Endless Random /idgames WAD Adventures #030

[ICID]

^{(logo by @4MaTC)}

 

ICID, what the hell is this now?

Endless Random /idgames WAD Adventures is a small project of exploration, interaction, entertainment and reviews where we meet once every two weeks to select random WADs in search of hidden treasures, lost promises, or our worst nightmares! We use the /idgames archive’s special feature that lets us search for random files. Of course, sometimes the results are resources or unplayable stuff, so we focus on looking for WADs.

 

So, what do we do here?

1. Play at least one random WAD in a two-week period of time. WADs are selected using the Random File feature on /idgames or from the list below.
2. Post a review of whatever you play. There’s no required pacing, but most of us post a review once every 1-2 days.
3. Always provide the name of the WAD, the name of the author, and a link to the file.
4. Play however you want, on any skill level, and with any source port, as long as you play the WAD as intended/in working shape.
5. Be respectful. Good rule of thumb: making fun of a map is okay, making fun of the mapper is not.

 

What kind of WADs are we looking for?

Any file on /idgames is fair game, but most of us choose to stick to singleplayer Doom or Heretic WADs that work in our sourceport(s) of choice. I also pull at least 5 random WADs for the event and add them here. Feel free to play them with me if you wish, or look for your own! The point of the event is to encourage you to explore this vast, random world.

 

Recommendations for reviewing:

Spoiler

1. Please take screenshots or video of your adventures.

2. Commenting the source port and skill-level is not required, but provides helpful context to your review.

3. Try to stick to no more than 1 WAD per day to avoid burnout, but this part’s all up to you, champ!

4. As mentioned above, screenshots or videos are awesome. 

5. Reviews of all formats are valid. Both longform and shortform are good as long as you write with integrity. 

 

Endless Random /idgames WAD Adventures of this event:

1. Tekex
2. Kmetl Series
3. NINJA.WAD
4. Are you a Man?
5. Abiosis!

 

Spoiler

The Top 15 (out of 36):

 

1. @Roofi | 3615
2. @Sena | 1700
3. @Walter confetti | 890
4. @LadyMistDragon | 750
5. @ICID | 530
6. @Endless | 450
7. @smeghammer | 315
8. @LUISDooM | 235
9. @Biodegradable | 160
10. @Maribo | 145
11. @Clippy | 115
12. @thiccyosh | 90
13. @Rujasu | 85
14. @Teo Slayer | 80
15. @leodoom85 | 60

 

Join the Doom Master Wadazine community for more events like this! » https://discord.gg/Q2RKn4J

[Walter confetti]

First review for Abiosis:

Quote

I had to use an editor to fix several errors in these maps and yet I was still unable to finish the third map because it gave me a serious mental disorder.

Oh man, this sounds encouraging...

[LadyMistDragon]

Trench (1994)  by Scott Scurlock (Eternity)

 

A deathmatch replacement for E1M1 uploaded about a decade after the fact that's actually pretty good and intricate and even has some enemies, though I was even less of a mood for killing them than usual. Lots of square rooms and a decent amount of open areas. Also, a kind of cool structure you can use to access a darkened room. No ridiculous and obscure corners though. 6/10

 

Spoiler

 

Doom Gulch (1994) by Jim Flynn (Eternity)

 

A Jim Flynn map! Walter played this not so long ago. Unlike him, I largely like this map. This is actually one case of a map appearing in the Enigma Episode receiving little to no redesign, other than changing the textures of some of the canyon niches from shiny red to that drying lava one that appears in Doom 2 which really doesn't improve the appearance, imo. Sure, the white everywhere at the beginning is not exactly encouraging of a well-designed map, but this is a vast and intricate space where you gotta fool around with walls to make any progress here. I think this is at least one case where I definitely prefer the original to the Enigma version, largely because idk if these maps necessarily needed stronger monsters. I also have to like how Jim Flynn has even greater respect for Cyberdemons than John Romero. You'll see what I mean if you play this. 8/10

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

Edited April 5, 2022 by LadyMistDragon

[LadyMistDragon]

Volcano (1994) by Robert S. Whitaker (Eternity)

 

Y'all know how so many single-player maps from this period seem to be uploaded later as opposed to contemporaneously? Yeah, I guess most people were too busy posting their deathmatch maps and may have viewed their single-player efforts as better on Compuserve or something (I can only assume, I don't really know uploading habits of Doomers in the early days at all).

 

Now here's a cool concept for a map! A volcano rendered fully in beautiful red rock, along with the accompanying vents and monitoring facilities. At a certain point, it starts to seem like Whitaker is just slapping random textures down though, and while some (required) hidden doors are marked, others seem to depend on you finding the (admittedly easy to find) computer area map. Moreover, ammo distribution is hideously bad. And being that there's a grand total of FOUR Cyberdemons in what seems to be a medium-sized map, that's not good. There are no doubt a number of eye-catching structures (often the author's sig) and locales that aren't butt-ugly at all, but this is one of those cases of design over gameplay, and the bits of incoherency in the former don't do very much for this map unfortunately. Full props to the hexastairs in the red teleporter room though.

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

[Sena]

Day 1: Tekex https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/Ports/s-u/tekex

 

Looks like ICID accidentally found a good map, or at least a mostly decent one. The part that really stands out of this one is the architecture, since while plenty of Doom levels claim to (or have other people claim to) use "surrealist" architecture, they usually just use that word to denote that it's not an attempt at realism, realism of the sort that mandates any place set in Earth in any game has to have adequate toilets and safe fire exits and anything else that mundane, point is, this WAD uses actual surrealism, more in line with what I normally think of when I hear the word. There is no attempt to make clearly identifiable places, so your imagination does try and fill in the blanks, and after doing so, my mind decided to pretty consistently write "this is just a bunch of rectangles and shit but it looks cool", I know I talk about it a lot but I don't know anything about architecture, but what I can say is that this level makes a clear attempt to divert itself from the standard techbase, it's got a fine amount of detail, and the bigger picture is one that has a lot more going on, Art Vandelay would appreciate it.

