Doom's Unlikely PDF Port: A Testament to its Enduring Legacy
A high school student's remarkable feat of porting the iconic 1993 game, Doom, to a PDF file has captivated the gaming community. This achievement adds another bizarre entry to the long list of unconventional platforms on which Doom has been successfully run.
Doom, a seminal first-person shooter (FPS) from id Software, holds a legendary status in gaming history. Its influence is so profound that it essentially coined the term "FPS," with numerous subsequent games often labeled as "Doom clones." Recently, a trend has emerged: programmers and enthusiasts strive to run Doom on the most unexpected devices, from refrigerators and alarm clocks to car stereos – practically anything with a hint of computing power. This latest PDF port takes this trend to a new level.
GitHub user ading2210, a high school student, accomplished this impressive feat by leveraging PDF's JavaScript capabilities. While PDFs support functions like 3D rendering and HTTP requests, the low resolution of Doom (320x200) presented a challenge. Instead of using individual text boxes for each pixel (impractical given the resolution), ading2210 cleverly employed one text box per screen row. The result? A playable, albeit slow, version of Doom, lacking color, sound, and text, with a frame rate of approximately 80ms.
Doom's Compact Footprint Fuels Creativity
Doom's relatively small size (2.39 MB) is a key factor contributing to its adaptability. This compact nature has allowed for ports to other unusual platforms. For instance, a programmer recently made Doom playable on a Nintendo Alarmo, utilizing its dials and buttons for control. Another creative player even managed to run Doom within the game Balandro, albeit with performance limitations similar to the PDF version.
These projects aren't solely about achieving optimal performance; they underscore the boundless creativity of gamers and the enduring appeal of Doom. The fact that Doom, over three decades later, remains a subject of such innovative experimentation speaks volumes about its lasting legacy. The future likely holds even more unexpected Doom ports, a testament to its enduring relevance and the ingenuity of its fans.
