DOOM: The Dark Ages ‘Revelations’ DLC Two-Week Review#

As of today, Revelations has been out for exactly two weeks. It is the first major story expansion for DOOM: The Dark Ages since the game launched in June, and for two weeks the community has argued nonstop about whether the runtime is long enough and whether the premium editions are worth it. I’ve pulled together the past half-month of debate, the Chain Spear’s real-world performance, and the supplementary notes from our on-site guides into one reference for anyone still sitting on the fence.

DLC Essentials#

One widely circulated misunderstanding needs correcting right away. Plenty of reviews pushed the narrative that Revelations runs “6 to 10 hours,” but with the 40% of endgame content factored in, the full package is 10 to 12 hours; the main story alone is roughly 6 hours. That distinction matters before you buy — decide whether you only want the story, or intend to chew through every endgame challenge.

Editions and Pricing, Explained#

This is where the two weeks of argument concentrated hardest. Conclusion first: there is no “$39.99 season pass” tier.

There are only two legitimate ways to buy Revelations:

• Standalone: $19.99 — the right choice if you just want the DLC itself.
• Deluxe upgrade: $34.99 — buys Revelations and also covers the rest of what the Deluxe Edition includes.

Additionally, Revelations is already included in the Premium Edition, so anyone who bought Premium up front owes nothing further. In short: standalone is $19.99, upgrading to Deluxe costs an extra $34.99, and Premium owners are covered. Many players who pre-ordered early were already covered by Premium and don’t need to pay a second time.

Chain Spear Hands-On#

The Chain Spear is Revelations’ core new weapon and the most discussed piece of the past two weeks. It carries the DNA of the base game’s flail, merging a melee flail with an energy weapon. A few field notes.

Chain Spear Basics#

• Throw and recall: fling the spearhead into a target, hit recall immediately, and you snap toward distant enemies before chaining into swings for continuous pressure. This is the core mobility loop of Revelations, and it’s what separates the weapon from everything else in the arsenal.
• Charged heavy breaks armor: the Chain Spear’s charged heavy strike can crack the front armor of heavily plated demons. Against enemies that refuse to melt in a straight fight, breaking armor first and then switching to the base game’s heavy weapons makes everything flow better.
• Detonating spirit wards: the DLC’s new spirit-type enemies carry wards immune to conventional damage; only a Chain Spear throw detonates them, and the burst splashes onto nearby spirits. It is exceptionally good at clearing clustered spirits.
• Crossing chasms: in the abyss regions, platforms are separated by wide gaps that only the Chain Spear’s recall-pull can cross — the weapon’s puzzle-and-exploration side.

Where the Chain Spear Fits#

The Chain Spear has its own upgrade system and shares no resources with the base game’s weapon upgrades. If you intend to clear all the endgame content, it is an unavoidable requirement. In practice it shines against heavy armor and spirit packs, and for close-range players the throw-pull-strike rhythm is genuinely addictive. Note: the Chain Spear is DLC-exclusive and cannot be used in the base campaign.

Missions and Content Overview#

Revelations’ story runs along the line preceding the base game’s “weapons of gods and kings” thread, throwing the wounded, betrayed Doom Slayer into a bottomless abyss. Hell reappears in “frozen” form, and the whole run cuts back and forth between ice and fire.

Across the six missions/regions, the opening stretch is broken platforms floating in the void, spacetime torn apart by Hell’s power, linked by fragile energy bridges; later you descend into frozen layers of Hell that alternate between frost and magma. Mid-run there are frozen furnaces to relight, and corridors sealed under ice that only a Chain Spear heavy strike can crack open. Overall, Hell is reborn inside the abyss in a “frozen” state — a visual identity far removed from the base game’s pure sea-of-fire Hell.

For the full mission walkthroughs, all collectibles and the endgame challenges, I’ve been filling in the dedicated Revelations guide pages on the site — the navigation below gets you there.

What the Story Covers#

Spoiler threads have been everywhere for two weeks, so this is the framework only — key endings stay unspoiled.

Revelations takes place after the mainline. Fresh out of a savage battle, the Doom Slayer is betrayed by the allies who promised to fight beside him and, gravely wounded, is pushed into the bottomless abyss. The Hell down there has “frozen” — flames sealed under extreme cold, ancient demons half-awake beneath the ice. While fighting his way out, he must also uncover the deliberately erased chapter of how he became a legendary weapon.

The DLC intercuts memories of the protagonist’s real name, Flynn Taggart — from a flesh-and-blood Marine to a soldier corrupted by Hell’s power and finally transformed into a warrior at endless war with demons. The mainline addresses, head-on and for the first time, why he rarely speaks, why he can rip demons apart barehanded, and why he was sealed for a millennium. The enemies of the abyss keep pressing on his past: did he become a weapon willingly, or was all of it Hell’s design? In the final battle, he comes face to face with the truth of being “made.”

For series fans, this closes the Doom Slayer’s origin shut, and it has been the hottest topic of the past two weeks.

Endgame Content and Getting Ready#

A large share of this DLC’s weight sits on the endgame. Clear the story, and the real test begins:

• Master Arenas: one per mission, each with purpose-built enemy rosters that regularly spawn at far beyond normal counts — a serious test of the Chain Spear’s crowd work. Arenas consume no story items, failures can be retried without limit, and clears pay out endgame fragments.
• Uber Boss: the summit of the endgame, winnable only by players who have pushed the Chain Spear to tier five and hold its strongest upgrades. It has its own health bar and multi-phase mechanics, summons fresh adds at every phase change, and will force the throw-pull loop into your muscle memory.
• Ripatorium 3.0: a free update that shipped alongside the DLC, open to all players, with deep customization, an improved access-code generation system, and personal presets. DLC owners who finish the story can also use the fully upgraded Chain Spear in the mode, plus extra maps and new demons.

On timing your purchase, my advice:

• The story happens after the mainline; playing it cold means obvious spoilers, so clear the base campaign first.
• The Chain Spear’s feel carries over from the base game’s flail — drill your perfect blocks early and the learning curve flattens.
• The DLC has its own hub region you can revisit after completion, so missed collectibles are never gone for good.
• Mainline-only players should budget around 6 hours; anyone tackling the endgame should plan for 10 to 12.

The Two-Week Verdict#

Pulling together comments, forums, and feedback from our own readers, sentiment on Revelations points one direction:

• Combat: the Chain Spear’s feel and mechanical depth are almost universally praised by name; the throw-pull rhythm gives fights a new flavor, and hardly anyone disputes this.
• Level expression: the frozen Hell’s visuals and set pieces leave a strong impression and stand clearly apart from the base game’s fire-and-brimstone Hell.
• Difficulty: broadly judged slightly harder than the base game, but the Chain Spear gives players enough tools to cope — it never hits rage-quit territory.
• Length: the real fault line. Mainline-only players find 6 hours short; players who count the endgame think 10 to 12 hours earns the $19.99.

On “worth it,” my call is: story-only players can wait for a sale; anyone planning to dig into the endgame challenges and Master Arenas should buy at launch without hesitation.

Guide Navigation#

Two weeks in, Revelations’ momentum is still climbing. For players who never tire of movement systems, the Chain Spear’s new loop is worth dedicated practice; for story people, the series has finally explained why the Slayer doesn’t talk. The rest is up to each of you — take a trip through Hell and decide whether it earns that $19.99.

— Long Zuiri, NTGame Editor-in-Chief