The DWmegawad Club plays: The Rebirth

[DJVCardMaster]

MAP04 - Sewage (100%K/100%I/83%S):

Brown, squarey, a bit more boring than MAP03. Nothing too amusing here, what is interesting, is that, MAP02 takes inspiration from Underhalls, MAP03 from The Focus, and this one from The Waste Tunnels. Luckly, we did not have a map inspired by the boring Gantlet. This map is a bit cramped, and there are several tunnels with hitscanners trying to deal with you from above aswell as imps. There isn't too much to say about this one, maybe because it was boring for me to look at. But it wasn't that bad, I think. It is good that it has some recurring areas and backtracking though, but still I feel this one could have been more colorful.

Order of preference:
 

Spoiler

 

MAP03
MAP04

MAP02
MAP01

 

 

[Pechudin]

MAP04 - Sewage (PS, UV No-Save)

B R O W N

 

The visuals are pretty dull (some computer panels would liven up the place a bit). Gameplay is constricted and ammo-stringent, but since I played this twice I was fine, knowing where the secrets and ammo was. Some pistoling at the start also helped. Even with that, I ended the map with like 8 shells and 12 bullets ... and 100 cells?? I suppose that's a pointer to continous play being the intended way to play.

 

The map is unfortunately ruined by an unforgivable double-tagged secret door to the Berserk. Trash map /s. On a more serious note, the map is okay, even if it could use with some more spice. A lot of fights can be ran away, and the Hell Knights in the final room are helplessly stuck in their cubby-holes. Also, if you do not press the switch that opens the exit you can use the exit room to peek-a-boo the Hell Knights, and then dispose of Chaingunners safely.

 

I guess I could give it a grade? 6/10, nothing special, dull looking, okay gaemplay.

 

Am I being too harsh on a 2003 map? AV did come out close to that, and it is by far more exciting.

[LadyMistDragon]

Map 04: Sewage

(pistol-start)

 

Despite the odd placement of the hitscanners near the beginning, this actually seems fairly designed for pistol start, despite the admittedly tight ammo stores. Perhaps the previous map is better if you're biased against symmetry, but there's nice use of height and the Imp ambush near the red key exists as an excuse for the Super shotgun's existence. Speaking of which, the barrels in the room just before can be blown up and hurt the pinkies/spectre nearby quite badly possibly.   It's not very impressive visually - lots of brown and areas of sewage that probably only exist to justify the title name - but no matter, it's not a bad place to explore, even if the secrets are rather obvious. Also, there was really only of them that was double-tagged, or the Caco closet accessed through a tunnel of....probably either leaves or wood, though at least the reward is more satisfying than some cells despite the complete lack of a plasma rifle(referring to a bling-or-you'll-miss secret on the lower-floor of the red key room behind a fairly anonymous wall). They really did do things differently, didn't they? Can't comment too much on the midi beyond it sort of fits the idea of 'sewers' in it's subdued percussive feel. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[cannonball]

MAP04 - “Sewage”

 

Any mystery this map has can be eliminated immediately by the automap seret that is basically right next to you at the start. Otherwise this is a rather brown procedural affair that creates a risk of running out of ammo due to careless shooting or blockmap shenanigans (My only death came because of this). Unfortunately this felt like a step backwards in quality, the caco cages were a real prime example of rather dubious design choices.

[TJG1289]

GZDoom/UV/Continuous/Saves

Map 04: Sewage

100% kills and secrets

Time: 6:58

 

I guess most sewage is brown, so fitting color. We've got another compact map to blast through, and the secret automap at the start is very useful in getting one's bearings. Though you honestly don't need it, as the other secrets are just like this one, hidden behind obvious walls that have a different texture than the rest. The secret berserk is tagged multiple times, but I hit them all while peek-a-boo shooting the cacos with the SSG. One design choice I liked was the monster closet by the red door. Idk when it opened, but it was nice to add something new to that spot since you can access the lower part of that room first. Coming back once you get to the upper part is when the closet will be opened, which is cool. I thought the hell knight ambush in the yellow key room would be a lot tougher, since you can fall in-between the gaps here, but the goats are too big to actually leave their spots. The only major threats are the pinkies that are in the sewer part when you initially jump down, and the chaingunner ambush at the end, that you can easily door camp. I went back to the secret soul sphere after this so I could start the next map with 200% health. I barely took any damage in this map anyway. Overall, not too bad.

