Doom: The Dark Ages Sets Record as id's Biggest Launch, Sales Data Pending

Doom: The Dark Ages has captivated 3 million players since its launch last week, yet Bethesda has not disclosed specific sales figures for the game. A social media update from Bethesda highlighted that Doom: The Dark Ages marks the largest launch in id Software's history by player count, reaching 3 million players seven times quicker than Doom Eternal did in 2020.

To better understand these numbers, it's important to examine platform-specific data. Doom: The Dark Ages was released on May 15, 2025, across PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S. On Steam, the only platform with publicly available player data, Doom: The Dark Ages achieved a peak concurrent player count of 31,470, with a 24-hour peak of 16,328 players. In comparison, Doom Eternal reached a peak of 104,891 concurrent players five years ago, while the 2016 Doom peaked at 44,271 players nine years ago. These figures suggest that Doom: The Dark Ages may have underperformed on Steam relative to its predecessors.

However, the influence of Xbox Game Pass must be considered. Doom: The Dark Ages launched day-one on Game Pass for both Xbox consoles and PC, likely attracting a significant number of players who opted for the subscription service rather than purchasing the game outright at $69.99 in the U.S. From Microsoft's perspective, this could be seen as a success in boosting Game Pass subscriptions, despite potential impacts on direct sales. Other games like Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which launched on Game Pass and sold 2 million copies, demonstrate that strong sales are still possible alongside a subscription model, though Doom: The Dark Ages' higher price point might have deterred some buyers.

Interestingly, Bethesda has chosen to focus on player counts rather than sales figures for Doom: The Dark Ages, a strategy also employed with The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, which saw 4 million players, and Ubisoft's approach with Assassin’s Creed: Shadows, which similarly reported 3 million players. Only Bethesda and Microsoft truly know if Doom: The Dark Ages has met its internal goals, but the high player count implies strong performance on consoles and Game Pass, despite weaker numbers on Steam.

IGN's review of Doom: The Dark Ages awarded it a 9/10, praising the game for its shift away from the mobility-focused gameplay of Doom Eternal towards a more powerful and weighty style of play that remains immensely satisfying and unique within the series.