Briefing chat: ‘Can it run Doom?’ — why scientists got brain cells and a satellite to play the classic game

Email Bluesky Facebook LinkedIn Reddit Whatsapp X You have full access to this article via your institution. Download the Nature Podcast 13 March 2026 In this episode: 00:26 Why researchers keep using Doom in their research Nature: How the classic computer game Doom became a tool for science Subscribe to Nature Briefing, an unmissable daily round-up of science news, opinion and analysis free in your inbox every weekday. Never miss an episode. Subscribe to the Nature Podcast on Apple Podcasts , Spotify , YouTube Music or your favourite podcast app. An RSS feed for the Nature Podcast is available too. doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-00845-w Related Articles Briefing chat: What Galileo’s scribbled margin notes reveal about his scientific journey AI takes on popular Minecraft game in machine-learning contest Boss level: how developing a video game during my PhD honed my leadership and time-management skills Technology is changing how we write — and how we think about writing Can AI be superhuman? Flaws in top gaming bot cast doubt Subjects Culture Biotechnology Software Technology Latest on: Culture Biotechnology Software How the classic computer game Doom became a tool for science News 13 MAR 26 First bot, singular Futures 11 MAR 26 Cracked, but still there: the glass ceiling persists for senior women in science Career Column 06 MAR 26 How the classic computer game Doom became a tool for science News 13 MAR 26 Genetically modified pig liver keeps man alive until human organ transplant News 06 MAR 26 Genome modelling and design across all domains of life with Evo 2 Article 04 MAR 26 How the classic computer game Doom became a tool for science News 13 MAR 26 OpenClaw AI chatbots are running amok — these scientists are listening in News 06 FEB 26 ‘It means I can sleep at night’: how sensors are helping to solve scientists’ problems Spotlight 04 FEB 26 Jobs Application for a tenure-track faculty position Tenure Track Position Jerusalem The Hebrew University Professor of Integrated Immunology The Department of Biology (D-BIOL; www.biol.ethz.ch) at ETH Zurich invites applications for the above-mentioned position. Zurich, Switzerland ETH Zurich PhD Candidate (m/f/d) In cooperation with the BMFTR funded I-CHECK-HEART Consortium Dortmund, Nordrhein-Westfalen (DE) Leibniz-Institut für Analytische Wissenschaften – ISAS – e.V. Faculty Positions at the Center for Machine Learning Research (CMLR), Peking University CMLR's goal is to advance machine learning-related research across a wide range of disciplines. Beijing (CN) Center for Machine Learning Research (CMLR), Peking University Open Rank Faculty (All Levels) in Dept of Oncology Science Open Rank Faculty (All Levels) in Dept of Oncology Science The newly established Department of Oncology Science, College of Medicine at the Unive... Oklahoma City, Oklahoma University of Oklahoma Health Campus