Doom II project offers up 32 new maps based on original names

Here's a fun mental game for you: imagine if Doom II never released. I know it hurts, but bear with me. Imagine if Doom II never released but somehow the engine, level editor and some map names were discovered. Now imagine what a community could cobble together based on this scant information.

It's an interesting project, especially since the 20-year-strong Doom II community has created maps which would probably make 1994 John Romero's mind boggle. 20 years of finely honing techniques and tricks to squeeze more juice out of the engine has no doubt resulted in a much more graphically impressive game than the original, but I suppose you'll have to download the .wad to see.

The Doom II In Name Only Doomworld page has screenshots for each level, with most demonstrating how the level name has influenced the new creation. ' O for Destruction ' takes things literally, while ' Barrels O' Fun ' contains lots of... barrels. The project was founded by writer and developer Ella Guro, who has written extensively on Doom and Wolfenstein level design on her blog . Those come very highly recommended.

It's good timing, because interest in Doom is high thanks to the recent behind-closed-doors reveal of the next Doom, though non-QuakeCon-attending proles like myself are unlikely to see it until next year . In other Doom II related news, this recent mod makes the 20-year-old game look like the product of a 21st century Triple-A studio.

Shaun Prescott is the Australian editor of PC Gamer. With over ten years experience covering the games industry, his work has appeared on GamesRadar+, TechRadar, The Guardian, PLAY Magazine, the Sydney Morning Herald, and more. Specific interests include indie games, obscure Metroidvanias, speedrunning, experimental games and FPSs. He thinks Lulu by Metallica and Lou Reed is an all-time classic that will receive its due critical reappraisal one day.