Pandemonium Speed Mapping Event!(Compilation wad Available + Contest Results!)

[Steve88]

Posting to let everyone know the results are up! In the original post
The judges will be posting the reviews relatively soon.
Thanks again Everyone!

[Walter confetti]

Good!

[baja blast rd.]

Hey everyone.  Internally, we used ratings to help weigh maps against one another, so my notes refer to those at times. In the end we decided not to post those, because selecting winners and judges' picks was easily enough -- and of course it's no fun having the lowest rating.

 

"Loathe Perfection" by BluePineapple72 was my personal favorite, as the original post now says. Also I liked Hellish Madness by Roebloz (especially version 1) for being pretty much a "my first map" in apparent looks/design, but still being amusing as fuck. Like, part of the beauty of speedmapping is stuff like that can happen. Outside of the top three we decided on, and "Loathe Perfection," that was my second favorite.   

 

The grading criteria I wrote up before doing it: 

 

Spoiler

Brief notes on ratings: 

 

I'm not the biggest fan of numerical ratings, but okay, we need stable metrics, so sure. 

 

My grading in the 'creative use of gimmick' section is going to be skewed towards some mix of the best-used and most prominent gimmicks in any given map. I don't feel it's right to dock points for the 4th most important gimmick in a map or whatever being mostly insubstantial, for example. It's also possible a gimmick might be used in a very subtle way that guides the design but doesn't register much in play. I eventually stopped discussing every single gimmick a map uses in the comments if I didn't feel it'd be that interesting to write about it.

 

Aesthetics are 'for a speedmap'. Honestly it's very unlikely I'm going to hand out any super low ratings in this category unless the mapper does something intentionally offensive.

 

Gameplay is 'for a speedmap' too: I'll consider most stuff without much of a curve in terms of how much I enjoy it, but acknowledge that everything will be simpler and more straightforward in concept/design than in a regular map. I do think you can make decent or even good encounters in a short time as long as you take a quality > quantity approach -- which is not necessarily low monster counts but mapping for a short-ish runtime. What I'll forgive are fluky bugs and miscues that are mostly just chance whether you have them or not in a 8-hour map. A 'fluke' is basically something that can't reliably be predicted and can't reliably be caught without more hours of playtesting than are possible here. So I'm basically considering the gist more than being ultra-nitpicky about tiny nuances. 

 

The ratings might end up skewed towards the high side, compared to idgames reviews they'd get if you just packaged a speedmap as a standalone release. But it makes sense for that to happen anyway.

 

I'm also going to try to focus on constructive feedback.

 

I mostly played and wrote up my thoughts as maps were individually submitted over the first nine days of the month, otherwise there's no way I would have managed to write this much total feedback. That is here: 

 

Spoiler

 

- Dino Spasm (Clippy)

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
The way the exit is teased in the middle with the archvile you shouldn't really kill at any point before the exit is pretty well done. The barrels feel awkward to use in a very efficient way at times, but that isn't necessarily a big knock, as the onus is put on the player to pull off the maneuvers needed to herd monsters next to them. 

 

Aesthetics: 
The downsides here are there are a lot of rectangles, and the map is uniformly lit and pretty uniformly textured. Aesthetics can be hard to pull off in such a short time unless you've really learned specific skillsets, so it's not much to be sad about. One lower-energy way to improve the look of this map of a map like this would be to play around with lighting and area shape more. 

 

Gameplay: 
I found this mostly entertaining. The best part, again, was the central archvile, who always exerted some kind of pressure as you navigated through the middle and into the side areas. Using the 25-monster restriction, fights are brisk and enjoyable and often choreographed interestingly. I'm not the hugest fan of all those secret crates, as humorous as it is to have 40 secrets (!) -- because it gets tedious to grab so many of them. And the mastermind at the end was just a SSG camp fight, although this is a case where the reveal is amusing/surprising enough, and the map short enough, that I still got a kick out of it. 

 

- PanDYNAmonium (DynamiteKaitorn) 

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
You can see the exit from the start, but that is about it, and it's not a given that you might look out that window. On the plus side, though, it is a neat design element and one of the strongest aspects of the map layout. 

 

Aesthetics: 
A good amount of effort is invested here. At times, it is rough (especially alignment and seam transitions) and doesn't offer a lot over 'square-ish rooms connected by doors' in either concept (what a map's aesthetic identity is -- setting, narrative, interesting theme, or whatever else) or craft (how it is designed: stuff like texturing and detailing and architecture and geometry, etc.). Usually you want at least one of those two.  Still though, it can be interesting to look at, especially the dark crate maze. Coarse lighting variation is especially useful in speedmaps because it allows you to add some minimal level of visual interest with a relatively small amount of time. Like everything, doing lighting *really well* takes time. But with lighting, you can reap like half of the benefits at a tiny fraction of that time, which is a rare dynamic for any design element to have, so take advantage of it.  

 

Gameplay: 
Big boosts for daringness here. The crate hopping section is my favorite in the map -- not because I necessarily love those, but because I tend not to yet you made this pretty enjoyable. The blue-key invul fight is silly, escalating the monsters/weapons well past the very chill lead-up, but that is not a negative: it's enjoyable, and if there's any time to be silly it's in a speedmap. Points of improvement: I wasn't a huge fan of fighting single cacodemons in the crate maze with a weak weapon, and the stuff after the blue key door felt like door-campy filler. 

 

- Speed Barrel (TravyB)

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
I really like the way Barrels of Fun is redesigned. Rather than a straight-up rip, the familiar ledge setup is there but now paired with new concepts, like that overlooking cyb and other combat elements. The theme is different and fully realized too. The barrel runs are okay, imo they could have been more interesting tactically (barrels always in rows that are very easy to just run between). Barrels *and* Barrels of Fun is a bit on the nose, but no harm in that pairing. 

 

Aesthetics: 
I like how this looks. Basically it showcases the power of lighting in speedmaps [edit: looks like I'm repeating that a lot so far lol]. If you imagine these areas uniformly bright, apart from some architectural features and fireblu insets the map would be pretty basic. The lighting gives it a convincing mood. So, visuals get the job done. The occasional FIREBLU is actually quite pretty. That wasn't a stated gimmick but I'm guessing it influenced the design anyway. 

 

Gameplay: 
Hot-and-cold. I liked all the skirmishes and liked fending off the viles in the big satellite arena. Both of the bigger fights start out good but eventually grow very cleanup-intensive in their later halves, though. Sometimes when designing more slaughtery fights, there is 'meat overflow' -- the threats are gone but meat still exists -- and when that is the case, that cleanup has to happen at a point in the overall arc of the map, or play out in a way physically or cinematically, where it is really satisfying. I didn't feel that was the case here. The trigger-event mechanics the map is outfitted with are pretty clever. I liked the general flow and structure.

 

- Barrel Hideout (Soulless) 

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
One thing this map did uniquely among the field is have low-key versions of that barrel setup where, if you blow up a barrel upon entering a room, you're in harm's way, so you have to also navigate properly to a safe spot. I say 'low key' because a lot of the time people do this set up with a huge number of barrels, more of an overt Barrels of Fun thing. There are also setups where you can leave barrels around for a later trap, but at some risk to yourself. Both make this probably the best map from a conceptual standpoint at using the Barrel gimmick (whether all of that is indented or not). 

