Masters of Doom: How Two Guys Created an Empire and Transformed Pop Culture

They simply made games they wanted to play. But in the end, they built a company that made even Microsoft look archaic. This is the story of John Carmack and John Romero — friends, colleagues, inspired gamers, avid programmers, and two contradictions. Together, they founded id Software, invented first-person shooters, and created Doom — an iconic game that shook society’s perception of interactive entertainment, made programmers and scientists think about virtual reality, and raised the alarm among politicians around the world about the cruelty that video games allegedly provoke.

David Kushner tells the story of the rise of two star game developers, who over the years have faced numerous challenges: from creative conflicts to fan outrage, from missed deadlines to the Columbine tragedy. It's a story of friendship and betrayal, of commerce and art—an epic and sensitive tale of what it means to be young, ambitious, and insanely talented.