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Despite New Owner, id Still Lives Or Dies By Their Engines

Posted by Soulskill on from the i-want-to-bunny-hop-in-elder-scrolls-v dept.

The Guardian has an article about id Software's status after being purchased by ZeniMax (Bethesda's parent company) not long ago. While id gained considerable financial stability out of the deal, it's clear that what Bethesda has to gain is access to top-of-the-line engine technology, which they've often needed to license. id's Todd Hollenshead said, "The videogames business is defined by technology, which is why guys like JC [John Carmack] are still so significant. Consumers may not be as in touch with the intricacies as they used to be, but you can still make significant, impactful change. We're confident Rage will be one of them..." He also mentions that "the PC market has receded in terms of significance," a sentiment evidenced by id's aggressive expansion into the iPhone games market.

4 of 131 comments (clear)

  1. Thanks id Software, for the GPL of Doom/Quake by G3ckoG33k · · Score: 5, Insightful

    Thanks id Software, for the GPL of Doom/Quake. Right now it is a serious blessing! Thanks!

  2. atleast EA didn't buy them by Inconnux · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I wonder if this means they wont GPL any further game engines... This news was kinda sad, one of the top tier developers sells out... a sad time for pc gamers... but I guess it could have been worse, EA could have bought them.

  3. Re:The times they are changing... by JCZwart · · Score: 5, Insightful

    I always thought Id's games were perfect examples of engine showcases. I remember being very fascinated with Quake; read all about it, BSP modeling etc. (I even tried to create my own 3d-engine, which failed miserable, by the way).

    Anyone else remember Ramblings in Real-time by Mike Abrash? Worth a read if you're interested in the mechanics of the Quake 3D-engine.

    But Quake still wasn't very much more than showcasing... Id often seemed to rely on parties such as Raven Software for convincing storylines, exciting level designs, etc. I'd like to see them produce a game like Oblivion... A cutting edge 3d engine to power a convincing RPG world, what more would you want!

  4. technology? what about fun? by cliffski · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "The videogames business is defined by technology"

    Really? I've only been playing games since pong, and worked in them for 10 years, but stupidly I've been defining the videogames business by 'fun'.
    It's a pity this has ended up a minority viewpoint.

    --
    DRM-free indie games for the PC and Mac: Positech Games