 

Aesthetics: 
In concept it's pretty barebones -- a grid-like boxy techbase -- but the texturing/alignment is clean and sophisticated enough that it feels like a finished thing. It also used some sensible texture selections if you're not going to be detailing all that much, such as the metal/pipe texture that has both an upper layer and a lower layer baked in.  

 

Gameplay: 
I found a lot of the traps pretty good here, especially the stuff at or around the keys. The archvile push-forward into the blue key section is smart. But there were some negatives that *really* hurt my enjoyment of the map. I think a lot of the action, though, suffers from the way the layout is connected: basically lifts (with short cycles too) and doors between every room, which makes any fights cross distinct two areas awkward. There's the potential for moments like 'use a lift, fire two shots at a caco, use lift again, repeat' where the action grinds to a halt. The doors in the map all take ages to raise, which again makes navigating awkward and is probably just the author's unfamiliarity with door timing. The exit trap -- a vile suddenly springs into you from behind, with a PE already grabbing your attention, in that room with no cover (and no way to run) -- is not so great imo. Don't be discouraged, though. I really think this is 'beginner mistake' territory, which means that you can be a lot better at it in a flash. 

 

- Breave Thin Focus (Austinado)

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
It does a lot and basically all of it is a positive in some way. What I interpreted as the 'puzzle' was the outdoor goodies on stilts. I mean, it's not a huge puzzle, but the fact that you do it during combat certainly adds a lot of flavor to it. I'm not reading the list of gimmicks until afterwards, so seeing the Focus-like crushers in-game was a fun little surprise. I think that one is the best. 

 

Aesthetics: 
Looks are pretty rough for reasons I have covered in a previous feedback post to the author: misalignments, messy texture seam transitions, and wallpapery texture-flat pairings. Don't feel bad about that, as a speedmap is certainly not where you're going to be improving those skills. If you are speedmapping, though, consider doing a lighting pass. Lighting is a great way to add visual interest during compressed timeframes, and you reap lots of benefits from it even when it's rough and dirty. The MIDI selection was pretty great, though, which is something I'm lumping under aesthetics. 

 

Gameplay: 
Honestly if this didn't start out with a bit of slog -- shotgunning a single manc and tron in a hallway, similar door-campy fights after revenants -- this would be pretty good. The archvile fights are fun, and I also liked the last area a bunch. The secret hunting is neat too. 

 

There's one element I found questionable (it's not as bad as the length of text suggests, I just have to be thorough, because this is more Mapping Theory now): It's a very good thought to show stuff like key doors before the player can use them, switches through windows, etc. -- you're positioning objectives so the player knows what they need to do before they do it. But this map does so much of that, too much. It feels busy.  Like, there are two key-strip doors, and also key switches in the start, and also a key-strip switch somewhere else... I would keep the idea of doing that (because it's very good), just cut down on it a bit. You arguably don't need the return to the start area to hit those switches, for example. Maybe make the doors usable instead. 

 

- Trap of the Pyramid (Pierrot) 

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
Even after reading the text and going back to the start of the map, I'm still not sure where it is being used. Better than nothing, though, is that numerous parts of the layout you have to get to are forecasted at various times. Generous interpretation, but that seems deliberate enough that it I'll count it. [Okay, I spotted it. I think in a map this extensive it might have helped a bit to hint at the exit from many other spots, too. It's almost a non-factor.]

 

Aesthetics: 
This is a really tricky map to think about aesthetically. On one hand, it shows that it's a speedmap: a pretty extensive layout for the time frame, but also pretty monotextured, which makes it dull to look at. On the other hand, the atmosphere and MIDI actually worked really well. This might be bordering on longer of an experience than most people should attempt to put together in eight hours, but lots of it worked well enough.

 

Gameplay: 
I'll clarify here that 'gameplay' isn't just combat, because if it were just combat, I honestly wouldn't like it so much: it gets better as it goes, but we start off, and generally continue, with very fillery-feeling stuff: 'room with hitscanners dotted around' / 'lots of imps'. Again it feels like biting off more than you can chew: a lot of content, but the content that is there isn't very polished. 

 

But what really really worked for me was the layout and progression! The way you crisscross over previous areas and navigate through those snaking side tunnels isn't just great "for a speedmap", it's great period. So [rating redacted, but it's high ;)] for a hit or miss experience? Well the hit really hit, so if the price of admission is 4 or so minutes dominated by fillery combat (in a map that took me about 9 minutes to beat), I'd consider that worth it. The way the rock texture is always a functional gameplay element was good too. 

 

- Portal to Puzzle Hell (Horus)

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
The way the bars raise around the exit as the floor drops is clever. And of course these puzzle concepts are *very* creative for the time span. [Not much text here but I gave it high marks.] 

 

Aesthetics: 
They get the job done quite well. There's always going to be a give and take in speedmaps: spend x hours doing one thing and you'll have 1-x to spend on another. So understandably they are secondary here, but there's a good work with various design techniques (like horizontal banding) and also texturing/lighting. 

 

Gameplay: 
Considering the 'for an eight-hour speedmap' part, this was very easily a 9/10 or 10/10 for me. A lot of the individual fights are simplistic (a monolithic group of one species) but the persisting radsuit pressure in the puzzle area holds all of those individual fights together very well as a larger challenge, and far more importantly, the stairstep puzzle was actually really good. Pure puzzles in Doom are flat-out tricky to do satisfyingly even when you have all the time in the world to map, so when something like that works for me here, I'm inclined to give it a big boost. 

 

What held it back: Unfortunately the teleporter-maze puzzle. At first, I didn't pay attention to the pattern at first at all (I don't think there's any indication that you should). When I realized I needed to, I had to IDCLIP back to the previous area (there's no teleporter). All of that wasn't very fun for me. Unfortunate, though, because this is close to being my favorite map. 

 

- Blast Compound (LateNightPerson)

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
Both of the gimmicks exist in the map, but not a lot is done with them. You see the exit early in the start area, but that isn't relevant at any point until you return to exit. Compare this to a map like Clippy's where the exit is teased basically all the time, or a map like Horus that stages its gimmicks with showmanship. 

 

Aesthetics: 
This looks pretty nice actually. Some rooms are a bit underdeveloped compared to others, all rooms are either rectangles or stringy hallways, but the texturing is good, and there are some nice little detail choices. MIDI choice was pleasant. Definitely not bad for a speedmap. 

 

Gameplay: 
There are some interesting scenarios but I'm not sure if any of the combat gelled. You're mostly fighting 1-3 monsters at a time in tight quarters without any notable tactics or (if you find the powerful secrets, which you should, because they are right there on the automap) resource management. But using that OP BFG on stuff was pretty fun, and I liked the dropdown into the hitscans after the baron/HK. I played this an unusual way: I didn't want to shotgun the archie so I went into the room with the HK/baron. I didn't want to kill those so I dropped into the room behind them. Then I found the BFG. 

