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Quake First Person Shooters (Games)

John Carmack Retiring? 95

Posted by michael from the porch-rocking-chair-and-lemonade dept.
Skab writes "CNN money is building a case for hypothesizing that John Carmack's next project may be the programmer's last."
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John Carmack Retiring? More

John Carmack Retiring?

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  • Oh well (Score:3, Insightful)

    by sydb ( 176695 ) <[michael] [at] [wd21.co.uk]> on Thursday September 09, 2004 @01:12PM (#10202454)
    That'll be the end of OpenGL then!

    Just as 2.0 came out...

    • Re:Oh well (Score:5, Informative)

      by The Analog Kid ( 565327 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @08:17PM (#10207932)
      Yeah I'm sure all those CAD programs would stop using OpenGL, I'm sure Maya would stop using OpenGL for rendering, I'm sure Apple would stop using OpenGL for their 2D effects on the desktop. Somehow I'm doubting that because John Carmack retires that OpenGL will die. Maybe OpenGL games, but just about every 3D game on OS X/Linux uses OpenGL.
      • Well, it was kind of a joke based on a comment here [slashdot.org], but thanks for taking it so seriously.

      • Re:Oh well (Score:1, Flamebait)

        by Chris Mattern ( 191822 )
        > but just about every 3D game on OS X/Linux uses OpenGL.

        What, both of them?

        Chris Mattern
      • It's not that OpenGL goes away, it's that its rate of evolution goes in the toilet. You can accomplish all those cool effects at another level if the stuff doesn't go into OpenGL, but naturally OpenGL is where we want it so that all can gain the benefits.

  • Rockets and Impact (Score:5, Funny)

    by Oriumpor ( 446718 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @01:14PM (#10202482) Homepage Journal
    The core of what I do is solve problems, whether that's in graphic engine flow or rockets. I like working on things that are going to have an
    IMPACT one way or the other.


    Well, I guess the former's ok but the latter might be bad for your new spaceflight business.

  • please don't go.

  • Sad (Score:5, Funny)

    by X3J11 ( 791922 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @01:20PM (#10202541) Journal
    For a computer nerd like myself, this is just as sad as hearing that my favourite band won't be making music any more. That's pretty pathetic, isn't it. :)

    • Re:Sad (Score:5, Insightful)

      by xenocide2 ( 231786 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @01:37PM (#10202778) Homepage
      Judging by the games, I'd say its closer to Stratovarious not making instruments anymore. No direct impact, but you might not play games based on carmack technology anymore =)

      • Re:Sad (Score:2, Informative)

        by Anonymous Coward
        Stratovarius [stratovarius.com] is a Finnish metal band. Antonio Stradivari [newadvent.org] made violins.

      • The Parable of Ronald Regan

        Donald Regan awoke to find that his arms had been gnawed off by wild beavers in his sleep.

        "Boy!" he thought as he bolted upright in his blood-soaked sheets. "It's a good thing this parable isn't about ME!"

        - Principia Discordia (SJG edition)

      • It's a little bit deeper than that, though. Carmack has done the programmers of the world a wonderful favour by opening up the code to id's older titles. I myself have learned quite a bit from Quake (1 & 2)'s code, and I haven't even scratched the surface of what's there to be learned (most of it, especially the actual engine itself, is way above my meager mental faculties).

        He's kind of an idol, as much as Torvalds and Stallman, to me. Although I don't have a little shrine containing their images t
    • If you're serious, no, not really. John Carmack is the closest thing to a role model that I have -- he's inspired me to do a lot of things and for that, I thank him with my life. My favorite games all consist of something he's contributed to, even if it's just a 3rd party game running the Quake 3 engine. John Carmack transformed the gaming industry and he will never be forgotten. His next game will be nothing less than a total blockbuster. I'm happy for him and proud of all he's done.

  • If he does go... (Score:5, Funny)

    by stromthurman ( 588355 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @01:22PM (#10202566)
    At least he'll go out with a bang, not like that other guy [johnromero.com] who once worked for id and later promised to make us his bitch.

