The DWmegawad Club plays: TNT: Evilution

[NuMetalManiak]

We're all being behind now it looks like. But catching up all the same.

MAP04 Wormhole

Ty gives us this concept of "same layout, different gameplay" for this one. Rocket launcher trap is quite devious, but most everything else seems fair enough. You can be an asshole and skip almost all of the level by taking the right staircase and backtracking just before reaching the lift. The second layout has some interesting cavern areas behind a secret, but other than that, everything is made much harder.

MAP05 Hanger

That's Hanger with an 'E', not an 'A'. One of the shittier levels in my opinion. Cramped throughout with mini-trap setups everywhere which aren't thoroughly challenging. One hallway has all three secrets easily obtainable. The surprise shooting gallery is the highlight, and it's possible to block them via the right switch at the terminal. Blue key room is a pain, again due to cramped layout. Red key can actually be easily forgettable if you don't shoot all the barrels.

MAP06 Open Season

That's better, a little more open room to deal with in this otherwise standard level. Only bad thing is the loose backtracking. Yeah, put the blue key directly in front of the red key switch, whose key is the last I collect. The refinery section the blue and yellow keys are in looks great for its time, especially with the caco ambush. Having to go all the way for the red key, and remembering to return to the red switch is something I had to do with this level. Otherwise okay.

[Steve D]

T-Rex said:

Map04: Wormhole (Ty Halderman)
I strongly suggest when dealing with the arch-vile in the corrupted area is to shoot rockets through the window from the left side, cause trying to take him on up close is very risky.

I stood on the "secret" RL lift in the main room to shoot him through the window. Kind of a fun way to do it. ;)

[Steve D]

Map06 - Open Season by Jimmy Sieben and Ty Halderman

Finally maxed one. Zero deaths.

This is probably more fun on pistol start given the hectic opening that seems inspired by Romero's classic Computer Station. Really vicious fire from Sergeants and Chaingunners, but easily navigated by continuers.

A couple doors later and we're in the first of two dark computer rooms, ala Nuclear Plant, except they're not blinky. I went through only the big outer one first time through, enjoying all the jump scares, more effective thanks to the ominous music, The Agony Rhapsody, which stands as one of my all-time fave MIDIs. Much scarier in Sunder, though, for obvious reasons.

The central refinery area puts me in mind of a room in IIRC E1M7 of cannonball's Concerned. The Caco fight inside the refinery was my fave part of the map. This is also where I paid a price for skipping that side computer room, because after i hit the yellow switch I had no idea what to do next. I ultimately opened the map in DB2 to figure it out. Points thus deducted for obtuse progression.

I managed to find the Soulsphere secret, and then grabbed the Blue Armor I'd left for later, dusted off the Archie with my trusty SSG and left the map at 200/200. It'll probably take some Cybs or some Archie shenanigans from this point to take me out again, but with all the hitscanners in these maps, who knows. They might whittle me down and set me up for a kill somewhere.

In the end, I found this map strong on atmosphere but weak on combat, at least for continuers, and the progression was weird, so not one of my faves.

[Demtor]

MAP06 - “Open Season” by Jimmy Sieben, Ty Halderman
gzDoom - UV – continuous/no saves




Deaths this map: 0
Deaths so far: 0 (Hope I can keep this streak going!)

It is cool to see three levels of play from the first elevator up but there isn't much done with the space beyond a few shotgun/chaingun guys, pinkies and one or two imps. Lots of open space with not much else to speak of other then the TNT logos. I guess you can draw some infighting crossfire but it's easier to just move on to safety IMO.

My favorite parts were the dark maze areas. Too bad this map is so short. They looked good, were full of enemies and went well with the dark and spooky music. I had a hell knight come close to trapping me in with a Mancubus on the other end but I managed thanks to the ol' double barrel.

The giant pumping stations of some sort were kind of neat. I'm guessing that kind of thing is super impressive in '96. Having to walk the tight rope around them for the YK before the surprise Cacos was hair raising. Without hazard suits, I would have lost my cool there for sure. Even still, I managed to get blasted in the face a few times for being stubborn and refusing to jump down. My first death is calling for me to make mistakes like that.

