myk

Andrey Budko has delivered version 2.5.0.6 of PrBoom+, his PrBoom offshoot. This release includes various fixes and enhancements to OpenGL rendering, the automap, graphics glitches, key binding among other things. Notably, it lets you disable specific OpenGL features instead of the whole shebang, and allows you to keep track of the damage caused to specific things as you play. You can check the change log for more details, or go ahead and download it.

If you like Doom and multi-player, you might want to check out what's going on at the IDL (International Doom League), a seasonal CTF competition taking place in North America, featuring various teams of well-seasoned players from the Doom multi-player scene. The play-offs have started this week (games being played mostly during the weekend), so the games are getting really intense. You can check the list of games played and the games to be played on the main site, as well as some demos of the games (previous or new) on the Doomed Earth forums, plus stats, commentaries, and predictions by the IDL members.

Hello, readers of The /newstuff Chronicles, with issue #276 the time has come again for those moldy levels someone left in a now cobwebbed waddery. In addition to a few other wads uploaded by RL and funduke, this time around I'm tackling a bunch of early wads by a resident old timer, who most people will recognize, and the undoubted highlight of Grazza's selection this month is a space-themed Hexen hub, while he has reviewed several Heretic and Doom wads of interest too. By the way, note that these are the wads uploaded on the previous month, and that another batch of old stuff is on its way soon. This one will give you enough to chew on for a few days, though. We start off with Grazza's reviews: Starship by James 'SPAM Man' Paige 593kb - Hexen.exe - SP - 6-map hub - - - Here's something you don't see every day: a six-map Hexen hub. I'll get straight to the point: if you liked Hexen, you'll definitely want to play this, and might prefer to do so without any spoilers (though do look at the "port issues" below). If you didn't like Hexen, then you may nevertheless want to give it a go. There aren't quite the hub-wide hunts for switches and "what did that do?" situations that there were in the original (but there is a fair bit if you want to get to the secret map), though you might find yourself wandering around aimlessly if you've forgotten which teleport leads to which map. Anyway, the hub is very well made, which each map having a distinct character, and touches of gentle humour throughout. It might well sound incongruous to have a starship in Hexen, but it kind of works if you'll permit the author a little artistic license. The idea that glues the maps together is that the starship is draining power from a number of planets, to which you teleport and then liberate. On each world you need to perform a number of tasks, and receive instructions for these from NPCs (obviously this feature can't be implemented in the interactive way that it is in Strife, but the scripting works well enough in any case - it's not as if you're going to refuse the tasks, after all). Overall, I found the progression engrossing enough to want to play through the hub again. As for gameplay, well, it is Hexen, and that does mean that you'll spend a fair amount of time killing dull little enemies with not very exciting weapons, but the action certainly hots up at several points and especially towards the end. Even at some early points, you'll be facing the more interesting foes. I played as Warlock (skill 4 mage) and didn't find it too hard even though I failed to use many of the artifacts. I just used the odd save along the way for safety, and before t he major battle at the end (incidentally, before you go into that battle, do remember that with the power drained, any force fields will be disabled on the starship, so...). Port issues: Unfortunately, there are some. This wad was made in the pre-port era, and while it all seems to work with Hexen.exe, all the ports I tried produced some glitches. As far as I can tell, the only cheat you'll need to get around them is CASPER (noclipping), and you'll only need to use it once or twice. Doomsday (jHexen) starts you off at the beginning of the game at the wrong point - and it's a place you can't get out of too. That's a bit of a showstopper, but I presume that if you CASPER your way to the correct starting point, nothing should be damaged. In Zdoom, there are two places where you are stuck when you arrive at a teleport destination. These are due to the floor level having changed since the first time you arrived at these points (in one map due to a very nice water effect; in the latter due to the huge earthquake that is going on in Abattoir). Just type CASPER, move slightly, type CASPER again, and you're good to go. In Abattoir this will happen in the middle of a major battle, so you'd better to ready to pause too. In Vavoom, things seem to work OK, but there is one point where it is harder than it should be to jump up a waterfall, as the speed of the water appears to be subtracted from your own speed (this is part of the same water effect that leads to a different problem in Zdoom). However, if you take a running jump at it, you can avoid the problem by not touching the falling water. OK, so download, play and enjoy. Space 2096: The Invasion Begins by Dave Sherwin 402kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 6 map - - - I'll hazard a guess that Dave Sherwin is a space nut. These six maps each have a shuttle craft at their heart, and some of them take place inside a larger space ship of some sort. The first two maps are just there to provide a little realism - there are no monsters to fight - and the sense of continuity perists throughout the wad. The author has clearly gone to some trouble to make the space craft realistic - or at least, in keeping with what space craft look like on TV. We find ourselves in a variety of areas, including engine rooms, what are probably particle accelerator thingies and I suppose a warp core type jobby. There's no shortage of radiation either, and there are also shafts/tubes to walk around, and some large shortage areas. The four levels where there is some action are all big and complex, with lots and lots of enemies. For most part the foes are small, but arranged so as to be rather dangerous. You may find ammo and health somewhat tight, and I think you are expected to carry stuff from one map to the next, rather than having a pistol start on each (I'm not saying it's impossible to play in that way though). Even then it's not an easy wad to get through on UV unless you take the precaution of saving now and then. Overall, I can commend this wad to the house. UAC Plant level for DOOM II by Bob Kudla 147kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This is what you'd call a large map. It's relatively plain, without masses of variety in textures within each area, but enough imagination shown overall to keep things interesting. Early on there is a slight switch hunt in order to progress; it's not too much of a pain though. A lot of the action takes place in passages and side-areas, though it does open out in a number of places. The challenge is moderate - if you play carefully at any rate. Not much more to say - if you like large old-style complex maps that will take a fairly long time to complete, this is a pretty good one to download - I didn't find anything I'd regard as unfair in it. And it ends with a big crate area. Shrine by Jonathan Tourtellot 142kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 3 maps - Here we have three maps, but given that the second of them is a large and pointless maze, I would suggest just regarding it as two separate maps. The first is fairly small and a little bit tricky if you play recklessly, but overall fun. This is apparently the "shrine", and it does have that kind of feel to it. Map03 is the real meat, and takes place underground. As the author comments, for some reason (which he doesn't even try to explain), there are a couple of warships down there. Maybe he could have borrowed a couple of Dave Sherwin's share spacecraft too. Anyway, if we ignore the implausibility of this, the level is quite fun. Once you've found your way to the megasphere, there shouldn't be too many problems, and the gameplay flows well enough. Obituary by Wes Burd Jr 131kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - If you've played some of Wes Burd's other maps, you'll have a fair idea what to expect here: a rather large, even sprawling map with a need for a good deal of running around required, and some larger battles towards the end, but with plenty of tools provided to get the job done. I'll just mention that on this occasion if you're in a hurry to exit, then you can do so without collecting any keys. This is accomplished by executing two glides (one to get in, the other to get out) so as to press the switch that you're meant to need the blue key to access. Tek Lab 1 by Sonny Wasinger (aka CONDUCTOR) 108kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - Yes, it's a Conductor map. He's the guy who make "Fortress of the Seven" in case you had forgotten. That was a very large and challenging map with some significant puzzle elements, and required quite a lot of preparation and map knowledge to get through. Here he provides us with another thoroughly confusing experience, in a mostly tech environment (as the name suggests). Even finding your way out of the starting areas requires some experimentation, and from then on you start to encounter some serious resistance in amongst the puzzles and switch hunts. I should also mention that it is possible to get stuck if you activate certain things in the wrong order. Clearly this is not a wad for everyone, and will only suit those who don't mind spending quite a lot of time getting to know a map. You'll certainly want to use a few saves, or perhaps to play through the wad with -nomonsters before tackling it for real. Texture use is unconventional, with tech panels in abundance for instance. In some areas, you'll find that moving floors outnumber the stationary ones. Probably after all I've said, not many people will tackle this one, but those who do will probably feel quite satisfied when they eventually defeat it. Sentinels Of Damnation by Gary Atkinson 107kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This solid map provides a good test of Dooming skill. There aren't huge numbers of monsters, but the balance is good, and you'll need to make wise use of your resources and plan the fights with a little care in order to get through. The main themes are wood and stone, with plenty of stepped walkways in a mostly outdoors environment where height differences come into play throughout. On the negative side, the map lacks a real climax, and the challenge seems to lessen towards the end. Also, the presence of nukage that doesn't hurt the player is a little odd. DmPairs by Nick Anderson 105kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This is by the same author as Fluvial and Quantum4, which can be found in the archive. This is an earlier work of his, and it is generally less ambitious, but nevertheless rather large and complex. It would also seem that he became rather better at choosing interesting names for his wads as he went on. It is apparently based on the "entrance to Earth" being "kept under lock and key by a bunch of Doom2 creatures who seem to like going about in pairs ... Unfortunately some of them cannot count!" The story is quite lengthy and highly tongue-in-cheek (at least I hope it is). Gameplay is not extreme, but certainly not a walk in the park. There's a good supply of ammo, but health is a little tight - though once you reach the soulsphere you should be able to take control of events. As in Fluvial, there are a lot of floors that are some sort of liquid (probably not creosote or some extract used in industrial varnishing), so you'll need to be quick on your feet here and there. Themes vary (if you wanted to be unkind, you could say random), but there is a good deal of wood and stone, and outdoor grassy areas too. The battles towards the end grow in intensity, but they are very manageable with the goodies you'll have accumulated by then. Volcano 2 by Jonathan Tourtellot and Daniel Snyder 69kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - "Adventures in the caves of a volcano" says the text-file, which also states the authors had planned a much larger level, but their tools kept choking on it. At first, it appears that the name has nothing to do with the level, as we appear to be in a plain grey base with square rooms, but soon we encounter lava caverns and precarious walkways, and some redder rocks too in due course. I should mention that you can actually reach the exit very quickly, but it's a bit more fun to play along and follow the intended route. There are no huge battles, and you'll have plenty of health and ammo as long as you find the stashes dotted about. Overall, I would have expected a bit more lava and volcanic-looking rocks though. And a lava fall maybe. Darktown by Andreas Mair 62kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This fairly large map provides some gentle fun. There aren't any huge battles, but there is action throughout. Variety in texturing is not too great, but the design is clean-looking and the structures are certainly not monotonous, and more attention has been given to lighting than in most old wads. Bridge01 by Roger Rice 60kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - The author writes: "This level is not too hard to beat, it isn't meant to be. I made it more for the fun of creating another level than making a 'masterpiece'." I certainly wouldn't call it an easy map though, and the start should keep you quite busy. Themes include bricks and stone, together with some battles in confined spaces. And if he didn't intend it to be a masterpiece, why did he include a big crate room? :p The final battle isn't what it seems, but once you have worked out what is what, you have a big ammo surplus (and an invul) to wipe out the resistance. The X File by Mike Shinnick 58kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This map on the other hand, does proclaim itself to be difficult, and I'll go along with that. I'd suggest trying to stay healthy early on - you'll get plenty of ammo, so don't be scared to use it. Teleporting lost souls, damaging floors are waiting to eat away at your health, ably supported by some strategically placed mid-range monsters. Gameplay remains on a knife-edge, and you'll be revisiting areas unexpectedly, so it might be an idea to clear them out to start with. A good all-action, medium-sized map. The Raven by Matt Bollier 55kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This is a somewhat deceptive map. It is medium sized and has a relatively small monster population, but is nevertheless rather tricky. This is due to the small amount of health and the fact that most of the enemies are hitscanners, and they are placed so that you are in danger from all sides and often from both above and below. If you know where you're going, it isn't too tough to reach the exit, but you'll need to be careful and accurate if you want to empty it out of bad guys before doing so. Design-wise, there's a lot of sandstone-type walls and cliffs. Pamplona by Chris Mead 51kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - You've heard of the running of the bulls in Pamplona, haven't you? Well, this is an attempt to recreate it as a Doom wad. Fortunately our Doom marine has more of a speed advantage than the bull-runners in the real-life event (not to mention their lack of firepower), but it is nevertheless not so easy to escape the horde, as you don't have many opportunities to get in off the roads, and also because the demons are able to follow you into some of the buildings. If you're quick on your feet, you should be able to come out on top without undue difficulty. Downtown v1.0 by Matt Bollier 29kb - Doom2.exe - DM/SP - 1 map - Early work by a future TeamTNT member. It is quite true to the style of its namesake, Doom2's map13, in some respects (but without such use of height differences, teleports or the bigger monsters), though Bollier cites Deadbase as his inspirattion. I feel this map might work better as a DM map than for SP, where it is quite a routine experience. Sacred by Wes Burd Jr 62kb - Heretic.exe - SP - 1 map - Similar comments apply as for the Wes Burd map mentioned earlier, except that this one is for Heretic. I must say that I found it somewhat tougher, but maybe that's because I play a good deal less Heretic than Doom, and don't tend to make good enough use of the power-ups. There's some good action, especially early on, but the main negative point I found was that the whole thing was too repetitive due to excessive use of cut-and-paste. One More level by DAV 55kb - Heretic.exe - SP - 1 map - This unpretentious single map for Heretic is of the 'fort surrounded by a moat' type. Gameplay is reasonably well balanced, though stacked a little in the player's favour, as there's no reason to run out of ammo, especially if you collect the time bombs from the outside area (and then remember to use them). You get a generous supply of other goodies, including morph ovums, which are always good for a laugh. The Fallen Citadel by Niklata 30kb - Hexen.exe - DM - 1 map - A small Hexen DM map. That's a rather rare species, so if you like Hexen and DM, you'll no doubt already be downloading it. It conforms to internationally approved DM map design standards, so it should provide some amusement. My reviews follow hereafter: Denial by Jonathan Tourtellot 98 KB - Doom2 - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - - Jonathan wan't kidding when he wrote the map is best played by "experienced DOOMers" as the realitively solid medium-sized level can be pretty nasty if you just walk in carelessly. It might not be everyone's favorite dish with it's somewhat claustrophobic layout, but it does offer a challenge from start to end. A challenge, that is, but not necessarily a frustrating one if you get your bearings, since there's a decent amount of health and ammo to deal with the opposition rather comfortably. You might want to avoid Ultra-Violence initially, as you get familiar with the map, for difficulty settings are supported. Football by Andrew Fritz 13 KB - Doom - 1 level - SP, Co - This is one of those one-room levels aimed to emulate some mundane scenario in DOOM. In this case, a football (or that armored sport where the ball rarely touches the foot, that they like to play in the USA) field. Andrew's "greatest achievement" might be the goal, where he made an effort to make it look sort of right in the 2Dish environment. The field itself looks kind of smallish, and Andrew bunched a group of monsters there (ready to play "infighting", since there's no ball to play the proper sport with) along with some pointless decorations. Killin' by Michael Lefler 31 KB - Doom - 1 level - SP, Co - - This is an old crude level geared around an open central area that connects indoor sections. The fighting, while not hard due to the shape of the areas and the available space, can be moderately fun, yet the map can be somewhat annoying in that it's confusing even for its relatively smallish size, especially due to a set of cheap teleporters that send you to different locations depending on what part of the linedef you go over. E2L1BIN3 by Geoffrey C. Grabowski 21 KB - Doom - 1 level - SP, (Co) - This is an "experimental" wad where sections open and close as you go, allowing you to avoid nasty confromtations while you're not well equipped. It has two problems, though; one being that it can be exploited, breaking progression, and another that it doesn't really normally allow you to kill all your opponents, many of which end up trapped in the sections that close up. The map is small and, due to its construction, rather short once you know your way through. Laura Beyer's add-on demo by Laura Beyer 1.0 MB - Doom - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - - This is the demo of the "legendary" Laura Beyer levels that caused controversy early on as Beyer attempted to sell the full version of the add-on. Since this was strictly against id Software's DOOM licence and wishes, this wad has been missing from many places, including our dear /idgames. Now funduke has uploaded this thing, presumably for historical purposes and curiosity's sake, since the wad itself isn't anything to die for; the new texture, decoration, and item graphics are at least a bit okay, if somewhat shoddy and oversized, while the ads, the new enemy, and the new sounds are pretty lame, and the music is likely ripped from somewhere (a Terminator