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A CedarDB developer reports porting the original 1993 Doom’s game logic and renderer into SQL queries running inside a database. The game loop runs at 35 ticks per second, and the project supports multiplayer deathmatch; Python handles input, timing and displaying the returned image.
A CedarDB developer says they have ported the 1993 Doom game’s logic and renderer to SQL, running the game inside a database rather than using the original executable for those tasks. The project, called SQLDoom, runs its game loop at 35 ticks per second and supports multiplayer deathmatch, while a Python client handles keyboard input, timing and displaying the rendered image.
In a report published by CedarDB on September 22, 2026, the developer describes a design that stores game state in database tables. SQL queries update that state and produce the image; the client requests game ticks at the original 35-per-second rate, and can ask for rendered frames more often. The report says the renderer produces a full 320-by-200-pixel frame buffer at up to 60 frames per second on the author’s laptop.
The port covers more than a static or simplified visual recreation. The author says it handles player movement and shooting, enemy movement and attacks, pickups, projectiles, explosions, animations, view bobbing and the heads-up display. The report also says deathmatch is playable with four player slots, and offers access to the shareware version’s first episode through EU and US servers.
Python remains part of the system, but the author says it is limited to reading controls, driving the game timing and displaying the bitmap. The stated project rules require the game logic and rendering to be SQL-based, with database output limited to a table or a bitmap encoding exact RGB values. The report does not provide independent benchmark results or a technical review of the implementation.
What SQLDoom Shows About Databases
SQLDoom is a demonstration of how far database queries can be pushed beyond familiar jobs such as storing records and answering business questions. In this project, the database is used to maintain a live game state and generate rendered frames, while a small external client connects player controls to the system.
The result is relevant to database developers and game programmers as an experiment in unusual uses of SQL, not as evidence that databases are a practical replacement for conventional game engines. The report describes one developer’s implementation and a playable demonstration; it does not compare operating costs, performance at scale or suitability for commercial game production.
SQL database game development tools
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From DOOMQL to the Full Game
The author presents SQLDoom as a follow-up to DOOMQL, an earlier project that displayed a rough, ASCII-style Doom-like scene at 30 frames per second. In the new report, the author acknowledges that the earlier work used raycasting and was closer in approach to Wolfenstein 3D than to Doom’s rendering method.
The report says the new version uses the original game’s binary space partitioning (BSP) approach, which orders geometry for rendering, rather than relying on the previous project’s raycasting. Doom’s WAD game-data files were imported into relational database tables. The author says importing all of Doom 1 takes about 18 seconds on their laptop, after roughly 1,000 lines of Python were used to load the data.
“The game loop runs at the original 35 FPS.”
— SQLDoom developer, CedarDB report
Python programming for game development
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What the Demonstration Does Not Establish
The report is a first-person project account from the developer, not an independent assessment. It does not provide source-reviewed verification of how much original Doom code or data was reused, detailed hardware and database configurations, or test results for performance under heavier multiplayer use. The stated up-to-60-Hz rendering rate is tied to the author’s laptop, and should not be read as a general performance guarantee.
The report says four deathmatch slots are available, with a queue when seats are full, but it does not give player counts, server capacity figures or information about how long the hosted demonstration will remain available. It also does not establish that SQLDoom can run the full commercial game release: the playable offering described is the shareware first episode.
high-resolution bitmap display monitor
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Trying the Hosted Deathmatch
The CedarDB report links to hosted SQLDoom deathmatch servers in the EU and US and says players can join a four-slot match, wait in a queue if all seats are taken, or query live game state while waiting if the queue is full. The project’s next steps, if any, are not stated in the report; no release schedule, maintenance plan or broader game support is specified.
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Key Questions
What does it mean that Doom was ported to SQL?
The developer says the game’s logic, state updates and renderer run through SQL inside a database. A Python client still reads keyboard input, triggers game ticks and displays the image returned by the database.
Is the game loop running at 60 frames per second?
Not according to the report. The game loop runs at 35 ticks per second, matching the original Doom rate. The renderer can produce frames at up to 60 Hz on the developer’s laptop, but those are separate rates.
Can people play SQLDoom online?
The report links to EU and US deathmatch servers with four player slots. It says players are queued when all seats are occupied; the playable content described is the shareware first episode.
Does SQLDoom replace the original Doom executable?
The report describes a port of the game logic and renderer to SQL, but does not give enough implementation detail to establish exactly how much original code is reused. It presents SQLDoom as a database-based implementation, with Python serving as the client.
Source: hn
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