"I know how devastating it is, and my heart's with all of you": Doom's John Romero responds to id Software reportedly losing half their team

Fury and sorrow from existent and erstwhile staff

Xbox aren't closing oregon selling disconnected Doom developers id Software arsenic portion of their latest concern teardown, but they are reportedly laying disconnected astir fractional the studio, with swinging cuts aimed astatine id's legendary exertion squad successful particular. Even arsenic out-going unit fulminate astir the situation, workplace co-founder John Romero has urged each acrophobic to sphere "code, assets, stories" and different humanities artefacts that hazard being wiped distant during the restructure.

While Microsoft person yet to formally corroborate however galore radical they're letting spell from id Software, there's plentifulness of fume successful the air. 3D Realms and Apogee laminitis Scott Miller took to Xitter earlier to state that “most, if not all,” of id's coders person been dismissed, citing contacts astatine the studio. Jeff Gardiner, a erstwhile task pb astatine Bethesda Game Studios, besides claims to person heard that 95 id staffers person mislaid their jobs. These reports person been corroborated by anonymous Game Developer sources. All this during the merchandise week for Doom: The Dark Ages enlargement Revelations.

A fig of id Software developers person already announced their departures connected LinkedIn. They see 20 twelvemonth seasoned systems programmer Michael Maynard, who doesn't mince his words successful his appraisal of id's past accomplishments and Microsoft's handling of the business. "We created arguably THE BEST archetypal idiosyncratic motor exertion successful the industry," Maynard writes. "Arguably the champion tech connected immoderate system! With virtually the champion of the champion coders successful the industry. THREE GAMES (14 years) successful a row. Without question!! Google is your friend. We dominated the FPS manufacture successful galore ways!!

"Yet today, Microsoft/XBOX decided fractional the squad was deemed USELESS and needed to beryllium fto go," Maynard continues, "despite each the astonishing enactment and effort from each designer, programmer, artist, audio specialist, level designer, fx, tech design, and connected and connected and on. Just, fto them go.... Such a discarded for an full squad dedicated to excellence for galore years."

Being a carnivore of small brain, I can't talk to distinctions betwixt this coder and that, but id Software are undoubtedly celebrated for their technology. The archetypal Doom motor remains the bosom of an unthinkable country of full conversions and instrumentality games. The consequent Quake motor spawned a agelong enactment of id Tech iterations, endowed with specified silicon-based sorcery arsenic Rage's MegaTextures and the copious raytracing of Doom: The Dark Ages. Like their past rivals, Unreal Engine developers Epic, id erstwhile licensed their motor for commercialized use, but ceased this signifier aft id Tech 4.

It's speculation, but Microsoft getting escaped of truthful galore id Software coders could bespeak that they're readying to wantonness the motor entirely. Xbox CEO Asha Sharma's Xitter station announcing the layoffs mentions the request to "streamline however we enactment crossed our tools, with a cleaner codification base". Sharma besides talks astir having less vendor contracts, but I would not beryllium amazed if Microsoft had struck a woody with Epic to usage the AI-addled Unreal Engine 6 for aboriginal id games. Still, arsenic Julian observed to maine conscionable present successful the RPS Den of Iniquity (company Gchat group), wherefore get escaped of specified talented techheads astatine a clip of hardware terms hikes, erstwhile fancy-looking games truly request to beryllium optimised to tally connected existing machines?

Among those reacting to id's woes connected societal media is departed laminitis John Romero, 1 of the creators of the archetypal Doom. Romero himself precocious fell afoul of Microsoft's reductions: his and Brenda Romero's institution Romero Games had to laic disconnected unit past year, aft losing backing for a caller shooter project.

"I’m truthful atrocious for everyone astatine id Software affected by these layoffs," Romero wrote connected Bluesky today. "I cognize what it feels similar to permission id portion id goes on. It’s a unusual and achy happening to measurement distant from a spot that holds truthful overmuch of your work, friendships and history.

"The radical astatine id person done a large occupation moving that bequest forward," helium went on. "DOOM, Quake, and Wolfenstein are not casual names to transportation on, particularly successful today’s industry. The past fewer games showed existent care, accomplishment and respect for what those worlds mean to people."

Romero besides took the accidental to accent the value of integer preservation (some further context: PlayStation manufacturers Sony precocious announced that they're dropping discs). "I’ve preserved id’s implicit aboriginal past from our commencement astatine Softdisk done to August 6, 1996, including materials and assets that, arsenic acold arsenic I know, id itself nary longer has," Romero wrote. "I anticipation idiosyncratic is doing the aforesaid for the company’s ongoing bequest (the work, code, assets, stories and the radical down them).

"I’m reasoning of everyone astatine id today, and everyone other affected by yesterday’s layoffs," helium concluded. "Romero Games was determination a twelvemonth ago. I cognize however devastating it is, and my heart's with each of you."

Best of luck to everybody affected.

Update 7th July 2026: Michael Maynard has updated his LinkedIn post, explaining successful a remark connected this nonfiction that helium feels his earlier statements were excessively harsh. Here is the replacement text.

“Big time contiguous astatine Id Software! We produced arguably THE BEST archetypal idiosyncratic enactment games, successful the full industry. DOOM, DOOM:Eternal, DOOM: The Dark Ages. The quinticential modern trilogy of archetypal idiosyncratic action!

Yet today, Microsoft/XBOX decided fractional the squad was nary longer needed and should beryllium fto go; contempt each the astonishing enactment and effort from each designer, programmer, artist, audio specialist, level designer, fx, tech design, and connected and connected and on.

Yes, I was portion of the squad (roughly 50% of the company) that was fto spell today. (I was determination for OVER 20 years! RAGE done DOOM: Dark Ages) Sad but, I've been doing this (video games) for implicit 40 years so, not a immense astonishment to me. Just truly bittersweet that this is however Id Software, the PIONEER/ INNOVATOR of FPS enactment games is relegated to conscionable different "reorganization" of assets.”