Identifying ALL physical releases of DOOM? - Official retail, mail order, big boxes, floppys, CD-ROMs, etc

[Doomkid]

I was wondering if my fellow Doom nerds would be willing to help me compile a full list of known / authentic pressings of Doom, Doom 2, Final Doom and any other official Doom materials.

 

TheUltimateDoomer666 compiled an incredibly useful list of official retail versions from the 1990s HERE. I'm mostly interested in versions for computers, sold on floppy disks and CD-ROMs.

 

MobyGames actually has quite a lot of box, manual and CD/floppy scans. Most of them are pretty low-res, but it's incredibly helpful as a reference:

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/1068/doom/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/707/the-ultimate-doom/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/299/doom-ii/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/1561/final-doom/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/5287/master-levels-for-doom-ii/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/5963/id-anthology/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/5147/the-depths-of-doom-trilogy/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/12455/quake-and-the-ultimate-doom-compilation/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/5466/doom-collectors-edition/covers/

 

 

...you can match most of the scans found in those links with TUD666's list, which I've copied below for convenience:

 

Registered DOOM retail releases:

* Australia (4 x 3.5 inch disks in two-piece box. Distributed by Manaccom. No OFLC rating on cover.)
* Australia (4 x 3.5 inch disks in two-piece box. Distributed by Manaccom. OFLC rating on cover.)

 

DOOM II releases:

* DOOM II DOS 3.5" [US] (5 x 3.5" disks.)
* DOOM II DOS 3.5" [UK] (Distributed by Virgin Interactive. Two-piece box. ELSPA rating printed on rear [box and contents can also have BBFC stickers on them].)
* DOOM II DOS 3.5" [Italy] (Distributed by Leader Distribuzione SPA. "MANUALE IN ITALIANO" [manual in Italian] printed on box front.)
* DOOM II DOS 3.5" [Italy] (Same as above, but two-piece box.)
* DOOM II DOS 3.5" [Spain] (Uses ESRB rating.)

* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [US]
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [US/CAN ("MADE IN CANADA" sticker attached to rear of jewel case.)]
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM - Bundled with CyberPad Interactive Adventure Multimedia PC Gamepad [US]
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [AU] (Small OFLC logo.)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [AU] (Large OFLC logo.)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [AU] (Distributed by Sega-Ozisoft. Jewel case with front insert only. Unknown source. OFLC sticker attached to rear of jewel case.)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [UK] (Distributed by Virgin Interactive. Two-piece box. ELSPA rating printed on rear [box and contents can also have BBFC stickers on them].)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [UK] (BBFC rating printed on front and rear of the box, as well as on the disc. Manual pages are in black and white.)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [France] (Distributed by Virgin Interactive. Two-piece box. ELSPA rating printed on rear [box and contents can also have BBFC stickers on them].)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [Germany] (Uses ESRB rating. "Mit deutscher Anleitung!" [with German manual] printed on box front.)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [Italy] (Distributed by Leader.)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [Italy] (Distributed by Leader. Two-piece box.)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM [Spain] (Uses ESRB rating.)
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM - Replay [UK]
* DOOM II DOS CD-ROM - Replay [EU - Spanish, Italian, Dutch]
* DOOM II Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [US] ("$10 Rebate Upgrade Offer! See back" printed on box front; "$10.00 CASH REBATE!" printed on box rear.)
* DOOM II Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [AU] ("$10 Rebate Upgrade Offer! See back" printed on box front; "$10.00 CASH REBATE!" printed on box rear.)
* DOOM II Windows 95 CD-ROM [US] (Box front does not mention DOS version; DOS ver. still listed in system requirements on side of box.)
* DOOM II Windows 95 CD-ROM - Platinum PC [AU] (Box front does not mention DOS version. OFLC rating is on the lower right of the cover.)
* DOOM II Windows 95 CD-ROM - Platinum PC [AU] (Box front does not mention DOS version. OFLC rating is on the lower left of the cover.)