[continuum.mid]

MAP04: Sewage
Crispy Doom 5.12.0 (Debian 12), Doom II, Ultra-Violence, blind, continuous
100% kills, 93% items, 16% secrets

 

This is a pretty good one, a rusty iron base full of raising platforms. Though I still got this one first try - and on the same day as maps 2 and 3 - it was definitely harder, as it had more challenging ambushes and oddly less ammo. Despite the computer map, I couldn't find any secrets other than the one which contained it, and that might have helped. (I have a suspicion that the rocket launcher is in one of them, since there are 7 rockets in the map.)

 

The most memorable setpiece is the red key fight, where imps flood the room. There's a partial invisibility in here that pretty much exists to trick the player into thinking they're in for a chaingunner ambush; on replay I'd probably let it run out instead of entering the fight with it. Other parts I'll remember include the sniping Hell Knight in the first room, the Hell Knight duo guarding the yellow key, and the final Chaingunner wave.

 

Vader's finally hitting his stride, and I'm starting to get optimistic for what remains of this set.

[Capellan]

MAP05

 

 

[Crusader No Regret]

I have this one lying around on my hard drive from a previous Ironman so I'll give it a playthrough.  HMP continuous with Final Doomer.  Also using Gun Bonsai for personal enjoyment.  Random select landed Doom 2 arsenal at first so I restarted and got Ancient Aliens weapon set.  Though I'm only posting thoughts if I find something particularly interesting to speak about which so far I haven't really.  At least not up to map 4.  They're maps.  They're competent but not much in the way of personality, to borrow cannonball's phrasing.  Unless something's in one of the secrets I missed on map 2 or 3 or in an untagged secret, no rocket launcher or plasma weapons even though there's been some ammo for them up through map 4.

[Book Lord]

MAP 05 – The Complex

DSDA-Doom v0.24.3, UV, Continuous, blind run w/saves

 

The Complex had nothing too complex in it, just another series of rooms flooded by the sludge, this time in a totally indoor environment cladded in METAL. The ubiquitous gratings physically separated the rooms but allowed combat against monsters on the opposite side, as instructed by John Romero. The control switch in the westernmost chamber opened many compartments, revealing Cacodemons and Pinkies but also a distant closet with a switch. The map was small enough to find it quickly, and it raised the bridge to the eastern half of the level. A short tour of that section rewarded me with the RK and a drop in a pit to kill a stupid Spectre that bit me from the bottom.

Spoiler

I sensed the crusher on the BK podium, but the rest of the ambush was quite unusual. I was not expecting Hell Knights to appear on the Chaingunner’s ledge, and that they could attack me while I was repelling the Pinkies. Behind the blue door, the exit was guarded by the first Lord of Heresy, a cosmetic conversion of the Baron of Hell to distinguish it better from the Hell Knight. The sprite was modified by Vader and was such a big success that it is still used nowadays. One of the twin teleport pads sent me on a ledge where I found a backpack secret, the other dropped me in front of the exit switch, without return. Like in MAP02, the real exit was to the left, so I hope this can be taken for granted, shall the author replicate this trick in the next maps. An average level, I liked it a bit less than the last two.

Spoiler

 

Edited June 5, 2023 by Book Lord

[DFF]

Map04: Sewage
K: 100 | I: 100 |S: 100
Gzdoom | Mods: Rebirth midi pack, Trailblazer 1.5, Corruption cards 5.0
Cards: Imps shove things away, nobles dodge attacks, pinkies leap at you

A similarly styled map to 02 and 03, but more compact. Despite utilizing all 3 keys its direct layout and cramped design makes it more in line with map02's length than map03. Still good height variation here, some nifty little traps. Playing around in the muck tunnels is rather basic though, with the worst threat to me was a leaping pinky in a thin hallway, which was no match for a meaty shotgun to the maw. I feel this map, while neat in its presentation, could have possibly tried to start branching out a bit in terms of map layout and direction. Its fine, but im looking for more of map03's size and difficulty.

Also the secrets were rather mild, and having a computer map in a very easy to notice closet removes all the fun of the secret hunting. Admittedly I probably rate maps a lot heavier based on the fun and cleverness of its secrets than other people might, but a basic closet door secret was bland even by IWAD standards.