As for the gameplay, it doesn't feel as finely tuned, as while the levels do employ a general level of freedom, there is a very clear right and wrong direction to go if you want to survive, which is very normal, but in my view it is too punishing about it, especially with how early on these areas become - if you do not know ahead of time where the rocket launcher is, or random chance does not fall in your favour and you don't go the correct direction to get it on your first playthrough, which is when they throw two archviles in at once, it might feel like it's not really giving you much of a chance. On a more general level, while there is a berserk pack, it is exceedingly tight on ammunition, which personally takes a lot of the fun out of it, having the amount of ammo you have result in an impact on what weapons you use in combat is good, but making me have to count every individual bullet to not completely screw myself over is not. Secondarily, the gameplay involves a whole lot of having enemies teleport somewhere, usually behind you, but often teleporting away from your sight, and then appearing some place else a minute later, which is something I'm not a big fan of when it's done with this much frequency, and they also seem to like having floor triggers, in place of actual working switches and doors, which doesn't do it any favours in making it clear how you're supposed to advance. I wouldn't go so far as to say the gameplay is bad, but I do think it has some issues, but I'd argue the level is worth playing, just for the architecture alone. 7/10.

[Roofi]

On 4/5/2022 at 2:26 AM, LadyMistDragon said:

Text

 

Nope I never played Doom Gulch by Jim Flynn but only Wrack. ;) It looks definitely interesting.

 

Month 9 Day 06

 

I play until I die or intentionally stop. I don't comment the wad where I died/stopped.

 

[1] Kingdom of Death by Eric Falsken Ryan McGrail (1994)

 

Spoiler

 

Quote

See Parts II and III

 

Two representative maps from the 1994 era which replace the E3M1 and E3M2 slots. They were designed by two authors.

 

The first map was completely abstract and almost all the doors were hidden, even the ones containing the essential keys to exit. The level also lacks total visual coherence, each room shows a radically different texturing. This map has the advantage of being easy and short. Moreover, the doors were clearly marked on the automap, so I had no problem to progress.

 

The second map has a more complex layout, a more complete "adventure", that means a lot of switchhunting and wallhumping. Aesthetics tend also to be a bit prettier. Honestly I like the first room featuring a large light beam for example. 

 

The second map could have raised the level if the yellow key was not unnecessarily hidden randomly behind a common wall. I spent at least 15 minutes looking for it because the doors were not indicated this time. Similarly, you have to take a large elevator several times which represent more a waste of time than anything else.

 

In short, you don't need to play this tiny mapset.

 

Grade : D+

 

Got ambushed in poppys.wad

 

Spoiler

 

[Clippy]

After being there when @Biodegradable play this map I was totally fascinated by the experience 

 

I had to play it myself! 

 

Why can't I get gold like this when I make random picks lol  

 

 

 

[LadyMistDragon]

Sheol Dagger (2020) by Kepehn Glyphaith (GZDoom)

 

You are a treasure hunter, on the search for the fabled Sheol Dagger, which for some reason is located at the end of a network of catacombs right before your apartment! Much of this map is basically exploring around until you hit a wall, than said nearby wall will automatically lower, often revealing large groups of enemies determined to ruin your day. Not surprisingly, this is one of those sorts of maps that reuses space quite a bit, which I've no problem with. From your apartment, you trapise into sewers, and below that, Quake-esque obsidian-walled and often-darkened catacombs. There's even a forest in the middle! Among the does you encounter is that Realm667 Imp that fires electric fireballs. They do have thematic relevance though. Not to mention they are the driving forces in precisely two large and chaotic ambushes that can seriously mess you up. There's also a Baron of Hell that isn't too threatening firing at you from behind a baron face wall that is...the only one in this level. It's rather strange. You will occasionally run into some Arch-vile out of nowhere, the last of these which is actually transparent, though it's quite obvious where they are as they howl from a narrow hallway practically in front of you. In a particulalrly darkened and possibly cavelike hallway is a pair of Spider Masterminds and after that, a trio of ghost-like Afrits guarding the titular dagger. Once you grab it, run out of there, as the hallway behind it is quite damaging. This was quite fun, and I'd strongly recommend it to most people that don't totally hate dark or narrow corridors. 8/10

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

Edited April 6, 2022 by LadyMistDragon

[ICID]

I'm back! And in the interest of actually getting all 5 WADs reviewed this month, I'm going to keep things short instead of posting my usual 4000-word essays.

 

Tekex (2018) by sigsegv

 

^{Play Settings}

^{Source Port: dsda-doom, complevel 2}

^{Difficulty: Ultra-Violence}
 

Sena is right - this one is good. A clever little techbase that uses its limited space well with fights often doubling back over existing areas, with interesting weapon progression (you get a chaingun first!) and a few decent setpieces. The graphics are nothing especially exciting but everything has obviously been placed with intent. The main idea here is that you're a UAC marine returning long after some invasion to clean out some remaining monsters, and the ruined, dark look of the techbase in question plays into that narrative idea well, as you can see in the screenshots above. Plus the skybox is a still from the Wes Anderson film Moonrise Kingdom. It's neat!

 

Grade: 7/10

 

Kmetl_9 (1998) by Kurt Kesler

 

^{Play Settings}

^{Source Port: dsda-doom, complevel 2}

^{Difficulty: Ultra-Violence}
 

An early attempt at a slaughtermap with over 300 enemies, "huge" (for the time) arenas and nifty Quake-inspired brown visuals - VERY 1998 at times but who am I to deny the simple joy of holding down M1? I haven't played any of the other 12 Kmetl maps but the general consensus seems to be that Kesler was ahead of his time, and this map certainly supports that.

