Id Software

There’s a new rumor going around that id Software’s next game is to be revealed soon… but what could that game be?

This news post leaves me in a quandary, readers, because I will need to write a swear word for the sake of full journalistic transparency, but Google’s algorithms tend to frown on sweary articles. On the other hand, Google’s algorithms don’t like it when you spend whole intros handwringing about Google’s algorithms, either, so let’s stop, er, faffing around and speak of Doom. Id Software parent company Zenimax recently trademarked “IDKFA”, a string of letters that will be of deep significance to original Doom players, and which may therefore be evidence of an impending announcement.

A new Doom game could in line to be announced at June’s Xbox Games Showcase.

Xbox is closing down four Bethesda studios, including Redfall developer Arkane Austin and Hi-Fi Rush studio Tango Gameworks.

A Doom fan has recently discovered a perfectly preserved copy of Doom 3 in an old storage unit. One of the joys of owning physical copies of games is keeping favorite titles forever, and this gamer made quite a find for an old-school Doom 3 fan.

Several veteran video game developers, including those who have worked on the likes of id Software's critically acclaimed Doom reboot, have banded together to form a new independent triple-A studio called Emptyvessel (stylized as «emptyvessel.») The video game industry saw thousands of layoffs in the first two months of 2024 alone, and several studios like Ridgeline Games and Deviation Games were even shattered.

Veterans from the likes of Id Software and Naughty Dog have announced a new triple-A development studio called Emptyvessel.

Your most commonly visible bones are your teeth, so what better way to worship at the fleshy altar of Doom than by polishing those bones with an electric toothbrush whose little LCD screen is running Id Software's seminal satanic shooter? The latest delightfully weird device rising to the eternal question "Can it run Doom?" is a WiFi-enabled 'smart toothbrush', which is juuust powerful enough to run a version of Doom. You can even control it with your mouse. Here, check this out.

Doom is getting ported to a range of lawn mowers from Husqvarna as part of a free update set to roll out in spring. This unusual release will add to the ever-expanding list of devices that can run Doom, one of the most ported games of all time.

When dramatic parents panicked over the satanic influence of Doom in the 90s, maybe they had a point. Doom has burned through people's souls and minds, filling them with a desire to play Id Software's seminal shooter on every device they can. The question "Can it run Doom?" has driven these demonic vassals to make it playable on everything from tractors to teletext. These hellbound hearts are even daring to corrupt the totemic device of American liberty: the lawnmower. Come April, you will be able to play Doom on the Husqvarna Nera line of robotic automowers. Is nothing sacred?

Leaker Nate the Hate, also known as NateDrake on Resetera, has provided updates on three upcoming Xbox games: the rumored new Banjo-Kazooie game, the unannounced next game from id Software, and the long-awaited Fable reboot. Leakers have been causing some headaches for Xbox recently, with reports spreading online that the company was looking to go completely multi-platform with some of its biggest games.

Following two weeks of rumours spreading like wildfires, with a recent episode of the Official Xbox Podcast, Microsoft calmed fears that it was headed towards a fully multiplatform future, confirming that though four games (that haven’t yet been named) are indeed coming to rival platforms, major flagship releases like Starfield and Indiana Jones and the Great Circle are going to remain Xbox exclusives (though the possibility of them, too, eventually making the jump cannot be fully discounted).

Before Doom became the lean, mean murdermachine we know and love, Id Software had far bigger plans for their seminal satanic FPS. Ideas dropped during development include a big focus on story, four playable characters, elemental shields, demonic weapons, and more. The mod Doom Delta brings to life many such ideas from sources including an old design document and leaked alpha builds, which I think makes it fanfic? A new version of Doom Delta launched last week, offering a curious vision of the many Dooms Id didn't make.

What appeared to be a tease for a possible new title in the Quake series, Quake 6, was briefly spotted during Microsoft's most recent Xbox Developer Direct. The tease sparked a myriad of discussions regarding a potential new game in the franchise, which has largely lain dormant in the past few years.

Fans think they've spotted a reference to a new Quake game hiding in plain sight in Microsoft's latest Developer Direct presentation.

What's the most 90s way you can market your retro-styled prequel to a 90s mech shooter? Other than an Acclaim-style stunt where you offer people £500 to tattoo their baby's face with the game logo, I'd say perhaps releasing a Quake mod. So here's Episode Enyo, a prequel to upcoming "biopunk" hack 'n' slasher Slave Zero X, now available as a Bethesda-approved free add-on inside Quake.

A recent rumor suggests that Bethesda’s upcoming Indiana Jones game is not only being developed by MachineGames but also by 343 Industries, id Software, and Tango Gameworks. Indiana Jones is one of the most eagerly awaited 2024 Xbox console exclusives, and having multiple studios working on it could potentially speed up development.

First reported by MP1st, Raven Software lead designer Michael Gummelt mentioned a couple of cancelled projects on his Linkedin page. One was a live service version of Call Of Duty's zombies mode, and the other, a revival of a classic Raven IP. I'm not sad about one and I'm mildly sad over the other, with the mystery not being too hard to solve.

id Software and Nightdive Studios released the first update for Quake 2 Enhanced Edition. It improves on a new feature added with this remaster, the Compass, with better objective navigating through several places in Quake 2, Quake 2 64, The Reckoning and Ground Zero.

ID Software's co-founder John Carmack made a return to this year's QuakeCon after exiting the company in 2013 following legal battles. 

Following rumors and a ratings board listing, id Software’s remaster of Quake 2 is now available for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5, PC and Nintendo Switch. Retailing for $9.99, it features the original game, The Reckoning and Ground Zero mission packs, Quake 2 64 and a new expansion pack, Call of the Machine. Check out the trailer below, courtesy of Gematsu.

QuakeCon 2023 is kicking off today, and the expectation is that it will bring some interesting new reveals and announcements. One reveal in particular has been in the rumour mill for a few weeks now, with a remastered version of Quake 2 having been rated in South Korea in June, followed by a leak corroborating its existence not long afterward.