The DWmegawad Club plays: Claustrophobia 1024

[bioshockfan90]

Votes, first off!

 

Seconding @Flyxolydian's suggestion of +++ Lost Civilization (20) and 10x10 (11)

Thirding @Roofi and @Celestin's +++ Atonement (32)

And Seconding @Horus's suggestion of  +++ Limit Buffet (32)

 

Now, onto the meat.

 

MAP25: Cabracan 1024

 

100K | 100I | 100S

 

It’s alright, I guess? Another Mechadon map packed with monsters, although this time most of them are out of the walkable area, so it’s really up to you if you wanna go after them or not. Layout is a tad confusing, it’s a smidge overdetailed, and just not really doing much for me this late in. It’s still better than most of the E1 maps but not by much. Middle of the pack. 4.1 out of 5.

 

MAPRANKS:

Spoiler

 

MAP19

MAP23

MAP20

MAP05

MAP21

MAP16

MAP22

MAP14

MAP18

MAP15

MAP07

MAP25

MAP01

MAP09

MAP06

MAP04

MAP13

MAP17

MAP02

MAP10

MAP24

MAP03

MAP12

MAP08

 

 

Edited August 25, 2023 by bioshockfan90

[KickAss]

GZDooM 4.10, PB 3.0, HeXeReTiC HUD PB3 v8.3RC2e, Glory Kills v29b, SilentDoomguy, Flashlight, -iwad doom2.wad (ver 1.666), -skill 4 (UV), continuous play, no saves.

 

MAP22 - “Diminished Apparatus” by Mechadon

 

MAP23 - “Fear No Evil” by dutch devil

 

MAP24 - “Second Assault” by Spertz

[brick]

GZDoom, Boom compat, software, HNTR, blind, continuous with saves.

 

MAP24 - “Second Assault” by Spertz
One of the shortest maps. One small fight for the blue key, another for the red key, use both to exit. On HNTR the opposition is incredibly easy, the number of enemies is in the teens. I'm not sure if the map even reaches the restriction or is smaller, it certainly doesn't try to exploit every bit of space the way others do. Not very memorable but I didn't mind it.

 

MAP25 - “Cabracan 1024” by Mechadon
Speaking of the devil (pun not intended)... When I saw Mechadon crediting MAP20 as an inspiration I groaned. Sure enough it uses exactly the same tropes, and I disliked them just as much this time around. I've complained enough when writing about MAP20 (and MAP23) so I won't belabour the point. I didn't get stuck as much and the map didn't take me as long, but I disliked it just the same.

[RHhe82]

MAP25: Cabracan 1024. Played on DSDA v0.26.2, UV, PS. 119/119 K, 2/2 S, 58/58 I. Comp. time 17:17

 

Simply by looking at the opening vista, you just know this is a Mechadon level. And thus far, simply by knowing it's a Mechadon level, you know it's a good one, and Cabracan 1024 is no exception. Once again we have a compact, cramped map that spans beyond player's ability to traverse so that it feels like an unrestricted map with microdetailing.

 

The start is very hot, I don't know how I survived that, but once you get your bearings near the yellow key, it eases up on you. The 3D floors felt a bit more "in your face" than we've been accustomed to during this wad, I'm not sure why that is. Perhaps because we have hitscanners hitting you through the bridges at a couple of points.

 

I didn't particularly like the spider mama, especially when I hadn't found any of the secrets before the end. I still don't know how the soul sphere appeared, but the BFG secret could have been useful against SMM.

[T-Rex]

Hey, just came in since it's voting time for the next wad to play as I'm in a Doom playing mood again. I'd like to play another oldie as I don't have that many of the new, modern megawads, so either one of the two Wraith Corporation megawads for Doom.