game?). The map is rough, a bit sprawling, if not big, and doesn't have many enemies, thus not offering a particularly interesting challenge. You can read about early comments on this wad (even from Shawn Green of id) on the Computer Gaming World's Doom Conference transcript at Lee Killough's DOOM pages (hosted by John Romero). I still don't know what those miscellaneous ads were placed in there for, though. Selling unrelated computer products through wads, uh? Merlin's revenge by Jonathan Jordan 87 KB - Doom2 - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - - A single-map DOOM II wad with a red and brown (or gray) theme one can find appealing. Lava, which will hurt the Player, is used throughout to limit the movement and fighting a bit, although ammo is plentiful, there are some Enviro-suits, and the areas are relatively spacious. All in all, it provides a light challenge that should be good for a quick game against the small and meduim sized monsters that populate the level. Raven base by Jonathan Jordan 79 KB - Doom2 - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - Another map by Jonathan, who also made Merlin's revenge, reviewed above. Like his other map, this one also makes use of lava to confine the Player's movements, although in a less immediate way, as here you're generally moving over winding causeways over the stuff. The map, with a decent demonic fortification styled theme, isn't very hard but provides a mild challenge with some fights over the ledges, and requires some chainsawing action to conserve ammo (it was evidently made with that in mind). The pool of despair by Jonathan Jordan 44 KB - Doom2 - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - - In this level Mr. Jordan swaps the lava for nukage, still keeping the usage of damaging sectors to affect play (a bit less so, here). The map has competent architecture and texture combinations, like his other releases, although the considerable movement space available throughout combined with the use of the generally weaker monsters makes the map somewhat of a lighter challenge. The pumping station by Jonathan Jordan 69 KB - Doom2 - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - - - This is the last and fourth single-map wad by this author displayed on this issue of The Chronicles, and it displays some of the characteristics found in the others, such as the use of damaging sectors (lava) and thought put into the architecture. This level is more of a tech style base, and has varied sections that provide different sorts of encounters, from more confined fights against medium sized baddies to exchanges over lethal substances. The use of some high lifts may slow down things a bit in a couple of cases, though not terribly so. This is probably the more challenging of Jordan's maps, while still quite doable for players of lower or moderate skill. Michael Rapp's E2M4 by Michael Rapp 92 KB - Doom - 1 level - SP - - - - Here's another DOOM wad from almost a dozen years ago (that's quite some time, isn't it?). What is it, you say? It's a medium sized map, that's what. And not just that, it comes in a properly baked Shores of hell flavor that an insightful DOOM fan will not fail to catch. While it's not particularly tough, it does provide an appropriate opposition, and it's classic architecture, combined with the absorbing They're going to get you, will in themselves get to you. So get it; you will not regret it. Enjay's original wads by Nigel R. Rowand 99 KB - Doom - 2 levels - SP, Co, DM - - - - This zip contains the first two attempts by some guy called NJ (Enjay). One would think that should stand for his initials, since the guy is called Nigel, but not really; it turns out he isn't Nigel J. Rowand, he's Nigel R. Rowand! The first wad, My_1st, shows some of the signs of an opera prima without being a sloppy attempt; texturing tends to be rather uniform during each section of the map, and the architecture seems to be explorative. There's a whole part that's a series of similar sqarish rooms, that may have been the first stuff he worked on, but as the map proceeds some more distinctive sections appear, with clearer height variations and somewhat more interesting design. Overall the mixes more mundane textures with somewhat hellish ones in the style of DOOM's second episode. The encounters are not too lethal, but are acceptably consistent due to the size of the map, the amount of monsters, and some convenient placement, getting a bit less predictable as the map progesses. With his second wad, Down, Enjay goes for a slightly more thematic approach, in this case going deep underground, starting off from an outside area. While this map doesn't display the more obvious "I just started" characteristics the way the previous one did, in one room Enjay uses tall lite (LITE3, was it?) texturing to create a very bright area, which may have seemed innovative back then but seems a bit of an abuse nowadays. Otherwise this wad is a bit more straightforward than the first, and more linear, as well as generally a bit easier (although back in the day, with little experience strafing and moving, it could have appeared tougher). The ammo, though, is relatively tight. Enjay's Castle by Nigel R. Rowand 95 KB - Doom - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - - What DOOM add-on level designer doesn't consider making a castle themed map? Well, this is Enjay's early attempt at the theme. It's a green marble fortress with some wood and rust. Door and lift sounds were replaced to give the map a more castle-like feel. Overall the layout does give athe impession it's after, although it's a bit convoluted and not too neat, and as a result plays somewhat awkwardly (and is generally easy with all the available power-ups). Still, it was made with DeathMatch in mind, although by today's standards its a bit sprawling and segmented for that mode of play. Enjay's Shores of hell by Nigel R. Rowand 331 KB - Doom - 9 levels - SP, Co, DM - - - - If you think about it, early on the second epidoe of DOOM was optimal for an episode replacement, firstly because id encouraged not using the first episode to ensure the least possible compatibility with the shareware version of the game, and secondly, and perhaps more importantly, because the episode theme mixes techy and more hellish elements more liberally, giving you more freedom in the texture usage if you're relying on the stock set. And Enjay's first full episode was a Shores of hell replacement. The set itself starts off rather simple, becoming a bit more elaborate around the middle, where the maps start being a bit more elabotate, at least in regard to the general layout. That is E2M4: Egypt shows some unusual pyramid-like designs, E2M5: Trubble and E2M6: The Furnace show some more effective usage of the layout, and E2M8: The Demon's bottom makes a pretty decent open-style replacement for the boss level. Versions of the two "original" maps made by Enjay also show up in this set, as E2M3 and E2M7. The difficulty of the episode more or less follows the original Shores of hell, and though overall it's a bit less elaborate than the stock set, it's not unfun. Come out fighting by Nigel R. Rowand 429 KB - Doom - 9 levels - SP, Co, DM - - - - - - This is a second episode by Enjay, this time a replacement for Knee deep in the dead (apparently taking place on the other side of Phobos), and as a matter of fact he set out to make it in the "feel" of that first episode. Nonetheless he inserted some "ancient ruins" sections with green marble and wood, which give it somewhat of a Shores of hell feel, and though some sections have a cleaner base-like appearance, or otherwise brownish nukage, they also don't really resemble Romero's maps in design (plus they hold medium sized monsters, unlike the shareware set). That said, overall these levels are a notch more consistent and solid than the ones in Enjay's Shores of hell, and are somewhat harder, especially from E1M5: Communications lab onwards, with E1M6: The long run probably providing the steadiest challenge. Curiously the first map goes with a star-wars-like tune instead of its standard track, and the Phobos sky is replaced with one showing snowy mountains. It's not clear where that sky is from (or what it's based off of) nor is it mentioned in the text file. Enjay's DOOM by Nigel R. Rowand 1.2 MB - Doom - 27 levels - SP, Co, DM - - - - - - - - - - This is Enjay's full-fledged megawad replacing the whole of DOOM. It includes the previous E1 replacement, Come out fighting, as well as the initial E2 replacement, now inserted into the "other side of Phobos" story started in Come out fighting. The second episode has been renamed to Blood guts 'n' gory and its sky has been modified a bit to fit Phobos more appropriately. There aren't any too obvious differences in the episodes in relation to the initial releases; the clearest ones are the E2 sky and the absence of the new music for E1M1: The Ruins, so that the default track is played (welcome back, I say, \m/). Additionally, the megawad has a new title screen, v1.666 intro demos, and a help screen (acts like a promo screen), a new credits screen, a custom ENDOOM screen, as well as a few other slight changes (menu title, etc.), all giving it the feel of a finished and complete megawad. Then, more importantly, there's a replacement for the third episode, Oh Hell. This third episode follows the theme of the original Inferno pretty closely, though the maps tend to be generally neater but also usually have more staight lines than the originals. They are also usually a bit bigger and somewhat tougher overall. Some of the maps do come out pretty much as remakes of the originals, sometimes having very similar themes or devices, though they are never mere variations, as they usually expand somewhat on what they take from the id maps. In this episode we also see the reappearance of Enjay's Castle, spurced up and improved for proper single player action. There are a few curious tidbits as well; the sky is thematically a composite of DOOM's and DOOM II's third skies, and also there are a couple of traps that are equivalents to traps found in Petersen's Map08: Tricks and traps, first one involving Imps, and then another a Baron of hell. Were these taken from DOOM II? Are they a coincidence? Did Petersen look for ideas in user-made PWADs as DOOM II's scheduled release date loomed closer? It's not clear when the first version of the wad was uploaded, as the text says sometime in '94, and the ENDOOM says it was made from May to November '94, though perhaps these maps were completed when Enjay's DOOM II (see below) was already underway. Anyway, if you've played the first two episodes from the earlier releases first, you might want to give them another go, as they tend to get more fun past the first play-through, when you optimize ammo and strategies. Plus of course check out the third episode, which brings up those mysterious questions above. Enjay's DOOM II by Nigel R. Rowand with Mark Matheson 1.5 MB - Doom2 - 30 levels - SP, Co, DM - - - - - - - - - - The final wad by Enjay is a port of Enjay's DOOM to DOOM II. As a result we see, for the most part, the same maps, but retextured to a good degree to rely on the DOOM II's resources and to go by the "Hell on Earth" theme. DOOM II monsters certainly do appear throughout, though they don't necessarily make the maps tougher, with the Super shotgun and all. Still, the set might be worth a go even if you've played the DOOM version, since it plays a bit differently overall. The first two episodes (the starport and city levels) use a mix of maps drawn from Come out fighting and Blood, guts 'n' gory, except for two or three exceptions, and the last episode (the hell levels) uses mostly Oh hell as a base. Enjay also took three maps started by Mark Matheson (maps 18, 19 and 25) to complete the megawad. The second one can be found in its original form (for DOOM) on /idgames, as it was somewhat recently uloaded by funduke. The only sky that was modified here was the third one, where the mountains were swapped for Inferno's. The text file also explains that the secret maps were removed as they were merely modifications of the Wolfenstein levels in DOOM II (presumably shrunk back to normal scale). PJS 01 by Patrick J. Steele 24 KB - Doom - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - - This map was made by the author of a mapping application, DCS (DOOM Construction Set), more or less as a demo of what the editor can do. The package contains a description of the then oncoming editing tool, as well. The map itself is themed like a typical UAC base, with a few differences in relation to Romero's and Hall's styles, being generally less spacious and using some lava outside, but is relatively tidy throughout. The map is pretty easy and rather small, but it forces you to confront opponents due to the confined layout. Rusty cage by Neil Riehle 204 KB - Doom - 1 level - SP, Co, (DM) - - - The author of this map stated he had started it with DeathMatch in mind, but that it grew and grew from there, and indeed playing this large map on DeathMatch mode would probably be pretty boring. The layout is generally open, with various structures the Player can go into, and the design is simple but not bad. The texturing gets a bit shoddy in places, but does its job in keeping a relatively consistent arcane stone and rust theme in most areas. The level has a good number of monsters throughout, and they can be hurtful sometimes as you can get attacked from various sides as they spread about, though there's also a lot of space where to move around and hide, lightening up the challenge a bit. Also, due to the many areas that make it up it should be possible to exploit some unforseen shortcuts. There is one bug that players should be aware of (and from the "may not run with" line in the text file it seems that the uploader, RL, was aware of it): a tagless door linedef can break the map. Thus it's probably better not to play this map with Doom or full Doom compatibility, and to stick to an enhanced engine that annuls that nasty side-effect of sloppy mapping, instead. Stairmaster by Andrew Murphy 30 KB - Doom - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - Andrew's level is very rough and uniformly textured in a rather messy manner. The theme is "stairs" and it makes me wonder if that is because the author was still trying to get lifts to work properly. Monsters are placed here and there in the irregular rooms and halls, but they aren't too much of a challenge to a seasoned marine. I didn't spot any particulary interesting quirks in the maps playability, either. The map seems pretty damn old, though DEU could do better back then, if one put effort into it. White room by Doug Ryerson 43 KB - Doom - 1 level - SP, Co, DM - - This is a smallish map with a rather cramped layout that doesn't really have any white rooms, though presumably the author was attempting to convey the idea that it is part of some UAC lab by naming it thus. It's generally constricted rooms don't really make it a challenge, because most of its not-too-many monsters suffer from it more than you do. There is a bug (that the author was aware of but didn't fix) that produces a HOM in the main area. The wad also includes new music, but it's a somewhat gay track that doesn't really fit DOOM's mood too well, and there are a few slight amateurish texture modifications.

So here goes the latest installment of old stuff for The /newstuff Chronicles, highlighting last month's "re-released" uploads previously missing from the archive but found in obscure places of the Internet and other such locations. This time around we don't have too many wads, and Grazza bring in the greater number of maps. We have quite a variety here, and though there's nothing really exceptional, there are a few good maps and some strange oddities. Grazza starts off: 41 maps grace my selection for this edition, but don't get too excited as the quality is rather mixed. The most notable feature is that some (but not all) of the wads are ball-breakingly hard, so get ready for a challenge. However, we start with a relatively gentle Czech episode. The Lost Worlds by Equino-X 965kb - Doom.exe - SP - 9 maps - - - Here we have a full-episode from a Czech wadmaker. The maps vary from very small to moderately large, and the gameplay from freeflowing to confined and awkward. On the whole the monster populations are quite respectable, but all the maps are playable from a pistol start (E1M5 is perhaps the trickiest to play this way, but you just need a little bit of luck to get inside the building; then you're fine), and you get plenty of ammo and power-ups. As I have verified, most of the maps can be done pacifist-style, and none of them take too long if you just want to run through them. The predominant design themes are hellish (but more red rock and lava, rather than satanic) and "overrun base", together with some normal-looking buildings, generally with a twist (perhaps we're reaching them at the same time as they're being overrun). E1M2 is the most disjointed in terms of style - it doesn't really fit with the others, and features a fair bit of backtracking and a warren of narrow passageways, some unmarked doors and too many barrels and dark areas. E1M1 is short and sweet, but the battle can be quite intense. E1M3 also features a network of passageways with red walls and water, but flows quite nicely, and isn't overly linear. The secret map is attractive, even though it is a bit repetitive in some ways and contains a little tiny maze (which you can skip if you really want, with some difficult glides). E1M4 takes us outdoors and into a brightly lit and deserted-looking edifice. Both those attributes change suddenly, so watch your step. E1M5 (as mentioned above) is hitscan central, but the hunted quickly becomes the hunter once you've picked up a few weapons from inside - and there's a huge stash in one area, though you'll need to work a bit to get to it. The exit is in a darkened area - I presume there is a way to turn the lights on so you can see it, but I never bothered myself. E1M6 pits us against some bigger monsters, but there are plenty of invulnerability spheres lying around - so much that it makes pacifist not too tough. The level is based around a wide-open area with a central structure featuring switches, teleporters, assorted goodies and imps, and buildings in each corner of the surrounding square. Wide-open natural surroundings greet us in E1M7, with red rocks and lava in abundance. Those long straight walls on the outer boundary are useful for wallrunning too. The final map is a bit of a clunker, with lots of monsters but little creativity in design, and no real challenge either. Overall, The Lost Worlds deserves a download and a bit of your time. You might want to skip E1M2, but in any case don't let it put you off trying the other, better-flowing maps. On a technical note, I should also mention that the REJECT lumps for E1M3 and E1M7 are too short. The Remains of Hell by Jason Dyer 233kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 5 maps - - - If you dislike weird or unfairly hard maps, then you'll want to move swiftly past this one, trying to avoid any eye contact with it. Jason Dyer assaults us in these five maps with an array of disorientating environments, brutal battles and often bizarre ideas. The first map (that's map09, for some reason) is relatively normal design-wise, and only moderately brutal - it can be tackled methodically and with a little care it isn't too tough. There is one oddity - a sleeping pain elemental, due to the same quirk/bug that leads to the sleeping sergeant in Doom2 map02 (check its coordinates). There is a point where the author intended the player to use an AV jump in order to collect a soul sphere - in fact, you can get the sphere with just accurate running, and save your health (or the invul) for something else. Map13 is the only other one in this set that is easily manageable, but you need to be aware that it is based around a rarely used feature - a five-minute door. This opens once five minutes have elapsed, giving the player a brief opportunity to exit the map. All you have to do first is wait around for five minutes in a small room with monsters spawning all around. As for the other three maps, in one you are in a void with just a few visual clues from which to take your bearings. Another is nice and brightly lit, so you can see the masses of lava through which you'll end up running all too often as you combat the map's large and highly aggressive population. And then there is a version of E1M2 that has apparently suffered a meltdown (kind of logical really, given its name) and been significantly more overrun than the original. Overall, the maps' design is a bit crude but not ugly, and I'm not sure exactly how