Best, worst, easiest, most difficult maps of the Ultimate Doom?

Which levels do you think are the best, worst, easiest and most difficult levels in the original 4 episodes of the Ultimate Doom?

Personally this is my top eight of the best ones:
1. Hangar (classic)
2. Containment Area (classic)
3. Hell Beneath (extremely challenging)
4. Slough of Despair (thoroughly great design)
5. Perfect Hatred (very challenging)
6. Phobos Anomaly (epic with a unique cutscene at the end)
7. Mt. Erebus (very open and very memorable)
8. Tower of Babel (epic, just epic)

And the two worst:
1. Warrens (E3M1 again... and then you backtrack through it AGAIN, lazy!)
2. House of Pain (great start but lots of lazy design and annoying switches)

Easiest I think is actually E3M8: Dis. The Spider Mastermind is a complete pushover and unless Gate of Limbos endless lava running and looking for the right keycards has left you drained of both rockets and cells you're going to have an easy time.
E3M1 is naturally also pretty easy.

Hell Beneath is easily the hardest (pun). Perfect Hatred and Against Thee Wickedly are also pretty hard at least from a pistol start. The Wiki says And Hell Followed is considered one of the easiest levels in the game but I've went low on health there a couple of times since the only health pickups early in the map is a berserk pack and stimpack until you go for the soul sphere... there's also quite a lot of enemies.

So what do you think?

Favorites are definetly E3M6 Mt Erebus, which goes in line with my love for Suburbs and Downtown.

I don't like E2M1 very much. Compared to pretty much all other maps in UD, it seems so simple and dull.

For me it is:

Best: Computer Station, Toxin Refinery and the rest of E1 right after.
Worst: Fortress of Mystery, Dis, Hell Beneath, Against Thee Wickedly (I know I'll start a wave of opposition by saying this, the map looks detailed compared to the rest of maps, but I can't stand the gameplay element of repeated jumping to lava)
Easiest: Fortress of Mystery, Dis.
Hardest: Hell Beneath, Perfect Hatred, Against Thee Wickedly.

You already mentioned it, and I've always loved it, but my love for E2M2 - Containment Area has grown deeper since I took it on as the inspiration for my E1M2 remake in the Switcheroom project.

I can see how this one map may have kick-started the FPS genre's long love affair with crates. I'm certainly feeling the love.

Best:

All episode 1 maps
E2M2 - Tyson is fun for this map.
E2M6 - Spooky but fun, love the music.
E2M7 - Lots of action, beautiful map.
E3M3 - The house of pain, from hellish to episode 2, finally episode 1 style, the mix is epic.
E3M5 - Tough but lots of actions!
E4M3 - Lots of rockets and plasma spams.
E4M8 - Very fun map, lots of actions, the boss fight is epic!

Worst:

E2M5 - No keys at all, just switches to switches.
E2M9 - The music sucks, the layout is ugly, limited ammo too!
E3M7 - I hate the teleporter puzzles and there's way too few monsters!
E3M9 - Lazy work copied from E3M1!
E4M1 - Way too hard.
E4M2 - Same as above.
E4M6 - I hate the lava and this map is tough as hell!

Easiest:

Probably episode 1 maps.
E3M7 - Only puzzles to solve, no big fights.
E3M8 - Let the S.M infight and everything is done!

Hardest:

E3M2 - Not much pickups, I hate the maze.
E4M1 - This map is a bitch! Limited ammo, tough monsters and no medikat!
E4M2 - Another bitch map with lots of tough monsters.
E4M6 - Extremely tough map from pistol start.

Best:
E1M5 - The first map in the episode I truly enjoy.
E2M2 - Great for Tyson.
E2M6 - Another great Tyson map, and yes Daiyu_Xiaoxiang, very Spooky.
E3M7 - I just love this map, Best of E3.
E4M1 - One of the hardest maps in the game, quite a challenge. I'd say hardest map on Nightmare!
E4M2 - Great design, amazing that this was completed in six hours.
E4M8 - This is such a better ending map than E3M8, it's great for Deathmatch too.
(E1M7 is good to)

Worst:
E3M1 - Just boring, but I won't put E3M9 on this list, the shock value makes up for it's flaws.
E3M8 - Very anti-climatic ending map, especially if you don't play pistol to start.