[dobu gabu maru]

The nice thing about TNT is that it's not hard to catch up :P

MAP03: Ahhh, ate my first death here—hopped into the secret tele in the berserk room and immediately got torn to pieces! Besides that nasty little trap, this map unfolds smoothly, only putting up a fight in the central courtyard if you don’t corner camp. Funny that both invis uses here make the map more difficult, seeing as you’re primarily squaring off against dangerous projectile foes. The outdoor ASHWALL structure has some charm to it, but besides that there’s not really much more to say about it.

MAP04: While this map is legendary for its “dark world” gimmick, I had no idea how imbalanced it was! I tried pushing my way through that eastern, 64-wide corridor section before transporting to the ruined facility and ran out of ammo grinding through a sea of imps, failing to find health or ammo to recoup my losses. And what is up with that mega-cramped cave section in the dark world? Or the AV crammed between pinkies on a staircase?

I think Ty pulls off the transportation trick in a really clever way, but this map definitely proves he’s a better idea man than gameplay engineer. Of course I’ve played a ton of worse maps, and I’m curious how his other maps will fare, but so far his style doesn’t resonate as well with the rest of the set; the first three maps feel more like Doom 2 whereas MAP04 gives me Hell Revealed vibes. However, I will confess that I like how you can exit the map without ever discovering the dark world—that’s a pretty huge secret to withhold.

MAP05: Oooh starting the player next to the exit, I like that! This is a neat map overall—I remember that accursed chaingunner courtyard pretty well from my first playthrough, but still had no idea where I was going or what I was doing. There’s a surprising amount of unmarked secrets—even after finding a bunch of them I was still missing two enemies somewhere on the map. Good height variation, visuals, traps—overall a strong map.

MAP06: Yeowch, this map starts off pretty hot as you struggle to push your way over to the SSG (and rouse an unruly hell knight in doing so!) Don’t really have too much to say about this one though—it’s a linear, semi-corridor crawly map with very few surprises. I like the caco warp-ins at the reactor room but there really aren’t enough red balloons there to be threatening, and the revs guarding the RL are more obnoxious than tricky. At least the exit AV isn’t behind block monster lines!

[cannonball]

MAP06 - “Open Season” by Jimmy Sieben, Ty Halderman
A nice atmosphere to this with good variation in light levels and the music. The start was pretty harsh with all the hitscanners but becomes easy after you obtain the ssg. I like this one as well, just a bit too much backtracking involved here towards the end, but it is short enough to not be too much of a bother.

[gaspe]

MAP07: Not at all a Dead Simple clone/ripoff, and the map doesn't even use the special tags of the MAP07 slot. Overall it feels like a very "primitive" level in its execution (big and bland areas). The sort of guard tower over the big courtyard was nice, and I like how the big central block, where inside is located the prison, has a mysterious feel before you take the teleport near the green orb.

[Memfis]

07 - this one is quirky, partially thanks to the kinda funny music. There is a prison that looks like just a box from the outside, an overcrowded corridor you can suffer through to get a soulsphere as a reward, a surprisingly big number of teleporters, and a random appearance of green stone wall. It feels so awesomely weird playing this today, it's like none of the design decisions are "normal" from the modern point of view but still the level seems professionaly made and it almost tells a story. I don't know...

[antares031]

MAP07 - Prison
ZDoom, UV-PS, KIS(%): 100/100/100

No ordinary MAP07 gimmick here since it's not Doom 2, obviously. You start the level with a plasma rifle from small metallic room with some monsters, and you'll find a way to the outside soon. You may use that teleporter to lure some unfortunate demons and zombies and telefrag them if you really want to. Anyway, There's a prison on the island, surrounded by a lava pit. Inside of prison, there are some imps and barons of hell, captured by doomguy's comrades, I presume. Thankfully, the level provides a godsphere before you enter the prison, so prepare your rocket launcher to spam some rockets to the prison cells...... if you playing the wad continuously; no rocket launcher for pistol starters. :( In overall, it was not a bad level. But nothing special except the interesting concept with a prison.

