[idgames!] Austrian Avian Association (AAA) - Twelve + Six Levels of 1800s Fun

[MundyC]

After a month or so of deliberation, a new update appears! v1.2 of AAA is an all-arounder with tougher end-game fights, enemy and map tweaks, new custom textures/GFX/sounds, and more.

 

Unless a horrifying game-breaking glitch is found, this should be the last update to the first nine maps AND before I start work on the Post-Mortem epilogue. So, your potential speed demos might be fine going forward?

 

Anyways, go get it.

 

Changelog:

Spoiler

General:

• Added quite a few custom textures for paintings, flags, and banners seen throughout the levels, as well as finer Doomcute details. There's too many changes in this category to list here.
• Added a couple more Boom features such as transparent midtextures and ice physics.
• Added some graphics for (G)ZDoom such as cursors and console backgrounds.
• Reduced Das Kinder HP to 40 (from 50).
• The final boss' HP has been bumped up to 9500 (from 6000).
• Tweaked the broom so it's affected by cocaine (though not as much as the scissors).
• Made a new sound for the general explosion sound (used by barrels, the Flamethrower, etc).
• Added an ENDOOM screen.
• Made a new (comfy) pause graphic.
• Various tweaks and fixes.

MAP01: 

• Replaced most of the Hunter snipers in the forested valley with Town Watch.

MAP02:

• Added extra ammo in the exterior and circus tent areas.
• Fixed a softlock involving the two trees next to the photo stand by the circus tent.

MAP03:

• Added small amounts of extra ammo around the map.

MAP04:

• Added a third Leather Armor near the starting area.
• Added extra ammo around the map.
• Added slight delay before the Maxim Gun/yellow key ambushes go off.

MAP05: 

• Moved the Leather Armor in the boat hire to outside, behind the building.

MAP06: 

• Beefed up the final fight by increasing the teleporting foes to 53, from 29. Small ammo pickups near yellow symbols are now large versions to compensate for increased enemy count, as well as some new walls to block tracers/Krampus flames.
• Finally got rid of the annoying teleport spam when hitting the blue key switch in the final fight.
• Made the northeastern Acrochordon more obvious.

MAP07: 

• Added a hint to the primary objective of the level, near the mural at the start.
• Increased the enemy count to 206 from 163. Most of them are in the two teleport ambushes. Ammo amounts have been increased, too.

MAP08: 

• Added six more teleporter foes during the boss fight. Ammo has been increased to deal with them and the stregthened final boss.

 

Edited July 10, 2023 by MundyC

[Lobo]

A great excuse to play it again!

 

😉

[Rudolph]

Well, that is an unusual choice of protagonist! I did not even know this was even a thing. Who knew Doom mods could be educational? :P

[Rudolph]

Five maps in, no issue so far.

 

That being said, I have to ask: why did you make the Mosin-Nagant automatic, especially if it shares the same ammo pool as the Maxim Gun? I would suggest making the former semi-automatic instead, so it would remain useful later on as a precision rifle and a way to save ammo.

Edited July 16, 2023 by Rudolph

[573V0]

I'm really enjoying this but I am absolutely stuck on map 7. Can anyone give me a hint?

[Ar_e_en]

I just finished this wad.
It was surprisingly challenging, but I still had a great time with it! I liked the main character and the funny noises she made, it's not everyday that you get to play as an old medicine woman. I love the Maxim-gun, it basically became my main workhorse for this wad.
I can't wait to see what else you have in store for future versions of this wad!

[Blacklight]

On 7/28/2023 at 12:20 PM, 573V0 said:

I'm really enjoying this but I am absolutely stuck on map 7. Can anyone give me a hint?

 

What do you mean? There is also a Blue Portal there. And the exit is where the Staircase of Candles is created.

[Blacklight]

I passed a New Project from MundyC. TC Atmospheric, New Guns and Monsters pleased. Yes, it will be a little difficult to pass on UV, but not so much that you yell after every death. And the locations are full of small details, which only pleases my eyes.

 

During the passage, I was only annoyed by finding the Keys on MAP07. They are so inconveniently located that they can easily be overlooked. Even with Freelook. Seriously, in The Eye Sockets Of The Skull? In A Dark Cave? How could you guess? No, really, it was only because of them that I suffered at the Level of 30 Minutes.

 

And from the Secrets I didn't understand how to open a Door with a Bunch of Guns on MAP06.

 

Otherwise, I am TC pleased that I have highlighted a separate opinion HERE.

[Azure_Horror]

Completed the WAD!

 

That was a fun experience! Both the art direction and the gameplay where extremely satisfying, and quite unusual. The enemies, the art, the weapon system everything felt both familiar but also very unexpected. The WAD reallu feels like an entirely separate retro-game from OG, despite cleverly reusing many Doom elements.