Easiest:
E1M1 - Well, it is the first map.
E1M2 - It's only the second map, so ya.
E2M9 - Pretty simple.
(If E4M4 had slightly less specters, I'd put it on here. They're hard on -FAST).

Hardest:
E4M1 - No health on UV, unless you count little health bonus (which on a map like this, make's a huge difference.) Hardest map on Nightmare! I'd say.
E4M2 - Lot's of areas were you can easily fall into the lava, many powerful Barons of Hell. Very hard on Nightmare.
E4M6 - Big map with lot's of enemies. The fact that you have to go into the lava makes this map very difficult, and basically forces you to speedrun the map, as radiation suites don't last forever.

I agree that E2M6 is pretty spooky. I've always hated the Baron that spawns behind you in the dark maze that nearly always gets you stuck crammed in between it and a lot of demons. I think the map has several light amplification visors though.
It used to be one of my favorite maps because of the doors opening up behind you releasing demons in the starting hallways, the nice design of the dark maze and the exit trap but I really don't like the crusher room and the other rooms next to it. They're pretty lazy and that whole star-shaped corridor place just seems lazy too. I don't like the layout of the innermost dark place beyond the dark maze either... it's so awkward and hard to fight in.

Oh and I really don't like Limbo much. It took me ages to complete before I found the red key card and finally could start opening all those doors in the lava and then you have to press all the switches, get the yellow key card and then you can finally exit. Once you know exactly how to do it then it's a breeze though and it is a pretty good map after all. It's just easy to get stuck on it the first couple of times.

It's amazing indeed that E4M2 was only done in 6 hours. The only thing I don't like about it is the cheap Cyberdemon kill which reminds me a lot of the Crusher and some other Doom II maps. I don't like it when the boss monsters die that easily.

Best
E2M2 (fisting mode ftw), E2M4 (atmospheric and quirky), E2M7 (invincible classic), E3M7 (massive blood pools, strafejumping) and E4M6.

Worst
E4M3. The starting room is a mess and the actual map has some annoying moments and flat design including the unreachable secrets.

Easiest
E1M4 is a fun basic action -map and has one of the finest gameplay. E1M5 has even more action and legendary secrets.

Hardest
E3M2's start is hard after you've wasted all your ammo in E3M1 but all you have to do is to get the chaingun. E4M1 is vicious for not having much hp. E4M2's beginning with the cacos is hard but the rest of the map is straightforward.

Interesting, I've always considered E2M7 to be one of the most boring maps and E3M2 to be one of the easiest.

Ive always considered Fortress of Mystery, Hell Keep, Warrens, Dis, and Unruly Evil to be terrible maps

I like Warrens' idea, but it builds off the most disgusting map in the entire game so its unfixable.

Slightly off topic but I love going to Warrens on XBOX Live while in CO-OP with strangers because they always think I've send them back to E3M1 and destroyed all their progress.

They never believe me when I say this isn't E3M1 and then they're like "WTF!" when they see the Cyberdemon.

Archy said:

Interesting, I've always considered E2M7 to be one of the most boring maps and E3M2 to be one of the easiest.

Mixed opinions. I like Doom 2 maps 08 and 24 while some people think they suck.

Best:

Episode 1 maps
E3M7
E2M2
E3M6

Worst:

E3M1 and E3M9
E2M1

Well not exactly the worst, but other than a few including E2M2 I don't like a majority of E2 maps, I don't dislike them either, but they don't stand out much imo.

Best:

E1M1: Hangar: Classic indeed
E1M2: Nuclear Plant - Great level, great music and fun maze
E1M3: Toxin Refinery - Great atmosphere
E1M5: Phobos Lab - Same, and music is epic
E1M8: Phobos Anomaly - Just epic, too bad the Barons are such pushovers
E2M1: Deimos Anomaly - This is where you really start diving into Hell
E2M3: Refinery
E2M8: Tower Of Babel - The last great level imo, fantastic music and climax
E3M1: Hell Keep
E3M2: Slough Of Despair
E3M6: Mt Erebus
E3M9: I wonder why everyone hates this map, I thought this was a cool idea
MAP07: Dead Simple
MAP08: Tricks And Traps

Worst:

E1M4: Command Control - Boring
E2M6: Halls Of The Damned - Crap
E2M7: Spawning Vats - Bleh
E3M7: Limbo - Booooring
Almost every Doom 2 maps - Doom 2's new monsters and the SSG are great but the level design was really awful imo. Most of the maps are ugly and boring :/

Honorable mention:

E3M8 - Could have been much better, Mastermind is a cool monster but she's so underpowered it ruins the level - besides there's no climax or anything (like in E1M8 or E2M8), the boss is just... there

Maldoror said:

E3M8 - Could have been much better, Mastermind is a cool monster but she's so underpowered it ruins the level - besides there's no climax or anything (like in E1M8 or E2M8), the boss is just... there

Yep, just sitting in a corner.

A few more favourites of mine.

Most of E4 I adore. Especially, E4M2, E4M3, E4M6 and E4M7. The rest are good, but not my favorites. But yeah, E4M1 is damn tough on UV.

MAP10 of Doom 2, E1M3 and E1M6 of Doom are my holy trinity of original Doom levels. Fun to play, risky, massively generous secrets and shotgun guys everywhere!

E1M1, E2M1 and E3M1 are probably my least favourite. Let me get to the bigger maps quicker! ;3

Ehh, E1M6 was always my least favorite map of E1.

Actually I agree that E1M2 and E1M3 are also damn classic and not only E1M1 is. They should also be in my top.

Some of my least favorites apart from House of Pain and Warrens which I haven't mentioned before are Phobos Lab, Central Processing, Computer Station, Military Base, Refinery, Demios Lab, Command Center, Limbo, Dis, Unruly Evil and They Will Repent. None of them are bad but I don't enjoy them as much as the rest of the game. I think the second half of E1 gets kind of monotonous and same with E2M3-5.
E1 is still a great episode. Shores of Hell is nearly as good but Inferno is worst thanks to my boiling hate for House of Pain and Warrens. Thy Flesh Consumed may be the best episode but I'm going to put it in second place after Knee-deep simply because it's not as classic and each level is a bit complex (Against Thee Wickedly) compared to Knee-deep which was fun even though they kept it pretty simple.

Archy said:

Interesting, I've always considered E2M7 to be one of the most boring maps and E3M2 to be one of the easiest.

It's not impossible to run out of ammo and get stuck between a bunch of cacodemons, demons and other monsters if you rush and trigger a few too many of them at once actually.
E2M7 sure is real boring though.

Ragnor said:

Ive always considered Fortress of Mystery, Hell Keep, Warrens, Dis, and Unruly Evil to be terrible maps

I like Warrens' idea, but it builds off the most disgusting map in the entire game so its unfixable.

I think Fortress of Mystery starts off interesting by putting you in a pretty tough spot and since it's not very long I wouldn't say it's boring but it is sorta unfinished. I think Hell Keep is elegant and consider enough to keep it from being bad even though it's very eventless. Going through it two more times in Warrens is just too much though. Dis is terrible. Dis should had been tech instead of green marble or whatever it is and a lot more detailed to make it fit in better with the boss. I don't mind Unruly Evil.

I'm impressed no one has mentioned E4M4. I wouldn't say it's the worst map of them game, but it just plain doesn't make sense IMO. Way too short and way too easy, something you wouldn't expect in an episode as difficult as E4, specially after having beaten 3 pretty hard maps before.

Fernito said:

I'm impressed no one has mentioned E4M4. I wouldn't say it's the worst map of them game, but it just plain doesn't make sense IMO. Way too short and way too easy, something you wouldn't expect in an episode as difficult as E4, specially after having beaten 3 pretty hard maps before.

E4M4 is Unruly Evil :p It has been mentioned.
I actually agree it is very, very easy... I think it's got a nice design to it though and it's simple and elegant but when you mention it I agree it is way too easy for the episode. Besides it's bugged on easier difficulties.

DoomCollector said:

E4M4 is Unruly Evil :p It has been mentioned.