[NuMetalManiak]

MAP07 Prison

Well here's your prison map. Get ready for the skinny-dipped individual combat in this intro section, even though the plasma gun makes its appearance. Outside, it's another hitscanners in open region. Yes, because chaingunners outside in an open field to snipe at you is a wonderful fucking idea. Naturally I clear out everything right and left before figuring out where to go next. The left teleporter leads to a boring hallway shoot, while the actual prison section is certainly the most fun, props for a secret invulnerability to make this one even more frantic. Last section has a lot of meat.

[Demtor]

MAP07 - “Prison” by Andrew Dowswell
gzDoom - UV – continuous/no saves

Deaths this map: 0 (came REAL close to my first death after rocketing a spectre point blank, Oh shit!)
Deaths so far: 0




A plasma gun right at the start? I don't even have to work for it?! Ooookaaay... thanks?

Good concept for the first military installment maps. Liked the tight start area with the little stairways and the revealing ambush gaurding the exit at the top. Good stuff. Appreciated that blue armor pickup. Thankfully I saved it for after my little trip to the self inflicted rocket launcher dentist.

I enjoyed seeing the square structures holding various parts of the maps you warp inside and outside of. Gives you a good feeling of breaking out of something when you are on the outside looking in.

Loved the dead doom marines at the armor pick up as a clue to the ambush coming.

The hitscanner fort with the soulsphere was a good idea. I actually got to the end of the map and doubled back because I missed so much. Glad I did. Was worth it.

The secret invulnerability sphere sure would have been nice to grab before throwing myself in to the demon crossfire puzzle for the RK. Damn it... I squeezed through those barrels and scrambled fast in a circle to kill things as best I could while avoiding any explosions or green fireballs.

The ending stuff was pretty good with the lava exploration and pillar jumping to the exit. Glad there were a few good revealing ambushes to press the player in a small area with the threat of falling to lava nearby. Good map that captures that old Doom 2 feel.

[BlondieMcFilthy]

Getsu Fune said:

MAP07 Prison
Yes, because chaingunners outside in an open field to snipe at you is a wonderful fucking idea.

Yeah, you're gonna have a lot of fun when you get to map 27.. or the next one, for that matter.

A little behind, but yeah as another poster said, this IWAD isn't terribly hard to get caught up on...

Map 05 - Hanger

Another techbase that has a somewhat quirkier opening than some, requiring you to go over triggers and kill the zombies in the closet before beginning the level proper. One of the things I dig about this map is the sheer claustrophobia of the combat here thanks to the map's natural reliance on narrow corridors; it makes fighting it out with shotgunners and chaingunners a risky proposition. This isn't something I typically dig out of my Doom experience, but when it's done well, it can be very good. And a few maps in Evilution do it very well, includng one of the best maps of the set coming up very shortly.

Only thing about this map is that the 'basement' with the soulsphere seems a might out of place from a textural standpoint, but overall it's fine stuff.

Map 6 - Open Season

This one's very pressing to start with, in some respects I want to kind of make a Plutonia comparison because that IWAD had a fondness for bracketing you with hitscanners, which is essentially what Open Season does when you get off the elevator at the start - four shotgunners to the left, a chaingunner to the right, and two separate levels of hitscanners straight ahead ready to pick at you. Another map that favours the intimacy of close combat over more wide-open stuff, albeit there's more of that here than the last map.

From a gameplay standpoint, it tails off quite a bit after that opening part though; from that point it's mostly just going and blasting dudes just around the corner. Still: the two things that I appreciate about the map is how ominous it is; the midi is a mite repetitive, but it does a great job of setting a mood of unease. Furthering that is the lighting in the map: it feels like an abandoned part of a UAC back that you have to go around and reactivate.

Good stuff, even if the backtracking is a mite much.

