Doom Wads

In 2005 some .wad files supposedly created by Eric Harris surfaced on the net and have caused quite a bit of controversy. The truth is, they were given to a friend of mine named Chris by someone from Doom World, who had received them from another party who was only seeking to figure out their authenticity. Chris then emailed them to A Columbine Site and the maintainer immediately posted them on her website as being Eric’s creation. Despite numerous attempts to show her proof that these .wad files are fake, she has decided to keep them on her website and let people decide for themselves. The problem with letting people decide for themselves is that not many people have the tools or knowledge to analyze .wad files. So we will break it down for you!

The .wad files in question are:

realdoom.zip
hellfire.zip
outdoors.zip

Here’s Our Analysis:

REALDOOM.ZIP:
File size: 37.6k
Eric’s actual file size: unknown
Creation Date: August 20, 2005
Text File: missing
Status: fake

Eric created a file called REALDOOM.ZIP which is a patch for Doom. The file that was sent to A Columbine Site is a small .wad file. It also doesn’t work. It crashes just about everyone’s computer when it is loaded. The creation date is August 20, 2005 which is 5 days before it was received by A Columbine Site. Not to mention almost seven years after Eric Harris died. The file size, unzipped, is 37.6k which is too small for a patch that Eric supposedly spent more time on than others. This was a file that was so sacred to him that it was one of only two files he did not share on his website. This .wad file floating around is absolutely fake.

OUTDOORS.ZIP:
File size: 19.6k
Eric’s actual file size: 118k
Creation Date: July 17, 2005
Text File: missing
Status: fake
HELLFIRE.ZIP:

File size: 39.8k
Eric’s actual file size: it is unknown if there even IS a hellfire.zip file of Eric’s creation.
Creation Date: August 20, 2005
Text File: missing
Status: fake

So how does anyone know the truth about Eric’s Doom wads? Why do some people believe these wads could be real? It’s simple. They don’t play Doom and don’t know how to research the origin and authenticity of these files. Don’t be duped by fakes – you can always check the original creation date if you are uncertain!

Did you know?
Everyone wants to know if Eric really created a Doom .wad modeled after Columbine High School. Well, the .wad exists and it is modeled after CHS, but Eric didn’t make it on his own – Dylan did most of the work! Yes, that’s right – Dylan was an avid Doom level creator just like Eric. My source is a well-respected friend of mine (Joseph Stair, may he rest in peace) who was privy to being shown this .wad in person by Dylan at his house. He wasn’t interested in playing Doom and so he never obtained a copy of the file and the whereabouts of this wad are unknown.