 

Grade: 6/10

[Roofi]

Month 9 Day 07

 

I play until I die or intentionally stop. I don't comment the wad where I died/stopped.

 

[1] VW.WAD by Nicholas Hall (1997)

Quote

My first wad, so if its crap, don't blame me!!

 

 

A compilation of more than 30 tunes that will let you create your own 90's style cheesy wad. I was able to recognize famous titles such as the main theme of X-files, "Imagine" by John Lennon or even music of Nirvana like "About a girl".

 

Honestly the quality of many of the midis is ok and there are many I didn't know. However, there were also a lot of bad conversions using few or only one instrument.

 

[2] gib by Jonathan Dowland (2015)

 

Quote

Quake-inspired spraying gibs mod.

BONUS: green.wad, a red/green palette swap, created by accident. (Try them together!)

This is the GIB.WAD/DEH that was distributed in 1999 but never uploaded to /idgames. There has been one modification in 2015: GIB.DEH has been loaded into the WAD as a DEHACKED lump as a convenience for those ports that support it. This text file has been written fresh for the /idgames upload. The original is included as gib.orig.txt.

Spoiler

 

 

The gib mod helps to make the fights more gruesome by simulating blood splashes every time your shots an enemy. When you gib a small enemy (kill a zombieman with the RL for example), a small animation occurs. Nevertheless, it remains very basic. Unless you absolutely intend to stay on the vanilla format, I recommend you to use Brutal Doom instead.

 

green is not interesting at all. The exchange of green and red colors is executed in the laziest possible way. On the intermission screen, you can see red residues on the now green fonts!

 

I stop here for today.

[Sena]

Day 2: Kmetl Series https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/j-l/kmetl_9

 

This one's pretty much a corridor shooter, comprised mostly of two parts, the indoor corridor section, and the outdoor section which is narrow enough that the absence of a ceiling is the only thing that stops it from being counted as a corridor. Still, it's not that bad, you've got to shoot those demons somewhere, and to that end they were successful. They made their intentions quite clear by giving you a good 60 shells at the very beginning, and while they may incidentally put in a teleport to try and throw you off, for the most part, the level's just a slaughter of anything they throw at you, which is fine by me when the mappers aren't asking me to find my G-spot via homing revenant missiles. It's not particularly complex, and in the outside area I wasn't a big fan of having to deal with cacodemons above my field of view, but if you just want a fairly easy map with an abundance of demons to kill, they've got you sorted, a lot better than most stuff out of 1998. 7/10.

[LadyMistDragon]

Base (1994) by Brandon "Talon" Davis (Eternity)

 

A very simple and functional techbase map with a few unique visual touches along with rooms blatantly cobbled together from real Doom maps such as Spawning Vats, Central Processing, and Containment Area. "like the original Doom levels" indeed. Decent-ish perhaps and even contains a decent ammo balance. Maybe I missed a plasma rifle somewhere but more likely, Brandon forgot. Not beating the Cyberemiond without cheats my ass. This map essentially just comes across as a blatant non-entity that doesn't register outside perhaps a few hallways. 3/10

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

[Biodegradable]

Threshold of Pain (2003)

 

So here's an oddity: A faithful recreation of PSXDoom's MAP30 by the one and only Kaiser. I've never played PSXDoom, but considering how clever Kaiser is in general, I'm going to accept that it's basically a 1x1 remake of what this particular map looks like in that old port. That being said, this map kind of sucks. It's very flat for the most part, but I'll chalk that up to the limitations of the PSX port itself; however I will criticise the original mapper's incessant use of Hell nobles. Knights and Barons make the majority of the enemies and it gets rather tedious quickly, especially at the beginning. The ammo distribution stinks as well as you'll find yourself fighting a lot of sponges and running low on bullets often. Once you get the late game rocket launcher, things even out a smidge. The progression is also rather dumb, especially with progression hidden behind a wall. It's all a bit... blergh. It's pretty lousy honestly, but I'm sure PSXDoom enthusiasts looking to have their nostalgia lobes tickled might like it. Or not, I don't know. :^P

 

 

Edited April 9, 2022 by Biodegradable

[Roofi]

Month 9 Day 08

 

I play until I die or intentionally stop. I don't comment the wad where I died/stopped.

 

[1] Mixed Tape Vol. 1 by @wildweasel (2006)

 

Spoiler

 

 

Quote

A collection of my favorite weapons from my weapon mods (some of them never released in a proper weapon mod). Also includes other elements from my mods, and only one weapon that isn't mine at all.

What do we find in this weapons mod?

- A shovel

- A chainsaw

- akimbo revolvers

- A kind of futuristic shotgun that sends several plasma pellets at each shot.

- an assault rifle

- The minigun from Doom 3 which use two different ammunition

- a flamethrower that acts as a rocket launcher

- an improved plasma gun which shoots hitscan.

- The BFGf from Doom 3.

 

In addition, the shotgunners and zombiemen benefit of a new look and the spectre has been replaced by "flame-thrower guys" which do not pose a big danger.

Most of the weapons have an increased strength compared to the original arsenal. You can kill a pinkie in two hits with the shovel. The chainsaw immobilizes enemies more, the revolvers have unlimited ammunition, the "flamethrower" inflicts three times more damage than the RL and of course, the plasmagun which acts the same way as a chaingun.

The mod itself consists simply of replaced weapons but I had a good time. Each weapon manages to provide a sense of dominance over the monsters. Nevertheless the BFG doesn't seem to work well.

 

[2] Five Centuries Ahead by RaphaelMode (2015)

 

Quote

Year 20XX. The cryogenics are finally a real thing. So you freeze yourself and jump 500 years forward to see the new awesome future. But are you ready for what tomorrow brings?