* DOOM II Mac 3.5" [US] (7 x 3.5" disks.)
* DOOM II Mac CD-ROM [US]
* DOOM II Mac CD-ROM [UK] (Distributed by Virgin Interactive. Two-piece box.)

* DOOM II Windows 95 CD-ROM - 2001 re-release [US] (Jewel case. Sys. req. printed on rear. This version was NOT released in a big box.)
* DOOM II Windows 95 CD-ROM - 2001 re-release [AU] (Keep case. Teal border with black title text on spine. Medium-large OFLC logo [long rectangle].)
* DOOM II Windows 95 CD-ROM - 2001 re-release [AU] (Keep case. Blue, white, and grey border with white title text on spine. Small OFLC logo.)

- Note 1: Different printings of the same release may not always come with the same paperwork. For example, certain printings of the big box release of DOOM II come with a notice that reads: "IMPORTANT! A printing error was made on the last page in the Instruction Manual where the DOOM II Tee shirt and cap are offered. The correct price for item # DSCI-1, the shirt and cap combo is $24.95. We are sorry for any inconvenience."

- Note 2: Some big boxes of the European CD-ROM version of DOOM II contain a gold sticker on the front that erroneously advertises the following feature: "Limited Edition: Includes 3 bonus episodes from the original DOOM" On other boxes, the sticker instead correctly reads as follows: "INCLUDES THE FIRST EPISODE FROM THE ORIGINAL DOOM"

- Note 3: Jewel cases from the North American IBM CD-ROM releases of DOOM II do not usually contain front cover inserts (most printings contain only back covers).


The Ultimate DOOM releases:

* The Ultimate DOOM DOS 3.5" [US] (5 x 3.5" disks.)
* The Ultimate DOOM DOS 3.5" [AU] (Same as US box but with OFLC sticker.)

* The Ultimate DOOM DOS CD-ROM [US]
* The Ultimate DOOM DOS CD-ROM [US/CAN ("MADE IN CANADA" sticker attached to rear of jewel case.)]
* The Ultimate DOOM DOS CD-ROM [AU] (Same as US box but with OFLC sticker.)
* The Ultimate DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [US] ("$10 Rebate Upgrade Offer! See back" printed on box front; "$10.00 Cash Rebate!" printed on box rear. "DOS Version Included!" _sticker_ attached to box front.)
* The Ultimate DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [AU] ("$10 Rebate Upgrade Offer! See back" printed on box front; "$10.00 Cash Rebate!" printed on box rear. "DOS Version Included!" _sticker_ attached to box front.)
* The Ultimate DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [US] (Box does NOT mention the cash rebate. "DOS Version Included!" _printed_ on box front.)
* The Ultimate DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [AU] (Box does NOT mention the cash rebate. "DOS Version Included!" _printed_ on box front.)

* The Ultimate DOOM Mac 3.5" [US] (7 x 3.5" disks)
* The Ultimate DOOM Mac CD-ROM [US]

* The Ultimate DOOM DOS 3.5" [EU - English, French, Italian, Spanish] (Two-piece box.)
* The Ultimate DOOM DOS CD-ROM [EU - English, French, Italian, Spanish] (Two-piece box.)
* The Ultimate DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [EU - English, French, Italian, Spanish]
* The Ultimate DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM - Replay [UK]
* The Ultimate DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM - Replay [France] ("5 T-SHIRTS PAR JOUR GAGNER" [5 T-shirts to win per day] printed on cover.)

- Note 1: Original printings of the US version of the Ultimate DOOM box include a large poster that depicts the DOOM cover artwork. This poster is absent from later printings. Shrink wrapped copies of The Ultimate DOOM box that contain the poster should have a red-and-white circular sticker attached to the shrink wrap on the front of the box. The sticker reads as follows: "FREE DOOM POSTER SIGNED BY THE DEVELOPERS". Please note that the signatures are printed (they are part of the poster's picture).

- Note 2: European versions of The Ultimate DOOM have a red demon cover.


