Gone are the days inDoom Eternalwhere you have to constantly hotswap between weapons to destroy hordes of demons.
InDoom: The Dark Ages,you can now manage your ammo economy well enough that you can potentially main one or two weapons throughout your entire run.
Every DOOM Game, Ranked
With the looming approach of DOOM: Dark Ages, we’re excited to rank every game that came before it.
After two playthroughs and carefully spending some time with each weapon, I can tell you which feels the best to useand is the most reliable at shredding through the endless hordes of Hell in thisclassic shooter.
We’ll also be looking at the four Shield Runes that you unlock throughout the game, as well as melee weapons, based on their usefulness in any given combat situation.
Because they are only used in their respective levels, we won’t be ranking Atlan weapons, turrets, and the gun mounted on your dragon.
Pales In Comparison
Precision weapons are some of the best weapons in the previous Doom games.The Precision Bolt of the Heavy Cannon inDoom Eternalhas always been crucial in dealing critical damage and hitting weak points.
Touted as the hard-hitting precision weapon ofThe Dark Ages, the Impaler is a rail spike weapon like the Shredder, but instead firesa thick spike at enemies and can deal massive critical damage.
However, the Impaler is probably the least useful of the bunch.It has a depressingly short range, as the spike flops to the ground after traveling a short distance, and the difference in headshot damage is almost negligible.
Even with Lobotomy, which helps recharge your melee, it’s still not enough to redeem it.If the Impaler could shoot farther than I can throw a Cacodemon, maybe it’d be a little higher on the list.
Say goodbye to your dreams of landing sniper shots. This is not a weapon that is worth investing your time in.
18Rocket Launcher
North Korean Rocket Program
The rocket launcher does exactly what it says on the tin:it fires slow-moving projectiles that explode and can deal self-damage.
Its main perk isCannibalism, which lets you self-heal through the rockets' splash damage after parrying a Hell Surge.
Cannibalism isn’t a bad upgrade, since it encourages you to get up close and blast bosses with the rocket launcher.But why do that when we already have the Super Shotgun?
The slow-moving projectiles aren’t best used to engage enemies or bosses from a distance, nor does the small splash damage justify using them against mobs—strangely enough, the game encourages you to get close and blow both of you up with Cannibalism.
But the problem is that there aren’t a lot of cases where Cannibalism is useful.Self-heal doesn’t really do too much to compensate for the risk, and bosses are already ten zip codes away by the time your rockets reach them.
In the previous Doom games, like2016andEternal, you could add modifications to your rocket launcher, like homing missiles or remote detonation, so this version feels like a downgrade.To make this weapon even less useful, you also cannot rocket-jump.
17Grenade Launcher
What A Mess
The grenade launcher ranks just a smidge higher than the rocket launcher, mostly due to its better ammo economy and mob-clearing potential.
This weapon lobs arcing projectiles that bounce and explode on contact with enemies. Since its main appeal is clearing out hordes of demons,its main perk is Fragment, which allows the grenades to split into Cluster Grenades that deal AOE damage.
This weapon has a rather poor range, and the ammo economy isn’t generous. Not only that, thecluster bombs that split off don’t reliably hit other demons around the bigger demon you’re blowing up.
While someone might enjoy using explosive weapons like the rocket launcher or grenade launcher, I rarely found myself using them due to the slow projectiles and self-damage. There are weapons much more accurate and powerful than these launchers.
Sandblasting Simulator
The Ravager is a new weapon introduced in the game, and rapidly fires shards of demon skulls. Along with the Pulverizer,the Ravager is probably one of the most metal weapons I’ve seen in the franchise.
Think of the Ravager asa dark medieval version of the Gatling gun, as it gradually ramps up the fire rate the longer it shoots. At maximum fire rate, the Vampirism upgrade can even make enemies drop health pickups.
The perk Supplier also drops extra ammo when you damage enemies, so as long as there are demons around,you can shoot this thing forever.
But the Ravager doesn’t hit very hard, and doesn’t have a very satisfying feedback while landing shots. Its performance is also reliant on you maintaining momentum in combat, and while it may be useful to shred through single targets, it’s just not very strong.
15Ground Fissure Rune
Split The Ground Beneath You
Let’s take a quick break from weapons and look at Shield Runes. In Chapter 9, Commander Thira and the Slayer activate the Ancestral Forge. With the power locked inside,you upgrade the shield through Runes that allow you to trigger unique effects on successful parries.
Your first Shield Rune is Ground Fissure, which sends out a fissure that damages and falters enemies in its path.
Once fully upgraded, it can scorch enemies and replenish some of your armor, which can help with increasing survivability amidst the chaos.
It’s a good starting Rune. It’s this low on the list only because the Runes can only get better from here, making Ground Fissures rather weak in comparison. Not only that, but it’s also limited to enemies on the ground, which ispractically useless against airborne demons.
14Power Gauntlet
The OI' One-Two
As the first melee weapon featured on this list, the Power Gauntlet is also your starting melee weapon and unleashes a three-hit combo on a single target.
Replacing the chainsaw in previous games,melee weapons are crucial in restoring your ammo.
While it is somewhat low on this list, it’s not a weapon to be underestimated. It’s great for single-target damage, and once it’s upgraded,it can deal Shock damage that weakens enemies and dish out an extra hit.
I didn’t find myself using the Power Gauntlet that much, as it was quickly replaced by the Flail and then the Dreadmace afterwards. Still, it’s an incredibly useful starting melee weapon.
13Pulverizer
Mow Them Down
Featured in the initial trailers forThe Dark Ages,the Pulverizer made it to the hearts of fans because of the sheer brutality of the weapon, as it crushes demon skulls and sends the shrapnel into hordes of enemies.
Despite its short range,the Pulverizer can shred through hordes in a horizontal path,allowing you to clear just about any weaker demon caught in your sights.
Unfortunately, shredding through hordes is the only thing this weapon is good for. It doesn’t really feel satisfying to shoot, nor does it have much power when dealing with single targets.
12Accelerator
Heatblast Is Back
The Accelerator is the first plasma weapon that you receive, and it fires an unrelenting stream of plasma rounds that can overload Energy Shields to create an explosion.
It doesn’t have a lot of range, and has a rather high recoil, but it makes up for it by having a lot of ammo. With the right upgrades, the Accelerator can be much more accurate,along with a returning upgrade, Heatblast.
Heatblast makes the Accelerator much stronger, though instead of a manual detonation,this version can only be detonated when you release the trigger,which might take some time getting used to.
Still, the Accelerator is great when you want to deal some burst damage right before switching weapons.
11Dreadmace
The Dreadmace is the third and final melee weapon you earn in the game, and it hits the hardest amongst the three.
It looks like it weighs a ton, and it is definitely bad news for your enemies.
It deals so much damage that it rings across the arena, killing any demon unlucky enough to be close to you.It’s strong enough to instantly kill any non-boss or major demon.
The Dreadmace recharges very slowly at the cost of its immense power, but refills everything from your ammo to your health.
10Heaven Splitter Rune
Thunder Bringer
When triggered, the Heaven Splitter Rune summons a lightning bolt that stuns enemies that it hits, and then arcs lightning to nearby foes.
There’s nothing complicated about this rune. It’s simply both useful and flashy to use, and feels more like a utility Rune than an offensive one.
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Fully upgrading this rune also gives it theextra ability to deal Shock damage, which becomes pretty useful in conjunction with the Cycler.
