The Main Doom Timeline, Explained (2025)

It is easy to surmise the Doom franchise as just a bunch of mindless shooting paired with well-made metal soundtracks. However, the Doom games do feature a continuous timeline of events that connect. With the release of Doom: The Dark Ages, the story of the Doom Slayer is further expanded while giving gamers another opportunity to rip and tear through more legions of demons.

The original Doom timeline consists of multiple games, beginning with the first installment. However, it also has offshoots and reboots that are not considered part of the main timeline. For example, Doom 3 exists in an alternate timeline. Additionally, mods created by developers, such as Sigil and The Plutonia Experiment, are not regarded as official canon, despite their high quality.Major Story Spoilers Ahead for All Doom Games, Including Doom: The Dark Ages

13 Doom

The Marine First Fights The Forces Of Hell

3Images

3Images

Doom (1993)

8/10

9.0/10

Released

December 10, 1993

• 
• 
• 

Where to play

Close

WHERE TO PLAY

SUBSCRIPTION

• 
• 

DIGITAL

• 
• 
• 
• 
• 

PHYSICAL

• 
• 
• 

8/10

9.0/10

ESRB

M for Mature: Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language

Developer(s)

id Software

Platform(s)

PS4, Xbox One, Switch, PC, Stadia, PS3, Xbox 360, Xbox (Original), PS1, Sega Saturn, Super Nintendo Entertainment System, Android, iOS

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

Powered by

Expand Collapse

• Year: 2022

With the UAC having bases on Mars’ twin moons Phobos and Deimos, the scientists begin developing portals between the moons, but the process creates a portal to Hell. Doom features a protagonist known simply as Doom Guy, who is stationed on Phobos after refusing to execute innocent civilians for the military and attacking his commanding officer, which proves to be a blessing in disguise.

Doom Guy becomes the sole survivor, as his fellow marines are converted by the evils of Hell into zombie-like warriors. He alone battles through hordes of undead, demons, and mutated monstrosities across Phobos until he is transported to Deimos, which had disappeared when Hell’s forces arrived. It turns out Deimos was absorbed by Hell itself and warped to fit its new landscape.

The marine uses every weapon, including the famous BFG-9000 and infinitely powerful chainsaw, to carve his path through the realm of Hell until he defeats the Spider Mastermind, thereby ending the demonic invasion of Mars and its moons. Doom Guy is victorious, but only for a brief time; he uses a portal to return to Earth, only to discover that it has also been invaded by Hell’s forces.

12 Doom 2: Hell On Earth

This Time It’s Personal For Doom Guy

3Images

3Images

Doom 2

9.0/10

Released

October 10, 1994

• 

Where to play

Close

WHERE TO PLAY

SUBSCRIPTION

• 
• 

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ // Blood and Gore, Violence

Developer(s)

id Software

Platform(s)

Android, iOS, Nintendo Game Boy Advance, PC, Sega Saturn, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, PlayStation (Original), Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

Powered by

Expand Collapse

• Year: 2022

In Doom 2: Hell on Earth, not only have demons invaded and corrupted the cities into Hell-like landscapes, but Doom Guy returned to Earth to discover that his beloved pet rabbit, Daisy, had been murdered. Fueled by his rage, he continues his war against Hell, working to not only satiate his hatred for demons but also help the rest of humanity escape Earth so that he can continue his mission as the last human on the planet.

All traces of the Hell invasion guide Doom Guy to another city for him to ravage through, but it is in this city that he finds a portal back to Hell, the place he fought so hard to escape from personally. It is here that Doom Guy meets and destroys Baphomet, also known as the Icon of Sin, who commands the legions of Hell and their invasion of Earth, spawning demons and undead from its brain.

11 Doom 64

Returning To Mars To Fight The Mother

5Images

5Images

Doom 64

8.0/10

Released

April 4, 1997

• 

Where to play

Close

WHERE TO PLAY

SUBSCRIPTION

• 
• 

ESRB

t

Developer(s)

Midway Games

Platform(s)

Nintendo 64, Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, Xbox One

OpenCritic Rating

Strong

Powered by

Expand Collapse

• Year: Unknown

With Earth rebuilding for years after the demonic invasion, Doom Guy is sent back to Mars and its moons, thanks to demons being resurrected by a mysterious force. This is where Doom 64 comes into play, taking on a darker tone with a horror-like atmosphere as Doom Guy slaughters his way through Imps, Hell Knights, Cacodemons, Cyberdemons, and the other familiar foes.