  • I was wondering when this would come up (Score:3, Insightful)

    by Vaevictis666 ( 680137 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @01:30PM (#10202674)
    I was wondering when this speculation would start up again.

    I note that this was also bandied around when he was working on the Doom 3 engine, where he said somehting akin to having "one more good engine in him"

  • * Rolls Eyes * (Score:5, Funny)

    by DeckerEgo ( 520694 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @01:31PM (#10202698) Homepage
    People have been saying this for about... oh... three years now. The only one who knows is John - and he'll quit when he gets tired of it. That's all.

    Developers at Id have all been asked this question at one point in time, and all have said "yeah, he probably has one or two more engines in him." All have pretty much indicated that he has a "holy grail" engine he has constantly been working towards since he wrote his first side-scroller. Once he gets that done, he'll probably go launch himself into space and work on the teleporter on Phobos himself.
  • I seem to remember he said he was quiting after his next game right after Doom 3 was released.

  • I think I speak for just about everyone when I say (Score:5, Funny)

    by Wireless Joe ( 604314 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @01:42PM (#10202843) Homepage

    Oh, OK.

  • Epitaph (Score:5, Funny)

    by Rubberpants.net ( 804718 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @01:54PM (#10203021) Homepage
    As a fellow pasty-white awkward nerd, I salute you John. You made geek cool.

  • When the day comes, sabbatical not retirement (Score:5, Insightful)

    by AHumbleOpinion ( 546848 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @02:04PM (#10203227) Homepage
    There are two types of programmers. Those who entered the field because they have a natural inclination and interest in the field and those who heard it was a lucrative area. People in the first group tend not to retire at middle age. Semi-retire, yes. Go on a sabbatical, yes.

    The above should not be interpreted to suggest that he will continue coding 3D shooter engines. Just that he will most likely be coding something.

    • He's probably just burned out.

      Game programmers usually don't have really long careers. A big hit or two, and that's about it. Guys will start a company, have a huge game, then it'll break up.

      One example would be David Crane, he's made a number of games, from the late 70's (Atari hits like Pitfall!), to the 80's/90's (NES games like Simpsons), to the recent remakes of Pitfall on PC/16 bit consoles.

      On the other hand, you've got some of these 'old' guys working on Linux and other open/free projects, that ha
      • On the other hand, you've got some of these 'old' guys working on Linux and other open/free projects, that have been cranking out code since the 70's.

        There is far less stress in open source. You have more freedom with release dates, slipping the schedule, features, etc. Not to mention you only have to work on what interests you.
      • I don't think he's "burned out" so much as ready to move on. He's got a new child to spend time with and a human space flight industry to turn upside down. Both of these would be higher on my "things to do" list than making another game engine.

        I'm sure he'll go back to doing what he's best known for sooner or later... especially if the rocket thing doesn't quite work out.

  • He will never really retire (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Cyclone66 ( 217347 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @02:14PM (#10203403) Homepage Journal
    People who are the best at what they do can never really quit. He'll retire and come back just like Michael Jordon. If anything he'll see trends in the game industry that he doesn't agree with and he won't be able to resist stepping in to show people his way of doing things.

  • bullshit "journalism" (Score:5, Interesting)

    by ubiquitin ( 28396 ) * on Thursday September 09, 2004 @03:04PM (#10204214) Homepage Journal
    Why CNN/Money is taking a stance on how long someone will work is beyond me. There's honest reporting and then there's implying that Id Software is not going somewhere because its founder has a new baby and a hobby building rockets. I mean, if you want to know what John Carmack's plans are, can't somebody just ask the guy? Geez.

    • Re:bullshit "journalism" (Score:1, Interesting)

      by Anonymous Coward
      if you want to know what John Carmack's plans are, can't somebody just ask the guy?

      People have asked him what his plans are. They've all been alongs the lines of 'maybe one more game engine', 'not sure after this one', and 'I have no clear plans for my next 20 years of my life'.