Map05: The Complex
K: 100 | I: 100 |S: 100
Gzdoom | Mods: Rebirth midi pack, Trailblazer 1.5, Corruption cards 5.0
Cards: zombies can turn into imps when damaged, nobles throw illusions out, Monsters swap starting positions

Considering there are always double the amount of zombiemen, having a chance they can then morph into imps sound rather fun. I was tempted to take the swapped monster positions but stuff like that and alerted monsters can break some nifty fight i'd imagine, or just make the maps rather chaotic (not to mention ruin the super secret map later)

I feel like the map names of 04 and 05 may have been switched, or easily could have been. This map feels much more at home being called a sewer than the previous map, at least to me. This one gave off an 'abandoned mines' or 'caged' sort of vibe, or even map15 from plutonia (forget the name). Either way the layout here feels a lot roomier for the space, and the caged demons and ledged alcoves provided much snappier combat and generally a more engaging experience than map04. The fakeout exit was a nice novelty (for some reason ive always liked maps that have the exit visible from the start. Makes the map feel more of a puzzle of how to get to the exit than an exploration to find it), and the blue key rusher got me the first time.

We also get to see our first Baron of the wad who has morphed into a much more unique appearance than their HK brethren. They now have wings and a unique death animation (technically all the sprites are unique but hey). Personally im a big fan of this change since it makes the barons look more unique, more imposing, and the size of the wings makes them look beefier than HKs, which goes well with their increased healthpool. Overall a great fun map that kept good pace and tasteful design for a shorter package.

Rankings:

Spoiler

Map05
Map03
Map02
Map04
Map01 

Cards:

Spoiler

 

Zombies can turn into imps when damaged

Some Pinkies lunge at you
Imps have improved aim
Pinkies consume lesser monsters

double former humans

 

 

[Pechudin]

MAP05: The Complex (PS, UV No-Save)

I am going off from my memory as I played the map a couple of days ago. The start was quite hairy, mostly due to Chaingunners on the ledge. The best strategy was to kill the Chaingunners in the Caco inverted-cage and pick up the weapon (I actually can't remember what weapon it was) and then dash into the left portion of the map. Kill the Chaingunners on the ledge and the map is pretty much done difficulty-wise. I recalled the crusher so I avoided that part of cheeky damage. Ammo situation was stringent, just like the previous maps, but it was manageable.

 

All in all, I'd favorably compare it to the Abandoned Mines, or Caged. A less harsh version of Caged, with more hitscanners. A Casali/McGee hybrid.

 

The looks are nothing special, METAL plastered over all the walls. At least it's not TNT's MAP08. Overalll, a nice 7/10.

[DJVCardMaster]

MAP05 - The Complex (100%K/I/S):

What is complex about this map is its pistol starting difficulty, it was late for me to know that you should avoid pistol starting this megawad, and here it came my first death, and with said death, many others. It is quite hairy, yes, however, you can easily remember the layout after some tries. American McGee takes a break and John Romero makes his appearance in this map, as it is designed quite in a "Doom II-Romero" style, with cages, metal, and corridors, just like The Abandoned Mines, a level that people like to copy. Tons of chaingunners sniping you easily, this will be the worst of your problems, imps here are also, for some reason, quite deadly, as they feel they always give you a high damage roll. So far this was the most enjoyable map because it changed the setting a little bit, and it was a really interesting layout apart from the rest of the maps. Still short, though.

Also, you are going to love this new rendition of the Baron of Hell, which is now "bald" and has devilish wings, a sprite made by Vader that is nowadays somewhat iconic in the Doom modding scene. This sprite already has 20 years, holy crap.

Order of preference:
 

Spoiler

 

MAP05

MAP03
MAP04

MAP02
MAP01

 

 

[RHhe82]

MAP05: The Complex. Played on DSDA v0.26.0, HMP, PS. 58/58 K, 3/3 S, 12/12 I. Comp. time 7:55

 

Very Doom 2 -like techbase. Actually I'm reminded of The Crusher, this one even has a small crushes plate with a keycard on it. Luckily no masterminds, because ammo is tight-ish on this one. From my earlier playthrough I remembered how to access some of the secrets, which made this a bit easier to UV-MAX HMP-MAX. Nevertheless, especially at the beginning I was starving for ammo.

