The DWmegawad Club plays: SKULLTIVERSE

[Thrustpeak]

UV | Continuous | dsda-doom

 

MAP08: Corruption Complex 

Like map 2 was aptly named "Regular Base" it feels like this could have similarly been called "Regular Corrupted Base". There isn't much to comment on because it feels so basic. While not the worst map, it's not something that will stick in my memory for any reason—good or bad. 

 

Spoiler

 

 

[Pseudonaut]

Map07 FDA (2 deaths):

stv07FDA.zip

The gimmick was spoiled for me by skimming this thread, but I suppose the signs all over the place resemble similar signs in The Mancubian Candidate enough that I would have quickly noticed the connection. It's good to have a map of the same concept using the other enemy that can fit the role. Keeping the arachnotron alive is by far the hardest part of this map, to the extent that I would sometimes knowingly let myself be hit with projectiles if I needed to as long as I was steering the enemies' aim away from the 'tron. Fortunately, the balance of health on this map permits such play with ease, so all my deaths happened because the arachnotron died.
 

[baja blast rd.]

map08: "Corruption Complex" by Late night person

 

Doing the "tips for the author" thing since I thought there was low-hanging fruit for that.

 

Spoiler

- Try to have some cause-and-effect with secrets. After pressing and shooting the wall with the candle, when I got back to the soulsphere I still initially assumed it was a free goodie provided for the last fight, which would make sense too. Even after entering the tunnel and getting the secret alert, I wasn't 100% sure it was connected to that wall instead of some other thing I did until I opened the editor. The other two secrets feel like "hope to notice them and randomly backtrack." The berserk is somewhat reasonable since it's so close, but I'm not so sure about that rocket launcher. There is no cue.  

 

Generally, it helps to tip the player off that either a secret exists (like, teasing the soulsphere through a gap in the wall) but the way of getting to it must be found; or something happened and that shows that a secret must exist (like, a sound when you shoot the wall -- which can be accomplished by applying an unseen switch texture to the upper or lower side of that wall). 

 

- Don't map too tightly around what you know. When the blue skull key lowered, I saw a key lowering so I went to grab it. Since monsters teleport in seconds later, they pinned me into that hole, which was hilarious but not very balanced. I managed to survive, luckily. (Then I ended up running to the other side of the room and encountering the block line others pointed out, and instantly defanged the fight.) It often helps to try your best to anticipate how a player will act based on what they might know. (That is tricky and hard.)  

 

- Be careful about infinite height. In the computer maze, you want to grab the goodies on top of the computer stacks and not fall off, because falling off forces you to go all the way around again to grab them. There are imps underneath that can block the player's jumps unknowingly. Even if they don't block you, it still feels messy to bump into monsters way below you like that. The start area has a blocking corpse that looks like you should be able to pass under it. (Theoretically it's also in the middle of the most dangerous fight, which is not ideal either.) 

 

 

- ...and be careful of monsters awkwardly below the player in general. In the yellow key room, the closet monsters are immediately ineffective if the player retreats. They bunch up below the platforms and can't do much.  

 

 

- Less can be more with limitation projects. When people are required to do 2048x2048 maps, sometimes the implied challenge becomes "see how much progression you can squeeze out of it" which, though not necessarily bad, can be translated to "fill it with lots of tiny rooms," which despite feeling natural can actually be one of the toughest things to do well with these. This layout feels a lot like one of those. Using fewer but bigger spaces, and maybe using them more than once -- multiple fights, or some sort of transformation, or doubling over via different height levels -- can go a lot smoother. Later on in this map, it seems the layout backs itself into a corner, with a teleporter that looks like it exists just to redirect the player away from unavoidable backtracking, which is surprising in a map this small. 

 

- A lot of the aesthetic is "rectangular areas with wallpapered textures." There are many different ways to improve from that, and it's basically your choice (so beyond the scope of a writeup like this to cover). What they have in common is usually studying maps you like and trying to make similar things. 

 

Parts that I thought were okay or enjoyed: the other basic combat, the skin-flesh theming where it exists, the unusual touches like the SIGIL eye switch, lighting being used extensively, the broad concepts of many areas (like the aforesaid computer maze), the general weirdness of everything as an aesthetic (the starting portions of the map are good at creating suspense and unease because of that), stuff like this foreshadowed SSG. 

 

 

[Biodegradable]

MAP08 - Corruption Complex

UV | Continuous | GZDoom and Vanilla+

 

A rather compact map with lots of close-quarters combat and a jumbled feeling with its texture work, this was probably the easiest one so far besides that last fight where things get a tad hairy at the end given the limited space and the amount of demonic buggers that pop in. This might be the intense fatigue I'm fighting post-vaccine injection, but I can't think of much else to say about it. It's an okay map.

 

 

[DuckReconMajor]

MAP08 - Corruption Complex - dsda-doom - skill 4 pistol start

 

Another great music track. I liked the sigil eye bit.

The part where you go up the lift and you get a breath of outside air is something i've seen before, i like when mappers do that, an underrated bit of atmosphere making

 

Spoiler

 

 

[DJVCardMaster]

MAP07 - "Constant Companion" - ViolentBeetle (100%K/I/S):

AKA: The Arachnotronian Candidate. A similar idea to the map you saw in Valiant's MAP07 slot, the Mancubian Candidate. I think it lacks the special threat that original map had, but wasn't so bad after all. The big problem was having to face small rooms to fight many monsters here and there, it was a pain even in medium difficulty.
Three hidden switches only for a green armor is not something I recall as good secret, is it worthy? Well yes, you need that armor, but... a green one?
This is another example of a map I would recall as having , something I can only define with Argentine words: "Música Pelotuda" (from Pelotudo, meaning stupid, dumb, ridicule, and many other things at the same time). Some other maps had this same "feat" of having stupid music, but for now, MAP07 gets the cake as the pelotudest (Great translation mate).
Constant Companion falls short against its Valiant counterpart because of small rooms, being annoying when trying to save this dumb Arachnotron from dying at infighting, and of course, being just a copy-cat of an original idea at the time. I quite enjoyed it, but not good by any means.

