Microsoft’s Doom/Quake Reset Leaves id Software’s Next Move in Question

As part of its broader “reset” push, Microsoft has signaled that Doom and Quake remain key intellectual properties—while simultaneously cutting a massive portion of id Software’s workforce. The move has put the studio’s near-term direction under a harsh spotlight, especially after reports suggested the team behind id Tech may no longer look the way it used to.

What’s been said about Doom and id’s direction

Speculation quickly took off that only a solitary engineer might be tasked with keeping the proprietary id Tech technology alive, with the rest of the team supposedly transitioning into a support role for other initiatives. To address the chatter directly, id Software wrote to its community, insisting that nothing as drastic as a full support-studio conversion is happening.

In its message, the studio said, in essence, that it “still has the crew we need” to develop the games and tech people associate with the brand. It also stated that the current team size is roughly comparable to the size the studio had while making Doom (2016). id Software further emphasized that it has long operated as a “flat” environment where everyone is a builder, and claimed it intends to carry that maker-first approach forward.

John Carmack also weighed in on the recent wave of layoffs impacting id Software, adding his perspective to the broader discussion around what these cuts could mean for the developer’s output.

id Software’s letter reiterated that the studio intends to keep its focus on “building the great games and tech” that have defined it for the past 35 years. It also highlighted internal support—stating that it will be “supporting each other” and the team members affected by the layoffs. For now, that messaging suggests players shouldn’t expect a Quake built with Unreal Engine, a scenario that would have been a particularly stark departure for the franchise.

Shortly after the letter circulated, a senior correspondent, Tom Warren, reposted and expanded on what readers can take away from the statement. He said that while the id layoffs were “deep,” the changes apparently haven’t turned id into a support studio. Instead, he claimed the studio is in the early stages of a new Doom project.

The Precedent Of The 2016 Reboot

If you look at id’s history, there’s precedent for surviving disruptive development cycles without disappearing from the conversation. At QuakeCon 2014, the studio announced it had canceled Doom 4 in favor of a fresh reboot that would simply be called Doom. Work on that reboot reportedly began sometime between 2011 and 2013, and the full development period is described as lasting about four to five years.

During the lead-up to the reboot, the team spoke openly about an identity problem affecting the series. The direction moved even farther from established roots than Doom 3, according to the discussions surrounding that earlier plan. The canceled sequel concept was said to lean more toward a linear, story-forward first-person shooter, using passive health recovery, leaning into cover-style gunplay, and featuring scripted cinematic sequences—an approach some fans mocked as “Call of Doom.”

That darker detour didn’t end up being the final outcome, though. Fans didn’t have to wait long for the return-to-form version that replaced it, since it ultimately launched only two years after the reboot was announced.

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A team size that’s similar to what id had during Doom (2016), plus experience carried by Doom Eternal and The Dark Ages, sounds like a more stable setup than what earlier reports implied. Still, it’s hard to ignore how much the scale of the cuts could weigh on morale—especially given that budgets and development timelines have expanded substantially over the last decade. On top of that, players are likely to feel the pressure from a changing Xbox leadership structure, where delivering the next big release quickly becomes even more important.

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