UPDATED: Doom 4 story being written by fantasy author Graham Joyce

Posted at: 2:01pm 15th January 2009 by Ben Hardwidge

ID hires award winning British fantasy writer to help with the story in Doom 4

Famous for creating the earliest 3D bloodfests, Wolfenstein 3D and Doom, which had about as much of a story as the memoirs of a gnat, iD Software has now turned to acclaimed fantasy author Graham Joyce for help with the story in its forthcoming shooter, Doom 4.

Joyce confirmed to Custom PC that 'I've been hired by ID software to help develop the story for Doom 4,' adding that 'I am a gamer and have been a big fan of Doom ever since the original Doom came out in '93.' Joyce is a difficult author to classify, but his work is often described as speculative fiction, and he combines facets of a number of genres in his writing, including fantasy, horror and straightforward fiction. He has a large number of short stories and novels to his name, including ‘The Tooth Fairy’ and ‘Dreamside.’ He also won The World Fantasy Award for his book ‘The Facts of Life.’

A keen fan of the Doom series, Joyce says on his website that ‘I've been playing Doom for some years,’ explaining that computer games are a welcome break from writing during the working day. ‘The creative batteries do run low at moments,’ says Joyce, ‘and to recharge them I might walk the dog; pluck the lute from the wall (okay, guitar); read lines of the Sufi mystic Rumi; or I might casually mangle a few demons in Doom.’

Apparently, Joyce’s kids were quick to catch on to what was doing. ‘I can hear their excitable voices on the other side of the door: “mum, he's not writing he's playing computer games!’ However, now armed with a good excuse, Joyce says that ‘since I've been hired to contribute to the storyline of Doom 4 I can say what was always true anyway. I'm working.’

Doom III differed massively from the first two games in the series with its vastly improved graphics and storyline, although the game was also criticised by many gamers. Do you think a game such as Doom IV needs a good story, or would you rather just shoot demons? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.

Originally via CVG