{
  "id": 11717872,
  "title": "Someone Got Doom In an SQL Database",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/03/someone-got-doom-in-an-sql-database",
  "topic": "tech",
  "section": "Tech",
  "published": "2026-10-03T16:00:00.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Slashdot",
    "slug": "slashdot",
    "url": "https://developers.slashdot.org/story/26/10/03/0125235/someone-got-doom-in-an-sql-database"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "An SQL database has been used to run the video game Doom, according to a post on Ars Technica by Lukas Vogel. This project, dubbed SQLDoom, utilizes a small Python client to manage input and output, control game timing and display frames. Underlying the system are numerous CedarDB tables that manage the game's geometry and state, with approximately 1,300 lines of SQL queries spread across 89 common table expressions handling game logic and creating 35 bitmap framebuffers per second. SQLDoom represents a significant leap forward from Vogel's previous attempt, DoomQL, which produced grayscale ASCII graphics similar to Wolfenstein 3D. The new SQLDoom, however, creates full-color 640x480 frames that closely resemble those generated by the original Doom executable. To run this setup, users can clone the GitHub code, install CedarDB, and provide a Doom WAD file. For those unwilling or unable to set up the database, a free online hosted demo match is available for testing.",
  "summary": "An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Rendering Doom in a database is obviously a bad idea,\" Lukas Vogel writes in a lengthy blog post explaining how exactly he managed to render Doom using an SQL database. OK, that's not entirely accurate. The SQLDoom project uses a small Python client to handle input and output, drive the game's timing, and display each frame to the screen.…",
  "key_points": [
    "SQL database powers video game Doom in project SQLDoom",
    "Python client manages input, output, timing, frame display",
    "SQLDoom creates full-color 640x480 frames, similar to original Doom"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}