 

1st +++ Perdition's Gate (32)

2nd +++ Hell to Pay (32)

[DJVCardMaster]

MAP25 - Cabracan 1024 - Mechadon (100%K/I/S):

Cabracan is amazing, the last mainline Mechadon map, is another really good looking techbase that uses the "LODELOR" effect perfectly, just like his other maps, or Dutch Devil entries, making this map feel bigger and making you forget your are playing through a 1024 map. The amount of detail here outside the playable areas is just stupid, clearly feels like something that is actually bigger, and it also amazes me how much gameplay the author squeezes inside this small square, this time not a single area feels as cramped as other efforts, and gameplay is extended by revisiting areas without making it feel repetitive, if MAP31, 20 and 22 were clear examples of peak 1024 mapping, this may be aswell another great example, every single time this wad makes me think nothing more can be added to the formula, another map appears with more clever ways to make a cramped map like this. Mechadon surely knows how to lead a project.
Downsides? Yes, progression may feel a little bit confusing, to the point you will feel something did not trigger accidentally, forcing you to consider cheating to make progress. Luckly, I did not do that, as I was missing a swich right after the redkey switch that lowers the plasma gun. Another downside was the spider mastermind near the end, pretty annoying to go and kill her, so if you did not play this yet, ignore her. Fun, but hard map, and finally we have a BFG!

(UV - Playthrough/PRBoom+)

Order of Preference:
 

Spoiler

 

MAP25

MAP22

MAP31
MAP20
MAP09

MAP05
MAP19
MAP16
MAP23

MAP03
MAP07
MAP24
MAP15
MAP13
MAP12
MAP14
MAP21
MAP06
MAP18
MAP02
MAP04
MAP01
MAP17
MAP32
MAP08
MAP10
MAP11

 

 

[Tiramisu]

MAP25 - Cabracan 1024

 

Imo the best looking map so far, hands down - the out-of-bounds area work is at its peak here and the detailing is simply inspired, with a great sense of flow that prevents it from feeling cluttered or haphazard (unlike f.eg. MAP22, where I feel like that was a bit of an issue). The layout is also very clever and enjoyable to unravel. This is where my praise ends, however - unfortunately, I found the map's combat to be quite boring, with most of the fights boiling down to clearing out corridors and methodically removing out-of-bounds sniping monsters, without any sense of urgency. Then there's the two annoying lifts that you'll have to go through a lot while switch hunting - they really should've used Boom's 1-second lifts for this... All in all though, while I didn't enjoy its gameplay, I feel like this map still deserves a spot on my list of favorites, thanks to its visuals alone!

 

Favorite maps, updated: MAP09, MAP23, MAP20, MAP03, MAP07, MAP31, MAP24, MAP13, MAP17, MAP25

Edited August 26, 2023 by sq. Tiramisu

[Azure_Horror]

I decided to update my votes for september:

 

+++ Back to Saturn X Episode 3 preview / Deep Breath / DBP37: Auger;Zenith (32 maps total)

Back to Saturn X series is renown for its quality. Recently, a 5 map teaser for the 3rd episode was released. Would be cool to check those maps out. Deep Breath is a 6-map ocean floor adventure. And finally DBP 37: Auger;Zenith is one of the most renown WADs in DBP series, and a 2021 Silver Caco recipient.

 

+++ Doomkid.wad / Jumpwad / Boaty McBoatwad (30 maps total)

Doomkid.wad is a 9-map series, built around the MIDIs of @Doomkid. Jumpwad is a 7-map journey without enemies, but with jumps and a Cacoward! And Boaty McBoatwad is a community project, dedicated to boats in doom. Should be a lot of fun!

 

+++ Atonement (here is the thread)

[cannonball]

MAP25 - “Cabracan 1024” by Mechadon

 

There is a lot to like about this map, the layout feels a lot sharper this time and to be honest most of the sniping monsters are positioned well. There are a few gripes with this map, the first is the use of lifts that need to be used several times during the map, this tends to make the map drag a little and there are a few instances where they could have been avoided. Secondly and unfortunately the Mastermind is a bit of a dud here, it is never going to end particularly well because the the wait to reopen the door to the red key switch, which also hands you the plasma gun, of course I felt like I was left with no choice but to SSG the Mastermind carefully, allowing breaks to clear any Pain elementals/lost souls that sneaked into the corridor with me.

Overall a solid effort that I would put about par with Map05, but this map is not without its drawbacks.