 

Here's the kicker: I didn't notice the SSG at the start at all because it's obscured by those medkits, and seeing a mancubus over there, as well as a thin catwalk and a cyb on the side, pushed me away from running over there. I think those sources of discouragement are strong enough that I'm not considering my oversight a 'mistake' on my part. I think the map would have played a bit better by grabbing that -- but not tons better though, for me at least,  because I did enjoy the HK/baron evasion I was pushed to do without it.

 

- The Sexy Waifus of Henry VIII and the Fighters for FIREBLU Justice (Walter Confetti)

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
Being the first to do something as novel as using FIREBLU as a sky definitely counts as creative. I also thought the way the layout branches around the starting room, with multiple keydoors of each type, was pretty good. 

 

Aesthetics: 
It's pretty ugly, but in a deliberate way that I find quite memorable and mood-inducing: like the fast slabs of scrolling flesh, the aforementioned FIREBLU sky, the strobing light effects, the cement over blood, the battered walls. If this were a normal map, it'd really need better work, but since speedmapping makes it much more difficult to come up with memorable *ideas*, and this map succeeds at that, there are good reasons to look past the rough design in this format. 

 

Gameplay: 
The idea of a cyb you have to sneak past and later kill with the BFG is decent. I also liked having to down a group of chaingunners in the next room while using those pillars for cover. The monster placement in the rest of the map seems fairly lacking though -- it felt like mostly underpopulated areas against a player who is pretty overpowered. The YK archvile without cover is unnecessarily mean. 

 

- Fortress of Hate (Steve88)

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
A pretty wonderful recreation in concept, I think. There have been a lot of remakes of id maps, and I've seen a handful of those of e4m2, but not many that take a lot of the same elements and the rough idea of a challenge gauntlet like this, but do completely new things with it at every turn, to the point where it's dominated more by new ideas than by overt homages and even the homages don't seem too derivative. 

 

Aesthetics: 
There are areas where misalignments/etc. can be spotted, and individual rooms are all on the barer side, but if you consider the 'look' of the map not as individual rooms or areas, but as sort of a monolithic whole, it's pretty good and immersive/atmospheric. Idk, it just really makes me feel stuff! 

 

Gameplay: 
Okay, here's going to be where a lot of my objections lie. First, the combat could often be grindy, like, SSG-ing lots of cacos on their way to you, or picking off imps/pinkies on those ledges you have to drop down to. There are a lot of moments where the layout is pretty inconvenient to get around in. A good example would be the right-side wing's secret white teleporter near the normal red teleporter. To grab the secret and continue progression, you need to come here twice, and that involves navigating back to that area once in complete silence. Then you have to do the same thing if you want the YK. The non-secret resource balance is unpleasantly stingy at times, and the secrets maybe a bit too necessary for a comfortable experience -- especially with foreknowledge. The YK fight is very awkward if you happen to fall off the ledges before. The YK room is a bit odd to me in that the radsuit and the switch in there are both hard to spot immediately, so it's easy on a 'first attempt' to waste a lot of radsuit time in here, and you might not even have a radsuit coming in either.

 

Anyway, I liked a lot too -- basically most of the stuff not described above. My favorites include the secret-hunting, the platforming (especially that timed puzzle, which was really cool), and a lot of the smaller fights. My critique ran longer than usual just because this map has so much content. 

 

- Cyber-Panic (Man_With_Gun)

Creative use of gimmick:
A good starting point for using the 25 monster gimmick is to have a persistent threat that imposes serious danger on many legs of the progression, and well, that description fits like half of the map. It was done well too.

 

Aesthetics:
This is pretty fantastic, and honestly not because of the detailing, which is a lot of the empty 'detailer's detailing' type that doesn't do a lot, but because of basically everything: lighting, texturing, concept, a consistent theme. It reminds me a lot of a higher-detail (!) Resurgence techbase map. The view out into the crate warehouse is copypasta obviously but it looks really cool. 

 

Gameplay: 
Pretty good. It is hard to pick many faults. There are basically two things in this map if you really look closely: powerful overseers (viles, cybs) you can't kill immediately or directly and have to navigate around, and cramped combat. The resources and spaces are measured well enough to make that exciting without (imo at least) being crude. The crusher cyb fight is my highlight -- it's a really cool concept. 

 

- Hellish Madness (Roebloz) 

 

Creative use of gimmick:
The barrel situations are top-notch and I also liked the Entryway homages, which are mostly not that extensive, but idk, just pretty interesting to me. It's like the hallway after the start underwent a big hellification and dimension stretching. The RL room being there in a different form was a nice tough too.

 

Aesthetics:
It's very ugly -- using just three hours of the eight hour limit sort of handicaps you in that regard, compared to the others -- but that is only one part of the equation. I found it consistently very interesting to look at and just be in. It's bizarre and janky and offbeat in a fun way.  

 

Gameplay: 
Pretty straightforward stuff, but pretty fun! I finished in a little over two minutes, and that quick pace is a big part of why I enjoyed it. Blowing stuff up with those barrels is amusing. This map is unusual because if you just listed out its elements, I would expect a pretty rough map that I'd give a low rating. It definitely has a lot of hallmarks of a wacky beginner my-first-map (down to stuff like nazis and ZDoom player marines as enemies, lmao). What matters way more to me, though, is that I enjoyed myself! It's a very amusing and entertaining map. Make more maps. :) 

 

[Lower rating redacted] for version 2.  This is a bit awkward :P I think v2 stripped away one of the things I really liked -- blowing that manc up in the first hallway -- and also added something I didn't, a somewhat awkward HK/archvile fight where the door just slams in their face over and over again after you escape so it's hard to kill them.

 

- Refactored (Scypek) 

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
The Factory stuff, honestly, started pretty lazy to me, with the first two areas I visited being the raising-floor building and, particularly, the small shotgunner step building. But as I played more, some of the wackier deviations got really good. The part that took the cake for me was the wacky floor raising-lowering bit in the blue key room, where I immediately thought, "Okay now I'm playing something awesome." The barrels don't really factor in much except in a couple of fights, but you don't need every gimmick to be super prominent. 

 

Aesthetics: 
It's not a really pretty map, but it's consistently interesting to move around in and look at and explore, especially in its best indoor areas, which also have a lot of interesting concepts behind them. The outdoor area hurts it because that part is bland and it's also inevitable that the player is good to spend a good deal of time out there. 

 

Gameplay: 
So close to being very good but I think this is one of those maps that suffers a bit from being overambitious. If the whole experience were as good as the extensive blue key area, I'd give this a 9/10, because that part is phenomenal. You start off with a really cool drop-down multi-pronged pressure fight, and everything in here is really satisfying to play and unravel. But a lot of the rest of the map feels fillery in comparison. I also think ammo is way tighter than ideal considering the unexpected bottlenecks that can occur. In the red key building I basically had to leave the archvile and baron alive because I ran out of ammo against the cacos. 

