Quakeweek
April 30, 1997


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Camper Tournament Drags On

Microsoft Releases Own Quake Competitor

AOLWorld Beta Released
id Software Hires Tom Zito


Tom ZitoDALLAS, TX - id Software announced today that Tom Zito, former president of the now-defunct Digital Pictures, would be joining the company as creative director and lead game designer. Tom Zito's credits include such Heaven's Gate cult classics as "Night Trap," "Corpse Killer," and "Slam City with Scotty Pippen."

"Tom's arrival signifies a major change in our company's vision," said John Carmack, lead programmer for id Software. "From this point on, id will no longer be technology- or design-driven. Instead, we will be driven by a concept that has brought great success to other game companies: greed.

"We [id] have seen lame-ass crap like Myst and Rebel Assault dominate the charts for years. These overhyped, so-called 'interactive adventures' have no real gameplay or technology, yet they still sell like hotcakes. We realize that we've been shooting ourselves in the foot by trying to be innovative with each new game we release. Tom has opened our eyes. We now understand that, with enough marketing hype, people will literally buy anything."

With the arrival of Tom Zito, id Software has also announced the discontinuation of the upcoming "Quake 2" 3-D engine in favor of a full-motion video engine, tentatively called "Quaketime VR." Quaketime VR technology will be used in all future id and id-related games for the next three years, "or until we've milked the cash cow dry, whichever comes first."

"I'm very excited to be joining the guys at id," said Zito. "It will give me all sorts of great opportunities, such as being able to eat a decent meal, sleep with a roof over my head, and collect a salary above minimum wage."