Arrowhead

So just to confirm, this will allow me to not have to use Slade's 'maintenance tools' to strip textures/flats/patches from a WAD? Just trying to make sure I understand this tool's usage. If so, this is truly quite awesome! Edit: never mind, just saw Boris' post :)

Hell yeah, if you love E4 - then there's really no better map. I haven't seen many maps that nail the E4 theme on the head this well. A nice surprise for a WAD this old... :D

Cruel Hell - 07/22/1996 - played via GZDOOM 4.1.2 Cruel Hell is an early Ultimate Doom map that plays on E4M1. This map is created by Michael Lundy, an author that mainly produced maps in '95/'96; who took a long hiatus, and published a final 1995 level in 2011. This map appears to be one of his better offerings. This is an enjoyable map in the E4 style - it really looks like a proper E4 map, the author did a great job of getting the theme down for this level. I think this is the first Ultimate Doom exclusive map we've reviewed for this project so far! Gameplay is fun, if not a tiny bit ammo-tight - this can be fixed by retreating and exploring the many other corridors in this map - you'll surely find more ammunition that way. It never becomes too much of an issue, but is certainly worth mentioning. A really weird choice is that there is a supercharge secret right at the start of the map - it is hardly hidden in any kind of robust way, and just seems like a free power-up for no reason... This is really the only slight complaint I have about this map - it is a fundamentally sound E4 map in every other way. Battles are engaging w/ the blue key caco ambush being the best. I like how the cacos seem to rise out of the orange sky - the area that you fight in is extremely tight, so you'll want to retreat to the corridor you entered from once you snag the blue key. A couple of rockets should take care of things, and thankfully, the author is fairly generous w/ the rocket ammo in this mission. There are also some imps in a cage at the start, which really gave me some E1M9 déjà-vu. I've never understood the 'enemies in cages' motif - always seems a bit senseless to me. Combat is a little baron heavy, but like I said previously, there's plenty of rocket ammo - so you should be able to blast those few bruisers no problem! Architecture and texturing are great, I didn't see any visual errors, except one - there appears to be a single small missing texture on one of the wood+marble cisterns deep in the map. This is a pretty small offense though, and thankfully, the missing texture is very small. The author also really nailed the wood / marble look of the final Ultimate Doom episode - I know I say this about a lot of maps, (lol) but you could really insert this anywhere in the current E4 line-up, and it would fit perfectly. Really enjoyable E4 adventure, not too difficult. I recommend any E4 fans to check this out. E4 is probably my favorite Doom theme, after Romero's E1... But yeah, this was a great time! Take a run through it, you'll likely really enjoy it! Download link: https://bit.ly/3DBzt3B

I know this is only tangentially related; but your thread reminded me of Roger Ritenour's many space levels. Pleiades is criminally underplayed, you might like that: https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/Ports/p-r/pleiades

That's the age I started playing Doom - it's all up to the parents ultimately. My parents didn't believe in any of that 'my kids will become murderers' nonsense... :)

FREEK02.wad - 08/09/1996 - played via GZDOOM 4.1.2 FREEK02 is a fun and quick 3-key map by Michael Freeth. The map starts you off w/ a hot start; this isn't too dangerous though, as there are only a couple of imps and zombiemen causing you issues. A unique feature of this map is that the red key is given so quickly to the player - it is in the very first room. All the player needs to do is press a single switch, and you're already a third of the way there. Architecture is great in this map, (unlike the last map I reviewed) everything is crisp and clearly defined - there are some especially cool looking areas in this map. Namely the big courtyard w/ the surrounding staircases, and the 'torn roof' of the room that holds the blue key. I included screenies of both of these areas, as I believe they best visually represent the quality of the map. Navigation in this map is a cinch, and there is virtually no backtracking - always nice, (and rare) to see from a 3-key map. Secret placement is a little willy-nilly in this map. Some 'secrets' aren't tagged as secrets in this map - the megasphere secret in this map is exemplary of that. There are also some 'hidden doors' that contain mandatory progression - I'm not even going to bother complaining about these, as it is incredibly obvious where these doors are. Once you find one, you'll have no trouble finding the rest. One can only hide a secret / progression behind a misaligned texture so many times... Fights are fun in this map - namely the courtyard fight, and the manc fight w/ the single shotty. Medium class monsters are rare in this map, you'll encounter a pair of revenants, a manc, and not much more than that. There are only 90 monsters in this map in UV, w/ the vast majority of them being hitscanners + imps. The author only made one other single-player WAD as far as I can tell, (fireball.wad) but what's here is really good! Freeth was really good at setting a scene - there are a lot of memorable areas within this map, and the detailing is pretty damn good too! Check it out, this is a very fun map! Download link: https://bit.ly/3DrB2kF