This level is very beatable, possibly even under the par time. But you really need to think out of the box. PROTIP: pretend that you've never played this specific game before, and you MIGHT not screw up.

Or if you fail 10 times and want to give up, open the mod in SLADE or something. Yeah, about that, the reviews may contain complete and utter SPOILERS that ruin the whole point, so try beating the map before reading the reviews. The par time is 45 seconds, so this map is not going to waste a lot of your time in any case.

 

 

Spoiler

 

An unusual short level in gzdoom format that takes place in an urban environment populated by 60 monsters. Why unusual? Because of the abnormally peaceful behavior of the monsters. 

 

After reading the idgames comments about this map, I decided to exploit the infight from the start. When I woke up the two imps and the pinkie located at the very beginning, I was surprised by their lack of aggressiveness despite their awakening. I then entered the main courtyard populated by bigger opponents and I understood right away that none of them would attack me. So, I was able to complete this level without hurting them!

 

When I restarted the level just by curiosity, I inflicted a punch on an enemy to see how it would react. The latter started to fight back and thus to act like real enemies. So I understood without wanting it how to finish this level by thinking "outside the box" according to RaphaelMode.

 

Anyway, otherwise this level didn't convince me. Considering the many arch-viles I met on my way, the balance of ammunition and medkits seems terrible. Moreover, the simplistic scenery does not make this map memorable. 

 

Grade : C-

 

[3] Capone's Pit by Capone (1996)

 

Spoiler

 

Quote

Drop into the pit to search for the keys.

 

A level that takes place in a kind of canyon with a "pit" that doesn't seem to be deep enough to be qualified as such but it doesn't matter. The author incorporated new sounds, new music (why the worst music in the world "Countdown to death"???), a new starry sky with mountains.

Short and funny is how I can describe this level. Nevertheless I found the theme well exploited and I would have liked to see more content. I quickly understood that this level was going to be brief once I got the two keys (red and blue) almost at the same place. Nevertheless, you can explore a small library guarded by two revenants, a crate room and of course some rocky passages.

 

Grade : B

 

I got gangbanged in Mountain King's Domain

 

Spoiler

[sandwedge]

I tried this again but instead of the thread wads I tried my hand at the roulette button myself.  And I was pleasantly surprised that I got 3 pretty decent, interesting and varied levels.  I feel like this means I'm going to get absolute tripe for the rest of my days, but here's hoping I continue to win the jackpot at the roulette table!

 

 

Map 1: EA Speedmap 3

A pretty decent combat puzzle type map which encourages infighting between a cyber, spider demon and flood of revenants.  The room full of sleeping spiders definitely gives you pause for thought as to how to approach it, so I tried to go pacifist and get some infighting going.  What I didn't realize is there's an invincibility down there that can probably make the level go a lot smoother.  Instead I just get the cyber to help me out with the revenant party.  The invincibility does come in handy for the final room which is a real... clustertruck.  All in all a pretty competent speedmap if I do say so myself.

 

Map 2: Quake 2 Base 1

This is Quake 2's first level in Doom which isn't exactly earthshattering but... I like it?  And it's from 98 so it's a bit more impressive.  Yeah this makes me want to play an entire Quake 2 wad in Doom for sure.  I actually really like some of the quake sound effects in there, especially the shotgun.  It's extremely easy since it's the first level but I can't help but enjoy the layout.  A pretty great idea that I'd love to see more of.

 

Map 3: Ocean Liner of Doom

This was definitely the standout for me, even if it has mixed results.  I mean, this is a 94 doomcute wad set on a cruise ship!  And it definitely evokes that well, maybe almost too well.  Yeah, the first level has that doomcute issue of lots of corridors, doors and boxy rooms.  But it is supposed to be the rooms on a ship.  For some reason all the doors require keycards but are opened by monsters... and as soon as you shoot they all come flooding out, which isn't the most interesting combat scenario.  The second level stands out though, as we have some more variation with a couple of nice banquet halls, a hellknight tending the bar and serving up health potions, and some kitchen areas.  Of course there needs to be an obscure progression through some vents that bogs down the map, but this is extremely impressive for 94 and makes me feel like I'm on a cruise ship for sure.  The last level... oh boy.  We descend to the engine area with pistons going up and down, and is apparently is powered by lost souls.  And they are annoying as hell, especially with infinite tall monsters.  It pretty much feels like a puzzle level to start, as you need to get just the right resources and avoid triggering too many lost souls, otherwise you get boxed in and destroyed.  Once you solve that tricky room you finally get to the final area and... it's an icon of sin in what looks like the engine room!  An archvile appears to be powering the ship, and up near him is John Romero's head immersed in lava.  A limitless energy resource if I ever saw one.  Lots of baddies teleporting in, I didn't even realize it was an icon of sin for a while because it wasn't that clear, and there are no sin cubes flying around.  Eventually I run out of rockets because I didn't know I needed them, so just to get things over with I cheat me some more rockets.  Is there anything better than an icon of sin rocket fight?  Yeah, pretty much anything else.  Despite the varying quality and fun here, this was an absolute treat to find and has some historical value for sure.

 

Join me next time for a random castle wad from 2000 that parties like it's 1995!

