Erkattäññe: 11 map pack for doom2 plus E1 conversion now on Idgames!

[nicolas monti]

This is a classic episode for Doom2.

The main goal was to create a vanilla classic episode themed on Doom2 techbases. I was as well influenced by d2twid and 1994-1996 maps regarding to the very raw detailing employed. The maps are small to mid in size and the average enemy count is around 100 per map. There is virtually no texture alignment except for some doors and switches, taking advantage of the sector height sometimes for that work, and I made no use of support2/3 to separate different textures, using just angles as in some iwad maps. On the other hand I wanted very consistent themes so I used just 40 different textures per map as a constraint, including those for doors and keymarks as I realised some iwad maps use very few textures too.

I'm aware that in vanilla map09 may crash at some points due to very high sectors but I didn't wanted to sacrifice the layout concept so I recommend you to save before taking big "jumps" just in case.

This wad additionally comes a complete conversion of the main episode to the "knee deep in the dead" theme. I used just the shareware flats and textures, the same as I did with the favillesco episode 1, so no crates, compohso, gray, support3 or other textures we often see in E1 styled maps, nothing wrong with that, but I wanted to keep the vibe as close as possible to the original episode, although theese layouts weren't conceived as E1 maps.
The conversion process was painfully surgical, I replaced all the flats and textures manually -not by a software 1 to 1 replace tool- because I had to rethink from scratch what E1 textures and flats would suit the preexisting rooms.

Idgames link: http://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/d-f/erkatane.zip

Fixes since the first upload: (I daily update the file with the fixes for the bugs that are being notified).
map06: fixed missing texture behind the SE lift.
map09: super shotgun replaced with regular shotgun in the N area.
map08: fixed missing texture below the South teleport.
map07: switch placed higher in the center area to remain visible while useful.
map10: fixed missing textures behind the starg2 pool lift.
map03: 1 wrong flat and 1 wrong texture in the E area fixed.
map07: fixed wrong ceiling height by 8 units on two windows at center area.
map06: fixed 1 wrong flat at S area.
map08: 2 wrong hardly visible textures fixed and 1 missing texture behind secret lift fixed.
map10: 1 sector with unjustified damaging floor fixed.
map03: 1 crate misalignment fixed.
map04: empty secret at N area now contains an item.
map10: 1 unmarked secret fixed.
map11: SW secret area is exitable with lift too now.
Erkaknee.wad: All nukedge1 textures replaced with other nuke textures due not being a proper E1 stock texture.

The maps:

level 01: 1st Matters
level 02: The Scorpion
level 03: The Islet
level 04: Urinals
level 05: Camara Obscura
level 06: Dead Signal
level 07: The Fountain
level 08: Peri Physeos
level 09: Abudhnas
level 10: High Voltage
level 11: Erkattanne

Some pics:

[srk:.]

Hi! First thing first, this is my first post on Doomworld but I'm lurking from eons (and I'm playing Doom from even before).

Second: I'm a huge fan of your previous works (Favillesco).

I'm playing through these new maps, and I'm loving them. Your "organic" mapping style shines with the techbase theme from Doom 2.
I can't comment on the difficulty (I usually play on not too rough) but I find the exploration and secrets really entertaining as always.

I've found a missing texture on this wall near the elevator on map06:
http://i.imgur.com/Y9b1K20.png
http://i.imgur.com/IeNOIAo.png

Sorry for any mistakes, english is not my language.

[Firedust]

Yay, love your style as usual, dude!

Not gonna lie though, I prefer your longer maps to be honest. I really enjoy your 300+ monster maps with lots of secrets and interconnectivity. Definitely think that's your strongest trait in mapping.

Played first few maps, were a bit on the easy side tbh, nonetheless enjoyable.

