Doom returns: why John Romero made one last level

The co-creator of id software's legendary first-person shooter has revisited his masterpiece 20 years later. We ask him why

On its release in 1993, Doom exploded onto the video game scene like nothing before or since. It wasn't just faster, smoother and sexier than any other shooter around at the time, it introduced game design principles that can still be seen in hundreds of titles to this day. Admired by players and demonised by moral campaigners, it's one of the most important video games ever made. And now, over 20 years later, co-creator John Romero has gone back to hell.

The news came, as it usually does these days, via Twitter. On 15 January, Romero casually announced that he had created a new level for the original game - having not been involved with the series since his resignation from id software in 1996. To the delight of fans, the zip file came complete with a readme document, which contains the wry statement: "Other Files By Author: doom1.wad, doom2.wad." The level can be played in a browser, but for a much smoother experience it should be experienced via the original game (instructions at the bottom of this article). The map is entitled Tech Gone Bad, and in the description Romero writes it is "my boss level replacement for e1m8 ... 22 years later."