much fine detail you'd expect in a lava pool or a void... The txt also features a story for those who are interested, and a few useful hints. Some of you will no doubt love the extreme challenge that this wad poses. For everyone else, there are difficulty settings, which may well prove handy until you know your way around. The True Test by Anthony Klein 207kb - Doom.exe - SP - 2 maps - - The name is fully appropriate: these two maps (E1M7 and E1M8) provide a genuine test of your skills. Both maps are hub-style, in that there is a central area from which you teleport to and from side-arenas. In the second map, several of the areas are based, to a greater or lesser degree, on ones from the original id maps. Throughout, you will face situations that seem desperate, but with suitable quantities of brains and brawn, it is possible to get through alive. Sometimes you'll just have to run and trust that the mapper has given you the means to survive somehow. There are also some slightly clever secret areas, which require a little ingenuity to find. In the second map, it may not be very obvious how to get out of the area that is based on the original E1M2, but a section of the outer wall will lower if you walk up to it. Design themes are varied, but given the piecemeal concept of the maps, this isn't unreasonable. It is notable that this wad features a voodoo doll - one of the earliest to do so (it is dated before Galaxia, and I only know of one - selfdead.wad - that is earlier). The lengthy story in the txt explains why it is there. Sort of. The txt also features a credit to Leo Martin Lim for one idea, so those who are familiar with their pwad history will know what to expect. Haslam's Book Store of Doom by Andrew Haslam 150kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - Yes, it's a map based on a real place - a family-owned book store in Florida, and made by a member of the fourth generation of the founding family of that store. It features a number of custom graphics to enhance the sense of realism, and no doubt the floor plan is accurate, though the architecture is not terribly elaborate, and it lacks any of the surrounding buildings that would add to the sense of place. I should mention that there are three versions of this wad, all available for download on the Haslam's website, though you'll need to import the graphics into the pwad, or use the installation procedure, which is based on dmgraph.exe (beware: this changes your iwad). The one I have converted and uploaded is the one described as "Manly" - it has a good population of monsters, and poses quite a challenge (on UV - there are difficulty settings) - my health was in single digits by the time I was finishing off the cyber and the spider. Note that to play it with Doom2.exe, you will need to use deusf, but there's no need to modify the iwad in that case. Canyon by Patrick Pirtle 99kb - Doom.exe - SP - 1 map - This large and tough level features a number of areas where height differences play a significant role, as you'd expect from the name. Gameplay is challenging, due to limited health, damaging floors and some close-quarters battles with packs of monsters. The design has its flaws, but the map is competently made overall. Geronimo by Berthold Krumeich 98kb - Doom.exe - SP - 1 map - Whenever I see a ski run called something like "Geronimo", I expect I'm in for an interesting experience, and most likely an adrenaline rush. Does the same hold for Doom wads? Well, this one is certainly intense and unforgiving, but once you've got to grips with it, it should prove manageable. Health is tight, especially early on (and don't miss the caco secret), and so the dark areas with hitscanners could prove a Doomer's graveyard. It's a moderately large map, with few shortcuts, and you may need to take a quick look at the automap to work out where to go at the start. The Gateway to Hell by Littl' Fonz, aka Jay Farinas 81kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - Another large and surprisingly brutal map - if you can survive this one at your first attempt, you're a better Doomer than me. Themes vary quite a lot, but it has a satanic feel for the most part, merged with tech/base sections. The action is constant, with plenty of ammo supplied, but health kept rather tight relative to the likelihood of taking damage. Note that you can get a BFG early on, and this will help deal with some of the archies that you'll encounter. njmaps by Nicol Jarvie 79kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 2 maps - Two maps by nj, but not the one you're probably thinking of. Both maps are small, and the first one is especially compact - in fact it feels more like a DM than an SP map, despite what the text-file says. It's all-action, with little place to hide, and so you'll be fighting a running battle until you start to get things under control. The map features significant height differences, and you'll need to perform a few jumps between pillars. The second map is a little less interesting, and offers a labyrinth of rooms which you're well equipped to clean out. Endoomed by Chris Bianchetti 73kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This wad draws its inspiration from E2M8 and E3M8, and this provides the basis for its name. However, it is no remake, and it isn't just a series of tedious battles with cybers or spiders. At one point you teleport into what looks like a hopeless situation, but at this point the hint in the txt will come in handy: "I goes before II." The map is overall quite a desperate scramble for survival, and you'll need to be alert, make good use of your resources and be quick on your feet to emerge victorious. By the way, I don't believe there is any way to get the stash of goodies at the start - it is just there as a trap. Garden by Topher List 71kb - Doom.exe - SP - 1 map - From the text-file: "Welcome to the botanical gardens of Deimos. My concept here was aesthetics. I wanted to create an indoor/outdoor scenario that would challenge experienced players and showcase Doom's graphics. ... It won't take much time to see that I have worked very hard to create a visually intriguing level. If you find any misaligned wall textures let me know." Those words were written in October 1994, and while the map is in parts bland or repetitive (even with a somewhat mazey area), it is quite well made, and not too boring to play. I stumbled upon one thing that seemed like a map bug, but it didn't actually leave me trapped. The level features plenty of outdoor areas, but nothing that looks to me too much like a garden, botanical or otherwise. Chester by Nic Bedford & Simon Davis 55kb - Doom.exe - SP/DM - 1 map - Another wad based on a real place - or at least the layout is based on the street plan of part of the city of Chester, in north-west England. However, despite having been to Chester several times, I really wouldn't have recognized it without comparing it with the relevant page in my trusty copy of Cheshire Town Centre Maps. Sadly, the map lacks the custom textures that would have brought it alive. Apparently the authors did attempt to represent some landmarks in the wad, but I think you would need to be extremely familiar with the place to recignize the little hints. Cross by Brad Hughes 55kb - Doom.exe - SP - 1 map - This level is woody, and not very tinny at all. In addition to wood themes, there is a good deal of nukage, and some green stone and riveted metal. Much of the action takes places in passageways, and the gameplay is kept lively by areas opening up (generally releasing monsters, more often than not imps) in areas that the player needs to revisit. The name comes, I presume, from the layout of the starting area, and on the whole the map features a lot of 90 degree corners. Not a bad map, though some may find it a little tedious, and the progression confusing. Some colour-coding is also lacking on doors that require keys. Cave by Chris Tierney 52kb - Doom.exe - SP - 1 map - The cave here is reminiscent of that in the original E4M2, and it sits alongside mainly tech areas. However, the most memorable aspect of this map are the close-quarters battles with cybers. However, the cyber battles are optional, and if you skip them, then there is just a relatively trivial fight with a spider lying between you and the exit. Andy's WAD by Andy Hoffmann 124kb - Doom2.exe - SP/DM - 14 maps - - - First of all, please note that this is not a good wad. Don't download it if you're looking for quality. However, there is a chance that you might find it quite amusing, or curious in some ways. It isn't completely clear if it was an attempt at a joke wad, or if Andy Hoffmann was looking to jerk people around - I don't believe it is simply inept mapping, given that there aren't many horrendous errors otherwise. In any case, it features some ideas of the type that have been pilloried in later joke wads. Fake icons (of sin) are a notable feature in a number of the maps, while ludicrously high ceilings (together with relatively slow lifts) appear in several. These height differences lead to some weird effects, such as what looks like a "rain" of caco fireballs, or being surrounded by monsters who can only pump their attacks into the floor. For me, the pièce de résistance is in map09, a huge room with what looks like an icon set-up. You need to drop down onto a platform in order to get your rockets to enter the gap. However, you're in for a nasty surprise if you do so, and in fact the exit is elsewhere. The little joke on map09 also means you can exit that map as a zombie, which makes map10 (a crushing experience) rather entertaining. Recommended only if you enjoy crackpot ideas. That was Grazza with those pretty tough maps. The rest, which was uploaded by funduke (although I did take on one of Grazza's uploads) were reviewed by myself (), except for the DM bits, done by [W4GH4X] (.) Zero by Vance Januszewski 61KB - Doom - 1 map - SP/Coop(/DM) - - - A relatively long map with a basic design; it's mostly a romp through underground "tech" themed halls and rooms, with rough texturing (sometimes misaligned and sometimes disregarding lighting conditions) and mostly frontal encounters. Health and armor aren't excessive and monsters are relatively abundant, though due to the availablitiy of ammo and the straightforward way the monsters come at you from an usually level position (height variations are relatively uncommon except connecting certain areas) the wad isn't too challenging. Too bad v1.0 by Tom Petrillo 38KB - Doom - 1 map - SP(/Coop) - This is a relatively simple underground cement bricks map with a more or less tidy layout. It should be able to provide short and decently action packed while not difficlt games, where the issue of its empty REJECT lump fixed. As it is, in the bigger rooms the monsters ignore the Player and Barrels cause no damage (additionally the map won't work outright with some engines, like Boom, and demo recording isn't possible with Doom.) 303 Sucks! v2.1 by Calypso 17KB - Doom - 2 maps - SP - - - The first map of this pair of levels is very rough and simple, and leads you to a bunch of Cyberdemons guarding the exit. Ammo is very tight and presumably the author wanted the Player to get through without killing all the cybies. The second map is a tiny bit more complex but equally crude, and pits you against a Spiderdemon and some lesser monsters, but is easier due to the presence of an Invulnerability and other power-ups (maybe at least one of these should have been in the previous map?) Moral of the story; don't make maps about stuff that sucks... and, an area code? DOOM Playland v0.36 by Yukihiro Ando 164KB - Doom - 4 maps - SP(/Coop/DM) - - - This wad seems to be an unfinished effort by a Japanese author made up of four maps which are somewhat (but not very) challenging due to the defensive positioning of the monsters, with a stair oriented architectual theme. The first map is based around a wide set of stairs that rises from a large room to another section above; it's not too hard though sometimes mobility is restricted (things, like decorations, can get in the way.) In the second map you face Cyberdemons and Barons of Hell, and it's one of those levels where you must do certain specific tings to survive (cowards staying in the periphery are likely to end up dead.) The third map provides some well guarded mechanical contrivances the Player must activate and cross. The last map is the toughest one, with tighter melees where infighting can play off well, but it can also be made easier by carefully choosing one's path, like the second map. PTDOOM by Phillip T. Wheeler 1055KB - Doom - 18 maps - SP/Coop/DM - - - - - - This is a set of two early episodes with a few new sprites to accompany them. The first of the two episodes is composed of maps we've already seen in the Planet wad compilation by the same author back in issue #257 of the Chronicles, and those maps aren't reviewed here specifically since they aren't essentially different. The new sprites come with an archaic DeHackEd patch that does some slight changes to the monsters, mainly the Baron of Hell that is transformed into a giant green fly of some kind. Curiosly the insectoid does not fly, though this could be because early versions of DeHackEd might not have allowed messing with the thing bits yet. In addition to the fly, the Cacodemon is swapped for a large metallic "cocohead", the possessed guys are turned into evil marines with red visors, and the Demon becomes a somewhat Alien-like monster, that we saw already back in #261 of these Chronicles. I must admit I didn't play through with the new monsters, as they felt a bit awkward (and as is evident in the main screen shots above.) The new maps are similar to the ones in Planet, yet generally more playable in a standard fashion, except maybe for the sixth map where armament is scarce. The theme is generally base or tech styled, with additional cavern-like areas, an almost Wolf3Dish bunker, and an urban environment. Overall, the designs are clean and often spacious layouts with reasonably tidy texturing. 3ripnwad by Ror, Jim, and Chris 120KB - Doom - 3 maps - SP/Coop/DM - - - Three levels by three brothers. The first one, "I be too tough for you", is the more developed and neater of the three, with the better combination of achitecture and enemy placement. The second one, "Lookout", is a rough mazy complex with a lot of monsters; it's difficulty is diminished by the simplicity of the architecture and the overuse of barrels. The last one, "Uberscrewed" is a somewhat shoddy and variously textured layout with a sequence of fights that ensue after new sections are progressively opened by the Player. The package contains two copies of each wad, as funduke has convenintly provided versions with proper REJECT lumps. My first adventure by Phillip S. Pittz 22KB - Doom - 1 map - SP/Coop - A simple and spacious level where you first face a bunch of Demons and then a couple of boss monsters. That's it. Aarrghh! by Oleg Tolstkhine and Alex Korobka 171KB - Doom - 5 maps - SP/Coop(/DM) - - - - An incomplete episode for DOOM which provides the first two maps, the secret one, and the last one, plus an unpopulated placeholder map for the rest. The levels are relatively challenging and sometimes a bit unforgiving. In the first map you move to and from a UAC-type base and a more gothicy area. The seocind map is based-themed again, and provides somewhat more of a challenge, but is still not too hard with a good strategy. The secret map is large and demands a more thought out route to avoid getting amushed in an unfair way, and is a generally tricky map. The last map is a basic final map with a couple or areas, and is generally the easier map due to infighting and the way the monsters are placed. Takeover by Martin van den Nieuwelaar 27KB - Doom - 1 map - SP(/Coop/DM) - - - A neat little tech base styled level which is not too populated but rather balanced, without being difficult. We also tried it on DeathMatch mode but it's somewhat awkward, as the starts and weapons aren't always close enough to each other. Tricky little wad by GEM 37KB - Doom - 1 map - SP(/Coop) - - - This tech base level's trickyness comes from its not always obvious progression, although that doesn't make it frustrating. The encounters against monsters provide decent fights, but they aren't really difficult. ZelDoom by Thomas and Denton 425KB - Doom2 - 1 map - TC wannabe - An unfinished Zelda TC; one monster, some weapons, some sounds, one decoration, a few textures, and some other miscellaneous graphics (title screen, etc.) have been changed. It seems it was heading in a relatively tidy direction, but contains only one demo map. Doom glove by an anonymous author 15KB - Doom/2 - Graphics replacement Eh... this makes the Rocket launcher look like a simplistic black/violet glove that shoots blue/violet DOOM press release beta energy balls. La femme by Elizabeth Orne 15KB - Doom/2 - Graphics replacement - This wad gives the marine a blue-eyed female face on the status bar. I'd say there's another more appropriate one on the archive, though. Sorcery by an anonymous author 22KB - Doom/2 - Graphics and engine hack This wad (along with its accompanying DehackEd patch) tries to turn some weapons into sorcerous equivalents. The Rocket launcher becomes a "fireball" spell, the Plasma gun an "icebolt" spell, and the BFG9000 something called God's wrath. Graphics modifications are minimal, merely some recoloring and the use of the hand/fist graphics, aside from the pick-up sprites. The DeHacked patch seems kind of glitchy, since the weapon pick-up text refuses to show up, and the Chaingun doesn't work properly anymore (it refuses to aknowledge ammo ran out.) The magic powers don't use up ammo, and they can each be picked up in the form of spellbooks with the spell name typed on the spine. T1000 look-a-likes for DOOM 3D by Paul Healey 54KB - Doom/2 - Graphics replacement - This turns the Shotgun guy into something somewhat akin to the T1000 from the Terminator movies. It's apparently suspended by and moves with boosters on its arm stumps (or whatever), and attacks with a long spike that comes out of the pubic area when the monster gets belligerently excited, from where it ejects its... pellets. No DeHackEd patch is provided, so out of the box this armless and legless thing is a wimpy monster! Stardog One by Stardog 57KB - Doom2 - 1 map - DM- - - - SP/Coop - - The open spaces and the many paths and ways to access the different areas make this map interesting for DeathMatch. Its construction presents a good deal of what's possible in map design, from stairs, "impilicit" elevators (small platforms that may be used as such), illusionary walls, and so on. It's hard to define a central room for melees, and during our testing we noted that each section had its own characteristics and difficulties; sometimes one needs to know how to move, in others how to wait and not despair over the possibility tof getting trapped. The weapons are distributed in a way that makes it necessary to cross a good deal of the map to fill our inventory, and each weapon will be important in the different situations the map can present; it's only a matter of choosing the right ones. On one-on-one games, the game will tend to be a bit slow, though it can be made somewhat dynamic if the players can anticipate things well, if they get a good bearing of the map, or get to know its nuances (wallrunning, etc.) In regard to using the AltDeath variant, it's worth noting that there are a number of Invulnerability spheres in generally accessible areas. Due to its size and contruction the map could well be suitable for team DM or free-for-all games. Recommended. ;) Though this map was made mainly for DeathMatch it has monsters, which have been placed decently for single player games. Fights can be uneven due to the layout, and on some parts can be easy while somewhat harder on others. Due to the size of the areas and the availability of power-ups, with a systematic approach the map can be handled with relative ease. Wildmatch by an anonymous author 18KB - Doom - 1 map - DM - - - SP/Coop - - This map has a central area where most of the DeathMatch starts are found, the rest aren't too far off. The design and construction of the central area allow camping and action at the same time. The windows on the walls of the central area allow monitoring the adjacent areas, but the weapons are mostly found in these adjacent areas, thus making frags likely in a variety of places. Acceptable for one-on-one and free-for-all with up to four players. This DeathMatch map also has monsters and encounters can get cluttered with the amount of enemies and decorations, but once you know your bearings (which is likely if you have played it on DeathMatch mode) the monsters aren't hard to defeat or avoid, as applicable or desired.