 

[Celestin]

MAP26: Aura of Evil by Butts with edits by Joshy, Jodwin and Mechadon

 

You start with getting attacked by imps and revenants on the cliffs, but Aura of Evil is a surprisingly friendly map. Just grab a plasma rifle from the centre of the map, head into a hellish fort and start shooting. The map hands you a ton of ammo, oftentimes just teleporting it in the middle of a fight. This does mean it can be played safe, I spent too much time than I should have sniping revenants and archvile with a shotgun.

 

Once you reach a rocket launcher and a nearby switch, a ton of monsters start teleporting in. As I've said, ammo is plentiful, the first wave you can kill just by camping inside, the second need to be taken head-on, but it still doesn't felt threatening.

 

I like this one. Aura of Evil looks great, combining red rocks and demonic stronghold, and its energetic action acts as a nice breather.

[LadyMistDragon]

+++Doom 2 in Spain Only

[bioshockfan90]

MAP26: Aura of Evil

 

100K | 94I | 0S

 

A decent arena map that feels right at home in E3 of the WAD with properly Hellish attire and brawls. I do wish the actual arena part of the fight was a bit more fleshed out, I feel like the mapper had the right idea by putting an archie in a pillar so you have to move a bit more carefully, but after you kill him, that’s it, no more danger. Just circlestrafing until all the monsters are dead. Better than MAP07 as that is also an arena map and this does it a tad better, I think.4.4 out of 5.

 

MAPRANKS:

Spoiler

MAP19

MAP23

MAP20

MAP05

MAP21

MAP16

MAP22

MAP14

MAP18

MAP15

MAP26

MAP07

MAP25

MAP01

MAP09

MAP06

MAP04

MAP13

MAP17

MAP02

MAP10

MAP24

MAP03

MAP12

MAP08

 

 

[TJG1289]

GZDoom/UV/Continuous/Blind/Saves (if needed)

Map 25:  Cabracan 1024 - Mechadon

100% kills and secrets

Time: 10:24

 

Another great Mechadon outing, this one has one of the hottest starts so far, as you have a lot of enemies in inaccessible areas sniping you as soon as you fire. Add in a decent amount of mid-tiers and you have a big issue, especially if you're pistol starting. Thankfully, every gun can be obtained here I believe, including a secret BFG. Like Mecha's first map in this set, he really used the most of his size limitation here, providing a map that has you retrace your steps a few times while new threats pop up. The most annoying one is an archie that I thought I could just BFG easily, but it teleported away immediately, and I ended up wasting 4 BFG shots trying to get it. Oops. The Mastermind was kinda useless, but I did like how it was placed outside of the 1024 square, making it one of the many additions to this map that made it feel bigger than it really is. Overall, another solid map that looks great! It's also a tad more punishing to boot.

 

Map 26:  Aura of Evil - Butts w/ edits by Joshy, Jodwin, and Mechadon

100% kills and secrets

Time: 5:36

 

Heh heh. Butts. lol.

 

Anyway, this map is a little more basic than some of the previous maps. Like map 2, idk why there needed to be 3 more people editing this. It's one of the lesser detailed maps so far, and is mostly an open arena with 1 building you can go into. The start is hot, but mostly due to the various imps and revs sniping, plus the 1 archie perched by the exit switch. Going inside locks you in for a rev/knight/more ambush that could be pretty dicey. Hitting the switch on the ledge outside reveals another archie and more teleporting baddies. This is noble heavy, thus making it a little grindy. Some munitions teleport in too, which is a nice Boom touch that I have neglected to mention previously this month, though I don't think it popped up often. Once this is cleaned up, you hit another switch to start the final teleport ambush, which is surprisingly silent. I don't often see silent teleports being used for ambushes. In fact, the only other time I can think of is when I used it in the first map I submitted for RAMP 2023. I'm sure there have been maps I've played before that have used it in this way, but I can't think of any off the top of my head. Though, the way it was used here seems pointless. You can see them all teleport in right in front of you. This would be better used if they teleported somewhere around a corner or something, where you couldn't see them and it would be a surprise. With this, just use a normal teleport, it makes no difference. The Megasphere secret was greatly appreciated as I can take that into the next map. Overall, this one is just ok. Probably on the lower end for the WAD so far due to a lack of visual chops and some grindy teleport ambushes. 