Japanese releases of DOOM for computers:

* DOOM for PC-98 (6 x 5" disks)
* DOOM for PC-98 (3.5" disks)
* DOOM for PC-98 (CD-ROM)
* DOOM II for PC-98 (3.5" disks)
* DOOM II for PC-98 (CD-ROM)
* DOOM 3D Alien Busters for DOS/V (6 x 3.5" disks)
* DOOM II for DOS/V (3.5" disks)
* DOOM II for DOS/V (CD-ROM)
* DOOM II for Mac
* DOOM II for Windows 95 (2 x CD-ROMs)
* Final DOOM for Windows 95 (CD-ROM)


Master Levels for DOOM II releases:

* Master Levels DOS CD-ROM [US]
* Master Levels DOS CD-ROM [AU] (Same as US box but with OFLC sticker on front.)
* Master Levels Mac CD-ROM [US]

 

Final DOOM releases:

* Final DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [US] (Clamshell box with hinge.)
* Final DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [AU] (Same as US box but with OFLC sticker on front.)
* Final DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM - Platinum PC [AU]
* Final DOOM Windows 95 and DOS CD-ROM [EU - English, French, Dutch, Spanish, Italian] (Manual pages are in black and white.)
* Final DOOM Mac CD-ROM [US] (Clamshell box with hinge?)

 

The Depths of DOOM Trilogy releases:

* US (RSAC rating on box. Disc hubs are transparent.)
* AU (Same as US version but with OFLC sticker on front.)
* UK (BBFC and RSAC ratings on box. Some printings use _stickers_ for BBFC ratings. Disc hubs have labels printed on them.)
* Spain (Distributed by Friendware. No ratings on box. Disc hubs have labels printed on them.)
* DOOM Trilogy for RiscOS (Published by R-Comp Interactive) [UK]

- Note 1: European versions of the Depths of DOOM Trilogy box still show the North American box art for The Ultimate DOOM, despite the fact that the European versions of The Ultimate DOOM did not actually use that cover.

- Note 2: The Depths of DOOM Trilogy discs are slightly different from the discs included with the original releases of the games. Also, the discs' appearances differ depending on the region they are from. Notable differences are listed below.

US version discs:

- The Ultimate DOOM: Brown id logo on bottom of label, white compact disc logo on right of label.
- DOOM II: Brown id logo on bottom of label, white compact disc logo on left of label, "FOR WINDOWS 95" printed on label.
- Master Levels for DOOM II: White compact disc logo on right of label.

UK version discs:

- The Ultimate DOOM: Brown id logo on bottom of label, white compact disc logo on _left_ of label, _white GT logo on right of label._
- DOOM II: Brown id logo on bottom of label, white compact disc logo on left of label, _white GT logo on right of label._
- Master Levels for DOOM II: _Black_ compact disc logo on _left_ of label, _brown id logo and white GT logo (below "id") on right of label,_ white skull artwork on label _positioned differently._

Spanish version discs:

- Same as US version, except the disc hubs have the labels printed on them.

- Note 3: The manual from the US/Australian version of the Depths of DOOM Trilogy has "P/N 30059" printed on the back cover. In contrast, the manual from the UK version of this collection does not have any text printed on the back cover. Also, the UK manual's cover is made from a slightly thinner, glossier paper in comparison to the US/Australian manual's cover.


Quake and the Ultimate DOOM Compilation releases:

* UK (Includes Malice for Quake)
* France
* Germany
* Italy

 

DOOM - Collector's Edition: The Ultimate DOOM Trilogy releases:

Without DOOM 3 preview content:

- * big box with jewel case [US]
- * keep case [UK] (ELSPA and BBFC ratings both on cover)

With DOOM 3 preview content:

- * Small box with white CD sleeves (and/or transparent jewel case?) [US]
- * Jewel case Digipak with horizontal slipcase [US]
- * Keep case Digipak with vertical slipcase [AU]
- * Keep case [UK] (Large BBFC rating. Discs have transparent hubs.)
- * Keep case [UK] (Small BBFC rating.) - * Keep case [UK] (PEGI rating.)

