Doom: The Dark Ages ditches multiplayer in favor of a single-player experience, breaking away from the live service curse many games fall into.

In recent years, live service games have become an unbreakable curse for many studios. The allure of long-term profits through continuous updates, seasonal content, and in-game purchases is too tempting, but it often comes at a steep cost. The cost of losing a franchise’s identity.

Every once in a while, however, a game comes along that dares to break free from this trend, and Doom: The Dark Ages is one of those titles. id Software has made a bold decision with this upcoming installment: they’ve completely removed the multiplayer component.

The game won’t have any multiplayer content. | Image Credit: id Software

This is a welcome move when the industry is continuously falling down the rabbit hole of live service.

Doom: The Dark Ages makes a bold move away from multiplayer

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In an interview with GamesRadar, Doom boss Hugo Martin explained the team’s decision to abandon the multiplayer aspect of the game and focus completely on the single-player experience.

He shared that this decision wasn’t made on impulse but was made very early in the development cycle. The team wanted to focus all its energy on crafting the best possible campaign. He further added that while multiplayer was present in the previous games, it wasn’t the main attraction.

In fact, it received mixed reception from the fans. According to Martin, the temptation to add multiplayer was there, but it would have taken away resources from the single-player experience, meaning diverting time and effort from the single-player elements.

It would definitely come at the expense of the single-player aspects. It felt good to just focus [on] Doom as a single-player experience.

Developers didn’t want to detract from focusing on the game’s core strengths. By removing multiplayer entirely, Doom: The Dark Ages avoids the pitfall of trying to balance both and stays true to the series’ roots of intense, fast-paced single-player action.

The dangers of the Live Service model

The model can be profitable, but it certainly has its own risks. | Image Credit: id Software

As more games adopt the live service model, there’s an increasing sense that the quality and identity of games are being compromised. The pressure to continuously update content, implement microtransactions, and keep players engaged can dilute the experience.

Developers don’t often think about giving it their all from the start because then they have to repeat the entire process for the next update. While this should be the norm, let’s be real: that rarely happens. The greatest allure of this model is the constant flow of revenue over the years.

However, this model comes with the tradeoff of requiring constant updates, balancing issues, and the need to please an ever-expanding player base. So, by completely focusing on the single-player experience, id Software is reaffirming the value of delivering a polished, narrative-driven adventure.

There’s something refreshing about a game that isn’t trying to do everything at once. The decision to not include multiplayer is a statement that Doom: The Dark Ages will not bow to the pressure of live service expectations and will instead provide players with a focused, fulfilling solo campaign.

This move is a positive step for the gaming industry as a whole. Not every title needs to follow the live service trend. In an industry full of online worlds, there’s still room for games that offer a rich, standalone adventure, one that doesn’t require constant updates or live service mechanics to succeed.

In the end, as players wait for its release on May 15th, let’s hope that more and more developers don’t try to transform their franchises into live service games.