[antares031]

MAP08 - Metal
ZDoom, UV-PS, KIS(%): 100/100/75

The level starts with a claustrophobic maze-like corridor with BSTONE2 texture. Lots of various zombies are waiting all around the corner, and there's even an ambush with shotgun guys and chaingunners. But this ambush allows you to demonstrate the vaule of blursphere; highly effective against deadly hitscanners. After you passed the dark, narrow metallic staircase, the level greets you with large opened areas with low-tier monsters around. The combat isn't that bad, but I felt the lack of varieties of monsters. Especially the last giant hall with mildly tedious switch-hunting puzzle and repetitive monster closets; "Oh, you killed some imps and zombies? Here, have some more imps and zombies from behind the wall." In overall, mediocre monster placements and lack of details around the large rooms, this one is one of the forgettable levels, unfortunately. Still, Into the Beast's Belly is yet another cool soundtrack from Evilution, don't you think?

[dobu gabu maru]

MAP07: Despite being dubbed a “prison”, this map is a nice change of pace as we’re finally able to run around a big outdoors area! And it’s not a Dead Simple clone! Hooray! There’s a good amount of basic Doomin’ to be had here in a number of square rooms. My favorite has to be that room with all the imps in cages, as I could not for the life of me figure out what I was supposed to do in there until the invul ran out, which I suppose was the point? Either way, it offered some fun momentary panic in an otherwise so-so map that had perhaps a few too many barons.

[cannonball]

MAP07 - “Prison” by Andrew Dowswell
A cluster of rooms isolated by teleports constructed inside a rather large outdoor section. Not really that fun to play to be honest, too many nobles and you only get the ssg at the end of the map, plus cell ammo is rather scarce to make it a primary weapon. So from a pistol start I did a lot of punching of imps, demons and the nobles as well. Visually it is okay if rather bland I guess but that is about it.

[NuMetalManiak]

MAP08 Metal

Yes, the first section in a level called Metal and it's a brick section we start in. Also, that chainsaw secret has a fucking stupid way of opening it. This water section is filled with hitscanners, so the crampedness can be used to advantage. Around here is a rather cool switch texture in a trap. I always liked that skull-in-a-flame-wall switch that turns blue.

At least the metal section comes quick, if you can brave the metal staircase, with some annoying hitscan traps. It gets better at the open metal section. Actually fuck that, it doesn't, put more hitscanners in open field for annoying snipe damage, even the red key area isn't safe. And that final arena is just goddamn glorious, it's very huge, and bitchloads of hitscanners teleport in while you would concentrate on the guys already in place. Maybe that invisibility retrieved from that one last brick area (the bridge-looking place), wasn't a bad call, but this is still frustrating anyways. But not just for the combat, oh no, look at this, we have to spend at least two minutes solving just how to reach the exit. This involves hitting several switches, waiting for the slow-ass platform to hit the top, riding it to whatever ledge is needed, and hitting the next switch in the compartment that opens. You can give me more fish to fry here as you did, but by then I'm burned the fuck out and want to leave without my tail hanging between the legs.

[cannonball]

MAP08 - “Metal” by John Minadeo
At least thematically is holds okay, otherwise this is pretty awful. A mix of overly cramped hallways and ridiculously large rooms, the map actually gets worse and reaches a finale of awfulness in the final room, my goodness it is at first pain and then utter boredom and tedium.
Yeah this is one of the famously bad tnt maps, at least we get a break for now.

[sincity2100]

Map09 - Stronghold - Jimmy Seiben / Ty Halderman

Oh My god,I need a medikit so bad.

This is my second favorite map in this game,it's hard,it's well designed,it's cramped,it's really excellent.

This one is full of action,it starts off with an army of hitscans ,the low amount of health makes it harder,I doesn't give you a time to rest,you'll get hit from everywhere in these cramped areas, the secrets are well hidden as well,one of them is an ester egg,this map manages to become harder without using powerful enemies like hell knights or revenants, it's an old school knee deep in the dead style, and it's the hardest out of them in any official releases,the level style is really cool as well.

while you progress through the map, you realize that this map is interconnected in a way, every hidden window opens and you see the area you already in there, this one is designed that makes it impossible to finish in the Nightmare run,I guess only 3 or 4 people who were able to finish this map, and this was the last map that was finished on Nightmare of all the official releases,which makes it really challenging for anyone who wants to finish it on the Nightmare difficulty.

I would highly recommend you to play this map as a pistol start for your sanity.

