Hasselblad's Doom: A Gimmick, Not a Gaming Revolution
The spectacle of Doom running on a high-end Hasselblad X2D 100C camera showcases the game's indelible cultural footprint and the ingenuity of hardware hackers, proving it's more about the 'can it run Doom?' meme than meaningful play.
Photo: Bethesda Softworks / Steam (uso editorial)
Is the ultimate tech flex now playing a classic FPS on an $8,000 camera? The internet has, once again, been captivated by the enduring meme of running Doom on an utterly unexpected device. This time, the unlikely platform is the Hasselblad X2D 100C, a medium-format camera known for its professional photographic prowess, not its gaming capabilities. While undeniably a clever technical achievement, this feat tells us far more about the lasting legacy of Doom and the vibrant culture of hardware hacking than it does about any practical innovation for gaming or photography.
The recent buzz started with a video circulating on Reddit and YouTube, showing the original Doom running on the Hasselblad X2D 100C. Independent camera researcher Radium Wang is behind the project, which is part of a larger repository for Hasselblad firmware research on GitHub. The implementation is ingenious: players use the camera's touchscreen for directional control and the physical shutter button to fire their weapon, transforming a high-end imaging tool into a retro gaming console of sorts.
The Immortal Appeal of "Can It Run Doom?"
To understand the significance of Doom on a Hasselblad, we must first appreciate the game's unique status in tech culture. Released in 1993, Doom quickly became a landmark title, but its enduring legacy isn't just about its gameplay. The game's open-source code and ancient software requirements mean it can be adapted to run on virtually anything with a computer chip, no matter how humble or exotic. This accessibility, combined with the game's iconic status, has spawned an entire internet subculture dedicated to porting Doom to the weirdest possible devices. We’ve seen it run on everything from calculators and pregnancy tests to electric cooking pots, an orbiting satellite from the European Space Agency, and even an Apple Lightning-to-HDMI dongle, as Tom's Hardware reports.
This isn't just about showing off; it's a playful yet rigorous challenge that tests the boundaries of embedded systems and showcases the ingenuity of programmers. The Hasselblad port is the latest entry in this long-running joke, proving that even the most locked-down, specialized hardware can, with enough dedication, be made to run the quintessential FPS.
A Technical Triumph, Not a Gaming Experience
While the sight of Doom on a Hasselblad is amusing, let's be clear: this is not about creating a new, compelling way to play the game. Playing Doom on a tiny 3.6-inch touchscreen, with the camera's form factor completely unsuited for gaming, is hardly an optimal experience. As Tom's Hardware rightly points out,
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