DOOM: SCARYDARKFAST - a book by Dan Pinchbeck

Many of you will know that before our Creative Director Dan Pinchbeck co-founded The Chinese Room, he was a scholar in games studies, achieving his PhD at the University of Portsmouth. Dear Esther is practically a result of those studies! Another result - this book! Released in 2013 DOOM: SCARYDARKFAST is "a close examination about what is considered the most important first-person video game ever made and its influence on how we play games today." The fascinating description from the publishers Michigan University Press continues: "In December 1993, gaming changed forever. id Software's seminal shooter DOOM was released, and it shook the foundations of the medium. Daniel Pinchbeck brings together the complete story of DOOM for the first time. The book takes a look at the early days of first-person gaming and the video game studio system. It discusses the prototypes and the groundbreaking technology that drove the game forward and offers a detailed analysis of gameplay and level design. Pinchbeck also examines DOOM's contributions to wider gaming culture, such as online multiplay and the modding community, and the first-person gaming genre, focusing on DOOM's status as a foundational title and the development of the genre since 1993. Pinchbeck draws extensively from primary data: from the game itself, from the massive fan culture surrounding the title, and from interviews with the developers who made it. This book is not only the definitive work on DOOM but a snapshot of a period of gaming history, a manifesto for a development ethos, and a celebration of game culture at its best."

You can still get the book from a couple of sellers online. If you're interested in brilliantly done history of an age-defining genre - look no further!