. That was by design, really making sure we were giving you new tools to master.”
The new Plasma Gun is the Accelerator, which is “basically an SMG plasma rifle. So it’s short range, high rate of fire, and it’s very fun.”
“You got to have your classics, it’s a Doom game. You got to have a plasma rifle. You got to have the shotguns. But then what else can we make? So we started every gun from scratch,” said Martin. Of course, there are also new melee weapons like the Shield Saw and Flail.
While some weapons like the Chaingun and Rocket Launcher return (with their changes yet to be detailed), you won’t see the likes of the Heavy Cannon from DOOM Eternal. “To put that back in players’ hands at the start of Dark Ages, I mean, it’s going to start feeling like a DLC because they’ve already mastered that tool.”
The goal is to provide players with “a whole new tool kit to discover, learn, and master. That’s going to ensure that we can have a real, balanced experience. And we don’t have to immediately start jacking up the difficulty because we’re giving you a tool you already mastered in the previous game.”
DOOM: The Dark Ages launches on May 15th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC. It will also be available on day one for Game Pass. Check out our interview with the development team for more, and stay tuned for further updates.
