"Doom Now Playable in PDF Format"

Summary

• A high school student has successfully ported Doom (1993) to a PDF file, making it playable, albeit slowly.
• Doom's compact size has enabled its operation on unconventional devices, such as the Nintendo Alarmo and within other games like Balandro.
• The continuous efforts to run Doom on various platforms underscore its lasting influence and relevance in the gaming community.

A dedicated high school student and GitHub user, ading2210, has achieved a remarkable feat by porting the iconic game Doom (1993) to a PDF file. This innovative project adds to the growing list of unusual devices on which Doom has been successfully run, demonstrating the game's versatility and the creativity of its fans.

Developed by id Software, Doom is renowned as one of the most influential video games of all time, particularly within the first-person shooter (FPS) genre. The game's impact was so significant that it not only inspired the term "FPS" but also led to many subsequent games being labeled as "Doom clones." Over recent years, a playful trend has emerged where programmers and gaming enthusiasts have challenged themselves to run Doom on the most unexpected devices, from fridges and alarm clocks to car stereos, showcasing the game's adaptability.

The high school student's project leverages the PDF format's support for JavaScript, which enables functionalities like 3D rendering and HTTP requests. While most interactive PDFs use small text boxes as pixels, Doom's 320x200 resolution requires thousands of boxes per frame, which is impractical. To circumvent this, ading2210 uses one text box per screen row, resulting in a slower but still playable version of Doom. A video demonstration by the creator shows the game running without color, sound, or text, and with an 80ms per frame response time.

High School Student Ports Doom (1993) to a PDF

The compact size of Doom, at just 2.39 megabytes, has facilitated its porting to unconventional platforms. For instance, in November, a programmer successfully made Doom playable on the Nintendo Alarmo, using the device's dials and buttons for navigation. Additionally, another creative enthusiast managed to run Doom within Balandro, allowing players to experience the classic FPS across the game's spread cards, albeit with performance limitations similar to the PDF version.

These projects are not primarily about achieving smooth gameplay on these platforms but rather about exploring the endless possibilities that creative players can discover. 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 ported to even more unusual devices in the future, further cementing its place in gaming history.