[cannonball]

MAP26 - “Aura of Evil” by Butts, Joshy, Jodwin, Mechadon

 

There isn't too much to dislike here, I managed to not spot the plasma gun near the start but the manage is actually manageable without it and I only used it to essentially clean up towards the end of the map. It is nicely presented, reasonably navigable and has sufficient amounts of violence to cut your teeth into. 

A decent map in my opinion, and I again appreciate the mix of a fairly simple layout and a reasonable amount of space to move around in.

[DJVCardMaster]

MAP26 - Aura of Evil - Butts (Edits by Joshy, Jodwin & Mechadon) (98%K/100%I/100%S):

Another map that feels like taken from Congestion because of the high amount of vanilla textures, still good looking though. This map is mostly an arena map, full of skirmishes against packs of dumb enemies, I think the only thing I did not like was snipers, as they were really difficult to kill them because they were really high. It wasn't a hard map, not a breather, but at least a short setpiece overall. Good map. I could not find the last enemy not even with IDDT though, so I guess 100% kills is not possible.

Also, thanks for the free megasphere at the end, the next map is goint to be easier...

(UV - Playthrough/PRBoom+)

Order of Preference:
 

Spoiler

 

MAP25

MAP22

MAP31
MAP20
MAP09

MAP05
MAP19
MAP16
MAP26
MAP23

MAP03
MAP07
MAP24
MAP15
MAP13
MAP12
MAP14
MAP21
MAP06
MAP18
MAP02
MAP04
MAP01
MAP17
MAP32
MAP08
MAP10
MAP11

 

 

[RHhe82]

MAP26: Aura of Evil. Played on DSDA v0.26.2, UV, PS. 83/83 K, 1/1 S, 63/63 I. Comp. time 10:46

 

At first, the map title conjured images of *Stench of Evil*, not a good first impression, but I can't fault the map of that. Still, very hot start soon reveals the map hates your guts and is out to kill you. Almost wherever you go, there are either revenant missiles or archvile fire magicks homing in on you. At this point my impressions wander from AV to Trois Heures d'Agonie 2's later maps with similar green marble hell maps that just relentlessly pound you.

 

Once I understood the mapper has given you ample ammo, I start really enjoying this one and realize it's a great map, that doesn't exude the feeling of map being a clever exercise in size limitation (not that I would consider that a problem).

 

20 minutes ago, DJVCardMaster said:

I could not find the last enemy not even with IDDT though, so I guess 100% kills is not possible.

 

It is possible, since we're running on basically the same port and I got all the kills. I can no longer recall if I had any trouble with the enemies. There was something about this map that did have me puzzled, but it's been precisely a week since I played this, and my memory fails me, and apparently whatever it was, it must have been something that turned out to be nothing ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[Kyka]

Thanks everyone for the comments/critiques on the 4 maps I worked on for this project. Aaaaah memories. I've learned a lot since these maps (Some of it useful even.)

 

The comments were great encouragement, and the critiques really are pretty valid and confirm the things I have learned since this mapset came out.

 

Godspeed and good luck to all you guys for the rest of the playthrough. :)

 

 

Edited August 26, 2023 by Kyka

[Tiramisu]

MAP26 - Aura of Evil

 

Intentionally or not, this map draws a lot of comparisons to MAP23 - with its name, its setting, the arena-style layout... Even the turret Archviles make a comeback! Compared to its predecessor, this map certainly turns up the heat, with tons of Revs and Nobles to slaughter with rockets and plasma. It had a few drawbacks to it (most notably, at the end it should've unlocked the bars and crushed the sniping monsters with Boom's fake ceilings), and overall I liked MAP23 a bit better, but I can't say I didn't enjoy myself here, either! The timed supply drops (especially the soulsphere near the end) were a pretty interesting idea that I haven't seen utilized to this degree before, and the aesthetics weren't too shabby either - I especially liked the use of the green ROCK2 texture, I actually feel kind of stupid now for never before realizing how well it goes with the marble textures :p

Edited August 27, 2023 by sq. Tiramisu

[DFF]

Looking back I chose to bump up map23 in rankings since i felt I placed it lower than it should have been. Still not really my favorite but it did more than what some maps presented.