 

I really, really liked the midipack music here! Not sure if it was a spot-on choice for a map like this, but it made the experience a little chillier.

 

I also loved the cutesy winged baron :P Does it originate from this wad? because I've seen them later, in Tangerine Nightmare?

 

*The above review is based on an accidental HMP playthrough of the map! I'm not sure how the difficulty got lowered, but it did, so I had to replay!*

 

So, umm, take 2:

 

MAP05: The Complex. Played on DSDA v0.26.0, UV, PS. 73/73 K, 3/3 S, 15/15 I. Comp. time 6:37

 

I was a bit afraid, because even on HMP ammo starvation was near. However, on UV I seemed to fare a bit better. That might be due to knowing exactly what to do, however. Still, looking at the stats, there were more items on UV, and I almost got the feeling that there might have been a spare bullet box or something. At any rate there were more hitscanners, dropping their precious ammo for me. I think.

 

The experience was also notably a bit more intense, especially at the start. I wish Vader would have been more generous with chainsaws or berserk packs so as to avoid possible resource scarcity situation I so much hate, although as I said, it still wasn't an issue here.

[Veeda Vidlak]

Map04 “Sewage”

 

The second level in a row I like, Sewage is brown and orthogonal yet has a strong layout, making good use of the Z-axis. We start in the middle-ish of a treatment facility with hitscanners guarding both initial routes. The ones up the stairs are probably the easier prey, though you have cover either way. We get the SSG pretty quickly, which trivializes the pinky canals along with any other enemies you care to use it on. If anything the biggest challenge is ammo usage, which can cause problems if you’re too liberal with shells.

 

Interestingly, the highly telegraphed automap at the beginning trivializes secrets, though they’re pretty conspicuous even without clairvoyance.

 

It’s not much for visuals but I appreciate Sewage’s brevity and compact design. A fine map04.

[Roofi]

Map 05 "The Complex"

 

 

I admit the jazzy music mades me enjoy this map more than I should. This compact and heavily interconnected sewer has a pretty rough start and the tight ammo may frustrate blind pistol-starters. For my part, the progression was a bit confusing due to the doors which share the same appearence but either open with a switch or manually, so I often wallhumped them , even after playing this map a second time. 

 

Whereas I appreciated the interconnectivityness of this map, the darkness combined with heavy use of metal and mud result to rather bland visuals which eventually look a bit too samey. I would have liked killing the last remaining cacos but I accidentally pressed the exit switch due to lack of attention.

 

Grade : B  (13/20)

 

 

 

[Celestin]

MAP05: The Complex

Spoiler

This is not a friendly map for pistol-starters. Take a step forward and hitscanners of every variety start firing at you, including a deadly balcony with chaingunners. I wish for a berserk (or at least a chainsaw), as there are many pinkies and ammo is scarce for the most of time. The Complex is one of those maps where you try to push forward, leaving beefier enemies for a cleanup at the end. Also, the crusher-trapped blue key is not cool. I know it's very clearly telegraphed, I just find traps like this cheap.

 

Two things I have to give Vader credit for. First, I like how the map looks, which is a feat for a sewer level. Second, the winged baron that makes its debut here. I've seen this sprite edit before, most notably in Tangerine Nightmare and it seems this is where it originates.

 

In the end, this is a decent map with a somewhat of a difficulty spike compared to the previous ones. Perhaps pistol-starting isn't the best idea, beginning the map with more ammo might fix the issue of killing the stragglers once you're done, but so far I'm doing still going forward.

[cannonball]

MAP05 - “The Complex”

 

This one starts with a rush that has been lacking so far, it is a shame that this fades after clearing the early sections of the map. Unfortunately there are a lot of quite meaty monsters that are placed poorly. Cacodemons behind railings that cannot really harm you, hellknights on one of the ledges etc. It is a shame because pistol starting gives off some plutonia vibes (Maps04/15) but in the end it is summed up by the baron introduction, he is just.... there ready to be picked off by the SSG handed at the very same moment.

This is an okay map, better than the last one at least.

