Possible Megawad Idea - Dark Plutonia

[Shanoa]

Haha i was awaiting that update...dude once again congrats on the speedmapping...and thats cool if the next update is monday or tuesday...we can wait ;)

[gggmork]

Death-Destiny said:

This was the map where when you get the blue skull key, loads of revenants and mancubi teleport in to make you wish you didn't. This map featured a fight against an arch-vile for the yellow key where you had absolutely no cover. (FYI, I hate that as a player, so my maps all give you something to hide behind.) You didn't need the red key to finish this map as there was a ledge you could jump from that wasn't corrected.

lol on skipping the red key. I always just went through the motions assuming you needed it (yet I still always just ran into that warp without bothering with that red door).
In that map I usually skip the main reverant/mancubus fight by not firing in that area so they don't wake up. Then I have a bfg blast for both arch viles.

I've been trying to completete all 32 levels in plutonia without dying on ultra violence in one single playthrough, not really max kills or super fast though. Furthest I got was level 24 (then died when I forgot a wall of chaingunners appeared). Usually, its just too long and I get impatient retrying over and over again.

[Death-Destiny]

Alrighty, about time for this...

Update: The next level in Dark Plutonia is now essentially completed. My random number was 19 this time. Map 19 was "Mne," whatever that's supposed to mean ;). This map was the one where you got jumped by revenents and a bunch of weaker enemies for getting both the yellow key and the plasma gun. On multiplayer skill 4, there were 8 arch-viles chilling in the exit room waiting to blast your team apart.

This speedmap took all my time, but it was close enough that I didn't have to rush to get finished. The original map had no Hell Knights or Barons, so my rendition, "Tragedy of the Mind," has none either. While often regarded as something to soak up ammo, you get an appreciation for them when they're not there. I put 10 arch-viles at the exit on co-op if only to be cute, but multiplayer has a BFG, so it may actually be a fun challenge. The tragic mind idea is reflected in the not-quite-realistic environment that defies a couple of physical laws here and there. =)

Here's some screenies: [Outdated]
This environment seems pretty stable...
...though this structure doesn't quite follow reality.
I see a Plutonia style beatdown coming on. >=D

That's 11/32, 34% completion. I should be able to keep at this project for a while yet.

[Mechadon]

I like the look of that 3rd screenshot...for whatever reason, I haven't quite figured it out yet.

I think I'm going to go and replay Plutonia now while I wait on this to be finished :D

[WH-Wilou84]

Death-Destiny said:

Update: The next level in Dark Plutonia is now essentially completed. My random number was 19 this time. Map 19 was "Mne," whatever that's supposed to mean ;).

Actually it was "NME" ( "Enemy", probably ).

Your screens look very good, and faithful to the original Plutonia. Please keep it up ;)

[Shanoa]

lol this is indeed a strange map...but as usual it looks good...nice work Death

[Death-Destiny]

Update: The next map in Dark Plutonia is now essentially complete. The map this time around was map07, "Caughtyard," which is of course a "Dead Simple" remake. This version used the Mancubus's 666 sector tag trigger, but had you fight revenants next instead of arachnotrons.

My remake of the Plutonia remake of "Dead Simple," which is titled "Checkmate," has the initial Mancubus fight followed by revenants, but I gave the arachnotrons their moment in the spotlight as well and used the 667 sector tag trigger. I'm pretty proud of this one... it's one of the best Plutonia emulations I've done to date. One thing I noted about my 300 minute time limit is that short maps like this are as easy as taking candy from someone who offers it to you, but I'm going to have to work very efficiently to get the next map done in 300 minutes (Don't be silly. I'm not telling what it is until next update ;P)

Anyway, here's your screenies: [Outdated]
A plutonia sytle massacre, just the way we like it. >=D
I might as well make a simple landscape with my extra time...
..,And one of those suspicious passages that suggest you should save your game.

Well, well, well. 12/32, 37% completion. This number is just crawling along, like a 2-hour download that should take 5 minutes, but I just tell myself that it's fine so long as it's increasing. =)

[printz]

DO YOU KNOW that the DOOM 2 HANGING BODIES block actors AT ANY HEIGHT?

I hope you're not testing Dark Plutonia solely with ZDoom. I'd rather use Doom95 -emulate, for Plutonia (I don't have plutonia.exe, that's why), because with this setting, for a keyboarder (me), it works just fine.

[Tango]

Still looking awesome :)

[Belial]

printz said:

DO YOU KNOW that the DOOM 2 HANGING BODIES block actors AT ANY HEIGHT?

Not if you use the right ones.