 

- Loathe Perfection (BluePineapple72)

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
A lot of these remakes are using a sensible approach -- you can see the inspiration, but it never feels like a pastiche of homages. The maps have their own identities. FIREBLU fits in very nicely in the aesthetic scheme you've got here.

 

Aesthetics: 
Honestly the texture scheming is very Christmas-like and garish at some times, a lot of bright colors like reds and blues and greens in the same picture, but working with a small scale allowed you to make it fairly polished for the time frame, and -- best of all -- the lighting is good. If you want to improve this further, work on alignments and texture transitions more. For example here [downstairs section you drop off to], adjust the woodmetal so only the metal portions are used and maybe indent the woodmetal 8 units back into the marble. 

 

Gameplay: 
One of the things that impressed me about this map is how smart a lot of the choices are. For example that first drop down into the nukage is carefully calibrated for you to either tank the 5% radfloor damage while dealing with the stuff blocking your path into safety, or juke around them, but if you juke around them there is a revvie in there and you have to bolt deeper into the rooms. The last fight with the gunners and HKs is a perfect small trap: just harsh enough that it's exciting, but not bullshitty. 

 

- Suburbs Remake (LowGcifer)

 

Creative use of gimmick: 
The Suburbs hints are very loose here but I can sort of see it, especially in that outdoor area with the tall beacon and the red key on top of it. Apart from that and a couple of other things, it's definitely more just borrowing the spirit rather than any physical landmarks, but I think that is done okay: the pentagram and all the lava suggest a city decaying and giving way to hell.

 

Aesthetics: 
It's a bit on the dry side, with a lot of bare-ish rooms with a pretty safe texture scheme, but it's clean and it works. Considering the 'macrostructure' of the map as a whole, as opposed to lots of individual rooms, paints it in a decent light. 

 

Gameplay: 
The parts I think are essential are 1) the starting fight; 2) the initial conflicts in the outdoor area (everything from that big spawn of monsters to everything that is there already -- I ran into the second big area shortly after going outside, and imo this is "one area" anyway); 3) the secret invul/mega room; 4) the first parts (pre BFG) of the catwalk room; 5) one of the many 'you have a BFG, here are some revs' fights. If the map was only that, I'd think of it as significantly better, but the length is padded with a lot of half-baked fights, which feels like another case of the map trying to do too much in too limited mapping time. In particular, the RK fight is pretty redundant, being so much like the initial outdoor fighting that we already did. At the exit, there is a pretty pointless rev fight (you can just run, but the map also has a fight identical to that). 

 

Add on to that, the rocket launcher is hard to spot. https://imgur.com/a/CIwjNA8

 

With tons else going on, even viles targeting me, I'm not going to be drawn to that "rocket box" at all -- even if it happens to be on a pretty pentagram. So my actual first playthrough was just pacifist evading for a long time (and not under too much danger). Although I decided to be generous and consider that one of those fluky oversights I was talking about and give it another go. [edit: that RL issue has since been updated, but yeah, it's unrealistic for me to play every update of everything.] 

 

 

Edited May 19, 2020 by rdwpa

[Soulless]

Congrats to the winners! Fair results, to be honest my favs maps won. Special thanks to @Steve88, for making this event happen, and everybody who joined in!

Now, if someone is crazy enough to speedrun the whole wad, send me a link! 

[Roebloz]

3 hours ago, rdwpa said:

Hey everyone.  Internally, we used ratings to help weigh maps against one another, so my notes refer to those at times. In the end we decided not to post those, because selecting winners and judges' picks was easily enough -- and of course it's no fun having the lowest rating.

 

"Loathe Perfection" by BluePineapple72 was my personal favorite, as the original post now says. Also I liked Hellish Madness by Roebloz (especially version 1) for being pretty much a "my first map" in apparent looks/design, but still being amusing as fuck. Like, part of the beauty of speedmapping is stuff like that can happen. Outside of the top three we decided on, and "Loathe Perfection," that was my second favorite. 

 

  Hide contents

- Hellish Madness (Roebloz) 

 

Creative use of gimmick:
The barrel situations are top-notch and I also liked the Entryway homages, which are mostly not that extensive, but idk, just pretty interesting to me. It's like the hallway after the start underwent a big hellification and dimension stretching. The RL room being there in a different form was a nice tough too.

 

Aesthetics:
It's very ugly -- using just three hours of the eight hour limit sort of handicaps you in that regard, compared to the others -- but that is only one part of the equation. I found it consistently very interesting to look at and just be in. It's bizarre and janky and offbeat in a fun way.  

 

Gameplay: 
Pretty straightforward stuff, but pretty fun! I finished in a little over two minutes, and that quick pace is a big part of why I enjoyed it. Blowing stuff up with those barrels is amusing. This map is unusual because if you just listed out its elements, I would expect a pretty rough map that I'd give a low rating. It definitely has a lot of hallmarks of a wacky beginner my-first-map (down to stuff like nazis and ZDoom player marines as enemies, lmao). What matters way more to me, though, is that I enjoyed myself! It's a very amusing and entertaining map. Make more maps.

:) 

[Lower rating redacted] for version 2.  This is a bit awkward :P I think v2 stripped away one of the things I really liked -- blowing that manc up in the first hallway -- and also added something I didn't, a somewhat awkward HK/archvile fight where the door just slams in their face over and over again after you escape so it's hard to kill them.

 

 

Well thanks for it being your second favorite! I mainly did it in only three hours because I joined the contest pretty late and I didn't have much time to do it (I'm a very busy man) The main reason why i replaced the Mancubus in version 2 was because it had problems detonating the barrels (The chaingunners didnt do much better, I know) And the archvile and/or Hell Knight(s) fight was mainly because some other let's players said it was way too easy to beat the Baron fight at the end with the Rocket Launcher, so I added a little bit of a challenge (It was also to level the map to be in a similar difficulty to the other contest maps) And I will make more maps, since I am currently making an episode-like WAD!

 

Anyways, congratulations to everyone that entered the contest, and congratulations to the three winners Scypeck2, MAN_WITH_GUN and Horus!

Also I will be making a video of me trying out some maps of the WAD (Probably not all of them since I have already tested them in my spare time)

 

Once again, congratulations to the winners!

[BluePineapple72]

Congratulations to everyone on this wonderful project! I’m going to play the megaWAD, and if I don’t have any issues with textures or anything, I’m gonna record myself playing it and review all of these maps!

Edited May 19, 2020 by BluePineapple72

[Steve88]

@BluePineapple72 You should record your play through :) its easy and the software is free: https://obsproject.com

 

I would totally watch your recording =D

Edited May 19, 2020 by Steve88

[BluePineapple72]

4 minutes ago, Steve88 said:

@BluePineapple72 You should record your play through :) its easy and the software is free: https://obsproject.com

 

I would totally watch your recording =D

Thank you! Personally, for recording I’ve been using Windows game bar. I’ve used it to record a few videos for a big WAD I’m working on 

Spoiler

(pleasegocheckthemoutineedthattentionthanksbye)

I haven’t figured out how to do voice record yet, but, well, if I don’t figure it out I’ll do OBS!

 

 

[Steve88]

@BluePineapple72 W/ Osb its pretty straight forward, the sound records automatically from your mic and what your speakers would output in game sounds.

