Visitors to QuakeCon 2024 were shown 10 minutes of Doom: The Dark Ages gameplay – details of the closed demonstration

Viewers of the broadcast from QuakeCon 2024 were not left without news on Doom, but festival guests witnessed a gameplay demonstration of Doom: The Dark Ages – the next chapter in the famous series of shooters from id Software.

Image source: id Software

Visitors were not allowed to record what was happening (no leaks have been observed yet), so those who were not present at QuakeCon 2024 in person will have to be content with eyewitness testimony.

According to blogger DreamcastGuy, who was at the demonstration, they showed about 10 minutes of Doom: The Dark Ages gameplay, which was not ready for showing to the general public due to certain technical or gameplay (balance) flaws.

If Doom Eternal was about perpetual motion, Doom: The Dark Ages puts the emphasis on “stand and fight”: the game focuses on defense (see saw shield) and parries. Overall the gameplay is supposedly slower than Eternal.

What was shown in the demo, judging by eyewitness reports on the forums:

• The interface is reminiscent of the first parts – with a ghostly face in the middle;
• New types of weapons, including a double-barreled plasma rifle – hits not only the target, but also nearby enemies;
• The saw shield can be used to jump, for example, over a chasm;
• Finishing moves no longer have a unique animation and are activated by melee and ranged combat techniques;
• In melee combat, the hero can hit enemies with a flail (restores ammo), a fist (deals area damage) or a mace;
• The controlled combat robot Atlan and the mechanical dragon will come under the player’s control more than once;
• The gameplay in the demo was “pre-alpha”.

Viewers called the demo an extended version of the announcement trailer

It is worth noting that this is not the first time that id Software has organized an exclusive demo for QuakeCon visitors. In 2014, festival guests were shown a demo of the future Doom (2016). Not everyone was happy then either.

The release of Doom: The Dark Ages is expected in 2025 on PC (Steam, Microsoft Store), PS5, Xbox Series X and S, as well as directly on Game Pass. The game is a medieval prequel to Doom (2016) and will offer you to learn the backstory of the Doom Slayer.