MAP08 - Corruption Complex" - Late night person (100%K/100%I/66%S):

I can recall this music, it's from the US version of Metallic Madness, from Sonic CD short loop, sadly, and also not a fan of US Sonic CD music. 
The map itself, yet again makes me think I'm playing through revamped 1995 maps at times, only looking good because of new textures. This layout is weird, and has some short corridors with random monsters thrown on it. One thing that threw the map a little bit more for me, was the bull's-eye shooting to progress ala-SIGIL. Sigil presented this mechanic right from the start, are you specting me to play Sigil before your map? I hope not.
The computer labyrinth and the end were stupid, all my deaths were at the end. Nothing too interesting happening at this map, still, not as bad as MAP02 or MAP06, I enjoyed it a little bit more, though..
Also, many instances of getting infinitely talled to death here and there...

Deaths: 17 (HMP - PrBoom+)

Order of preference:

Spoiler

 

MAP05

MAP03

MAP01
MAP04
MAP07
MAP08
MAP02
MAP06

 

Yeah, Sonic CD was crap, and the US music not a banger as its PAL counterpart.

Edited September 8, 2021 by DJVCardMaster

[dei_eldren]

MAP09 - Electric Red (HNTR, continuous w/ saves): K 100%, I 100%, S 100% (4/4), T 30:35

 

Spoiler

Even though i quite enjoyed this map, it's starting to be clear that many levels in this WAD are not going to be my preferred type, but very modern in their approach, and it's interesting because i haven't played many such maps at all.  This map is a good example of that style, meaning, the player goes from one setpiece ambush to another, with some rather heavy incidental combat in between (and sometimes these are foregone altogether.)  i think Sunlust, and Back to Saturn X are some of the flagbearers of said style (and no need to argue with me about the definitions, it is my take on it), and though they'd never be something i'd be tempted to play, they are impressive for sure.

 

This map, located in a deceptivelly gothic-looking techbase, that one could easily imagine being done with Heretic-textures, begins with an innocuous warning - a rather easily dealt with ambush of low-tiers, yet, it's not simply a breeze but gets slightly chaotic, giving a glimpse of what is to come.  The layout is quite complex, with rooms and hallways and corners and ornamentation, and i have to say it looks really good.  To my taste it's perhaps a bit overdone, but it's not an all out candy-store.

 

My favourite part of the level is the outside, with elevated walkways surrounding the central pool of blood, and though not the worst, one very challenging ambush takes place there.  It's an attack with a horde of Imps preventing the escape from the scene of four Revenants from one side, and some Cacodemons soon from the other.  i tried different approaches, and i think succeeded on my fifth attempt.  First i tried shooting my way through the Imps, but the horde was simply too thick and Revenants too fast from behind, and eventually after different thematic variations decided it's best to hold my ground and just use the RL first on the Revenants, and then deal with the rest.

 

Behind the BK door is what i'd say was the worse mise-en-scene, a fighting pit with three Hell Knights, whilst few Revenants shoot missiles from the perimeter above.  And not surprisingly, as it is the penultimate battle for the reward of the BSK.  This one took me a lot of tries, as i think some luck was involved of course, but seemed best simply to circle one way around the HKs, not dashing around or changing direxion as i kept doing at first, and eventually they were killed with the SSG, and then it was time to take care of the Revenants, who weren't a terrible threat anymore, as dodging their rockets coming from above is fair bit easier.  i enjoyed this fight more.

 

My favourite encounter was earlier, though, for the BK.  The fight itself was more suitable for my skills, too, but it was also striking for the visuals.  The walks down a central bridge picking up rockets, while to the sides over the pit are dark walls, with a bloodred light travelling across the darkness.  Grabbing the BK teleports Imps to the sides, and couple Hell Knights to the bridge, the entrance to which is now closed.  The HK's need to be dealt with first, but the fireballs from the Imps are relentless and abundant.  After the HK's are dead, the door at the end opens again, with some Cacodemons now coming at you.  A fine scene altogether, and fun combat.

 

The level would of course not be complete without the fucking Arch-Vile making an appearance, in the last small fight, when returning to the beginning area.  He's not alone, of course, but with a Revenant and a HK, and i die on my first attempt here.  There were also more such fights along the way, as well as some incidental combat.  The progression was good, and actually required a small amount of exploration, but never making me feel lost, even if i didn't know exactly what had happened, i generally had a good guess where to go, such as with the switch that triggered the Revenant/Caco/Imp encounter.

 

While going through i only found one secret, an easy Mega Armor, and three are still missing.. and about half of my video is looking for the rest.  i know what one of them is, in the outside area in the blood-pool there is a raised floor upon which are a lot of goodies, but i didn't yet find a switch for that.  However, after a while i go there again, and spot one lonely green torch in the row of torches!  i love it, it's actually the first classic green torch switch that i find, and i'm always on the lookout for them.  Great!  The third one i find by trying a wall that had a clear white-line hint on the map, behind which is a lovely Soul Sphere!  That leaves one, but i stop looking for it since i missed the clue on the map and was out of ideas for the moment.  However, i did return, and found it in two minutes, as the switch in the pillar was indicated in the map and i had missed that small clue before.

