Devil's Grip - A Boom compatible episode (RC1 RELEASED!)

[universal-quantifier]

Screenshots:

Spoiler

 

>> DOWNLOAD <<

(current version: RC1)

 

Devil's Grip is a project I started way back in 2015 (ouch) with the goal of making a "back to basics" kind of level pack - up to that point I had been making mostly heavily scripted UDMF monstrosities and I wanted to see what I could accomplish using nothing but stock Doom resources. The goal was to make levels that look and feel like classic Doom while adding some (hopefully) unique ideas of my own into the mix. The end result is something that's more reminiscent of 90s megawads like Memento Mori or Plutonia rather than contemporary material but I suppose that's not necessarily a bad thing; I'm sure there's still plenty of fans for this kind of content out there.

 

Burnout and lack of ideas pushed back the release by literal years but now at last I've got enough content for a public beta release. There are currently 8 new levels in total with a 9th secret level planned if I can figure out how to implement it on Boom-based sourceports (maybe possible through UMAPINFO?)

 

Difficulty is largely based around my own skill level which isn't terribly high so if you consider yourself a hardcore Doom expert I recommend going straight for UV. Enemy counts are relatively low by modern standards and there are no slaughter encounters but the maps should still provide a decent challenge on the higher levels.

 

Tested using PrBoom+, ZDoom and GZDoom. Doom Retro has some problems rendering the 3D bridge on MAP05 correctly but should be completely functional otherwise. (update: latest version fixes this issue)

 

Looking for test players, demos, feedback, bug reports and par time suggestions!

 

Credits:

Sky texture by elend

Music by Mark Klem (lifted mostly from MMMUS)

Everything else by me

Edited March 17, 2020 by universal-quantifier

[Egg Boy]

Thought the title was "Death Grip" for a second. Looks fun, I love Hell themed mapsets, so I'll give it a whirl when I can.

[bradharding]

10 hours ago, universal-quantifier said:

Doom Retro has some problems rendering the 3D bridge on MAP05 correctly but should be completely functional otherwise.

Hi. I'll look into fixing this. I know this occurs in at least one other map with a 3D bridge using the same texture (Vile, I think).

[garbaged]

Nice gritty vanilla feel with some challenging areas. 

 

I recorded blind demos of maps1-3 (3 unfinished, kept making dumb mistakes and pissing me off).  Recorded em with woof, they play back fine in woof and prboom+. https://drive.google.com/open?id=1S9c6IyOVWpMMQGdDjs-tPf_sOzfG79jx

 

I'll do more blind demos when less frustrated by my terrible playing! 

[Magicana]

Just a few quick things:

 

misaligned texture

 

 

S1 switches for this secret. can get stuck in this room.

 

 

can get stuck in this pain sector pit

 

 

stair rail lit differently

 

 

3 unmarked keyed doors

 

Pretty cool maps though.

[universal-quantifier]

11 hours ago, bradharding said:

Hi. I'll look into fixing this. I know this occurs in at least one other map with a 3D bridge using the same texture (Vile, I think).

Much appreciated! I was going to file a bug report but I guess that's not necessary anymore, lol.

 

7 hours ago, waveplay said:

Nice gritty vanilla feel with some challenging areas. 

 

I recorded blind demos of maps1-3 (3 unfinished, kept making dumb mistakes and pissing me off).  Recorded em with woof, they play back fine in woof and prboom+. https://drive.google.com/open?id=1S9c6IyOVWpMMQGdDjs-tPf_sOzfG79jx

 

I'll do more blind demos when less frustrated by my terrible playing! 

These were fun to watch, I'm actually impressed you managed to beat map02 without picking up the SSG at all.

 

7 hours ago, Magicana said:

S1 switches for this secret. can get stuck in this room.

Whoops. Well spotted.

Quote

can get stuck in this pain sector pit

This can only occur if the player has raised the bridges, but I suppose I could add some extra teleporters.

Quote

3 unmarked keyed doors

The key colors correspond to the torches placed next to the doors. Not clear enough I guess?

[Caleb13]

Really nice mapset, it's a shame you don't plan to expand it. I found some minor bugs while I played on UV in GZdoom 4.2.4:

 

MAP04: imp 176 is stuck in the floor.

 

MAP05: barred windows (linedefs 1224 etc.) are impassable for projectiles. Is that intentional?

 

MAP08: imps 150 and 153 are facing the wrong way.

[Salt-Man Z]

On 3/5/2020 at 11:40 AM, universal-quantifier said:

The key colors correspond to the torches placed next to the doors. Not clear enough I guess?

I like the idea of the torches, but from the screenshot, they aren't easy to see. What about altering the shape of the alcoves to make the torches more noticeable?

 

These maps look pretty sweet, bee tee dub.

[boom_compatible]

Tested with zdaemon, zdoom and gzdoom.