 

Sadly, I did encounter a critical glitch on map 07: one of the two big scroller conveyors was stuck, and the monsters failed to appear.

But everything else went smoothly! This WAD is a Cacoward material, IMO.

Edited August 30, 2023 by Azure_Horror

[Muleke_Trairao]

Will definitely check this one out! And congratulations on winning a Cacoward!

[Muleke_Trairao]

Ok, so I just finished AAA.

 

The experience from MAP01 to MAP05 was very pleasant and fun! I played continuously, so no pistol-starts.

 

Now, I can't say the same for MAP06 and MAP07, since, as already mentioned in the thread, the progression is too cryptic. I had to watch a video walkthrough on YouTube to get to the end of MAP07. I highly suggest changing the way to raise the final staircase, because it's just not clear currently. For the people that are stuck in this level, here's what you need to do:

Spoiler

You have to kill that black flying enemy that is just standing there (right above that Cyberdemon corpse, inside the stone opening). It's a passive enemy, so it only targets you once you attack it.

 

 

Here is the location on the automap:

 

 

[MundyC]

Hey, all! It's been a while. Today (January 5th) is Epiphany Eve, when all the lovely Schnabelperchtens come down and judge how clean everyone's homes are. Seems fitting for an update post, don't you think?

 

----

 

 

First, let's get the big news out of the way. This WAD won one of the 2023 Cacowards, and I still can't believe it! I started this WAD on a whim one day in November, partially as a way to reuse assets from a currently-shelved project and also to experiment further with OTEX and DeHacked. And, now, it shares an award class with heavy-hitters like Sunlust and My House, as well as some of its inspirations such as Grove, Hell Ground, and Struggle: Antaresian Legacy... 

 

Thank you, once again!

 

----

 

Secondly, here's an update on the planned expansion to AAA, named Post-Mortem. It's going well, albeit slower than I expected. In terms of new content, we're looking at four main levels, two epilogue maps, and three deathmatch maps. There are also two new enemies, new decor, new textures, improved graphics, and so on. As for its story, it takes place a year and a half after the main campaign, and involves Katharina (misspelled her name - funny story, will tell later) exploring long-forgotten ruins in order to locate and obtain a life-giving baetylus.

 

In terms of completion, the DM and epilogue maps are finalized, two main levels are visually complete but need objects + enemies and playtesting, one main level is currently undergoing texturing, and the last one has only blocking completed. As such, there's actually a good chance of it releasing later this winter (in a month or so), but we'll have to see. 

 

The expansion's maps are, thankfully, complete enough to share pretty screenshots of. Below, you'll see four shots from the main campaign and two from the DM maps I've shown elsewhere. Keep in mind that the first four screenshots are not final, as their maps still need enemy and item placement...

 

Spoiler

 

 

----

 

Anyway, that's everything I have right now. I am thinking of releasing a tiny patch before Post-Mortem comes out - mainly fixing a buggy enemy conveyor and further clarifying MAP07's objective - but that's for another time. See you later!

 

"In Carniola, the locals believed that olms washed up by heavy rains were the infant offspring of a cave dragon..."

[Starfishlord5]

This is a great mod and I've been enjoying it, but I'm currently stuck on map07. Could you please tell me how to raise the candle staircase? Thanks.

[Junglist]

Yep this WAD is amazing, perfect for playing now as it is now very cold and snowy in my part of the world : )
I am filling up on Fine Wine and Sausages : )

Edited January 20 by Junglist
edit

[ShallowB]

Just finished AAA and really enjoyed it!  I’ll be uploading it in parts over the next couple of days, but here’s the first: 

 

I wont spam the thread with the rest.

 

Really unique theme, the twists on the usual enemy and weapon behavior were neat, and the custom art was just lovely!  I think my only real criticisms have already been spoken about here, that progression in the last few maps is a little bit cryptic.  I also had some minor trouble identifying the dark enemy sprites against some of the dark textures, but that may just be my vision failing me a little bit.  I’m looking forward to Dr. Berger’s next cocaine-fueled adventure!

[Lord Pavis]

Hello, I think there is a compatibility bug in map 03 : I used the 3 keys on the pedestals and I can hear a clanking sound in the room but nothing happens. I play with gzdoom v4.11.3

[Ar_e_en]

How's progress going on the final release?

[june gloom]

This post was originally a silly question that I later deleted as I realized I am a bimbo, I am now repurposing it to link to my write-up. I had a good time with this, thank you for making it.

Edited February 15 by june gloom

[MundyC]

Good morning, everyone! I'm proud to announce that the first version of the Post-Mortem expansion has been released!