LOL sorry, after 20 years of playing Doom, I still don't know E4 levels by their actual name. How embarrassing! :(

Best:
E1M2 - Very atmospheric, a lot of clever secrets come to mind.
E1M4 - The first action-oriented map, pretty mazey, which is awesome (screw the haters!). And it was started by Tom Hall! Also, it's the basis of many interesting tricks, such as the exit jump.
E2M2 - One of my all-time favourites. It has a really spooky feel intensified by the way combat was implemented: the monsters come at you at intervals, rather than all the time. As a result, exploring a lot of areas is great fun.
E2M3 - Maybe the layout isn't the greatest (but I like it anyway), but the music is enough to make it feel memorable.
E2M4 - Quirky, creepy and spine-chilling. The music is no worse than the previous.
E2M5 (Yeah, I really love The Shores of Hell) - Great map to start from scratch, especially with -fast. As usual, a lot of fun areas to explore and Petersen's nonchalant use of textures.
E2M6 - A number of memorable moments and excellent music.
E2M8 - Fantastic boss map.
E3M3 - A cross between a techbase and a hellish map, tons of different textures that often don't match at all and scattered things all over the floor. Insanity.
E3M8 - Mostly because of nostalgia, but it's a decent boss map in the end.
E4M2 - Hectic and addictive as fuck. Very hard as well, but much less so when you know how to play it. How can anybody dislike it?
E4M5 - Very interesting use of height variation. I think the layout was fairly advanced for its time, even though I'm no big fan of marble-and-brick style levels.

Worst:
E2M9 - 'Nuff said. It had the intimidation factor when I played it the first time, but it must be said it's quarter-assed at best.
E3M5 - This one was probably meant to be experimental but ended up being annoying as fuck.
E3M7 - Some people say it's creepy and atmospheric and perfectly builds tension before the final showdown. I can't agree. It's bland, boring, and such an overuse of damaging blood is gratuitous as well.
E3M9 - Well, if E2M9 was quarter-assed, then I've got no freaking idea how to call this one. Just outrageous for a commercial product.
E4M1 - Awful. Just awful. The worst. By far. So fucking cheap. Hey, wanna play a hard map? I'll remove all the health and pit you against a host of tough monsters! Feels great, ain't it? And the player gets punished for triggering a secret. Enough with it!
E4M4 - Bland and unmemorable. Pretty superfluous, I think.

Easiest:
All E1 maps, maybe except for E1M9.

Hardest:
E4M2, E4M1, E4M6, respectively.

Feniks said:

E4M1 - Awful. Just awful. The worst. By far. So fucking cheap. Hey, wanna play a hard map? I'll remove all the health and pit you against a host of tough monsters! Feels great, ain't it? And the player gets punished for triggering a secret. Enough with it!

One of my all time favorite maps; when you've been speed-running at Doom for years, it's quite refreshing to know that there's still a few maps in Ultimate Doom that are still a challenge on UV -FAST. Wish more maps had zero stimpacks/medikits, it makes you appreciate health bonuses more than you thought possible.

Best:

E1M3: Tons of memorable areas and great use of secrets
E1M7: Pretty much all the best things about E1 jammed into one level
E2M2: Crates FTW
E2M4: Creative weird-ass architecture and texture use. Also great atmosphere
E4M1: Really forces you to play tactility
E4M2: Excellent monster placement
E4M6: The best id map. Amazing architecture and an epic ending

Worst:

E2M9: Good idea, awful execution
E3M1: Way too much pistol use
E3M8: Completely anticlimactic

Easiest: E1M1, E1M2, E3M1, E3M8 (with BFG)

Hardest: E4M1, E4M2, E4M6

Archy said:

One of my all time favorite maps; when you've been speed-running at Doom for years, it's quite refreshing to know that there's still a few maps in Ultimate Doom that are still a challenge on UV -FAST. Wish more maps had zero stimpacks/medikits, it makes you appreciate health bonuses more than you thought possible.

But it's pretty bland architecture-wise. Extremely simple compared to other E4 maps, just looks like filler. I dare say it wouldn't be considered any better than E4M4 if it hadn't been for the dearth of health and ammo. There isn't even much height variation, and a HOM is possible to boot...

The only thing that makes it memorable is the half-assedly achieved difficulty.

But I might be sort of biased, because I enjoy "survival" maps with tons of health and ammo but also many difficult encounters. I love AV map18 for example. I concede that there are a lot of good maps that are tight on ammo, but I hate Hell Beneath with passion for all the reasons mentioned above.