The game was initially meant to be an official sequel to Wolfenstein 3D, appropriately called 'Rise of the Triad: Wolfenstein 3D Part II'. He immediately started working on Rise of the Triad, and had written the original design document by November the same year. He had been fired from id Software by John Carmack in early August 1993 due to differences in design.
The lead designer and creative director of Rise of the Triad was Tom Hall, and the game was his first project after Doom.