  • Doom 3 failure = lack of John Romero (Score:3, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward on Thursday September 09, 2004 @04:14PM (#10205243)
    Considering that Doom 3 has not lived up to its expectactions besides being a tech demo, how well would the game have done and how much better would it be if John Romero was still there?

    Answer: Simple. Romero would have made it legendary.
  • Why are we all sitting around speculating about this ? I only read this article to see if John Carmack posted a comment. WMDs, Carmack retires - typical CNN bullshit.
  • God, you people are whiney bitchs sometimes. If I ever needed to become stupider, i'd come here and actually READ your comments. *sigh* Don't you all have anything better to do than discredit the guy who makes the game engines for the games that you spend hours upon hours playing, losing track of time beating, etc. etc. etc?!? Bunch a babies.

  • slightly related (Score:2, Interesting)

    by baldw1n ( 743697 )
    Here's a post [google.com] by Carmack on google regarding journalists that some may find interesting.

  • Masters of Doom (Score:1, Interesting)

    by Anonymous Coward
    Although I still have respect for his technical prowess. After picking up Masters of Doom (almost done), I don't regard him as a god anymore. Like most geeks, his human-relations skills, according to the book, were lacking, and made it difficult to work with him.

    It describes how, when he felt Romero was not putting enough time into the development of Quake, Carmack crafted a quick program to log how much time Romero was on his computer. He later used this data as "proof" that Romero was not pulling his

  • Doom Movie mentioned (Score:3, Interesting)

    by va3atc ( 715659 ) * on Thursday September 09, 2004 @10:18PM (#10208919) Homepage Journal
    On the bottom of this page [cnn.com] it mentions they are thinking of a Doom movie

    Finally, there's the long-in-development "Doom" movie. Bounced around Hollywood for years, the rights to the film now rest with Universal Pictures. And, barring production delays, it now looks like the film could be a reality.

  • Next game announced... (Score:5, Funny)

    by Taulin ( 569009 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @10:31PM (#10209017) Homepage Journal
    Since he will start working on DNF, I guess he will never actually be retiring.

  • Lord, we call this news?! (Score:5, Informative)

    by DeltaSigma ( 583342 ) on Thursday September 09, 2004 @10:35PM (#10209054) Journal
    GameSpy: Are you going to retire after DOOM 3?
    John Carmack: No. I've got at least one more rendering engine to write. The development of rendering engines is driven by two major factors. One of these is, of course, the question, "When you finish a game, is it time to write a new engine?" The answer is based on what is happening in the hardware space...
    Aug. 16, 2003 - Source [gamespy.com]

    John Carmack is an accessible public figure. If you want to know, ask him. There's no need for speculation.

  • It's not his fault that Doom 3 sucks (Score:4, Interesting)

    by danila ( 69889 ) on Friday September 10, 2004 @06:36AM (#10210921) Homepage
    Some may feel the inclination to blame (and flame) John for the disappointments of Doom 3, but it's really not his fault. The engine was almost ready in 2001 and it was amazing back then. The game should have been released in late 2002 or early 2003, but (as John himself told), the artists had extremely crappy tools and couldn't efficiently) work on art for a year and the team had some internal problems, slowing the work down further. Likewise, Brussard is not at fault that DNF is not yet released. :)))

    John's engines are great, and the only reason why Doom 3 is disappointing and not much better than CryEngine/Source/X-Ray is that they had time to catch up. How it will work out in the future, I don't know... Everyone salivates about Unreal 3 technology and there are good reasons for it, but I think John may be able to bring another revolution and let's hope the id team will make it in time.
  • I thought Carmack already made this known prior to the release of Doom3, saying there was no more he could do and losing interest.
    Now his thing is the space travel endeavor he has started.

    But as I said before without Romero Doom 3 isnt the same, perhaps it is time to leave while on top.
  • Hmm. Who do you think will be the next governor of
    *Washington* state

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