Edited April 8, 2022 by sandwedge

[LadyMistDragon]

No Rest No Peace (1998) by Leon Kelz (Eternity)

 

Simple, yet surprisingly large base map. Placing the Cyberdemon near the beginning (how I just despise random Cyberdemons) was just a bad move. Vastly overscaled beginning and copy-pasted opening area don't exactly do much for this map. The switch which opens up the way to the rest of the map is located clear at the other end of this opening reactor area from where you need to go. Most secrets are stupidly difficult to find, fights are quite bland until you get outside, (at that point, it basically becomes many strong enemies smooshed together). and key placements feel horribly arbitrary. If you miss the BFG and plasma rifle, (easy to do if you don't know how to open the room you're in) you'll probably wail and gnash your teeth a little. Finally, the amount of ammo located outside the secrets of which I only found 2 is quite thin and doesn't do much for me at all. Some occasionally strange visual choices that don't help the theme any, despiter fitting in with a techbase. You can probably pass on this one 4/10

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

[Sena]

Day 3: NINJA.WAD https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom/m-o/ninja

 

I never liked narrow platforming, and I never liked mazes, and these two things make up the entirety of this WAD. Navigation across narrow platforms, inevitably being attacked either from above or below from enemies you can't see blocking your path, and it's a maze that all looks completely the same, not to mention flickering lights that serve no purpose but to give you a headache. Also, the textfile got the map slot wrong, and at this point, I'm starting to think that if a WAD gets that wrong, the best course of action is to just leave immediately, because they sure don't have a good track record. 1/10.

[Roofi]

Month 9 Day 09

 

I play until I die or intentionally stop. I don't comment the wad where I died/stopped.

 

[1] Reservoir Dogs by Jeffrey Steelman (1995)

 

Spoiler

 

 

Quote

Remake of an old favorite!

 

A Heretic map that takes place in a huge castle built of gray stone filled with water. However, the immensity is reflected more in the high architecture. The map itself takes 10 minutes and contains about 60 enemies. You can cross a large canal, sneak into a room full of crates or a network of tunnels made of mossy stone reminding a jungle theme.

 

I liked it even if you sometimes have to find hidden doors. In general, the wad contains a small dose of puzzles like using a torch to cross a dark corridor. The fights remain easy but enjoyable.

 

Une bonne map.

 

Grade : B+

 

[2] Grind2X by Kara C. Rader (2002)

 

Spoiler

 

Quote

A new, monster-filled version of Grind2.wad with a few extra features that are spice up the level a bit; like the camera.

 

 

A kind of factory which features a lot of "Doomcute" because you can find a library or public toilets. The author took care to create piping with the help of silver textures. The result looks great, especially in the place where he created fake slopes with mini sectors. Apart from that, I found the use of textures meticulous. Between the aligned textures and the light gradients, especially in the first room, this map was a little visual treasure.

 

The level doesn't include an absurd number of enemies (110) but the author has incorporated many mid-tiers. The fights against one or more viles are common and especially a cyberdemon guards the outer courtyard with the Helipad. 

 

The difficulty remains moderate, however, thanks to the ammunition that can be used to gradually get rid of the enemies and thanks to the possibility to take cover by hiding behind doors. Nevertheless, a careless or hurried player can get screwed.

 

I think that the main asset of this map consists in the detailing and in the special effects used such as the camera and its surveillance screen or the exploding wall which unlocks the red key. For the gameplay, it corresponds to my style, meaning HR-like with a sustained use of mid-tiers without turning it into a pure slaughter.

 

Grade : A

 

[3] Close Kill by Russell DD Pearson @Russell_P (2000)

 

Spoiler

 

Quote

basic small deathmatch level

 

A Deathmatch map taking place in a kind of mine where wood, metal beams and cobblestone combine wonderfully. The few monsters scattered in the map bring a little bit of gameplay.

 

Close Kill was designed beforehis legendary map "Null Space". Nevertheless the theme seems to me similar. Close Kill could be seen as a precursor.

 

Grade : B (from a singleplayer perspective)

 

[4] 2newwads.zip by Doug Erickson, D.Rhodd (1995)

 

Spoiler

 

Quote

-demonaly.zip: All new DoomII wad for single and dethmatch! New Textures and Screens. Watch the demo! Written by Doug Erickson.

-dethtwer.wad: Completely original DoomII wad DethMatch only! New Textures and screens, new sounds and Music! Written by D.Rhodd.

Each of these wads has a .txt file of the same name with more detailed information.

 

Two strange levels where the two mappers had fun adding new colorful but aesthetically questionable textures, new statbars or new ridiculous sounds (dethwer.wad)

Demon's Alley (demonaly) takes place in a kind of underground cave where the Icon of Sin stands as a decoration rather than a boss (it's better this way). 

 

The map starts with a platforming sequence which is irritating because of the pinkies blocking underneath, which you can fortunately eliminate with ease. This level seems to me to be more oriented towards single player than multiplayer because of the overall narrow and unconnected layout and the three keys to collect successively.

 

Demonaly also features orange and purple textures that only make the map look uglier. Nevertheless I appreciate this level for this kind of oddity.

Deth Tower reminds me a bit of Mephisto Mausoleum (Master Levels) in its structure. A large building in the center is surrounded by desert landscapes populated by revenants. Unlike Demon Alley, no key is required to complete the level and the layout offers more openness. Dethtower also offers its share of strangeness with its blinking staircase for example.

 

I enjoyed both maps, I feel like I'm on meth when I play them.

 

Grade : B+ (From a singleplayer perspective)

 

I stop here for today.

[Sena]

Day 4: Are you a Man? (RU_A_MAN.WAD) https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/p-r/ru_a_man

 

This WAD consists of 3 maps. Map 1 consists of a cyberdemon in a square room, with nothing but a shotgun, with no exit, and when killed, nothing happens. Map 2 consists of 2 barons, in a square room, who constantly teleport making them difficult to hit, with nothing but a shotgun, with no exit, and when killed, nothing happens. Map 3 consists of an iron cross (decoration!), two cyberdemons, a BFG, a shotgun, and two invisible icons of sin, and, unsurprisingly, there is no exit, and when they are killed, nothing happens. As it so happens, I am a man, so that means I can authoritatively say this about the WAD - it's bollocks. 1/10. 