Really high quality stuff! Keep it up! :)

Battlefield - 06/16/1995 - played via GZDOOM 4.1.2 This is a very spartan, but enjoyable WAD created by Sander Dee. This appears to be the only level Dee has made. The map starts off w/ you facing a large, well, battlefield... You will want to take off running into the action right away in this one - just remember to do one important thing. Before you venture off into the rest of the level proper, go through the left door next to you when you spawn. You will find an SSG and a chaingun in this section - integral weapons for the rest of the mission - you don't want to miss these, as you will likely have a miserable experience if you don't grab these weapons first. This level's combat is good, w/ much of the main action taking place outside in the titular 'battlefield'. This battlefield is basically a huge room w/ next to no cover available. There is an arch-vile hiding just north of the northernmost building in the map - he can catch you off-guard, if you're not aware of your surroundings - you'll have to be aggressive with this 'vile, as not much protection is available in that area. I recommend physically running into him between each SSG shot, so that he doesn't get the opportunity to get too far out into the battlefield. He's extremely dangerous if you don't go right after him, the moment you see the 'vile. You're going to want to clear out the hit-scanners in the battlefield right away - nothing more unpleasant than getting nailed across the map by an errant shotgunner. Once you clean out the main battlefield you will eventually need to infiltrate the many side-tunnels present in this map - these sections are fun, too, I just wish the author gave more than one radsuit in this map. This map has a really awesome Wolf-3D inspired secret. Just like in Wolf-3D there are many nested secrets within secrets, so make sure you carefully search everything before leaving the Wolf-3D section - there is a very important BFG that will save you some time later... This level is also unique, in that it is a fairly short level, (about 10 minutes) but still has every weapon in its confines, which I think makes for some fun varied gameplay. Interestingly, you get a rocket launcher, but very few rockets... You get far more cell ammo in this map than is necessary in my opinion - but this is useful for the final encounter against 4 barons - I imagine this area would be tedious if one didn't have the BFG. You'll still have the plaz by this point, so I can't imagine it would be too bad. Texturing and architecture are exceedingly basic. That's not a bad thing, always - I don't think the author was too worried about making the map aesthetically pleasing, and instead just focused nearly exclusively on the combat. Don't let the bleakness of the screenies scare you off - the map is really fun to play. Overall, a somewhat visually basic map that gets the combat right. Great for a 10 minute distraction! :) Download link: https://bit.ly/3kRPco2

RRWARD02.wad - 11/09/1994 - played via GZDOOM 4.1.2 "How the hell is this a '94 map?" That's what I said upon loading up this level, and playing through the first couple rooms. I actually double-checked halfway through the map, to make sure I didn't misread the publication date. This is a WAD by Richard R. Ward - one of the RRWARD series, of which I think this is the best. This is bar none, my FAVORITE map I've reviewed so far. It is so perfect, and so anachronistic - not to mention the map is incredibly huge. The author actually makes reference to 'CASTEVIL.wad' in the readme, declaring that this map is big, but not as big as that one. Cool to see another WAD we've reviewed for this project to show up in a readme! Combat in this WAD is incredibly impressive for the time. This is a Doom1 level; I'm quite used to seeing Doom1 maps being extremely easy in the combat department. This map feels super modern for '94. The atmosphere in this map is great, too - it feels very Doom3 in some regards. The author states in the readme that they were "anal-retentive" about their texture usage and alignment. This I can agree w/ - the texturing is the best I've seen in this project thus far. There are a handful of cool new custom textures that really add to the atmosphere in this map - my favorite being a 'zoomed-in' view of the E1 map. Another cool feature is the 'Doomguy switch' - a switch that looks like Doomguy's face - when you press these switches, Doomguy's face turns to a bloody mess; a wicked sweet switch, once again, probably my favorite switch from this project so far... Flickering lights, dark areas, and startling ambushes are the norm here, very similar to Doom3's environments. The base is massive, and sprawls similarly to the aforementioned 'castevil.wad'... Architecture is clean, tasteful, and logical in this WAD - areas flow together very similarly to how I imagine an actual 'spacebase' would flow. There are many interconnections, and many ambushes that use these interconnections - traps are plentiful in this WAD, w/ the best one being when a swarm of about 30 imps rise out of the ground on raised platforms - clusters of pinkies are released as well, which makes micromanaging the many incoming fireballs quite difficult - makes for an extremely fun experience. There is also an awesome fight in what I can only describe as a 'great hall'. This is less open-air, and can make for some hairy situations. There are other awesome fights too, namely the dual caco / imp turret fight, and the final red key ambush. An interesting gameplay choice in this map, is that the rocket launcher, plaz, and chaingun are all hidden in secrets. This makes the player predominately use the single-shotty for most of the map. I think this is what makes the map so much more difficult than the average Doom1 map from this era. I'd give this map a 5.5/6 on the difficulty scale, (out of 10)... Thankfully, there are few barons - the author seems to have an understanding of 'Doom1 tedium' - and went out of his way to dodge this problem. Phenomenal Doom1 map. You'd be mistaken to miss this one - I might even say this should have got a cacoward back in the day, it's that well made, and I think superior to Galaxia.wad and UACDEAD.wad, who ended up receiving far more attention that year. If you play anything I recommend, I recommend this over literally any other map I've reviewed for this project. A true diamond in the rough. Download link: https://bit.ly/3DHKRLe

