Doom: The Dark Ages has already attracted 3 million players since its launch last week, though Bethesda has not yet released official sales figures for the game.
A social media announcement from Bethesda confirmed that Doom: The Dark Ages has achieved the biggest launch in id Software's history based on player count, reaching 3 million players seven times faster than 2020's Doom Eternal.
It's helpful to examine the details behind these figures. Doom: The Dark Ages launched on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S on May 15, 2025. Steam is the only platform that publicly shares player numbers, so let's start there.
On Steam, Doom: The Dark Ages reached a peak concurrent player count of 31,470, with a 24-hour peak of 16,328 concurrent players. In comparison, Doom Eternal achieved a peak of 104,891 concurrent players five years ago—a number that makes The Dark Ages' performance on Valve's platform seem relatively modest. For additional context, 2016's Doom holds a Steam peak of 44,271 concurrent players, a record set nine years ago.
However, the impact of Game Pass must be considered when analyzing these numbers. Doom: The Dark Ages was available on day one through Game Pass for both Xbox consoles and PC. Many players likely accessed The Dark Ages via their Game Pass subscription rather than purchasing the game at its $69.99 U.S. retail price.
From Microsoft's perspective, this may be perfectly acceptable, as the company aims to drive subscriptions for PC Game Pass and Xbox Game Pass Ultimate. We've seen other games achieve strong sales despite launching day one on Game Pass, such as the $50 title Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, which has sold an impressive 2 million copies. Doom: The Dark Ages carries a higher price point—could that have influenced some players' decisions?
This brings us to the next point: Bethesda has announced 3 million players for Doom: The Dark Ages, but not traditional sales figures. This mirrors the approach taken with The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered, which celebrated 4 million players after also launching day one on Game Pass. Interestingly, Ubisoft similarly reported 3 million players for Assassin’s Creed: Shadows rather than concrete sales data.
In reality, only Bethesda and Microsoft know whether Doom: The Dark Ages has met its internal performance goals. That said, the 3 million player count strongly suggests the game has performed exceptionally well on consoles and through Game Pass, even if its Steam reception appears more muted.
IGN's Doom: The Dark Ages review awarded it a 9/10. Our review stated: "Doom: The Dark Ages may move away from the mobility-centric design of Doom Eternal, but it replaces it with a grounded, impactful style of combat that feels fresh for the series and remains deeply satisfying in its own right."