[Walter confetti]

Tek Lab 1 by Sonny Wasinger (aka CONDUCTOR) - Vanilla Doom 2, 1995 but uploaded in 2006, played with Eternity forseti 4.0.2

Spoiler

 

 

A pretty large and tough map from 1995 and it's pretty fun and good, despite the texturing rawness, is a semi-slaughterish affair with many puzzle elements in it (in some rare occasion the puzzles are pretty dull, unluckily) and some platforming as well. The gameplay is pretty challenging, another part over the  dull puzzles and platforms that i didn't get is the fact that sometimes you've get locked by something invisible that aren't any type of blocking items or some sort of impassible invisible, so what happens here? Overall, a challenging map with even some kind of Plutonia style difficulty.

 

Are you a Man? (RU_A_MAN.WAD) by Jeremy Holling - Vanilla Doom 2, 1995, played with Eternirty forseti 4.0.2 and 3.1 with bots

Spoiler

 

3 small arena maps consisting of various fights with:

1. A dead simple like map with a cyberdemon and a shotgun with many ammo for it
2. A low celling wooden room with another shotgun, teleporting barons and again a lot of ammo
3. The arena that feels more like a classic type of level with all the guns in a wood room at the start, a bland looking room with two cybers and four icon of sins? And one at the each corner of the arena?

Ah yes, all the maps looks like to don't have a exit in them, making me think that this is a misplaced Deathmatch mapset imo.

No, just tested to see if this is a deathmatch map, but doesn't even have DM spawns. Great.

Nothing too great, unluckily.

 

Abiosis! by Billy Fromal - Vanilla Doom 2, 1996, played with Eternity forseti 4.0.2

Spoiler

 

 

Better than the previous entry, it's another three maps sets in a kinda earthly / city theme, with some cute room designing and quite some interconnectivity trought the maps, it includes some little puzzle element (like in MAP02) and some small sector art, the gameplay is rather easy but fun to play, overall a interesting experience. Yeah, unluckily MAP03 exit is broken and needs a bugfixing in the ditor to be finished and some mandatory secret needed to progress are the lowest point in the mapset, but is still a cute 3 map adventure.

[Biodegradable]

Level_Numb2 2020

This one was just a load of uninspired rubbish, I'm sorry. Feels like it was farted out in an afternoon and it stinks. Very lazy texturing, maze-like sectors, haphazardly placed demons and the overall concept of "oh no run away from these two Cybers that get stuck on corners" just screamed "test map for laugh" that really shouldn't have been published. My overall tolerance for these kind of maps has definitely diminished over the past year and I find it difficult to be charitable about them anymore. It just plain sucks.

 

 

Six Areas 1994

Doug Ryerson who was my hero for 90s maps back in a previous thread dropped the ball here with a map that was just really weird and wonky with shit that was obviously broken or missed with oversight. It's not absolutely dreadful, but a bit of a disappointment regardless. There's some interesting concepts going on, especially for the time period, but it has a very rushed quality to it given the mistakes Clippy and I were able to spot during my playthrough. I'm not sure if Ryerson gave up on the map or simply didn't notice these errors and didn't bother playtesting it, but it is a big letdown after the last map of his I played for this activity.

 

 

Just Another Generic Level 2017

A pretty decent techbase with some fun combat scenarios. My only real gripe was the yellow key "bars" that didn't indicate that's what the key was actually for which was annoying. After the last two maps, this one was a breath of fresh air thanks to its much more polished appearance. Despite a couple of questionable design choices, it is a solid map to smash your way through with thrilling combat, solid progression and nice texture work.

 

 

Edited April 12, 2022 by Biodegradable

[Clippy]

 

 

Just a short one today get it here

 

https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom/d-f/dupe

 

so good I played it twice!

 

Actually no I think I somehow forgot to press record on the original run !@#@!#%$@#

 

good thing it's short, and competent - not much to chew on but everything worked which is a plus based on some of the levels we found today lol

 

a classic Doom 1 adventure - short and sweet - two barons to shoot with a shotgun - the guy likes computers

 

I'm bad at reviews

[Walter confetti]

STONEHNG.WAD by Aron "Darkwing" Kerkhof - Vanilla Doom 2, 1999, played with Zandronum 3.1 and bots

Spoiler

 

A neat circular deathmatch map with a fun gameplay and a pretty cool looking in layout and detailing aspects, despite it's simplicity. I really liked the alcove spawing points for DM, fun stuff overall.

 

The Graves of Thark for Heretic by Scott McNutt - Vanilla Heretic, 1996, played with GZDoom 3.7.1

Spoiler

 

 

Another pretty cool map from Heretic, especially thinking the year it was done. Layout and detailing are really weel done, the only issue i've got is finding the green key since the door is "hidden" into a dark corridor, also i don't get the toxic water, why? Is this place infested by piranhas or something? Also the map is kind of linear but that's not a major problem. Overall fells like a lost Heretic map, i like it! The gameplay is also challenging and fun. A good map forgotten bt the sands of time. Also, what is the music used here? Not a great midi conversion, but is a song i've already heard, never in this... 8-bit like format?

 

FIREFALL for HEXEN by Aaron and Anthony Baker - Vanilla Hexen, 1996, played with Zandronum 3.1 and bots

Spoiler

 

Not bad as the votes and the review will make you think, but neither that great despite the interesting concept of a arena suspended over a volcano where you die if if you jump over the cliff, using the falling damage gimmick, Building structures aren't that bad and layout is nice, but the map itself isn't really fun for me... nothing too great, unluckily.