 

So... i do not dislike the map, it had also a lot to like, but to me, this kind of combat is more like playing etudes rather than a concerto (can't come up with a better analogy, even if i no longer can care listening to either etudes nor concertos).  It's almost like every fight needs to be a practice-challenge, and that's not what i seek from playing Doom, even if i do plan to become a better player, playing through Chopin's etudes is not on my list of things to accomplish.  And i'm not saying there isn't exploration in this level, or many modern maps, but regardless, it does feel to me like a vehicle to move from one setpiece fight to another, the focus is so heavily on them as there are simply too many of them, and too little of the incidental combat.  If we take my analogy a bit further, if you listen to Piano Concertos, the virtuoso passages are often rather sparse and short.  Anyway, that's just my take on it, and my fanciful analogy is naturally entirely subjective and objectively superfluous - only meant to illustrate my own preference and justification for it. :)

 

But that's a good thing about this WAD too, and DWMWC in general, gives me a chance to play stuff i normally wouldn't, and to stretch my skills, which is admittedly something WADs i usually play don't manage to do.

 

PS: i entirely forgot the combat against two Hell Knights behind the BK door in the cramped space around the doorway, which was a real scare as it happened, but also a lot of fun, even as i was sure i'd take massive damage or die, but managed it almost without scratch with the SSG.  This fight actually made me feel pretty good about my gameplay :P

 

Also, the volume is very low when playing so i hear the music only after the fact, and both MAP08 and this one had some of the best (and fitting) music i've heard in this WAD so far.

 

 

Uptown top ranking:

Spoiler

MAP06

MAP01

MAP08

MAP04

MAP02

MAP03

MAP09

MAP05

MAP07

 

Edited September 9, 2021 by dei_eldren
two HK behind BK door & music

[cannonball]

MAP08 - “Corruption Complex” by Late night person

There isn't a lot going for this one. The room construction is almost as basic as you get, unlike some others the extra textures really don't add much apart from make it even more glaring to look at.

So what is good about this? Well the SSG trap (demons and killing the lights), that was good as the loss of light does give a level of threat, the following spectre/rev double act at the red key works too.

The bad, well the map was boxy, ugly and the majority of the combat is pedestrian except for the above. The blue key though is the icing on the cake, its pretty trashy, the room doesn't really suit a fight like this and it shows as there is a blocking line that renders the fight trivial unless you run out of ammo. 

I'm afraid this one is probably my least favourite so far, sorry.

[Book Lord]

MAP 09 – Electric Red by Myolden

PrBoom+ 2.5.1.4, UV-Fast, Continuous, blind run w/saves

 

Resized skull switches from The Plutonia Experiment everywhere? This must be a trap-heavy level with lots of merciless ambushes, taking the lesson from the Casali brothers and bringing it to the nth potential! I liked the challenge, even though it tested my nerves and perseverance close to the limit.

 

Electric Red was an interconnected series of rooms and hallways packed with opposition and devious combat set pieces. It soon became clear that every switch, every key, every major item pickup triggered traps, unfortunately not of the predictable or easily avoidable kind. Most of them where close and personal, required immediate reaction and/or blocked the escape with the utmost cruelty, showing an aggressive attitude that was way beyond everything seen so far including MAP07, which was difficult only because of the Arachnotron gimmick.

Spoiler

I died to almost every major ambush, since -fast monsters were way too efficient at killing me before I could assess the situation. Foreknowledge was usually insufficient to deal with the surprise attacks, since the opposition was hefty and organised to surround me. It is obvious that nobody here designs maps with -fast in mind, because such numbers and cramped spaces are required only to overwhelm skilled regular UV players. The Revenant squad boxing me in by the RK was the first example. The BK ambush was devious as well, since it sealed the player on a walkway with enemies hurling projectiles from every possible angle. -fast monsters shoot incessantly, so you can only imagine my troubles.

Spoiler

At least, the map was generous with health, rockets, shells, and powerful pickups, even though I wasted both combat armours to survive the most difficult setups. The blue skull pitfall trap was brutal and inescapable, with monsters placed so that they could not infight but could easily single out the player instead. I cannot remember how many attempts it required. There was an Arch-Vile punishment squad waiting by the Skullgate, including a 4-switch setup to rule out easy flight opportunities. This map was ruthless and its technological hell aesthetics convey the intention to break the player. The struggle remembered me the first time I played Abattoire on UV -fast, but I think I have improved a lot as a player since then. Excellent work, @myolden; if Skulltiverse design team fast forward like this with difficulty I will soon be cut down to size with my UV -fast ambitions.

Edited September 8, 2021 by Book Lord

[Lorenz0]

MAP08 - Corruption Complex

 

This one does little to justify its very existence. It’s hardly long enough to call itself a level and contains nothing of substance. It’s just 2 and a half minutes of barely threatening encounters and no eye candy whatsoever. The texturing is messy to say the least, which is noticeable in the very first room you start in, with that random flesh pillar containing the blue skullkey. 

 

The final fight may have been a potential point of challenge, but you can skip it completely by just stepping on the exit teleporter. The midi is the only redeemable quality in this map. The gameplay experience overall is maybe not as unpleasant as map06, but it’s certainly as bland and pointless as map02, or even slightly worse, since it’s placed in a later mapslot. Unfortunately the time for warm up levels has passed a while ago.

 

MAP09 - Electric Red

 

A warm up level this is not. The most professional entry thus far, this map has the best looking areas and most interesting combat scenarios that Skulltiverse has to offer. 

 

Clearly a lot of effort was put into polishing the visuals of this map. It’s atmospheric and full of detail. This kind of aesthetic strongly reminds me of Disjunction (maps 03 and 10 in particular). 

