Doom Has Been Ported to a PDF File

Doom's Unlikely New Home: A PDF File

A high school student has achieved the seemingly impossible: porting the iconic 1993 first-person shooter, Doom, to a PDF file. While the resulting experience is undeniably slow, it remains playable, adding another bizarre entry to Doom's already extensive list of unconventional platforms.

Doom's compact size (a mere 2.39 megabytes) is a key factor in its portability. This has allowed dedicated fans to run the game on everything from refrigerators and alarm clocks (like the Nintendo Alarmo) to within other games, such as Balandro. These feats aren't just quirky; they showcase the enduring legacy of a game that redefined the FPS genre. Indeed, Doom's impact was so significant that it essentially coined the term "FPS," with many early games in the genre considered "Doom clones."

This latest port, by GitHub user ading2210, leverages PDF's JavaScript capabilities for 3D rendering and other functions. However, the limitations of the format are apparent. The game's 320x200 resolution necessitates a workaround: using a single text box per screen row. This results in a significantly slowed-down frame rate (80ms per frame), a lack of color, sound, and in-game text.

Despite these drawbacks, the playable PDF version of Doom underscores the boundless creativity of the gaming community. The continued exploration of unconventional platforms for running Doom serves as a testament to its lasting influence and enduring appeal, suggesting that even more unusual ports are likely to emerge in the years to come.