This time, the demons are being led by a demon known as the Mother of All Demons, and she proves to be Doom Guy’s greatest challenge yet. She forces the marine to utilize new abilities and weapons, such as the Unmaker and three mystical keys, to travel to Hell once again to defeat the Mother. Doom Guy chooses to stay in Hell, knowing that the demons will never stop.

Thanks to the official expansion titled The Lost Levels, released in the 2020 port to modern systems. The Mother has a sister known as the Resurrector, who takes the fight to another planet: Sedna, sending everything to Doom Guy, but he is seemingly incapable of dying, which leads to him fending off armies to return to Hell to finish the Resurrector off and lead a one-man war on Hell itself.

10 Rise Of The Doom Slayer

The Marine Goes From A Guy To A Slayer

• Years: Unknown

A lot happens between games via lore found and shown in Doom (2016) and Doom Eternal, revealing that Doom Guy found himself being transported to another dimension known as Argent D'Nur while on his endless rampage. The Argenta people and the angel-like Maykrs were impressed by his ability to slay demons and his endless rage that gave him the need to rip and tear.

Doom Guy was put in a gladiatorial arena where he proved to be more fearsome than any other warrior, which earned him a place in the ranks of the Night Sentinels, where he served with extreme skill and loyalty. Despite being an outsider, he became their greatest champion, even if all he cared about was being deployed to slaughter more demons.

The tales of the marine’s exploits in Hell and Argent D’nur would earn him a new name that would be cemented in Doom history both in-universe and in the real world: the Doom Slayer. A warrior who remains the only thing demons fear across the many realms, especially when under the control of the Maykrs.

9 Doom: The Dark Ages

The Slayer’s Exploits With The Night Sentinels

5Images

5Images

DOOM: The Dark Ages

8/10

9.4/10

Released

May 15, 2025

• 
• 

Where to play

Close

WHERE TO PLAY

SUBSCRIPTION

• 

DIGITAL

• 
• 

8/10

9.4/10

ESRB

m

Developer(s)

id Software

Platform(s)

PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S

Powered by

Expand Collapse

• Year: Unknown

In Doom: The Dark Ages, The Slayer is bound by the Maykrs to act as a living weapon: deployed to slay demons before returning to the Kreed Maykr's ship to await his next mission. Stripped of his free will, the only thing that remains within him is his intense hatred for demons. Prince Ahzrak wages war to acquire the Heart of Argent, a Night Sentinel artifact, leading to a battle on the floating city of Aratum. King Novik of the Sentinels obtains the Heart before Ahzrak and evacuates the city before it’s destroyed.

However, Hell’s forces led a counterattack on the Sentinel Stronghold, where Ahzrak takes the Heart by force, but its power source is missing. The Slayer, now resistant to the Maykrs’ tether, fends off Ahzrak and works with Novik’s daughter Thira to imbue his new weaponized shield with more power. Thira is the power source for the Heart of Argent, housing the spirit of a Wraith.

The Kreed Maykr betrays her and the Slayer, resulting in Thira's capture while the Slayer is imprisoned by the Old Ones. He detonates a tether in his suit, awakening in Hell and fighting his way back to Argent D’Nur. Fully resurrected by Commander Valen, the Slayer defeats the Kreed Maykr and battles Prince Ahzrak, driving him back to Hell and saving Thira's soul. The story concludes with the Maykrs claiming Kreed acted alone, while the Night Sentinels prepare for their next mission and the Slayer takes control of the Kreed Maykr’s ship.

8 The Argent D’Nur Civil War

How The Maykrs Destroyed The Night Sentinels

• Years: Unknown

The Maykrs appear godlike and angelic, but they are as physical as the demons that the Slayer fights, and they use an essence known as Argent energy to maintain their immortality without transforming into Hellish beasts. This energy can be harvested from Hell, as it is formed by the energy of souls, resulting in the Khan Makyr allying with the demonic forces, thus causing the Night Sentinels to rebel.

The civil war of Argent D’Nur is a devastating one, but the Maykrs see that their greatest foe is the Doom Slayer. So, they trick and overpower him to trap him in a sarcophagus inside Hell, ensuring the fall of the Sentinels, especially when one of them, Valen, makes a deal with a Hell Priest to resurrect his son in exchange for the Wraiths, the very creators of the Sentinels and the Argenta people.

Valen’s transaction causes Argent D’Nur to fall completely under the control of demons, and even his wish is granted, but with a twist. Valen’s son was twisted and warped into a new Icon of Sin. Meanwhile, one rogue Maykr known as Samur, the Seraphim, escaped Argent D’Nur in defiance of the Khan Maykr to commence his plan under a disguise on Earth.

