Cool wads for kids and teenagers?

[DoomGappy]

I have a 10 year old brother. He also loves FPS games, just like me. We sometimes play together, and I've made him test some of my maps before. I use his performance for a base experience for "Hey, not too rough", while for "hurt me plenty" I just test it until I have a fun but not too hard time. I wondered what cool custom wads I could show him that would make him fall in love with Doom the way I have. He seems to have a fun enough time, but I am OBSSESSED with Doom. He has finished the first game, but not played a lot of Doom 2. Maybe I should start there? There's also the fact that he's still only ten and will probably mature, but I can't wait for him to look at the past with fond eyes when he remembers some of these mods. I was going to introduce him to Batandy's Lost Souls Series, but still haven't done that. What do you think kids his age would enjoy, and what did you like at that age?

[Arrowhead]

'The Adventures of Square' would be a very good start for kid-friendly FPS fun.

 

There's also that great Golden Souls series too.

 

'Shadow of the Wool Ball' also is great.

Edited November 2, 2023 by Arrowhead

[Naarok0fkor]

https://www.moddb.com/mods/guntoberfest/downloads/naarok0fkor-guntoberfest-2023

[DankMetal]

I also have a nine year old brother who plays doom, he completed ultimate doom like 2 times, he also finished doom 64. He hasn't played all of doom 2, but he loves the icon of sin. He also played other fps like wolf 3d and quake. I hadn't think about showing him mods, i guess if he told me that he wants to play a megawad that I KNOW that doesn't have any "sus" content, then i will just let him play.

[Cammy]

3 minutes ago, DankMetal said:

i guess if he told me that he wants to play a megawad that I KNOW that doesn't have any "sus" content, then i will just let him play.

 

I have to admit I don't know of very many megawads that do have sus content, at least as far as big names are concerned. Just stay away from NERF and Kama Sutra and you're golden.

 

And I guess Nova 3 has a text screen that says "fuck" if you care about that.

[Jayextee]

Literally Chex Quest was designed for this.

[DankMetal]

Just now, Cammy said:

 

I have to admit I don't know of very many megawads that do have sus content, at least as far as big names are concerned. Just stay away from NERF and Kama Sutra and you're golden.

 

And I guess Nova 3 has a text screen that says "fuck" if you care about that.

Yeah, i don't know about many wads that have sus content, they are like the exception.

And yeah, i don't care if an intermission have the word fuck, neither of us read the intermission screens tbh

[Arrowhead]

Just now, Jayextee said:

Literally Chex Quest was designed for this.

Was just about to edit my earlier post to include that. Read my mind!

[LuzRoja29]

i let my 7yo cousin play doom 2 and brutal doom sometimes, but he is a splitscreen coop games bud

[OliveTree]

i believe theres an anti-gore mod out there for zdoom that makes the blood effect into sparkles and causes enemies to just vanish instead of be gibbed

[DankMetal]

4 minutes ago, OliveTree said:

i believe theres an anti-gore mod out there for zdoom that makes the blood effect into sparkles and causes enemies to just vanish instead of be gibbed

So basically, pyro-vision for doom?

[OniriA]

To be fair, Doom is already cartoony enough looking that it can easily be played by kids of all ages.

 

I started playing Doom at around 8 years old, nowadays they're probably just playing Brutal Doom or something (speaking of "kid friendly"). Looking back at my own experience, as boys we usually wanted the coolest, most edgiest looking stuff on the shelf. We weren't really into colorful, fluffy looking things. I considered that to be for girls and babies at the time. I wanted my shit to be grimy, dark and cool looking. 

 

If someone presented me Mario Doom or Lego doom at 10 years old (while I was playing/experiencing Doom on Playstation) my reaction would've been "dude, fuck that shit. That's for babies!"

 

I don't think that's something that's really different or changed nowadays compared to then. It's quite universal to be honest.

Edited November 3, 2023 by OniriA

[DoomGappy]

5 minutes ago, OniriA said:

To be fair, Doom is already cartoony enough looking that it can easily be played by kids of all ages.