 

The combat is mostly comprised of small setpieces here and there, which is a structure I’m very fond of. The ssg trap can be quite vicious for oblivious players and managed to kill me once. From this point onwards I could clearly see that the author enjoys limiting the player’s space to move around in order to create some challenge, which is a good strategy imo. You can see that in that cool looking strobing tunnel setpiece as well.

 

The final archvile trap gave me a slight jumpscare, but wasn’t too overwhelming and I found it pretty satisfying to beat. Like most others actually. I don’t think there has been a single moment where this map wasn’t fun for me, so it currently takes the spot of my favorite in the wad so far.

 

Order of preference:

 

MAP09

MAP07
MAP04
MAP05
MAP01
MAP03
MAP02
MAP08
MAP06

 

Edited September 8, 2021 by Lorenz0

[baja blast rd.]

map09: "Electric Red” by Myolden
 

The broad theme reminds me a lot of floatRand's mapset Disjunction (the metal-blood map10 in particular) and early Ribbiks (including not just wads like Crumpets, but also his two later maps in Slaughterfest 2012). I'm guessing the name "Electric Red" is directly based on "Electric Wizard," the name of SF2012 map17.

 

It follows suit by structuring gameplay mostly around setpieces -- but the intensity is much lower, suited more for a traditional megawad like this. 

 

Despite all the tuned setpieces, my favorite area might be the the freer-playing eastern blood yard. If you enjoy getting yourself in trouble, there is some serious potential for mayhem there, grabbing weapons and obviously booby-trapped supplies without clearing out the existing monsters first. Then it becomes all rocket-flinging and tomato swarms and adrenaline and nearly getting cornered before slipping out and doing it again.

 

 

Based how conveniently these setups fit together, and how easy it is to run low on rockets and encourage grabbing something new, that style of play seems encouraged. (Although not quite as aggressive in the video unless you've already played the map like I did at that point. :P)

 

Anyone inspired by the above mappers would be wise to follow in their footsteps and master hell knights and barons as well as revenants and archviles, to avoid overreliance on that latter pair. This three-HK setpiece might be my highlight of the more enclosed setpieces. I was dry on rockets that could soften them up, and needed to slip through the gang before they cornered me.

 

 

One way "Electric Red" keeps its difficulty in check is no-strings-attached secrets. The blue armor secret I found clever not because of any tricky mechanics or techniques involved, but because of its disarming simplicity. So much points to "hidden switch," but if you shimmy along the rail of the higher level, you can simply drop down and grab it. Funny because it's a secret I initially missed. With this secret and the other free blue armor, it is theoretically possible to always have lots of blue armor.

 

The rocket-shell secret, for what it gives you, though, is pretty obscure -- the metal panel might be a different texture, but it blends in super well given the theme and detail level. But despite some other criticisms that are more subjective -- like all the dead space between the red key and blue key door, and the last archvile fight being very campable for something that startled me into immediately retreating through the 64-wide door -- I think this is one of the stronger maps yet. 

[Thrustpeak]

UV | Continuous | dsda-doom 

 

MAP09: Electric Red 

Wow, this map sure brings the pain. Cramped spaces, tons of rockets it feels too dangerous to use, and plenty of wicked traps sprung—this was the first map to kill me, and it did so multiple times. The brutal battle for the blue skull—dropped into a pit with revenants sniping as a pack of hell knights make maneuvering and rockets difficult—did me in twice. A fitting challenge to claim the exit key. Visually there was some cool stuff going on here. I really liked the bit at the blue keycard. This is probably one of the frontrunners for my favorites so far along with MAP05 and MAP07. 

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

Edited September 9, 2021 by Thrustpeak

[TJG1289]

GZDoom/Blind/UV/Continuous/Saves

Map 08 - Corruption Complex - Late Night Person

100% kills and secrets

Time: 5:50

 

This one is pretty basic as well. Lots of small rooms that make for some claustrophobic encounters. Low enemy count too, but it picks up with intensity toward the end, with the last ambush springing 4 revs and an archie on you. I used rockets and definitely hurt myself in the process. Good thing I had the mega armor and secret soul sphere. Not entirely sure how that one opened. I found all 3 secrets, and 2 of them just boiled down to backtracking to newly opened teleporters. I wonder if shooting the panel with the candle in front of it in the outside area did it? idk. Going into the nukage room causes entry to close, and I ended up backing into the previous room as it was doing this. The passage remains locked, but there is a teleporter in this room that take you back in, so good design there. Sigil eyes are second nature to me, but for the few people who haven't played it, progression may be confusing here. I enjoy me any Sonic related MIDIs, though Sonic CD is not one I remember the songs from too much, and I even have the US version in my music library. Still, good MIDI. Level is ok, but short enough where it's fine.

 

Map 09 - Electric Red - Myolden

100% kills and secrets

Time: 14:42

Deaths: 1

 

This level is pretty cool. I can't put my finger on what it reminds me of aesthetically, but it's very nicely detailed. It's almost like a modern Plutonia-looking map, sorta? All I know is, this one is the most difficult one so far. There's a few nasty fights in here, some of which are in tight quarters, like the 3 hell knight fight in a small room. The blood canal that fills with revs almost got me, but I was able to SSG one out of my way so I could hightail it out of there. The blue key fight that's shown above in a gif not only has that cool lighting, but also a good fight where you got hell knights on the same walkway as you with imps perched on both sides. Getting both the SSG and rocket launcher launch some pretty intense fights, especially the RL, which also almost got me. The blue skull fight was almost bad for me, but I figured out pretty quickly that hitting the switch raised the floor back up so the hell knights and revs could infight easily. The fight that did kill me was the final ambush back at the start. Trying to rocket in that room with many pillars and dodging an archvile and rev missiles was a no go, so my second attempt had me retreat back through the red door. The 4 secrets were nice to have. The blue armor and rockets by the RL were easy to figure out, but the secret by the SSG took me a minute. Very clever use of different wall textures on one specific column. The soul sphere was kinda given away via automap, which is good cause it just looks like a normal wall where it's hidden. All-in-all, a very solid map with some nice encounters. MIDI got old quickly for me.

