Doom: The Dark Ages (PlayStation, Xbox, PC, £69.99 or included with Xbox Game Pass)

Verdict: Wield that shield

Rating:

When you think of Doom, you don’t necessarily think of a shield.

Doom is all about sprinting up to hell-spawned monsters and turning them into mush with one of your many fearsome weapons. It’s about, in the game series’ own words, ripping and tearing.

Whereas a shield is all about defending yourself, and making sure the worst doesn’t happen. It’s a thing, you could say, for gripping and self-caring. It’s not very Doom.

Or is it?

The latest Doom game, The Dark Ages, features a shield — and it’s absolutely brilliant. Yes, you can stand behind it to deflect enemy blasts away. But you can also use it to parry some of those blasts back in their faces. Or to smash into monsters from a distance. Or to cause bloody carnage by throwing it.

If you somehow thought shields were for wimps, Doom’s abiding main character, the Doom Slayer, is here to say: RAAAAAAAGH!

The shield is also emblematic of the rest of the game.

The Dark Ages is different from its immediate predecessors, 2016’s Doom reboot and 2020’s Doom Eternal.

As its name suggests, this one is a prequel — and more medieval-fantasy-tinged than the others. That’s an excuse for the shield itself, of course; but also for great, sweeping hordes of monsters running towards you across ruined plains.

But it’s also not too different. The combat feels heavier, but it’s no slower.

The weapons are spikier, but they’re no less varied.

There’s even a weapon here called the Skullcrusher Pulverizer, which is about as Doom as Doom can be.

So, much like the Slayer himself, step into this blighted realm without fear. It features a surprisingly compelling story, some beautifully horrible sights, a lot of ornate level design. Oh, and a shield — that doesn’t detract from our hero’s toughness, but only adds to it. RAAAAAAAGH!

The Precinct (PlayStation, Xbox, PC, £24.99)

Verdict: Good cop

Rating:

Forget the cop show clichés. Judging by my experience with The Precinct, catching crims is actually a perfectly relaxing job. 

Even when you’re doing it in a grimy, gang-infested city with felonies — theft, assault, murder — happening around every corner.

Which isn’t to say that The Precinct avoids all cliché. It casts you as a new recruit, called Nick Cordell Jr, whose dad, er, Nick Cordell Sr, was a heroic police chief killed in the line of duty. 

Then you’re paired with a grizzled veteran only weeks away from retirement and sent out on the beat to apprehend lawbreakers and work your way up the chain of command.

No, it’s more that The Precinct is so easy to play. If I didn’t have a family - damn them - I’d probably have completed its 12-hour campaign in one smooth sitting. 

It’s really enjoyable gliding around this game’s rain-soaked facsimile of a 1980s American metropolis.

Part of it’s the graphics. The Precinct shows everything from an overhead perspective, turning city blocks into glorious, detailed dioramas. 

The lighting - particularly the red-and-blue whirl from your patrol car - is hypnotic.

But it’s also the gameplay. The Precinct lets you out into the city - on foot, by car, sometimes by helicopter - to dispense justice more or less as you see fit. 

There’s an overarching story, of course, but also random crimes with which you can occupy Nick’s day.

Want to book a few speeding drivers? Go for it. Want to concentrate on knife attacks in a particular neighbourhood? Sure.

It’s a compulsive, weirdly calming experience, even if the initial variety does start to feel a little samey after a few hours. And if you want to take a break? Pour a black coffee. Grab a donut. Relax.