Why do you WAD?

[Chip]

What is your reason behind making all of your mods. Is it the satisfaction of working on it for months, and to have a masterpiece when complete? is it to joy other people? Just for fun? Write why you feel the need to make such wondrous and wonderful WADs and mods. I'm sure everybody has a story, and you can now share yours. 

[cambreaKer]

well i'm really pretty sure i'm not making "wondrous and wonderful" wads but i just do them because i'm really bored

also i don't do many wads because i'm currently busy with making other projects (half-life war and fps creator games)

Edited July 3, 2020 by cambreaKer

[ViolentBeetle]

I can't draw or write music or even books, so finally I found a form of artistic expression consisting out of making squares.

[Goopymonster]

I just do it because its fun

[xvertigox]

It's fun as fuck and improving at something I care about is fulfilling.

[DynamiteKaitorn]

Because it's one of a very small amount of outlets I can express my creativity without cocking it up (I say, despite making 3 Bad-Meh TMoD's XD).

[Roebloz]

Depends. For things like Cacosweeper and Thy Flesh Consumed 32x, it's to bring back something cool to the comunity that some people may like, while still doing it my way. For things like the texture mods of Doom 2 GBA, it's to bring new life into an old port that deserves more attention. For regular maps, it's for trying to do something new. All three of them however, are made for fun.

[Impie]

i've always been a game designer at heart, so i guess i have a variety of reasons. Sometimes I come up with a game project that works in the doom engine, so I try making a mod out of it to see how it works out.

Strange Aeons started as my first doom clone idea back in 7th or 8th grade. I sketched a bunch of maps and enemy designs and came up with the premise of your living room being a doorway to other dimensions and also questing to save a family member. The M1 intro areas, and the majority of E3M8, are the truest parts to that original concept, and the Lovecraft Dream Cycle backdrop helped tie everything together cohesively (the original concept had no real cohesion, it was just random inter-dimensional stuff, including enemies that were alternate universe WWII Germans possessed by demons).

Nerves of Steel was a spite project. The DOS game is so terrible and broken. Like other bad shooters before it I tried to give it a chance and play through the whole thing, and it thanked me by biting me in the ass. I was so angry at how utterly inept the project was that I remade every map in Doom and used as many matching assets as I could put together. Even used the box art for the title and intermission screens, the only good part of the original game. After that I got in the habit of translating other properties into Doom 'cos it was something I daydreamed about as a kid. I've wanted an FPS Splatterhouse since middle school. And I really enjoy taking old games that are blech and rebooting them as something new and cool.

 

Sometimes I just make a community map that runs away and becomes its own thing, like Realms of Dr. Chaos.

 

The Juno stuff was always a multimedia project. I'd do video game adaptations based in the same setting while I wrote the books as a way to help flesh out the world. Now the mods are still up but the books are taken down and being rebooted, and the mods ended up rebooted likewise (check the latest upload!)

 

Occasionally frustration with political topics pushes me to finish a project I might otherwise leave on the backburner, which led to stuff like Operation Body Count, The Cronus Camp for Wayward Boys, and the unfinished tank combat sim Straydog. Those usually end up being my most ambitious feature-wise.

 

Lastly sometimes I'm so burnt out on my writing projects I need a side-hobby to distract me so I don't go crazy. That's probably the only reason I finished stuff like Arkista's Ring or Hellbound Soldier Sailor Doom.

Edited July 4, 2020 by Impie

[Doom_Dude]

It all started many ages ago with the interest to draw maps (as in cartography) in world building. Then after I played DooM and other games of the era, I got the desire to build levels, especially after playing custom wads I grabbed off of PC Gamer and shovel-ware CD's. I didn't have access to an editor, with no internet prior to 2000 so I drew map ideas on paper.

 

I mainly create levels because I enjoy the whole experience of designing and then getting to play around in it, is pretty damned cool. I do it for myself actually and if somebody else gets to enjoy it, then that's a bonus. I'm certainly not trying for any masterpiece. It's also a bit addictive.