Your best doom 2 maps (from what I've played so far) are the ones from the second episode of Eviltech (i remember there were 10 or so really short ones, ending with a cyberdemon fight, i mean the ones that start straight after that) plus secret map 34 if my memory serves me right (the one before the Nostromo level). They were fun as hell in terms of killing stuff and running around and they had a very good level layout
which involved lots of travelling without actually getting lost. Just thought I'd share my opinion on your stuff. :D

[nicolas monti]

srk:. said:

Hi! First thing first, this is my first post on Doomworld but I'm lurking from eons (and I'm playing Doom from even before).

Second: I'm a huge fan of your previous works (Favillesco).

I'm playing through these new maps, and I'm loving them. Your "organic" mapping style shines with the techbase theme from Doom 2.
I can't comment on the difficulty (I usually play on not too rough) but I find the exploration and secrets really entertaining as always.

I've found a missing texture on this wall near the elevator on map06:
http://i.imgur.com/Y9b1K20.png
http://i.imgur.com/IeNOIAo.png

Sorry for any mistakes, english is not my language.

Well I have the privilege of receiving your first post LOL. Thanks for your appreciations about the layouts, although this is a doom2 themed project favillesco style slips into this mapset. I've fixed that HOM behind the lift (newbieish mistake). Thank you so much for your help. Sometimes I'm busy with non Doom related stuff and I forget something. Concerning the language I guess your english is far better than mine since I'm not fluent.

Firedust said:

Yay, love your style as usual, dude!

Not gonna lie though, I prefer your longer maps to be honest. I really enjoy your 300+ monster maps with lots of secrets and interconnectivity. Definitely think that's your strongest trait in mapping.

Played first few maps, were a bit on the easy side tbh, nonetheless enjoyable.

Your best doom 2 maps (from what I've played so far) are the ones from the second episode of Eviltech (i remember there were 10 or so really short ones, ending with a cyberdemon fight, i mean the ones that start straight after that) plus secret map 34 if my memory serves me right (the one before the Nostromo level). They were fun as hell in terms of killing stuff and running around and they had a very good level layout
which involved lots of travelling without actually getting lost. Just thought I'd share my opinion on your stuff. :D

I'm surprised to know you like my longer maps because many people seem to despise them. Anyway I understand the criticism, that was my experimental age as a mapper, I prefer to play smaller maps too.
When I made Eviltech I was more focused in how I wanted the maps to look but now I'm more aware of the map as a whole/unit that needs to flow and I feel less is more sometimes. Regarding to the difficulty I guess this mapset never gets hard but the challenge increases in turn with the inclusion of the mid tier enemies. I'm glad you enjoyed Eviltech, I'm proud of some of those maps, particularly map16, map19 and map33. Map 34 is meant to be an exact replica of the ship from the 1979 movie and I used available maps online as a guide.

[srk:.]

Classic episode 1 theme is my favorite map style. Favillesco and Alpha capture the spirit of classic Doom and mix it with something that reminds me of System Shock. I would like an entire game with that atmosphere.



I've spotted another missing texture:







And if I may, I have a suggestion:



In this map you hunt three switches to raise the water level in this spot. Hitting two of the switches hides the button which allows you to exit the pit. Granted, you can hit the switch anyway, even if it is covered by water.

[nicolas monti]

srk:. said:

Classic episode 1 theme is my favorite map style. Favillesco and Alpha capture the spirit of classic Doom and mix it with something that reminds me of System Shock. I would like an entire game with that atmosphere.

I've spotted another missing texture:
(...)

And if I may, I have a suggestion:
(...)

In this map you hunt three switches to raise the water level in this spot. Hitting two of the switches hides the button which allows you to exit the pit. Granted, you can hit the switch anyway, even if it is covered by water.

Thanks, I'll have to check System Shock to see what I've done :p. I've fixed that missing texture on map08 and I've taken your suggestion regarding to the map07 switch, I think your reasoning is correct so now the switch is placed 64 units higher. Thanks again!

[Reisal]

I'll check this out.

[srk:.]

Map10, missing texture behind an elevator:







Then there's this little secret beyond that far grate:



I couldn't find a way to shoot this switch (by the way, I love your hidden shootable switches). It seems that I'm too low to shoot the switch, even with the spread of the super shotgun. Maybe I should have to exploit a monster to take aim...



