Doom's reputation for being ported to an astonishing array of devices—from toasters to fridges—continues to push boundaries. Now, a high school student has taken this a step further by ingeniously porting Doom into a PDF file that you can run right in your browser.
Sure, this version might lack traditional elements like text and sound, but who needs those when you can immerse yourself in the classic E1M1 level while dodging those pesky tax deadlines?
Github user and high school student, ading2210, drew inspiration from the innovative TetrisPDF project to bring one of the world's most iconic shooters to the humble PDF format. By leveraging Javascript within a browser's PDF reader, ading2210 overcame the limitations imposed by browser security to create a functional Doom port.
The PDF's Javascript capabilities allowed ading2210 to perform complex computations, resulting in a visually impressive rendition of Doom using a six-color ASCII grid for sprites and graphics. Although the frame rate sits at a leisurely 80ms per frame, the legibility of the game remains surprisingly intact.
While you might not be ready to trade in your PS5 for this version just yet, the sheer ingenuity of running Doom within a PDF file is undeniably impressive.
Thomas Rinsma, the creator of TetrisPDF, acknowledged ading2210's work on Hacker News, praising it as "neater in many ways" than his own attempt at a PDF Doom port.
Though this PDF version of Doom may not be the ideal introduction to the game, the thrill of seeing Doom run on everything from quirky devices to unconventional files—even living gut bacteria—continues to captivate and entertain fans around the world.
