DOOM (2016)
The Art of DOOM – From Mars to Hell
DOOM (2016)
A cold research facility on Mars.
A blood-soaked pit in the fiery depths of Hell. How do you take these iconic DOOM locations and bring them to life for the latest generation of gamers? And how do you build something that evokes the original DOOM while feeling completely new? For the team at id Software, much of the game’s world came to life thanks to the concept art that helped define the visuals. Here’s an exclusive look at some of the environments in DOOM, with commentary straight from the artists and designers at id Software.
Mars Vista
This image was made to start exploring the Mars vista surrounding the UAC facilities. The idea was that the landscape has been decimated by time. Lakes and oceans have disappeared leaving behind layers of rock that have been sculpted and deformed by constant wind. The odd colors of the setting sun are to give the player a sense of unease and that something is not quite right with this world. – Ryan Watkins
Lazarus Exterior
This was an early pass on the facility that ultimately became Lazarus. In this instance, it was hidden in a volcanic crater. It would only become visible once you made your way over the crater’s edge before entering the level. This was also an early pass on what the cleaner, scientific building style would look like from an exterior view. – Colin Geller
Lazarus
In our fiction, Lazarus thematically represents the intersection point between science and mysticism; the point where UAC scientists discover Hell and inevitably become corrupted by its influence. In terms of player progression, the architecture of Lazarus was originally designed as a vertical descent, progressively leading the player downwards towards the Hell portal at the base of the facility. – Jon Lane
Lazarus Security
This was an early take on designing what our cleaner, scientific interior space would look like. It was important, even at this stage, that the space would feel functional in the time before Hell broke loose. It turned out to be a good contrast to the more industrial spaces in the final game. This also features a door concept by the talented Prog Wang. – Colin Geller
Lazarus Surgery
This was an early take on a room in Lazarus where you could find evidence of the UAC experimenting on an unfortunate Mancubus. In rooms like these, we would also see the early steps the UAC was taking to make cyber versions out of various demons. You can find a room similar to this in the final game, surgery bot included. – Colin Geller
Res Ops
The look of Res Ops is partially influenced by modern oil rigs. We wanted to hint at the idea that the mining operation on Mars is huge; that there’s a large network of these types of platforms, where the workers essentially work and live entirely subterranean lives. – Jon Lane
Res Ops Platform
Res Ops has a few areas like this one. The intent was to create a space that was somewhat unsettling, evoking the sense of a cage-like space suspended above an abyss. – Jon Lane
Argent Interior
This is an early concept for the interior of Argent Tower. The tower serves as one of the UAC’s key experiments into interdimensional research and exploration. – Jon Lane
Hell Vista
Visualizing something as abstract as Hell is very difficult; everyone and every culture has their own version of it. Here, Hell is a fractured world where pieces of other worlds and dimensions are torn apart to have their energy and souls absorbed, leaving behind only a hollow shell of a once great civilization. The color palette was based on the classic Hell theme of fire and brimstone. – Ryan Watkins
Hell Bridge
This is a color and lighting pass over game geometry to establish the mood of Hell. Prior to this, a few early mood paintings were done with color palettes inspired by the work of Zdzisław Beksiński. This particular image was one of a dozen passes with subtle variations. The goal was to give the player an uncomfortable and unpleasant sense about the place. Unpleasant to the point you could almost smell the sulfur as you entered the level. – Colin Geller
Bloodkeep
Temples were used as inspiration when concepting this central room. Although the end result was a bit different, it made for a good starting point to elaborate on. – Alex Palma
Titan
This was a concept for one of three temple ruins of The Well, and I imagined it to be a highly unstable area with a lot of tectonic movement, sulfur and molten lava bursting forth from the ground. – Emerson Tung
Hell (Necropolis)
This was an early exploration for the Necropolis, which was described to me as a cavernous ruin with a bottomless pit and precarious walkways, which were inspired by the precarious mountain paths of Tianmen Mountain. I added a giant demon skull as the centerpiece as a throwback to the Icon of Sin and it stuck all the way to the end of production. – Emerson Tung
Icon of Sin
It was really fun to redesign something that was so iconic (no pun intended) from DOOM II. We tried to keep as much of the spirit of the original, making it recognizable while putting our own spin on him. Here he lies dormant in the heart of the Necropolis, waiting for the opportune time to rise again. – Emerson Tung
Got a hunger for even more DOOM art? Pick up the DOOM art book now.
For more art from DOOM, check out these features:
DOOM – Get Ready to Fight Like Hell!
Inside DOOM’s Brutally Fast Single-Player Campaign
DOOM – Exclusive SnapMap and Single-Player Streams