I've completed all maps and I enjoyed them a lot. No problems with the high sectors on map09 but I played with zdoom.

System Shock has a dense cyberpunk atmosphere. It's an action-adventure rather than a run-and-gun game like Doom. A masterpiece of game design. If you never played it you have to!
Another game that comes to mind playing your maps is Marathon. A FPS with a really great atmosphere that takes place on a giant starship with a Doom 1 techbase vibe.

[nicolas monti]

Glaice said:

I'll check this out.

I'd love to see a playthrough with some of your mods, these levels don't require much time to be completed.

srk:. said:

Map10, missing texture behind an elevator:
(...)

Then there's this little secret beyond that far grate:
(...)

I couldn't find a way to shoot this switch (by the way, I love your hidden shootable switches). It seems that I'm too low to shoot the switch, even with the spread of the super shotgun. Maybe I should have to exploit a monster to take aim...


I've completed all maps and I enjoyed them a lot. No problems with the high sectors on map09 but I played with zdoom.

System Shock has a dense cyberpunk atmosphere. It's an action-adventure rather than a run-and-gun game like Doom. A masterpiece of game design. If you never played it you have to!
Another game that comes to mind playing your maps is Marathon. A FPS with a really great atmosphere that takes place on a giant starship with a Doom 1 techbase vibe.

Thanks again! Map10 texture is fixed now and that secret is openable standing at the left of that balcony and firing with the supershotgun because its pellets cover a wider range, 2 shots could be needed though but anyway that chainsaw will save you many more if you're playing the level from pistol start which is the way the maps were tested. This works on chocolate doom and I guess it should on zdoom but I can't test the map with it because I'm having some computer hang problems right now -_-
Today I was watching some Marathon videos on YT and I enjoyed those layouts, very doom1, narrow windows, intricated passages, curvy walls and all, its atmosphere reminded me to doom64 a bit, maybe because of the lighting and texturing. I'll give a try to Marathon and System Shock for sure.

[srk:.]

Marathon: http://source.bungie.org/
System Shock: https://www.systemshock.org/index.php?topic=211.0

Free and legal.

[Louigi Verona]

Love the maps and love the music! Maps 01 and 02 that I have played through several times today are wonderful.

I did spend a lot of time trying to get to the secrets, but in most cases have been unsuccessful. I sometimes here a door or lift go down somewhere, but no matter how much I look I just can't figure out where.

I will play more. If these maps are properly aligned, they would be a great addition to the doomworld. Very inspiring too!

[nicolas monti]

srk:. said:

Marathon: http://source.bungie.org/
System Shock: https://www.systemshock.org/index.php?topic=211.0

Free and legal.

Thanks man!

Louigi Verona said:

Love the maps and love the music! Maps 01 and 02 that I have played through several times today are wonderful.

I did spend a lot of time trying to get to the secrets, but in most cases have been unsuccessful. I sometimes here a door or lift go down somewhere, but no matter how much I look I just can't figure out where.

I will play more. If these maps are properly aligned, they would be a great addition to the doomworld. Very inspiring too!

I'm glad to know you enjoyed it, your statement makes me think of some replay value. I had to make 2 of the midis because they weren't available but the music isn't mine.
Regarding those secrets, all of them are audible because if not they would be unfair and clumsily built. As soon as you hear something try to run in one of the possible directions, I guess you'll find them in no more than a few tries. Another way is to activate them and see if some line changes its colours in the automap. misalignment is part of this classic combo in particular, I think is tolerable though. +_+

[Grazza]

I have been gradually working my way through these maps and enjoying them very much. Balance seems good - pretty tight, but not insanely so, and after each screw-up I feel like having another go (though maybe the next day...). There's just enough danger to keep things interesting. Typically I'll die once and learn enough from that to make it through the map next time around. Some clever secrets - I have only been finding a portion of them in most maps. Good interconnection and use of height differences, and some nice transformations of areas.

