Doom (franchise) in the context of "Sandy Petersen"

Doom is a 1993 first-person shooter game developed and published by id Software for MS-DOS. It is the first installment in the Doom franchise. The player assumes the role of a space marine, later unofficially referred to as Doomguy, fighting through hordes of undead humans and invading demons. The game begins on the moons of Mars and finishes in hell, with the player traversing each level to find its exit or defeat its final boss. It is an early example of 3D graphics in video games, and has enemies and objects as 2D images, a technique sometimes referred to as 2.5D graphics.

Doom was the third major independent release by id Software, after Commander Keen (1990–1991) and Wolfenstein 3D (1992). In May 1992, id started developing a darker game focused on fighting demons with technology, using a new 3D game engine from the lead programmer, John Carmack. The designer Tom Hall initially wrote a science fiction plot, but he and most of the story were removed from the project, with the final game featuring an action-heavy design by John Romero and Sandy Petersen. Id published Doom as a set of three episodes under the shareware model, marketing the full game by releasing the first episode free. A retail version with an additional episode was published in 1995 by GT Interactive as The Ultimate Doom.

id Software LLC (/ɪd/) is an American video game developer based in Richardson, Texas. It was founded on February 1, 1991, by four members of the computer company Softdisk: programmers John Carmack and John Romero, game designer Tom Hall, and artist Adrian Carmack.

id Software made important technological developments in video game technologies for the PC (running MS-DOS and Windows), including work done for the Wolfenstein, Doom, and Quake franchises at the time. id's work was particularly important in 3D computer graphics technology and in game engines that are used throughout the video game industry. The company was involved in the creation of the first-person shooter (FPS) genre: Wolfenstein 3D is often considered to be the first true FPS; Doom is a game that popularized the genre and PC gaming in general; and Quake was id's first true 3D FPS.

Doomguy or Doom Slayer is the protagonist of the Doom franchise by id Software. He was created by American video game designer John Romero and was introduced as the player character in the original 1993 video game Doom. Within the Doom series, Doomguy is a demon hunting space marine dressed in green combat armor who rarely speaks on-screen. In Doom Eternal, he is voiced by Matthew Waterson and Jason E. Kelley in that game's downloadable content The Ancient Gods: Part Two., followed by the 2025 prequel Doom: The Dark Ages. A different character with a role similar to that of Doomguy was portrayed by Karl Urban in the 2005 film adaptation.

Doomguy has appeared as a guest character in several other games, including Quake and Tony Hawk's Pro Skater as well as including his likeness as a customizable skin for the Mii Gunner character in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, and being added as an outfit in Fall Guys and Fortnite. He has received mainly positive reviews.