According to a new report, the next Doom game will be titled Doom: The Dark Ages and will be unveiled at the Xbox Games Showcase on May 6.

This report is from Insider Gaming and is unconfirmed, claiming that this new Doom game has been in development for 4 years and will be set in a "medieval-inspired world of doom."

Rumors of follow-up to Doom Eternal have been swirling for some time. Earlier this month, it was revealed that Bethesda had trademarked the name for the classic Doom cheat 'IDKFA', speculating that this may be related to a new entry in the series, which follows a leak of Microsoft's internal release schedule last year that included a game titled 'Doom: Year Zero' on the list. We had a great time. It was a placeholder title for the alleged new Doom game, claimed by Insider Gaming's Tom Henderson.

While the evidence presented in the report is vague (Henderson says he "heard about the early details" of this new Doom game), Hugo Martin, Game Director at Doom Eternal, a medieval-themed follow-up, had previously suggested that future Doom games could visit more medieval settings. In an interview with Polygon in 2021, Martin asked, "When [The Doom Slayer] first came to that place with the Sentinels, can we talk about it almost like a medieval setting, a fantasy setting?"

In the same interview, Martin also explained that two extensions of the game— Ancient Gods Part 1 and 2 allude to the potential future direction of the series. "I think there are a lot of tips on what we can do when you play the DLC as well. Maybe even in the future. Again, our hero is somewhat timeless — that is, literally he is immortal, so he can tell all sorts of stories."

Indeed, Doom Eternal and its expansion had a fair share of medieval Gothic imagery, so the expanded game in that style setting was out of character.Moreover, given the 4-year gap between Doom2016 and Doom Eternal, the timing of the new game announcement from id Software makes sense." It will be. However, it's worth noting that the classic FPS that id Software can work on isn't just the new Doom. When MachineGames revealed Indiana Jones and The Great Circle earlier this year, the gameplay trailer included footage of a whiteboard with the Quake logo and what appeared to be a reference to Quake6. Reports at the time linked this to the second MachineGames project, but both studios are under the banner of Bethesda, so you can refer to the game under the direction of id Software

Or, if id Software is pursuing this medieval-themed fate, the studio may be better known for its Quake ideas and aesthetics. Not that the name of the more bankable FPS Lai earthquake does not carry any weight, and the remastering of Earthquake 1 and Earthquake 2 in Bethesda were both very well accepted. However, the free-to-play Quake Champions have not exploded in popularity, and putting Doom Eternal level resources into a new Quake game could be seen as a too big bet in today's risk-averse industry.

In any case, it doesn't take long to find out if the id software has a dish. Microsoft's Xbox Games Showcase will air on 6/9, less than 2 weeks away.