 

 

Mail order versions of Registered DOOM that I'm currently aware of were the following:

 

- Version 1.1, comes on 4 floppies with blue DOOM label.

- Version 1.2, actually 1.1 with an upgrade floppy. Assuming these were sold only shortly after 1.2 was released?

- Version 1.2, comes on 4 floppies with red DOOM label.

- Version 1.666, comes on 4 floppies with red DOOM label.

- Version 1.9, comes on CD-ROM.

 

^ All of these seem to have slight variations in things like color of the disks, as well as minor differences in whether or not the version number is printed on the disk, details like "disk 2 of 4" are present or not present, etc.

 

From version 1.666 onward, there seems to be substantially more uniformity (label is ALWAYS red and version number is ALWAYS present). Also, there were probably limited releases of 1.7 and 1.8 Registered Doom on floppy, though I haven't got any photos. Shareware discs from GT containing those versions are relatively common though.

 

If anyone can help me fill out this list even further and hopefully provide photos for each, that would be excellent.

[satan]

The patch disks had a pretty wide range, from versions 1.1 to 1.666 the last of the units to ship got patch disks; presumably until they ran out of the last of the old labels. *Edit, if you called id's 1-800 and you knew to ask for it or you had an issue with your game you could ask to buy a registered patch disk and they would have you mail a check to their office. Can't for the life of me remember the price but I think they where around $10 each. Maybe somebody else remembers more details

Edited November 20, 2022 by satan

[Dexiaz]

Illegal releases which distributed by pirates can be counted? There are a lot of them in different packs and standalone variations.

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

Edited November 20, 2022 by Dexiaz

[phoo]

This was a wonderful gift from friends of mine, here's some photos to contribute.

It's a DOOM II CD that was distributed by GT Interactive. I have the cd and case, no manual or other items (not sure of what other items would be normally included, I'm not too knowledgeable). Hopefully this is a useful contribution :)
 

Spoiler

 

Edited November 20, 2022 by phoo

[CyberDreams]

I've seen a few 5 1/4 registered copies before on ebay. V1.1 or v1.2 I believe (blue label, registered Doom). I've only seen a cd copy of a registered version of Doom recently though and it sold for quite a lot of money on the bay. I never knew one existed as I've only seen v1.9 in floppys a few times in pictures. Amazing list though!

[Doomkid]

Just realized that MobyGames actually has quite a lot of box, manual and CD/floppy scans. Most of them are pretty low-res, but it's incredibly helpful as a reference, and you can match most of the versions up with TheUltimateDoomer666's list in the OP:

DOOM

 

The Ultimate DOOM

 

DOOM II

 

Final DOOM

 

Master Levels

 

id Anthology

 

Depths of DOOM Trilogy

 

Quake & DOOM Compilation

 

DOOM Collector's Edition

 

Edit: MobyGames changed these URLs like one month after I made this list lol, the fuckers. Here's the updated links..

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/1068/doom/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/707/the-ultimate-doom/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/299/doom-ii/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/1561/final-doom/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/5287/master-levels-for-doom-ii/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/5963/id-anthology/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/5147/the-depths-of-doom-trilogy/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/12455/quake-and-the-ultimate-doom-compilation/covers/

 

https://www.mobygames.com/game/5466/doom-collectors-edition/covers/

[cybdmn]

Try search on https://ogdb.eu, the site is in german, but have  much more detailed informations than Mobygames, and lots of scans and photos.

[Doomkid]

 

I decided to buy this because I've always wanted the mail order Doom box, all weird and tiny as it is.

 

I wouldn't mind some help from the local gurus though.. Obviously Disk 3 is a copied floppy, but are discs 1 and 2 legit, or disc 4?

 

The red/blue DOOM logos track, and everything about the labels seems legit, but the disks are this dark-red color? Never seen that on legitimate copies.. Then again, there's the recent infamous baby blue disk release, so who really knows anymore?

