"Doom Now Playable in PDF Format"

Summary

• A high school student has successfully ported Doom (1993) to a PDF file, demonstrating the game's versatility despite the slow gameplay.
• The compact size of Doom enables it to be run on a variety of unconventional devices, such as the Nintendo Alarmo and within other games like Balandro.
• These creative endeavors underscore Doom's lasting impact and continued relevance in the gaming community.

The innovative spirit of gaming enthusiasts continues to push boundaries, as evidenced by a high school student who has successfully ported the iconic game Doom (1993) to a PDF file. This remarkable achievement adds to the growing list of unconventional platforms on which Doom has been played.

Originally developed by id Software, Doom is celebrated as a seminal title in the first-person shooter (FPS) genre. Its influence is so profound that it essentially coined the term "FPS," with many subsequent games in the genre being dubbed "Doom clones." Over the years, a playful yet impressive trend has emerged where programmers and gaming enthusiasts have taken on the challenge of running Doom on the most unexpected devices, from fridges and alarm clocks to car stereos.

The high school student, known as ading2210 on GitHub, leveraged the PDF format's support for JavaScript to enable 3D rendering and other functionalities. While most interactive PDFs use small text boxes as pixels, Doom's 320x200 resolution necessitates thousands of text boxes per frame, which is impractical. Instead, ading2210 innovatively uses one text box per screen row, resulting in a slower but playable version of Doom. This PDF version lacks color, sound, and text, and operates at an 80ms per frame response time, as demonstrated in a video shared by the creator.

High School Student Ports Doom (1993) to a PDF

The feasibility of porting Doom to a PDF file is partly due to the game's modest size of 2.39 megabytes. This compact footprint has also allowed Doom to be run on other unconventional platforms, such as the Nintendo Alarmo. In this instance, players use the device's dials to navigate and the side buttons to access the game's menu. Additionally, creative players have embedded Doom within other games, like Balandro, where it is played across spread cards, albeit with noticeable performance limitations similar to the PDF version.

These projects are less about achieving smooth gameplay on these platforms and more about showcasing the boundless creativity of the gaming community. More than 30 years after its release, Doom's continued relevance is a testament to its enduring legacy. As enthusiasts continue to experiment, it's likely that Doom will be adapted to even more unusual devices in the future, further cementing its place in gaming history.