iLounge

John Carmack of id Software has released an open-source port of his classic FPS game Wolfenstein 3D for the iPhone and iPod touch. Available under a GPL license as a direct download from id, the code is not compiled, requiring access to Apple’s iPhone SDK to be rendered playable, and offers developers the opportunity to create their own takes on the somewhat enhanced version of the original game.

In a statement included with the game code, Carmack explained how Wolfenstein RPG, originally slated to be the company’s first iPhone title, stumbled in development after a disagreement with publisher Electronic Arts over the graphics renderer, which delivered sub-par visual performance that resembled a mid-range JAVA phone. Carmack noted that switching the rendering from a software engine to the iPhone’s 3D hardware accelerator was claimed to require two months and an excessively high budget, but took him four days and improved the frame rate by eight times its prior performance; still, it is unclear whether the improved title will be appearing on the iPhone. He went on to say that the company does have a “cool” but unnamed iPhone project in development, and that he expects Classic Doom to be available for the iPhone “fairly soon.”

Update: id has released Wolfenstein 3D Classic via the App Store. The game includes all six original episodes with 60 levels, an all-new control system developed for the iPhone by John Carmack, and sells for $5.