Okay, here it is, finally; The /newstuff Chronicles #266, old stuff edition. And it's a pretty good week too, if I may say so, with a whole fine megawad and other interesting things, including a school TC from '96 and a few additional fun-to-play wads. Grazza will start off as usual, with that juicy megawad and a few other goodies (including British cheese): I've only 42 maps to present this time, I'm afraid. However, this includes one very solid megawad from an otherwise unknown Russian wadmaker... Extremal Doom by Mikle Ilyin 756kb - Doom.exe - SP - 27 maps - - - - - This 3-episode megawad for (Ultimate) Doom is undoubtedly the highlight of this month's offerings. Its 27 maps are of generally high quality, with a fair amount of new graphics, competent (or better) construction, and gameplay that is well-balanced and challenging - one presumes as a result of considerable testing. Each map is fully playable from a pistol start on UV, though if you play it this way you may find some of the maps to be quite a scramble to survive until you have hit upon a good strategy. The maps are not jam-packed with enemies - they are more strategically placed, and you need to make good use of your resources, and in general exploit the fact that you are (I hope!) more intelligent than the Doom monsters. The maps are for the most part medium sized, with, as one would expect, smaller ones near the start of each episode. There were very few places where I was left wondering what to do next, and only at one point did I feel I was using trial and error (and that stage didn't last long, as the first and most obvious random act was what was needed to open up the next part of the map). I felt that the secret areas were especially well done. Often a somewhat tricky manoeuvre is needed to reach them - an awkward little jump or perhaps you need to spot a ledge that you can somehow reach. In almost all cases there is a visual clue of some sort. I didn't discern much in the way of strong and consistent themes, though there are certainly some tendencies. Several of the maps have a space ship/station feel to them, while there are a few attractive maps in more natural settings (rocks, caves, etc.), together with some nicely done town/city areas. I found the following maps to be especially memorable: E1M4 (good water areas and ledges along the banks), E1M6 (complex map - a real sense of achievement upon surviving it), E1M7 (superb map! somehow caverns, water and buildings are merged in a convincing manner), E2M2 (a fortress with good use of height differences), E2M3 (stone and water themes, and tricky battles), E2M5 (just excellent flow and balance, and a good idea for the secret exit), E2M7 (intense battles and some fancy footwork needed), E2M9 (it features a dockyard and a boat; you can't go wrong if you put a boat in your map), E3M3 (a city map on a grand scale - the textures work very well here), E3M6 (excellent use of height differences, and gameplay balanced on a knife-edge), E3M7 (a good spaceship), E3M8 (a creative and fitting finale) and E3M9 (secret maps are meant to be a bit weird, aren't they?). Extremal Doom's original date of construction is not clear. Hitherto it had only been available in remote and dimly-lit corners of the internet, because the author had made the mistake of distributing it as an iwad. Judging from his e-mail address, he may be from the port town of Tuapse on the Black Sea. This is a pwadized version, made by Andrey Budko with the author's agreement. Overall, I reckon most Doomers will want to download this, and should have at least several hours of fun with it. Callisto Anomaly by Vince Russett 322kb - Doom.exe - SP - 5 maps - - - First off, I would like to point out that the author of this wad is from Cheddar, home of the single most popular cheese in the world. There's a clear progression within these five maps, with the quality, complexity and creativity increasing as we progress further through the mini-episode. The first map kind of reminds me of opost21 (one of the first "good" pwads) in style, but with more errors, less variety and a greater need for backtracking. You might want to skip that one, unless you like that kind of map. In the second map, the author shows his credentials as an archaeologist: the map is based on actual plans of the Roman Baths at the city of Bath, England. Bath is just a few miles down the road from me, and the map did seem kind of familiar before I had read the text-file, so I guess he must have succeeded. As often happens when a real place is reconstructed within the Doom engine, the gameplay suffers a little. Sadly, the ancient Romans didn't give sufficient consideration to flow and connectivity. And the author ran into some limitations of the original Doom engine when trying to recreate the structure, and resorted to some slight kludges to get around them. Still, if Dooming in a real place gives you an extra tingle of excitement, this one should float your boat. The final three maps have more of an "accomplished mapper" feel to them. The construction is good, the level of complexity is a few notches higher, and the gameplay is tight and challenging. These three maps are all speedrun-friendly, with ways to reach the exit quickly (about a minute apiece). On the other hand, these maps could also have done with some more playtesting, since there are ways to get stuck in a few places. E1M3 is a dark and confusing affair, but fast-placed and fun. I can't quite place the music, though it has a definite 1980s feel to it. The same can be said for E1M4's music, though the map is a far brighter affair, with brushed metal walls, outdoor areas, wood and nukage in evidence, together with some non-obvious progression. Note that there is a teleporter in a nukage area for which different sides lead to different places. For E1M5 there are some hints of the Roman baths again, but dark corridors and nukage pools also make their appearance. There's also a narrow ledge to negotiate, and the odd jump to get some goodies. Overall it is a somewhat mixed bunch of maps. If you're feeling dubious about it, check out one of the last three maps and take it from there. The text-files are also quite amusing - in fact, I remembered some of the comments in them from when the maps first appeared, even though I had forgotten the maps themselves. For instance: "How the hell do the things reproduce? I mean, can you imagine a Mr and Mrs B.o.Hell?" OMG, Baronse in 1995. Aboo4 by Bob Reganess 447kb - Doom2.exe - SP/DM - 4 maps - - - Bob Reganess released a number of wads, which for the most part were quirky, if not rampantly eccentric - he was never one to feel bound by convention. He also made a large number of graphics, sounds and musics, many of which since appeared in a variety of other wads (including one by Alex Mayberry). This collection of four maps is not as polished as his more major releases (System Vices and Doomstone), and I presume they are some of his earlier or more experimental maps. The four maps are unconnected, and a couple (map02 and map03) are perhaps better maps for DM than for SP. Map01 offers us some sort of building together with an outdoor area (and plenty of teleporters to get about the place), and features two cyber-spider confrontations. Map02 is a large and somewhat surreal, wide-open arena, with some more twiddly side-areas. Map03 has stone, wood and some blocky design. It's overall quite bland, and we are allowed to exit the map early rather than face any of the larger (albeit one-sided) battles. Map04 is an odd mix, with the later "weird" areas more impressive than the house-style start (complete with tutti-frutti table). Demon's Feast by Cary Maucere 64kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - Here's the obligatory map for those who love to mow down large numbers of monsters. They're mostly small monsters, but the balance is good - you can die at more or less any stage of this map, especially if you are playing aggressively. However, there is nothing actually unfair - you can play it safe if you like, but whether that actually makes it much easier, I'm not sure. Initially, there is a lot of green marble, followed by areas with more wood than anything else. There's a fair bit of blood about too. The map's name comes from an area with tables adorned with health potions. Give it a go - it's a blast, with no frustrating aspects to the gameplay. Gogomap by Kurt Dillard 73kb - Doom2.exe - SP/DM - 1 map - While not a large map by any means, Gogomap offers a lot of action. It is based around "Go-Go Studios in Austin, Texas" (where the author worked) and "the cheesy Mexican restaurant across the street: Pato's. (Both the interior and exterior are REALLY that odd looking and mismatched)". Somehow it works pretty well, though it is a map of two halves, apart from the abundant possibilitities for infighting between the populations of two buildings. Gameplay-wise, you'll be running for your life initially, but once you've got things under control, it becomes a little easiser, assuming you haven't wasted most of your health, power-ups and ammo by that point. Omega by Steve Kraushaar 71kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This dark map offers a stern challenge from a moderate-sized monster population by putting the player in a series of somewhat awkward situations. The flow is good on the whole, broken only by a few places where a little waiting is needed and by the fact that some switches are not very obviously marked (differently coloured areas of wall in some cases). There is one significant bug that I found: there are two switches next to each other just after the blue-key door. You need to trigger the stairs in that room to build before pressing the switches. And you need to shoot a wall at one point. And to be aware that there are some little invisible steps leading up to the red-key and yellow-key doors. Otherwise, the map is fun. The decor features a lot of dark grey stone, and there is some nukage too. Lots of slow and noisy self-building steps and linedef-triggered ambushes complete the picture of a map that will delight some, and annoy others enormously. Zeh by Jeremy Zeh 42kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - An eponymously-named map is often not a very good sign. However, this simple but competently-made map plays quite well, apart from a little too much backtracking being needed in the later stages. An archie and a cyber could cause problems if you handle them badly, but otherwise there aren't any nasty surprises. If you like your maps to have rhyme and reason, you might want to steer clear; otherwise it is worth a quick look. The Stench Of Burning Death by PROLIFIC dEaTH WORKSHOP 70kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - - This is the first of two maps by "PROLIFIC dEaTH WORKSHOP" that have puzzled me for years since I first downloaded them. There appeared to be no legitimate way to exit either of them. What's more, the makers offered their services as wad repairers to other mappers. The problem turned out to be that the wad contained two versions of the map: one with too many doors that needed a key, while the other was a fully playable rendition, hidden away as map16. I have removed the buggy one, and moved the correct version to the map01 slot. It's an odd map, that's for sure. A challenge, but certainly not overwhelming by any means. The central area of the map features very narrow ledges à la map24, but don't worry: they're not so difficult, and it's no great disaster if you fall a couple of times. There are also some tricks to avoid having to walk the whole length of them. Branching off from there are several side-areas. Unfortunately, there's no real indication which is the right way to go when you haven't got any keys, so you may find yourself needing to backtrack. And that backtracking will need to be via those ledges again. Each side-area features a moderate battle, but you should be well equipped for them. There are some minor puzzles, but nothing complex. Overall, as long as the ledges don't bother you too much, there should be a good half-hour's fun to be had with this map. Sacrificial Suicide by PROLIFIC dEaTH WORKSHOP 68kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - - This is a map30, and this time the problem that had made the map unplayable was a node issue, creating some solid air where you really needed there to be normal gaseous air. Presumably they had done a last-minute node rebuild before uploading. Whatever, it's fixed now. You start off in an icon-type area, but there is nothing to be done there as yet. Early on, there isn't anything too difficult, but as with all the maps by these guys, you can't afford too many careless mistakes. And you need to be on the lookout for secrets and for walls that need to be shot. After you escape from the base, you reach an outdoor area with canals, which leads on to the boss area itself. The shooter is there, but where's the brain? I won't give the gameaway, but I'll just mention again that you may need to shoot walls, and that it would be wise to remember the map's starting area. The next part consists of the wads uploaded by funduke, plus one from RL. As last time [W4GH4X] has helped me with the DeathMatch wads, providing a bunch of the reviews on that mode of play. [W4GH4X]'s reviewed sections end with the red marker (), while mine with the yellow one (.) Arena for DOOM II by Daniel Griffiths 75KB - Doom2 - 1 map - DM - - - - SP/Coop - - - - A map to play whenever you're merely looking for some frags and a game without a complex tactical scheme. It's made up of an open central area where the heavier weapons are located. Around that area we've got long passages with enough armament to prepare us to go out without dying in the attempt, plus a few other items (power-ups) that don't make too much of a difference. Due to its size its recommended for at least four players in sake of more action, though it wouldn't be a bad idea to play on one-on-one mode if one has more time. Against the monsters you start off facing the inner arena, which is well protected and dominated by a Cyberdemon who wishes to grind your bones with its rockets. Other monsters back him up, making it riskier to just stroll in carelessly. Around the arena you've got two levels of passages; the tunnels (and adjoining rooms) in the preimeter from where you can navigate around the arena with relative ease, and a series of galleries bordering the arena proper. These galleries can be temporarily closed off with a mechanism that can also affect DeathMatch games a bit, giving moments of less direct action while the walls are up. A DOOM version of the map was uploaded with this one, and it's quite similar, except that the opposition is slightly weaker and there is no BFG (and that's fine for DeathMatch, since there is not SSG to face it off with.) Castle by Daniel Griffiths 35KB - Doom - 1 map - SP/Coop - - - - - DM - - This map is a small walled keep surrounded by a dangerous moat, plus a small adjacent tunnel complex with some goods in it. It's not too hard, yet the pelting Shotgun guys and an occasional roaming Cacodemon can catch you off guard over the walls, and hurt you enough, especially since health is reasonable but not overabundant. The main issues the map suffers from are VPOs in the outer area (most people can ignore these nowadays) and no exit. The VPOs are common enough to make one wonder how the author played the wad, since they even occur on low detail (but not with 5 screen blocks.) And perhaps the author intended that the map be played with -timer? Another curious thing is that on the outer area you can walk out the ends of short halls that would appear to hit dead ends. Other than that, at least is looks relatively tidy. It is possible that the map was incomplete, though there is no clear indication of this on the text file. Castle has various issues in DeathMatch mode, mainly the distribution of the weapons, that are found in places that require a previous effort to get to. In addition to the items within the walls or in the keep itself, there are additional ones outside. The size makes it best for about three players. Circle for DOOM II by Daniel Griffiths 64KB - Doom2 - 1 map - DM - - Coop - - - - Here we have a DeathMatch map with a particular twist of its own. It's composed of an encircling hall divided by similar room that each hold teleporters to the next such room (either way, back nad forth) and that surround a central room defended by crushers which guard shorter secret halls that hold useful items. In the periphery of the hallway ring there's some irregular tunnels that somewhat break the symmetry of the map. Due to the combination of crushers in multiple locations, teleporters, some additional barrels and doors that open automatically as you move through, the best way to hunt your opponent down is to listen to or observe (and peeking at the the automap becomes handy here) activation effects, which makes for a hunter-style game which is more interesting than usual. Confrontations are intermittent and mostly in generally confined areas (the rooms are never too big nor are they generally plain.) Single player is not really possible in this map due to the nature of the exit; the door to the exit room must be opened by one player while the other awaits near it. Cooperative play is quite possible, though due to the confined architecture and the circular layout it's best if each player takes a different path, joining up at the end, near the exit. Opposition is decent, as there are a good deal of monsters, some of which are of the relatively larger variety, in the hallways and smaller rooms. Ammo, though, is relatively plentiful. Fox (Map12) by The Fox 31KB Doom2 - 1 map - DM - - - - - A series of large rooms without evident relation between each other; some present characteristics that allow the player to hide in the dimness and camp for frags, while the others generally allow either long or short distance fighting. Weaponry is sorted throughout the map, and free-for-all games are recommended, or one could get bored. Private Hell, Part III Revisited by FLAGG (aka Matrix) 32KB - Doom2 - 1 map - SP/Coop/DM - - - - Seemingly the third of a series, this map was designed primarily with DeathMatch in mind. But the crude level is relatively big and DeathMatch games on it might be somewhat uninteresting. In single player the monsters are not many, but more or less sufficient for the map dimensions. There are lesser and medium-tough monsters that provide a light challenge without being too deadly at any point, but the ammo isn't excessive and the item/thing placement is not bad, so they aren't harmless either. Curiosly the the author made a mistake, and you need but two of the three keys to get through; one of the doors is marked for one key but is opened by another that you get earlier. Wizard's Rage II by Ernest Anthony Marino and Sal Gonzalez 142KB - Doom - 1 map - SP/Coop/(DM) - - - - A rather large and well-populated level where you infiltrate a base called Octa-Gamma. The wad comes with an intro text in EXE format and a separate map that goes with that intro briefing, showing you the overall shape of the base. The map itself is relatively tidy, with a scale where the textures fit in without glitches, and with carefully made geometric sections. The lighting is relatively even thoughout, with only slight variations to mark some areas, which gives the map a very simple but smooth appearance. The action is relatively constant as nearly all rooms provide opponents, while the progress can be pretty straightforward though some areas can cause confusion, such as the initial teleporter area, a maze section, and a toxic area which is not too easy to leave (especially if the Enviro-suit is gone.) For DeathMatch the map seems big; each octagonal section could serve as a fragging arena in itself. Wizard's Rage III: The Castle of Hell by Ernest Anthony Marino and Kim Roser 109KB - Doom - 1 map - SP/Coop/(DM) - - - - Here Anothony has tried his hand with a castle theme. The map is shorter than the previous map in this series (see above) and generally easier, but a bit more consistent mimetically (the other one was merely "a map", and consequentially didn't even have a subtitle.) The castle is relatively big, but in overall layout isn't complex. The start is the hardest part, where you must reach decent weaponry while shot at or followed from various sides, though not too hard as the monsters don't pelt you with anything you can't avoid. Inside the castle encounters are more controlled, but a bit tougher toward the end, though there's never anything truly nasty. Although DeathMatch is supported it fails to be exciting because the map is expansive and weapons are far apart and often not close to where the player starts. School-DOOM by Gotara, Gigademon and Faidros, with Jelly and Ostrowsky 1.8MB - Doom - 5 maps - SP/Coop - - - - Here we have a genuine TC themed in a school environment. If your kid shows psychopathic tendencies and has reportedly threatened school staff or mates with death, don't have him play this; his warped mind might get nasty ideas. But if on the other hand he's relatively normal, as most people are, he'll see this as the product of some kids (from a land where the media, or the concept of it, is relatively free) having fun and expressing school-bred frustrations in an entertaining way. In the wad most things have been changed (even the music is new), except some of the weapons and a couple of monsters. The new graphics are pretty basic and cartoonish, with simple shading and generally saturated colors, but the Pupils Of the CyberDemon have gone into a good degree of detail depicting places and things that could be found in an imaginary high school. The functionality of the monsters hasn't really changed, so don't be surprised if some teacher or school manager hurls some kind of odd energy ball at you (the DeHackEd work is mostly for the new texts, map names, and item pick-up lines.) The monsters say a few things when they spot you, though you need to know Finnish to understand what. The maps show many straight lines and its evident that imitating school architecture (including different floors within each map) was more important than coming up with layouts for fights with the monsters, though most rooms and halls provide ample space to move through and fight, and there isn't too much health, so it's not unchallenging. The secret map is conveniently used as one of the main maps to make a shorter episode that ends with a final text and scrolling screen (which is ingenously modified.) The secret map (E3M2) presents a slightly different "x-files" sewer theme that apparently hints at the powers behind the evil schools, plus the oddest gameplay in the wad. Additionally, obstructing flames have been used in the otherwise large maps to block off certain sections and leave the main areas confined for relatively fast-paced DeathMatch games (otherwise the maps would indeed be too big.) First map (E3M1) - DM - - This map's main playing area consists of four classrooms y two connected hallways. It's quite suitable for three or more players, though it's not bad for one-on-one games. Secret map (E3M2) - DM - - - This near-gigantic map tries to represent a sewer system, with an ample range of textures. As for the gameplay, it's not bad for any number of players; even though the rooms are large it isn't hard to find one's opponents. Second map (E3M9) - DM - - This is the park level, the "ecological" part of the wad :) It's spacious and doesn't provide much weaponry. In this map whoever has good moves, aim, and refelxes will be on top, though some tactic will also help. Third map (E3M7) - DM - - - This map is made up of various classrooms, bathrooms, etc. The size of the place is consistent with what it represents. Since players are continually opening doors it's possible to follow their progress through the map; and with so many rooms one can quickly hide by closing said doors, which can confuse rivals in regard to which door the opponent just used. Final map (E3M8) - DM - - In this stage players will have to deal with the "HyperDemon" that drops in from the sky (even when using the -nomonsters option), which is unavoidable, given that the exit is atop a slender rising pillar from where it can easily shoot you down. Only the Flame thrower and the Rocket launcher are available, the latter with enough ammo to destroy the evil boss. Even though when we tested the map we were already aware of the presence of the HyperDemon, one of us went forth and distracted it while the other equipped himself with all the ammo to eliminate it, turning the game into a kind of Cooperative DeathMatch for a while. After that the game became regular DeathMatch, since no other weird things came upon us. CompUSA 5 by an anonymous author 82KB - Doom2 - 1 map - DM - - - SP/Coop - - - This map is basically a shop or supermarket-like store, and you can navigate through the different departments, bathrooms, etc. You've also got outdoors sections, including a parking lot and a supply entry area. It's a good map for a varied amount of players, since it's got many rooms but a convenient size overall; on each game one'll get a wide range of variants in each player's actions which are naturally linked to the skill and abilities of said players. On single player mode this level provides a good amount of monsters and a proper amount of firepower. Some areas are a bit on the cluttered side, which may slow down the action a bit, but the opposition is steady enough to make play fun, especially since as you enter you get the impression that the monsters have turned the store into a hold from where to encircle and attack anyone coming in, especially in the main area. Office Building DeathMatch II by Stan Spielbusch 34KB - Doom2 - 1 map - (SP/Coop) - - DM - The smallish level was designed for DeathMatch, though it does include some monsters. For the most part, there are a number of medium or lesser monsters in the office building itself, and the bosses are scattered outside. The exit is close to the start, so the only point in playing single player is to go out and kill off the monsters. The available ammo is rather tight, if it can be made to suffice (probably so with good BFG usage, chainsawing, berserk punching and infighting.) On DeathMatch mode the map practically offers two separate levels on which to play, as except for a teleporter there is no direct connectivity between the building and the outlying outer area, except for see-through areas that aren't too suitable for armed exchanges. The inner upper area has numerous rooms but is compact enough to guarantee many encounters. The outer area holds the BFG9000, which can be pretty useful in the confined upper area. High by an anonymous author 19KB - Doom - 1 map - SP - - - This map starts you off in a central room surrounded by the rest of the map from where you have to access various doors stemming from it, your choices are limited and you have to go from one adjacent area to the next, and each area is relatively well protected. There's a persistent issue with the map, though, in more than one location; certain rogue linedefs have the property of doors, and if accidentally activated will bring whole areas continually up and down, locking off certain sections of the map (see the third screen shot above.) Headquarters by an anonymous author 51KB - Doom - 1 map - SP - - - - This a smallish map that uses its area pretty effectively, taking advantage of height variations intelligently to make separate but closely connected sections that give a good consistent impression. The main open area is dominated by bosses while lesser monsters roam the adjacent sections you must visit to get the necessary keys. The map is not particularly hard, and one is provided with a good amount of equipment to trash the monsters with, but it's pretty action-packed. Levels One to Six by an anonymous author 51KB - Doom - 6 maps - SP/Coop - - - - - - This set is made up of two wads with three maps each. The maps are pretty standard in design, with an indeterminate but rather tidy base style theme that varies gently from map to map. There are a few small HOMs but nothing critical. The sets strongest point is that it provides a good if not steep challenge, using the architecture well to deploy the monsters effectively and providing consistent amounts of weapons and ammo. The wad does provide DeathMatch starts, but it seems that it was not tested or planned out, since on some maps it's possible to be stuck in some room that is opened from a previous location during single player (and even at an initial start point.) The unofficial DOOM Shotgun FAQ by Denton Woods 20KB - Doom2 - 1 map - Informative - Here we have FAQ about DOOM's "third weapon", the Shotgun. It's pretty primitive, and lacks any detailed information about the weapon's functionality or any advanced usage tips against monsters or DeathMatch opponents. The package comes with a wad and a demo that attempt to demonstrate how the weapon works, and the demo includes a cowardly attack upon a Cyberdemon (the Cyberdemon Defense Commission has been informed.)