[Sena]

Day 5: Abiosis! https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/a-c/abiosis

 

A trilogy of levels that mostly play the same. Their level of detail and decoration is better than what I've gotten used to, but they feel very aimless, and I found myself spending as much time going through empty hallways trying to figure out where I was meant to go as I was actually playing through the level, which is in part due to the convoluted level design, but also the rather basic enemy placement. It's pretty normal to have enemies hiding around the outskirts to give off harassment fire, while other enemies close to the player serve as a more proactive threat, but the harassment fire is more or less the only thing you'll be dealing with here. If you have more patience than I do, you might actually enjoy this one, but I found its lows to be much more persistent and longer lasting than its highs, and the highs weren't that high to begin with. 4/10.

[LadyMistDragon]

NiGHTMARE'S Speedmapping Compliation #04 (2002)  by Nick " @NiGHTMARE "Baker, Kevin "Magikal" Reay, Stephen " @SoM McGranahan, @AndrewB, Tom "Hyena" White, lament

 

Believe it or not, speedmapping was not always of enjoyable and notable quality, contrary to what threads started by people like @Dusty_Rhodes and @jacnowak would have you believe. While speedmapping events go back as far as the late 90s, the difficulties of working with older level editors, along with the less sophisticated level design of the time made speedmapping in a limited timeframe somewhat...problematic at best.

 

Such is the case with this collection from what seems to have been the 4th speedmapping sessions hosted by rising star Nick "NiGHTMARE" Baker in 2001. As part of the second generation of mappers that emerged after the Innocent Crew folded in 1997, he started making an impact almost immediately with contributions to celebrated megawads like the Darkening, Gothic DM 2 and the Darkening II. He also hosted this series of speedmapping sessions that total 5 in number. And frankly, they stink like doo-doo.

 

Understand the rules first. The idea was to complete a map within 1 hour, but with 25 minutes spent mapping on each map by different individual mappers, keeping to a techbase theme.. So perhaps it's not too surprising they weren't able to do very much. Still, I don't think they necessarily had pistol-starting in mind because basic weapons aren't necessarily provided to you right away. Which is why Kevin "Magikal" Reay (oronically, if you'vew played his CC maps) ends up shining above everybody else for his skill in creating some tight ambushes and actually equipping you with the tools needed to do the job. NiGHTMARE is just kind of there (props for the Map 04 ambush though, despite the lack of an SS), Andrew B seems to follow everyone else's lead (except when he starts out where does a shockingly good jon), while Stephen (SoM) is probably the second most competent with the amount of detail he can manage, while lament and god forbid Hyena tend to shit everything up or add nothing that helps the map. I swear to god, whoever though those long gray hallways in Map 03 were a remotely good idea should....it doesn't really matter, Hyena wasn't someone who took mapping seriously from the looks of things (he did several Mock 2 maps). Though I will say Map 06 is the unfortunate culmination of what this mapset has done so far. Even Magikal drops the ball with his concluding section: a narrow  STARTAN hallway where you shoot two Mancubi emerging from a monster closet with only a shotgun. Sorry, but this is kind of bad 3.5/10

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

Edited April 11, 2022 by LadyMistDragon

[LadyMistDragon]

Zort 08 (2002) by Cyb (GZDoom)

 

Mike "Cyb" Watson was once one of the most important members of the Doom community before dropping out because life priorities or maybe just wanting to move on. After such early dreck as Doom Jr. he would go on to make several other maps that clearly viewed Doom as being something of an artistic canvas more so than as a game. This one, before Void, is actually a decent example of this, and has a fair amount of charm.

 

Not like you would necessarily guess from the opening marble hallways which Mike every so cinematically scrolls through for roughly a minute before you start. As a neat if half-baked touch, your foes tend to be the color of the liquid in which many of them float in. This map very much conveys the feeling of some sort of lost civilization in how certain enemies are rendered in stone before you do something that wakes them up. In the case of Barons, the ones you initially encounter will be gray anyways, perhaps the result of some coloring difficulties.

 

The minimalistic scripting seems to be more Quake-style color commentary than any actual attempt at a story, which I feel suits Cyb just fine. I get the impression he wasn't someone who really wanted to shove a story down player's throats, lest we get some godawful-dialogue filled set like Claustrophobia: The Walls Close In. Atmosphere is the primary draw here, not unlike Void. I especially like how the group of flashing colored Imps possess a radio. Are they like archeaologists or perhaps a survey team? I guess that flashing thing they're worshipping might be their equipment. Some well-staged, though perhaps not so dangerous traps (apart from one toward the end anyway)

 

That's not to play down the fights. The last bit after acquiring the red key has you facing off against 2 Arch-viles in a hallway filled with Imp corpses, then after that, a Cyberdemon you've seen at other points in the map who annoys the shit out of everyone with his teleporting antics. The exit is unclear, but turns out you better know how to jump, just in case you've failed to figure it out by now.

 

That's probably the sole weakness of this map. The progression can be really strange at times, like when you have to punch a silver Imp in a location where there was none before in order to make the red key appear in the bottom of a blood pool being used for executions. This is a solid 7.5/10

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

[Sena]

Day 6: kusok(Kurashiki's kuso map) https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/Ports/j-l/kusok

 

 

Despite what the name might imply, it's actually 2 maps, and neither of them are anywhere close to being kuso (shit). Both the maps feel largely the same, although the 2nd one clearly had a greater amount of effort put into it, but to get it out of the way, (and to get this one out the way as well, the music was great, but only used once, I'd rather hear the same custom track twice than a generic Doom 1 track that doesn't fit the atmosphere that well) one complaint I have is that they are so expansive that figuring out where to go is a problem; in the second map I got stuck for probably 3 minutes, and in the first one I got stuck for longer than that and had to noclip through a singular door, didn't seem to open, it was the 2010s so playtesting standards had reached the standards that people would (probably) not release maps that can break like that, but in any case, it wasn't clear to me what I was supposed to do, which isn't great. Conversely, probably the best aspect of this duology is the level of detail, which exceeds that of a typical techbase, and the second one in particular decides to go beyond the techbase label, with some HR Giger style corruption in the environment, and they even managed to turn a single area that the player's been to before into a hellscape with blood puddles and the like, which is a nice touch, it's not necessarily in service of a coherent environmental narrative, but it looked cool.