I don't have any specific suggestions for how to improve these maps - they seem good as they stand. Note that I'm pretty rusty as a player.

Playing on UV, pistol starts, no saves, no IDDT-IDDT, etc.

[SavageCorona]

Good God how do you even pronounce this?

For a first impressions video I might do once you've fixed it up a bit.

[nicolas monti]

Grazza said:

I have been gradually working my way through these maps and enjoying them very much. Balance seems good - pretty tight, but not insanely so, and after each screw-up I feel like having another go (though maybe the next day...). There's just enough danger to keep things interesting. Typically I'll die once and learn enough from that to make it through the map next time around. Some clever secrets - I have only been finding a portion of them in most maps. Good interconnection and use of height differences, and some nice transformations of areas.

I don't have any specific suggestions for how to improve these maps - they seem good as they stand. Note that I'm pretty rusty as a player.

Playing on UV, pistol starts, no saves, no IDDT-IDDT, etc.

Well, nice to know there are no big balance problems. I agree sometimes you need a second chance to figure out how to perform better in a fight, specifically when you don't see it coming with the revenants or the archviles, that happens to me when playing other pwads and this one is no exception. Regarding to the interconnection, yes, I try to keep the maps organic, avoiding areas overly isolated from the rest and I like to give alternative ways to the player although theese maps in particular vary in terms of linearity. Some are more linear, like map04 I guess, and others not so as map07 or map05 where you can choose to go first for one key or another.

SavageCorona said:

Good God how do you even pronounce this?

For a first impressions video I might do once you've fixed it up a bit.

LOL, it's pronounced /eɾ'kətəɲe/ in ipa signs. I won't be doing aesthetical modifications to the maps, just gameplay wise if that is requested as necessary, the 1994 look of some areas is deliberated.

[SavageCorona]

I was hoping for a phonetic spelling

[nicolas monti]

SavageCorona said:

I was hoping for a phonetic spelling

For an english speaker it would be like /er-kuh-tuh-nyeh/ (the uh of "but") with stress in the second syllabe. The ipa code is intended for phonetic and phonemic transcriptions anyway :)

[GoneAway]

nicolas monti said:

I'm surprised to know you like my longer maps because many people seem to despise them. Anyway I understand the criticism, that was my experimental age as a mapper, I prefer to play smaller maps too.
When I made Eviltech I was more focused in how I wanted the maps to look but now I'm more aware of the map as a whole/unit that needs to flow and I feel less is more sometimes. Regarding to the difficulty I guess this mapset never gets hard but the challenge increases in turn with the inclusion of the mid tier enemies. I'm glad you enjoyed Eviltech, I'm proud of some of those maps, particularly map16, map19 and map33. Map 34 is meant to be an exact replica of the ship from the 1979 movie and I used available maps online as a guide.

For what it's worth, eviltech is one of my favorite mapsets. The sort-of carefree adventurous aspects and large scale of the e2 maps are something special that i just haven't seen anywhere else. Large maps are not uncommon, but I usually find them horribly tedious and uninteresting after a while. Eviltech's maps tend to grow and expand, and you are generally moving into different areas. There are some maps where this doesn't end up so well but it's still amazing overall. Then of course the early and later maps have their own character that gives the mapset a lot of variety.

Anyway...looking forward to playing this when it comes out on idgames. Since I always think in terms of speedrunning, I prefer to play the final version rather than the betas.

[Reisal]

Still keeping tabs on this, will do playthrough of it and updating the file whenever I browse the topic.

[scifista42]

FDAs for all maps, recorded in PrBoom-plus -complevel 2, using the latest Doom2 version of the mapset. In the late maps, I've been playing wildly and gave up quickly when I died. Overally, I've enjoyed the maps. Great architecture and classic feeling, difficulty and map size/length were just right for an enjoyable experience for me. Still, so many texture misalignments could be fixed. There was a stuck Hell Knight in a nukage corridor in MAP06, and MAP09 was full of Moire error.

