The ongoing issue with DOOM Eternal‘s soundtrack has taken a turn with id Software’s Marty Stratton (executive producer on DOOM Eternal) publishing a lengthy statement on Reddit regarding the situation.

If you’re in need of a refresher, Mick Gordon was frustrated with DOOM Eternal‘s final mix, claiming that he edited and mixed only 12 of the 59 tracks on the soundtrack, with the remainder being edited by id’s Lead Audio Designer. This has led to speculation that Bethesda had put pressure on Mick to deliver his mixes before he finished them, and was also the reason why the soundtrack wasn’t released alongside the game. According to Stratton, this isn’t the case.

It seems that the issues began with Mick Gordon not being under contract by id for the soundtrack when they had announced it at E3 last year. Eventually, id and Mick worked out a plan to deliver the OST by early March. The agreement asked Mick to deliver a minimum of 12 tracks. The agreement also gave him complete creative control over what he delivered.

By February 24, Mick reached out to id saying that while he and his team were fine with the terms of the agreement, “there was a lot more work involved than anticipated”, and asked that he be given an additional four weeks to get everything together. As compensation, he offered that he would provide additional tracks and a run-time over two hours, “including all music from the game, arranged in soundtrack format and as he felt it would best represent the score in the best possible way.”

Mick’s request was granted, with a new final delivery date of mid-April. id announced the delay of the soundtrack for the CE in early March. However, as time went on, id grew concerned that Mick wouldn’t deliver on time, and id Software’s lead audio designer, Chad Mossholder, was asked to create a backup OST from what Mick had delivered so far (just in case). After discussing with Mick and Chad, it was decided that they would “combine what each had been working on to come up with a more comprehensive release.”

Eventually, when it came time for the deadline, Mick had only delivered nine of the twelve tracks, with one specifically made for combat. Mick stated that that the additional tracks he was trying to deliver were the other combat tracks, and again suggested that if more heavy tracks are needed, Chad’s tracks could be used to flesh it out further. Eventually Mick delivered two additional tracks, with the third being saved “as a bonus later on”.

The result, as fans know, was the soundtrack being released April 19, and those fans noting the differences in the tracks Mick had worked on compared to Chad’s, and Mick’s response. That response, along with other messages, “has generated unnecessary speculation and judgement” according to Stratton, resulting in Chad being targeted by fans. According to Stratton, Mick agreed that the attacks on Chad are “distressing”, but also that Mick has done nothing to “change the conversation.”

The letter goes on to say that Mick and Stratton eventually did talk, and Mick expressed his frustration with the edits Chad had done with the tracks. “That said, from [id’s] perspective, we didn’t want to be involved in the content of the OST and did absolutely nothing to prevent him from delivering on his commitments within the timeframe he asked for, and we extended multiple times.”

At the end of it all, Stratton stated that id are currently working on DLC for DOOM Eternal, and “won’t be working with Mick on the DLC”. This also insinuates that Mick and id won’t be working together for the foreseeable future.

Mick has yet to respond to this letter, but it certainly paints a different picture than one we were initially led to believe.

DOOM Eternal is out now on PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. No release date has been announced for the as-yet-untitled DLC.