Endless Random /idgames WAD Adventures #004

Day 15

 

I play until I die or intentionally stop. I don't comment the wad where I die/stop.

 

File 1) Painful Evil by Tomi Rajala (2000)

 

 

A real hidden gem from the early 2000s. Painful Evil is a perfect mix between the theme of Ultimate Doom 4, the gameplay of Plutonia and the progression of Doom 2's map 14 in some places.

 

The main quality of this map is its aesthetics, with some advanced detailling for the time, light variations contrasting with the surrounding darkness and memorable areas for important objects such as keys.

 

The other asset is its gameplay with small traps that force us to be vigilant at all times. The level itself is not very hard thanks to the prolific items.

 

The biggest flaw however is its confusing progression with switches that activate doors at the other end of the map. The backtracks are pretty annoying.

 

File 2) Every One is Floating, but Me! by Warren (1997)

 

 

An old dehacked that allows monsters to float slightly in the air but not only. Some monsters are particularly modified such as zombiemen firing plasma balls, imps firing baron projectiles or even pain elementals replaced by brown marine sprites! 

 

Moreover, our backpack has been considerably enlarged to the point where we can have up to 1000 rounds of ammunition of each category! Some weapons have also been modified.

 

Also monsters of the same species can infight each other !

 

float.deh is nothing but a fun minimod.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I died in a unfair cybie/archviles trap in the very odd 1995 deathmatch wad   Avatar Collection #2 by  Mackey McCandlish

 

 

@Roofi Looks like DM WADs are your bane lol

LOCAL HERO for DOOM 2 - Gregory Dick (Vanilla Doom 2, 1999, played on doom2.exe with DosBox)

Pretty cool medium sized town with some pretty challenging moments, lots of former humans monster usage, a pretty interconnected area and new really cool blue sky with a cartoonish yellow moon. Overall a fun map to play.

12 hours ago, Endless said:

@Roofi Looks like DM WADs are your bane lol

 

Yep lol , At least it's cool when there are some monsters so it's not completly boring to play solo.

 

Day 16

 

I play until I die or intentionally stop. I don't comment the wad where I die/stop

 

File 1) Hour of Doom for DOOM II by Terry Neve (In Colorful Colorado) (2005)

 

 

 

Official release date: 2005 but the level was created 10 years earlier.

 

A rather misshapen level with long corridors and large spaces. I don't have much to say about it except that I found it easier in terms of wads from that time. The monsters are particularly well placed and the secrets, although easy to find, are particularly useful, especially the SSG.

 

Aesthetically a rather average map. I don't think I'll ever play it again.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I died in the masterpiece 2003 megawad  Big Crappy Shit Megawad by Smoking Joe after getting shot without cover from few zombies.

 

 

 

Day 9, Roadkill: https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/p-r/roadkill

 

A city map with 145 monsters on UV, of which I was able to kill 102 before having to give up because I got lost. First thing you'll notice is the custom pistol/chaingun sound, which sound sort of like a worse version of the silenced pistol from Goldeneye that you hear everywhere. It also features some custom wall textures, which the author said are from Hexen and Trinity, but I would've guessed Chex Quest, given how much they look like the walls are made of waffles.

 

The level itself is mostly alright, when you know where you're going, I'm especially bad when it comes to navigation, but this map doesn't really do me any favours. The blue key, which is required to progress through the game, is a secret, and it wasn't a misaligned texture or anything, if I wasn't just spamming space on some wall that looked just like every other wall, I would've had to give up at a figure closer to 40 kills. And, to make matters worse, probably at least half of the doors in the map are improperly marked, and the game does give you light amplification goggles, for the obvious purpose of making it easier to see in dark areas, which means if you have to backtrack, you're going to spend a lot of time walking through dark areas where you can't see anything. Moving through the areas themselves isn't much of an issue, apart from one point where the hell knight got stuck, and another area with stairs where the ceiling's a bit low, so it's kind of a pain to bump your head every point you go down.

For 1995, it's not that bad, maybe if they cut down on the number of doors, marked them properly, and actually had more combat in the city area which is its namesake, it'd be worth considering, but I'd suggest you just play something else.

