DOOM classic is probably one of those old games that, despite its age, people still want to play and see in a new light. Well, this particular update will definitely make folks see this game "in a new light."
doom classic rtx
A modder by the handle Sultim_t added unofficial ray tracing support to the OG DOOM game by using a " path tracing technique." According to WCCFTech, this specific graphics rendering tech is among the closest in terms of looks to actual RT and is the same tech that Sultim_t applied to other old games like Serious Sam The First Encounter and the original Half-Life.
Sultim posted a video of DOOM classic running his path tracing tech (aka pseudo ray tracing), and it does bring a breath of fresh air to the now 29-year-old game:
As you can see, even the game's low-res, pixelated graphics looked absolutely incredible with the new lighting tech. The side-by-side comparisons looked like night and day, with the path-traced sample not looking out of place even in the modern gaming generation.
According to Sultim, the first three episodes of the 1993 DOOM are the ones that got path-tracing support. The playable build of the game can be downloaded on GitHub if you want to try it out for yourself.
This is an impressive bit of work, considering how the game itself is old enough to raise a family with multiple kids. But it's also not the first time a game from this era got updated with modern graphics tech like ray tracing.
Back in 2019, a remake of Quake II (one of the earliest competitive shooters) called Quake II RTX was announced brought NVIDIA's official ray tracing tech to the game with an amazing-looking announcement trailer:
The game was an official-enough project that it was actually released on Steam the same year. As of late, its reviews are in the Very Positive range, which could be a clear indicator of how successful a theoretical DOOM Classic RTX release could be if it ever comes out.
Read also: Minecraft Mistakenly Gets Ray Tracing On Xbox, and Microsoft Was Quick To Take It Away
DOOM Classic Won't Be The Last
DOOM classic is not the only old game that got a modern graphical makeover, as evidenced by the release of Quake II RTX. And it's not going to be the last.
There has been an increase in the number of folks who have been putting ray tracing tech in old video games during the past few years. In a series of videos published by Input Magazine, old games getting RT makeovers are proof that modern tech and nostalgia are "colliding in a pretty eye-catching way."
The main reason is born of a simple question: what would a game like this look like if the technology was already present when it was made? The hardware that these old games were made on obviously lacked the power. But now, new tech is breathing life back into these classic games. And people like the mix of old and new.
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Story posted on GameNGuide
Written by RJ Pierce
