While Microsoft announced way back at last year's E3 that Doom 3 is Xbox-bound, we've had very little in the way of details on it. Although the fact that development didn't start on the Xbox version of the game until last July - two months after it was first confirmed - may have something to do with this.

The game is reportedly not just a straight port of the PC original but has been partially rewritten specifically for Xbox. However, the game will retain the entire physics and lighting system of the PC game, while the hard drive will be used to handle textures and sound.

Developers id Software have also said that the Xbox is the only console currently capable of running Doom 3, with neither PS2 or Gamecube up to handling the game's graphics, lighting, sound and bump mapping (which simulates the bumps or wrinkles in a surface without the need for geometric modifications to a model).

As for the game's release date, we know only that the Xbox version is expected to hit shelves shortly after the PC game. Speaking of which, it has been reported that the PC version will go on sale in the US on 15 April, with a UK release to follow a day later. This date apparently stems from a source at the US sales department of publishers Activision.

However, the company have still yet to officially confirm a release date for the game and the idea that it'll be on sale in just seven weeks appears to be optimistic, at best. We'll keep you posted on Doom 3 though as soon as we hear anything.