[BlondieMcFilthy]

Map 07 - Prison

As others have noted, this is a curious mishmash of a map that's kind of strung together by spitball & bailing wire. This is also where the IWAD takes a pretty strong step forward in difficulty; the traps become a lot nastier & more mean spirited, and while the WAD isn't the most consistent on that front, this map does leave a pretty nasty impression. The fact that there's a lot of hitscanners in this map that can pick away at you from far away forces you to clean out everything. Evilution is really good at doing that.

Despite all that the map is pretty much just ok, as mentioned it plays out like a mish-mash of stuff strung together, and while you could say that about a lot of doom maps, the combat is only sporadically interesting.

That being said, it's a hell of a lot better than...

Map 08 - Metal

First off, that midi is garbage. It's like a bad thrash song filtered through the chintziest midi tones ever.

That aside, the rest of the map doesn't fare much better. Evilution cops a lot of flack for using hitscanners in wide-open areas to pick at you and for oversized, underdetailed maps - or at least, certain rooms - and while it's somewhat overblown at times (Maps 20 and 27 do this and they're two of the best maps of the set), this map is guilty of it. It's flat out ugly to look at, a mish-mash of ill-fitting texture and general lack of lightning detail makes this a real eyesore to play through. The monster placement is no better, turning into outright cheap garbage if you don't know what's coming, EG the chaingunner closets in the stairwell area. Lots of hitscanners in wideopen areas, mandatory secrets needed to progress through the level, etc.

Honestly, it really seems like the map was just kind of slapped together and was barely tested. I don't know if that's true or not, but it's a bad map anyway.

[gaspe]

MAP08: A bit a weak start in a that maze-y section, and I remembered the dark room with the staircase and the chaingunners in the alcoves, the high one is difficult to locate if you don't know in advance where it is. The room with the SSG isn't bad, is only oversized, I liked the combination of metal and burning red textures and it's interesting how you can open the closets at the sides. The best part is the red key section, the area with the pillars was rather nice, and I like how when you pick the key you are trapped in the courtyard. Oh, and the infamous last area lol.

[Demtor]

MAP08 - “Metal” by John Minadeo
gzDoom - UV – continuous/no saves

Deaths this map: 0
Deaths so far: 0 (Whew, the pressure is adding up.)


First of a few wide open areas littered with hitscans

The beginning had a Wolfenstein 3D feel to it with all of it's 90 degree angles and guys hiding at the end of little rectangle halls.

A few closet surpsises. In fact, there were a lot of quick thinking ambushes on this map. The most painful being those with chaingun guys and their pinkie/lost soul meat shields like those before the RK water area. Most of them point blank and in your face but a few of them from across the room or high above. Very cool stair case there, btw.

I missed getting the invisibility sphere for the final room (seems to be a running theme with me and useful powerups. I just never get them when I'm supposed to) so it was a real old west crossfire shootout with no cover. I am getting REALLY good at spot sniping chain gun guys from afar with accurate chaingun burst fire of my own. Hot damn that was a teeth clincher!

Once the area is clear, I LOVED the way Mr Minadeo establishes a familiar switch pattern usage before completely fucking with your expectations. Starts with one switch to raise the pillar. Once raised, the other to drop it back down for a ride up. Then fight an ambush pack of enemies guarding the next switch (with no cover) at the top to open the next pair of switches below. Who are also guarded. Then it's ambush, ambush, ambush. Finally the dirtiest trick with an invisible teleport straight in to an ambush with no way to even get to the switches you thought you were going to use. LoL! Even the exit room had a double shotty guy/imp combo ambush. Great work. Also TNT!!

Not the best map per say, but I had fun with the challenge.

[dobu gabu maru]

MAP08: Well, this map sure does a good job at murdering the player over and over. Unfortunately, the main threat comes from fighting hitscanners in massive rooms (especially that last area), which I think we’ve determined is universally not fun. I enjoyed some of the other traps here—like the blur sphere one and the specter that pops up behind the player waiting for the elevator—but the entire map was so mean-spirited that it's hard not to think of it as anything other than the worst map I’ve played so far; at least Ty’s map had a cool twist and let you finish early.