[TJG1289]

GZDoom/UV/Continuous/Saves

Map 05: The Complex

100% kills and secrets

Time: 7:41

 

Despite the name, this is still a sewer. And despite playing continuous, I'm feeling the ammo draught a bit. Now to be fair, I'm still not dropping below half ammo capacity (with backpack), but I don't like being that low. It doesn't help that there's some beefier enemies here, like cacos, hell knights, and a fancy new baron sprite that I have seen before many times, but I guess originates here! Seeing these enemies makes me wish I had a rocket launcher, especially for the cacos who are mostly caged and can't actually get to you. This doesn't mean they're useless; just not as dangerous as they could be. The opening is the roughest part, since that is a surprise lift down to areas with hitscan, and various other things able to fire at you. But once you get past that, this is a more casual affair. I actually didn't see the blue key crusher coming, so I got squished for a bit, taking out any remaining health bonus I had from last map's soul sphere. Having the chainsaw is great for the pinkies scattered about in this map as well. Overall, this map isn't too bad. I like the layout quite a bit. I'm trying to start mapping again, and I don't really know what I'm doing, so I've been checking out layouts of maps just to get a sense of how to approach making a layout, and I like this compact, corridor-based one. It's nothing like the map I'm making now, but it can help me figure out ways to approach it. The only real complaint I have is we could really use the RL by now.

[LadyMistDragon]

Map 05: The Complex

(continuous)

This incredibly groovy midi that might be the favorite so far is my favorite so far. The map on the other hand, is comprised everywhere of dull metal and the sort of structure inspired by Abandoned Mines (though i was also reminded of one section from CC's Technopolis that was much harder than this). Although there are some noticeably higher areas of enemy density, it's not particularly challenging for pistol starters, save for maybe one trouble spot near the beginning with a host of chaingunners. Otherwise, it's the sort of map not really worth spending time in and hardly worth more time to talk about. Although I did get all three secrets, which wasn't exactly hard, even if the telltale textures were used in other locations. Honestly, I recalled this being harder to navigate the first time around. And why did that crusher get me??! Oh that's right, it's a 'casual' playthrough.

 

 

 

 

[Book Lord]

MAP 06 – Colossus

DSDA-Doom v0.24.3, UV, Continuous, blind run w/saves

 

Bjorn Ostmann might have played Cyberdreams, a 1998 PWAD consisting only of movement puzzles involving Cyberdemons. Colossus reminded me of one of those setups, only a lot easier since I was granted a Megasphere at the beginning, and it was only a square courtyard with a few zombies, Pinkies, and elevators that I must operate to reach the various switches. Once a teleport pad became accessible, the boss could be telefragged, and the exit was right there. The Combat Armour might be collected and carried over to the next map. There was even a secret Invulnerability to remove the slightest trace of challenge, if so desired. Less interesting and shorter than most Cyberdreams maps, nothing special to see here.

Spoiler

 

[Al-Faris M]

MAP03 - Paranoya

HMP - Pistol-start - DSDA-Doom

'Paranoya'? Whether that's an intentional misspelling, Paranoya reminds me of the early TNT maps due to the large amount of hitscanners and great usage of the techbase theme. There tons of chaingunners and imps which spice up the difficulty, as well as speeding up the pace of the map, it makes great heart-pumping action. The blood-stained green metal textures look a little suspicious as I thought there was a secret behind one of them. The secrets are quite random, but that's not a big deal. 4 out of 5 megaspheres.

 

MAP04 - Sewage
HMP - Pistol-start - DSDA-Doom

Surprisingly, Sewage feels easier than the previous map, providing a super shotgun somewhat early and a small spike in difficulty in the yellow key area with the hell knight ambushes. It has a great layout with creative secrets (still quite generic) when compared to the previous maps, but MAP03 is still more fun with the monster placement and variety. The visuals are mediocre, consisting mostly of brown textures. 3 out of 5 megaspheres.

 

MAP05 - The Complex

HMP - Pistol-start - Crispy Doom

Despite its generic name, The Complex is a really fun map, while it has tight ammo placement and lack of visual landmarks, it's a nice map. Stewboy's 'A Snake in my Boot' is one of goofiest and greatest MIDI songs in the MIDI pack so far, I also really like the new baron of hell sprites with the wings and stuff, it makes them visually distinctive and awesome. Good secrets, and monster placements. 4 out of 5 megaspheres.

Also, the blue key crusher trap is rather uncreative and mediocre.

