Text File
===========================================================================
Advanced engine needed : Vanilla-compatible
Primary purpose : Single play or Multiplayer
===========================================================================
Title : Computer Deathmatch 2.0
Filename : comp-dm.wad
Release date : 2013-03-09
Author : Sal Vinces (The Immortal); Simon Howard (fraggle)
Email Address : fraggle@gmail.com
Description : This is a repackaging and fix-up of "Computer
Deathmatch v1.6", an old Doom mod that simulates
playing Deathmatch using bots that are actually
dehacked-modified monsters. Despite being fairly
simple, the end result is actually quite fun to
play.
The original version of this mod distributed a
patched version of doom2.exe and included levels
that were modified versions of Doom II's levels.
I (fraggle) have therefore cleaned it up into a
dehacked patch, fixed a few bugs and included
some levels from FreeDM as substitutes for the
originals.
Additional Credits to : Sal Vinces (The Immortal) deserves most credit
for making the original mod. Rellik made the
levels for FreeDM that I've reused here. The
Freedoom project for the same.
===========================================================================
* How to play *
To play this mod properly, you need to run with the -respawn and
-deathmatch (or -altdeath) options. You then need to simulate a single
player network game. In Chocolate Doom and PrBoom, you can do this by
using the -solo-net command line option. In other ports simply start an
actual network game with yourself as the only player.
Example command lines:
chocolate-doom -file comp-dm.wad -deh comp-dm.deh
-respawn -deathmatch -solo-net
prboom -file comp-dm.wad -respawn -deathmatch -solo-net
I haven't tried this under DOS with actual Vanilla Doom, but it should
be possible. You'll need to apply the dehacked patch and replace
doom2.exe, then use "ipxsetup -nodes 1" to start the game (you'll need
networking and IPX drivers loaded to be able to do this).
* How to make your own levels *
If you really like this mod, here's how to make your own deathmatch
levels. You need a typical deathmatch level, although it has to be
fairly simple or the bots can get confused or stuck. The bots are
just Doom monsters that have been changed into marines. Each wields a
different weapon, so place the following in your level:
Trooper: Pistol (Green)
Sergeant: Shotgun (Green)
Chaingunner: Chaingun (Brown)
Imp: Rocket launcher (Indigo)
Arachnotron: Plasma rifle (Brown)
Cacodemon: BFG 9000 (Red)
At most one of each is usually enough. Like the BFG itself, the BFG
wielding marine can affect the balance of the gameplay. For the levels
I've included here, the BFG marine is kept in "reserve storage" and
only released (via a line trigger to open a door and a teleport) when
the player picks up a powerful weapon (like the BFG itself). You might
want to do the same.
* Included files *
comp-dm.deh
- Dehacked patch containing the bot behavior. This is also included
in the WAD as a DEHACKED lump, so if your source port supports
DEHACKED lumps you don't need to load this.
comp-dm.wad
- WAD file containing modified levels.
orig-dm.deh
- Dehacked patch that reproduces the original behavior of Computer
Deathmatch v1.6, without the bug fixes listed below.
orig-doc.txt
- Original documentation that was included with Computer Deathmatch
v1.6.
* Historical discussion *
The original base for this mod is a mod called "Computer Deathmatch
v1.6" (IMMYDM16.ZIP), by an author named Sal Vinces (The Immortal).
I've been unable to find any recent contact information for him. The
original mod was distributed in the form of a modified version of
doom2.exe and a set of levels, some of which were modified Doom 2
levels, and others modified versions of levels by other authors.
Analysis of the modified executable revealed that the changes were
limited to Doom's internal state/object tables and the modifications
could therefore be expressed as a simple dehacked patch. I used DOS
dehacked to load the modified executable and do just this.
To get a proper "deathmatch-like" experience with Vanilla Doom, you
need to start up a real network game. This is posible with ipxsetup
by specifying '-nodes 1', but to use ipxsetup you need a network card
and IPX drivers. The mod was therefore packaged with a NE2000 driver
(which it seems would load without an actual NE2000 present) and IPX
driver. The whole process was automated with a program called
"comp-dm.exe" which would do all the renamings, load drivers and run
the game with the right parameters.
There were a number of bugs in the original implementation which I've
fixed. Some of these are listed in the original documentation but it's
unclear if they were intentional or not - I'm assuming probably not.
The fixed bugs are:
* Problems with the death animations for some of the bots. The pistol
marine always slops, for example.
* Some of the marines showed the wrong "injured" animation frame.
* The rocket launcher marine can punch you at close range, but the
sound was the imp scratch sound.
* The BFG marine launched BFG balls that moved too slowly and did too
much damage (stomping you even if you had god mode enabled).
* The BFG marine fired silently.
Some discussion of the original mod can be found here:
http://www.doomworld.com/vb/source-ports/53474-immy-dm
===========================================================================
* What is included *
New levels : MAP01-MAP05
Sounds : No
Music : No
Graphics : No
Dehacked/BEX Patch : Yes
Demos : No
Other : No
Other files required : None
* Play Information *
Game : Doom / Doom 2
Single Player : Designed for
Cooperative 2-4 Player : No
Deathmatch 2-4 Player : Designed for
Other game styles : None
Difficulty Settings : Not implemented
* Construction *
Base : Dehacked behavior reverse engineered from the
contents of IMMYDM16.ZIP. Levels are from
FreeDM.
Known Bugs : None of the marines wields a chainsaw or SSG.
Most other bugs boil down to the fact that
the bots are monsters and not really players.
For example: some bots drop weapons and
ammo, killing them does not score a frag,
they will all gang up on you unless a stray
shot triggers monster infighting, they
always wield the same weapons and cannot
pick up new ones, etc.
* Copyright / Permissions *
Authors MAY use the contents of this file as a base for modification or
reuse. Permissions have been obtained from original authors for any of
their resources modified or included in this file.
You MAY distribute this file, provided you include this text file, with no
modifications. You may distribute this file in any electronic format (BBS,
Diskette, CD, etc) as long as you include this file intact. I have
received permission from the original authors of any modified or included
content in this file to allow further distribution.
--
Copyright (c) 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010
Contributors to the Freedoom project. All rights reserved.
Redistribution and use in source and binary forms, with or without
modification, are permitted provided that the following conditions are
met:
* Redistributions of source code must retain the above copyright
notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer.
* Redistributions in binary form must reproduce the above copyright
notice, this list of conditions and the following disclaimer in the
documentation and/or other materials provided with the distribution.
* Neither the name of the freedoom project nor the names of its
contributors may be used to endorse or promote products derived from
this software without specific prior written permission.
THIS SOFTWARE IS PROVIDED BY THE COPYRIGHT HOLDERS AND CONTRIBUTORS "AS
IS" AND ANY EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED
TO, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A
PARTICULAR PURPOSE ARE DISCLAIMED. IN NO EVENT SHALL THE COPYRIGHT OWNER
OR CONTRIBUTORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL,
EXEMPLARY, OR CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES (INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
PROCUREMENT OF SUBSTITUTE GOODS OR SERVICES; LOSS OF USE, DATA, OR
PROFITS; OR BUSINESS INTERRUPTION) HOWEVER CAUSED AND ON ANY THEORY OF
LIABILITY, WHETHER IN CONTRACT, STRICT LIABILITY, OR TORT (INCLUDING
NEGLIGENCE OR OTHERWISE) ARISING IN ANY WAY OUT OF THE USE OF THIS
SOFTWARE, EVEN IF ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.
* Where to get the file that this text file describes *
The Usual: ftp://archives.3dgamers.com/pub/idgames/ and mirrors