Day 10, React: https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/a-c/cyc-b

 

A pretty good map that seems to be an underground mine of some sort, I think the mapper was selling himself short with the description of "Yadda yadda mountain base yadda yadda experiments yadda mutants yadda yadda lone soldier yadda yadda reactor core yadda yadda three switches badda boom", from a visual standpoint it's actually very appealing, and that reactor core he mentioned looks great, the reactor core, and the blue rooms connecting to it that flash colour through (hard to show that with a still image) look great, it's something you'd expect to see in Half Life more than Doom.

Also, the zombiemen are now super-shotgunners, who have some armour on as well, which means until you get your own SSG, it's going to be at least two shots to kill them, pretty sure they have more health than chaingunners, and that 40-60 damage buckshot is no joke. So not sure what was up with that one person on the idgames archive claiming it wasn't hard enough, the number of the super shotgunners you'll have to deal with, it's a good thing the RNG was on my side, because when dealing with two separate staircases with a chaingunner and super shotgunner on each side, I only managed to get out with 2% health. On UV, it's a good level of difficulty, the map's only about 100 enemies, and it is a bit claustrophobic in places, so there's not a huge amount of tricks they can pull, but it gets the job done. But, I will say that towards the end, when you have to navigate around the reactor core, it is a bit easy, they give you a rocket launcher just prior to it, but the area is too narrow for it to be worth using, they also throw in a cheeky archvile there too, but you've got plenty of cover, nothing to worry about. And, after you do beat that archvile, some icon of sin somewhere dies, but they could have probably made it clearer that was the end, you just walk around for a bit, and then suddenly the map's over, and you have to activate a switch to end the level, so I don't know why they didn't just immediately end it like so many other maps.

 

Good map, nothing outstanding, but it's got a lot going for it.

 

 

Day 17

 

I play until I die or intentionally stop. I don't comment the wad where I die/stop

 

 

No review for today. I died in the second map from the first wad which was HELLSPEK.WAD by Andre' Quinnett. If you like large very classic maps with Metallica midi music, this wad is for you !

 

 

GOAT.WAD - Unknown (Vanilla Doom, 1994 but re-uploaded on 2005 at idgames, Played with vanilla doom.exe on DosBox)

2 primitive puzzle maps, E1M1 is a trail and error map that looks like a dark version of barrels of fun with a unintituitive layout design where you are going to makes a lot of mistakes during the play, not really that fun. E1M2 is better, but "better" like "a kick in the ass is better than a kick in the balls". Is a almost no light samey-room lift maze, walk around the maze to find new areas and collecting all the keys, there's also a simple teleport maze and a kinda cool final room battle, for some bizzare reason is more understandable to roaming around than E1M1.

 

Nothing that great or fun...

I played two random wads today plus Clockwork 70 from the OP.

 

Cliffs // Gregory Korzuchin // 1995 // GZDoom, UV, no saves

An abstract map full of secrets (14) that you can mostly just walk into. The architecture is very basic, it goes from linear ledges to wide open spaces and hallways. It pretty much has built-in infighting in the first half, and the 2nd half sends you to pain elemental hell (with full plasma cells) before giving you a BFG for an easy icon of sin kill. It was certainly a wad, and that is all I can really say.

 

 

Archvile // Sara Salazar (Sub-Zero) // 1997 // GZDoom, UV, no saves

It's dark. Really really really dark. There's also a 15+ second elevator ride waiting section and another platforming waiting section right before the elevator. There is exactly one archvile, at the very end. It was not a rewarding playthrough. I think if you wanted to get 100% kills in this you'd have to punch out a lot of enemies with no berserk, because there's a cyberdemon caged in a long hallways near the beginning that I didn't have the motivation to return and dance with. It has a nice midi though, it would work nicely for a 2nd or 3rd level on a megawad.

 

Clockwork 70 // Paul Corfiatis (Pcorf) // 2017 // GZDoom, UV, no saves

Infight city, fulfills the quake-inspiration promise. Took me a few tries to figure out how to handle the bit after the first room, but I got it down. The last couple of rooms are a bit strange and I don't feel like they mesh as well as the rest, but that's just nitpicking. Definitely the best out of these three by a longshot.

