‘Doom’s legendary composer Bobby Prince has died, aged 81

Bobby Prince, the legendary game composer behind iconic Doom, Duke Nukem and Wolfenstein soundtracks, has died aged 81.

Robert Caskin Prince III, known professionally as Bobby Prince, passed away on Tuesday (June 16) after battling an undisclosed illness, his family has confirmed.

“His innovative work helped define an era of gaming and influenced generations of players around the world. Through his compositions and sound design for landmark titles including Doom, Doom 2, Wolfenstein 3D, Rise Of The Triad, and Duke Nukem 3D, Bobby helped establish video game music as a respected art form,” reads his obituary.

The Video Game Industry gave Prince a Lifetime Achievement Award for his work and in 2026, his soundtrack for Doom was selected for preservation in the Library Of Congress.

“While many throughout the world will remember Bobby for the music and soundscapes that helped define a generation of gaming, those who knew and loved him personally will remember something even greater: a man of talent, integrity, humility, faith, laughter, and love whose greatest joy was sharing his wit and wisdom with family and friends,” his family added. “Bobby Prince’s legacy lives on through his music…his love lives on
through our hearts.”

RIP Bobby Prince. He was 81 years old and passed on Tuesday.

I received a DM from Joe Siegler last night with a link to Bobby's obituary (it is linked here): https://t.co/SaBDXOM6ui

Bobby was the epitome of a southern gentleman. Residing in Tennessee he had a smooth southern… pic.twitter.com/lOH9Duv5yJ

— George Broussard (@georgebsocial) June 19, 2026

“He made music that will live forever. RIP to one of the realest to ever do it,” wrote one fan on X. “Rest in peace king. You inspired so many,” said another.

“Thank you from the bottom of my heart for the fantastic music you created for my favorite childhood video games. Even today, after all these years, I find myself humming them, and they still fire me up just like they used to,” wrote one fan in his online guestbook. “The incredible music he wrote for video games was the soundtrack to my childhood, and one of the reasons why I play instruments to this day. I hope he knew how many people he impacted,” said another.

“An inspirational man who kickstarted my love for music from afar. His work is loved by many to this day, and even in his absence, our roots in creative works will always be with him. His work on DOOM forever laid the groundwork for a legacy that truly will never die,” wrote another fan.

The legendary Bobby Prince who composed the music for the original DOOM games and many more classic games has unfortunately passed away

His memory and music will live on forever pic.twitter.com/XRLcGL43VY

— The DOOM Dominion (@TheDoomDominion) June 19, 2026

We're sad to inform you that one of the greatest videogame music composers, Bobby Prince has past away on June 16th. Bobby composed music for many games like Doom, Duke Nukem, but also for BioMenace – and he allowed us to use it for the Remaster. We're happy we got to know him.

— Rigel GW | BioMenace Remastered (@RigelGameworks) June 19, 2026

Sad news, if you're a gamer of a certain age you'll have 100% heard Bobby's work – hell of a contribution to the games industry – RIP https://t.co/NQ4q3SbQLC

— Reaver (@agereaver) June 19, 2026

Rest in peace Bobby Prince, we are all very grateful that he brought us these works of Games. https://t.co/jERPGG1Qnn

— cunning fox (@cunningfurry) June 19, 2026

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