 

Map24 - Second Assault
K: 100 |I: 100 |S: 100 |

Gzdoom UV Continuous, CCards 5.0

Adds an extra Cacodemon to the level

 

I rather liked this map actually. Bit more focused and combat-puzzle oriented. The detailing here is lower than a lot of the other entries but I think its a good balance; this map gave me very Plutonia-vibes which I thought was novel. Its a somewhat tricky map that I'd imagine would be a lot harder on pistol start. I don't have a lot to say about it but its enjoyable enough. Doesn't overstay its welcome, is non-linear in a limited space format, its different. Likely won't remember the name or the mapslot, but i'll remember "the one plutonia like map later in the set".

 

Map25 - Cabracan 1024
K: 100 |I: 100 |S: 100 |

Gzdoom UV Continuous, CCards 5.0

Lowers flinch chance of monsters

 

Another expansive base that makes liberal use of outside detailing and monster placement to expand the space. This map does well having a ver varied flow and interaction. The snipers and setups can feel a bit over-busy but for the most part I liked it. The hot start forced me to find quick cover or die, and the numerous zombiemen made full use of their grenade arsenal to keep me on my toes. As some have mentioned before the slow lifts are a bit tedious and interrupt gameplay flow but its a minor point. The plasma gun on the red key perch is easily grabbable by just jumping for it, granting early plasma well before it should be granted. Navigation got a bit convoluted with many switchbacks but wasn't overtly problematic, and the spider mama was a minimal threat but doing the spider mastermind right is hard.

This was a well done map that had some great concepts and ideas. Little bits could have been implemented better but its slightly nitpicky at this point. The use of 3-d spaces was well included for the most part.

 

Map26 - Aura of Evil
K: 100 |I: 100 |S: 100 |

Gzdoom UV Continuous, CCards 5.0

Revenants can stitch together corpses to make new demons

 

Extremely hot start especially with every revenant having a miniature buddy, this was sniper hell where any bit of safe foothold was a godsend. The burstfire cacos also made any location they had vision of dangerous. Thankfully this map featured no hitscanners or else this may have been too tough to conquer with my cardset.

 

I really liked the implementation of this map. Very simple for a mostly arena map but does what it needs to do without too much extra. The rocky snipers force the player to be constantly moving and seeking cover while not being too far removed that killing them is an annoyance (in this case it felt that killing them was less preferable to ignoring them). The more red and green hell aesthetic is much more up my alley, with darker shadows filling the marble halls being lit only by fiery brimstone. This map also featured a archvile in the watchtower similar to map 23, but this one had a lot more presence it felt. Combat was good and straightforward, teleport traps to stop the advance up the tower, and the final showdown fills the lower area with baddies. I found this could be cheesed using the walkway between the main building and the middle tower by the exit as it was tall enough that i wouldn't get hit by demons, and the walls were curved so demons got trapped into a trough. Idk if it was intended but the final wave of demons coming in by silent teleporter felt rather odd and out of place.

 

Very enjoyable map, spicy difficulty and neatly detailed and designed without going overboard. I got the megasphere secret by using SR50 to reach the ledge before realizing the eyeball right next to the exit ledge

 

Rankings:

Spoiler

Map22
Map31

Map15

Map20

Map26
Map06

Map05

Map21

Map25

Map12

Map17

Map24

Map07

Map18

Map16

Map19
Map08

Map23

Map14

Map03

Map02

Map10

Map09

Map01

Map04

Map11

Map32

 

DNR: map13

Cards:

Spoiler

Revenants can stitch together corpses to make new demons

Lowers flinch chance of monsters

Adds an extra Cacodemon to the level

Revenants spawn with a mini-revenant
Aracnotrons cannot be damaged when infighting
Zombies throw pumpkin bombs
Zombies throw viles of toxic gas
Aracnotrons never infight
Cacodemons attack with a burst of 3 projectiles
Pain Elementals summon enemies on death
Runes will spawn on walls that shoot periodic fireballs

Zombiemen throw bottles that revive enemies

 

 

[Celestin]

MAP27: Hell Sewage by Jodwin

 

Part hitscanner assault, part fighting revenants and hell knights in tight corridors without a super shotgun, Hell Sewage is an overrun outpost, where the only way out leads through sewers. You get a plasma rifle and a rocket launcher early on, but it's better to save them for later, so chaingun and regular shotgun will be your main tools to deal with enemies. The map heavily uses backtracking and refilling already visited areas with new monsters. I know it's not unique idea here, Jodwin did the same thing in MAP31 and I praised that one for squeezing as much content as possible, but it does get old.