 

I started playing Doom at around 8 years old, nowadays they're probably just playing Brutal Doom or something (speaking of "kid friendly"). Looking back at my own experience, as boys we usually wanted the coolest, most edgiest looking stuff on the shelf. We weren't really into colorful, fluffy looking things. I considered that to be for girls and babies at the time. I wanted my shit to be grimy, dark and cool looking. 

 

If someone presented me Mario Doom or Lego doom at 10 years old (while I was playing/experiencing Doom on Playstation) my reaction would've been "dude, fuck that shit. That's for babies!"

 

Yeah, I think people kinda missed what I meant, and some of the blame is also on me. I wanted to know what I could show him that would get him pumped to try more Doomy stuff. Except for The Adventures of Square. The Adventures of Square is badass. We've played that a bit too, but he didn't get fully into it. I guess my request is very vague.

 

1 hour ago, LuzRoja29 said:

i let my 7yo cousin play doom 2 and brutal doom sometimes, but he is a splitscreen coop games bud

I think 7yo is too early to be playing BD, but that's just me.

 

2 hours ago, DankMetal said:

I also have a nine year old brother who plays doom, he completed ultimate doom like 2 times, he also finished doom 64. He hasn't played all of doom 2, but he loves the icon of sin. He also played other fps like wolf 3d and quake. I hadn't think about showing him mods, i guess if he told me that he wants to play a megawad that I KNOW that doesn't have any "sus" content, then i will just let him play.

If you had to choose a megawad to show him, what would it be?

Edited November 3, 2023 by DoomGappy

[OniriA]

19 minutes ago, DoomGappy said:

If you had to choose a megawad to show him, what would it be?

 

The most fun and cherished experience I had with Doom was on the online multiplayer front. Playing with someone you know opened a whole new doorway for me and made me love the game as no other game before. I think the answer doesn't lay in what wad you should present him but rather with having a fun experience in general. Which could technically be any wad, but more importantly the context in which it is experienced.

 

As his brother I'd suggest playing online coop with him more, as the more fun he has during those sessions with you the more he would get into Doom itself. So in essence the answer lies not in a wad, but it's you. The more fun he has with you playing this game, the bigger chance he would get "back into Doom" aswell on the long term as he would remember the fun and cherished experiences he had with his brother.

 

Don't underestimate the power of shared experience.

Edited November 3, 2023 by OniriA

[DankMetal]

51 minutes ago, OniriA said:

 

The most fun and cherished experience I had with Doom was on the online multiplayer front. Playing with someone you know opened a whole new doorway for me and made me love the game as no other game before. I think the answer doesn't lay in what wad you should present him but rather with having a fun experience in general. Which could technically be any wad, but more importantly the context in which it is experienced.

 

As his brother I'd suggest playing online coop with him more, as the more fun he has during those sessions with you the more he would get into Doom itself. So in essence the answer lies not in a wad, but it's you. The more fun he has with you playing this game, the bigger chance he would get "back into Doom" aswell on the long term as he would remember the fun and cherished experiences he had with his brother.

 

Don't underestimate the power of shared experience.

Oh, we actually play a lot of deathmatch, but sadly, our Internet sucks ass, so we can't play much.

If i had to recommend a megawad, aside from Doom 64 in doom 2, it would be perditions gate, really fun and with a reasonable difficulty.

[WhateverComic07]

Why not the classics on lower difficulty? The Scythes, BTSX, Nuts with iddqd, etc.

 

Alternatively you could take him through some pretty hard maps in coop as a bit of a trial by fire if he seems to enjoy a challenge, and it really doesn't actually hold much threat of lost progress because of respawn.

 

You could have him do some puzzle wads if he likes puzzles. Maybe some jumping maps with some modern source port features.

 

Also, something I've found is that children love watching videos on things then trying it themselves. Try seeing if you can get him hooked on the Pumpkin Man or someone else. (I recommend Decino in particular because of his relative family friendly vibe) 

 

If he can handle "Scary" wads why not try some of those. I know I loved horror games at that age *cough* FNAF *cough*. So try something scary. The only thing coming to mind right now is My House which I know seems to anger people when I mention it, but I would have loved exploring that labyrinthine map as a kid to find every nook and cranny.

