Doom Returns - FULL VERSION RELEASED [GZDoom megawad]

[The DANDY Company]

Hi everyone,
The full version of Doom Returns is now available! This release (v3.0) is the debut of Episode 3: Descent into Darkness, and it's also the official full and final release of Doom Returns containing all three episodes and a total of 36 maps (each episode contains 10 main maps and 2 secret maps). Updates and improvements have also been made to the first two episodes.

 

Please keep in mind this was a casual project that we worked on in our spare time over the last four years. The maps were made more or less in sequential order, with a few exceptions, so levels generally get more complex the further you go into the game. This reflects how our mapping/modding skills improved over the course of development.

 

Requirements

• Latest version of GZDoom (v4.11.3 at the time of this writing) in hardware rendering mode
• DOOM2.wad

 

Important notes

• Doom Returns is not intended to be played with any additional mods loaded. While some mods might technically be compatible, loading additional mods might break the game and/or make some levels unbeatable due to custom scripting/events. Additionally, a few levels have assets (such as textures, sprites, and sounds) that are intended to guide the player. Mods that change these types of assets might make completing some levels extremely difficult or impossible.

• Doom Returns is intended to be played with mouse look. While it might not be absolutely required to finish the game, a few secrets might require you to look/aim up or down to locate and/or activate them. Also consider that 3D floors and stacked sector portals are occasionally used to add verticality to levels, and navigation might be difficult without mouse look.
• Jump and crouch are disabled by default in Doom Returns. Enabling them will likely ruin the intended experience by making it possible to bypass sections of some levels.
• Doom Returns is designed for pistol-start on every level. Modifying this in any way might break some levels.

 

Download location

• https://www.itsdandytime.com/doom-returns-downloads

Note: In case you can't access that site, here's a direct link to our public Google Drive where the download is: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1-R7NjDNh6YxrC_v-iytOwm23DEAq395r?usp=sharing

 

For more info about Doom Returns, visit our website at https://www.itsdandytime.com.

 

Thanks for your patience as we got this completed! We'd love to hear your feedback after you've played it.

Andarch & TomServoCrow
The DANDY Company

Edited March 7 by The DANDY Company

[CacoKnight]

Looks damn awesome.

Edited March 2 by CacoKnight

[The DANDY Company]

2 hours ago, CacoKnight said:

Looks damn awesome.

 

*The URL has an extra dot that makes it 404.

 

Fixed! Thanks!

[TomServoCrow]

I think the third episode is the best

 

[The DANDY Company]

Hi everyone,
We just streamed the first two levels of the newly released Episode 3 in co-op mode on Twitch! Check out the recording here: https://youtu.be/t8MZ3W6H2K4

 

Andarch
The DANDY Company

Edited March 5 by The DANDY Company

[akidd]

Using ONLY the latest Project Brutality 3.0 staging build with GZDoom v4.11.3 and this mapset the pickup items are very large.   I reported the issue to the PB github issues.

 

They reported back that it is not their issue.   Would really love to try it out with PB but it is unplayable as you can't see anything.

 

[Pure Hellspawn]

2 hours ago, akidd said:

Using ONLY the latest Project Brutality 3.0 staging build with GZDoom v4.11.3 and this mapset the pickup items are very large.   I reported the issue to the PB github issues.

 

They reported back that it is not their issue.   Would really love to try it out with PB but it is unplayable as you can't see anything.

 

Having played this without brutality, I did not encounter this issue.

[The DANDY Company]

Sorry, Doom Returns wasn’t tested for compatibility with other mods. I’m not sure what would cause this, but I can tell you that we didn’t change anything related to scaling for items.

 

It’s important to note that Doom Returns is intended to be played as-is, and loading other mods might break things and/or make levels unbeatable due to custom scripting/events.

 

Andarch

The DANDY Company

Edited March 7 by The DANDY Company

[The DANDY Company]

I have added the below text to the release post:

 

Important notes

• Doom Returns is not intended to be played with any additional mods loaded. While some mods might technically be compatible, loading additional mods might break the game and/or make some levels unbeatable due to custom scripting/events. Additionally, a few levels have assets (such as textures, sprites, and sounds) that are intended to guide the player. Mods that change these types of assets might make completing some levels extremely difficult or impossible.
• Doom Returns is intended to be played with mouse look. While it might not be absolutely required to finish the game, a few secrets might require you to look/aim up or down to locate and/or activate them. Also consider that 3D floors and stacked sector portals are occasionally used to add verticality to levels, and navigation might be difficult without mouse look.
• Jump and crouch are disabled by default in Doom Returns. Enabling them will likely ruin the intended experience by making it possible to bypass sections of some levels.
• Doom Returns is designed for pistol-start on every level. Modifying this in any way might break some levels.

 

Andarch

The DANDY Company

Edited March 7 by The DANDY Company

[akidd]

On 3/7/2024 at 5:30 PM, The DANDY Company said:

It’s important to note that Doom Returns is intended to be played as-is, and loading other mods might break things and/or make levels unbeatable due to custom scripting/events.

 

OK.  It's too bad as I love the maps.  

 

And I can confirm it doesn't happen without it.  But that's pretty much in the OP.

[LadyMistDragon]

Left this one alone for too long!

 

 

[Delisk]

On 3/7/2024 at 7:19 AM, akidd said:

Using ONLY the latest Project Brutality 3.0 staging build with GZDoom v4.11.3 and this mapset the pickup items are very large.   I reported the issue to the PB github issues.

 

They reported back that it is not their issue.   Would really love to try it out with PB but it is unplayable as you can't see anything.

 

 

Those are no bullets... those are artillery shells!

 

On a more serious matter, PB and Brutal doom are very good at breaking wad with custom things in them or some acs usage.  As a mapper I had my fair share of issue with them. both are quite spaghetti code and do a lot of annoying things, for example PB like randomly assign tid to monster with absolutely no care if one was present, thus breaking anything related to it.

Edited March 17 by Delisk

[Delisk]

 

[The DANDY Company]

Hi everyone,

It’s been 3 months since the full release of Doom Returns, and we’ve had about 500 downloads so far, but the only comments we received are the ones above.

 

Has anyone played through all 36 levels? Or at least some of them? We’d love to hear your feedback, good or bad.

 

Thanks!

 

Andarch & TomServoCrow

The DANDY Company

Edited June 2 by The DANDY Company

[ConMan3222]

I have completed all 36 of those Maps in the MegaWAD.

[Lila Feuer]

On 3/7/2024 at 6:19 AM, akidd said:

BEEG MAGZ

I'm fkn crying.