 

Multiplayer issues on zdoom/gzdoom: only 1 playerstart in some maps stop map progress in coop (zdaemon works different, so no trouble)

 

Maybe coop/survival mode issue: If a player die inside a gated trap, the player outside the trap is stuck forever and impossible to finish the map. Ex: map02 yellow skull/door and map03 blue skull/gate

 

Some texture issue: vertical align and size

 

Quote

"...Enemy counts are relatively low by modern standards and there are no slaughter encounters but the maps should still provide a decent challenge on the higher levels"

^^^^^^^^^^THIS!!! ~200 is the max for me!

[universal-quantifier]

On 3/7/2020 at 4:42 PM, Caleb13 said:

MAP05: barred windows (linedefs 1224 etc.) are impassable for projectiles. Is that intentional?

Yes - I didn't want the enemies outside to be able to snipe the player from miles away, or vice versa.

 

On 3/7/2020 at 11:09 PM, xor29ah said:

Multiplayer issues on zdoom/gzdoom: only 1 playerstart in some maps stop map progress in coop (zdaemon works different, so no trouble)

I haven't really given any thought at all to co-op yet, I'll add the missing starts in the next release.

 

Quote

Maybe coop/survival mode issue: If a player die inside a gated trap, the player outside the trap is stuck forever and impossible to finish the map. Ex: map02 yellow skull/door and map03 blue skull/gate

This should be easily solved just by making the switches repeatable. In fact the one in MAP02 already is IIRC.

 

Quote

Some texture issue: vertical align and size

This isn't what the textures look like to me at all, maybe some sourceport specific bug?

[Summer Deep]

Played this through as a bit of a filler between doing the Doom II Megawad Club levels (GLBoom+, UV, continuous). It's a lot better than 'filler' material of course, the general standard of maps being somewhat higher than those of the IWAD. General combat was challenging but not too difficult, but I still found myself below 50% health a lot of the time. I like the fact that so called 'damaging floors' didn't play an excessive part, and that progression was smooth flowing and not held up too much by puzzles. Secrets are hard to find, but not mandatory.

 

My only real beef with the wad was that it ended with an IoS, but that's just a matter of personal preference. It's not really that much fun being knocked off a pedestal for about the thirtieth time when you're just about to line up your target, but I managed to get it done on about the tenth attempt.

 

Edited March 13, 2020 by Summer Deep

[Rince-wind]

Damn that was a good wad! It's always good to see maps that can be challenging with few monsters like these. I don't even have any major issues with, I just wanted to let you know how much I liked it!

[Hurykles]

I just finished this wad....

Damn... what a ride. This is challenge i was looking for. Not easy but not plutonia hard. And that boss... i really like the idea of shooting centre of the arena. More room to dodge stuff :P

And is it me or this big fleshy thing looks simillar to one boss from System Shock 2?

 

[Breezeep]

Great stuff! Been getting Memento Mori vibes from this while playing. Always nice to see a short and sweet mapset pop up every now and then.

[universal-quantifier]

Thanks for all the feedback, it's great to see people enjoying this mapset! I've made an update that adds one more map and fixes several bugs; this will most likely be the last one before uploading the wad to idgames.

 

Download RC1 here

 

 

Changelog:

 

-Added MAP09: Lake of Fire (secret map)

-MAP04 extended to have a secret exit

-Added missing co-op starts

-Fixed softlock bugs on maps 2 & 3

-Texture alignment fixes across all maps

-Some minor balance adjustments

-Added RMAPINFO for Doom Retro users

 

Note that the secret exit won't work on versions of PrBoom+ without UMAPINFO support and will warp you back to MAP01 instead! I recommend using this fork if you want to play the wad with PrBoom+.

[Gredge]

Only played MAP01 so far (in Woof!) but it was super fun and right up my alley (love that 90's style) with just the right amount of challenge. Can't wait to play the rest!

[Bryan T]

This was fun, thanks for sharing.

[Magicana]

imp fell in bsp hole. math rounding error on angled lines causes holes in blockmap. Solution: 1) generate blockmap with finer grid detail. eg zokumbsp -bo=3 -n <in.wad> -o <out.wad> or 2) simplify angled lines in this area:

 

[MissMelee]

Pretty fun WAD. I played the Icon of Sin replacement map a couple of time until it stopped spawning Pain Elementals and Arch-Viles constantly and when the game isn't giving you terrible RNG that's a fun and creative final boss.

[Gredge]

I finished this a couple weeks ago and I think it's one of the best "classic-inspired" wads I've played. I've been playing through a lot of the classic late '90s megawads recently and this really captures that feel, while still being it's own thing. Luckily I didn't have a bad RNG for the IoS fight and I thought it was a very fun version of the final boss.

[Fuzzball]

Not really necroposting I hope- but I played this a few days ago on stream and it's very awesome! Competent and detailed enough, very fun!

Was able to sequence break on the house map though- it's possible to walk around the fence! :D Not game breaking though

[Woolie Wool]

I recently played this through in Woof, and it is absolutely excellent both as a late-'90s throwback and as a wad on its own merits. They really do capture some of the style of the Memento Mori series, but without any of the clumsiness that makes many MM/Requiem levels a drag to play, and amps it up with some Plutonia-bred viciousness.The third level might be my favorite, but all of them were very good, and the Icon of Sin puzzle with its eyes that have to be shot out is the first really novel IoS setup I've seen in a long time.