Doom co-creator John Romero returned to map making for the classic first-person shooter back in 2016, releasing two standalone maps in quick succession, followed by a bulky megawad in the form of 2019’s Sigil. That was brilliant, by the way, and well-received enough that a sequel is coming, this time created for Doom 2. While we wait for that, Romero has just released a brand new Doom 2 level, with all proceeds going towards humanitarian efforts for Ukraine.
“To support the people of Ukraine and the humanitarian efforts of the Red Cross and the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, I’m releasing a new DOOM II level for a donation of €5,” Romero tweeted, adding that 100% will go to those agencies.
To support the people of Ukraine and the humanitarian efforts of the Red Cross and the UN Central Emergency Response Fund, I’m releasing a new DOOM II level for a donation of €5. 100% of the proceeds go toward these agencies. Thank you. https://t.co/1meRjC0IJZ pic.twitter.com/p0VbjdIofPMarch 2, 2022
Called ‘One Humanity‘, this is actually the first Doom 2 level Romero has released since the game’s launch in 1994. Sure, Doom 2 is pretty much the same as the original, with a bunch of extra monsters, the super shotgun, and some new textures, but it’ll be interesting to see how many Archviles Romero throws into his new level. Hopefully no more than the one in the screenshot above. I’m begging you, John.
Doom’s map making and modding community is still going strong after nearly 30 years, and Romero’s Sigil megawad demonstrated that you can still do really cool and unexpected things with the Doom engine. Jeremy Peel played Sigil for us back in 2019, writing that “Romero may have vacated the editor long before I stepped into his levels, but it feels as if he’s still there watching—the devious stagehand pulling at levers, playing with my head, and most of all, having a tremendous time doing it.”