Edited June 6, 2023 by Al-Faris M

[RHhe82]

MAP06: Colossus. Played on DSDA v0.26.0, UV, PS. 17/17 K, 1/1 S, 2/2 I. Comp. time 2:08

 

Colossus feels special like Dead Simple feels special, only this is MAP06. Nothing much to say, this is indeed a quick one; you're given enough health and armor and armaments to run around the corridors, supershotgunning demons, dodging cyberboy rockets and telefragging the poor bastard. That's a positive: an obnoxious map would have had us SSG or rocket down the cyberdemon, but this map is made decent by sparing us the busywork and concentrating on quick paced panic attack. Then again, that's all there is.

 

And about the music. On the other hand I liked it, but it also had some instrument that sounded like a fire alarm or something of the sort, for a moment there I wasn't sure was that coming from the game or somewhere else.

[DJVCardMaster]

MAP06 - Colossus (100%K/50%I/0%S):

Ehm, if I wanted to play this kind of maps I would probably tune up to Cyberdreams instead. A speedmap of a square, some zombiemen, and a cyberdemon that can be telefragged. The map is longer than it should because of switch-hunting. There is health for you not to care about the cyberdemon, you will mostly not notice it exists. I get the idea of a boss-fight, but this is low effort in my books, or at least, I'm expecting something more interesting. MAP01 is just the first map, so it has a little bit more sense to exist as it is.

Order of preference:
 

Spoiler

 

MAP05

MAP03
MAP04

MAP02
MAP01
MAP06

 

 

[Celestin]

MAP06: Colossus

Spoiler

A tiny square arena with a perched cyberdemon and a handful of other foes. Just run around and press switches until a teleport pad opens up, which allows you to telefrag him and exit. Colossus is a low-effort map that doesn't deserve any more time and thought.

[Pechudin]

MAP06: Colossus (PS, UV No-Save)

What would be a concept fight in a larger, more elaborate map ended up as a standalone release. It's visually bland, square, and one-note in the fight department. Not much to say. Perhaps if there were some more meatier enemies in the way, and you had to have them infight with the Cybie then it would be more interesting. 3/10, next map.

[Roofi]

Map 06 : Colossus

 

 

I agree with you here, it's a tiny and simplistic map compared to the others but I will play evil's advocate here by saying it's my favourite for now. The pulsatic midi , the fact of being constantly targeted by the cyberdemon and the generously given megasphere and invulnerability sphere result to an exciting and easy boss map. The invulnerability sphere I discovered in my pistol-start playthrough is really overkill though but I don't care. I'm not looking for extreme challenge in The Rebirth. 

 

Map 06 is more of a sort of mini-game providing a break between real maps for me. The previous levels have more content, objectively speaking, but this is the one that I've had the most fun with so far.

 

Grade : B  (14/20)

 

 

 

[cannonball]

MAP06 - “Colossus”

 

This is probably a little too short and a little too easy for its own good. The map doesn't really give itself the chance to deliver the goods here. That said it is a swift romp and the map is essentially over.

Two genuine complaints are the secret that essentially ends the map because it neutralised the entire premise of the map, the second is the spider in the exit room that only serves to waste ten seconds of your life.

That said it isn't the worst map so far, it offers a little bit of variety and it is quick to play.

[FistMarine]

Hi everyone. This time I will be sure to participate in the club in a timely manner.

 

PrBoom+ 2.5.1.4 (cl2) - UV 100% - Continuous with saves

 

I remember playing through The Rebirth about a decade or so ago, so it's not a blind playthrough but I also don't remember much from the past playthrough. Not to mention back then I played in ZDoom with a gameplay mod but now I'm doing it vanilla without mods. Didn't try playing in plain DOOM2.EXE because of the requirement of using DEUSF.EXE to merge the new sprites into DOOM2.WAD and I had no idea how to do this manually until I went to the readme file and read the instructions provided, which was after I had already started playing. So for now, I will settle with PrBoom+ instead of dealing with stupid vanilla limitations of merging sprites into wads. Sadly, I didn't use the MIDI pack, as I just used Rebirth1.wad that came with the zip archive from Idgames.

 

First impressions so far, the new graphics are nice. There are new graphics for the main menu, a few enemies, a few new MIDI songs, a few new sounds, as well as three new intro demos at the start. Doomwiki claims they are recorded for Doom 2 v1.666 but they played just fine in PrBoom+ (cl2) without any desync issues. I imagine if I made the mod work in DOOM2.EXE, it would have crashed with the demos being different version, as I use Doom 2 v1.9.