 

Anyways, the strongest part of the map is when you unlock the exit and two archviles spawn, while some walls lower to change the layout a bit, giving you (as well as monsters) a bit more room to move and circle the enemies around.

 

I know I'm complaining a lot, this is still a good map, I just think this wad's gimmick is reaching its limits.

[bioshockfan90]

1 hour ago, Celestin said:

I know I'm complaining a lot, this is still a good map, I just think this wad's gimmick is reaching its limits.

 

I may have some nasty words to say about this one tomorrow. It was by far my least favorite of the entire set, but I think that could partially be due to difficulty balancing. 

 

Glad someone was able to find enjoyment out of it though! (and also kinda surprised, haha)

[DavitW]

MAP25: Cabracan 1024
I really liked the look of this map, and mostly enjoyed the gameplay. The amount of enemies far outside of the playable area that needed to slowly be sniped to death was a bit annoying, though. Especially when they walk around a corner out of sight and you have to spend a minute waiting around for them to come back. The secrets here are fairly easy to find. I'm not even sure what opened up the BFG. The very hot start here is the toughest part of the map, at least it was for me. If you can get through that with most of your health and armor intact, you should be fine.

 

MAP26: Aura of Evil
I was missing a single kill at the end of this one. And you know what? I'm going to go ahead and blame the map on that one. Based off the fact I couldn't see a single living thing left and that this map heavily utilized teleport traps, meaning a monster was probably just kicking his feet a solid 5 or so minutes before finally deciding to spawn in. Also based off the fact I had 100% kills in practice. One thing I like about this map is that it really lets you hang loose with the plasma rifle, a luxury we're not often afforded. 2 Archviles spawn in annoying, but relatively harmless spots. So long as you take the time to clear out the revenant and imp snipers overlooking the map before setting off the final few traps, you should be fine.

 

MAP27: Hell Sewage
This map felt like one big war of attrition. Health, ammo, and armor are all given out in meager amounts while you're given nothing more than a shotgun and chaingun to deal with numerous Hell Knights, Revenants, and Pain Elementals. Sure, you're given a rocket launcher fairly early on. But using a rocket launcher here? Forget about it. It's basically impossible not to get hit with the splash damage.

 

Once you pass the yellow key door, you're finally given a super shotgun and enough ammo to deal with the shit storm coming your way. 2 Archviles spawn a few rooms back, and it's basically up to luck whether or not you can win this encounter. If they chase you into the room, then you'll probably be able to take them out. If they decide to revive enemies all day, then you're probably done for. The enemies have such a severe bottleneck here it's basically impossible to get a single shot in on the archviles. A hallway does open up to the left which I believe may be intended for flanking the archviles, but I haven't had any luck with that strategy either. The demo I posted for this one isn't 100%, but I still believe it will be highly entertaining. I'm not sure how many of you actually watch the demos I post, but if you do, I sincerely hope you enjoy it.

 

1024CLAU25.zip

1024CLAU26.zip

1024CLAU27.zip

[RHhe82]

MAP27: Hell Sewage. Played on DSDA v0.26.2, UV, PS. 157/157 K, 0/0 S, 165/165 I. Comp. time 16:43

 

SLightly mixed feelings here, although leaning on the positive side, and some of the cons might stem from me not realizing I had a rocket launcher; I dealt with the two unwelcome pain elementals with a chaingun and a single-barrel. Earlier there were a group of hell knights too and regrettably no SSG. Despite all this it's still a decent map, only perhaps at this point in the wad starts to feel like we've seen this a few times now; teleporting enemies in tight spaces and constant back-and-forthtracking.

