Perhaps the strongest sign yet that the PC gaming renaissance has begun came in the form of an overnight announcement that two of the industry's most respected developers are to collaborate on a revolutionary new, title.
Hyperspace Delivery Boy creator John Romero broke the announcement while speaking on a street corner in downtown Los Angeles about why he deserves a place in the Gaming Hall of Fame. He has apparently been working for some months now with Dr. Derek Smart PhD on a game that 'is set to revolutionise how we think of interstellar space combat focused first person squad based shooters with medieval ninja themes'.
The game has a working title of Doomcruiser 3000AD, and will be based upon an advanced version of Derek Smart's Battlecruiser 3000AD engine. While plot details are somewhat scarce, Romero did let slip a few little nuggets 'Just like the game Doom, which I created, this will be a game that blows your mind, just like Doom. In fact, I haven't felt such a creative buzz between two collaborators since Doom. We have all ready developed an advanced AI system for your team of genetically engineered space marines, so we can now guarantee an unprecedented 80% likelihood that they will follow you through even the most complex maps. Just imagine what that would have done if we had the technology when I created Doom.'
While Dr. Derek Smart, PhD, was unavailable for comment, he did allude to the project in a forum thread on the vending machine association of America's website. The post, in response to a question about whether the next version of Battlecruiser 3000AD will include real time radiosity lighting, went as follows.
"To answer your first question tardboy, I was able to code for full radiosity back on my Spectrum ZX80. It's just those slack arse hardware makers colluding with the API developers to stop me doing it, so why don't you just crawl under a rock and die. As for your second question, Doom creator John Romero has been hassling me for years to help him on a game, and after a while I just felt sorry for him. Together we are going to push the boundaries and deliver a game that is destined to become the greatest PC title ever, yes, even greater than Battlecruiser 3000AD"
Perhaps the most telling insight on this burgeoning relationship comes from the games publisher, Afoolz inc. "For years Doom creator Romero has been telling the world he will make them his Bitch, but it is only now that he has the talent on board to argue the point on thousands of forums around the globe."
Doomcruiser 3000AD is due to hit shelves in a buggy pre-alpha form on April 1 2008, and a sneak peek demo level consisting of a pyramid made from coke machines is set to be demoed at this years E3 expo in May.
Issue: 137 | June, 2012