In a blog post from May, Carmack says he loves that players port Doom to every device imaginable, but he's disappointed that there's rarely any real effort to build a new, functional control scheme on platforms without a keyboard and mouse. In other words, he'd rather that instead of everyone stopping at "Does it run Doom?" they ask "Does it play Doom?"

That's why he personally developed the controls for the iPhone version, and according to early reviews, the iPhone can now play Doom. Users are saying controls as good as you would expect from Carmack. Not to mention the other enhancements like 24-bit lighting.

Sure, you might have put the game on your jailbroken iPhone years ago, but graphical upgrades and tighter controls might make it worth the $6.99 admission price. [Recombu]

As the first trailer seemed to promise, yes, this is a very impressive game. Graphics and sound are top-notch and the production as a whole befits its price. The main issue with Resurrection is the control scheme: even though other iPhone FPSes have pulled of decent free-movement control systems—including id's own Wolfenstein port—this game is, strictly speaking, on rails.

To be honest, this can be frustrating, especially given how well the environments are rendered. I mean, they're right there, in full, detailed 3D, and you can't explore them. The gameplay's saving grace is accelerometer support, which at least lets you aim and shake off zombies in an intuitive way.

As for the claims that this is a totally new installment in the Doom franchise, they're technically true: the story is fresh, and so are the levels. But aside from the new story meat and new gameplay dynamics, Resurrection borrows liberally from Doom III, looking, sounding and, to an extent, feeling like its 2004 predecessor. Impressive? Sure. Worth $10? If so, then barely. [via Will Smith's Twitter]

The Quake onslaught is in addition to a slew of other id games hitting iPhone: Wolfenstein RPG, Doom 2 RPG and Doom Classic. Interestingly, why he'll be farming out most of the port work, Carmack says he's personally interested in working on some of the stuff made possible by the iPhone 3GS's more advanced hardware: "I certainly want to do this MegaTexture demo for the 3GS stuff, work on that myself."

While there's 40 million current-gen iPhone OS devices out there, I'm totally ready for developers to ditch them so we can see what's really possible on the platform. [Shacknews, Kotaku]

Some are already hailing it as a "true next generation game" for the iPhone, and it does have some fairly impressive graphics, as far as the platform goes. But with iPhone 3GS on its way, with a more powerful graphics processor and support for a newer version of OpenGL, isn't this an odd time to market an iPhone game on its up-to-the-minute visuals and performance?

iD head John Carmack doesn't think so, telling Venturebeat that the game, like other Doom titles before it, will grow into new hardware. He specifically mentions the possibility of multiplayer with OS 3.0, but doesn't talk about whether or not the game content will adapt to the 3G S. [Venturebeat, Talking About Games]

Even though the number of people dissatisfied with something in polls is usually higher than the actual percentage (dissatisfied people are more likely to complain), it's really interesting that that many residents think this is an infringement on their rights. I guess getting your mug on record as being a camwithher viewer is more tangible evidence of the internet crackdown than sites being blocked? [Times Online]

Yeah I think they are. I think that if you went in and could see what's going on in their minds, though they may never say that stuff and I'm not saying there's some conspiracy or something like that—but I think the thing is they realize that trading content, copyrighted or not, is an expected benefit of owning a computer.

That's a very interesting point, albeit a bit one-sided seeing as it comes from a content (in this case games) maker. There's the trusted computing push, which has resulted in manufacturers shipping systems with "Trusted Platform Modules" which includes BIOS support at the root level. But will manufacturers use this to lock down their systems so people won't be able to pirate games or watch episodes of Burn Notice they torrented? It's unlikely, because of the huge user revolt that would follow. [GamesIndustry.biz via Wired - Image Credit]

He also goes on to say that it's almost as strong as a PlayStation 2 and an Xbox 1 at launch. Think back to the games you played on the PS2 and Xbox. Now think of the games you're playing on the iPhone. Doesn't quite match up, does it?

It's strange to us that Carmack is throwing out so much hype for Apple, seeing as he's got a love/hate (mostly hate) relationship with the company.

The verdict is also out on whether Apple has a concrete grasp of gaming, the id co-founder said. The company's reception to criticism has also been counterintuitive, which has led to its relationship with id being something akin to a roller-coaster ride.