[Jaws In Space]

Map 4
Ah Wormhole, one of the more famous maps from TNT, and our first map from project lead Ty Halderman. I have never really been a fan of this map myself, the concept is sound. It's obviously inspired by E3M1/E3M9 from Doom except being done on the same map as opposed to being spread across two maps. The problem here is with the map author himself, Ty isn't really that good when it comes to designing levels, this is now even more evident to me after having played through Icarus: Alien Vanguard for the first time last year, Ty's maps in that wad were also mostly sub par. This map is pretty simplistic in design there are basically 3 parts to each half of the map, the starting atrium, where we see our first Doom furniture which TNT has become rather famous for. Worth noting is that you don't even have to leave the atrium section of the map in order to find the exit if you know where the line trigger is. The 2nd part of this map is the tech sewer, which is the area that houses the wormhole teleporter. Weirdly enough it's in a rather obscure spot of the map, if you're playing fast you may even miss it. There are a few elements that make the Wormhole teleporter really work, the dead imps in the dark section of the map really sell the concept, as I thought is was just a broken teleporter my first time playing, it wasn't until my second playthrough of the map that I realized that I was in a completely different area. The 3rd part of the map is the secret corridor area, which is the worst part, nothing like fighting imps & hell knights in 64 wide corridors, of note the dark half of the map has an additional cave section accessible from this area. For the map overall I found the light half of the map much harder than the dark half, I came in with only 9% health & had to play very aggressively withe the Chaingun in order to survive against all the hitscanners, compare that the the dark half were sure there is an Arch-Vile, but everything else is just a Demon. Also health was pretty limited, for every health pack I found I took an equal amount of damage, I ended up leaving the map with exactly 9% health. In the end I feel that this is a map with a pretty solid concept that would have been much better handled in the hands of a different author. The concept of Wormhole will appear in TNT Revilution, but done a little bit differently, so for those of you that are a fan of this map you can look forward to that.

Map 5
Here we have the only map from Jim Dethlefsen in the wad & it's a pretty good one. Even though the map consists mostly of hallways they are well connected with windows and fairly looping so that I don't feel it's really a problem, plus the hallways are offset with some pretty memorable set pieces. This map is a pretty good example of why TNT has a reputation for being a hitscan hell. The chaingunner courtyard may seem pretty daunting at first, but with all the barrels, the invisibility sphere, & the window that you can close it's actually pretty fun. The soul sphere room is pretty memorable for me, it's quite a pretty looking room with a good use of textures & lighting. I remember the 4 revenants & 2 hell knights seemed almost overwhelming when I first played this map around 2012ish, but now it's just a breeze, nice to see how my skill have vastly improved over the past 5 years. The Blue key room is the only area that I still really don't like, the fact that the switches aren't textured as switches still bugs me to no end & it took me forever to figure out how the hell I was supposed to get to the key. Other than that one complaint I don't have any issues with this map & I find it to be pretty fun to play, definitely one of the better maps in TNT.

Map 6
Another good map here, this one is another collaboration map being done by Jimmy Sieben and Ty Halderman, this map also introduces one of my favorite TNT midi's. I love the multi tiered start to the map with monsters shooting down on you from the 2 levels above. This also applies to the reactor room which has many catwalks of various heights skirting the edge of the lava, this room would later partly inspire my contribution to Bloody Rust 2. The atmosphere in this map is quite spooky so there's not many monsters compared to the previous map, but I still find the gameplay quite fun nonetheless. The only complaint I have is that there's a bit too much back tracking, but being a pretty small map that's only a minor gripe.

Map 7
This is a pretty average map from author Andrew Dowswell, I will say that it's at least better than his map from Icarus: Alien Vanguard which was really bad. This map marks the first open city style map of TNT so it at least has that going for it, I'm a sucker for city maps. The start room is kinda rough & when you teleport out you find yourself in an open area facing a number of far off shotgunners and chaingunners. The prison section of the map is quite memorable from my first playthrough. I didn't know about the invulnerability sphere back then so it made the prison pretty damned though to get through. I don't like the exit section of this map very much, it just feels like an unfinished idea that could have used some expanding upon. Really though that applies to the whole map, it's just a bit to simple to be all that memorable or exciting, it really could have used a few more set pieces to make it stand out a bit more.