 

Other impressions I got so far is that the levels are short, nice and easy for the most part. The only odd thing is the author isn't generous with the armor pickups in some levels. Not that you will have big trouble on a continuous run but the pistol starters need to be very careful. From reading the comments earlier, the ammo is also quite tight, so playing on a pistol start may be a lot more challenging than usual. But if you are playing continuously, you should have enough health, armor and ammo to deal with the monsters in each level. I recommend finding all the secrets in order to get much needed help and get the most enjoyment out of each map.

 

I will only talk a bit about each map instead of getting lost in details. Some maps also seem a bit inspired by the original DOOM 2 maps.

 

MAP01: Operator
A nice short intro map, slightly inspired by the original MAP01: Entryway, although much shorter than the original. The only enemies encountered are zombies and imps. The new zombiemen sprites, which are now headless zombiemen, can be a bit creepy, adding to the wad's atmosphere. There isn't any difficult battle and the health packs should be enough to make it through the level and still have 100% health at the end. There is no armor but it's not needed for this level, so you aren't missing it. Instead, there's a few easy to find secrets, like the one containing Light Amp Goggles which are nice to have but this level wasn't very dark. Not much else to say.

 

MAP02: Outer Base
The second level is slightly inspired by the original MAP02: Underhalls. Though the level name reminded me of the first level from Quake 2. It is a bit more challenging than the previous map but shouldn't give you much trouble. You may be missing the armor, as you only get it late in the level in a secret place but the health pickups should be enough to make it through. The two chaingunners at start can be easily taken out with pistol sniping, so they won't bother you later on. There are a few interesting ambushes, like the Blue Key trap with many imps and the SSG trap at end with a few Cacodemons. There is also the fake exit trick where you have to choose between three exits. The real exit is the left one but for completionists, I recommend checking the other two exits to kill the demons/spectres and get everything. And be sure to explore, especially if playing continuously. The armor will be a great help in the next level, you will see why.

 

MAP03: Paranoya
The third level is not inspired by the original MAP03: The Gantlet but rather by MAP04: The Focus. This is when things get a bit more difficult, as there's plenty of tricky traps involving hitscanners. There is one right at start where you get ambushed by zombies. Lost quite a bit of health from a few shotgunners and had 71 hp left. The armor from the previous level definitely helped, then I found medkits and things got under the control.

 

Other highlights include the red key trap when you take the elevator and get surrounded by shotgunners and chaingunners from three sides. Somehow I did this part without taking any damage but I imagine it would have been really painful if I didn't get so lucky. There is also the first Arachnotron but he is easy to take down. Secrets are even more rewarding, giving you the first Backpack and Soulsphere in the wad. Oh and despite being given rockets, there is no RL until much later. It's obviously great for the continuous players, although even if the RL existed in these early maps, I don't think I would have found much use of it, as the maps seemed a bit cramped.

 

MAP04: Sewage
The obligatory Sewer level. This seemed a bit easier than the previous level, as the traps were easier to deal with. It's slightly inspired by MAP05: The Waste Tunnels. I also appreciate that the dirty water wasn't damaging, as you need to navigate quite a bit through it. The traps at end are interesting but a smart player will most likely find ways to evade the traps and take little to no damage. The map also seemed a bit brown but then I reminded the map's name is Sewage, so what do you expect? :P

Also when going for 100%, be sure to tag those secret bars as well, as the Doomwiki claims! It's impossible to tell in vanilla if you get the secrets until you see the level stats at end but on most source ports, you can see the level stats on the automap, at least.

 

MAP05: The Complex

This map reminded me of MAP26: The Abandoned Mines. Although it's not as difficult as that one and ambushes aren't that bad. Most enemies are zombies, imps, demons/spectres and a few cacos and hell nobles thrown into the mix. The important thing to note is the Baron has been reskinned, giving him an unique look. It looks cool and reminds me of the Realm667 enemy called Lord of Heresy. Most likely this was used as a base for that R667 monster. It definitely feels like an upgraded Baron of Hell and helps differentiate them easily during the combat, mostly in the darker areas.

The ammo is a bit tight, even if playing continuously but if used wisely, you shouldn't have much of a problem. Ambushes aren't that difficult overall if you are careful.