 

Furthermore, the manual is not in fact the original mail order manual, but the Manaccom release version (Aussie version) which has a plain black back and misspells Paul Radek as "Raydek". Still cool to have, but this collection is definitely cobbled together from multiple sources. The Manaccom manual makes me think disk 4 also came from a Manaccom box originally, as the Aussie releases tended to have that "dot matrix" font seen right below the Doom logo.

 

Were some of the mail-order copies sent to Aus red? Were some of the Manaccom releases red? There only seems to be a handful of photos of any of these releases on the net, making identifying things with certainty that much harder.

 

Anyway, all input appreciated!

[cybdmn]

Did you have tried to install it from these copies? Resellers seemingly have changed the label prints over time, if they had a new version for example. So the red an blue label prints may come from different versions.

[Vermil]

I'd say only Disk 4 looks to have an authentic label; why would an official release have any pen writing on it?

 

Never seen any red floppies for Doom though, only black personally.

Edited January 6, 2023 by Vermil

[Doomkid]

It's hard to say, because mail order versions of 1.1 and 1.2 seem to have had SO many different minute differences - whether or not the disk is numbered, which itself is done in several different fonts, sometimes it specifies "Regsistered" and sometimes it does not, sometimes a version is specified while other times it isn't, sometimes (if numbered) it says "Disk 2 of 4" while other times it says "Disk 2/4" or simply "Disk 2", sometimes the labels are flipped upside down, and even in rare cases (and seemingly depending on the country) coming in non-black floppy disks.

 

All of these are believed to be genuine copies of registered Doom, and most of them - with the exception of ones sold by Manaccom in Australia - were indeed sent via mail order. Or at least that's the story!

 

 

 

 

 

Looking at these photos, you can probably see why I suspect disks 1 and 2 are legitimate and belong together, and also why disk 4 is really legitimate looking, but clearly from a different pack originally. But the fact that they're dark red is strange as well.. the presence of blue disks above (and some blue / red upgrade floppies from 1.1 --> 1.2 that were packed in sometimes) makes me think they might really be authentic, and just uncommon examples of non-black disks, maybe only ever sent to the Australian market..?

[cybdmn]

They may be not even sent to australia, they may be produced there. I can clearly identify one floppy there which have "Vollversion" printed on the label, which is german for full version, and i highly doubt that these where produced elsewhere than in germany itself. More so, if you consider the costs and the trouble to send vast amounts of these throughout the whole world, with all these different customs regulations. I am pretty sure that id had contracts with local partners, who produced the copies by themselves, and just payed a certain amount of money to id, depending on the amount of copies sold.

[Doomkid]

That sounds like a very reasonable theory, and would also explain why the labels vary in minor ways and why in rare instances different diskette colors were used. It seems like things got much more uniform from 1.666 onward as well, the labels are always red from that version on, whereas there seems to be a mix of red and blue for both versions 1.1 and 1.2.

[Quasar]

47 minutes ago, Doomkid said:

That sounds like a very reasonable theory, and would also explain why the labels vary in minor ways and why in rare instances different diskette colors were used. It seems like things got much more uniform from 1.666 onward as well, the labels are always red from that version on, whereas there seems to be a mix of red and blue for both versions 1.1 and 1.2.

1.666 is when GTI took over this stuff from id, given their contracts to handle Doom II, which also resulted in handling Ultimate Doom, Final Doom, Master Levels, Heretic: SoSR, and Hexen.

[Doomkid]

You know, I kind of want to try and reach out to Jay Wilbur and ask how they handled the logistics of mailing out pre-1.666 Doom. We all know mail order was an option for most countries around the world who had access to Doom, but I have to imagine trying to wrangle multiple contacts around the world pre-GT was an enormous pain in the ass.
 