[Salt-Man Z]

I just played through Favillesco 1-2 and am currently on Fav Alpha 1, and I absolutely love them, so I'm really looking forward to this one.

[nicolas monti]

kraflab said:

For what it's worth, eviltech is one of my favorite mapsets. The sort-of carefree adventurous aspects and large scale of the e2 maps are something special that i just haven't seen anywhere else. Large maps are not uncommon, but I usually find them horribly tedious and uninteresting after a while. Eviltech's maps tend to grow and expand, and you are generally moving into different areas. There are some maps where this doesn't end up so well but it's still amazing overall. Then of course the early and later maps have their own character that gives the mapset a lot of variety.

Anyway...looking forward to playing this when it comes out on idgames. Since I always think in terms of speedrunning, I prefer to play the final version rather than the betas.

Thanks, I guess that one thing that saves my eviltech large maps is that they're still interconnected and you revisit some areas as long as you open new ones, and that makes the layout cohesive instead of being three smaller levels bound together. Anyway, for this new wad the maps are intended to be not larger than the average to big Iwad map.

Glaice said:

Still keeping tabs on this, will do playthrough of it and updating the file whenever I browse the topic.

Nice to know, looking foward to some nice moded playthrough.

scifista42 said:

FDAs for all maps, recorded in PrBoom-plus -complevel 2, using the latest Doom2 version of the mapset. In the late maps, I've been playing wildly and gave up quickly when I died. Overally, I've enjoyed the maps. Great architecture and classic feeling, difficulty and map size/length were just right for an enjoyable experience for me. Still, so many texture misalignments could be fixed. There was a stuck Hell Knight in a nukage corridor in MAP06, and MAP09 was full of Moire error.

I've seen your demos, Thanks for testing the fences and trying to activate that switch in map04 from the window and getting the blue key in map05 from the water, I tested that the same way just to make really sure it can't be done because I like to put things near the player but out of reach.
That computer map grab in map 2, well, I blame Prboom because that doesn't happen in chocolate. I posted the same issue in favillesco episode 2 thread with a E2M7 Berserk. I don't know why items can be reached from longer distances in such a standard port.
That hell kight in map06.. fuck.. I'll have to fix that because the idea is to get surrounded by the 2 hell knight in that narrow corridor.
About map09 I'm aware of the problems but still vanilla compatible, the map overall height is a bit less than the 32768 allowed units, (I don't know if the limit is that or twice the quantity but anyway, I'm satisfied with the level of abstraction achieved.)

Salt-Man Z said:

I just played through Favillesco 1-2 and am currently on Fav Alpha 1, and I absolutely love them, so I'm really looking forward to this one.

Many thanks, Amalthea is my most beloved work, Try Thebe too if you have the time.

[scifista42]

nicolas monti said:

That computer map grab in map 2, well, I blame Prboom because that doesn't happen in chocolate. I posted the same issue in favillesco episode 2 thread with a E2M7 Berserk. I don't know why items can be reached from longer distances in such a standard port.

I have just tested it in Chocolate Doom and I was able to grab the map via regular straferunning (not even SR50). I've opened the map in an editor and found out that the north-eastern corner of the computer map pickup is only 8 units distant from the edge of the ledge where it is placed. 8 units make it relatively easy for the player to pick it up. In fact, the minimum very safe distance to prevent a straferunning player to pick up an item is about 26 units, allegedly it also depends on the running direction (see here). And even then, he can theoretically beat the distance by rocket-boosting himself, at the cost of taking damage.

By the way, I've also found out that the blue key in MAP05 is theoretically close enough to be grabbed through the metal wall nearby. But I haven't actually succeeded to do it.