The only important thing to note for completionists is that the two teleporters at end send you to different locations. One sends you directly to the exit (NO WAY BACK) and the other sends you to a secret area. If you plan to explore further, I recommend saving in advance, so you don't exit the level earlier than intended.

 

MAP06: Colossus

A short map that has a few weak monsters but also a CYBERDEMON in the middle platform! When playing continuously and having enough health and armor, you may want to save the Megasphere for the end, to end up with 200/200 for the next level. You want to also grab the invulnerability secret (thanks Doomwiki) as soon as the elevator is raised. It is inside one of those columns. Afterwards, press the switches and kill the enemies in your way quickly, while waiting for the elevator to raise and press a switch, go back to press a switch, then go back once more and then you should find the unlocked teleporter and telefrag the Cybie immediately.

The only problem I had is the invulnerability ran out in those last seconds and I missed the teleporter, then as soon as I turned around and running towards the teleporter, I was unfortunate enough of taking a rocket to the face which blinded and confused me for a bit but thankfully I survived with 32% health and immediately telefragged the Cybie in the next second. I had nearly 200% health and over 100% armor when I started the level and nearly died from a single rocket! If I didn't have that large amount of health in advance, I would have died. Oh well, grabbed the megasphere and saved the game. Yes, I decided to save the Megasphere for the end and it really paid off.

At the end, there is another Blue Armor and an Arachnotron to the exit. He is easy to kill, though managed to hit me once. I reloaded because I didn't want 195% health for the next level (there is a reason I saved the Megasphere for the end).

Also not sure what's with the Blue Armor given at the end because you should already have 200/200 from the Megasphere. I would have put that armor in another level, to make up for some levels having no armor at all. Not that the wad seems too difficult so far but it's weird that there's levels that lack armor entirely. I guess Vader sometimes didn't care about the armor?

It was a short level overall, reminded more of a SCYTHE map rather than CYBERDREAMS, at least visually but gameplay-wise it was definitely more inspired by CyberDreams. It felt a bit pointless for an actual level in the Rebirth megawad. Would have worked better as a secret level, I guess.

Currently I'm at MAP09 and I will not post about the other maps yet. I will only give the following hints about the next map, without spoiling too much:
-There is a Rocket Launcher secret somewhere that will help later in the level
-There is an invulnerability secret in the last area which will help a LOT in the final battle
-The bars that will block the door before the last corridor will eventually unlock upon stepping in the exit room, so then you can backtrack and grab everything you've missed previously.

Deaths so far: 0

 

Screenshots:

Spoiler

 

Have a nice day!

Edited June 6, 2023 by FistMarine

[Snaxalotl]

MAP06: Colossus (Pistol Start, UV, Saveless)

I'm in agreement with most of you, very good foundation for a level but its way too short and lacks any urgency or difficulty. At least its short so its forgettable rather than being a slog.

[TJG1289]

GZDoom/UV/Continuous/Saves

Map 06: Colossus

100% kills and secrets

Time: 1:32

 

Considering you get a megasphere immediately upon starting, I thought this would be a little tougher. Instead, this is just a game of hide-and-seek with a perched cyb. Not to say the cyb isn't dangerous. There's a few times where you have to wait a second for a lift to lower (or in the beginning's case, the starting platform to rise), where the cyb can get a good shot on you. I did get hit with some blast damage when waiting for the lift. Outside of the cyb, there's a lot of regular zombies around that you can easily chaingun from the safety of just below the cyb, since he can't hit you there. There's pinkies behind the various doors here that all open via switches, but they can be SSGd. I found the invul secret pretty easily once the door it's by opened, so while that negates the challenge entirely, I can see people missing it in the panic of not getting bazooka'd. Eventually you'll open up a teleporter that will allow you to telefrag the cyb Cyberdreams style. There's a random arachnotron behind the exit door, which I could see be an issue for pistol-starters who somehow mismanage their ammo supply. I did let the spider shoot me with the invul on to hear the new plasma sounds, and yup they are bad. Don't like that at all. I guess it's just another incentive to get rid of these things ASAP. Unlike others in this thread, I don't find this map to be low-effort. I think it's an interesting idea. I like Roofi's comparison to a mini-game It breaks up the traditional map pace with something different, and I like that. Honestly, this was pretty enjoyable to breeze through.