[Misty]

I'm way too angry to drop it. 

For more serious answer - I always felt like creative person and I tried express my world and mind various ways before I discovered level design. I played so many community Doom maps and mods and I realised that I can do it too. So, I searched for tutorials, listened videos grabbed builders - doom builder 2 and slade. It was hard at first, but then I discovered gzdoom builder and something clicked on me, so I stayed with it. I learned my ropes with that builder and decided to join community to share "first, not so first" map to public and everything is history now. Now, I feel confident with mapping and mapping formats, it became the part of my life. Besides, I've met so many cool people here and I love to read their reactions, criticism when they play my creations. 

[Doom-X-Machina]

Because I love DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Doomkid]

10 hours ago, LiT_gam3r said:

Is it the satisfaction of working on it for months, and to have a masterpiece when complete? is it to joy other people? Just for fun?

Yes!

 

When I’m in the zone while mapping or modding or doing Doomy things in general, the rest of the world and all it’s worries fade away for a while. It’s just me and the linedefs.

Edited July 4, 2020 by Doomkid

[Phobus]

I used to do it for the joy of learning a new thing, the endless inspiration from the awesome maps put out by the ZDoom community (and prior to that, mappers in general) and the satisfaction of seeing my ideas realised in a playable state.

 

Now it's somewhere between a habit I can't kick, and because I have the ambition to make some sort of magnum opus before I quit for good.

[SilverMiner]

WADding, I effectively consume my large amounts of free time.

Edited July 4, 2020 by SilverMiner

[Martin Howe]

I can't help but see new ideas for cool or challenging things to do, or improvements on something already done, everywhere I look. Sometimes it's obvious; Wolf 3D - > DECORATE -> better Nazi monster variants to fight. Some are indirect; fire pits in power plant on Sapphire Station -> blasted an imp with a rocket -> he fell of the ledge into the pit -> why doesn't he die? -> I want to do an industrial themed place that is dangerous to monsters as well as players -> the Butchery (still WIP) -> huge metal meat stripping machine with bones ejected from waste ports -> reminded me of the evil Space Lizard in Space 1999/Dragons Domain -> OK let's make it truly resemble a mechanical version of that complete with huge yellow inspection lamp -> imps keep eating stuff and generally icking things up -> pest control -> cats in Doom! The Black Cats owe their existence to Sapphire Station!

Edited July 4, 2020 by Martin Howe

[Doom_Dude]

2 hours ago, Doomkid said:

Yes!

 

When I’m in the zone while mapping or modding or doing Doomy things in general, the rest of the world and all it’s worries fade away for a while. It’s just me and the linedefs.

 

Linedefs Ripped My Flesh ;)

[pcorf]

I enjoy my creativity because it keeps me relaxed and away from worries in life.

Edited July 4, 2020 by pcorf

[Stocki]

I do it to relax. I've thought about why that is the case and came to the conclusion it must be something similar like for other people painting mandalas.

[CacoMaster64]

Because I like making Doom WADS. It is very relaxing to me, with no stress or worries about anything, total relaxation.

[Archanhell]

There are not many reasons, I like telling stories, showing new worlds and show the community what even the most underrated/less known users can get to make, what they want to take out of their hearts, into the real world.

 

I learn and put into practice, but this learning procedure is not just myself, but with friends (This is currently with TCTOA, the first mod I'm making with friends and such) — Not for me exactly, but for the others, for the community, my friends, everyone who loves DooM as much as I do.

 

My happiness does not consist just on playing other mods, or stuff like that, this is enjoyment.

The only time I can be happy aside playing with my closest friends, is when I can see someone's efforts (My team of friends,

 

spriters/mappers/musicians/coders) pay off with the best, healthy fruits, and when what myself and the others did, are enjoyed by those who we made the WAD or mod for: The DooM Community.

And not just that but I can show out my creativity, our imagination and show new ideas, new stories!

 

And thus, I keep pushing forward breaking my limits even if that means my head, wrists and eyes will hurt, because if others will be happy with what I and my friends did while learning then that is my only Raison D'Etre for DooM.

 

That is, for example, the biggest reason I am telling the story of Sigmund Sinclair from TCTOA (On this case I am saying) and his struggle between dimensions (Someday): It will make me and my friends happy to see others enjoy this story, this world, what is behind it, the action, the efforts that we all put into it.

 

That is why I WAD, and that is why I mod.

Edited July 5, 2020 by Archanhell

[Final Verdict]

I mess around with mapping occasionally. It's mostly for fun with a side dish of distraction. I never release anything though, for good reason.

 

I had no internet for about 2 months after I recently moved to a new house. My father had just died as well so I thought 'hmm, I'll uninstall all my games and download Doom Builder + Slade, that will be sufficient distraction'. I figured it was about time I learned how to make a WAD.

 

I decided on a 8 level episode and then I imagined a 4 episode 32 level megawad (notice the noob mistake?). Which then turned into 3 wads with 12 episodes for a grand total of 100 levels with each episode based on a theme and location. Think that's enough? Wrong, then I figured it needed something to keep it fresh throughout this ridiculous megawad.

 

Before I moved I had downloaded a ton of custom monsters, weapons, textures etc. Then I spent 5-6 weeks faffing about with decorate, sound, sfx, editing/recolouring pixels (to make my own monster variants) and, oh yes, renaming 2600 textures. You see, I was trying to think ahead 'the episodes will need variation or it'll get too samey'. I'm not entirely sure why I thought I'd need so many textures. I suffered for it though, it was physically and mentally painful renaming that many textures.

 

I only spent about 2 weeks actually mapping, the end product was one episode with the last area in level 8 still incomplete (boss room and gateway). I had no internet either, so no guides or tutorials. I have played many wads throughout my 20+ years with Doom, but never made any. Thus I had to learn from scratch.

 

Result: Well, what did you expect? But long story short I baked everything into 1 WAD, including a gameplay mod. Somehow it works (alright, I spent a lot of time to make it work) but I quickly realised my mistake. It was just too ambitious for a noob who had to spend most of his free 2 months just learning the basics -and by accident- advanced stuff. I was burned out at the end, even though I had done all the hard work and only the map making remained. Hmm, I wonder if the texture renaming had anything to do with it...

 

Was it worth it? Of course, I learned a lot and the knowledge is deep-fried into my brain because I learned the hard way. It was also fun and distracted me from recent events regarding my father. No, this abomination will never be released onto the world. I'll keep it shackled in the basement, away from innocent eyes.

 

 

[Final Verdict]

1 hour ago, Archanhell said:

-snip-

 

I like your attitude, beautifully written.

 

I'll keep it short as I already wrote a wall of text above but I genuinely hope you and your friends get to realise your vision. Yeah I know it's sappy, but I get weak at the knee's when I see such unchained passion for Doom. 

 

And now, if you don't mind, I'm going to go sit on my bed and weep.

 

Honestly though, best of luck mate.

 

[Archanhell]

2 hours ago, Final Verdict said:

 

I like your attitude, beautifully written.

 

I'll keep it short as I already wrote a wall of text above but I genuinely hope you and your friends get to realise your vision. Yeah I know it's sappy, but I get weak at the knee's when I see such unchained passion for Doom. 

 

And now, if you don't mind, I'm going to go sit on my bed and weep.

 

Honestly though, best of luck mate.

 

 

Thanks my man, I also hope the same because this project is on a small pause on my side, due to the fact I don't have PC for the fourth? eighth? Time and I sent it to repair weeks ago, hopefully getting confirmation of its status next monday, and by that I can't add some stuff my friends helped me with and map, but once I can get back to it... I promise I will upload it, and I will share it to you too!

 

I also wish you the best of the best man, good luck and take a lot of care, stay firm and stay strong, and more on the current situation the humanity is fighting against!