[Shanoa]

Once again nice work :P

[gemini09]

Death-Destiny said:

Update: The next map in Dark Plutonia is now essentially complete. This time was map 16, "The Omen." This was the map where when you get the blue skull key, loads of revenants and mancubi teleport in to make you wish you didn't. This map featured a fight against an arch-vile for the yellow key where you had absolutely no cover. (FYI, I hate that as a player, so my maps all give you something to hide behind.) You didn't need the red key to finish this map as there was a ledge you could jump from that wasn't corrected.

I had no problems with time for this one. After 10 speedmaps, I'm getting noticably better. As the screenies show, I'm able to make more complicated and detailed areas time-efficiently. The original map used primarily brown and grey, but mine used mostly the green textures, so they don't look all that similar. For some reason, that green flat reminds me of Pain Elements, so this map has quite a lot of them. =/ Here's the screenies of map16, "The Oracle."

Wow. Now that's a lot of green.

This is a version of a bagua with the eight trigrams and their names. These are used to "track manifestations before changes." It seems omen/oracle-ish to me. =)

And one more...

That's 10/32, 31% completion, just shy of one-third. This project keeps on moving ahead. 'Til next update =D

Nice. Does remind me of Plutonia design.

However, in my opinion you should delete the detail on floor and ceiling by the dome-like sector (as nicely as it's done; Plutonia still has minimalistic design). The catwalks could use a higher ceiling to create holes in the ceiling, accompanied by dark textures like METAL, or something, for detail. Perhaps with blinking lights, even. I would actually prefer without the ground-detail in the second screenshot. The first screenshot could use a different sky texture, but maybe it's just a bad angle for the sky... from what I can tell, I don't particularly like it.

Anyway, good job, and we're looking forward to the megawad!

[esselfortium]

Belial said:

Not if you use the right ones.

I'm pretty sure the Doom 2 ones are all blocking.

[Death-Destiny]

esselfortium said:

I'm pretty sure the Doom 2 ones are all blocking.

You are correct. There wasn't a no-block Doom2 equivalent for this series of 6 hanging things, for whatever annoying reason. The ones in the screenshot have been modified so that they don't block.

And by the way Esselfortium, every other hanging thing in Doom2 *DOES* have a no-block equivalent listed as a different thing. ;)

[Death-Destiny]

@Gemini09: I do appreciate your input, but realize that all your crits are opinionated. For example, if I delete all the detailing in the second screenie, while you'd like it better, there will be just as many people who will claim that the dome is too plain afterwards. Let's keep the criticism to pointing out design flaws, like the hanging bodies, for this stage in the project and worry about preferred aesthetics once the project is ready for beta-testing. Thanks =)

On a similar topic, since Gemini09 brought it up, I should explain the wierd sky texture. I had it on my computer and wanted to see if It would look good. As you can imagine, a sky like that would hardly fit any maps, so since I made one where it would actually fit, I decided to try it out. While I actually think it looks pretty good, I wasn't planning on using it in DP since Plutonia had nothing remotely similar to this, but if you people *REALLY* like it, that could be changed. That's why I posted that version of the screenie, since most of you know what Plutonia's red sky looks like anyway.

[printz]

That ugly blackness aside, the sky looks like spinach. For this reason, please keep it. Goes well with the background texes.

[Artillery]

Personaly, I'd say the sky in map 16 is fugly, but the rest of it(including the floor detail) is fantastic. In the last screen I'd make that catwalk slightly taller or lower the nukage area to make it look more epic.

Also, why not make a zdoom/gzdoom exclusive version with changing skies. I'll, personaly, play it on gzdoom anyway, and in the original the last episode red sky looked horrible and didn't fit in lower courtyards (eg. start of map 25, outer city area of 29, ACK!).

One final suggestion: map names 01: Nile, 22: Rambo.

[Death-Destiny]

Artillery said:

Also, why not make a zdoom/gzdoom exclusive version with changing skies. I'll, personaly, play it on gzdoom anyway, and in the original the last episode red sky looked horrible and didn't fit in lower courtyards (eg. start of map 25, outer city area of 29, ACK!).

I'm planning on making the final version of the WAD compatible with boom, eternity, and Zdoom-based ports, since these are what most people seem to use (besides for Legacy, which is in its own little world =P.) If I decide to have a unique sky for a particular level, I'll use the linedef actions that do this.

[Tango]

Oh, I didn't even notice the green level. That looks really awesome. I'm loving the second shot there a lot :P In the third shot, you could change the wood texture on the sides to zimmer or something, as right now it really doesn't match.