I sort of figured out how to use it through the help file and experimentation. If you need help i would be more than happy just let me know.

[MAN_WITH_GUN]

Oh wow, it's a first time I ever won in speedmapping's :v

 

Congratulations to all the winners! And also thanks to everyone for participating, each map was special. But I still don’t understand why my map suddenly appeared in this top and why it is cooler: Awesome layout and excellent geometry from “Trap of the Pyramid”; fun gameplay and interesting progression from “Fortress of Hate” and other wads.

[RonnieJamesDiner]

So, in retrospect I think I took the “competition” aspect a little too seriously when it came to judging the maps and writing reviews. I just want to say that, even if I end up being particularly negative or nitpicky with any criticism, know that I had a lot of fun playing through each and every one of these maps.

 

There isn’t a “bad” map here, and I’m just astonished by the incredible WAD that you guys managed to produce in 9 days (in under 8 hours a piece). Without further ado, and for whatever they’re worth, here are my brain droppings:

 

Congratulations everyone, and awesome work!

 

Spoiler

Dino Spasm (by Clippy)

• (Gimmicks) In retrospect, the combination of the 25 monster limit and the pressure provided by the Archvile at the exit made for a fun setup. Though I felt the barrel use was fairly underwhelming, I loved the puzzle elements involving the secrets, as well as the yellow key.
• (Aesthetics) The general look just seemed rushed, throughout, other than a few areas where the lighting was put to good use – notably, the secret Cyberdemon arena. I did enjoy the “green” theme found consistently throughout the opening areas.
• (Gameplay) Despite a lackluster score overall, I can’t say that I didn’t enjoy myself. I ended up loving the crazy use of secrets, from the hidden tunnel that connected the secret chamber behind the player-start all the way to the right wing of the map, to the bemusing idea of having the yellow key “trapped” inside the exit pad, which required some ninja-work if you wanted to experience the optional boss battle. Having to deal with the Archvile posted at the exit in the centre, right from the beginning, was also interesting. Some of the combat, however, felt untested (or unpolished, at least), especially the Spider Mastermind inclusion.

Final thoughts: Some fun ideas centred around the use of secrets, and a noteworthy setup using the 25 monster limit and the exit. Unfortunately, the experience felt marred by a slightly underwhelming execution in general, but there’s enjoyment to be had here nonetheless, and a fascinating use of secrets.

 

 

PanDYNAmonium [Black & Blue] (by DynamiteKaitorn)

• (Gameplay) Given that “Exit seen from start” was the only attempted gimmick, as stated by the author, I wish there had been a bigger impact / payoff there. Despite realizing, at the end, that I could in fact see the exit from the start, initially I had no idea.
• (Aesthetics) I really enjoyed the look & feel of the map, especially the opening room. The theme was consistent, the layout was compact but it used the space well (notably the vertical crate “maze”), and the lighting was generally nice.
• (Gameplay) For the most part, I enjoyed the ideas used here. Having to navigate the dimly lit storage room and ascend the tower of crates in search of the “hidden” key at the top, while being harrassed by Cacos, was neat. I also really admired the idea of giving the player the choice between the SG and Chaingun – but not both at first – to proceed with. The stand-out was obviously the Invulnerability Sphere ambush, which was a fun bit of chaos, though it felt rather like a missed opportunity – the fact that I could just leave that room and never go back (and never have to deal with the setup), was a tad disappointing.

Final thoughts: A fine looking level with a good use of textures and space, stitched together with a handful of rather creative and engaging gameplay ideas. Ultimately, the map did leave me with something to be desired – a solid effort that perhaps could’ve used a bit more time to reach its potential.

 

 

Barrels O’ Whoop Ass (by TravyB)

• (Gimmicks) The gimmicks were on point here. The re-interpretation of Doom II: MAP23 was pretty awesome, evoking every trope, layout, and visual “cue” necessary (in my mind) to sell the idea of a re-imagined Barrels O’ Fun, while still feeling totally unique with its gameplay. The barrels were used well (genuinely adding to the combat), and the only reason I’m not giving a 10/10 rating for gimmicks is because – again – despite the exit being visible from the start, I had absolutely no indication of that.
• (Aesthetics) I enjoyed the layout and basic geometry on hand here, and the texture work seemed to compliment it well enough. The lighting (especially in the latter half of the map) was particularly nice. I can’t say I was really “attracted” to the overall look and feel of the map, but it certainly did its job.
• (Gameplay) As far as gameplay goes, I have very few complaints. It was intense, engaging, and I had a good deal of fun the whole way through. I think its greatest downfall is that it feels a bit one-dimensional. Had it incorporated just one more area that relied a little less on the hectic, bombastic side of Barrels O’ Fun’s repertoire, I think it would hit the mark more directly.

Final thoughts: A commendable take on a controversial classic, this map accomplishes what it sets out to do and delivers it in spades. Though it manages to perfectly capture a specific style, it might lean on it just a little too heavily.

 

 

Barrel Hideout (by Soulless)

• (Gimmicks) Of the three attempted gimmicks, I thought the “Exit seen from start” was serviceable, the “100 barrels” were executed wonderfully, and that the “Ode to fireblu” felt like a mild after-thought. In this regard, it felt like a mixed bag of highs and lows for me. Ultimately, I found that the use of barrels shined rather bright, and the overall layout lent itself well to keeping the exit in mind as an objective, with bits of non-linearity and well-connected progression/backtracking.
• (Aesthetics) As I expect many maps to be (given the nature of speedmapping), there’s certainly a nice visual style in general, though it never had that “wow factor”. I did enjoy the look and feel of the level, as much as it complimented the gameplay. I only wish that fireblu had been used with greater purpose.
• (Gameplay) I had a blast playing this one (no pun intended). I thought the layout, combined with the use of barrels and the deliberate (methodical) approach to weapon/ammo balance was quite good. It used the space well, and knew how to provide pressure without ever being unfair or ridiculous – most encounters could be handled by the explosive barrel supply, and where not, appropriate weapons/ammo were always there to accommodate. Either way, it was fast-paced and intense, with perhaps 1 too many Archviles.

Final thoughts: A challenge-oriented map with a fun layout; there is a tough but fair setup here, involving the careful use of barrels and ammo management. Though FIREBLU was ultimately downgraded to the meager role of wallpaper, and Archviles rear their flaming skulls a little too often for such a small level, there’s still an enjoyable trial by combat here.