It's quite an enjoyable little map! I'm sure you'll love it. :)

The Mystery of the Marie Celeste - 03/15/1995 - played via GZDOOM 4.1.2 This is a WAD based off of a real ship, by Mark Mackey. This is a Doom1 WAD, so don't expect to see any difficult opposition - there are only around 50 enemies in this map, and 3 secrets. The secrets are hidden quite well, as I didn't encounter any of the three in either of my two playthroughs... This is one of those early WADs that use teleporters to 'move' you between floors in a map. Some people find this effect jarring, I don't - I've always had a soft spot for fake multi-storey buildings. There is a lot of care taken to establish this location as a real place, despite using Doom1's limited stock textures. There are carefully constructed crates, that really do look like maritime type chests. There are also toilets, a galley replete w/ a stove, and many cramped sailor's quarters rooms - a true smorgasbord for DoomCute enthusiasts. That's likely the main draw to this map; if you don't like DoomCute, this map probably isn't for you... but then again, who doesn't like DoomCute? I've yet to find a doomer who doesn't. Combat really isn't worth mentioning here. You fight against 50 or so weak monsters on UV, probably less for the other difficulties. You will also spend much of the level w/ the pistol as your only weapon. This seems intentional, as the author really emphasizes the pistol in their included readme story: "Grabbing the pistol from the emergency stores locker, you pull alongside and climb the rope ladder..." The pistol combat really isn't too bad, w/ the only weird section being where you have to pistol a pinkie. A little tedious, but not nearly as bad as 'baron-shotgunning', in my opinion. As far as I can tell, you can also get a Berserk via a secret, and there is a shotgun in the bottom 'hold' of the ship - unfortunately, it only makes its appearance right immediately before the exit... A bit of a peculiar choice, I think. The sky in this map is bright and cheerful - it really doesn't fit the map's theme - you would think a stormier sky would work better here, than a clear day sky - I agree w/ that previous /idgames reviewer. The sky, as far as I can tell, is the only custom graphic present in this WAD. I included a screenshot to demonstrate the layout of the 'multi-storey' features of this map. Another neat feature in this map, are the 'openable' portholes in all of the rooms - they don't serve any real purpose - they just look super cool. I found this to be a fairly ambitious attempt at depicting a real ship within Doom1. There really is some nice detail work in this level - and for that reason alone, it shouldn't be forgotten. Quite a fun little bite-sized map - as w/ some of the other less combat-intensive WADs I've reviewed, play this one if you want just 5 minutes of Doom, or if you just need a break from your tougher WADs. Nothing wrong w/ playing a map like this every now and then! Sure to be an absolute blast for those who like DoomCute! Fun! Download link: https://bit.ly/30yMdcH

That's a pretty cool looking city - I especially like the car crashed in the wall. The snow map looks awesome too.

From 2 different deathmatch maps I've been working on:

I mean no disrespect, but most people on this forum are gonna treat a 'paid' request like this w/ suspicion... I understand you may be new to the forum. I'm not saying close the thread, or anything - I'm just saying that most everything on this forum is done for free - even insanely complex projects like the GZDOOM sourceport and Eviternity... Most people have a very DIY attitude around here. Everyone on the forum will be happy to assist you w/ any editing questions you have, but you'll very likely not find someone to make this 'level' for you. This seems like an integral detail that was left out... The more information you give us the better, being intentionally vague doesn't help anybody... I wish you the best of luck in your endeavour, I'd just like to request that you maybe try to figure this stuff out somewhat on your own first. If you were to say, post a level of your own, I'm sure people here would be happy to collaborate. I've only been mapping since February - it's quite an easy skill to pick up - Doom level design is not nearly as complicated as modern game design. Just my two cents, not trying to give you a hard time! :)

Such a heavy song...

