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id History
`It is pronounced "id" as in "DID" without the leading "D". It is not EYE DEE. id has everything to do with Freudian theory.' The description that used to be in id's 'help' finger reads: `id: the one of the three divisions of the psyche in psychoanalytic theory that is completely unconscious and is the source of psychic energy derived from instinctual needs and drives.' -Jay Wilbur
id's black glass building is just off the freeway exit to downtown Mesquite, TX.
id unofficially started in September of 1990 when John Carmack, Adrian Carmack, John Romero, and
Tom Hall created the first game in the Commander Keen series, Invasion of the Vorticons. One month
after Commander Keen was released into shareware, John Carmack, Adrian Carmack, and John
Romero left their jobs at Softdisk Publishing and officially began id Software, on February 1, 1991.
On May 5, 1992, id’s first shareware monster-hit, Wolfenstein 3-D, was released by Apogee.
Wolfenstein 3-D brought id worldwide notoriety and the game’s 3-D environment dramatically raised the
standards expected for games.
On December 10, 1993, id released its much-anticipated DOOM. DOOM attained phenomenal success
and is still recognized as the hottest 3-D action game of all time. DOOM changed the face of computer
gaming forever. Recognized as the catalyst and inspiration of what we know now as 3-D action gaming,
an estimated 15 million copies have been downloaded around the world, passed from player to player by
floppy disk or online networks. In 1994, DOOM was awarded Game of the Year by both PC Gamer and
Computer Gaming World and received the Award for Technical Excellence from PC Magazine.
On October 10, 1994, DOOM II: Hell on Earth was released in the U.S. and in Great Britain. DOOM II’s
initial release was over half-million copies – it continues to set new sales records, having sold over 2
million copies with no end in sight.
In 1996, id unleashed QUAKE, the most highly anticipated game since DOOM. QUAKE marked the
next quantum leap in game technology and set a new standard in multi-player, true three-dimensional,
combat action games. In 1997, the furor over QUAKE continued with the release of two QUAKE Mission
Packs, QUAKE Mission Pack No. 1: Scourge of Armagon and QUAKE Mission Pack No. 2:
Dissolution of Eternity.
December 9, 1997, id Software and Activision rocked the continent with the release of the mind-blowing,
QUAKE II. Continuing id’s legacy of bloody deathmatches, QUAKE II offered wicked multi-player
capabilities allowing more than 32 gamers to compete online. Players maneuver through intense
environmental hazards and annihilate evil enemies. The game’s improved vivid sound effects intensify
distant combat and destruction, while the use of OpenGL 3-D accelerator cards deliver smoother, 16-bit
graphics and real time lighting effects. QUAKE II exceeded expectations worldwide and has been hailed
by countless reviewers and gamers alike, as the best 3-D shooter game of the year.
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