[gaspe]

MAP09: It's very dense with monsters, and most of the population consists of the various types of zombies, it feels like you are assaulting a real military base. The overall trend so far is to combine hitscanners and scarce health in the maps, which here it's taken to the extreme. The level is also well detailed and it has some good lightning, and actually few light effects are a bit overdone I think, like all the blinking computer panels. I didn't remember the cafeteria and the room with the teleports. Neat level overall.

[antares031]

MAP09 - Stronghold
ZDoom, UV-PS, KIS(%): 100/100/100

An interest level here. Like the title of level, the player enters the stronghold of lots and lots of zombies and imps all around the place. And I mean, all around. This high density of monsters almost made me feel like this level is a slaughtermap with hundreds of monsters. And to be fair, as far as I know, this level has the second highest monster count on UV, followed by MAP27. The gameplay is not perfect, especially you don't like hitscanners. To make it even worse, this level doesn't have many healthpacks around, so you need to play slowly if you don't have any foreknowledge about the level. But still, it's fun to mow down lots of low-tier monsters with SSG, chaingun, and explosive barrels all over the place. The layout and detail are pretty good, compare to the previous levels. In spite of some issues, this one is definitely one of the strongest levels of Evilution. Or at least memorable.

[baja blast rd.]

Ancalagon's NM100 (NM with 100% of secrets) of map09 is one of my favorite demos.

[Salt-Man Z]

MAP06: Open Season
10:47 | 98% Kills | 100% Items | 100% Secrets

The only kill I missed was the vile at the end, because I accidentally stepped across the exit line before I could turn and get him. (Ah, the dangers of playing no-save...) This is merely an okay level, I think. I like the opening area, with the three tiers of enemies able to shoot at you right away, and vice versa. Things kinda peter out from there, though, though the nukage reactor area is a highly memorable visual.


MAP07: Prison
20:53 | 98% Kills | 97% Items | 75% Secrets

Not a lot to say about this one. The opening area is fantastic, with all the transforming architecture and traps. The titular prison is memorable, but a piece if you found the invul and have a rocket launcher ready. I always manage to get lost for a spell in the exit area. Not one of my favorites, but not because it's bad; it's just not particularly good.


MAP08: Metal
17:31 | 100% Kills | 100% Items | 75% Secrets | 1 Death

Honestly, I don't mind this one as much as the rest of you seem to. It's got a strong oldschool vibe that I like a lot. It did result in my 3rd death so far: I knew the early trap with the flaming skull switch was coming, so I stepped in the hallway only hesitantly; the monsters were released, but I was barred in and pinned, and died quickly. On my second attempt I just dashed all the way in with my plasma gun at the ready: no prob. I do love all the tricks and traps here—they're just deadly enough to keep you constantly on your toes, but still fair enough that quick reactions will get you through.

[Devalaous]

Never really understood the hate for Metal, always loved that level, but I already mentioned my tastes differ from the overall populace of DW these days. The final area is brutal :D

[Jaws In Space]

Map 8
Metal is the first real stinker of TNT & it's the worst map in the first half of the wad. It's a combination of areas that are too tight to play in & areas that are way oversized. The start is just a big 64 wide corridor maze which is never fun from a gameplay standpoint. After the start things get kinda interesting visually we see a fancy metal stairways that seems to take the stairway from Doom 2 map 20 & expands upon the idea. The next two rooms are large bare areas textured heavily with metal textures, the enemies are just overly far & few between to be of any threat. The next room disposes of the metal textures in favor of TNT's crazy animated computer textures, because of this it's a fairly memorable room even though it's pretty small. Lastly there is the exit room, there's the neat effect of the monsters rising out of the slime, but other than that this room pretty much sucks. The massive scale & constant far off hitscanners are really annoying in addition to having to hit a ton of switches to reveal the exit, each switch exposing a monster closet containing even more far off hitscanners. The best thing about this map by far is the midi, which funnily enough is used on 3 of the worst maps in TNT, I guess if your playing a terrible map at least you have something good to listen to. I don't know if this map really could have been salvaged in any way, scaling down the map takes away why it's kinda memorable in the first place.

