Elden Ring Nightreign, Doom: The Dark Ages Round Up the Biggest Games of May

May looks like a relatively quieter month for major video game releases, but the month will see the launches of two of the most anticipated games of the year. Bethesda’s Doom: The Dark Ages arrives on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series S/X on May 15, while FromSoftware’s Elden Ring Nightreign launches towards the end of the month on May 30. The new Doom game, the third one in the franchise’s modern iteration since Doom (2016), is the latest Microsoft first-party title releasing on PlayStation simultaneously. The hellish first-person shooter serves as a prequel to the two preceding Doom titles and brings a medieval edge to its frenetic run-and-gun gameplay.

Elden Ring Nightreign, on the other hand, implements the FromSoftware formula on a co-op survival action setting, where teams of up to three players take on beastly threats in a procedurally generated world. Nightreign will feature familiar boss fights and exploration from Elden Ring in the form of ever-shifting challenges on a multiplayer map, where players must survive for three nights before taking on the final boss.

Other releases this month include The Midnight Walk, a first-person adventure game with a distinct art style that features clay-based models and stop motion animation. The game comes from developers who made Lost in Random and tasks players with bringing light back to a world submerged in darkness. It is available on PC and PS5 in May.

This month also sees yet another Xbox exclusive making its way to PS5. Age of Empires 2: Definitive Edition, a remaster of the 1999 strategy classic, arrives on PlayStation after initially releasing on PC and later launching on Xbox consoles. Here’s our picks for the biggest games of May across PC, PS5 and Xbox Series S/X.

Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition

When: May 6

Where: PS5

Age of Empires II: Definitive Edition is the polished and expanded remaster of the beloved 1999 real-time strategy classic. It was released for PC in 2019, followed by an Xbox port in 2022, and now the PS5 version is here alongside a new expansion. This release also makes it the first Age of Empires game on a PlayStation console since the original released on PS2 in 2002. The title comes with thoughtful adaptations for the DualSense controller and a user-friendly interface.

If you’re not familiar with AoE games, essentially, you dive into medieval history, build empires, manage economies, and lead armies across civilisations drawn from Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. The game features over 35 civilisations, each with unique units and technologies, offering plenty of options for strategy-building.

The Definitive Edition also includes all previously released expansions and campaigns, alongside online multiplayer support with console-friendly matchmaking. There’s even optional cross-play with PC, allowing players to challenge others regardless of platform.

Coinciding with the console launch is the new The Three Kingdoms expansion. It introduces three new civilisations — Cao Wei, Eastern Wu, and Shu Han — each with distinct mechanics that reflect the political and military intricacies of the era. The expansion also adds a fresh campaign and a new “influence” gameplay mechanic, which should be fun for both veterans of the game as well as newcomers.

Among Us 3D

When: May 6

Where: PC

Among Us 3D is the three-dimensional reimagining of the original that arrived in 2018, and reached the peak of its popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns. The 3D twist now shifts the perspective from a top-down view to a first-person perspective, making things much more anxiety-ridden. Gamers will find their heart pounding with every gate they have to open and every turn they have to make, adding to the atmosphere of the original.

The latest iteration of the franchise also makes several tweaks. The multiplayer game now comes with upgraded and new tasks that are more interactive. A new proximity mic system lets players hear each other based on their in-game proximity, allowing for more natural and strategic communication. Additionally, a new Tag Mode, where one infected player must infect others, changes the rules of the game, but in a fun way.

Whether you’re one of those who discovered the game during the pandemic or someone who is yet to try out the multiplayer strategy title, the 3D version is likely a great place to start and relive the nostalgia.

The Midnight Walk

When: May 8

Where: PC, PS5

Are you ready to rise from the grave, become the Burnt One and protect your friend Potboy from monsters keen to devour his flame? In this first-person adventure linear video game developed by MoonHood and published by Fast Travel Games, the narrative centres around prevailing concepts of fire and darkness.

Your character will have to accept eyes and ears from another creature to see and hear throughout your journey. You can run from crawlers, hide in wardrobes, and close your eyes to focus more on noises to help reveal something new and hidden. You can light a candle by solving a puzzle or firing a gun that shoots matches to illuminate your way. You will come across two-headed Soothsayers who worship the Fire, a mysterious Soulfisher, said to be older than most things and Housy, the walking house and storage unit that accompanies you. On (your) The Midnight Walk to the Moon Mountain, you will have to evade fierce monsters and the Dark itself.

Doom: The Dark Ages

When: May 15

Where: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X

Heavy metal, hell, blood and guts. The Doom identity since the franchise was resurrected in 2016 has been clear as crystal, but developer Id Software’s approach to gameplay has evolved over subsequent games. Doom (2016) was pure run-and-gun, pushing the player out of cover to shoot hellish demons in close, frenetic encounters. The sequel, Doom Eternal, expanded the formula, bringing a lot of platforming, exploration and tactical combat to the straight up shoot ‘em up style of its predecessor.

The upcoming Doom: The Dark Ages dials back to medieval times and is set before the events of Doom and Doom Eternal. Once again, players will be dropped into the shoes of the Doom Slayer, one of video games’ most badass heroes, right into the middle of a medieval war against hell. The shooter will chart the rise of the Doom Slayer in a setting that blends sci-fi and fantasy to deliver a darker, grittier Doom game.

While previous games in the modern Doom series focused on agile movement, Doom: The Dark Ages will focus on anchoring its protagonist as a heavier, more grounded tank-like killing machine. In addition to brutal guns, players will have access to melee weapons this time, including a Shield Saw that can both defend and attack in devastating ways. True to the series, however, Doom: The Dark Ages will feature brutal melee kills, challenging boss fights and bone-crunching music that drives the visceral action every step of the way.

Deliver At All Costs

When: May 22

Where: PC, PS5, Xbox Series S/X

Developed by Studio Far Out Games and published by Konami Digital Entertainment, Deliver At All Costs is an upcoming narrative-driven action-adventure game set in 1959. It is promised to offer a destruction-fueled, explosive experience. You will play as a stroppy, hapless delivery driver with an enigmatic past, Winston Green. Spanning across three acts, you will stumble upon obscure and fascinating details in your journey.

The visual aesthetics of the game, as well as the original music reminiscent of the era, with timely English voice acting and radio ads, are meant to transport you to the Fifties. In Green’s shoes, you can explore intricately designed semi-open areas both on foot and in your vehicle. You will be forced to plough through hurdles and elude angry citizens on your way to deliver particularly unusual deliveries, like a big, flailing Marlin or a big bomb reeling on the edge of explosion. Chaos and carnage await as you deal with driving trials and platforming puzzles.

Elden Ring Nightreign

When: May 30

Where: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X

Acclaimed Japanese studio FromSoftware readies its next action-RPG for later this month. Elden Ring Nightreign adds a multiplayer co-op survival action twist to the brutal boss fights and rewarding open world exploration from Elden Ring. Here, players in teams of three will survive in a new world, Limveld, that exists in parallel to the world and events seen in Elden Ring.

Limveld will feature procedurally generated environments and escalating challenges that test players in new and surprising ways as they fight to survive three days in the game, before taking on the final boss. Players will take on a boss at the end of every day as the map shrinks, just like in a Battle Royale game, before resetting the next day.

Elden Ring Nightreign can be played solo but is meant to be experienced with other players and requires co-operation and teamwork to brave its many challenges. Players will be able to choose their hero, each of which offers distinct abilities and skills. Aside from brutal bosses, the game’s environment will present constant threats, as well, FromSoftware has said. Elden Ring Nightreign will release on May 30.