Microsoft's Xbox Game Studios have access to a collection of new engines following the high-profile acquisition of Zenimax Media. With Xbox and Bethesda now under one umbrella, it seems likely that some of XGS's established teams may take on id Software's id Tech engine.
Revealed during a roundtable discussion about the acquisition, Phil Spencer expressed hope that id Tech would find its way to other studios. Used to create Doom 2016, its sequel Doom Eternal and the fantastic series of Wolfenstein titles, it's an A-Class piece of software.
“There’s no studio that sweats every pixel on screen, and every frame, the way id Software does,” Phil Spencer explained.
What Xbox games will use id Tech?
There's no confirmation that future titles from established Xbox studios will move over to id Tech for their next games. However, Phil Spencer seems positive about studios being able to utilize the tech in the future.
"When you think about their capability, and I think about them collaborating and working and talking with The Coalition, 343, and just the first-person and third-person shooter space that we have, the studios that are there, it’s just kind of an amazing capability," Spencer said.
With Halo Infinite poised to evolve over the next ten years, the main series won't be switching engines anytime soon. Additionally, 343 Industries' years of work on Infinite's all-new Slipspace Engine mean it's unlikely the series will jump to id Tech. However, you should never say never.
The same could be said about The Coalition's Gears of War franchise. Since the original entry in 2006, the series' mainline entries have always been technical showcases of Epic Games' Unreal Engine. However, with Epic's departure from the franchise, that could all be set to change.
History of id's game engine
Originally developed by John Carmack in 1993 for the original Doom, the id Tech engine has always been an iconic piece of video game software. As the first mainline 3D engine, the software was licensed out for use with other first-person shooters such as Hexen and Strife.
In the long run, id Software's evolution of the engine has been used in many titles you never would've guessed. The original Call of Duty engine is based on id Tech 3; Infinity Ward would use this base to craft the IW Engine that's technically still improved upon to this day.