On the other hand, the switch in MAP04 is definitely more than 64 units distant from a player who is trying to press it through the window, so it is safe.

a bit less than the 32768 allowed units, (I don't know if the limit is that or twice the quantity

Floor and ceiling heights must be numbers between -32768 and 32767, and it's possible (but I'm not sure about it) that an overflow may happen when the distance between lowest floor and highest ceiling of some sectors is greater than 32767 units and the engine tries to perform some geometrical check between these sectors.

[rampancy]

nicolas monti said:

I'd love to see a playthrough with some of your mods, these levels don't require much time to be completed.

Thanks again! Map10 texture is fixed now and that secret is openable standing at the left of that balcony and firing with the supershotgun because its pellets cover a wider range, 2 shots could be needed though but anyway that chainsaw will save you many more if you're playing the level from pistol start which is the way the maps were tested. This works on chocolate doom and I guess it should on zdoom but I can't test the map with it because I'm having some computer hang problems right now -_-
Today I was watching some Marathon videos on YT and I enjoyed those layouts, very doom1, narrow windows, intricated passages, curvy walls and all, its atmosphere reminded me to doom64 a bit, maybe because of the lighting and texturing. I'll give a try to Marathon and System Shock for sure.

yeah marathon!

the macintosh powerpc killer app. i still despise my moronic brother in law for losing my friggin mac cds. argh! i had an awesome cd version...

[nicolas monti]

scifista42 said:

I have just tested it in Chocolate Doom and I was able to grab the map via regular straferunning (not even SR50). I've opened the map in an editor and found out that the north-eastern corner of the computer map pickup is only 8 units distant from the edge of the ledge where it is placed. 8 units make it relatively easy for the player to pick it up. In fact, the minimum very safe distance to prevent a straferunning player to pick up an item is about 26 units, allegedly it also depends on the running direction (see here). And even then, he can theoretically beat the distance by rocket-boosting himself, at the cost of taking damage.

By the way, I've also found out that the blue key in MAP05 is theoretically close enough to be grabbed through the metal wall nearby. But I haven't actually succeeded to do it.

On the other hand, the switch in MAP04 is definitely more than 64 units distant from a player who is trying to press it through the window, so it is safe.
Floor and ceiling heights must be numbers between -32768 and 32767, and it's possible (but I'm not sure about it) that an overflow may happen when the distance between lowest floor and highest ceiling of some sectors is greater than 32767 units and the engine tries to perform some geometrical check between these sectors.

It seems you always learn something new when making maps, thanks for the bibliography! That distance grab, something to take on account. Well, The file is on igdames now, earlier than I thought, I'll fix that computer map and that stuck knight (at least unstuck in zdoom when I tried with it) but I'll wait if something more happens because I don't like to bother the file mantainers with multiple updates :)

[GoneAway]

I'll be playing through this shortly on http://www.twitch.tv/kraflab, i'll pop the vod link here after i'm done.

Edit: http://www.twitch.tv/kraflab/v/13431244

I think this was alright overall. I have to ask myself why any of these barons are barons though :P I preferred your favillesco stuff as far as recent wads are concerned. I would have preferred more health in some of the maps, that's maybe my biggest gripe. Low health, for me, does not make a map more difficult or interesting, but rather more tedious, depending on implementation of course.

[Deadwing]

I'm playing this (currently on map 07), and I'm surprised with how much fun I'm having with it. The Doom E1 setting with kind of a twisted abstraction is quite refreshing, especially when nowdays people prefer to make more detailed and realistic stuff.

Still, the non-linearity improves the gameplay a lot. While (until map 07) the monsters overall were all weak and easy to kill, their placement was good and the very low health makes any mistake punishable, increasing the tension and also you want to perform perfectly.

Some music where quite cute, though Hahahahha

[nicolas monti]

kraflab said:

I'll be playing through this shortly on http://www.twitch.tv/kraflab, i'll pop the vod link here after i'm done.

Edit: http://www.twitch.tv/kraflab/v/13431244

I think this was alright overall. I have to ask myself why any of these barons are barons though :P I preferred your favillesco stuff as far as recent wads are concerned. I would have preferred more health in some of the maps, that's maybe my biggest gripe. Low health, for me, does not make a map more difficult or interesting, but rather more tedious, depending on implementation of course.

