When I need a work break, I play the original Doom on Proton Drive and so can you

When I take a break from my workflow, sometimes I just want some fun entertainment. During breaks, I like to play the old-school original Doom. I can play it directly in my browser, and no downloading is required. If you remember this classic or want to check out the hit game from the '90s, you can play it too. Either way, it's a fun way to unwind between workflow sessions. You don’t even need a Proton account to play it.

Doom is a long-running franchise with the first version available on store shelves in 1993. Some may remember playing it on an IBM PC with a 386 or 486 processor. The original only required a 386 with 4MB of RAM and the DOS 4.0 operating system. We’ve come a long way since then, and can now play retro games in a browser on a PC or a phone. Proton is offering this as a preview of .wad files, that you can click and play. Of course, this isn’t like the modern versions in the Doom franchise. Don’t expect stunning graphics like those of Doom: Dark Ages. This is the original, featuring graphics that will either make you laugh because you're young or evoke nostalgia. Whatever the case, let’s get to it.

Original Doom via Proton Drive

There is no account or download required

Launch a new tab and head to Proton’s Doom page, and click the Click To Play Doom.wad file. Playing the game is straightforward, using w, a, s, d to move, to fire, and the arrow keys to look around. There are other controls; you can view them in the text file provided or on Proton’s support page. Once you start playing, you can customize the keys and mouse buttons you use. It’s an OG FPS where you run, jump, collect health points, and blast monsters. Check all the levels and items until you find the Easter egg that allows you 12 months of a Proton subscription at a discount.

It offers the sentiment of the original game, but with a more responsive experience than your struggling IBM 386SX could provide. When you start playing, you’ll immediately note the glaring difference in how video game graphics were compared to what was available then and what we see in 2025.

The old-school game comes with matching graphics and audio. It features the original soundtrack and audio effects, which were slightly better than those of a Nintendo or Sega at the time. With Proton offering Doom, it’s easy to bookmark the game, or I pin a tab so I can mouse over to play it when I need something else or have fun while the boss isn’t looking.

Proton encrypts all your data

Secure storage with free and paid plans that have a lot to offer

While you don’t need an account to play Doom on Proton Drive, you might want to look into it. The cloud-based storage service offers end-to-end encryption for all your data. Your files are encrypted while in transit, in storage, or when shared. I urge my friends, family, and colleagues to create at least a free Proton account so I can share files with them securely. In addition to Drive, a subscription provides Mail, Calendar, Docs (part of Drive), VPN, Wallet, and ProtonPass. All services are protected with end-to-end encryption and are not difficult to use. Its service is based on a zero-knowledge architecture, meaning only I can see my files, emails, and passwords.

If you want to try the service out, you can create a free account, which provides limited capacity, including 1 GB of storage for Mail and 5 GB of storage in Drive. It allows you three personal calendars, a VPN with limited servers, a Proton Pass vault, and more. It also divides each of its services into varying tiers. So, for instance, you can pay for Proton Drive only and still have access to the free account. I started with a free Proton account and later switched to the unlimited plan. I migrated from Outlook to Proton and haven’t looked back.

Playing the original Doom during a break is fun

I was barely out of high school when Doom launched and was jealous of friends who were already playing it. I enjoy seeing this type of retro game online, reliving the experience. I am no longer a gamer, but Doom was a raging hit when everyone still had desktop computers with CRT monitors.

I’ve been using Proton for some time now, and happened to stumble upon this original version of Doom. I thought it was a bonus from being a premium subscriber, but was surprised to find out that anyone with the link could play. This is a brilliant and exciting way to introduce newbies to the Proton service. By offering the original Doom on Proton Drive, the company notes that it's an experiment and says, “Why not?”