 

Day 11, Yesterday's Nightmare: https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/v-z/yestrday

 

A castle map, the author describes it as 'surreal', not sure I agree, it has a couple oddities, like that laughing face texture in the first minute, and like everything else built in Doom it's not a realistic depiction of the actual architecture of a castle, but even if it's not that surreal, it certainly adheres to the aesthetics of a castle, and it's well constructed. The combat arenas are quite basic, as is the enemy placement, it does spawn in a large number of pinkies, but that's the most advanced trick there is, obviously I can't expect much from a 2004 map, but they have these very wide locations, yet not a huge amount is done with them, you never have to make difficult decisions, snipe the hitscanners, then deal with everyone else, in your own time, they never force your hand. 

Not a huge amount to say about this map just because it's not got a huge amount going on, it certainly looks good, and it does have some imposing structures, but to name Dead Simple as a semi-random example, it requires you to use cover effectively in order to survive, and while this isn't quite as bad as some newbie maps, the amount of space in which you have to dodge enemy attacks is certainly much higher than the output of enemy attacks you'll actually see. Don't know what was going on with that place with the lava, it certainly looks interesting, and it also looks like you can just walk down, but you can't go there, and I was only 3 kills short of 100%, so I doubt I missed anything. Also kind of low on health packs, so maybe the excessive space cancels itself out.

I've been slowly working thru JPCP, so I went on random looking for single map wads this evening, for a break.

 

Gamma Labs // Chris Hansen // 2004 // GZDoom, UV, No Saves

This ruled, just a shame that I'm pretty sure I missed 100% kills because of a failed teleport. Oh well.

Very satisfying E1 throwback, lots of hitscan and pinky blasting, flows very well. It's kind of dark in some places, I got through it with vanilla lighting but I wouldn't blame someone if they bumped it to something else. Had a strong chance at oneshotting it but got max damage shotgunned to death from a shotgunner monster closet at one of the keycards.

 

Nashville, Tennessee // Paul "skillsaw" DeBruyne // 2015 // GZDoom, UV-Max, No Saves

No secrets in this one. Blindly oneshot it, surprisingly enough. I'm not super familiar with skillsaw's work but this seemed really light compared to what I have touched. Not bad at all, but doesn't really pull any punches, very short (~5 minutes blind). The midi is very nice.

 

Bluechip // Mark Marusak // 1995 // GZDoom, UV, 100% Secrets, No Saves

Teleporter Hell. I don't know if you could get 100% kills on this map without noclipping through all the teleport triggers, felt to me like there's a couple of rooms where you only get one trip through them and if you stumble into one of the many triggers your opportunity is gone. Oh well. Not very fun.

 

DAY 5 | Ultimate Suck | ASO3000 | 2020 | Played on LZDoom + UV | 3 / 5 (Gonna start using ratings to note how much I enjoyed/had fun with a WAD in range of 1 to 5; 3 being a fairly decent/fun WAD.)

 

 

The title of this WAD is the kind of name you would expect from one from the 90s, however, this one was made in 2020 and released with all the ironic reality that can come with it. It's a replacement for the original E4M1 that combines the visual style of classic tech-base with the macabre hell of Thy Flesh Consumed, creating a beautifully peaceful atmosphere that makes me nostalgic for some reason. The map features an interesting design that seems to show a clear understanding of layout and enough detail to give it an appealing visual value. The gameplay and certain design decisions tend to be fairly basic, mediocre to a point, but they get the job done without going too far. With a fairly attractive start that then evolves into a simple but fun map, this is a pretty decent WAD that tries to keep it simple without going overboard on difficulty. Relaxing and basic, like a coconut on the beach.

Day 12, OUT OF PHASE 3: ONE CLOUDY AFTERNOON: https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/m-o/ophase3

 

Short map, a tiny bit claustrophobic for my taste, the one screenshot I took is the most breathing room you'll ever get. It's only got about 30 enemies on UV, so the map is short, and very basic, but nonetheless well constructed, and for such a small map, it's got an abundance of secrets, and enough enemy variety to make combat varied despite your limited arsenal, although if you did have a rocket launcher it'd be completely useless. And, it's got teleporters that are open when monster closets activate, which lead you in a door directly behind them, which isn't something I've seen before. Good map, might not take that long to beat, but that just means it's got no filler.

