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Image credit: John Romero
It’s all a bit Doom-y at the moment, what with the seminal first-person shooter having just celebrated its 30th anniversary this past weekend. And with perfect timing, original Doom designer John Romero has released Sigil 2, the follow-up to his 2019 unofficial Doom episode, which is available now as a free download for consoles and PC.
The original Sigil, which was announced to mark Doom’s 25th back in 2018, served as the unofficial fifth episode in the Doom saga, picking up after the events of Ultimate Doom’s Thy Flesh Consumed; Sigil 2 – as you might very well imagine – serves as unofficial episode number six, spanning nine new maps that lead into the story of Doom 2.
“Upon breaching the pentagram of invulnerability in the final moments of Sigil, Episode Five,” goes Romero’s official description, “you find yourself not on a victorious journey back to save Earth, but caught in Baphomet’s cunning snare, catapulted into a new, grotesque domain of relentless torment, unending demon hordes, and an onslaught of heavy metal mayhem!”
When Romero initially announced Sigil 2 toward the end of 2021, the suggestion was it would this time be specifically designed to utilise Doom 2, but we now know it’s actually a Doom episode – Romero has also confirmed he’s currently working on a separate Doom 2 project, Hellion, with a Quake episode to follow.
Sigil 2’s nine maps (eight of which include a deathmatch arena) can be downloaded in a single Megawad file – weighing in at paltry, nostalgia-tweaking 2MB – over on Romero’s website. The free version includes a new MIDI soundtrack by James Paddock, while the paid €6.66 digital version features a metal soundtrack by Thorr. It’s also possible to purchase a physical edition with the game on a floppy disc shaped USB stick if you want to go all-in. All versions require a copy of Doom to run.
Alternatively, owners of Bethesda’s comparatively recent PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and Switch releases of Doom 1993 should be able to grab Sigil 2 from the in-game Add-ons menu.
And if all that’s got you in an appropriately Doom-y mood, why not check out Eurogamer contributor Keith Stuart’s fond recollections of the original Doom and its legacy, published to mark its 30th anniversary this weekend.