 

 

Breave Thin Focus (by Austinado)

• (Gimmicks) Tackling five of the six gimmicks was ambitious, and it generally felt like more of a hit than a miss, in this case. Though the re-imagining of Doom II’s “The Focus” is a bit of a stretch here (localized to nothing more than the single element of perpetually moving window slats, as far as I could tell), and the puzzle element is far less a “puzzle” than it is merely cryptic progression, I did love the use of the other 3 gimmicks. The exit seen from the beginning is very clear and ominous, and actually translates into fantastic gameplay later; the use of fireblu was kind of fun, acting as a sort of mysterious “liquid” throughout the techbase, and the limit of 25 monsters was truly inspired – I completely forgot it used this monster cap by the end.
• (Aesthetics) Despite a generally creative and varied use of textures, there is this rampant feeling of “strange choices” and awkward alignments that permeates the level, which just kind of grinds on me visually. There were, however, some rather nice looking areas, which ultimately saved the “aesthetics” score from diving too far.
• (Gameplay) This level definitely shines in the gameplay. Given the 8 hour mapping limit, I was surprised by just how much this map felt like it belonged in an actual “WAD”, rather than just a collection of speedmaps. There’s a very strong sense of progression, a great use of secrets, and a fantastic use of 25 monsters, including a rather competent and rewarding Cyberdemon battle in the final area. I think there might be too strong a reliance on secrets in the beginning (if I hadn’t found them, I would’ve likely hated the entire opening section), but there’s a part of me that feels as though this ingredient in mapping philosophy can be a bit under-rated at times. Otherwise, this is just a well-paced, enjoyable experience, with the odd hiccup here and there (most notably the awkward setup for getting plasma ammo in the final fight, when it’s actually far easier to just skip the fight and exit the map).

Final thoughts: An ambitious speedmap that aims high and hits most, but not all, of its marks. Where it falters, it generally makes up for it with a solid layout, a good sense of progression, and an inspired use of 25 monsters. Though it could certainly use some visual polish, and perhaps a bit more verticality, there’s a genuinely great experience here.

 

 

Trap of the Pyramid (by Pierrot)  *personal favorite

• (Gimmicks) Though the transition is a bit jarring, and it’s incredibly easy to miss the fact that you’re starring at the exit from the start (not helped by the small torch blocking the exit sign itself), this was still a very neat idea. I do wish that the exit played a greater role in the layout of the map, rather than simply being hinted at before the player is blindly thrown into a labyrinth.
• (Aesthetics) There’s really nothing I want to pick apart here. I found both the choice and use of textures to be fantastic, showing great restraint/consistency and a good attention to “matching textures to geometry”. The general tone and atmosphere of the map was wonderful, especially once you descend into the lower maze-like tunnels, with superb lighting was superb.
• (Gameplay) This was an awesome adventure from start to finish, despite getting some minor Archvile fatigue by the time I reached the exit. I admired the minimalist approach to monster density and combat, and was happy to see the author relying on the cramped nature of the setting – coupled with thematically appropriate traps/ambushes – to find ways of keeping the player engaged. The layout was fun, particularly the unnerving maze of tiny passageways near the end, and I really enjoyed how much the map tended to shift and open, re-using areas for progression and combat in interesting ways.

Final thoughts: Under its simple yet incredibly effective style is a fun, Scythe-esque map brimming with light combat and engaging traps. Though it certainly wears out the effect of Archviles by the end, the atmosphere of the level is all but begging for it. An outstanding use of 8 hours!

 

 

Portal to Puzzle Hell (by Horus)

• (Gimmicks) This is a fantastic example of taking the gimmicks and running with them. From the wonderfully dramatic “closing” of the exit at the beginning, which remains in the players vicinity for a large part of the map; to the use of FIREBLU as the gateways to other dimensions; to the brilliant inclusion of puzzles making up the bulk of the gameplay. Though the invisible torch maze, feeling heavily inspired by TNT: Evilution’s “MAP30”, became slightly tortuous to trial-and-error my way through, the platform puzzle required to get the red key – broken into disparate arenas connected by teleport, and using nothing but distinct textures as indicators – was very creative, and I thoroughly enjoyed the process of discovery > realization > accomplishment.
• (Aesthetics) The map, as a whole, was nice to look at. At times it felt a little disconnected thematically, and sort of “messy”, but I really appreciated how well it communicated to the player everything they needed to know and understand (which is the most crucial part of a puzzle map, in my opinion). The midi choice was also spot on, to my ears, adding a lot of personality.
• (Gameplay) “Rewarding” is the best word I can think of to describe the majority of how this level plays and feels, even if that includes the deep and existential sigh of relief that the torch-maze is over. The initial arena ambush just beneath the player start was a great, hectic little skirmish that set the tone of the map nicely, and the rest of the combat throughout the level was decent enough. Some of the red key puzzle arenas were better than others, and certainly could’ve used a bit more thought/creativity in line with the puzzle itself. I really enjoyed the experience, overall.

Final thoughts: There is a powerful sense of “reward” and satisfaction throughout this map, owing primarily to the interesting puzzles but also to the style of combat encounters. A fun little adventure that is absolutely worth exploring, even if the torch-maze tries its hardest to suck that fun right out of you.

 

 

Blast Compound (by LateNightPerson)

• (Gimmicks) The exit is clear from the start, and provided a straight forward point-of-reference for where I needed to go – including which keys I needed. The ode to fireblu was, on the other hand, much less straight forward. I liked the idea of a “fireblu shrine” for the berserk packs, but I wish the texture played a more significant role in the map, beyond simply being one of the maps’ obscure secrets. Why the author didn’t remove 1 Imp and go for the “25 monster limit” as well, I’ll never know.
• (Aesthetics) There was an honest effort in the aesthetics department, with several decent looking areas (I really liked the look of the hallway between the yellow key doors). Nothing very memorable about the experience, visually, but it did its job.
• (Gameplay) Gameplay was a bit of a mixed bag, for me. The incredibly hot start was fun and interesting, and much less aggravating than it appeared upon spawning. Secrets are a huge part of this map, and I think I may have loathed the experience had I not found all of them in my first run. The map suffers hard from “door camping” combat, and other than the opening room, rarely manages to surprise or engage.

Final thoughts: Beneath its odd charm and design choices is a short, entertaining blast. Had the focus found itself centred more around the great opening setup, I think this map could have shined much brighter.

 

 

The Sexy Waifus of Henry VIII and the Fighters for FIREBLU Justice (by Walter confetti)

• (Gimmicks) Despite the gimmicks not really having a huge impact on me, I still thought they were used in fun and simple ways. The fireblu sky is a quick-n-easy way to slap that gimmick into the map, but it gives the whole thing a wacky personality and put a smile on my face. The way the opening hub is setup was great, showing the map progression very clearly, and the overall use of 25 monsters was decent enough.
• (Aesthetics) There’s a very simple, clean aesthetic here – sometimes it worked quite well, other times it just felt bland and uninspired. The green nukage room with Chaingunners was a stand-out, visually; I really loved the look of that room. Big thumbs up for the midi choice, as well.
• (Gameplay) I thought the combat and flow/progression of the map were actually quite intelligent and fun. The map was never too difficult, managing to keep the experience fast-paced and engaging. Sometimes its cathartic to just give the player an Invulnerability to kill a Cyberdemon with, and I appreciate that. A great use of an Archvile, as well.

Final thoughts: Despite how wacky it may appear on the surface, there’s a smart and satisfying little adventure here that keeps the player on their toes while never in too much danger. A bit underwhelming in the visual department, but the map makes up for it in all the right ways.