I've watched the entire playthrough, great time! Some things to point out:

Map09 big falls: All just for the atmosphere, I wanted the map to be perceived as a desolated place with dark big chambers very deep into the ground, I knew that would break the progression a bit but well, just a couple of seconds and just for one map. That was the point for making things like that, already knowing not everybody would be pleased with it, but well, I think some risks are fine, because not every aspect on the map must be functional to the combat, just my point of view.

Barons: Well, there are just a few, Hell knight are far common. Two reasons, the first is that they are included in the game, the second and more important, some of those barons have specific purpose, like the one at the exit on map10, placed like that to catch some player who tries to avoid the cyberdemon fight, or the baron after the teleport in map09 which has to be killed fast because the is no way back in that room. I tend to use them in cramped places or just as an artifact to block any escape from some other situation.
I wanted to exploit the unpopular enemies too, nothing new, just things I learned reading posts too. That's why I'm currently using demons in packs and specters only in very dark areas.

I'll take your advice about the health, nevertheless I'm glad you found those medkits when you really needed them. About Favillesco, this wasn't any attempt of overcoming, I just wanted to see if I managed to make shorter maps and to play with doom2 textures and enemies.

Deadwing said:

I'm playing this (currently on map 07), and I'm surprised with how much fun I'm having with it. The Doom E1 setting with kind of a twisted abstraction is quite refreshing, especially when nowdays people prefer to make more detailed and realistic stuff.

Still, the non-linearity improves the gameplay a lot. While (until map 07) the monsters overall were all weak and easy to kill, their placement was good and the very low health makes any mistake punishable, increasing the tension and also you want to perform perfectly.

Some music where quite cute, though Hahahahha

Thanks man, nice to know you valued the E1 remake. I guess you found the toughter enemies after map07 :p.
Glad to know some people appreciate the effort put into an entire episode while other people who has been mapping long ago (and knows about it) repeatedly dismiss everything because it doesn't fit his preconceptions of what a doom map is or maybe suffers from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Topographical_disorientation and rates this with 0 stars instead of making a contribution by giving his advices via this thread.

Thanks for pointing out some non-linearity too. About the music, yeah, some songs are really cheesy, that's another contribution to the early wads feeling. I'll eventualy post the songlist but I want to wait just a bit more in case Memfis asks for it XD!

[Deadwing]

Oh, I see hehe

I've finished all levels, and the playstyle surely changes after map07, which is where the tougher enemies appears. It stopped being about perfection (avoid losing health) and more about dealing with trick and though battles (with more tolerance for player mistakes).

Apart from one or two battles, that I found kinda unfair, enemy placament is really great and I could see that it has been put lots of thought on it. The non-linearity was awesome and really refreshing. I felt lost sometimes in the level, but I think that was in a good way, since there's so many pathways and sometimes you don't remember where the locked door is lol. After all, Doom is not only about shooting baddies, and I liked to have this feeling again (which is something not common in pwads)

Congratulations!

[nicolas monti]

Deadwing said:

Oh, I see hehe

I've finished all levels, and the playstyle surely changes after map07, which is where the tougher enemies appears. It stopped being about perfection (avoid losing health) and more about dealing with trick and though battles (with more tolerance for player mistakes).

Apart from one or two battles, that I found kinda unfair, enemy placament is really great and I could see that it has been put lots of thought on it. The non-linearity was awesome and really refreshing. I felt lost sometimes in the level, but I think that was in a good way, since there's so many pathways and sometimes you don't remember where the locked door is lol. After all, Doom is not only about shooting baddies, and I liked to have this feeling again (which is something not common in pwads)

Congratulations!

Thanks! getting lost is a factor some people don't like, but since I do like and that happened to me with some iwad maps when playing doom the first time, I undulge myself in using it. I'll keep making levels, and listening to other people's advices on gameplay department just to make them more enjoyable!