The wait forDoom: The Dark Agesis drawing to a close, with the game still holding strong on its May 15 release date. The reboot of theDoomfranchise has undoubtedly been successful, with the franchise doing well to translate the core themes of its iconic earliest titles over to a more modern context, withThe Dark Ageshaving some freedom to move beyond the gameplay of 2016’sDoomand the more recentDoom Eternal.
The medieval-inspired premise ofDoom: The Dark Agesplus its existence as a prequel to most of the modernDoomstoryline is shaping up to foster quite a unique feel for the project, though it will still generally follow the popular framework of its predecessors likeDoom Eternal. In fact, there are some interesting under-explored elements ofDoom EternalthatThe Dark Agesseems to be directly expanding upon, with the Wintherin dragons ofDoom Eternallikely inspiring an extremely important element of the upcoming game.
Eternal’s Wintherin Dragons Have Fueled One Exciting Mechanic For Doom: The Dark Ages
The story of 2020’sDoom Eternalwas quite complex by the standards of its 2016 predecessor, with the game shining light on other realms like Argent D’Nur as well as ancient races of advanced beings that have fueled the franchise’s conflict for millennia. This smartly allowedDoom Eternalto take big creative liberties in terms of adding new hazards, locations, enemies, and fighting styles to the IP, with the upcomingDark Agesapplying this concept to an archaic prequel story of Medieval iconography and expanded melee combat.
Doom: The Dark Ageswill also be the first title in the franchise to feature friendly NPCs that the player fights alongside, further showcasing just how ambitious and unique the project is set to be.
Alongside the moreprimal weaponry and enemies ofDoom: The Dark Ages, the title is already drawing attention for how it is utilizing a bold sandbox approach to its uncharacteristically large-spanning mission worlds, with parts of the game being so expansive that it necessitates vehicle piloting to navigate. This has given way to one of the most talked-about and already-iconic elements ofDoom: The Dark Ages, with the player being able to pilot a semi-mechanical dragon while also using it in combat.
While not a lot is currently known about the origins of this tamed cybernetic dragon, theAncient Godsexpansion forDoom Eternalintroduced the Wintherin species to the franchise’s lore, with these creatures being ancient and powerful dragons that can ally themselves to and serve certain factions.Doom Eternal’s DLC showcased Wintherin who are allied directly to the Night Sentinels of Argent D’Nur, as well as the corrupted Demonic Wintherin who serve the armies of Hell.
Doom: The Dark Ages Will Make the Most of Wintherin From a Gameplay Perspective
It is not exactly confirmed thatThe Dark Ages' mech-dragon is a Wintherin, but it is known that the game will tell the story of theDoom Slayer’s rapid rise through the hierarchy of the Night Sentinelsfollowing his transportation to the world of Argent D’Nur. With the Night Sentinels being confirmed to work alongside certain species of aligned Wintherin, it seems thatThe Dark Ageswill smartly expand the establishment of Wintherin inDoom Eternalin quite a needed way through the Doom Slayer’s new companion.
Theinclusion of the mech-dragon inDoom: The Dark Agesis a perfect way to further solidify one of the most interesting aspects ofDoom Eternal’s DLC, paying respect to the rebooted story of the franchise while adding a deeply exciting new layer of gameplay opportunities for fans of the IP. The flight and combat mechanics ofThe Dark Ages' dragon mount will seemingly set the project apart from its predecessors in a huge way, with the lore and narrative presence of the Wintherin hopefully rising in tandem as a result.