[bioshockfan90]

After-the-playthrough notes: Yeah, I guess  this is just either a skill issue on my end or the map author really screwed HNTR players/pistol starters. It didn't help I was hellbent on beating this set in as short of a time as possible (how short? you'll just have to see my MAP30 post) so I'm sure given enough time I could've single segmented this, but even still thinking back to the map I can't see it being possible. Maps like this remind me of my older days playing Doom WADs, where lots of frustration occurred. And this one got me in a janky kind of way. I've since been a bit more critical about how I think about maps after having posted a fair amount to my blog, so I apologize to the map author or anyone that worked on this in advance, as I was just not in a good mood on the heels of this and wanted to beat the map. Anyway, enough rambling, here it is.

 

 

MAP27: Hell Sewage

 

96K | 100I | 100S | Used Saves

 

Easily the worst map of the set so far, and I really am hoping it stays that way for the remainder of the set. There’s nothing wrong with the looks of the map, the detailing is rather good, and the layout is only marginally confusing - as I’ve said in prior posts, it’s a 1024 map, only so many places you can go. But the big issues with this map stem from the combat and ammo/weapon balance. Even on HNTR, this map was a huge difficulty spike from anything I’ve encountered, and not one ounce of it felt fair. Health is at a premium, ammo for good weapons like the plasma gun and rocket launcher are at a premium, monsters are placed in tight hallways (often with no recourse other than to hope it’s a “Greedo shot first” type-situation), and all around monster placement is BRUTAL. If you get to the part where the AV spawns in, you NEED to have saved practically all your cells in the map up to that point, know where it’s going to spawn, and take it out as soon as you can. Reason being, he spawns in next to a bunch of mid-tier monsters you previously killed. I gave this a good 20 or so attempts saveless, and once I died to that archvile, I said fuck it and used saves. Even then, I didn’t have fun and felt like I was at the whims of RNG to carry me through. Don’t even mind that I didn’t get 100% kills here. At least MAP12’s ammo starvation repairs itself by virtue of the map being short and lack of monster variety - this is just a stinker all around. Bottom, bottom, bottom of the list. 1 out of 5.

 

MAPRANKS:

Spoiler

MAP19

MAP23

MAP20

MAP05

MAP21

MAP16

MAP22

MAP14

MAP18

MAP15

MAP26

MAP07

MAP25

MAP01

MAP09

MAP06

MAP04

MAP13

MAP17

MAP02

MAP10

MAP24

MAP03

MAP12

MAP08

MAP27

 

 

[brick]

GZDoom, Boom compat, software, HNTR, blind, continuous with saves.

 

MAP26 - “Aura of Evil” by Butts, Joshy, Jodwin, Mechadon
Strange seeing so many people worked on this one. It looks beautiful in parts, from the grounds outside there's an angle where you can see a cross silhouetted against the red sky, there's almost a poetic tone to the colours and lighting. The map itself is very straightforward (not necessarily easy), most of the fighting is outdoors, first with a hot start, later it turns into something akin to arena combat. The gameplay wasn't really my thing but I really enjoyed the visuals.

 

MAP27 - “Hell Sewage” by Jodwin
With over 100 enemies on HNTR this one keeps teleporting enemies right behind me. The RL is provided early and should've been a boon against all the revenants and nobles, but is almost useless because most of the fighting is in very tight passages where using it would be suicide. The most irritating bit was the archvile, which teleports in several rooms away and ends up protected by a wall of meat shields, grinding through them to reach it (while they keep getting resurrected) through all the narrow corridors tried my patience. I think I agree with Celestin that the wad's gimmicks, or specifically the way they're implemented, are reaching the limits.

 

18 hours ago, Kyka said:

Thanks everyone for the comments/critiques on the 4 maps I worked on for this project.

I wanted to point out that, of those 4 with your name on them, there's only one I didn't like, and the one you did solo is one of my favourites. Thank you for the maps!

[KickAss]

GZDooM 4.10, PB 3.0, HeXeReTiC HUD PB3 v8.3RC2e, Glory Kills v29b, SilentDoomguy, Flashlight, -iwad doom2.wad (ver 1.666), -skill 4 (UV), continuous play, no saves.

