Video game documentary channel Noclip has uploaded new gameplay and developer footage of id Software’s canceled project Doom 4. At around 12 minutes in length, the video details how Noclip host Danny O’Dwyer and his crew visited id Software’s Texas headquarters back in 2016 before the release of Doom that year.
The crew also got to see the canceled game that would have been Doom 4 before id Software scrapped that project and went back to the drawing board to remake Doom entirely. As part of Noclip’s mission to preserve game history, unedited footage of Doom 4 and prototype footage of Doom 2016 was uploaded to its YouTube channel, which you can see below.
Doom 4 had a rocky development cycle before it was canceled, with the original concept being centered around the uprising of Hell on Earth and told through a campaign that was similar to Call of Duty.
Speaking to Noclip before Doom 2016 was released, executive producer Marty Stratton said that the game lacked a personality, felt like a Call of Duty clone, and that a call was made to pull the plug on that version of Doom.
“We explored a direction and got to a certain point and felt like this really wasn’t capturing what we felt like was going to be a strong Doom and what the fans would want from it,” he said.
What id Software created to replace that initial vision was a Doom game that retained the slick speed of the original 1993 game–which even rats approve of–and dialed up the violence to 11 with bleeding-edge gore and the infamous glory kill system.
A few years later, Doom Eternal was released on PC and console and amplified the smooth action with more well-designed levels and enemy variety. Two DLC episodes that came after Doom Eternal’s release also made the game more challenging, and its multiplayer mode was reworked into a Horde mode experience.
If you’re interested in learning more about Doom 2016, Noclip has a trilogy of documentaries that are worth checking out. Each one is free to watch on YouTube and shows the fascinating design process of Doom.
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