An illustration of ESA's OPS-SAT cubesat in orbit (main); and a screenshot of the game 'Doom' played on the satellite triggered by a voice command sent from Earth. (Image credit: ESA/Tanagra Space)

A satellite went knee-deep in the dead, after a voice command from the ground activated the Doom video game in space.

Playing a first-person shooter from 1993 was obviously not in the design plan for the PRETTY cubesat , which is run by a consortium including the European Space Agency (ESA). But the pioneering voice command opens up new worlds for satellite work, the team says.

"Someone in distress at sea or in a remote area could transmit 'mayday' or "help" on a radio," stated Estonia's Tanagra Space, which supplied the software for the feat. The hope is one day, a satellite could use transcription and AI to alert rescue services for assisting folks in remote zones.

The call to play Doom, thankfully, had no other urgency than curiosity — and teamwork, fueled by pizza.…