Hello! For this month's old stuff we've got quite a lot of maps again; Grazza starts off with his batch: Funny, when I agreed to share the workload for these "old stuff" reviews, I thought it was going to be a rather minor task each month... However, it's amazing how much cool Doom stuff isn't in the archive, even including work by famous mappers, and projects that were well-known at the time of their release. This month features a few 1990s creations with truly creative dehacked and graphical work, and a more recent bunch of good quality futuristic wads from Czech mappers. Wheel of Time Doom by Chad Moore, Kevin Moore and Elias Agritellis 1,735kb - Doom2.exe + dehacked + deusf - SP - 5 maps - - - - - This 5-level wad features a large number of replacement graphics and a dehacked patch that changes the gameplay to a very significant degree. There are also ambient sounds à la Aliens TC. Overall, it makes quite a coherent whole, and is definitely one of the more notable dehacked wads. Indeed, I have seen it listed in some old lists of "all-time best wads". Why it was missing from the archive, I don't know. Before going any further, I shoul stdress three points. Firstly, Wheel of Time starts on map03. Secondly, in many ports, even including some with generally good dehacked support, it won't work exactly as intended. This is in part due to a bug in Boom's dehacked support (specifically, for the "Max Health" setting), which has been copied by many ports. This generally results in the player having far more health than the makers intended. As far as I know, only Prboom-plus 2.2.6.25 and Risen3D handle this setting correctly. Also in Zdoom, the player moves too fast (you can modify the dehacked patch to prevent that) and the stone enemies in map03 wake up prematurely (this latter problem does not occur in GZDoom). Apart from the Max Health issue, Chocolate-Doom, Eternity and Legacy all seem to work OK. If you choose to play Wheel of Time in a port that doesn't fix this dehacked bug, it would be best to delete the Max Health line from the dehacked patch, though this will mean you are sometimes slightly penalized for picking up a health potion. Thirdly, it is quite a weird wad, with some intentionally strange behaviour. Some of the enemies are very powerful (on the other hand, so is the player), while others can walk through walls or resurrect themselves from the dead. Possibly this weirdness stems from the wad being based upon Robert Jordan's fantasy novels. I haven't read any of them, so can't say how faithfully it adheres to those texts (assuming that a Doom wad could do so to any meaningful degree). Anyway, if you dislike wads that differ greatly from standard Doom, and especially if you like your enemies to stay dead, you might have more fun just doing some sightseeing round wotdoom, rather than playing it seriously. Most of the weapons and enemies are modified or replaced. Those enemies that aren't used, are mostly employed instead for ambient sounds. Our weapons on the whole fire more rapidly and look totally different from the defaults. Unlike many BFG replacements, the übersword Callandor should not disappoint. In fact, it makes me think that this is what Quietus in Hexen should have been like. Accordingly, the enemies are faster, nastier, and appear to have some supernatural force behind them. The maps are mostly medium sized, with some straying into the large category. The style is coherent within each map, but varies widely from one map to the next - I'll presume this is due to the storyline it is based upon. The maps (which are best played as an episode, rather than from pistol starts) are as follows: The WayGate Temple: A standard sort of temple, with statues of monsters lining the walls. You need to grab some stuff and escape. You can guess what happens next. The Ways: A black void riddled with a complex of pathways, parts of which drop away at inconvenient moments. However, the action seems relatively sedate, but as you make progress, the opposing forces multiply (remember that some monsters can resurrect; the lost soul replacement is used to excellent effect too), and by the time you are making your way back towards the exit, you will truly be running the gauntlet. A classic map of the genre. The Eye of the World: An intense and prolonged battle in a waterworld. The Dungeon (of the Stone): The name describes this map pretty well. I'll add that it is large and violent. The Heart of the Stone: The final battle, where you claim the mighty sword Callandor and face the full might of your enemy. Actually, if you know where you need to go, it is a relatively easy map, and rather a fun slaughter. On a very technical note, you can get a spechits overflow on this map. I'll leave it to you to decide whether Wheel of Time is a neglected masterpiece or an overdose of weirdness - or both. I'll definitely recommend taking a look at it though, and feel that it should at least provide some inspiration for those seeking new ideas to use in their wads. Nemisis experiment by Harlequin (aka Justin Fisher) 527kb - Doom2.exe + deusf - it's mostly to demonstrate ideas; DM? - 2 maps - - - Yes, this is the same Justin Fisher who made Aliens TC, a wad that truly showed the modding potential of the Doom engine, using its resources and dehacked's potential in ways that no one had previously thought of, and with an originality that few since have approached. I'll give the next word to Justin Fisher (from his text-file): "I made this wad primarily to show how much untouched potential is left in the DOOM engine, as I often hear people giving up on WADs because they think there is nothing left to do that hasn't been done a hundred times already... If Nemisis looks like it has been done a hundred times already, then they are probably right, but hopefully it doesn't :)" He wrote those words nearly ten years ago, but today they still seem quite true; the fact that we are still here proves him right about Doom's continuing potential. The centrepiece of Nemisis, in this sadly unfinished form, is map02, the main area of which brings M.C.Escher's Relativity to life in a Doom map. One might consider it a tall order to recreate such a surreal environment, with up, down and sideways mingled so seamlessly, in a 2.5-D engine, but Justin Fisher, one of the great visionaries of Doom mapping, makes an impressive job of it. You should definitely get hold of Nemisis. Either as a glimpse inside the mind of a genius at what could have been, for inspiration for your own products, or possibly as an interesting environment for a deathmatch. Now we come to a series of 5 wads in the Fort series. The later ones represent more recent work by the author, so you might want to play Fort4 (largest) or Fort5 (best looking) first if you're not sure if you want to play all of them. Fort 1 by Martin Mirejovsky alias Duke 74kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This is certainly a solid start to the Fort series. It's a medium to large map with mostly unelaborate design, but some nice touches of realism: there are a number of shuttlecrafts (in a hangar), a desktop computer, some moving machinery, and so on. Generally, each area of the map "makes sense", and there is a sense of progression. Like the first four Fort wads, there are no custom textures, but intelligent use is made of the defaults. The architecture is rather squarish and lacks complexity, and the gameplay is not too challenging - health, armour and ammo are supplied in such abundance that you won't have to worry about them. There are also some poor decisions, such as a lift that takes too long, and map02-style waterways that needn't have been quite so lengthy. Still, it's not a bad map. Fort 2: Legenda pokracuje by Martin Mirejovsky alias Duke 358kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - - In the second Fort map, there is no mistaking the fact that we are on a spaceship, complete with sickbay, mess room, reactor core, shuttlebay, etc. There's also a little shuttlecraft out in space, which I thought was a nice touch. I would hazard a guess that Martin Mirejovsky is a fan of Icarus (it reminded me of several maps in that megawad), Star Trek, or maybe both. The space effect is not the result of a custom sky, or even custom textures (of which there are none - this surprised me when I checked in XWE). Gameplay is again quite gentle, with little chance of dying unless you're really distracted by the surroundings. Nice map, worth playing. Fort 3: Gamma 6 by Martin Mirejovsky alias Duke 366kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 4 maps - - Fort 3 finds us on a planet (perhaps we've teleported in?), but still in a largely hi-tech environment. Gameplay balance is a lot tighter than in the previous two, so you won't be able to do as you please here. I found myself using ye olde doore tricke on a few occasions, which helped the ammo situation a good deal. This is a multi-level wad, but each map leads on from the last, so there is full continuity between them. The environments vary, but the first really distinctive one is a submarine base (which has a crate room too, which will keep fans of such things happy). Those who like their tech a bit higher need not worry: we soon have a huge "reaktor" (and assorted paraphenalia, including fans, pulsating blue things and of course crates) to negotiate - it is quite well defended with hitscanners a-plenty. I recommend the coward's approach: some sniping and running, rather than standing and fighting from the outset. Then comes a slightly disappointing finale: a one-sided boss battle. Still, it's another unpretentious mapset that deserves a place on your hard-disk. Fort 4: Posledni uder by Martin Mirejovsky alias Duke 613kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 9 maps - - - - - With Fort 4, Duke seems to be flexing his muscles as a mapper. Here he takes us deep underground in an increasingly complex set of maps. He again does so using just the default textures - the only custom graphics are a modified sky and the cwilv images for the map names (in Czech). Judging from the maps and an image in the package, I'd say our mission here takes place in a mining complex that penetrates to a planet's core. If you can read Czech, then I imagine the info file is quite an exciting read. Each of the maps is fully playable from a pistol start (nothing more than moderate difficulty on UV), but for a more leisurely experience (and better flow story-wise), you can play them as an episode. The first few maps are small or medium sized, and feature lifts, tunnels and large underground tech caverns. In map05 we find ourselves in a larger environment, with some nukage-processing areas and what appears to be an old sewer system with some abandoned structures. Map06 brings us to the surface for an easy boss battle, and in map07 we remain at the surface for some more skirmishes (and a tricky start if you're playing each map from scratch). Map08 gives us a nice photo opportunity (see the 5th screenshot) after a brief battle. And from that screenshot, you can surely work out what we do in the final map - and it should certainly be a case of "gone in sixty seconds". Fort4 is another recommended download, though gameplay-wise there are only a handful of slightly tense moments. Fort 5: Navrat na pevnost by Martin Mirejovsky alias Duke 815kb - Doom2.exe + deusf - SP - 7 maps - - - - For this final instalment in the Fort series, Duke decided to include some custom graphics. Rather a lot of them in fact, and he used them to create a visual feast. The emphasis is firmly on quality rather than quantity, as these seven maps are all fairly small and pose little challenge from a gameplay viewpoint. Only in map06 (and if playing from pistol starts) does the player encounter any real resistance on UV. As in some of the earlier Fort wads, each map leads on to the next, but more than that, in Fort5 we often see parts of several of the other maps, and end up revisiting areas. One of the maps (map04) is in there purely as a linking area, so it is clear that Duke was focused mainly on story-telling here. The themes are snow/outdoor and tech/base, and the graphical effects include icicles, snow-covered trees, pulsating force fields and reactors, holographic display screens, and some very striking red and white pylon structures. There is also some use made of Quake2 textures and doors. If you just want to get a tour through the wad, you may be interested in the demos at DSDA by Gusta and myself. Anyway, you should definitely grab this wad. Akce Korian by Martin Mirejovsky alias Duke 540kb - Doom.exe - SP - 8 maps - - - - - - We come to our final wad by Duke. This is an episode for (Ultimate) Doom, made before most of the Fort wads, and as you might expect, the maps are generally less ornate and ambitious. There were also some technical issues with these maps that I amended before uploading: I sewed the eight individual maps together into one wad and rebuilt the nodes, as there were some serious problems with them as they stood (rendering the monsters harmless in some exes, or the behaviour erratic in others). There is little in the way of a challenge in these maps (e1m4 being a slight exception), but they aren't at all bad. If you enjoyed Duke's other wads, you might want to take a look at this earlier creation too - several of his favoured themes are in evidence, but in more rudimentary form. e1m6 has the most interesting design: we are on a vessel of some sort, with recognizable areas including bathrooms, a cinema and a discoteque. There now follow a number of single-map wads by Kelvin, who is webmaster of the Czech Doom site doom.kelvinet.cz, which is well worth a look. Planeta opic (Planet of the Apes) by Martin Milichovsky aka Kelvin 122kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - - First off, I'm not sure what this map has to do with Planet of the Apes, but let's not worry about that. It is a fairly large and action-packed outdoor map that should give most players a stern yet enjoyable challenge (maybe something like half an hour's worth). Gameplay is freeflowing and highly nonlinear - you must judge when to stand and fight, and when it is better to run, and in what order to tackle certain areas. Ammo balance is moderately tight - I managed to kill everything, but needed to berserk the last few monsters (on the other hand, I had completely missed the rocket launcher; see those 47 rockets I had left at the end - duh!). Design themes vary, with a rail system (nicely done), cages, boats, caves/tunnels and a little urban area near the end (maybe we're meant to have escaped from the planet of the apes by then... there's no Statue of Liberty though). The final area can be quite deadly, especially if you incautiously tread on an evil-looking symbol on the floor before the time is right. In conclusion, it is well worth a blast through if you're looking for some action. Bazilika (Basilica) by Martin Milichovsky aka Kelvin 101kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - A basilica is, according to one definition in my dictionary, "a large oblong hall, with double colonnades and commonly a semicircular apse ... ; [or] a magnificent church formed out of such a hall". The map delivers such a feature at its heart, together with some more standard adjoining areas. Gameplay is definitely on the hot and spicy side, with a cyber near the start (no, you do not fight this cyber at this point - grab the yellow key and run!). Once you have scrambled into the basilica, you should be able to make more normal progress through the map (you'll need to think at a few points though), and return to whoop that cyber's ass a bit later. Verdict: probably worth downloading, but it might prove a bit frustrating. Fastkill by Martin Milichovsky aka Kelvin 41kb - Doom2.exe - SP/DM - 1 map - A small map, that as the name suggests shouldn't take very long. If you play carefully, it isn't difficult at all. Should be fun for speedrunning (both Speed and Max). Fastkill-2 by Martin Milichovsky aka Kelvin 41kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This is an example of how a highly linear map can be a lot of fun. The strategy is simple: run! The opposition is fairly light but strategically placed, and overall the balance is good - you can kill everything, but you don't have a huge surplus. The map has that well-planned and well-tested feel to it. Note, for instance, that immensely useful little alcove just before the arch-vile. The replacement music feels very appropriate, and fans of the ouch face should greatly enjoy the early stages. G8 by Martin Milichovsky aka Kelvin 77kb - Doom2.exe - SP/coop/DM - 1 map - This map starts off in a scene of urban warfare, with barricades, tanks, heavy guns and an explosive charge that you have to set off (no bang though, disappointingly). We then move into a KFC that the demons have taken over. Thereafter we enter more typically Doomy surroundings for some intense battles. I felt the start promised a lot more realism than the map actually delivers, but it's still fun to play. gymnazium-pacov by Martin Milichovsky aka Kelvin 154kb - Doom2.exe - SP/coop/DM - 1 map - A large "school" wad, with some fair attempts at "realism". There's a limit to what can be done without custom textures and while making it "work" as a Doom map, but there are many hints that we are in a school, with blackboards, computers, toilets, etc. However, it is also clear that this was one of the author's earlier maps, with some distinctly ugly texturing. The gameplay isn't overly tough, though you can get into trouble if you are careless. Vezeni (Prison) by Martin Milichovsky aka Kelvin 82kb - Doom2.exe - SP/coop - 1 map - - This rather more recent Kelvin wad represents a prison, and somewhat more successfully. Here we find cells, secret passages, a death chamber, exercise yard, air vents, storage rooms, a well-stocked armoury, and a desperate escape via a poisonous drainage channel. And finally, Cyril? And finally, Esther, we have a couple more wads from Czech sources: Rainbow Software DOOM II WAD 2 by Ondrej Zary 87kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - - This fairly standard Doom map (in both design and challenge) is medium sized and has an attractive replacement sky. It is a base-style map with a variety of areas. For instance, there's a map02/underhalls complex that is somewhat larger than it needed to be, some nukage processing and an outdoor area with a cyber (you have various ways to deal with the big guy) and a road with overhead lighting. Not much more to say - the overall construction is of good quality and the ammo balance not bad at all, though the action could be tighter. WARm Welcome 2 by Vit Bockstefel 44kb - Doom2.exe - SP/coop/DM - 1 map - This small-to-medium map offers some tricky moments, which become somewhat less tricky if you find a few of the extremely useful secrets (in fact, the ammo balance is hugely in the player's favour if he finds just one or two of them). There isn't much of an attempt at realism, but the gameplay holds together well: the flow is good, and there are few dull moments. Connectivity is good, which should make it an interesting map for DM too. Hacx Recently, not one but three versions of the full Hacx game have appeared in the archive. Most of you will already know what Hacx is, and have probably played the full version. Therefore these comments will be brief, and mainly for the benefit of those who don't know what Hacx is, or have only played the shareware release. Hacx was a full-blown TC for Doom2 that was released commercially (under license from id software) in 1997. While it runs under the Doom2 engine, it does not use a single graphic or sound from the Doom2 iwad - in fact, if you add just a colour palatte to Hacx, Zdoom will happily run it as an iwad in its own right. Much of the behaviour is heavily modified by an extremely complex dehacked patch. The only thing not replaced in their entirety are the maps, as Hacx was released as an incomplete game (21 maps) for reasons explained here. I don't know how much of a commercial success Hacx was, but I get the impression it wasn't a get-rich-quick scheme for the guys who made it. Anyway, in 2000 they decided to make it freely available, though not freely distributable. Later though, this was changed (see this), but this change in the permissions seemed to go largely unnoticed. This permission to distribute freely is the reason it can now appear in the archive. The Hacx site provides a variety of information, including the story and screenshots (BTW, 14 and 15 are mixed up). The story kind of explains why at certain points in Hacx you dive through a computer screen and end up in some weird graphical representation of cyberspace. These are surely among the weirdest levels ever made for Doom, and I guess you either love them or hate them. OK, it's time to describe the three packages: Hacx (Files-only package) by Banjo Software 9,333kb - Doom2.exe + dehacked - SP/coop/DM - 21 maps This is probably the one that most people will want to download, as it gives you everything you need to play Hacx with a port (and may also be simpler for those who want to use Doom2.exe too, as long as they are familiar with the process for loading dehacked patches). Essentially, these files are what you get from running the installation package. Note that the dehacked patch is absolutely essential - don't try to play Hacx with ports that don't support dehacked. Note also that if you want to use Prboom, you'll need to use the modified version Prboom-plus, as a number of relevant issues have recently been squelched in that, as a direct result of testing it with Hacx and the various demos recorded for it. Like Wheel of Time (discussed above), Hacx's dehacked patch uses a "Max Health" setting, this time of 400. This is meant to apply only to health bonuses, but many ports interpret it wrongly, allowing medikits, stimpacks and berserk to increase health all the way up to 400. This has the effect of making Hacx a lot easier than was intended. Again, as far as I know, the only ports to handle this correctly are Prboom-plus 2.2.6.25 and Risen3D. In other ports, you'd do better to delete that line from the dehacked patch - though this will mean that if you have picked up the "megasphere", subsequently collecting a health bonus will knock your health down to 200% - painful! A couple more comments about the files are in order. Firstly, as explained on the Hacx page, this is not quite the same as the actual commercial release. It is a very slightly earlier (but fully complete) version, because some changes were made for the commercial release that introduced some little bugs. Secondly, there are two dehacked patches included. These differ only in the amount of health given to four of the monsters. Why is this? Well, Nostromo released two different versions (presumably by accident) when he made Hacx freely available - the one in his files-only package was the one with extra health compared to the installation package (thanks to myk for discovering this fact). The higher-health version matches that for the Hacx shareware, while the lower-health one works with the internal demos in the wad. Which is the "correct" one is hard to say. Note that they have both been used for Hacx demos, so if you want to watch these demos, you'll need to use the right dehacked patch (Sam Woodman used the higher health, while Sushkov and Bondarchenko used the lower for their TAS demo). Hacx (Installation package) 11,532kb - Doom2.exe + dehacked - SP/coop/DM - 21 maps - This is the most "authentic" Hacx package, as the game was distributed in the form of an installation package. So, if you want to experience the DOS installation process just as those who bought Hacx in the 1990s did, you'll want to grab this. This package also includes both dehacked patches. Hacx (tweaked for Legacy by Jive) 9,756kb - Legacy + Doom2.wad - SP/coop/DM - 21 maps - It would make sense to try this version if you'd like to play Hacx in the Legacy port. That was Grazza with his selection of interesting mods and Czech maps. The rest of the old stuff, uploaded by funduke and RL, were reviewed by [W4GH4X] and myself, as noted in italics: Alley by Carolyn Schulenburg 25KB - Doom2 - DM/(SP/Coop) - 1 map - - - A spacious map, with the classic central zone where most melees take place; most items can be found in this area, except the weapons, which you can find arranged in secret areas and hidden passages. Though the author recommends playing 1-on-1 games, it'll doubtlessly permit decent 4-player games (FFA and two-on-two team matches.) [W4GH4X] Alley of the floating things - Carolyn's map has monsters as well, though they were apparently placed to accompany DeathMatch games as was wont in the earlier days of wad-making; they aren't many nor particularly powerful, especially if one avoids going postal immediately upon reaching the outer court (where the Lost souls may become annoying) and instead seeks firepower in the adjunct halls and hidden doors that extend from it. myk Building by Kurt Schulenburg 36KB - Doom2 - DM - 1 map - - - - A good map for 1-on-1s; a central building with many rooms within, and with stairways and doors where one may find weapons. Recommended for one-on-one DeathMatch v2.0 games. [W4GH4X] DeathMatch "Crusher" Arena I by Eddie Walton 28KB - Doom2 - DM - 1 map - - An arena with big wooden stairs; the central zone holds the arms needed to receive the "victims" :) that come from the adjoining rooms, surrounded by mechanisms; you also get the weapons there. Recomended for games with three or more players. [W4GH4X] Wads of the Damned, Part one: Bloody Dreams by Sean McCulley 88KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/DM - 3 maps - - - - - - - - These are maps of interesting construction, good for tactics combining rapid movements. The different areas connect through teleporters and narrow passages. They were made for games with two players, or perhaps a maximum of three players. [W4GH4X] Thrice damned - This is a trio of relatively challenging maps; the first is a fortified complex riddled with well-positioned monsters and toxic areas, the second combines darker areas and tougher monsters to squeeze the life off the marine, and the third pits the player against bigger bands of opponents. I've noted a couple of glitches though; VPOs are possible in map01 (so you might want to avoid using either Doom2 or Chocolate Doom) and in map03 you may get stuck in a room, with nowhere to go. The text file gives a preview of each map, so you might want to check it out if you want more details on what they might offer before you play. myk JadeDoom: Return to Hell by Jason Brown and Dave Potelle 51KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map - - A military base surrounded by a great desert. The weaponry's distributed in each of the buildings that make up the base. Games between two players are certainly plausible, though for faster and more frag-filled games four (or more) players are recommended. [W4GH4X] Sand, wood and concrete - - - This relatively simple map by Jason and Dave is also suitable against the monsters. The initial part is open and rather dim, making the zombies a bit more dangerous to your health, but once you start getting enough ammo and kill enough of them you'll note the opposition is not too heavy. The latter (concrete tunnel) part is a bit less difficult overall as you aren't that much exposed to the enemy. myk King of the Fort by Robert Carlson 35KB - Doom2 - DM - 1 map - - There are only two paths to the fort in the middle of the map, where one may find necessary firepower. Leaving that fort is easiest through the teleporters. The map's construction ensures entertaining matches for any number of players. [W4GH4X] Death Frag by Keith Williams 35KB - Doom2 - DM/(SP) - 1 map - - - - Excellent map made exclusively for DeathMatch, quite imaginatively combining areas with different feel. The map's size is perfect for quick games where players can play off varoius situations, put their skills to good use, and test their capacity to employ themselves in a varied environment. Quite recommended!!! Play it now, suckers!!! [W4GH4X] Megadeth 2 v1.1 by Jaswant S. Hayre 214KB - Doom2 - DM/(SP/Coop) - 1 map - - What predominates in this map is the Rocket launcher, thus the map can comfortably be played using DeathMatch v2.0 to avoid ammo shortages which the desperate shooting may generate. The map includes two easily accesible hidden rooms. [W4GH4X] Subterranean rocketeers Notwithstanding what the author says on the text file, this map does have some life to it when played against the monsters, especially if you try killing them off (as opposed to just running over to the exit.) The reason is that some of the monsters are well positioned, and you don't have that much ammo or health at hand, at least initially. myk Death to the Phuct by PhucK 6KB - Doom2 - SP - 1 map - - This is a relatively small map composed of 6 rooms, 5 of which are loaded with lesser monsters, aside from the Cyberdemon that's located in the last room. The challenge resides in finding a way to cross each of the rooms with weapons of meagre destructive power, thus obtaining the 2 keys required to access the final room. The number of possible strategies that allow us to complete the map are pretty scarce. Although for each room we can use a different strategy, the quantity of permutations we may effect with all of those is also a pretty insignificant number. After testing the map on both skills 4 and 5, it's evident that not losing control of each door is a practical way to move through while staying in good health, not letting many monsters come through simultaneously, generating an uncontrollable situation, more so on skill 5. As for the last room, the one that seems the most tedious to cross at first glance, it's actually the easiest, since one may easily move amid the monsters (which face away from the door you enter by) over to the exit switch. As far as the map's construction goes, it's at all points square (from a 2D perspective) or cubic (seeing it in 3D); the lighting level allows one to see each part of the map. One needs to make use of the available arms and provisions to complete the map on any difficulty skill. [W4GH4X] G50 by an anonymous author 52KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map Beneath the Big Apple - - - - - This subway themed map someone made over a decade ago has a relatively tidy design, and can be played on any mode. For DeathMatch it is admittedly a bit big, especially for one-on-ones, though the sections coprising it are well-connected, so its still playable even then. Against the monsters it's not too tough; there's ample space to move around in and enough places where one may take cover from enemy fire, which is never too heavy as long as one is careful about rogue snipers (Heavy weapon dudes or Arachnotrons, mostly.) myk Doompit v1.7 by David B. Cox 43KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map Two tiered town - - - This square map is made up of two urban-themed sections, a lower central part with ramps over toxic sludge, and a surrounding upper section. On DeathMatch mode the upper section grants the advantages of a higher ground (being able to ponce at them, as opposed to having to use the lift) and of surrounding the opponents, but the lower section has a better arsenal, which becomes very powerful on AltDeath mode because of the many Megaspheres. Against the monsters you start below, in a well-provisioned room. The presence of Cyberdemons both below and above can make the map relatively deadly, especially as there isn't too much open space (though the areas aren't narrow either) though you do get a BFG9000 and once enough monsters are killed the Cyberdemons are easier to keep track of and nail down. myk The Rand Trilogy by Rand Smith 340KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/DM - 3 maps Parks, German seamen and concrete spaceships - - - - - Here we have a set of three maps; the first in an open area crossed by a river, the second a wooden sailing ship at sea, and the third something like a flying spaceship or some sort of floating complex. The first map is playable on DeathMatch mode due to its open design, although it's a bit big overall, while against the monsters it offers intermittent battles over the outdoors landscape, so while it can be the more challenging of the three if one is persistent against the monsters, it can also be relatively easy if one tries to avoid combat. The ship is somewhat underpopulated for single player, and is a bit more suitable for Deathmatch due to its size. The last map sprawls a bit so it's slower for DeathMatch, but more standard than the others in regard to single player mode. myk Such a Pretty Sight by Ashley Gilliam 17KB - Doom2 - DM - 1 map Gilliam's Island - - - A compact DeathMatch map; due to the use of some obstructions and that you don't spawn with weapons too near at hand it is of moderate dynamics, but quick enough because of its size. The Shotgun is the most obvious weapon, while the Chaingun is on a boat or separate smaller isle from where you can snipe at anyone on the central island. The SSG is in a box temporarily opened by a switch, so it's a bit less accessible. myk Doom II War by Rhys Southan 42KB - Doom2 - DM/SP/(Coop) - 1 map Barrel the door - - - - This is a meduim sized DeathMatch map with various interconnected rooms. most rooms have a decent amount of space to duke it out in and a number of devices are used to enhance the game, such as lifts and closing doors, and notably on doors will be jammed by (explosive) barrels once they are initially opened. Playing against the monsters it starts out rather deadly, but gets easier from there on. myk DMGWAR by an anonymous author 8KB - Doom - DM/SP/Coop - 1 map Damage War? GWAR? - - Here's a smallish amorphous startan themed map in one room. You can shoot the Spiderdemon's ass while it kills the Baron of hell. On DeathMatch mode its a bit more fun but pretty random between the facts that you're both always more or less in the same area, and that the map is relatively dim. myk Quick Kill DeathMatch by Eric Sheier 42KB - Doom - DM/SP/Coop - 1 map Up and down and around - - This map was designed for DeathMatch, although during one-on-ones there are noticeable lulls in the action, so it might be wiser to invite more players, maybe even Michael J. Fox. The map displays relatively varied heights; stairs, lifts, and higher and lower rooms that face each other though windows. This makes for intermittent interaction during DeathMatch, especially since sometimes you lose (eye) contact and wander in different directions. Against the monsters it is not really tough, but it seems a bit more dynamic than on DeathMatch with few players. myk Showdown in Doomsville by Eric Sheier 21KB - Doom - DM/SP/Coop - 1 map A second effort - - - - Another wad by Eric (see right above), and like his first one it was designed primarily for DeathMatch. In this attempt he succeeds more effectively, and the wad is more action packed and consistent when player against another marine. It shares some qualities with his first creation, mainly in the way he set up areas with different heights. But this time the map is more compact and the areas are generally seperate parts with a decent space for melees. On single player mode we also get a more interesting game than on Eric's first attempt, as this map offers relatively constant action (even though its not really tough; the monsters are small.) Eric has added a music lump (as he did in his earlier creation) that, according to him, "puts you in the mood to kick butt." myk Carl by an anonymous author 21KB - Doom - DM - 1 map Simple blastathon - - This is a one room DeathMatch wad, kind DMGWAR above, except that this map is more consistent, and actually offers a decent game, especially in DeathMatch mode (as opposed to AltDeath where the many Megaarmors and Supercharges would disrupt play.) The lighting level is proper, the arms are laid out in for quick access, and the general design allows good usage of most weapons (though the more powerful ones are favored in such an environment.) myk Deth E2M2 by an anonymous author 11KB - Doom - DM - 1 map Join the plasma dance - - And another simple DeathMatch map joins us. This one offers quick Plasma Rifle and Rocket launcher matches throughout a series of interconnected circular rooms. The Plasma rifle generally dominates play, but the Rocket launcher's quite good for surprise kills when closing in. myk Chess by an anonymous author 23KB - Doom - SP - 1 map Against the checkerdemons - - An attempt to put chess into DOOM. The author evidently went for something that would provide some sort of tactical challenge, as opposed to simply putting monsters on a checkerboard. It's possible also that the columns were not as thick initially, but that VPOs (which can still happen along with some HOMs) forced him to change them, since as they are they practically divide the map in two separate rows of monsters (except at the ends where the weaker ones reside.) Infighting and even quickness may allow one to finish the map without even killing the Cyberdemons, and killing them is not hard as long as the player is good at moving around (cover is easy to get.) It is odd that no DeathMatch support was added for such a compact map, but perhaps the map was discontinued before it was esentially finished due to the VPOs you can get. myk The CPU by Christen David Klie 47KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map Tech support in hell - - - Last month we had some Dr. Sleep, now some Klie (though actually I had missed this wad last month), another "master" author. This map follows a "computer" theme, although I wouldn't be sure it's supposed to be a tiny marine inside a CPU, as funduke seems to imply, but that the marine is attacking a complex that's dominated by a megacomputer. Like most of Klie's maps this one isn't too tough, but it's otherwise consistently balanced; you'll find a decent opposition throughout with enough ammount of ammo and health, but not an excess of either. Unfortunately we did not have an opportunity to try this map on DeathMatch mode, but it seems it could offer some decent matches. myk Fort Doom by Mark Tissue 51KB - Doom - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Fortified victims - - - - A classic-styled keep/fort map where you start off at the entrance and make your way in. There's a good amount of ammo as you go, so the fights are never too perilous, with sufficient healing items along the way as well. DeathMatch is supported, though it seems a bit awkward for it (though it might be fun to frag each other around the central entrace area.) myk 2-Wad by an anonymous author 50KB - Doom - SP - 2 maps Protohell revealed - - - - Two early "horde" maps; they are roughly constructed but contain a good number of monsters (though they could contain many more, considering their dimensions), plus one of each greater boss per map. and also have lots of ammo and healing items. There are some standard halls-and-rooms areas as well as wide open sections (particularly near the Cyberdemons.) The maps aren't hard, as most of the tougher opposition is placed where one can comfortably attack it, so these maps are best played by trying to eliminate the opposition quickly (i.e., max-run style.) myk Abyss by Rand Smith 25KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map Nazis beneath the waves - - Another wad by Rand (see The Rand Trilogy above) where he shows again that he likes to create locales; in this case an underwater base. The map does not contain many opponents, and seemingly the desired effect was to scare the player, especially in the upper halls, where the sides are open and you hear the Spiderdemon to one side and growls to another. These adjacent areas aren't connected to the halls, so they are just scary, and not really dangerous. Perhaps this map would do best for DeathMatch (but we had no chance to test it so.) myk Deceit by an anonymous author 48KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Loma del culo, Inc. - - - This is a relatively intricate map with various similarly designed areas, overall it's a "maze" like funduke said in the text file, but not one of those simple mazes that are practically nothing but winding hallways. The monsters provide a decent opposition but there are a few problems as one progresses through the map; the first and perhaps least being a plats related error (this doesn't affect modern engines and is probably an oversight) as well as a couple of areas where you may get stuck (getting one of the keys and before the yellow key door.) Additionally, some rooms contain multiple teleporters, most of which hurl you off to previously visited areas of the map, which can be pretty frustrating for anyone trying to play the map in an honest way (not cheating nor saving every minute, if at all.) At first these are sets of three teleporters, but near the end there's a room with many more. No idea what the author's point was, but those cease to be a problem only once one knows which the right one to take is, and by then all the annoying ones are nearly useless. If one learns where these teleporters go the map can be decent; otherwise it's a pain in the butt (literally if you sit there trying to complete it for a long time.) myk Dude's unfinished wads by Dude Krueger 77KB - Doom2 - Editing - 2 maps Lands of emptiness - - Here we have 2 incomplete maps. They don't look bad, but aren't really playable and are offered so that wad-makers can use them as a base. The author set them to map33, but also provided copies on map01. Actually, map33 doesn't always work on Doom2. At least not on my computer. myk Entryway-2 by Dude Krueger 25KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/(DM) - 2 maps A moist entryway - - This is that Dude guy again. Now he thought DOOM II's map01 isn't good enough, so he made a new one. It's a wheel shaped map, with a pool in the middle, wheel spoke-like halls, and then two adjacent facing sections. The map might be suitable as a first level due to its size, though the item placement is a bit odd. The overall architecture seems TNTish (i.e., akin to the Final DOOM wad) for some reason. myk Hour of Doom by Terry Neve 27KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop - 1 map A time for doom, too - - - This is a classically constructed DOOM II level that provides a decent if not spectacular challenge; the monsters, while not too many, are often placed strategically, and the items available are relatively consistent with the opposition's force. myk Mental by an anonymous author 38KB - Doom2 - DM/(SP/Coop) - 1 map The unknown complex - - This is apparently a DeathMatch map, as monsters are place somewhat haphazardly and it's possible to exit the level without facing any, although they can pose a threat initially if one goes against them (it gets easier once one clears off the central area dominated by the Arch-vile.) We didn't manage to play the map on DeathMatch, but while it seems a bit big for furious matches, it does offer many interconnected areas from where to strategically weaken opponents or otherwise ambush them. myk Nazi by an anonymous author 22KB - Doom2 - SP - 1 map Assault on Hitler's library - - This is a meduim or smallish sigle player map. It's relatively linear and not too rough, though it can be more fun if one pushes it. Progress is not always clear, but at least the map is small enough that one will eventaully find the way. myk R91 by an anonymous author 58KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map Cybersports center - - This maps seems to be, by all indications, by the same author that made G50 (see above); the wad name, the zip name and the general mapping style all coincide. Both seem the recreation of a somewhat urban environment and both include a big boss, with a similar difficulty level (this one being tougher by a little, perhaps.) This map should be suitable for DeathMatch, but might be a wee bit big for one-on-one games. myk Revenge by Todd L. Kolmodin 15KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Against the spiders - - A pretty straighforward DOOM II map that offers some tight fights but nothing very difficult. It's mostly of the "halls and rooms" variety, except for a large Arachnotron courtyard and the area where the final bosses reside. myk Room of Doom by Patrick Mills 6KB - Doom2 - SP - 1 map Not ready for doors yet - Here's one of those brightly lit crude one-room maps where you start surrounded by ammo and powerups, and the monsters are randomly scattered about looking the other way. myk You're Skrewd! by PhibeR OptiK 8KB - Doom2 - SP - 1 map Messing up the floor - - This flat a square-roomed map relies on a bug to offer a "choose the right path" scenario; the switches in two final rooms raise the floor to a point where you're trapped, while the other final room holds the true exit switch. Naturally, making a map girate around such a concept makes the map get little replay value after you've discovered the true exit, and in this case the shape of the rooms don't offer very interesting fights; at best you can push through, going for more deadly chaotic fights in the rooms, and at worst you'll manage to kill the monsters through doors under a slower but safer strategy. myk The Downward Spiral by Patrick Mills 8KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop - 1 map Just one hall - - - By the author of Room of Doom this is a generally wide squarish hallway that winds itself to the exit. The monsters along the way have little chance, if any, against an average player due to the ammo (and powerups) provided and to their deployment (enmasse, unprotected, and sometimes on lower ground. myk The Trial Zone by Bob Back 72KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map To enter one's mountainside - - - - This dim "rooms and halls" map is relatively challenging due to the lighting, the monster placement and the decent ammo ratio, though never very hard. There is a lot of terrain transformation as you go, as areas rise or open. We tried it on Cooperative mode, but due to the way the tunnels and rooms are laid out, the players are generally separated, or if they aren't there's a chance they may hurt each other (due to the dim lighting.) myk Trial by The Arachnotron 22KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop - 1 map Temple of the spider - - In this meduim-small sized map you move through several sections with relatively tough monsters. Ammo is abundant but not excessive, so the fights are pretty decent if not hard. Since there's a good amount of space throughout the way, Cooperative play works out, even thoough the opposition doesn't really change and instead you share the goods, which generally come in pairs of caches. myk The Vault by Derek Waters 39KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Going down there - - Derek reworked his DOOM map a bit to make it run with DOOM II instead. It's still pretty much a "DOOM" map, as little from DOOM II is used. Also, the design is of the classic DOOM "dungeon" type with many halls and rooms, and weaker monsters thoughout, unlike many DOOM II add-ons that are more open and include tougher enemies. myk Expo by an anonymous author 52KB - Doom - SP - 1 map Heartless walls - - - This map by an identified author is rough, yet in addition it suffers from certain bugs; a VPO in the blood pools outer area, two instances where rogue linedefs raise whole areas and thus destroy the map (one at that strange construction guarded by Spectres, Lost souls and Imps, the other at the causeway guarded by the Baron of hell), and a very heavy medusa effect before the exit. Play is uneven, with some moderate fights and intermittent moments of uneventful wandering. myk Fred by Gary Comer 40KB - Doom - SP - 1 map Fred who? - - - - This is a debutant level, and it's pretty archaic. The author managed to create separately themed areas and a progressive opposition; you start out fighting one or two small monsters at a time in more confined areas and later move on to relatively open areas with more opponents. There is plenty ammo and healing items are sufficient, so progress is never difficult. myk Lamour 1 and 2 by François Lamoureux 522KB - Doom - SP/Coop/DM - 2 maps Tricky and populated - - François originally released these maps for DOOM, but here they were switched over to DOOM II, without heavy modifications. The second map has also been uploaded in its DOOM version, while the first one's DOOM release was already on the archive, since '04. The first and older map is pretty big, with large open areas and a good number of monsters, and the second one is medium-sized but with a good monster population as well. Both maps are pretty challenging and violent, mixing well-positioned monsters with relatively intricate switches and devices, which are most developed in the second map. Some switch hunting is necessary at certain points, though as the author notes in the text files, the devices and secrets are most usually marked, sometimes subtly so, thus being observant will prove rewarding. Purists will benefit by knowing that VPOs can occur, but these are apparently rarer in these newer DOOM II versions (as opposed to the DOOM ones), and generally show up only in the first map, which has broader outdoors areas. We did try the maps in Cooperative mode, and had some difficulties, getting stuck. It might be wise to leave Cooperative aside unless one's very familiar with the maps; at least one door (in the second map) closes and is opened later as one progresses; player deaths could make the marines get stuck in the earlier parts of the map. myk Hangar41 by Patrick N. Gorman 52KB - Doom - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map Possibly I've seen too much - - - - Behind you, in the hangar bay there's tons of arms and ammo, but you can't get any of it; instead you must go through the monster infested complex stemming from the hangar. Being an apparent remake of E1M1, the piles of armament seem out of place, plus they wouldn't help much if the player were to get his hands on them, as upcoming levels would become too easy. The map itself, a classic early base style level, is of median-low difficulty. There's not too much health but the opponents aren't too many and they are of the lesser sort (especially in the main areas.) If you manage to reach the hanger bay, what remains of the map becomes extremely easy. For DeathMatch it seems somewhat big. myk The Cage by Wild Man Of Borneo 26KB - Doom - SP/Coop - 1 map You've been caught - You start out in a pit filled cage, surrounded by monsters. The start is the hardest part of the map, but as the author implies, with a proper technique it is very possible to make your way out. Once the cage is cleared, progress is more standard. You can quickly heal yourself and get ahold of better arms. A limitless engine is recommended for this map, due to the visiplanes crash (sic), but as we know, we can ignore the author saying this has something to do with the computer's processing power. myk Aaiens for Doom by an anonymous author 147KB - Doom/2 - Graphics replacement Steel scorpion men - - This is a graphic and sound replacement for the Demon. It's supposed to be an alien form Fox's Alien series, but the coloring is really weird, possibly from scanning a model and then applying the DOOM palette to the result. myk That's it; have fun!

