Bethesda has announced Doom: The Dark Ages has become the “biggest launch” in id Software’s history.
The company shared the news on social media, adding three million players had made their way into the fiery pits of hell since the game’s release this month.
To put that into more context, Bethesda says Doom: The Dark Ages reached this number seven times faster than Doom Eternal.
According to SteamDB, Doom: The Dark Ages topped sales charts for the PC storefront during the week of 13 May – 20 May 2025. It was followed by the Steam Deck in second place, while the remainder of the Steam top five for that week was rounded out by Stellar Blade, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 and Cyberpunk 2077.
While this launch is no doubt an impressive achievement for all those involved in Doom: The Dark Ages’ release, it is worth noting that the game was also made available to play via Game Pass on day one.
The Game Business co-founder Chris Dring states that of those three million players, over two million came from Xbox according to figures from Ampere.
We were rather taken with Doom: The Dark Ages, with Chris Donlan calling it a “more grounded” series entry, but “one that’s as brisk and playful” as ever.
“As a parent, the game I’m most concerned about these days is probably something like Roblox. By contrast, Doom feels like an entirely known and understood entity. Let’s savour it,” he wrote in Eurogamer’s Doom: The Dark Ages review. “Here’s a slice of pure gaming charisma that has come to us, unfrazzled, from a more innocent time.
“And it’s kind of lovely.”