Map 9
Another really fun tech base map that is just a blast to play through. This takes the hitscann hell that the early maps of TNT are know for and takes it to a whole new level of extreme, the chaingun is king of weapons here. The map is very well connected together with lots of windows & many rooms that loop back together. Health can be an issue on this map if you don't know where the multiple secret berserk packs are. Yeah that's it really, this map is just an all around solid entry from TNT.

[T-Rex]

Back again, and taking on the next few maps. Here we go!

Map07: Prison (Andrew Dowswell)
100% kills, 100% items, 100% secrets
Time: 12:00

Here is where we finally get the plasma rifle! I wasn't really a fan of this map, pretty much due to the fact the scenarios you need to tackle causes the level to drag on longer than expected. You have to proceed with caution and be alert as there are many instances where you can get ambushed, like the starting when you climb up either side and the platforms lower revealing a platoon of enemies. Then when you teleport outside, you get an assortment of enemies coming at you from all angles. Also, be mindful of those troublesome chaingunner firing at you from the balcony to the west. Go for the invulnerability and try to act fact with your rockets (continuous play only) when you teleport into the prison block so you won't have too many imp fireballs coming from all directions. Finally, there's the end, and that part can be lethal if you get too reckless, especially when you hit the switch revealing the teleporter and a lowered platform with enemies leading to an alcove with some goodies. That revenant guarding the exit is a real nuisance. After a few easy and slightly tricky maps, this is definitely a difficulty spike.

Map08: Metal (John Minadeo)
100% kills, 100% items, 100% secrets
Time: 10:19

Oh, boy, this map. This is the textbook definition of "Baby's First Map" and a foreshadowing of what is to come later on in the wad. The beginning takes place in a network of mostly 64-wide 90-degree corridors of brown stone. There's also a bizarre secret right behind you when you start. Then you get to the metal section which makes up the majority of the map, but it consists of large, empty rooms with little to no cover from enemy fire. You also have a "secret" hallway to the switch that gives you access to the red key outside, which upon grabbing traps you as walls lower revealing monsters, and thankfully a switch to get back inside. Behind the red key door is a section with some of TNT's custom textures. Finally, there's the infamous ending area; a large octagonal room that floods with monsters when you open fire. Safest way to tackle it is open the door, alert the monsters, then rush to the now accessible bridge area (via hitting the switch that reveals the TNT logo), grab the green armour first, and then time hitting the lifts just right so you can grab the invulnerability and eliminate as many hitscanners as possible so you won't lose too much health. The switch sequence is the most tedious part of the map, but I was able to get the first platform in time. Ugly map overall, though I do like the music track, and the stairway to the first large room was kinda cool.

Map09: Stronghold (Jimmy Sieben/Ty Halderman)
100% kills, 100% items, 100% secrets
Time: 13:00

Man, who would have thought that a level that is jam-packed with nothing more than lightweight enemies could be so hectic! This techbase is just fun and frantic from start to finish as there are so many hitscanners to mow down and lots of explosive barrels to set off. However, you have to be extremely careful and pay attention to your surroundings, because there's so many enemies, many of which can sneak up from behind you (particularly those that teleport in from the lowered control room after you explore the first warehouse), and it's very easy to lose your health rapidly if you don't watch it because of the sheer clusterfuck of shotgunners and chaingunners. Your best bet is to use the chaingun so that you can eliminate the hitscanners quickly while preventing them from getting a shot at you. I really like how as you progress, some windows open revealing other sections of the map, makes it really interconnected, but it can make for a really insane experience for Nightmare! players. I like to save the berserk pack tucked in behind the crates for when I complete the map since I want to be in full health for the next one. Tons of switches to find, and there's a lot of traps that can kill you when you least expect it. Pretty good map and one of the best in TNT.

Phew! That was a really intense map, but so far so good, almost done with the first third of the set. See you guys again next time!