I have updated the OP with information and its download link. Here's the changelog:

Spoiler

General:

• Added a brand-new four-level epilogue with two endings named "Post-Mortem", featuring a new enemy and boss. (It starts at MAP13 and ends at either MAP32 or MAP16.)
• Added three new deathmatch-exclusive maps labeled as "Solid Killing Matches!", as well as the custom graphics needed for that mode. They can be found at MAP10, MAP11, and MAP12.
• Added UMAPINFO support, mainly consisting of episode definitions. The original mapset can be found underneath the name "Frozen Hell".
• Added some new decorations - regular trees, lampposts, and whatnot.
• Revamped the BFG replacement - the Reini-whatever - into Frau Perchta's Gauntlet. It's more or less the same weapon, just with better graphics and lore.
  • Speaking of the Gauntlet, the weapon now does double the amount of BFG sprays (it did the regular amount before).
• Made further refinements to a whole bunch of GFX - menus, weapon/item/HUD sprites, textures, and so on. Of note is that the shotguns, Mosin, and Maxim Gun now eject casings!
• Made new sound effects for gibbing and the Mosin firing.
• Improved the Flamethrower projectile's explosion effect.
• Boosted Napalm pickups from 6/30 to 8/40 to tweak difficulty and fix Gauntlet ammo issues.
• Added a Cacoward to the background of the credits screen. (Widescreen GFX only)
• Cooler blood splats!
• Made it no longer possible to break single-enemy teleporters by standing in the teleport spot.
• Changed Katarina's name to Katharina. Why? While I was working on the WAD, I misspelled her name and forgot it was spelled with a H. Yet the title screen had the correct spelling??? Whatever, it's fixed now.
• Various tweaks and fixes.

 
MAP04:

• Made the enemy conveyors less likely to break.

 

MAP06:

• Added a new secret area next to the dungeon.

 

MAP07:

• Flipped the Knochenhund Major and Kinder near the exit temple, so that they face toward the player.
• Made the enemy conveyors less likely to break.

 

Please let me know of any bugs or fixes that need to be done. I don't think there's a lot, but you never know.

 

Soon, idgames, soon...

Edited March 7 by MundyC
Forgot to add the changelog lmao

[Ar_e_en]

Did a playthrough of the expansion: I loved it! I especially liked the introduction map, it felt very cozy! Although, I do have to ask:

Spoiler

What's with the shadow people? Are they ghosts or do they represent generic people just living their lives?

 

[MundyC]

8 hours ago, Ar_e_en said:

Did a playthrough of the expansion: I loved it! I especially liked the introduction map, it felt very cozy! Although, I do have to ask:

  Reveal hidden contents

What's with the shadow people? Are they ghosts or do they represent generic people just living their lives?

 

Thank you!

Spoiler

The shadow people are supposed to represent regular, friendly (or at the very least non-hostile) people. The "ghosts" are the enemies you have to fight at the end of MAP15.

 

[natashanightmare]

the expansion was great, found these two softlocks in map 1 and 2 respectively, getting into these areas i can't seem to get out again :)

Spoiler

 

[MundyC]

Hello! Just wanted to let you all know that I've released a minor update for AAA, v1.3.1. The main features of this update are removing the unused OTEX textures and flats and fixing the two softlocks mentioned above, plus some other small tweaks. Go ahead and download it if you're concerned about hard drive space or getting softlocked in an Italian restaurant.

 

I plan to work on (and upload?) the idgames version of this TC sometime at the end of this month. Not sure when - I'll have to see further feedback on Post-Mortem first.

 

Changelog below:

Spoiler

General:

• Removed unused textures, patches, and flats to reduce file size and make it small enough for an easy idgames archive upload. As a result, the WAD has shrunken from ~115 MB to 67.5 MB (a 41% decrease!)
• Fixed minor visual and alignment issues with certain sprites.

MAP10:

• Added two extra deathmatch starts (up to 12).

MAP11:

• Added two extra deathmatch starts (up to 12).

MAP13:

• Fixed two softlocks that can occur in the Italian restaurant.
• Re-recorded the demo for this map.

MAP14:

• Fixed a softlock that could happen in the burial chamber to the west.

MAP31:

• Added two Maldurion Doppelsoldners on Hard difficulty, located in the final chamber.

 

[MundyC]

Double-posting on this thread for a very good reason:

 

 

Austrian Avian Association is, after all this time, finally on the idgames archive! You can check out the brand-new idgames page for AAA in the OP, or click this link to go there instantly.

 

The version on the idgames archive is very slightly different than the v1.3.1 build I released weeks ago. Mainly, it contains a brand-new text lump called AAABONUS, chock full of behind-the-scenes information and fun facts about this total conversion.

 

After all of this time, it feels so weird to have a build of AAA that I would consider "finalized". But it's here, and I'm very proud of what I've made. I'll see you guys in my next Doom project, which is a sequel to AAA that I am currently in the process of drafting up!