 

Basically give him variety and pay attention to what he seems to like I guess. I remember as a kid when I played what little doom I did, I loved doom 1, hated doom 2, liked doom 3, and as far as I knew that was every doom game. Also, maybe don't only give him doom. Maybe try making him love gaming as a whole first, so mix in some platformers, some puzzle games, some hack and slash, some fighting games. If he loves gaming as a whole he'll want to try more doom with it's status as the grandpappy of games. That's what drew me anyway, as for a long time I played mostly 3d platformers like Pac-Man World 2.

 

Anyway, sorry if this is a bit jumbled, but I hope it helps.

[Maximum Matt]

Lock the little pimply douches in a room with an old 486 and tell them they can't come out until they've completed Ultimate Doom, Doom II and Final Doom.  And Quake.  Then they'll be like me

[OniriA]

28 minutes ago, Maximum Matt said:

Lock the little pimply douches in a room with an old 486 and tell them they can't come out until they've completed Ultimate Doom, Doom II and Final Doom.  And Quake.  Then they'll be like me

 

  +  +   

 

 

Some years later.

 

=

[Lila Feuer]

@OniriA And that's how we all hit puberty, copious amounts of Doom at a young age.

I started at 10 btw.

Edited November 3, 2023 by Lila Feuer

[Hellektronic]

Doom is... the everyman's game. And everychild.

I recommend classic episodes, such as... Back to Basics, Doom the Way id Did, Classic Episode, Slaughter Until Death, The Evil Unleashed, SIGIL, Fava Beans, etc.

Doom 2 might be a little too hard and... well, annoying. But that's always an option too. Final Doom is kind of the same thing, lots of monsters, challenge-oriented maps. Stick to lower difficulties.

Edited November 3, 2023 by Hellektronic

[DRON12261]

Eternal Doom 3. Will be played through to adulthood. If they pass Bob Evans' MAP30 themselves, you can tell they'll be ready to enter a new era of their lives.

[Dark Pulse]

3 hours ago, Maximum Matt said:

Lock the little pimply douches in a room with an old 486 and tell them they can't come out until they've completed Ultimate Doom, Doom II and Final Doom.  And Quake.  Then they'll be like me

Only if you also include "Maximum Doom." Then not only will they be you, they'll come out looking like your avatar.

[Track Federal]

When I think about wads for teenagers, various humorous and arcade community works come to mind, so I can recommend:

- Overboard by Mouldy

- DBP13: Alien Bastards!

- DBP30: The Magnificent Five

- Ray Mohawk 2 by Doomkid

- Revolution! and latest re-release of Harmony by Thomas van der Velden

- Doomguy Gets a Puppy by Big Ol' Billy

- The Old Bean Factory, Escape from Slime City and HOTFIX93 by kwc

- Doom City by Shamus Young

 

[Nevander]

8 hours ago, OliveTree said:

i believe theres an anti-gore mod out there for zdoom that makes the blood effect into sparkles and causes enemies to just vanish instead of be gibbed

 

Scroll down to "Censor Doom"

[Lila Feuer]

I actually like the GBA Doom green blood, I call it R.L. Stine Mode, I don't recall any recreation mod since it would also require modifying textures, but I always liked the new impaled severed head in that port because they redid the art to make a skull.

[OliveTree]

18 minutes ago, Nevander said:

 

Scroll down to "Censor Doom"

hell yea

[Roofi]

Hell Revealed

 

This megawad was even made by a pair of 14 and 15 years old teenagers.

 

It's never too soon to become a man.

Edited November 3, 2023 by Roofi

[DoomGappy]

13 hours ago, Cammy said:

 

I have to admit I don't know of very many megawads that do have sus content, at least as far as big names are concerned. Just stay away from NERF and Kama Sutra and you're golden.

 

And I guess Nova 3 has a text screen that says "fuck" if you care about that.

So that means my lil bro can play hdoom? Good to know.

[whybmonotacrab]

He's 10. I doubt he'll care about the classics people are talking about. 

 

Show him something that looks cool as shit - Eviternity, Elementalism, Lost Civilization, etc.

Or maybe show him something that's weird/funny - Going Down, Head Trauma, Infested etc. 

 

 Show him something cool that will excite him.

[Lila Feuer]

5 minutes ago, DoomGappy said:

So that means my lil bro can play hdoom? Good to know.

 

Helluva way to give the birds and the bees talk.