Doom Wad Station Review Thread 2014

[Brad_tilf]

Memfis said:

Cool idea on map03 with teleporting non-alerted monsters into the map, somehow never seen that done before I think.

He did some great stuff back in the day. I'll be sure to look up some of his other maps at some point.

[plums]

"Small spaces and clever & effective use of teleporters" is how I would characterize shtbag's maps in general, from what I've seen of them. I thought the influence was pretty strong in the latter maps of Psyren's Crimson Canyon, which also uses shtbag's music for its soundtrack.

[Brad_tilf]

plums said:

"Small spaces and clever & effective use of teleporters" is how I would characterize shtbag's maps in general, from what I've seen of them. I thought the influence was pretty strong in the latter maps of Psyren's Crimson Canyon, which also uses shtbag's music for its soundtrack.

He also had a strong and effective design ability.

[hobomaster22]

Thanks for posting this. I always loved his maps. This should be a blast from the past!

[Doomkid]

Heh, looks like you'll have to find someone else for this one - Does anyone out there feeling like taking a stab at Deathmatch Revival?

[Brad_tilf]

hobomaster22 said:

Thanks for posting this. I always loved his maps. This should be a blast from the past!

No problem, man. :-)

[Demon of the Well]

A lot of Shitbag (aka "Ray") maps are pretty cool, particularly his later works. Of course, his crown jewel is probably Happy Time Circus 2....always hope he'll return and do something in a similar vein, someday.

[DeathevokatioN]

He's one of the more underrated authors for sure.

I remember him designing an amazing gothic map with huge grand outdoor fantastical visuals, and from what I remember he wasn't too bad at composing midis either.

[Brad_tilf]

Personally, I had COMPLETELY forgotten that he had
A) Done any mapping at all
B) Had been this good

I am dredging this map from the depths of 2001. A real classic with Kent's penchant for awesome graphics and, apparently, awesome design and gameplay.

Also, this was originally designed for DM so both the DM and SP version are available for download

http://www.doomwadstation.net/hunted/hunted.html

[Memfis]

Wohaha, I liked items growing on trees. :) - http://i.imgur.com/N2mDN3f.png

[Brad_tilf]

So, I wanted to do something different today and rather than just highlighting a map i already reviewed oh so many years ago, I decided to go back and do an actual review of one of the earlier maps. To that end, I found one dated May 18, 1994 that looked really interesting - and it was. The author of this map made a better map with the most basic of tools than many authors can make today! I really hope you guys enjoy this one as much as I did and if the author is still part of the community - great job! Oh - and happy Birthday (1 day early) to this fabulous creation!

http://www.doomwadstation.net/doom_reviews/2014/1994/petkillr/

From the review:
I remember buying a cd absolutely packed with maps - dzone! I believe it was called and I also recall t hat most of the maps in that cd were absolute garbage (which is why i got involved with mapping in the first place - but that's a story for a different day. this map proves that there absolutely were quality maps being produced only months after the initial release of doom. there are tons of tricks and traps to keep you on your toes. specters are always fun in dark places - not! and the author really put the time in which you will quickly realize as you make your way around the map

[Brad_tilf]

So, any thoughts on this map? I thought it was pretty good - ESPECIALLY for when it was created, but really, in any time

[Brad_tilf]

I vaguely remember the work of this author and I remember that he was fairly good at his craft. The screenies look good and I seemed to have thought it was pretty good at the time....

http://www.doomwadstation.net/doom_reviews/thegate.html

For E1M1

[Brad_tilf]

This definitely doesn't look like one of those maps that will challenge high level players and if you hate switches/key maps, it might not be for you but it looks pretty interesting. Based on the review, not my cup of tea (if you will) but Blue seemed to enjoy it.

http://www.doomwadstation.net/2014/magic/

[Brad_tilf]

Sorry, I don't really like going a couple weeks between reviews but there isn't much coming in right now and I've been REALLY busy, so, ya... Anyway, Zorah reviewed this map called The Big Woodchip...
From the review:

Big Woodchip provides some good challenge, at the cost of some detailing and some design choices that may make you want to mouth the words, "Dick move." It's worth checking out if you've got some free time this weekend.

Here's the link: Enjoy!

http://www.doomwadstation.net/2014/woodchip/

[Phobus]

I see Zorah isn't too big a fan of the more "video game level" style of map, compared to the more realistic sort of thing I've done with the Escalation maps. Thanks for the review! Keep up the good work :)

[Brad_tilf]

So, in his own understated manner, Blue Paladin sent in a review of multi-map Ultimate Doom experience. Sounds like it is something that you will want to play if you like an old school experience with a degree of difficulty added in.

Check it out here: http://www.doomwadstation.net/doom_reviews/2014/vision/

[Steve D]

I still need to finish this one. What I played -- up through E5M3 -- was very good.

[Brad_tilf]

Only one response?

[Olroda]

Same here; I haven't finished it yet, but from what I have seen so far, it is a really nice WAD. Good atmosphere, with lots of traps. One of the better ones, easily.

[Brad_tilf]

Olroda said:

Same here; I haven't finished it yet, but from what I have seen so far, it is a really nice WAD. Good atmosphere, with lots of traps. One of the better ones, easily.

Well, hopefully, this thread will garner it the recognition it deserves then. :-)

[Brad_tilf]

So, I had asked Zorah to review this set of maps (15 maps that are part of what will be a larger project - wip). Anyway, I had played the first four or five and didn't really agree with what he was saying, so I played through them all and came up with this - a tale of two reviews. I put Zorahs first and mine second. As you will see, we didn't quite see these the same way....


Check it out for yourself and read the reviews - see who you agree with...

http://doomwadstation.net/2014/prboommaps/

[Tuxlar]

Slip me a few Jacksons, and I'll believe whatever you say.

Seriously though, how are we supposed to comment if we can't see the map?

[mrthejoshmon]

Looks like I have a lot more work to do then.

Thanks for the review.

[Brad_tilf]

aw crap. doing it now. Can't believe I forgot to add the link. woops

[Brad_tilf]

mrthejoshmon said:

Looks like I have a lot more work to do then.

Thanks for the review.

Welp, keep me in the loop with the changes and I can add a change log to that review page and when it's all done - review it again. :-)

[Brad_tilf]

Btw - I'd really like to get thoughts from you guys on multiple reviews for the same map? I really like the idea - multiple pov, you know?

[Brad_tilf]

So, any thoughts on the multiple review format?

[Brad_tilf]

So, I decided that today was a good day to go look into an older map from 1994. It's called Runway. I hope you enjoy the map and the review.

http://www.doomwadstation.net/doom_reviews/1994/Runaway/

It's about time this got reviewed. It's only been 20 years. lol

[Foxpup]

Runaway is a relatively largish map created on June 30, 2014.

Oops.

up front: in order to play this map as it was intended, i removed all the stuff that we take for granted these days - disabled strafing, jumping, crouching - all of it - played it just like we did back in the day.

I'm pretty sure we did take strafing (SR40, at least) for granted back then. Don't tell me I've been doing it wrong this whole time?