DOOM: The Dark Ages has become id Software's most successful launch, attracting 3 million players. Continue reading to see how it measures up against DOOM: Eternal and to discover upcoming PC-exclusive updates.

DOOM: The Dark Ages is Available Now!

Largest Launch in id Software's History

Released last week to an enthusiastic welcome, DOOM: The Dark Ages earned high scores from numerous review outlets. Bethesda announced via a Twitter (X) post on May 21 that the game has already attracted over 3 million players, marking the biggest release in id Software's history.

According to the post, the game achieved this milestone seven times faster than its predecessor, DOOM: Eternal. This, however, appears to conflict with 2020 estimates from Superdata indicating that DOOM: Eternal reached 3 million players within its first 10 days. It is worth noting that those figures were only estimates, and Bethesda never made an official announcement on the matter.

Any comparison between the two games must also account for the broader context. When DOOM: Eternal launched, Bethesda's parent company, ZeniMax Media, had not yet been acquired by Microsoft, meaning the game was not available on Xbox Game Pass at release.

In contrast, DOOM: The Dark Ages was accessible on PC Game Pass from day one, which also influenced its Steam performance. Data from SteamDB shows an all-time peak of 31,470 concurrent players for The Dark Ages, significantly lower than DOOM: Eternal's launch peak of 104,891. Analyst firm Ampere estimates that approximately 2 million players experienced DOOM: The Dark Ages on Xbox.

Despite these numbers, fans are hailing it as one of the standout entries in the franchise. Here at Game8, we awarded DOOM: The Dark Ages a score of 88 out of 100, praising its brutal reinvention of the series—swapping the aerial mobility of DOOM (2016) and Eternal for a more grounded and gritty combat experience. For more detailed impressions, check out our full review below!