After more than two decades, a new level of the cult classic "Doom" series has been released.
It was created by the series' co-creator John Romero and can be played for free.
According to Tech Times, Romero created the level, dubbed as E1M8B using the "Doom WAD" software. This is a modding tool released by development studio ID Software during the heyday of the series in the 90s.
It can be downloaded for free through the file-sharing site Dropbox but gamers to have the copy of the original "Doom" game, which came out in 1993, and the ZDoom tool or other similar software in order to play it.
As explained by Romero, the E1M8B level serves as an updated replacement for E1M8. This is the final map of the first game's "Knee-Deep in the Dead" episode which is set inside the military and industrial facilities on the moon Phobos. Finishing this level will transport gamers to Deimos, where they will be greeted by hordes of demons.
According to Romero, he chose the E1M8 level as the basis for E1M8B because it was the only stage from the original game that he did not create.
"As for the level, E1M8 was an obvious choice for me," he told Venture Beat. "Out of the shareware episode of 'Doom,' E1M8, the boss level, was the only level I didn't make."
"Sandy Petersen did an amazing job with the original one with the very memorable Barons of Hell right in your face at the end, of course," he added.
The original "Doom" game is considered as a pioneer in the video game industry for introducing the first-person shooting genre. It also became influential in the popularity of first-person death matches for today's multiplayer games.
As for the future of the series, ID Software is working on a new installment that will serve as a reboot of the franchise. Initially, it was called "Doom 4" but was then changed to "Doom."
The game does not yet have an official release date with the developers are targeting to launch it sometime during the first or second quarter of 2016 for the Microsoft Windows, Xbox One and PlayStation 4 platforms.
Earlier this month, VG247 reported that online retailer Amazon has listed the upcoming "Doom" game for a June 30 release. Although neither ID Software nor publisher Bethesda has confirmed the game's launch date, the news site noted that the online retailer has a strong track record of correctly predicting the debut of games in the past such as "Forza 6" and "Rise of the Tomb Raider."