 

 

Cyber-Panic (by Man With a Gun)

• (Gimmicks) The exit is a little difficult to spot in the low light level, but it’s there and it works. I have no idea what ID level this is intended to re-imagine (though, I’m not super familiar with UD maps these days). The conveyor belt / factory floor idea for the +100 barrels was very cute, and I loved the execution of it. The use of 25 monsters was spectacular – given the intensity of each encounter, as well as the lighter transitional zones, there’s an incredibly shrewd use of the enemy limit.
• (Aesthetics) The aesthetics are jaw-dropping for 8 hours. The detail, lighting, layout, texture work (and even that tasty tasty midi), are all nothing short of outstanding. This does not feel like a speedmap, ‘nuff said.
• (Gameplay) This is a challenge-oriented map, first and foremost – whether that appeals to players is subjective, and I do personally enjoy that specific flavor. Objectively, I think the approach/execution here can be a little hit and miss. For a map with such impending stress, I was never lost, which is attributable to a great layout and guiding the player. The crusher / Cyb arena felt pretty awkward, and the transitional areas tended to feel rather lifeless (or, less inspired than its primary setpieces) but generally speaking, I was very engaged and had a great time.

Final thoughts: This map has a very clear goal in terms of gameplay and visuals, and when it’s firing on all cylinders, it’s an incredible experience made in a truly remarkable amount of time – and gorgeous to look at. It’s one speedmap that I hope the author will pursue in expanding into a fully realized project.

 

 

Hellish Madness (by Roebloz)

• (Gimmicks) Another wonderful example of gimmicks. Although only two, they were used quite well. The barrels generally added to the gameplay in fun ways (granted, I think the opening trap saw the most creative of their usage), and the re-imagining of Doom II’s MAP01 was wonderfully strange and entertaining.
• (Aesthetics) Of all the things I could nitpick about the visuals here, I did appreciate the sense of madness, and the aesthetics did lend themselves to clear communication with the player. With a bit more attention to lighting, I likely would’ve given this a higher score.
• (Gameplay) It’s incredibly short, but I absolutely had a good time (and honestly, wouldn’t mind playing through this again and again). There’s this fast-paced, bombastic run-and-gun vibe to it that never gets old, intertwined with brief, methodical moments (like the HK and Lost Souls), and it all reminds me why I love Doom so much. I enjoyed the custom Marine enemies, as well. The cumbersome Imp horde near the start could certainly use some tweaking.

Final thoughts: An adorably fun little romp that hits its mark in almost every way, and left me wanting more. Although a part of me wants to attribute the visual chaos to the maps’ intentional madness, I couldn’t help but feel a little underwhelmed by the aesthetic choices here, despite an otherwise wonderful experience.

 

 

Refactored (by Scypek2)

• (Gimmicks) All three of the attempted gimmicks here were executed flawlessly, in my opinion. The re-interpretation of Doom II’s MAP12 was wonderfully evocative of the original in every way, paying homage and re-imagining almost all of the memorable setpiece fights, while still having a strong identity of its own. The use of barrels made just about every combat encounter more fun, and the exit – clear as day and dramatically cutting you off upon entering – formed a perfect objective for the level.
• (Aesthetics) Try as I may have, there was nothing I felt obligated to nitpick. The choice of textures (and their use) throughout the map were just great. Everything fit together nicely, matching rooms in shape and tone, while staying generally consistent across the sprawling complex. The lighting was good, and the music was lovely.
• (Gameplay) I enjoyed most of the gameplay here. In fact, there were even a few ideas that I loved so much – such as the mid-tex nukage pillar with the Revs and AV teleporting into the middle – that I intend to borrow. Ammo and health balance were also spot on, providing a great rhythm to the map overall once I got my initial footing. I wasn’t too crazy about picking off the wandering mid-tier monsters around the outskirts early on, or the awkward final Cacodemon lift encounter (which, granted, was more interesting at least than the original). The layout itself, and the way that progression was structured and paced, was very well done I thought, as were the secrets.

Final thoughts: To turn one of my least favourite maps from Doom II into one of my absolute favourite submissions to this CP was a feat, all on its own – and one that made this level a joy to play. Some very creative encounters, excellent pacing, and beautiful texture work come together nicely here. There are a few bumps along the way, including an underwhelming finale, but this is nothing short of fantastic.

 

 

Loathe Perfection (by BluePineapple72)

• (Gimmicks) As stated, the map is only a “loose interpretation” of an Ultimate Doom map, but from the opening I instantly knew it was Perfect Hatred – loose or not, it worked. The exit (and objective) were clear, the touch of fireblu was nice (though, nothing substantial), and the 25 monster limit was serviceable. All in all, even if the impact of any particular gimmick wasn’t very strong, the map accomplishes what it set out to.
• (Aesthetics) Visually, there is little in the way of “wow factors”, but the texture work – and especially the lighting – complement the space well. There is variation and hints of detail, without ever getting too messy or incoherent, which I applaud given the fact that the map is so small and cramped.
• (Gameplay) I enjoyed the oppressive nature of the layout, most of all. You’re given very little space to maneuver, and coupled with a bit of platforming, dodging projectiles, and maintaining very tight ammo supplies, the map provides some nice tension without actually being overtly dangerous. Unfortunately, the various fights tended to feel quite disjointed, and I found myself able to pick enemies off from advantageous positions most of the time, which resulted in a rather underwhelming experience by the end. It was a claustrophobic map that seemed as though it wanted to be menacing, but just couldn’t give the enemies enough advantages to be threatening.

Final thoughts: A small, atmospheric map with a few fun traps to keep players on their toes, and a suitably moody visual style. This was an enjoyable experience fitting for an early slot, even though it feels like it falls a bit short of its base inspiration’s memorable gameplay.

 

 

Slaughter in the Burbs (by LowGcifer)

• (Gimmicks) There was a hint of Doom II’s The Suburbs – but nothing more than a hint. I think I could loosely call it an homage, but that’s about as generous as I could get. It’s a shame there weren’t other attempted gimmicks, despite there being room for them.
• (Aesthetics) Despite a clean visual style reminiscent of the original Suburbs, there was nothing particularly striking or memorable on hand here. Generally, I appreciate when a re-imagining takes the feel of the original and demonstrates a commanding use of detail, textures, and geometry, but the final result here was a little underwhelming. Sadly, I don’t give out bonus points for pentagrams, haha. I did, however, enjoy certain aspects of the layout, including the terrain of the opening courtyard battle, the interesting stair pillar of the red key, and the thin platforming to reach the BFG.
• (Gameplay) As a map geared entirely towards fans of slaughter (or lite slaughter), there are some fun, hectic moments dodging AV blasts and waves of projectiles. Unfortunately, circle-strafing takes over and basically hijacks the bulk of the gameplay to be found. Where I felt the map did shine, were in the more compact and engaging areas like the opening room, the Invulnerability Sphere trap, and the thin catwalk setup at the back of the level.

Final thoughts: An attempt to turn a relatively memorable Doom II level into a lite-slaughter affair, the map has some interesting setups that pressure the player and provide satisfying, white-knuckle moments. Unfortunately, the overall execution feels a little flat – like a missed opportunity – where I think the time restraint may have been the maps greatest downfall.