Good day hordes of DOOM maniacs, myk salutes you! Here we are again with the monthly old stuff spotlight, including wads uploaded by funduke, RL, and Grazza. Lets start without further ado; here's Grazza with the ominous bunch he added to idgames: I (Grazza) uploaded 6 wads this time, including a total of 66 maps. Make of that 6-66 tally what you will. Certainly some of these maps are evil, though mostly in a good way. The original dates of the wads range from 1997 to 2003. The first three are megawads from Czech sources, while the last three are by Wes Burd, a guy who was happy for his maps to be distributed, but apparently never actually did so himself. Beyond The Hell by Petr Machata, Milan Kuchynka, Leos Novacek and Filip Machata 1,356kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 32 maps - - - - Here we have a full Doom2 megawad from 1997 by four Czech Doomers. The quality and difficulty are fairly uneven, and it looks and feels like a compilation wad, with no particular thematic links from one map to the next. Many of the maps are also clearly not designed to be played from a pistol start - some are good when played that way (an exhilarating scramble to survive), but others are marginal (severe health or ammo shortage), and many are verging on physically impossible. So unless you're a masochist or enjoy playing in experimental fashion, I'd recommend using a save at the end of each map. OK, so what does this wad offer? Action and lots of it. There are a few slaughter maps (map16 is a nice example), and the odd clunker, but they are mostly normal maps, with a very lively monster population and a need for alert but not godlike Dooming to get through them - assuming the player has taken the care to leave the previous map with decent stats in terms of health and ammo. For that reason, it is worth making an effort to find some of the secrets, which are often quite well hidden - and in the case of the secret exits on maps 15 and 31, very well hidden indeed. The maps are mostly rather large, with few shortcuts offered - you have to fight your way through the normally heavy resistance. Ten minutes should be a typical time to complete many of the maps (when playing casually without extensive map knowledge), but some will take a fair bit longer than that. Unfortunately, as I mentioned, a few of the maps really aren't good. Map01 is kind of ugly, which gets things off to a poor start (which is compounded by a modified version of this map appearing later in the wad) and maps 17 and 18 are quite tedious. Map21 is in the "good but glitchy" category, which is always a shame. Still, these are the exceptions. Map02 might seem a bit cramped and maybe too difficult to appear so early in a megawad, but I'd regard it as a good map, and it prepares the player for the kind of battles that lie ahead. Even carrying ammo from the previous levels, some of the maps pose a fierce challenge - I had a whole series of very close calls in maps 13 and 19 despite entering those ones armed to the teeth. There are a few "central arena with side-areas" maps, such as 20, 23 and 24. Map25 is rather lovely, and even if ball-breakingly difficult, is more fun to play from scratch than many of the later maps. Maps 13 and 27 are another pair of maps, in that one is a modified version of the other - but these are both attractive maps and the modifications are very extensive, though the amount of nukage can get depressing in both. As for the last few maps, I'm just going to wish you luck. The verdict has got to be that this is a mixed megawad, where it isn't easy to dip in and out to sample just the best maps (due to poor from-scratch playability). However, even the less good maps aren't so bad, so I'll cautiously recommend it quite warmly, as it provides a good test for a wide range of Dooming skills. BTW, crate aficionados should definitely check out map05. Hell Medley (aka Pekelna vsehochut) by Adolf Vojta 646kb - Doom.exe - SP - 16 maps - - - This is a collection of 16 early maps by Adolf "Gusta" Vojta, one of the guys who brought us Kama Sutra, and an experienced compet-n player. Some of the maps are a bit rough around the edges, but the gameplay is well thought-out for the most part, and there are some of the clever ideas and trick possibilities that helped make Kama Sutra such fun. A few of the maps are in fact prototype versions of ones that later appeared in KS (that does not include the one with Leeds Castle in its name, surprisingly enough), but the majority are ones you probably won't have seen before in any form. The maps are generally medium-sized, and well stocked with ammo. You'll normally have a fight on your hands, but the difficulty is never extreme: if you face big monsters, you'll be given big weapons and suitable power-ups (for instance, e2m9 has some spiders and cybers, but also an invul and a BFG, so just don't waste too much time or ammo). Some of the maps can be exited in just a few seconds (e.g. e2m2 and e2m5), but it isn't the trickfest that parts of Kama Sutra became (which you may view as a good or a bad thing). Design-wise, the maps overall have an Ultimate Doom feel to them with their use of textures and themes (and the lack of Doom2 monsters of course cannot help but enhance that sensation). Hellish? Well maybe - there's plenty of blood about, though not many of the maps could pass for the bowels of hell itself. The quality is fairly consistent throughout - if pushed to name a couple of favourite maps, I'd go for e2m7 and e2m9. Overall, it's definitely worth playing if you enjoyed Kama Sutra and/or like the Ultimate Doom style of maps. Otherwise, it's probably worth a look at least. Grim Ripper by Jaromir Bergmann 640kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 15 maps - - - Again we have a collection of maps by a Czech Doomer, starting with some of his earlier creations and quickly moving on to more sophisticated offerings. He actually recommends that we skip the first few maps, but they're really not that bad: just a bit simple design-wise and quite fun to play; they're certainly not "OMG first map how do you make a door?" stuff. The later maps are definitely well worth playing, with some very memorable moments. The maps are designed to be played as an episode, with weapons and ammo carried from one map to the next, though even some of the later maps are fully playable from scratch (try map13 for instance - it's great fun; I finished off the cyber with my last few shells and with single-digit health). However, I think some of the others are barely playable (if at all) on UV from scratch, which is a shame. Possibly HMP is worth choosing if you want to play each map separately, though I haven't tested that. It's not easy to pin down any dominant style as the maps vary quite a bit, but some are deliberately "Hell on Earth" style (there's even the occasional "tribute" area). Generally they are more akin to Doom2 that any of the other iwads, though the author mentions in his text-file that some ideas for maps were inspired by ones in Requiem and Relive (and some other pwads), together with that classic crate map, Doom's e2m2 (though fear not: there are no truly massive crate-filled warehouses), while map07 has some strong Ep1/Ep2 influences. Almost all of the maps have a good and distinctive character though. My favourites are probably 10 (short and violent), 12 and the aforementioned 13, in which you teleport between two very similar looking bases. Overall, I can recommend this wad, but you'll need to decide whether to skip the first few maps, and what to do about the poor "from scratch" playability. Asylum by Wes Burd Jr 175kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This large - you might even say sprawling - map should keep you busy for a while. It is quite challenging, but should be manageable on UV for most players if they take a little care and get to know their way around the map. There aren't any really unfair areas or places where unusual strategies are needed - just solid Dooming is sufficient. Green marble and blood are the predominant themes, and there are some large outdoor areas. You get a good spread of weapons and plenty of ammo. It's not all given to you on a platter of course, and you can for instance expect quite a fight when you've just picked up the BFG. I'd say health is balanced quite well - there is enough to allow you to play fairly aggressively, but not too recklessly. On the negative side, the level's progression isn't always completely obvious, and there is a need for some backtracking and revisiting areas, which teleports only help with to a modest degree. If you can't see what to do next, I'd suggest seeing if there is a switch that could be shot - this appears to be one of Wes Burd's favourite themes. Blackout by Wes Burd Jr 121kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This and the next wad are both very much "concept" maps, where the name provides an excellent indication of the contents. Here you are immediately plunged into darkness, with only a few areas of the map illuminated, and spend much of the time thereafter trying to turn the lights back on. Fortunately, you have a lot of room to manoeuvre, so even when you are fighting in the dark, there's no need to be getting slaughtered. The map has two distinct areas, which both contain large structures. You will sometimes need to visit one in order to make further progress in the other. There are some good battles inside these edifices, a few little surprises and the odd fight out in the open (including a battle vs a couple of cybers, but it shouldn't prove too difficult). On the negative side, I found a couple of places where you can get stuck, but I suppose you'd need to be quite unlucky to stumble upon them too; I also found the blue key rather hard to locate. The architecture is somewhat unsophisticated and squarish, though you won't notice that while the lighting remains dark. It's ideal if you enjoy stumbling around with the lights out, and is certainly a more memorable experience than many maps. 9th Floor by Wes Burd Jr 89kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - This one is certainly original and memorable too. The action takes place around a central platform that rises and lowers between (surprise, surprise) 9 floors. On the other hand, the mechanism by which this happens makes the gameplay someone repetitive, as the player needs to press a sequence of switches every so often to get this platform up to the level that is required so that he can make further progress. There is little thematic continuity between the side-areas - they are more like distinct mini-maps in their own right. Given that they are not immediately adjoining one another, you could view that as a clever way to introduce variety into the map without there being any ugly-looking "joints". On the whole, the battles are stacked in the marine's favour, and for the most part you'll be mowing down the bad guys. Curiously, there are two ways to exit this map, and one of them means that you can do so within a few seconds of the start. Whether that was deliberate, I really don't know - maybe it's so that if you get fed up with raising and lowering the platform, you can opt out at any point. Overall it's another distinctive map, but maybe the mechanism will prove too tedious for some. That was Grazza with two megawads worth of material; now I (myk) will go on with the rest of the over 100 maps you can play this week (or month), all uploaded by funduke or RL. [W4GH4X] graciously seconded me in the DeathMatch games, as well as a bit of Coop. 100% Death by Ken Nichols 28KB - Doom2 - DM - 1 map Fragging around and about - - - - Ken's map is a meduim sized wood and stone complex surrounded by a brown tunnel all the way, which adds to the interconnectivity of the layout's halls and windows. The more powerful items are harder to get; the Plasma gun and the Supercharge are on pedestals and must be grabbed by bumping, and the BFG9000 and the Megasphere are placed on mechanisms that protect the BFG and make the sphere available (possibly to others) upon getting the BFG. The map does show certain consistency and skill on the part of the designer and his testers and has a classic "open" or non-linear (though a bit symmetrically) styled layout that allows a relatively action-packed "hide-and-seek" game where you intermittently spot your opponent through halls and openings. MadMax2 & TheEscape by Ryan Feltrin 69KB - Doom2 - DM/SP/Coop - 2 maps DEF-Match to the Max? - - - - [W4GH4X] and I tried these two maps on DeathMatch mode, as the author had indicated they were his "ABSOLUTE favourite DeathMatch Levels ever played." In the first one, you start in separate rooms, standing on lava, and teleport over to an arena, starting atop one of a handful of cages. The arena is dark, but Light amplification is provided, so lighting is all or practically nothing, and you can't really leave the arena once you reach it, so the game doesn't provide much variety. It's mostly a fight in an open flat area. The second map is bigger and with quite spacious rooms, too big to provide an exciting game, and at one point I even fell into a moat-like canal and had no way out. In single player mode both maps are pretty easy, with abundant ammo and power-ups. The author says that "you wont be able to finish MAP2 on your own (unless you cheat :) )" but I'm not too sure what he meant, unless he was kidding, since my mommy wasn't around when I did it on the first attempt. I guess he couldn't run very fast and wasn't able to reach the exit after hitting the last switch, or something. The added music doesn't not help too much either, actually. The Building & Paint the Town Red by Nick Paske 46KB - Doom - DM - 2 maps In the Cyberian village - - - - A couple of maps by one Nick Paske, which are geared towards DeathMatch but have some baddies for other modes of play. The first map, The Building is a large (you guessed it) building that's brightly lit and surrounded by a dim outdoors area which is rather large for DeathMatch, with the arms far from the start spots and with Invisibility spheres to augument the lack of interaction. Played against monsters it offers a small army of Shotgun guys and Zombiemen to bring down with the help of the weapons in the building plus the Invisibilities outside (these are useful as there is no health, only some blue armor.) The other map, Paint the town red, might be a bit more fun in DeathMatch, but only if you have enough players; we tried a one-on-one and the size of the town made it somewhat uneventful. But with four players it could be a bit more fun, especially if the Light amplification visors are used to effect (because the outer area is rather dark.) Paint the town red can be played against three Cyberdemons as well, but the four buildings and the separate chunks of wall offer good cover and there is plenty ammo to take them down, so it shouldn't be hard unless you are one of those rather clumsy players who can't take more than one boss at a time. Another Awsome DOOM PWAD 1 by an anonymous author 73KB - Doom - SP/(Coop/DM) - 1 map Awesomely tall doors - - The author of this relatively rough map was not yet too keen on embedding doors into walls, thus this relatively simple map (albeit suitable in layout for a first map in a series) has very high doors that make you wonder how the Imps carried such incredibly tall doors in through the curving halls. Magic perhaps? Alien technology? If so maybe the Imps should take some advanced alien medicine to cure the chronic hiccups they seem to suffer from. Maybe the deep underground air is not good for them. The map is not difficult, being pretty straightforward, but shows some appropriate use of varying heights in some places. Another Awsome DOOM PWAD 2 by an anonymous author 32KB - Doom - SP(Coop/DM) - 1 map The Devil's toilet - - The second map in the AA2x series shows some development over the first, with proper doors and a cleaner layout and texturing overall. The map is a bit more conceptual than its predecessor, but keeps a similar theme (jumping and height variations still being important.) Since it's more intricate, this map can provide a bit of a challenge initially, but once one is aware of its devices it becomes only a bit harder than the first map. One of the blue doors suffers from a minor glitch that can be triggered occasionally and might impede further progress. Crossing Acheron v1.666 by John W. Anderson 57KB - Doom - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map The green cathedral - - - This is the "DOOM v1.666" release of Dr. Sleep's second Dantesque map, arguably the one that started defining his DOOM mapping style, including galleries of consistently interconnected halls or rooms. The map didn't become a classic randomly, but because of its solid architecture and open-ended play. It's not linear yet the relations between the map sections allow a challenge from different routes, and it's not really hard but provides a good opposition while crossing through. In Cooperative mode it could well provide some extra close-quarters sction, since there are two Berserk packs and a Chainsaw, so that everyone can have some fun. Deathmatch is supported, though it's more suitable for a hunter-styled game than a blast-fest. Alone(?) in the Dark by Patrick Mills 10KB - Doom - SP/(Coop/DM) - 1 map With light pains - - Here we have a short map that starts simply enough in a open area and jumps to a dim hall with leering pink faces, but then reaches a large room with strobe lights which don't really fit in (along with torches) and don't serve a practical playing purpose, until finally you can go past the locked doors into a couple dark places, one which offers a predictable Cyberdemon/Invulnerability combo (fries must be ordered separately.) You're not alone, you are in the dark sometimes, but you ain't getting any tonight. At least not from this wad. DOOMED to Run Amok v1.1 for DOOM II by David L. Davis 167KB - Doom2 - SP/(Coop) - 1 map Preview base - - - I recall playing the DOOM version of this map years ago; it's a base overlooking a building with wooden halls, and guarding what appear to be underground ruins. The map is nonlinear and houses numerous opponents, offering a good amount of health which can be lost to the many Shotgun guys if one isn't careful. Additionally David has used DOOM logos on the teleporter room doors, and added a hidden section with some DOOM II preview pics as textures (this map was originally made as DOOM II was being publicized before its release.) I seemed to recall back when I played the DOOM version using released source based engines (PrBoom and ZDoom) that the teleporting monsters would not teleport in at the right moment, and indeed, they come in too early, so it might be a good idea to play this map with something that has good Doom2 compatibility, using PrBoom's complevel, WinDoom, Doom95, or Doom2 itself. The Arena by Steven Rhodes 21KB - Doom - DM - 1 map The pulsing arena - - The Arena is based around a large techy-looking area with a tower in the center. The map is somewhat rough in the way textures are used; they aren't placed inconsistently but instead in a broadly crude manner. The layout is pretty effective in keeing the action going and in providing strategically useful positions, while the item placement is relatively archaic, with many power-ups in certain locations. Arsenal by Ryan Evans 20KB - Doom2 - SP/(Coop/DM) 2 maps Deceptive appearances - - Ryan's map may seem hard initially, as health seems rather sparse, yet if the player is careful he may find plenty items, making the map rather trivial. The architecture is mostly "hellish" and simple in design, and the map is short, like the first map for