Yes—SQLDoom runs Doom’s game logic and renderer inside CedarDB. It is not an all-SQL game: a Python client handles keyboard input, timing and display, while SQL advances the game state and produces each frame. The project also documents four-player online deathmatch.
What “Doom in SQL” means
SQLDoom is a technical demonstration built around CedarDB, not a claim that every part of a game runs in a database. Game state lives in database tables. SQL routines advance that state, and a SQL query pipeline renders the resulting scene. Python provides the controls and screen: it reads input, runs the client-side timing loop and displays the bitmap returned by the database. The project describes this split in its write-up and repository.
The simulation and display do not have to run at the same rate. SQLDoom preserves Doom’s 35 Hz game-logic cadence—one game tic about every 28.6 milliseconds—while the client can request rendered frames separately and interpolate between them.
How SQLDoom works
Game data and state updates
The project imports Doom’s WAD data into relational tables. SQL routines and set-based updates then handle game systems such as movement, weapons and monster behavior. The CedarDB write-up describes the implementation as roughly 5,900 lines of SQL for game logic.
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- ENTER THE WORLD OF SKYRIM: Experience the legendary open-world RPG as a tabletop adventure, exploring Tamriel through branching quests, iconic factions, and rich Elder Scrolls lore.
- COOPERATIVE OR SOLO PLAY: Designed for 1–4 players, allowing you to adventure solo or team up to face dragons, uncover conspiracies, and shape the fate of Skyrim together.
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Rendering as a query
The renderer is a query pipeline rather than a conventional graphics loop. It uses binary-space-partitioning (BSP) traversal, window functions and per-pixel candidate resolution to produce a 320 × 200 image—64,000 pixels—with an RGB value for each pixel. The write-up describes about 1,300 lines of SQL across 89 common table expressions (CTEs). Those figures describe this implementation, not a general measure of how much SQL a game requires.
Why CedarDB is required
The repository says SQLDoom currently relies on CedarDB’s cedarscript language for some procedural game-loop functions. Its author believes those parts could be ported to PL/pgSQL, but the published project is not presented as something that runs unchanged on any PostgreSQL-compatible database.
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How fast does it run?
CedarDB’s project write-up reports results from an AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 7840U laptop. The author says SQLDoom typically reaches about 60 frames per second, falling to 35 FPS in busy scenes. These are project-author measurements, not independent tests or a cross-platform benchmark.
| Reported measure | Project-author result | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Game-logic rate | 35 Hz | A fixed cadence inherited from the original game, with a 28.6 ms budget per tic. |
| Typical game tic | 2.15 ms, with six awake monsters | Reported by CedarDB for the described scene; not a universal result. |
| Described worst-case game tic | 10.45 ms, with 46 awake monsters | The write-up says this uses about 37% of the 28.6 ms tic budget. |
| Rendered frame rate | About 60 FPS typically; 35 FPS in busy scenes | Reported on the author’s Ryzen 7 PRO 7840U laptop; no independent benchmark is cited. |
Rendering every pixel through a large query pipeline is an unusual way to draw a game, and the project write-up notes that busy scenes are slower. Its results demonstrate what this implementation did on the stated laptop and scenes; they do not establish performance for other computers, databases or workloads.
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Does SQLDoom support multiplayer?
Yes. The project documents four-player deathmatch. A separate Python referee advances the shared clock, while database transactions let players read consistent snapshots of completed game tics. The repository and project write-up describe the multiplayer design. The write-up also links public EU and US demos; hosted matches and available player slots can change.
How to try it—and what you need
For a quick look, use the public demos linked from the project write-up, if they are available. To run SQLDoom yourself, the repository lists these prerequisites:
Rank #4
- Join forces to help Frodo make his way across Middle Earth and complete his quest to destroy the one ring
- In this cooperative strategy game players will roll dice and draw cards to try and avoid the ring wraiths and save Middle Earth
- Plays up to four players or can be a solo adventure
- Playtime is approximately 50 minutes
- Immerses you in the world of Tolkein
- CedarDB Community Edition.
- Python with the
psycopg2andpygamedependencies. - A Doom IWAD file. The repository says the freely redistributable
doom1.wadshareware data is sufficient for episode 1. Retail WADs can be used if you own them; the repository does not include a WAD.
The project write-up reports that importing Doom 1 took about 18 seconds on the author’s laptop. Treat that as a report for that machine, not a setup-time guarantee. The repository identifies SQLDoom’s source as GPL version 2 or later; that does not make retail game data freely redistributable.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Is running Doom in a database a practical idea?
Not for ordinary game development. The author characterizes rendering Doom in a database as a bad idea. The value is as a technical demonstration: SQLDoom puts database features to work on shared game state, set-based updates, rendering queries, transactions and access control. Its unusual architecture makes it interesting precisely because a database is not the conventional tool for this job.
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