 

 

 

Edited May 19, 2020 by RonnieJamesDiner

[Scypek2]

Wow! I did try to make the most out of the 8 hour limit, but I'm still pleasantly surprised to come out on top! Thank you for your thorough reviews, thanks everyone who played through my map beforehand, and of course thank you @Steve88 for hosting this event!

 

Now that the project is compiled, I took the opportunity to try out all the other submissions. The level of polish and complexity varied wildly, but all the different unique ideas made it fun all the while!

 

By the way, I may be able to solve the mystery of Trap of the Pyramid's accompanying midi... I was really surprised to hear it while playing, since it was familiar to me but I found it in a really obscure place and didn't expect anyone else here to stumble upon it. And sure enough, turns out it was actually taken from my old MAYhem submission! So here's the actual source: It's called Secret Agent, and it was composed by Mertruve for tsukuru.pl.

[Austinado]

Congratulations to you all! This was damn fun!

[Pierrot]

Congratulations to the winners and all participants!

And big thanks to Steve88 for holding this competition, and to the judges for all the great reviews.

It was a fun event!

 

@Scypek2 What a funny coincidence! I played Mayhem 2013 a while back, but I remember "From the Sky" pretty well, I enjoyed the mood of the track and I wanted to use it at some point. Inspired me a lot to make my map I must say ;) Definitly has to be used more.

@Steve88 Can you put the source in the text file?

 

Edited May 19, 2020 by Pierrot

[Scypek2]

Who would've thought there's so much use to be had out of a 57 second long track!

 

Many of Mertruve's midis are good like this, actually. About a minute or less in length, but looping really well and not too tedious on repeat.

[Roebloz]

Now we're only missing the third judge's reviews.

[LateNightPerson]

Well, this was fun. Congrats to all, and I hope to see you at the next speedmapping contest!

[Steve88]

@MAN_WITH_GUN I think it has something to do with your map being great, heh heh, we were all amazed by what you managed to make in such a short time, like its ready for a mega wad as is with no additional work.

Edited May 20, 2020 by Steve88

[aletheos eberlain]

Is there any way to get to that yellow key without exiting the map? Just tell me if there is. If there is, I want to figure out how on my own, but if there isn't, I don't want to waste my time trying to do something impossible.

Edited May 20, 2020 by aletheos eberlain

[LateNightPerson]

@aletheos eberlainI have the same question.

[aletheos eberlain]

The answer was, fuck yeah! That was actually easier than I'd thought.

[Clippy]

5 hours ago, aletheos eberlain said:

The answer was, fuck yeah! That was actually easier than I'd thought.

 

 

Yep I slightly misaligned the texture on one side. And this is a side that does not have a teleport on it. So just step in and step back out 😁

[Clippy]

Did you have fun opening up each individual Red key bar LOL

 

I had to put the arch-vile in a small square that's monster blocking

 

I found if I let him get too close to the red key bars he would get snagged up or something

[Horus]

Just want to echo everyone else's thoughts, this was great fun to be a part of, and the gimmicks were pretty interesting to map to. And I too enjoyed playing every single map, which is no mean feat for a mapset of 15 maps! 

 

Thanks for hosting Steve88, and to the judges too for all of the feedback - I agree with all that you wrote about my map (I updated the torch section in the final version so it should be clearer)

Edited May 20, 2020 by Horus

[aletheos eberlain]

1 hour ago, Clippy said:

Did you have fun opening up each individual Red key bar LOL

 

I had to put the arch-vile in a small square that's monster blocking

 

I found if I let him get too close to the red key bars he would get snagged up or something

I did have fun with that map. It's my favorite, so far, but I've only made it to map04. Yeah, I was trying everything I could think of. I didn't know what kind of scripting magic you had going on behind the scenes.

See, I remember someone, I think it was in this thread, saying something about how you shouldn't kill the Archvile. And I figured you had to let it run onto the teleporter to trigger some door opening somewhere. And maybe you had to teleport the key off the pad, somehow. My mind just can not think of obvious simple solutions when there are more complicated possibilities. So, it was the very last thing I tested. Up until now, I haven't even noticed the texture was misaligned. I just found the right line by mistake. I think I walked around touching every single wall in the entire map.

Edited May 20, 2020 by aletheos eberlain

[Clippy]

1 minute ago, aletheos eberlain said:

I did have fun with that map. It's my favorite, so far, but I've only made it to map04. Yeah, I was trying everything I could think of. I didn't know what kind of scripting magic you had going on behind the scenes.

See, I remember someone, I think it was in this thread, saying something about how you shouldn't kill the archvile. And I figured you had to let it run onto the teleporter to trigger some door opening somewhere. And maybe you had to teleport the key off the pad, somehow. My mind just can not think of obvious simple solutions when there are more complicated possibilites. So, it was the very last thing I tested. Up until now, I haven't even noticed the texture was misaligned.

 

Scripting magic haha

 

No I only make vanilla style basic maps with doom builder. I never use scripts or anything crazy like that. 

 

Was the order of the map levels determined by submission dates?

 

I have no BFG in my map anyway but getting the yellow key would get you a bunch of goodies to proceed to level 2 with haha

[aletheos eberlain]

3 minutes ago, Clippy said:

...

I have no BFG in my map anyway but getting the yellow key would get you a bunch of goodies to proceed to level 2 with haha

Yeah. As can be seen in the screenshot, I left the map with 200/200 and a bunch of ammo. Which, I definitely would have needed on the third map.

But, the wad forces pistol start on every map(unfortunately?).

Edited May 20, 2020 by aletheos eberlain

[Soulless]

15 minutes ago, aletheos eberlain said:

Yeah. As can be seen in the screenshot, I left the map with 200/200 and a bunch of ammo. Which, I definitely would have needed on the third map.

But, the wad forces pistol start on every map(unfortunately?).

Well thats a way to see it, but pistol start is the best option here, for example, in my map "Barrel Hideout" you can get out of ammo if played poorly, Having extra ammo beforehand would break the difficulty curve totally.

Edited May 20, 2020 by Soulless

[Steve88]

The map order was semi organized by difficulty and by theme with more tech on the front and more hell later on. I put Dino spasm first because it was the first submitted, wasn't too difficult and I also wanted it first to thank @Clippy for being cool making play test videos of every map. And to expand on what soulless said all the maps were designed to be played with a pistol start, so I thought it made sense to reset the stats. Maybe if their is a Ton of interest in a continuous play version I can release a alternate that allows it.

Edited May 20, 2020 by Steve88

[Roebloz]

3 hours ago, Steve88 said:

The map order was semi organized by difficulty and by theme with more tech on the front and more hell later on. I put Dino spasm first because it was the first submitted, wasn't too difficult and I also wanted it first to thank @Clippy for being cool making play test videos of every map. And to expand on what soulless said all the maps were designed to be played with a pistol start, so I thought it made sense to reset the stats. Maybe if their is a Ton of interest in a continuous play version I can release a alternate that allows it.

In my opinion the second map would have been better as the first map in terms of difficulty.