[DisgruntledPorcupine]

MAP08: "Corruption Complex" by Late Night Person

UV, pistol start, no saves

100% kills, 3/3 secrets

 

This one feels like a breather for the most part, reflected in a small monster count of 48. I do enjoy the midi quite a bit, a nice sounding tune which is from Sonic CD apparently, but it is pretty short and loops a little awkwardly. Visually I find this one uses lighting pretty well and there are some nice little flairs like the use of the Sigil eye switch (which took me way too long to notice for some reason), and the usage of green teleporters to indicate secrets and stick out from the other teleporters in the map (which is also aptly hinted at by the green teleporter visible behind the rocket launcher secret at the start(. The gory textures are used pretty nicely too, especially around the switch that lowers the blue skull key. I do think there is a bit of a lack of cohesiveness in the texture variety from room to room, it kind of falls in this awkward zone of feeling a bit disjointed but not enough so to have an effectively surreal quality to it or anything, but in a vacuum I thought the individual rooms looked nice.

 

The combat is alright for the most part. I did like the pinkie ambush at the SSG, although I think I personally would have made it a little meaner and had the room trap you for some amount of time as I found it a little easy to escape. The fighting is mostly pretty trivial, although the final teleport ambush with an archvile and revenants can be pretty deadly if you didn't manage to pick up the rocket launcher secret. 

 

This one was a bit rough around the edges, but it had some charm to it. Another one that felt like it was some refinement away from being a solid map.

[Pseudonaut]

Map08 FDA (1 death):

stv08FDA511.zip

 

A little awkward to play, and not in a good or interesting way. I died toward the end and noticed my distaste for this map was enhanced by the experience of playing through most of it again. It's not horrible, but I'm not a fan.

[DFF]

Map08 - Corruption Complex by Late Night Person

A very standard fare map, simple and not terribly interesting. The fights present are mostly fine, but the cramped nature of the map makes most of the later fights feel like hallway shootouts. There are some fun little features present, such as the shootable eye and some backtracking secrets. I found the MIDI to be a bit too loud, but did appreciate the Sonic CD track having enjoyed that game years ago. Overall its an average map. Sadly i don't have much to say since there isn't much that comes to mind. 

MAP09 - Electric Red by Myolden

This map has a very strong and cohesive style to it, something made very apparent in the opening room. Electric red is a very apt name for this map, a hollow mechanical husk of a base that is littered with loose cables, demonic screens on the fritz, and plenty of blood red lighting. Combat pops and is lots of specific small fights with very tight monster management, forcing the player to often very quickly identify the biggest threat in any fight and eliminate them as quickly as possible. Its definitely a harder map than most before it, but i personally did not have as much issue with this map. Because fights are very specific, its easy to predict when a trap is gonna spring on you, and fight prioritization is not a huge issue for me. This is still well designed, just a different kind of combat.

Great visuals, natural flow, good fun fights. Solid map

[Biodegradable]

MAP09 - Electric Red

UV | Continuous | GZDoom and Vanilla+

 

I loved and hated this map at the same time. It's got a great layout, memorable encounters and some nasty traps. This might've just been with me struggling to overcome the tail end of my post-vax illness since the recording is my 5th attempt trying to overcome it just so I could play, but at times it was an aggravating experience. I'd say both the Yellow Keycard and Blue Skullkey fights were the ones I hated the most, ESPECIALLY the Blue Skullkey one. Oh my God, that one pissed me off so much lmao. But as aggravating as some of the combat was, I respect it. Every single fight felt like its own miniature set piece, making them instantly memorable for me. It's a tough, gnarly and mean-spirited map with terrific design. It definitely evokes an E4 motif for me with its measured cruelty. I hate it because I love it and I love to hate it.

 

 

I'm also leaving this reminder to myself to replay the map again once I've fully recovered from my illness to properly deduce how much of the map is a bastard and how much I was truly hindered as I feel I still evidently wasn't in the best shape to play but I'm a stubborn cunt lol. 

[myolden]

14 hours ago, rd. said:

I'm guessing the name "Electric Red" is directly based on "Electric Wizard," the name of SF2012 map17.

 

It's actually named after a Meshuggah song.

[Book Lord]

14 minutes ago, myolden said:

 

It's actually named after a Meshuggah song.

 

I am not a deep connoisseur of Meshuggah to know that, but I obviously noticed a well-known death metal reference in MAP23 title. Still not sure about MAP13, maybe a Vader album?

[myolden]

7 minutes ago, Book Lord said:

 

I am not a deep connoisseur of Meshuggah to know that, but I obviously noticed a well-known death metal reference in MAP23 title. Still not sure about MAP13, maybe a Vader album?

 

That one is named after a track by The Black Dahlia Murder.

[DuckReconMajor]

MAP09 - Electric Red - dsda-doom - skill 4 pistol start rewinds

 

Another tough one. Non-linear but i was punished a bunch for going toward the blue key without the rocket launcher. 

Thus it was a blessing in disguise when I accidentally pressed space and re-started the map yet again.

A fresh perspective led me to trying the other path and having an even better time with it.

 

All the little screens at the beginning had me worried I'm going to miss a secret like the one from MAP01.

