It wouldn’t be a Doom game without guns, andDOOM: The Dark Ageshas more than its fair share of options to choose from.
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Whether it be the risky, but powerful, Super Shotgun, the spray-and-pray-friendly Pulverizer or even a handheld medieval cannon, any gun is a respectable choice in the Dark Ages. Of course, only one of them can be the best (and we can definitely think of which one is the worst)
Why does a cannonball need accuracy?
It might be the most interesting of all the weapons, but it definitely is not the most effective. The Chainshot requires a charge-up in order to fire it, as well as multiple upgrades just to spread the damage to multiple enemies.
Launching a cannonball seems like a good idea in theory, but it won’t actually hit that many enemies (and if you’re running and dodging, it will be very easy to miss your intended target). We didn’t use this at all after first obtaining it during the Siege, and we don’t recommend that you do either.
Combat Shotgun
Baby’s first murder machine
It’s not a bad starting weapon, but considering the other options that come up after it (especially when you find the Super Shotgun), you’re not going to want to look back at this under-powered pea shooter.
The slow rate of fire and short range of damage aren’t ideal for taking on the crowds of enemies that populate the game, nor are they any good at taking on the various bosses from Hell, either.
Rocket Launcher
Better time it right
It’s not that the Rocket Launcher doesn’t do enough damage, or enough enemies, it’s just too much of a gamble. The projectile speed of the rocket is way slower, requiring you to time and account for the distance when shooting at an enemy that’s moving (which every enemy does).
Additionally, using it up close will damage the Slayer, burning all of those hard-earned health and armor points you’ve picked up. Strangely, the device that shoots rocket-propelled explosives isn’t worth it in the long run when waging a war (the low ammo count doesn’t help).
Grenade Launcher
Crowd control from Hell
The Grenade Launcher just barely surpasses the Rocket Launcher thanks to its ability to land hits (slightly) easier. Gravity at least guarantees that it will hit the ground and bounce forward a bit before exploding, instead of flying past and hitting some far-away wall.
Upgrading it makes it a bit better as well, allowing the grenades to explode into large clusters capable of damaging larger groups of enemies. It lands on the lower end of our list due to the unpredictable nature of the weapon, as well as the low ammo capacity and self-damage.
It takes a bit of precision, but the Impaler can make quick work of low-to-mid tier special enemies in the right scenarios. The ammo count is pretty low, but this is the closest thing we’ve got to a Sniper Rifle or railgun in the Dark Ages.
We definitely prefer it’s rapid-fire alternative, but the Impaler can make quick work of bothersome enemies at lower health. Just be sure to aim well, since this thing has a very low fire rate in exchange for the high damage.
Say hello to my little friend
The “assault rifle” of the Dark Ages comes in the form of the shredder, a rfull-auto gun that pierces enemy armor at a high rate of fire. This is a great choice for crowd control, with either of its upgrades capable of launching bullets from your target to nearby enemies.
We’ve personally found more use in the deflection upgrade, which bounces bullets off of the enemy when they’re stunned by the shield saw impaled on their body. Just don’t forget to keep an eye on your ammo.
Shockingly powerful
Once you’ve upgraded it, the Cycler becomes the best secondary weapon a young Slayer could ask for. The elemental shock damage that comes with the Cycler’s initial upgrade increases all damage dealt to the shocked enemy (and with more upgrades, the shock will spread to other enemies nearby).
Combining this with a solid primary firearm when facing off against closely-packed groups of Special enemies is a no-brainer, making it that much easier to take them all out in a matter of seconds.
It’s technically not a minigun
The minigun is a staple of the Doom franchise, but it doesn’t quite fit in with the medieval setting of the Dark Ages. This is where the Ravager comes in, a heavy-duty automatic weapon that crushes skulls into bullet-shaped bone fragments, and fires them off at increasing speeds.
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The longer you fire it, the faster it gets (which means demons hit ground faster, in turn), and with a tighter spread than the Pulverizer, it works great against high-health enemies.
Accelerator
It’s about to get hot
The Accelerator works best when you’ve upgraded it and have a lot of demon health to clear out in the current encounter. Continuous firing of the Accelerator will heat up the chamber, buffing the weapon (based on your upgrade) and eviscerating enemies at an ungodly rate of fire.
We avoided the sonic blast upgrade, which requires you to be at a close range (which we didn’t find to pair well with the mid-range nature of the weapon, or stand up to the high-power blasts of the Super Shotgun and melee weapons).
Pulverizer
Spray and Pray
There are so many demons on the battlefield in the Dark Ages, and somebody needs to thin the herd as soon as possible. The Slayer’s best solution to demon overpopulation is the pulverizer, which fires bone fragments in a wide horizontal line at a high rate of fire.
This gun is pretty versatile, as it also does high damage at a close range if you aim it correctly. Upgrade this one to get a massive speed boost so you can clear the field quicker, and get back to one-on-one combat with the bigger demons.
Super Shotgun
Up close and personal
Are you always dealing with Hell Knights that keep cramping your style? One blast with the Super Shotgun will take them (and most other medium-sized enemies) out with a single pull of the trigger.
You’ll need to get up close and personal to do full damage, but you’re already going to be close range with the melee and shield bash mechanics inherent to playing in The Dark Ages. Upgrade this bad boy first, and you won’t need any other weapon ever again.
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