 

MAP25 - “Cabracan 1024” by Mechadon

 

MAP26 - “Aura of Evil” by Butts, Joshy, Jodwin, Mechadon

 

MAP27 - “Hell Sewage” by Jodwin

[Flyxolydian]

Another triple down:

Map 26 - Aura of Evil:
I'm getting notes of Scythe's 3rd episode here... another hell castle, but his one has two major areas; a courtyard that has yet another hot start, with monsters perched all around the courtyard on the cliff, and the castle, that features a nice little lock-in encounter that necessitates plasma usage. Grabbing the rocket launcher starts the big slaughter-ish fight with hella Barons and Knights, then one more ambush that can be dealt with by your remaining Plasma. Good stuff, not too tough.

Map 27 - Hell Sewage:
Another close quarters teleport-fest. I guess you can't really do anything else with maps this small, but it is beginning to get very same-y now. Weapon placement was a bit odd, in that get the Plasma (with VERY limited ammo) in the opening area, but not the SSG until the last couple of fights. It feels like those weapons should've been swapped, as you need that plasma for when the Archviles spawn in. It's not a bad map, though some armour would've been nice!

Map 28 - Poison Ivy:
Poison Ivy... shit (I've not long finished Resurgence UV pistol/saveless yadayada... and the Poison Ivy series is hardcore). Alright... let's have at it then.
Yep, quite a tough map. Not sure if it's the hardest in the WAD, but it's not hard due to ammo/weapon/resource deprivation, it's just good ol' tough fights. Visuals fit the Poison Ivy theme (which I guess they should, this being the progenitor after all), and it's cool to see the map gradually open up as you progress. The second to last fight is the absolute worst though, I forgot how much Joshy loves Chaingunners...

[rehelekretep]

map27 fda

jodwin i hate you for those two viles

1024clau-fda-21-27-rehelekretep.zip

[cannonball]

MAP27 - “Hell Sewage” by Jodwin

 

Well this was an ordeal;

 

Okay most of this is going through the same motions as several other maps, except there are two moments that are absolute BS, the first happens when you hit a switch and are surrounded on all sides by chaingunners, I had just over 50% health and died several times with absolutely no chance of surviving, if a chaingunner instantly fires then you are dead, full stop. The second happens after opening up the exit with the double archvile warp-in, this is again pure luck as to whether you can get the archviles to swiftly stand in front of you so you can take them out.

There is very little to redeem this map in my opinion, the only observation is that there is a lot of map here, but this is simply saying that I am going to restrict my budget and by 100 cheap burgers that taste like garbage instead of buying a lower number burgers that actually taste decent. Unlike Skyscrape IV this also doesn't have clever uses of the Z-axis to flesh out an interesting layout. In the end this is probably the worst map in the set and I was so close to simply branding the letter F on this one and giving up with the archvile trap. Unfortunately it is maps like this that make me really dislike this mapping restriction.

[TJG1289]

GZDoom/UV/Continuous/Blind/Saves (if needed)

Map 27:  Hell Sewage - Jodwin

100% kills and secrets

Time: 10:39

 

Man, I can see this one would be brutal for pistol-starters. While a plasma rifle is provided immediately, I didn't notice that many cells for it. The SSG also doesn't show up until you open the yellow door, which is the last key door. Before getting to said SSG, you'll have to deal with not only the normal fodder enemies, but also a lot of revs, hell knights, and a few flyers. This is one of the 1024 maps with a lot of super tight halls, so avoiding damage from mid-tiers is tough to do. The most brutal fight regardless of weaponry acquired is when you hit a switch and a firing squad of chaingunners instantly show up, with 3 hell knights in tow. I had to immediately run to cover out a door in order to peek-a-boo shoot them. A lot of the switch ambushes here result in a ton of enemies showing up in these tight areas, so no fight is easy. The most stressful one is when you open the bars leading to the exit and 2 archies appear in the room with the blue door and start reviving everything. Some walls open during this too, letting a little more movement happen, but also has some caged imps firing at you. The BFG worked wonders here, especially since there were quite a few revs and hell knights that got rev'd. One final imp and caco ambush shows up when you open the door to the yellow key/exit room, and that's all she wrote. Overall, a pretty challenging map with a nice amount of detail. I'm actually surprised I not only didn't die in this one, but didn't save. I think I've only saved on map 7 and maybe another map or 2 so far. Maps are short enough where having to replay them doesn't sound as frustrating. Fun map!