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Id Software

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id Software (note lower-case id) is a computer game software developer based in Mesquite, Texas. Id used to sell their software using the shareware method of distribution. They would release the first part of their trilogy as shareware, then sell the other two installments by mail order. Only later (about the time of the release of Doom II) did id release their games via the more traditional shrink-wrapped boxes in stores (through other game publishers).

The first person shooter genre was popularized with their title Wolfenstein 3D, followed by the more sophisticated Doom and Quake series.

The lead programmer for id Software is John Carmack, whose skill at 3D programming is widely recognised in the software industry. John Romero, considered by many as a gifted game designer, also used to work for id Software until he left after the completion of Quake in 1996.

Currently, id's "game engines" are licensed to many other developers, to the point where some in the industry regard id first and foremost as a game engine developer and only secondly as a producer of finished retail games. The price of licensing id's engines normally runs about $250,000 per title. Id releases its older game engines, such as that of Quake and Quake II, under GPL for others to use free of charge (bound by the GPL license restrictions).

Games developed by id Software

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