 

Spoiler

 

 

[LadyMistDragon]

UV, pistol-start

 

Map 08 - Corruption Complex

 

This music is really weird. Not only is it a difficult listen at first (it does acquire a cool melody at first) it apparently comes from the inferior version of the soundtrack it was plucked from. More importantly, it doesn't fit the flow of the combat in any sense, such as it's there. At least the loop didn't stop for a couple of minutes!

 

This map's definitely not bad. I liked the prevalence of red techbase textures, and also the top of the computer bank hall to some degree. The only fight I really liked was the teleport one starting when you're near the other end of the slime pit from where start. Then again, it can easily devolve into turtling if you hang around for two long without shooting anyone.

 

At the time of the last trap, I spent probably all my remaining shells on the Arch-vile, but after some Revenant resurrection, I didn't think I had the ammo and I had basically no time so I just ran to the exit. Later, I went back and found a teleporter to the hallway to the rocket launcher had opened in the far side of the compuer bank hallway for some reason. No matter, the last fight is still strangely, idk stupid.

 

Map 09 - Electric Red

 

This is fairly similar to the previous map, but feels more substantial, due to increased use of height differences and open areas. It probably also helps that I found most of the secrets without having to go back.  There are so many, many groups of Imps. At least you get a Chaingun right at the moment they start to become an issue. Before that, though, hope you found the secret Supercharge, though. You have many options upon entering the courtyard, though you should clear out the Imps at least. The secret switch to lower the platform with the rockets and Manicubus is fairly obvious but you might want to hold off on that. At any rate, picking up the rocket launcher opens up the first of many vise-like traps. You'll want to shoot the Imps, again, since you can't maneuver around them unless they've been thinned out a little. The Revenants are annoying, but you should be able to evade them if you picked up the Supercharge. The Cacodemons have the numbers to be a greater threat anyway. Deal with the Manicubus how you wish, and when everyone's dead, head the closet the Revenants came from to pick up some rockets.

 

Progression is unclear from this point. Return to the room with the Supercharge and you'll see a new hallway has opened up. When you reach the new room with start red walls in the background, pick up the Super Shotgun, and then immediately switch back to the rocket launcher, just to minimize the damage you'll get from the pinkies, then try to run around them while firing the Super Shotgun. Unfortunately, I didn't do that and got a little overwhelmed.  It's not really worth discussing the rest of the fighting in this room. Much of it present prime infighting opportunity.  However,  you should probably keep in mind a Revenant is firing at you from a distance.

 

All the following key traps feature some rather claustrophobic ambushes. The blue keycard starts a situation with some Hell Knights in front and Imps on the sides. Use your best judgement, but don't be afraid to use rockets.  Behind the blue door, deal with some Hell Knights in a stupidly claustrophobic room, but I emerged shockingly unscathed. Eventually, you'll find the blue skull key  which triggers quite a dangerous ambush with Revenants and Hell Knights on either side. This seems like an infight situation, but I was too lazy at this point. Leave this room, and you'll be immdiately confronted by a strangely modest Caco closet.

 

After this, I would end up wandering back to the the outside courtyard, and found a passage with some rockets I feel quite certain wasn't immediately accessible. Finding the red key card triggers a teleport trap with Revenants at a rather short distance. Find the strangely-placed RK door, which takes you back the room you picked up the first shotgun in. Walk into this, then find yourself confronted by a, surprise, Arch-vile and Revenant/HK bodyguard. I was running low on rockets and felt fortunate I was able to take the Arch-vile out fairly quickly, despite them managing to resurrect a pinkie or two. My shotgun supply was close to full, so it really wasn't a huge deal.

 

For better or worst, this map sticks with me more than the last. I do think maneuverability should be a little higher at this point in the wad, but then, it doesn't feel Myolden is attempting to murder you. It's in a weird middle ground of sorts.

 

 

[DJVCardMaster]

MAP09 - "Electric Red" - Myolden (100%K/I/S):

All from the sudden, another really serious map, just like MAP05, this one, starts getting pretty challenging, as right from the start, there are some nasty traps. This map has a fetish to put yourself inside tight rooms with many imps, or having to deal with knights while some other type of enemy (mostly imps or revenants) snipe you from outside the area. Most of the fights were similar to that. I did not like having rooms so small, but still I enjoyed the experience for the most part. Well detailed, nice layout, you actually have to face a threat before returning to the skull teleport, as most map should do.
I love the Boom-powered, red strobe light room, which I think gives name to the map. Really nice tech-base complex.

Deaths: 25 (HMP - PrBoom+)

Order of preference:

Spoiler

 

MAP09

MAP05

MAP03

MAP01
MAP04
MAP07
MAP08
MAP02
MAP06

 

 

Edited September 10, 2021 by DJVCardMaster

[Omniarch]

No OH&S Compliance - Washing Machine Enthusiasts
I'm... honestly lost for words. It's... original, for sure. Probably the most so, thus far. While I couldn't really describe the map as "good" in the traditional sense, I can say that, unlike many noob-maps, this one is not at all lacking in personality. Weird, and strangely fun, this map is.

 

Spoiler

These cacos got flushed away...

 

Constant Companion - ViolentBeetle
A delightful arena-based take on Valiant’s MAP07 gimmick, only this time it is a clumsy Arachnotron that the player must protect. This map is deceptively clever in its encounter-design, whatever the blocky, symmetrical layout may imply. Constant Companion had me grinning like an idiot the whole way through.

 

Spoiler

Ungrateful bastard...

 

This is the first map from ViolentBeetle, the host of this here megawad, and its most prolific contributor. I have quite a bit to say about them and their mapping style, but I shall save that for a later time. Suffice to say, ViolentBeetle is, to me, one of the most promising mappers of this already very promising generation.

