John Carmack to give up game development?
"I wouldn't hazard to look too far ahead."
Renowned id Software engine programmer John Carmack might not be making videogames for that much longer. Speaking to CNN/Money's Chris Morris this week, Carmack admitted that he "wouldn't make any promises" beyond id's next game.
"I wouldn't hazard to look too far ahead," the legendary Quake and Doom programmer, who recently became a father, commented. "I'm definitely going to see through this round of rendering work. I wouldn't make any promises beyond that."
If Carmack is to give up game development, it would significantly alter the face of the first-person shooter. And given that id Software hopes to turn around its next project - details of which are scant - in around half the time it took to develop Doom III, that could mean that Carmack hangs up his mouse in the relatively near future.
"We really, really want to get it done in the next two years," he said of id's next game. But that doesn't mean Carmack plans to break the habit of a lifetime by delivering a game that isn't a massive step forward in terms of technology. "Visually, it's going to be a pretty good step above what we've shown in Doom," he said reassuringly.