"Doom" co-creator, John Romero has recently been hyping up a new project - the first since his last attempt at working on "Blackroom" with Adrian Carmack fizzled out in 2016. While not as ambitious as the failed Kickstarter attempt, Romero's latest project is sure to delight any true fan of the "Doom" franchise.
As PC Gamer points out, Romero was teasing the public with the statement "Prepare for 5" on Twitter the past few days until his recent reveal. The publication notes that John Romero's tweets may have been related to id Software's original release of "Ultimate Doom" - id Software's 1995 title made up of four episodes following the adventures of "Doom Guy."
The publication notes that Romero's current game development company - Romero Games - had emailed fans with a teaser as well. Romero Games was promising something big was to happen on Dec. 10 - the 25th anniversary of "Doom" - the foremost '90s video game that most first-person shooters owe their inspiration from.
On the day of "Doom's" Anniversary, Romero confirmed the publication's speculations with the announcement of the release of "SIGIL." According to Romero, "SIGIL" is an unofficial spiritual successor to the fourth episode of "Ultimate Doom." Contrary to expectations, the new John Romero project was not a full-fledged game itself, but a "Doom" megawad.
As a megawad - the fan term for unofficial fan-created content for games in the "Doom franchise - "Doom" fans can expect to download Romero's latest project for free. To be able to play the "SIGIL" megawad, "Doom" players must have a copy of the original 1993 release of the game.
According to the official Romero Games website, the new "Doom" megawad from Romero Games will feature nine single-player missions that will continue from the plot of the fourth episode of "Ultimate Doom." "Doom" fans can also expect "SIGIL" to bring nine multiplayer maps as well.
"Doom" fans who want more than just the chance to play the upcoming free-content for the game also have the option to avail of deluxe "SIGIL" fan boxes. The "SIGIL" fan boxes will be of a limited stock and will be produced by Limited Run Games. The Romero Games website promises the inclusion of music composed specifically for "SIGIL" by known metal guitarist Buckethead, as well as featuring the art of famous metal album cover artist, Christopher Lovell.
In the interview accompanying the "SIGIL" release announcement, John Romero does tease fans that Romero Games does have a full-fledged project in the works beyond the upcoming megawad. But for now, "Doom" fans will just have to look forward to "SIGIL" for their classic John Romero game fix. "Doom" fans can pre-order their "SIGIL" fan boxes as early as today in anticipation of John Romero releasing the new megawad sometime in February 2019.