 

Corruption Complex - LateNightPerson
Small techbase, vaguely reminiscent of OG Doom's second episode. While decently lit and charming in places (gotta appreciate the Sigil-esque eye-switch!), the map suffers from an incredibly ill-fitting midi, which dissipates any mood said lighting may have instilled. It is also too short to leave much of an impression in any capacity. On the plus side, the map's corrupted techbase theme is consistent in its execution, and the combat is also fairly well-coordinated given the circumstances.

 

Spoiler

Probably my favourite room. Reminds me of OG Doom's E2.

 

Electric Red - Myolden
Very attractive combat-centric techbase. I get the feeling that Myolden may be a Ribbiks fan, given the map's emphasis on colour-coordinated visuals, inset detailing and cramped, carefully-composed encounters.

The map's layout fits elegantly and snugly into the confines of the space restriction, each room proportioned just right relative to the encounters within and the map as a whole. Progression is clear and satisfying, making minimal but appropriate use of existing areas.

Overall, Electric Red is one of the best maps in the first episode. Every element complements every other to create a cohesive and enjoyable whole. A very professional outing indeed.

 

Spoiler

Hmmm, is that an American McGee torch I spy?

 

Probably the most visually-appealing room in the map. Probably should have made a gif, but whatever.

The author, like the afore-mentioned Death Bear, is another newer mapper who has demonstrated great promise within the last six months or so. In particular, their penchant for sleek visuals and tight encounters stands out to me, forming the core of a signature style that makes their work instantly recognizable.

Myolden has contributed a number of similarly well-crafted maps to a variety of community projects, most notably the PUSS series. Another mapper on whom I shall be keeping my all-seeing eye upon going forward.

[dei_eldren]

MAP10 - Terminal Decay (HNTR, continuous w/ saves): K 112%, I 100%, S 100% (3/3), D 2, T 42:38

 

Spoiler

Behind this map is a seriously brilliant concept - abandoned techbase in total darkness, and rather in style of maps of Quake, or possible Doom3.  And the techbase itself has one of the most complex, intricate and expansive layouts i've ever come across, much surpassing that of MAP05 (it is also entirely different).  And the concept is executed to perfection, no less.  The result is impressive incredibly atmospheric and aesthetic maze of a map, with some of the finest lighting details i've ever seen, but also one whose realization to some degree worked against its playability.

 

As can be seen, it took me an incredibly long time to go through it, and while there's nothing in principle wrong with that, it was a rather taxing experience.  The progression from the first few minutes onwards proved to be obscure, and this feeling was aggravated by the darkness.  Imagine Eternal Doom maps in darkness.  It often took me several minutes to find where to go, both because of the lack of light and because there was no indication what a switch did, such as after i was done with the YK doors, it took me quite a while to find how to move forward - the problem is, because of lack of light and design, it'd be very easy to miss a door or switch or anything.  i do acknowledge some of it is my fault, like missing a switch to gain the BSK, but i think that miss was brought on by the circumstances.

 

There's very few enemies, too, before the first trap, the fight ensuing after grabbing the BSK, adding to the foreboding sense permeating throughout.  It was a good one, against hitscanners, Imps and a Hell Knight.  Getting the BSK when so many enemies are left the idea is clear, the return to the skullgate will be the challenging part.  Going forward, the path is now impeded by some incidental Revenants and Hell Knights.  Back at the starting area approaching the skullgate room it suddenly gets locked, with a switch in front, and the next ambush begins when trying to open it.  A much nastier one, with an Arch-Vile thrown into the mix of Revs, Cacodemons, Pinkies and Imps.  The Arch-Vile makes the skullgate-room his castle, wreaking havoc from there.  i die once here.  To open up the skullgate-room, a new route must be taken, with enemies of all sorts now being a constant threat going towards the next trap.  On the way i grab the secret Soul Sphere seen earlier, and it's obtained for once exactly as i calculated it would be from its position in the map.  The secrets on this map were surprisingly easy, the two others i gained simply by trying automatically some random walls.

 

It's immediately obvious i have arrived, as first thing i see opening a door is a Megasphere.  It's actually the same room where the BSK was earlier, and i love the way the route taken to get here was different than first time, and again, the route out will be different - the design is simply impressive, if also all too complex to figure out in the darkness on the fly.  |Anyway, there's a view to the skullgate-room, and a switch whose purpose is quite apparent, to open it up again.  The resultant fight is one against Imps and Revenants, and after those are done and i focus on the AV through the window, some Cacodemons, apparently resurrected from the earlier fight by the AV, appear.  After all that is settled, the way back has still some very heavy encounters, also against an Arch-Vile with some Lost Souls - it's sudden but i managed to take cover before second hit and manage kill him with the RL.  After that, i come to an area i recognize, and the ordeal is soon over, after dispatching the last enemies, a couple surprise Cacodemons.  Then i collect some random goodies, and lament about the Green Armor i left behind, which would now be useful, but is too far away to start tracking down after all that has happened, i'm sort of burnt out by the map.  Not because of the fights which were quite fair, but the map itself.

 

Not sure about this one.  i was not able to make much sense of the map while playing, but now after checking some of my recording for these notes, i see clearly how it came together, a case in point being the Green Armor, i had no idea which direxion i should have taken at the end to return to it, but now i see it would have not taken long.  But like i said, i was burnt out.  The map will be around the middle of my rankings, but that doesn't mean it had anything mediocre about it - it's hot or cold, but my rankings are about how fun i thought the map was to play through in this WAD.  It's extremely intense, and i can compare it to nothing else but Eternal Doom.  What it lacks in its shenanigans it makes up for with darkness.  i think part of the blame is, it's nothing i was expecting nor was ready for, but also, some relief from the intensity would have been necessary.  The secrets were a bit incongruously easy with the rest of the level, but on the other hand i quite enjoyed the setpiece encounters in this one.  Except the presence of the fucking AV.  i never enjoy that.