For the latest map, I would recommend y-aligning the tan brick you're using. Especially in the first shot, it looks pretty bad how the bricks get cut off on the ceiling (or sky or whatever). I think the horizontal wood texture would work just fine :)

In regards to map19, in shot 1, on the sides there you have the horizontal wood texture used on an area that's way bigger than 32 px tall, so I'd recommend something else there too. Also in shot 1, it looks like the flat you used on the platforms with the dead imps is the metal light, and the wooden light flat that looks almost exactly like it would look better imo. On the ceiling, above the platforms, you can clearly see a square light, and yeah, this is oldschool-ish, but it looks odd still. You could raise the ceiling of those sectors to 1024 or something so that you can't see the big square of light on the ceiling.

I'm really impressed with this project so far, though. You're moving at a ridiculous speed and managing to make maps that look to be of pretty high quality.

I would also suggest that you take Belial up on his offer if you haven't already. ;)

[printz]

Tango said:

In regards to map19, in shot 1, on the sides there you have the horizontal wood texture used on an area that's way bigger than 32 px tall,

Yeah, if the texture is really 32 units tall, it will cause Tutti Frutti on Doom95, chocodoom or plutonia.exe.

BTW, is this wad scheduled for Boom or vanilla Plutonia?

[Psyrus]

Map19 screen 2:

What's going on with that sidedef at the right part of the structure? Is that just the angle the screen was taken or does it appear like an unclosed sector?

Screen 3 is very nice. However, the previously mentioned tutti-frutti issue should also be considered here.

[Jim Rainer]

printz said:

Yeah, if the texture is really 32 units tall, it will cause Tutti Frutti on Doom95, chocodoom or plutonia.exe.

BTW, is this wad scheduled for Boom or vanilla Plutonia?

Well, he did say it was for boom, eternity, and Zdoom-based ports, not the basic default .exe's.

[printz]

Yeah but it may still run or not on doom.exe, depending on whether it has port-only features.

[esselfortium]

It doesn't look like he's trying to avoid VPO or HOM, so at the least I imagine it'd require a limit-removing port.

[Death-Destiny]

Does it seem to anyone else that whenever you pull out your rocket launcher, a Lost Soul flies at you out of nowhere...? =(

Update: The next map in Dark Plutonia is now essentially complete. I did map08 this time, which was "Realm". That was the one that had that absurd blue key trap where you got gauntletted by chaingunners with 0% cover. Otherwise, the map was generally swarming with revenants and had more Pain Elementals than would make the map easy. While I might be on my own with this opinion, I thought "Realm" was the hardest map in Plutonia.

Anyhow, DP's version, titled "Anti-Life," is also on the difficult side. Of course there are revenants everywhere in keeping with the spirit of the original, but the larger number of Mancubi in this version provides an additional thing to keep you on your toes. I added the chaingunner gauntlet as well (What!?!), but made the platform curved to provide at least some temporary cover. This level has a nice Plutonia-esque feel to it.

Screenies: [Outdated]

To address the comments, I do want to say thanks to everyone who's been able to glean so much useful criticism out of only three screenies per map. You're being very helpful and I've taken your comments into consideration. =D FYI, "Compatible with Boom, Eternity, and ZDoom-based ports" means that they're required. DP won't work without them. One last note, while it's a confidence booster that my screenies look to be of quality, I'd like to remind everyone that these are speedmaps generated within 300 minutes, so the pickier details that aren't absolutely necessary to the map's functionality or main appearance will be taken care of when the maps are fine-tuned and finalized.

And also: 13/32, 40% completion. It's also a confidence booster that this WAD is two-fifths completed. Yes! ^.^

[Cupboard]

You are doing some interesting work with the theme. The original Plutonia had some ugly areas and questionable texture work, but you seem to be doing great in this reinterpretation.

[Tango]

Death-Destiny said:

Does it seem to anyone else that whenever you pull out your rocket launcher, a Lost Soul flies at you out of nowhere...? =(

Hahahaha yes. The new shots are looking awesome as usual. You're amazing :|

[Vermil]

Death-Destiny said:
"Compatible with Boom, Eternity, and ZDoom-based ports" means that they're required.

Why not just say "Boom compatible port" since it's the lowest denominator of the port's you list?

That said, it's all looking very nice and Pluntonia-like (if a little more spacious in general than the original maps). I look forward to playing it when it's done.

[printz]

Death-Destiny said:

FYI, "Compatible with Boom, Eternity, and ZDoom-based ports" means that they're required. DP won't work without them.

You mean the maps are mapped as for Boom and may have the specific floor-ceiling elevators, conveyors, pools, winds and all those?

[gggmork]

for the blue key trap, just nab the key, run to opposite side killing one chaingunner, immediately go down opposite lift and run down the hall you came in for cover.