a series (although the monster types used play against this.) Baronhse by Erick 17KB - Doom - SP/Coop/DM - 1 map The Baron's house! - - The "Baron House" is a basic wooden house-like structure in a square open area, smallish and sparsely populated by monsters, but at least there actually is a Baron of hell in there. Amusingly the baron forgot to lock door to the exit with the Blue skull key; perhaps he felt that hiding that door behind a wall (that rises into the sky) was enough. There's a pool to the north of the building and some sky-based murals on the walls of the house. It should be more suitable for DeathMatch games, although [W4GH4X] and I missed the opportunity to exchange some frags (the Baron forgot to invite us over.) Base by Brandon Davids 36KB - Doom - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Classical medley - - - Brandon aimed to create a map that meets "id" standards. In part he did a good job in creating a neat map that plays relatively well, with sufficient opposition and decent item placement, although perhaps a bit cramped in places, at least in comparison to the maps by the makers of the game. The author added some sections that are heavily inspired by DOOM maps; at least three such sections are included, which provide a rather cute flashback effect. The map seems perhaps a bit small overall; it certainly isn't large, but the style used in joining small "tribute" portions makes one ask for more space for the different themes. Blade13 by Bob Lange 88KB - Doom - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Industrial frameworks - - - This map by Bob Lange provides a tech-like industrial environment combining rusty metal beams, cement, mossy vines, and stone. The layout plays with thinner hallways around more spacious rooms, and green sludge is used to effect to enhanced the difficulty a bit. The map is solidly designed and not too hard, and reminds one of Michael Kelsey's Return to Phobos to a degree. The author even goes at length to argue against monster hordes or over detailed maps in the text file, dilemmas that plagued early PWAD designers (and still concern us today in different ways.) Crap by Hew Yang-Wahn 9KB - Doom - SP - 1 map The thing that should not be - Best wad ever... or, you guessed it, not really. This is some kind of attempt to offer a wad showing what a DOOM map designer should not do. I guess he's right. Still, it's kind of funny how the things (mainly the decorations) show up in the map. If you don't want to bother checking it out, which is understandable, the screen shot shows this effect. Laboratory of the Devil by A. Behr 78KB - Doom2 - SP/(Coop/DM) - 1 map Imps right out of the oven - - - Here we have a pretty austere but decent rendition of a cryogenics lab gone nasty. It uses grayish textures for an all-around theme, coupled with many slender halls and some more spacious areas with more elaborate designs. The halls and the larger areas contrast effectively, alternating between more studied tunnel-fighting and more conventional combat. The preponderance of the confined areas do make the map a bit easier than it may seem at first glance due to the amount of health available, though, because you can more easily manage the opposition; still, the bad guys can get tricky occasionally, especially if you try to push through. Dante's Gate v1.666 by John W. Anderson 67KB - Doom - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Dinanzi a me non fuor cose create - - - This is no other than a version of Dr. Sleep's first map; like most initial maps, it does have an "a bit of everything" feel to it which comes from an author's initial experimentation, but only in a relative sense, especially in relation to John's later works, which bear more consistent characteristics. Thus both the texturing and the playing progress are a bit uneven; not in quality but in organization. The map overall shows pretty good development and an open multi-route layout, but is certainly more chaotic than Crossing Acheron, for example. Pits of Despair by Alex Hanson 22KB - Doom - SP/Coop - 1 map Walls you cannot see - - This crude hellish level pits you against a horde of monsters at the beginning, but with an Invulnerability sphere to your advantage. Ammo could be considered tight with all those monsters, although between the inevitable infighting and the Berserk pack you get with the Invulnerability, it isn't. Once you get rid of the initial horde you move on to a sparsely populated section with some traps and an annyingly invisible-maze room. This map may be more interesting while speeding through than fighting everything, at least if you take some time to understand the invisible maze. Sudden Death by Greg Hagedorn 53KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map More classic carnage - - - Greg's Sudden Death could well be counted among the classic maps DOOM II's release made popular, taking advantage of the games new brutal shotgun to provide a considerable flow of tougher enemies. Its one of those maps where you see the start at the beginning (like the Laboratory of the Devil above) but can't access it; you must face countless foes before you can get back to it. The map is divided into three nonlinear subsections that allow the player to choose a a strategy on each occasion, providing a good challenge which increases in power. The first section holds lesser monsters and rooms interconnected by halls where you can get caught amid you foes; then you go to an outer section that combines some tougher eneemies with areas of varying heights for a more strategic test to your firepower, and finally meet the boss and his close aides in a more dramatic encounter where you try to finally lower the closed exit section. Fast by Bill Swartz 23KB - Doom2 - SP/(Coop/DM) - 1 map More invisible walls - - This is an more or less unusual map; part of its challenge resides in making progress from one section to the other difficult by ofuscating the way to move on, either by providing apparently impasaable invisible barriers, putting doors and their switches far off from each other or otherwise attempting to confuse the player. The monsters aren't too challenging, though there's an Arch-vile that can be troublesome over the long hallways found around his area. Otherwise the design is relatively simple and there are some minor visual glitches (as the author notes, in the pit area.) Laboratory Escape by Chad16 23KB - Doom - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map The disjointed lab - - One reason you might want to escape this laboratory is because it doesn't "meet the eye" too well; the layout is somewhat random, the texturing sloppy, the lighting generally drastic, and some doors are technically incoherent. On a brighter note, the health and ammo available is not too bad in relation to the monsters you'll meet; most of the encounters are pretty direct and simple, though. Labyrinth - 1 by Henning Møller-Nielsen 37KB - Doom - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map The corrupt maze - - - Be warned, oh those who hate labyrinths, for this is a full-fledged maze, with narrow pasages that wind endlessly about, hosting an army of possessed humans and Imps eager to meet you around the corner. There are some side sections but you must navigate the maze itself to obtain the necessary keys needed to exit. Since the monsters become active once you fire, the maze can be pretty deadly; you're never sure if something will fire at you from some unseen angle, stealing away your precious blood, and there is a shortage of health to recover it, unless you really know where to look (which is not always close by.) Another thing you might like to be warned about is that the map's REJECT lump is corrupt; if you're going to record something here, make sure you rebuild the table first, or the resulting demo will maliciously desynch. Mesh by Jon Saloga 65KB - Doom - SP/(Coop/DM) - 1 map A mesh of locales - - - - This map starts in a simple open area with a door that opens into the sky, which initially made me go "hmm, here we go again" (see Laboratory Escape above), but that's really just an initially bad bit and impression, and it improves from there. The map uses a lab-like environment (we have at least three in this edition of the Chronicles; not that they're unusual in DOOM anyway) and provides a decent opposition. Sometimes forcing you to look for switches (or ways to move on), though for the most part these obstacles are local for the area you're in at the moment, so they aren't too obscure. The architecture throughout is relatively basic, but effective enough as a battleground and as a general environment. Monk-U by John Fletcher 283KB - Doom2 - DM - 1 map Monastic green - - - Monk-U is a DeathMatch map with a good deal of work on the resources and setting. New or modified textures have been used to give the map a praticular feel, and the monsters have been used to generate ambience effects. Some of the textures are modified from Heretic, and others seem familiar enough, so apparently most of the stuff isn't "from scratch." The map works pretty well for a nonlinear level, with variously interconnected rooms, passages and windows, though due to its size it's better for free-for-all, being less effective for one-on-ones. Parthenon by Bob Lange 64KB - Doom - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Rockets & Ruins - - - Another map by Bob Lange which shares some qualities with Blade13 in being tidy overall, and contrasting narrower halls with wide-open areas. In this case the halls form a network around the large courtyard centered around the Parthenon look-alike. Zombies hunt you down those halls, while the courtyard is dominated by a Cyberdemon ready to nail you as you go there, or as you pass a window in onne of the halls. With [W4GH4X] we played some Cooperative against the Cyberdemon, since the general layout, originally planned for DeathMatch (we tried that, but we thought it's too big), gives two or more players good opportunities to gang up on the monsters to good effect. The Pit by Michael Sartore 23KB - Doom - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Out of the pan, into the fire - - - This map can be pretty deadly, as you're headed down into a pit with bloodthirsty bosses and bigger monsters with little in your hands. A bit of luck may be required, though proper tactics, infighting and reflexes will give you good chances to make it through. The map is small and conceptual, but otherwise consistently made. Planet by an anonymous author 357KB - Doom - SP/Coop - 10 maps Worlds of violence - - - - - - - - - - The Planet series of wads seems like an unfinished set that was probably made by a single author as the maps show certain general characteristics that show up one way or another. All the maps are "tech" styled, sometimes with space ships or other scifi machinery, and they give the impression that you're travelling around through a set of abandoned facilities or alien bases. The texturing is also relatively consistent, and the monsters too; Cyberdemons play an important role in many of the maps, and most levels are relatively tough, with rather unforgiving supplies of healing items, but enough ammo to do the job. For the most part, the exit is not hard to find, and if you're just running through, you might be able to exit the maps without much trouble; the difficulty usually rises considerably if your objective is to decinate the opposition. At first I thought these might be DeathMatch maps with monsters, yet when we tried one Doom quit saying there weren't enough starts (only two of the required four), so we moved on to other DeathMatch maps to better use our limited time. Nonetheless, many of the maps do have enough starts, and seem like reasonable fragging grounds and might have been designed for DeathMatch, although many would do better for free-for-all as they are rather large or sprawling. Cooperative play might make some sense, as well. The map in "_A" is a fortess with the general characteristics of DOOM's Tower of Babel, but larger and more intricate, with a bunch of Cyberdemos, and an assortment of diverse minions. If you have good reflexes you might have a chance, but if you tend to be hit often, prepare yourself for some humiliation. The map in "A" is pretty much like "_A", but has a starry space sky instead of the stock sky for The Shores of Hell. It is not clear whether the author or someone else added the space sky, as it does not appear in any other maps, even ones where it would have helped (to avoid stacking skies.) The map in "B" is a tech base inhabited by Shotgun guys that'll all hunt you down once you make a noise, as well as a bunch of Baron of Hell in a room, that slowly teleport out to hunt you down. Your weaponry against these monsters is limited (to the Shotgun.) The exit from this map is pretty obscure (perhaps it is MultiPlayer dependent.) The map in "C" is a squarish base with crossing tunnels inhabited by and surrpounded by meduim or lesser hellish monsters. This is one of the easier maps, although healing is scarce as usual. The open area does not have a border, which makes the stock sky stack inappropriately; the sky used in the "_A" wad would have made sense here. The map in "D" is the most standard or "complete" map in the series, with a more even distribution of enemies and more health. It still displays some of the characteristics of the set, though, but the Cyberdemon is used more strategically and the architecture is a bit more varied (albeit themed like some of the others.) The map in "E" goes back to the "base surrounded by open area approach" but now develops the central base more thoroughly. Unlike in "D", you don't have a layout that's planned to be played normallythe map is more open and the exit is more easily accessible. If you plan to kill all the Cyberdemons you could run out of ammo, as well. The map in "F" stands appart a bit and is somewhat more straightforward; here the Cyberdemons are placed as obstacles to stop you from particular targets (a key or a switch) or stand guard between objectives. There seems to be a glitch at the end here, as there's a door that fails to open properly. The map in "G" is the least populated one, and one of the smaller levels. You still don't have much in the way of healing devices, but the monsters guarding the keep-like structure you invade from the outside arent too many and you've got the necessary shells to take them down. The map in "H" is akin to "A" in monster deployment, but is a large base with water ducts instead of a fortress. Like in "A" we have Cyberdemons waiting outside amid the lesser monsters, but it is a flatter level than "A" and perhaps nastier as you have fewer places to hide in. The ducts display an early (or crude) deep water effect. The map in "I" is a base flanked by an open area; the monsters here a meduim-powered making this one of the least hard maps, and the level also has some underground canals with the early deep water effect. Red for DeathMatch! by Vance Andrew Blevins 25KB - Doom - DM - 1 map Better red than dead - - This curious small red-themed DeathMatch map relies on teleporters, lifts and confined spaces to provide a slower but strategic game. It is also playable against monsters, where again the confined areas may make it tricky (especially where the Cyberdemon is.) Rocky VII by Ken Linback 41KB - Doom - SP/Coop - 1 map Rambunctiousness - - - A rather rough and jumbled map that otherwise provides a decent challenge by placing Cyberdemons (or rocket men, as the author denominates them) in key locations that can snipe at other sections you need to cross while you advance against the lesser opposition. Rocky VII? You don't really get that much boxing action; Perhaps Rambo IV (and this made me Google up that it's in pre-production.) The Evergreen State College's Campus by Ben Newman 35KB - Doom - SP/Coop - 1 map Rough recreation - - - This map is a recreation of a college building, and as is usual for such recreations, it suffers from certain drawbacks; crude texturing (because the author is more concerned in emulating a real layout than in how it ends up looking) and a layout that is often not that friendly for challenging action (spacious areas that otherwise confine the monsters to predictable locations.) The opposition is of the lesser kind, and ammo and helath aren't inadequate. You start in a more or less brightly lit level and then go to another where the dimness makes the encounters a bit more difficult, but never really tough. Urban Warfare Episode 1: 5-Star Hotel by Ken Taggard 67KB - Doom - SP/Coop - 1 map The startan hotel - - - - This is a rough "hotel" themed level. Kind of like in the previous wad (see above), the author concentrated more on making crude beds, pools an other "hotelish" things than on using the architecture to enhance the combat. Nonetheless at least this map is a bit more dynamic (or fun) in certain sections due to the presence of bigger hordes of monsters and a bit more of imagination in the layout, yet the map is also more uneven in certain respects (more ammo than necessary, and some redundant areas.) ZOA by Chuck (aka CJetSki) 83KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop/(DM) - 1 map Distorted mimicry - - - - This is the third heavily imitative map in a row. This one suffers from some of the same issues as the other two, but it tends to look more weird (with more serious texture glitches) but provides a steeper challenge, both because it's for DOOM II and because the monsters are given better positions. There are some switch, door, or linedefs contrivances that make this map rather slow at the end, once if taken care of the main opposition, and I must admit I never reached the room across the one with the red key, nor the exit (wherever it is.) Let me know if you discover how the final part works (with a demo perhaps?) During one attempt I was able to jump into the pit where the Spiderdemon resides, and got stuck in there after killing the monsters... evidently the author hadn't planned for one to be able to jump in there. The Welcome Wagon by Stewart Bibby 48KB - Doom2 - SP/Coop - 1 map Welcome to Browntown - - - In this scenario you invade a brownish fortress that you have to climb up to. The varying heights plus the monster and item deployment make it a decently challenging map, as you can expect to be attacked from different locations. The map is by no means linear, and it's possible to bypass many monsters (which might still be able to snipe at you as you pass or from a distance) so speed running should relatively promising here. The only strange thing is that if you jump into the wooden pit with the Revenants you can't get out, which is odd because the Rocket launcher is down there (I might have missed a way to raise the area, but even though you can get trapped if you get down there.) That's it for this week. I've excluded one of the wads uploaded by funduke from the reviews because of its explicit content. It doesn't contain maps, so it's no big loss of a review. If you're old enough and really want to see it, head over to Doomporn.com for the review (or to /newstuff to check it out directly.)

King Elvis has let us know that he has released version 4.2.83 of his "Doom Management Suite" KDX. There are four different flavors to choose from, including the exe update only for users running 4.2.34 or greater, or the full update, for users running 4.1.x. Then there's the non-update versions, which include the Core release, with only the essentials, and the King Size release, which presumably includes various source ports and some other stuff. Version 4.2.83 adds a caching feature for cataloguing all your Wads and DeHackEd patches for quick access.