 

 

Uptown top ranking:

Spoiler

MAP06

MAP01

MAP08

MAP04

MAP02

MAP03

MAP10

MAP09

MAP05

MAP07

 

[cannonball]

MAP09 - “Electric Red” by Myolden

 

The best way to describe this map is... clinical?

Technically probably the map where every single aspect has been carefully put together, from the extensive but non-obstructive detailing to the encounters that seemed to be deliberately pitched to be challenging but not ball busting. Everything here works really smoothly and is very forgiving of mistakes at times. Nobles generally used well except for the pair perched near the blue key, that is probably the only thing I can critique here.

The blue key room is...

That said the other key fights are also very good here as mentioned by a few above.

 

Overall, I think I still like map05 better, however that is purely subjective. A fine effort and I would love to see what you can do when given free reign.

Edited September 9, 2021 by cannonball

[Book Lord]

MAP 10 – Terminal Decay by LordEntr0py

PrBoom+ 2.5.1.4, UV-Fast, Continuous, blind run w/saves

 

Terminal Decay could be some sort of power station, borrowing the dark brown, green and grey palette directly from id Software’s Quake. The first minutes in this grim, desolate place were deeply unsettling. Walking through endless rooms populated only by a few zombiemen, while the air resounded with Arch-Vile laughs and Revenant shrieks, was thrilling and created a great anticipation for the inevitable invasion of hellspawn.

Spoiler

As opposed to most Skulltiverse levels, here the action began exactly when the BSK was obtained. From then on, monsters were on the loose and backtracking through previously safe areas triggered countless ambushes. I did not bother with the Mancubi in their cubicles, but thanks to the numerous Arch-Viles I easily surpassed 100% kills. It was even possible to reach the Skullgate, just to discover it had been diabolically sealed. The demons did not want Doomguy to leave this place alive.

Spoiler

I liked the combat set pieces and how the traps have been devised, except maybe the one involving a Baron, Revenants, Pinkies, Cacodemons, and a Pain Elemental. That gave me a headache on UV -fast. There were so many things to keep track of in a cramped area, and no means of escaping. The resources were plentiful throughout the map, but the affair went on for so long that every bonus I collected was invariably depleted (Megaarmour, Soul Sphere, Megasphere).

Spoiler

To be honest, I got exhausted before the end came in sight. The monsters just never gave up and passing through the same places with incessant happenings was insufferable in the long term. It just dragged on and on. I think Terminal Decay could improve by being a bit shorter. This does not detract from the design effort, which was competent and stunning, both in the visuals and in the gameplay section. It was a rare case of a brilliant concept paired with masterful execution, eventually resulting in a voluminous, long-winded product too complex to be appreciated at first glance. I am sure it holds a great value and that further plays are needed to get all of its facets, many of them still lurking in the shadows.

Edited September 10, 2021 by Book Lord

[DisgruntledPorcupine]

MAP09: "Electric Red" by Myolden

UV, pistol start, no saves

100% kills, 2/4 secrets 

 

A dark and gritty mishmash of tech, metal fortress, and hellish textures; this one is riddled with traps at every turn and is definitely the hardest map yet in my opinion. It's non-linear in design, leaving you to choose to go for the red or blue keycard first, but in reality not going for the red keycard first makes the level much harder as you get the rocket launcher on that path, an integral weapon for survival when going for the blue keycard or the blue skull key (which the blue keycard unlocks the door to).

 

There are quite a few fights in this one with the potential to end your run. The SSG ambush can turn really sour if the revenants are quick to fire missiles at you as you blast your way through the pinkies. The blue keycard ambush is something I definitely would not recommend tackling without the rocket launcher in hand, the hell knights that teleport behind you can overwhelm you very quickly. The switch beyond the blue door that takes you to the blue skull key results in an incredibly claustrophobic brush with 3 hell knights, and you'll need to 3-shot one of them with the SSG as quickly as possible to make more room for yourself. Finally, the battle for the blue skull key is probably the deadliest and most fun of the ambushes, lowering you into a pit of hell knights with revenants bursting out onto the surrounding ledges.

 

While a frustrating map, it was one that felt good to beat and I definitely reflect on positively. Probably the tightest map in the wad so far qualitywise.

[Pseudonaut]

Map09 FDA (No deaths):

stv09FDA.zip

Funny how I die on the easy maps and then survive the one that people say is a difficulty spike. I was off to a pretty bad start too after mindlessly rushing the start and losing most of my health. The BSK fight is a good counterexample to the conventional wisdom that revenants are always higher priority targets than hell knights; in this case, the revs' projectiles are much easier to dodge if the hks on the ground are gone, and you could probably just move in a circle and the revs would have a hard time hitting you. Anyway, it's one of the best maps so far, about even with map05 for me.

[Biodegradable]

MAP10 - Terminal Decay

UV | Continuous | GZDoom and Vanilla+

 

This was a rather curious specimen on a map. It starts of with a more eerie atmosphere, teasing you with the sounds of mid-tier demons coming from the walls while you scurry through tight interconnected corridors and picking off wandering zombies waiting for the inevitable ambush. Said ambushes are pretty well paced, I must say. The only thing I had trouble with was trying to find my way back to the blue portal, which proved a little frustrating by the end. The tightness of the areas made combat rather dicy at times and I found the best strategy was to try and escape and kill off any assholes who managed to follow me and try and keep ahead of 'em.