30 Years of Rip and Tear: Doom’s development story

One complex staircase broke the game engine. The fix, BSP trees, became a cornerstone of 3D graphics for years to come.

#1about 3 minutes

The origins of Doom and early 3D game development

John Carmack's purchase of a NeXT computer and the team's experience with Catacomb 3D and Wolfenstein 3D laid the foundation for Doom's advanced technology.

#2about 2 minutes

Creating the initial design with the Doom Bible

The team established the initial game concept and narrative framework in a design document known as the Doom Bible.

#3about 2 minutes

Building the engine, art assets, and level editor

The team began building the core engine and level editor while experimenting with clay and latex models for monsters and scanning toy guns for weapons.

#4about 2 minutes

Overcoming level design limitations from Wolfenstein 3D

The team struggled to break free from the 90-degree wall design of their previous games, culminating in an early tech demo showcasing the new engine's potential.

#5about 1 minute

Rejecting the Aliens license and porting Wolfenstein to SNES

Development was paused after the team briefly considered and rejected an offer for the Aliens movie license to instead complete a three-week emergency port of Wolfenstein 3D for the Super Nintendo.

#6about 3 minutes

Solving rendering issues with binary space partitioning

A performance bottleneck in a complex level was solved by John Carmack's implementation of a binary space partition (BSP) tree, a key technological leap for the engine.

#7about 3 minutes

Establishing Doom's abstract level design style

The team pivoted from realistic military bunkers to a unique abstract level design style, which defined the game's atmosphere and spatial puzzles.

#8about 2 minutes

Welcoming new team members and adding core features

After Tom Hall's departure, new hires Dave Taylor and Sandy Petersen began implementing the automap and creating new levels, while the DMX sound library was integrated for audio.

#9about 3 minutes

Refining gameplay by removing arcade-era mechanics

The team created a polished press release version and streamlined the gameplay by removing superfluous items and the traditional concept of player lives.

#10about 1 minute

Creating the first multiplayer deathmatch and co-op modes

In a final, intense push, the team invented high-speed multiplayer, creating the first-ever deathmatch and co-op modes for a first-person shooter.

#11about 2 minutes

Fixing a day-one bug just hours before launch

After a 30-hour crunch, the team found and fixed a critical bug that had existed since the start of development, finally uploading the game to a BBS for its public release.

#12about 5 minutes

Doom's lasting impact on gaming and modding culture

The release of Doom solidified the first-person shooter genre, pioneered multiplayer gaming, and sparked a vibrant modding community that spawned many future successful franchises.