Just checked the Wiki and it looks like they deliberately sabotaged their relationship with GT (for good reasons) with Quake, but regardless I’m so curious about the ins and outs. It looks like they kept at least some ties to Apogee post-Wolf and there are some earlier Doom disks out there that say Apogee, as seen above. Can’t help but wonder if they had some sort of low-stakes deal with them to do some of the initial mail order stuff prior to GT coming into the picture, and possibly having some other similar contacts around the world for the intentional stuff. (Edit: I doubt this in hindsight, Joel's observation about the Apogee thing makes way more sense.)
 

Would be interesting to lay some of the small remaining questions to rest, assuming anyone at id circa 93/94 even remembers any of the details. Romero is ultra-reliable for the software side of things or funny old office tales, but even he seemingly lost some trivial details over the years - I mean honestly, who wouldn’t - for example that Doom and Doom 2 had post-1.666 floppy releases all the way through 1.9 (I vividly remember him saying they “switched away from floppy to CD for Doom 2” - though even then maybe he’s just referring to the primary means of selling the game, and didn’t mean to imply that they had gone cold turkey on floppy disks.)

[ShallowB]

I have no new information to add since the only Doom floppies I’ve ever actually had were copies (sorry Id! We bought Wolf3D at least!) but those red disks are really cool.  Reminds me of the special red cart Doom 64 came on.  Good to know the original did that little detail first!

[Murdoch]

As i have said before, i suspect most of these colour variants can be explained away by local distributors using whatever discs and labels they had to hand to make copies to fill orders. I doubt id shipped discs directly but may have shipped labels.

 

The Apogee disc is weird though. They had nothing to do with Doom. I sincerely doubt it's genuine.

[Boaby Kenobi]

4 hours ago, Murdoch said:

The Apogee disc is weird though. They had nothing to do with Doom.

 

That's not entirely accurate.

 

 

[cybdmn]

7 hours ago, Boaby Kenobi said:

 

That's not entirely accurate.

 

I may be wrong, but i think i read somewhere that Apogee sold Doom, but had nothing to do with it other than being a reseller just like other companies. But maybe i got that mixed up with Spear of Destiny. Maybe one of the ex Apogee guys can clarify this.

[Murdoch]

14 hours ago, Boaby Kenobi said:

 

That's not entirely accurate.

 

 

 

Ok kind of awkward to read that. What's the actual source because i can't find it in spite of multiple searches. Every search i do says no they weren't.  

 

Even if they sold it they would have been no more deserving of major credit than any of the other random distributors.

 

I do remember seeing them mistakenly credited sometimes because i think some people just assumed they were involved due to Wolf3D. 

 

Here's a list games they sold or distributed...

 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Apogee_games

Edited January 8, 2023 by Murdoch

[Doomkid]

Although it proves nothing, here are some more disks suggesting some kind of link between Apogee and Doom at some point, though I'm starting to wonder if other distributors were mistakenly crediting Doom "to" Apogee, due to the old Wolf3D relationship as Joel mentioned above.

 

[Murdoch]

49 minutes ago, Doomkid said:

though I'm starting to wonder if other distributors were mistakenly crediting Doom "to" Apogee, due to the old Wolf3D relationship as Joel mentioned above.

 

It's certainly plausible it was due to careless but well meaning distributors. I did consider it initially but discounted it, thinking id would be double checking that type of thing. But back in the day id were very much still "cowboys" and it's plausible they didn't think about things like "making sure our distributors credit us properly on our discs".

[Murdoch]

6 hours ago, Doomkid said:

 

I just noticed the system requirements on this. Good luck getting Doom to run on 640k. Reads more like Wolfenstein 3D requirements. A carelessly edited and repurposed label design perhaps? That would explain the mistaken credit to Apogee too.

[Doomkid]

Wow, didn't even notice that, and I think you definitely may be onto something - looks like Disk 1 had the date correctly changed to 12/93, but the other disk mentions a date of 8/93 bizarrely, well before Doom's release, but well after Wolf3D was out. Even if your theory is wrong (probably can't be proven one way or the other) I'd say that's some solid detective work.