7 Back To Mars

Samuel Hayden Prepared For The Next Demonic Invasion

• Year: 2145

Samur takes the form of a human named Dr. Samuel Hayden, who leads the UAC back to Mars over a century after the original Hell invasions and opens a new portal to Hell to harness Argent energy. It is claimed to be an accident, but Hayden is fully aware of his actions, determined to harness the energy and create the perfect defense for humanity in the form of VEGA, who is imbued with the power of the Father, an ancient being that supposedly created all life.

Argent energy is caustic to Hayden’s human body, resulting in brain cancer, and forcing him to transfer his consciousness into a new robotic body to continue his research. This includes finding the ultimate weapon against Hell, which is the Doom Slayer, who is still sealed away in his sarcophagus.

When digging through hell, the UAC finds the Slayer’s sarcophagus and brings it back to Mars for it to be studied, when in actuality, Hayden is merely storing it for when the inevitable Hell invasion begins again. Unfortunately, what Hayden foresaw came to pass, and demons poured onto the surface of Mars as they did in the year 2022.

6 Doom (2016)

The Doom Slayer Returns Where It All Started

DOOM

8/10

8.6/10

Released

May 13, 2016

• 
• 
• 

Where to play

Close

WHERE TO PLAY

SUBSCRIPTION

• 
• 

DIGITAL

• 
• 
• 
• 

PHYSICAL

• 

8/10

8.6/10

ESRB

M For Mature 17+ Due To Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language

Developer(s)

id Software

Platform(s)

PC, PS4, Switch, Xbox One

OpenCritic Rating

Mighty

Powered by

Expand Collapse

• Year: 2149

It is now the year 2149 in Doom (2016), which is technically Doom 4. One UAC researcher named Olivia Pierce became too obsessed with Hell, even coming into contact with the Dark Lord. She and her cult of demon worshippers are directly responsible for the new invasion of demons via the Argent Tower, which leads to the awakening of the Doom Slayer.

As if the Doom Slayer is not angry enough, he has awoken to discover that humans have unleashed Hell yet again, forcing him to do the job he already accomplished a century prior. Guided by Samuel Hayden and VEGA, unaware of their true identities, Doom Slayer slaughters every demon and undead he finds on Mars before taking the fight to Hell once again.

Constantly traveling between Hell and Mars, the Doom Slayer fights his way through many monsters, including new Cyberdemons, Hell Guards, and Olivia Pierce in her new Spider Mastermind form, to shut down the Well powering Hell’s invasion. It’s all possible thanks to an artifact known as the Crucible, freeing three Wraiths from Hell’s corruption. Doom (2016) ends with the Slayer being betrayed by Hayden, who takes the Crucible and sends the Slayer to an unknown location.

5 Doom VFR

A Lone Scientist Finished The Doom Slayer’s Job

• Year: 2149

Set during and after the events of Doom (2016), Doom VFR features a new protagonist named Abraham Peters, who is the only survivor of the UAC on Mars, unaffected by Olivia Pierce’s unleashing of Hell. However, upon dying from being attacked, Peters is transferred into a robotic body, like Hayden, and begins his own mission.

Peters fights through Mars and even several sections of Hell to purge the UAC’s base on Mars of any leftover Argent energy that the demons can still use, while also shutting down any portals. However, in the process, Peters’ robotic body is destroyed, and his consciousness is erased from existence.

Doom VFR marks the only time in the Doom franchise that the protagonist was not Doom Slayer or a marine, providing a fun VR shooter experience for fans of the series. Samuel Hayden was monitoring Peters’ progress during the events of the story, and just before he dies, Peters is greeted and thanked by Hayden, giving him solace before everything went dark.

4 Hell On Earth…Again

The Earth Had No Chance Without Doom Slayer

• Years: 2151–2163

With no Doom Slayer and the Hell worshiping cult present, Earth was doomed from the start, even with Samuel Hayden leading the resistance against the alien-like invasion. Hell, allied with the Maykrs of Urdak, consumes over 60% of Earth’s population to harvest Ardent energy from their souls, and the UAC is taken over by the cultists and the Hell Priests who corrupted Valen in the Argent D’Nur war.

Even with the Crucible and a newly formed resistance known as the Armored Response Coalition, Samuel Hayden was no match for the forces of Hell. Hayden is killed during the skirmishes against the demons, leading to his robotic body being received by the ARC, and humanity seems hopeless after years of losing to the demonic invaders, until a strange structure appears in orbit.