Doom co-creator making virtual reality games for Oculus Rift

Industry veteran John Carmack, who co-created esteemed franchises like Doom and Quake, is working on game projects at Oculus VR, the team behind the Oculus Rift virtual reality headset. The news comes from an Engadget interview with executives at the company, who confirmed internal game development is happening at the outfit.

"[Carmack's] working on a lot of exciting tech," Oculus VR CEO Brendan Iribe said. "But, his heart and soul and history certainly lies in the game development side."

Carmack and his development team are working on unannounced software that will highlight the Oculus Rift's functionality. "You gotta eat your down dog food here, and develop internal content also," Iribe said.

Carmack quit id Software in November to take a full-time job at Oculus VR.

He explained that over the next year, Oculus VR will add a number of game development-focused positions to its careers page. "Pay attention to that page and you'll see more and more game developers showing up," Iribe said.

Oculus VR is also working with third-party developers for new software, and has even hired former Electronic Arts veteran David DeMartini to lead that charge.

"When we catch on to a nugget that seems like it should become a full experience, we may end up doing it ourselves. We may end up putting it out and working with a third-party studio that does," Iribe said. "We've actually started to engage with third-party studios like that through the relations group, the publishing group, as well as our own development."

Lastly, at CES 2014 this week, Oculus VR showed off its latest Oculus Rift prototype. Called "Crystal Cove," the unit offers improved resolution from its 1080p OLED screen. The 3D headset's most impressive innovation, however, is its new real-position tracking system that utilizes an external camera and promises to eliminate motion smearing.

For more, check out our video coverage of the headset below.