Something to look forward to: If you were one of the many gamers both amazed and terrified by the original Doom in the early nineties, here's some depressing news: on December 10th, the iconic FPS will celebrate its thirtieth birthday. The good part is that as a way of marking the occasion, id Software co-founder John Romero is releasing a new episode for Doom called Sigil II.
Doom launched for DOS all the way back on December 10, 1993 - the first independent release for id Software.
Five years ago, Romero released the unofficial spiritual successor to the fourth episode of Doom, Sigil, for free to owners of the original game, though there were also paid-for physical editions that came with retro-themed goodies like a 16 GB USB designed to look like a 3.5-inch floppy disk. There was even a copy bundled with a soundtrack from one-time Guns N' Roses guitarist Buckethead.
With Doom's 30th anniversary less than a month away, Romero has announced a Sigil successor, Sigil II, which will act as an unofficial sixth episode of Doom.
Sigil II offers nine levels and two multiplayer Deathmatch levels. As with Sigil, the new episode will be free to owners of Doom. There are other editions, including a digital one featuring two digital soundtracks from Thorr and James Paddock, and a physical edition, which comes with a USB Flash drive shaped like a shotgun. Sadly, the two other physical editions have already sold out.
In addition to SIGIL II (https://t.co/Ag7KlXUzNw), I've got some other great news to celebrate DOOM's 30th Anniversary. Join me and John Carmack @ID_AA_Carmack to discuss DOOM live, moderated by David L. Craddock @davidlcraddock. Dec 10 8pm GMT on https://t.co/bODJojudA5. Thanks… pic.twitter.com/7lkVVksE1v
– John Romero ⧠(@romero) November 3, 2023
Doom fans have more to look forward to on December 10. At 3pm ET / 12pm PT on that day, Romero will be getting back together with fellow id Software founder John Carmack for a livestreamed discussion on Romero's Twitch channel (twitch.tv/theromero). To Hell and Back: Romero and Carmack will be moderated by videogame historian David Craddock, and the subject will be the most influential video games of all time, something that the pair know a lot about. They'll also be talking about Doom's impact on the games industry.
Romero's current company, Romero Games, is working on a new Unreal Engine-based first-person shooter project, though there are currently few details.
Back in March last year, Romero releases his first Doom II level since 1994 to support Ukraine.