Apple essentially kisses his ass when they need him to show up for one of Steve Jobs' keynotes, but then throws him the cold shoulder the second he passes judgment, Carmack said.

[Apple Insider]

Previous Carmack coverage

The small team at id means that the company can only work on one game at a time, so they are toying with the idea of pairing up with a publishing partner to get a game running on the iPhone. However, Hollenshead is taking a cautious approach. He explains that games on the iPhone "are going to be competing with all of those other things you can do on the iPhone that are pretty cool" and that "It does raise the bar on what you need to do from a game standpoint."

So, when analyzing statements from Carmack and Hollenshead together, it seems that id Software definitely wants to bring games to the iPhone, but the two leaders have different viewpoints on the situation. Carmack is gung-ho and talking exclusive titles that are a "graphical tour de force" while Hollenshead is cautious and talking about porting titles that are already in development. We will just have to wait and see who gets their way. [Kotaku]

Sidekick 3 and Sidekick iD users will be able to grab it, and the Sidekick Slide (a.k.a. Zante) will get this installed by default. – Jason Chen

T-Mobile FAQ Page [T-Mobile via Boy Genius Report via Crunchgear]

Tarati enables the user to connect with others by passing fingers, in order, through key holes. This action of dialing alone is a more magical experience and, hence, more indicative of what's really happening beyond the visible realm. ... Tarati beckons the user to "touch" someone without physically touching a single key. Its design reflects human connectivity in a less material/mechanical, more sensual, way.

CUin5 Cellphone: Design Fiction by branko Lukic
One Day Every Gadget Will Be A Unique Snowflake

nonObject Design Fiction No4: Tarati [Video]

then they should heed these words from industrial designer and sci-fi gadget imagineer Branko Lukic, from his upcoming book nonobject:

Each natural "product" is a unique specimen; nothing else compares to one, after another, after another. Imagine if the manufacture of consumer electronics afforded such diversity! Imagine if consumers had the pick of an endless array of devices, each one its own distinct shape, size and color while keeping the internal components the same... The state of things now: sameness sits on assembly lines; sameness lives on shelves; sameness is in hands of consumers. Need it be this way - where color is the only distinguishing feature? Why not tackle design in more interesting ways? Rather than considering a product as one of many, diversify the multiple existing molds and consider product a little more freely. Need each be a clone of the other? Why not envision production methodology anew, as a result of more organic processes? Just imagine: a near future where we still make a single product in large volumes, but we do so more randomly, intuitively, eclectically. This way, with advanced manufacturing techniques, consumers are offered more choice within a single product category.

nonobject Design Fiction No 3: Pebble [Book Preview]

Product Page [Via Hiptop3]

Consider it a little eye candy to wake you up this achy Tuesday morning. We'll leave it up to you to decide which is your favorite. Ours definitely is not the newly ghoulishly skeletal J. Jameson. – Jason Chen

Ladies Love The New Sidekick iD [Geeksugar]

Sidekick ID Video Review [CrunchGear]

In the comments for yesterday's post about the unconcious jogger identified by her iPod, deeddawg pointed us to a company called Road ID. Founded by father and son team Edward and Mike Wimmer after dad asked his marathon-running son what would happen if he had an accident on the road, they make wearable IDs you can customize with your name, emergency contacts and medical information.

We really like the Shoe Pouch ID , which is waterproof, attaches to your sneaker and lets you carry things like a driver's license, cash and a key or two—you can get a Shoe ID if you don't want the pouch—and the Wrist ID (as seen in above photo), probably the best for visibility purposes as people will see it immediately if they have to take your pulse. Each costs $19.99, comes in your choice of three to four colors and with the unconditional guarantee that Road ID will replace the product if you somehow manage to wear it out.

Road ID also has a line called Firefly, gear you can attach to yourself or your belongings for high visibility on roads. The $12.99 Firefly Supernova is a clip-on flashing safety light with a super bright LED inside that'll go for 250 hours before you'll need to switch batteries.

Road ID [Road ID]
iPod Used to ID Unconscious Woman [Gizmodo]

Police Use iPod To ID Unconscious Woman [NBC11]