Planet Altair1 Base - 08/18/1995 - played via GZDOOM 4.1.2 PA1B is a carefully crafted WAD by Kenneth Chirko. The first thing you'll notice right away in this level, is the early lightcasting on display. There are quite a few areas in this map that use lightcasting, something not typically seen from WADs this old. This map is essentially some kind of 3-dimensional 'maze'. Well, it's not really a maze, per se, you'll see when you play it. It is a maze in terms of its design, but not in terms of its progression. I hope that makes some sense... The level is easy to travel around in, despite the multitude of pits, elevators, and cross-overs. I was not once confused about where to go next, excepting one area. There is a gargoyle switch that is already 'lit' and you have to shoot it to open the door next to it. This one is pretty straight-forward, and is not what I consider a 'hidden door' - maybe just a slightly obscured door. I believe that most doomers will try to press it, realize nothing happened, and then shoot it once just for good measure. Regardless, I included a screenie to make one's traversal of this map simpler! The map can be disorienting sometimes w/ its many line-actions and traps. This is a pleasant change from the rote, simplistic progression I've seen in most maps from this period - once again, it is never confusing. You'll find your way out no problem. Detailing is well above average, w/ the aforementioned lightcasting being one of the best visual features - that's not to say the rest of the map is a slouch, though. The best word to describe this map, is visually 'clean'. There are no misalignments visible. There is also a lot of visual variance despite the map being predominately underground in tunnels; there are also many inset details, like computer monitors, and switches, which help add to the level's claustrophobic and foreboding atmosphere. The map has a whopping 11 secrets, and even some more unmarked secrets! However, this is where the one small flaw of the map shows its fangs. The secrets in this map are almost universally hidden in the same fashion as the secret before it. What does that mean? Well, once you find one secret, it's very likely that you will be able to find the mass majority of them - the author was not creative in their secret placement, despite the rest of the map dripping w/ creativity... There are lots of cool fights in this map, I don't want to spoil too many, so I'll just talk about one. The best fight in the entire map is situated on a really narrow ledge over a pool of hissing lava, where you'll be assaulted by a marching group of imps. Imps aren't usually that scary, but this many in this type of combat situation makes for a relatively challenging fight - compared to the rest of the map. The average doomer should be able to wreck this map no problem, though! Also, despite being Doom2, the only Doom2 monsters I remember seeing were chaingunners. This gives this map a very 'Doom1+' feeling... as there are only low tier enemies present in this level. Kind of a unique experience, as there are next to no medium-class mobs in this WAD at all. I don't think the SSG makes an appearance either, unless it's in one of the 3 secrets I didn't find... Fun map! Shows a lot of talent from the author, even w/ the flawed secret placement - the secret placement is never too overpowered, save for the single invulnerability sphere located in one of them, but as you have to navigate through many tunnels, this actually runs out quicker than one might expect - you really don't get to abuse it as much as you'd like to. I'd recommend this to all old-school map fans, there's really not much about this one not to like... This is apparently the first map in a trio of 'Altair' levels. Might be fun to check out the other two maps sometime! :) Download link: https://bit.ly/3nnLILz

I had asked some folks on the Newegg discord if I should buy (2) more of the Trident brand (8GB), and they said I shouldn't because Trident has the potential to use different chips between batches of RAM - apparently ballistix always has the same chips, so there's no chance of messing up the timings, as there is w/ the Trident RAM... I don't know much about computers, admittedly, but that's what I was told. I don't know enough about RAM to know if Ripjaw does the same as Ballistix, but I would assume so, as it's a high quality brand. I think you'd be good to just stick w/ the Ripjaw stuff - I'm only buying Ballistix for the above reason. :)

I've got some pretty good memories of Depth Dwellers, but I think I'd be mistaken to call it a 'good game.' The main problem w/ these type of games is the style of progression - all the games you listed in the OP rely nearly entirely on mazes to progress. The fact that mazelike progression only makes up a small portion of Doom's progression, might have contributed to Doom's continued popularity compared to those games... I don't know, kind of a shower thought...

Honestly, I don't think 16GB is too shabby, there are virtually 0 video games on the market that require more than that right now. I don't know squat about music programs' RAM usage though, so I can't comment much on that. Lee seems to be the expert on that! :) I just bought a pre-built, (i9, 16GB RAM, 2TB SSD, RTX 3080) and I haven't had any issues playing games yet. Honestly, I was thinking of taking the (2) Trident 8GB out of there, and putting in (2) 16GBs, probably Ballistix brand...

Duvel.

Really phenomenal Doom1 map, I didn't even realize I was playing Doom1, the combat was so good! A truly fun and inventive level, please some day make an episode in this style, (I hope) the swarm based gameplay was a lot of fun! I really liked the whole level, except the 'baron hallway' section. I felt that slowed the fast pace of the map down, a bit. I included my favorite scene in the first screenshot. Great use of the sky texture! Took me about 5.5 minutes to beat, everyone should give it a try! :)

Ooh, that sounds really good actually. Have never tried that!

I agree, aesthetics were definitely a major focus for this author. Quite an attractive map! :)