Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture
Masters of Doom is the amazing true story of the Lennon and McCartney of video games: John Carmack and John Romero. Together, they ruled big business. They transformed popular culture. And they provoked a national controversy. More than anything, they lived a unique and rollicking American Dream, escaping the broken homes of their youth to produce the most notoriously successful game franchises in history—Doom and Quake— until the games they made tore them apart. This is a story of friendship and betrayal, commerce and artistry—a powerful and compassionate account of what it's like to be young, driven, and wildly creative. Doom, the video game in which you navigate a dungeon in the first person and messily lay waste to everything that crosses your path, represented a milestone in many areas. It was a technical landmark, in that its graphics engine delivered brilliant performance on ordinary PC hardware. It was a social phenomenon, with individuals and companies hooking up networks specifically for Doom tournaments and staying up for days to blast away on them (well before the Internet went big-time). The game's publisher, id Software, used an unusual shareware marketing strategy (give away the first levels, charge for the more advanced ones) that worked very well. On top of it all, the gore-filled game raised serious questions about decency in products meant for use by school-age kids. Masters of Doom explores the Doom phenomenon, as well as the lives and personalities of the two men behind it: John Carmack and John Romero. This book manages, for the most part, to keep clear of the breathless techno-hagiography style that characterizes many books with similar subjects. He tells the story of Carmack, Romero, and id--which includes far more than Doom and its successors--in novel style, and he's done a good job of keeping the action flowing and the characters' motivations clear. Some of the quoted passages of dialog sound like idealized reconstructions that probably never came from the lips of real people, but this is an entertaining and informative book, of interest to anyone who's let rip with a nail gun. --David Wall Topics covered: The biographies of John Carmack and John Romero, and of their company, id Software. The development and marketing of all major id games (including Wolfenstein, Doom, Doom II, and Quake) get lavish attention.
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ProductReviews95/100 (72 Reviews)
Recent Reviews
- 4/5
- From: Amazon
- Posted: Jun-18-2009
- Masters of Doom: Informative Read
Masters of DoomA quick, informative read. It shines light on the work ethic, and talent needed to be successful in the industry. While exploring the brutality and the disconnect of human feelings while getting to the top. It's an eye...
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- 5/5
- From: Amazon
- Posted: Jun-11-2009
- So much fun for an old gamer
I had a great time with this. If you've got old school gaming chops, and/or memories of years in your own stinky houses full of computer guys, you'll revel in a story of the ultimate game geeks ever. The two Johns are reminiscent of a...
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- 5/5
- From: Amazon
- Posted: Jun-07-2009
- It's like the book was written for me.
To me, nothing is more mind numbing than a boring book, but nothing is better than a great one. I've had books that had me absolutely enraged over their poor quality and a waste of my time, and I've had books that left me in deep thought...
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- 5/5
- From: Amazon
- Posted: Apr-28-2009
- Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture
Doom 1 & 2 and Quake 1 games had a lasting impact on me (especially Quake's online & social network). I've been curious about id Software for some time. This book gives a very detailed insight on how id Software began and the lives of...
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Selected Reviews
- 4/5
- From: Amazon
- Posted: Jun-18-2009
- Masters of Doom: Informative Read
Masters of DoomA quick, informative read. It shines light on the work ethic, and talent needed to be successful in the industry. While exploring the brutality and the disconnect of human feelings while getting to the top. It's an eye...
- read full review | report as inappropriate
- 3/5
- From: Amazon
- Posted: Jun-13-2008
- Good history, boring execution
Is it worth reading? Yes. Could it have been a lot better? Certainly.Masters of Doom tells the tale of John Romero and John Carmack, the primary forces behind the creation of id Software, the primary force behind the creation of the...
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- 2/5
- From: Amazon
- Posted: Sep-09-2003
- Disappointing for target audience
The main story of Id was the revolutionary graphical programming by John Carmack. Although it is repeatedly mentioned in the book, it was very disappointing to find there was not even cursory explanation of his groundbreaking work. Most...
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