[Murdoch]

48 minutes ago, Doomkid said:

Wow, didn't even notice that, and I think you definitely may be onto something - looks like Disk 1 had the date correctly changed to 12/93, but the other disk mentions a date of 8/93 bizarrely, well before Doom's release, but well after Wolf3D was out. Even if your theory is wrong (probably can't be proven one way or the other) I'd say that's some solid detective work.

 

Did not twig that the numbers were the date initially so I think that confirms it. These are shareware discs from some random distributor, hastily mocked up using a pre-existing label template most likely from Wolfenstein 3D.

[Sneezy McGlassFace]

I have nothing useful to say but this is damn fascinating read. Reaching out to Jay would be cool, makes me wonder how much of the process he can remember. Similarly with the Apogee staff. I don't even know if he's got public presence but if some form of contract is available, shooting a message his way sounds like a great idea. 

[deathz0r]

A friend of mine had sent me these photos a few years ago regarding their ex's copy (which I believe they sold) - unfortunately these are the best quality photos I have, since I just asked them if they had the original photos and they don't anymore. Still, time to throw another wrench in the list of disk labels:

 

 

and as a bonus, have the receipt as well, which shows a curious purchase date relative to the floppies:

 

Edited January 12, 2023 by deathz0r

[Callann]

Just signed up to contribute to this thread. It certainly is a minefield.

Dug out my box to upload some photos. Seems to be light on for versioning just the "31220.AUS" on disks 2,3 and 4.

 

[Doomkid]

It's starting to look like, although "blue label" DOOM disks were indeed common in the Manaccom releases, they were pretty much always disk 1, which further confuses the issue since my "blue label" disk is disk 4.

 

An extra weird thing about my "two red label, one copy, one blue label" collecton is that - aside from the obviously copied Disk 3, of course - there's actually a serial number printed on the disks themselves, that's consistent between the red and blue label ones. Lends even more credence to the idea that there were from the same Aussie distributor at the time..

 

I'm thinking that, whoever that distributor may have been, it was possibly a separate operation from the Manaccom boxes that you guys posted above, one that specifically handled mail orders rather than buying the box from a computer store. (Again, my evidence being that the blue label disks always seem to be Disk 1 in those collections - although also, as seen in deathz0rs pic, there's also more prime examples of non-black official floppies there too..)

 

Has it been confirmed beyond any shadow of a doubt that the "Paul Raydek" black-back manuals were included solely with the Manaccom releases, when it comes to Aussie versions of Doom? Or were they also used in mail-order copies for Australia? That manual having the typo and the non-red back is actually what got me thinking the blue disk came from a Manaccom box in the first place..

 

I'm still convinced the 3 of them in my collection are legitimate - the labels are just so much clearer and exactly on par with the labels on my Doom 2 floppies, which are official beyond any shadow of a doubt. Far above what lame consumer grade printers were capable of back then. Maybe they're just a few months apart in terms of production/sale date, which is why one has the blue label while the other two are red labels.

 

An extra weird thing in the photos deathz0r posted though - That receipt clearly says December 27th, 1993, but the disks pictured are 1.2 - which wasn't made until February of 1994 - and in fact, I can clearly see a 1.666 upgrade disk in there too, which was DEFINITELY not a thing until mid-1994!

 

Some kind of weird thing is going on there - either that receipt was somehow misplaced in the wrong Doom box somewhere along the way, or the floppies from a different box originally were put in that one later.. Might be a bit farfetched though, it's FAR more likely the result of a temporal disturbance causing two slightly different alternate realities to converge, one in where v1.666 was out by late 1993.

 

(Thank you BTW Callann for signing up to share those useful pics!)

 

EDIT: Just realized I never posted what version is on these disks, what a complete moron. It's version 1.2, and one thing seemingly mutually agreed upon by Doom collectors is that things got a lot more uniform post-1.666, so that could also explain away some degree of the general strangeness and inconsistencies with these 1.1 and 1.2 releases.

[Callann]

For completeness here's the back of my manual: