Thoughts on the new Unity Port Update?

[ZeMystic]

I re-installed doom 2 and ultimate doom on steam just to use the new unity ports and I'm absolutely having a blast. However I do have some issues with the new update, such as where the fuck did the cool arcade background go, it was rad and i want it back dammit. I'm not a big fan of the cobblestone texture that every source port has used. I like that they added wide screen, but I much prefer 4:3. I also have issues with the mouse sensitivity, I personally think the lowest option is still a bit too fast.

 

I absolutely love playing the Add-ons and seeing 16:9 versions of the main menu art. I can't wait to see the other Add-Ons they'll be adding now that we have DEH support. Did they mention anything about adding online multiplayer? I would kill for that.

[Chip]

It's great. So far, not much has happened. There is the crosshairs and a few new options. But, I think it will get really interesting by the end of the month, when ID releases a new mod with new enemies or guns or both. 

[VanaheimRanger]

The only issue I have is that, the way I had been doing things was to have my ZDL install inside the Doom II common folder with the launch .bat filr, and I had edited the .bat file to point to zdl.exe instead of doom2.exe, that way I could run Doom in a source port and still have my playtime tracked on Steam.  I can no longer track it now with the Unity port :\

[D4NUK1]

15 minutes ago, guitardz said:

The only issue I have is that, the way I had been doing things was to have my ZDL install inside the Doom II common folder with the launch .bat filr, and I had edited the .bat file to point to zdl.exe instead of doom2.exe, that way I could run Doom in a source port and still have my playtime tracked on Steam.  I can no longer track it now with the Unity port :\

You can do it if you reemplace dosbox.exe with zld or another launcher, and instead of modify the .bat, have a launch file pointing at that .exe

Im done that and can still track hours, use screenshots and more with the launch options of launch with Dos.

[VanaheimRanger]

Interesting, will see what I can do with it later.

[Deimos]

I had a crash on ps4, but other than that it's becoming one my favorite ports.

[DNSKILL5]

I think it’s the best port out there for those that want it. I think it has made the older games more accessible to a new audience, and gives them easy access to quite a few addons. 
 

I personally don’t care for it myself though for several reasons that aren’t really worth mentioning, and will continue to play how I wish to instead through source ports on the PC. I can still access all the games and addon content without any hassle on PC. So no, I’m not one of those people that hates the port just because of the crap that they put with it at launch (Bethesda net or whatever), but I personally feel it is not the best way to play the game for those that have access to source ports, but if you only have a console then I see the advantage of the Unity port over previous console ports. 

[Spie812]

Doom should be launched from a command line and anything else is evil and wrong.

 

Seriously though, the port is fine, I guess. It helps bring Doom to a more casual audience, and is certainly an improvement over the old Dosbox release on Steam. However, the lack of custom levels apart from the sanctioned ones, the bethesda.net requirement to load custom content (lmao ignore me), the absence of most gameplay, look, and feel options that even conservative source ports generally provide, the lack of (relatively) advanced features such as the command line or demos, and the overall kind of weird feeling still (in my opinion) mean that this port is pretty much useless to me.

 

I'm almost certainly never going to use this port apart from maybe the occasional screwing around, but I suppose it's still a nice option for those who aren't hardcore classic Doom fans and just want to download and play.

Edited September 5, 2020 by Spie812

[AmethystViper]

I'm really liking this port so far. So far it plays nicely on my PC, I dig the new official widescreen presentation and updated assets that was made for this port, and the DeHackEd support is helping opening up more possibilities for this new version. I'm glad the dev team didn't leave the initial Unity port from last year be an afterthought ridden with an awful online DRM and marring the original Doom games with a plethora of problems. I had a softspot for the original Xbox port of the first two Doom games and getting a taste of the 360 ports, but this takes those versions to a whole new level. It won't replace being able to play Doom on a source port like GZDoom, obviously, but for console players, this is a great way to enjoy Doom in a modern context.

[Moustachio]

I've had it on PS4 since it was a so-so port. Honestly, I think we've been getting spoiled rotten with this port. It's really great, and it all feels like an updated port of Doom should. I don't really see it as having a lack of features more than just keeping true to the original spirit of the game.

[UndeadRyker]

I'm actually quite glad that I got the update with Unity for free with the inclusion of the original DOS game as I always got my IWADS from Steam. I think it's ok. Like it's already been said the Unity port is nice for newer players to officially dip their toes into Doom. The widescreen graphic elements stand out to me the most and it's one of my favorite things the port has offered. However I do have some gripes with it:

1. The absence of seamless online multiplayer. I feel like this is the only advantage that ID/Bethesda had over any other source port and they blew it. The official nature of their port meant that they could have curated or been the easiest way to play multiplayer Doom across the internet with public lobby systems or even just private invitation games through Steam. The game does support remote play however, but I don't want to see a quarter of my screen on my own monitor in splitscreen and I don't want to be tempted to screen peak.
2. No DEHACKED support. Nuff said.
3. No custom map/mod support (as far as we know). Nuff said x2.
4. VSync and the option menu in general. Their implementation of vsync is the worst I have ever seen in any game. For some reason it affects how sensitive my mouse is. When it's on, my mouse is more sensitive, and when it's off, it's less sensitive and it's a huge difference. The only good thing about their vsync is that I didn't notice any input delay. As for the options, I wish they had a numeric value displayed after mouse sensitivity. It could go a little more complex with the information it shows. I don't know why they couldn't have put autorun and the mouse sensitivity in "Controls" rather than "Gameplay".
5. There is a "Cheats" option. This is probably nitpicking but they're really just spoonfeeding cheats to people who can just activate it at the click of a button. I understand why they'd have this option for console, but couldn't it have been an unlockable?

Compared to BFG Edition version though? Miles better than the BFG Edition. I'm glad that they did alternative graphics at the very least for Wolfenstein levels. I also like the green health crosses since not only is it just a simple recolor, but it's also the true cross for health in real life. However, it's not worth $5 to just get one IWAD for the Unity port because other source ports blow it right out of the water.

Edited September 5, 2020 by UndeadRyker
strikethrough!

[Maximum Matt]

[rustygizzard]

10 minutes ago, UndeadRyker said:

No DEHACKED support. Nuff said.

the new update added dehacked support

[Edward850]

50 minutes ago, Spie812 said:

However, the lack of custom levels apart from the sanctioned ones

You can load your own wads on PC and Android. The only restriction is that of all other platforms that do not allow for unmoderated custom content nor have any means of external ingress anyway (except technically the Switch but it's not a method you're allowed to use in retail, the Xbox meanwhile is Fort Knox with its frankly impressive SoC encryption and hypervisor).

Edited September 5, 2020 by Edward850

[UndeadRyker]

6 minutes ago, rustygizzard said:

dehacked support

Holy moly, I should've read the update page. But how can we use it? Is it already being used in one of its official addons or something? I haven't bothered to look in the addons yet.

[Edward850]

1 minute ago, UndeadRyker said:

Holy moly, I should've read the update page. But how can we use it? Is it already being used in one of its official addons or something? I haven't bothered to look in the addons yet.

On PC and Android, side load a vanilla mod with dehacked embedded in the WAD.

[sponge]

It's not super clear but you can drop WAD files in %userprofile%/Saved Games/id Software/DOOM Classic/WADs (or Doom II/WADs) and they will appear in the Downloaded Add-Ons list, no login required. For example: (also showing off the increased sprite limit!)

[Spectre01]

Interesting, how does something like nuts.wad perform in the Unity port compared to PRBoom+?

[UndeadRyker]

Dang, I get a crash upon loading up the first map of my WAD that features DEHACKED to test when it works in Crispy Doom, PrBoom+. Is there a visplane limit?

 

But hey, at least now I know it supports custom WAD loading. Neat! Thanks Edward and Sponge :)

 

Edit: I should also add that it has custom graphics (that are Doom paletted) and I know that Chocolate Doom had problems with that. Maybe that's why?

Edited September 5, 2020 by UndeadRyker

[Chip]

1 minute ago, UndeadRyker said:

Dang, I get a crash upon loading up the first map of my WAD that features DEHACKED 

What was the WAD. It might have been something like Valiant which required MBF

[UndeadRyker]

No MBF or Boom required. It's my own WAD I'm planning to release an update for this Halloween. I think I know why Unity crashes because I remember Chocolate Doom being fussy about the way I replaced the graphics. It requires a limit-removing source port: 

Edit: I got rid of all the graphics, sprites, patches and custom textures (TEXTURE1), yet it still crashes on map start. I'm so confused.

Edit2: I got rid of everything including DEHACKED, save for the maps and it still crashes. I even decided to check my starting map with visplane explorer out of curiosity and I didn't breach the limit. Weird.

Edited September 5, 2020 by UndeadRyker

[sponge]

There is a Unity .log file buried away somewhere weird that should contain the Doom engine output, and will often print the I_Error if that's what's being hit, but unfortunately the exact details of that slip me at the moment. Being based on a different fork of the engine means sometimes things act differently, and while generally limits removing WADs work, the lack of a real "specification" as to what limits removing actually means that we've raised or removed a bunch, but something else may run into something that isn't. I'll try and grab that WAD and take a look this weekend to see if it's something simple.

[maxmanium]

18 minutes ago, UndeadRyker said:

No MBF or Boom required. It's my own WAD I'm planning to release an update for this Halloween. I think I know why Unity crashes because I remember Chocolate Doom being fussy about the way I replaced the graphics. It requires a limit-removing source port: 

 

 

What limit does it remove? If there are no problems with visplanes, seg overflows, etc., then you can use DEHACKED to rename the prefixes of the sprites being replaced -- that's an easy way to put new sprites in your wad.

[UndeadRyker]

17 minutes ago, sponge said:

There is a Unity .log file buried away somewhere weird

Thanks for looking into this, I really appreciate it. I found the .log file by the way! It was in \%AppData%\Local\Temp\Bethesda Softworks\DOOM 2\Crashes\. Skimming it real quick, it looks like there's some sort of memory access violation happening. Crash_2020-09-05_010841207.zip

 

17 minutes ago, maxmanium said:

What limit does it remove?

I just bumped the requirement from vanilla up to limit-removing because I was too lazy to figure out how to make sure the sprites I replaced didn't crash the game and with the way I handled the new graphics heh. I replaced them over existing graphics. If using DEHACKED with totally new sprites work to make it vanilla compatible, then I think I'll try to do that before Halloween!

[Edward850]

15 minutes ago, UndeadRyker said:

I just bumped the requirement from vanilla up to limit-removing because I was too lazy to figure out how to make sure the sprites I replaced didn't crash the game and with the way I handled the new graphics heh.

That's not the definition of limit removing. Limit removing means expanding or removing one of the static limits in the engine. What you have there is Boom-adjacent with something else particular you have done. I can't tell if it's the graphics, it might not be because it still crashes even with the chocolate doom -merge parameter, but I'm not clear on what exactly it is at this time.

[UndeadRyker]

22 minutes ago, Edward850 said:

That's not the definition of limit removing.

Ah, whoops. I thought it's just limit-removing because it works totally fine in Crispy Doom which I always considered to be a limit-removing port since it doesn't have Boom support.

 

Anyway, before I accidentally derail this topic even more I've decided to start a new thread because I'd like to make my mod vanilla-compatible, if not, Unity compatible. Thanks guys! :

 

[MemeMind]

Im exited for the possibilities of making unity centered mods and maps.

I would love to see a mod browser designed like Fallout 4 and Skyrim's built in browsers.

Also deathmatch would be awesome to see, those ports only have half of the game! I also want to frag some complete noobs 

These ports have a great future from my perspective!

[Edward850]

9 minutes ago, Theperson said:

I would love to see a mod browser designed like Fallout 4 and Skyrim's built in browsers.

 

16 minutes ago, Theperson said:

Also deathmatch would be awesome to see, those ports only have half of the game! I also want to frag some complete noobs 

 

Any other suggestion of things the port already has? :P

[MemeMind]

3 minutes ago, Edward850 said:

 

 

Any other suggestion of things the port already has? :P

for the first thing I meant full integration with something like bethesda.net so you dont have to wait for updates to get new stuff.

For the second point, im a fucking moron who cant read through a thread.

Edited September 5, 2020 by Theperson
im a moron

[Edward850]

5 minutes ago, Theperson said:

for the first thing I meant full integration with something like bethesda.net so you dont have to wait for updates to get new stuff.

They can't do that, and have explained it in detail. Because the history of doom mods have treated copyright like a suggestion, Bethesda aren't able to just allow any mods to be published and have to curate everything. However nothing is stopping you from loading your own stuff:

 

Edited September 5, 2020 by Edward850