 

Otherwise, you have nothing but a solid WAD, I couldn't come up with any significant complaints with its gameplay, the second map does feature two specific sections that feature a difficulty ramp, which in my experience usually is a symptom of a mapper running out of ideas, but I had no issues with it this time around, it didn't feel forced or frustrating, I was just having fun killing shit. For a first map, this is a very high standard, I don't really like the use of rad suits, but I never do and running out was never an issue for me, and despite playing on UV, the first archvile encounter felt very spineless, in a manner similar to Doom 2's first archvile encounter, but that really doesn't damage the experience for me. I'd say the second map is much better than the first, and it didn't always feel necessarily cohesive at times, but its gameplay and atmosphere more than makes up for it. 8/10.

[Roofi]

Month 9 Day 10

 

I play until I die or intentionally stop. I don't comment the wad where I died/stopped.

 

[1] doomexit.zip by @Ledmeister (2002)

 

Quote

This document provides simple quick-reference information on map interconnections for all maps in a given Doom game, detailing which map exits lead to which map entrances. This essentially serves as a simple "map of maps", and allows a player to, for example, see which maps have secret exits, and where those exits lead.

 

 

doomexit.zip consists to a heavy txt file featuring all maplists from the original IWADS and their derivated ports (Saturn, SNES, XBOX...). The author also included the Master Levels. It's somewhat practical because you can easily learn the slot occupied by each map. As Leidmeister indicated, a lot of lists prove to be redundant to read but it's still interesting to check the variations between each port. Also, this file may be useful in apprehending the most obscure maps included in commercial doom wads (ex: E1M10 : SEWERS)

 

[2] Tough Guy 2016 by Bzzrak Ktazzz (2016)

 

Spoiler

 

 

Quote

Back when Doom was shiny, new and exciting, in June 1994, Rick Farmer released a level which he named TOUGHGUY.WAD. The main gimmick of the level were "silent teleporters". Kinda. The level came with a BAT file to replace the necessary sprites, but as it relied on DOS utilities, playing TOUGHGUY in 2016 is a pain in the neck. So I took the sacrifice, included all the sprites and sounds and released this for j00 to behold its tutti-fruttic 1994 magnificence. Other than the included sounds and sprites, I did NOT change a damn thing about this very tough wad.

 

If I have to consider this map as a simple tribute to the 1994 era, I played far worse than this but also a lot better. A significant number of people accomplished decent-looking maps in 1994. Actually , Tough Guy is nothing more than an ugly flat map with tons of doors and spiky walls but bzzrak provided a lot more ammo than needed and the open layout make the level a bit more amusing to explore.

 

I don't understand the purpose of the silent teleporters since they're not used as traps or in order to create special effects like fake superposed floors for instance as, you can experience in some boom-compatible maps.

 

Also, I found bzzrak a bit too moderate in his hommage because all doors are clearly marked by the adequate texture. A true 1994 map should feature at least several mandatory unmarked doors !

 

Thanks to its 70 enemies, Tough Guy is short. I had some fun but playing it still remains a waste of time.

 

Grade : C-

 

I died in a corridor inflicting -20 damage in Trans

 

Spoiler

 

 

 

 

[LadyMistDragon]

Wizard 3 (1995) by Phil Burnham (Eternity)

 

Hey, it's a Heretic map that doesn't suck (other than perhaps the one that had that cartoonish mouth, but that only assumes you actually know said map)! Anyway, despite being visually unremarkable and occasional unnecessary close-quarters monster placement, it actually feels competently made. Dragon's Claw ammo is too spare and the keys are just far too well hidden. Sorry there's not much else to say. 5/10

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

[Roofi]

Month 9 Day 11

 

I play until I die or intentionally stop. I don't comment the wad where I died/stopped.

 

[1] JAX03.WAD by Glenn Jackson (1996)

 

Spoiler

 

Quote

Number Three of the JAX'S SERIES The wad you're about to play was strictly designed for the "TYPE-A" PERSONALITY so, if your one one those "normal" people please don't bother playing this wad because you will pretty much get your butt kicked in so bad that you might just go into shock and end up in the "fetal position". . .then (of course) I'll get sued and possibly, end up in jail.

The wad you're about to play is, well...evil, no fair and, full of traps and surprises which you will learn quickly hate but, take my advice. If you ARE a TYPE-A person then, this wad is right stuff for you.

I designed this wad when I was pent-up and full of anger after yet another nice and patronizing day at my job, which I hate but must go to. So, trust me...you're in for a war.

I also included a *.LMP recording of this wad so you could clearly see that this wad is indeed a CYBER- DEMON nightmare of the highest order but, you can beat them! Lock & load.

And try NOT to use codes. If I can make it through the game, than you should be able too!

Anyway, give it a go and tell me what you think.

 

A kind of proto-slaughter map which also acts as a boss map because you fight a bunch of cybers, arch-viles and sniping revenants in a gigantic tech courtyard. The slaughter aspect doesn't illustrate itselfby an important number of enemies but rather by the exclusive use of powerful bestiary. Also, Jax grants a ton of ammo, armor and spheres, way too much to make the level at least a bit challenging but it was also the main reason I found this level so much fun.

 

You will find ton of cells and BFG in the cramped corridors surrounding the arena. The lack of backpack forces you to frequently go in those tunnels but the cybies can't reach you.

 

Despite the simplistic aesthetics, I love the grand scale of the map. Those revenants towers look intimidating. This level would have been more epic with more ennemies but I still really like it. Old 90's slaughterish map represents one of my favourite mapping niche.

 

Grade : A-

 

I stop here for today.