Edited July 5, 2020 by Archanhell

[StoneFrog]

Growing up? Level design was like my punk rock. I didn't have many friends, and from an early age I was on message boards connecting with others over different interests. I always had cruddy computers so I tended to favor older games, and I just gravitated towards designing levels for anything I really liked. It was the place where I felt most comfortable.

 

And along the way, this really niche hobby is actually what exposed me to the world. Learning about mods, modders, going through all those ripped textures and sounds and music while learning about other games...it taught me a lot about (maybe kitsch) culture and other people. In-game worlds would cause me to imagine what the real world was like outside my boring little town. The real world would cause me to imagine things I could make in games. My dad was a painter, and when I was little his landscapes and photographs used to inspire me so much. But I never cared for visual art, too static; and I never had the attention span to write full-featured stories. Level design was the medium where I could learn new things, respond to what others were creating, and combine the influences and things I liked about others' work into my own. Imagining new enemies and encounters and stories (told overtly or not) has always just been so fun. I loved modding for Half-Life and Sven Co-op, another game engine where the barrier to entry was pretty low and you could have some really fantastical settings as well as some really realistic ones.

 

To this day nothing else quite hits that spot with me. Sometimes I wish it were more mainstream (I almost never talk about modding to people I meet IRL because it's just so hard to explain the various things to them) but on the other hand, again, it's a wonderful global online community.

 

Also, Doom modding in particular makes me feel this sort of late 90s/early 00s magic from my childhood. Again it's something about the age of the technology, the simplicity, the MIDI covers of Gen X music, the pixel art...that's just the sort of medium and level of fidelity that most indie games had when I was growing up. 2.5D and 2D worlds that aren't quite real but try their hardest to be creative with what they have, to evoke a rough and almost abstract sense of place. (I was also really into Adventure Game Studio and RPGMaker.)

 

I've had ups and downs in my life. Sometimes I'm more outgoing. Sometimes I'm more of a thrillseeker. Sometimes I'll take a break from actually playing games. It never lasts, but god damn, I'll never get tired of seeing how other people create their own stuff. In a way it's like a hive mind/collective consciousness thing. We all love the same thing and sometimes the things we create can be so similar. Other times they can be so different. And modding for old games is great because you can undo a few lindefs/brushes and radically reinvent your level at the speed of your imagination. I'll echo what others say here in that it's really relaxing. Put on your favorite rock and roll playlist, draw some lines, undo/redo, and just marvel when you open up a sector or raise a floor and it completely changes the feel of the level. Suddenly, you're off to your next idea. The only other art form that comes remotely close to this speed for me is poetry. That might sound weird, but the creative process is very similar.

 

I love Doomworld and I've never even officially released anything LOL.

Edited July 5, 2020 by StoneFrog

[Scypek2]

I'd be writing stories or drawing visual art too, but that's way too open-ended. There's too many different things I can make with it, and too many ways to make them. Modding games gives me a fun baseline to work from. I can either make something vanilla, and try to make the best of the existing mechanics, or challenge myself with some weird ambitious modding endeavor that's still somewhat grounded in the Doom engine's nature.

[spineapple tea]

It helps this community stay alive. That and its fun.

[Gaia74]

for 2 reasons

 

1: i wrote stupid stories, and I always wanted to make a game or something in which I would tell those stories

 

2: somehow I want to make my mark in the Doom community in a positive way, although I have made many mistakes, I hope to improve and continue stronger than before :P

Edited July 6, 2020 by Gaia74

[Vic Vos]

I plan to make at least one map, but I'm always set back by something, whether it's RL or just procrastination. I'm more than likely not going to end up making it.

[Job]

WAD else am I going to do? 

[Doom, Coffee, & Doughnuts]

I used to make wads because I was interested in sharing my level design ideas, and other works with other people; But after my original Doomworld account got banned, it kinda left a sour taste in my mouth; and I stopped.