 

Edited April 17, 2021 by Sena

Warriors of Spider // Andreas Lange, "APS-Software" // 1996 // GZDoom, UV, no saves

I bailed on this after 3 maps. I struggled through the first one, which was kind of Imp Hell But Not Really Just Really Annoying with an elevator section where I was almost tempted to turn on mouselook so I could see where I was even being hit from. The second map was essentially free thanks to the plasma gun at the beginning but I already had a sour taste in my mouth from the awful midi in the first map + the very loud Star Wars and Other Things sound replacements that the wad has. It had a lost soul pit that was more time-consuming to clear out than dangerous to fall into. The third map did not get any better. I don't really feel bad about bailing because it had the early doom mapping hallmarks of irritating enemy placement, plus it was very..... stock and bland to look at.... maybe I've spoiled myself too much on wads with texture replacements recently.

DAY 6 | LOCAL HERO for DOOM II  | Gregory Dick | 1999 | Played on LZDoom + UV | 3/5

 

 

1999 is quite an interesting year for the history of Doom. Apart from being the end of the 90s era, it also marks a sort of transition between the classic style of yesteryear and the modern renaissance of 2000 onwards. Many WADs this year have left a great mark, and this one, Local Hero for Doom II, is one that I can say leaves a good taste in the mouth. The Doom-City style is a unique genre that was practically born with Sandy Petersen, thanks to its abstract and strangely realistic levels set in urban areas, mainly cities. Doom's textures, as limited as they were, gave enough essence to create slightly realistic settings that worked well enough to evoke a sense of architectural realism. This WAD aims entirely to achieve that category and succeeds in doing so in a solid, successful and fun way. A 90s classic, with an acceptable style and a gameplay more challenging than it looks, this map can give us between 10 to 20 minutes of entertainment and offer us an interesting perspective within the Doom-City genre, one as famous as hated at times, but one that I enjoy. Local Hero is interesting, engaging and has an aroma that is as charismatic as it is appealing. A WAD worthwhile if only for its historical value and solid design. It may look a bit clunky by modern standards, but it still plays well.

Hell Keep redux v0.9.3 | @Gwarl | 2021 | Played on LZDoom + UV | 4/5

 

 

Gigantic marble fortress in the middle of an infernal paradise. This huge to medium sized map is an incredible work full of variety, detail and a good challenge designed with balance in mind for all types of players. Starting with the epic entrance that launches us straight into the action until the bombastic end in cruel battles. This is a map that at the same time works as a ''return'' from the author, creating something new after such a long time that is worth playing with all kinds of admiration. It uses stock textures to create a nostalgic atmosphere that pays homage to the classic episodes. E2 and E4 is an environment that stands out quite a bit in my mind, especially thanks to the use of marble and tight gameplay that emphasizes survival and good tactics, especially with the attention you pay to your environments. Its size may seem detrimental from afar, but the map doesn't feel elongated and maintains a stable feeling of flow thanks to a comprehensive and dynamic layout that follows a clear difficulty curve. A great map in every way. Fun, well made, modest (in its own way) and full of charisma.

Had the opportunity to have another go at these. With video this time!.

 

Anyway, I got this one:

 

https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/Ports/d-f/frtiamat

 

A techbase from 2016 by Gran-D-Knight, so quite recent. Credits Eureka and Andrew Apted. Only has two stars...

 

Played with GZDoom 4.4 and freelook. No saves, UV, missed a secret  :-(

Quite a short map, and quite easy too. A bit of a surprise when the archvile attacked, but as he's restricted to the platform, he was straightforward to dispatch.

 

Playthrough:

 

 

Random surfing this evening to wind down day 2 of my grind through Arrival //

 

IC1Room (AKA Go!) // Ian Cunnings // 2003 // GZDoom, UV, No Saves

1 room + 80 monsters + BFG and rockets + 40 second voodoo doll time limit. Not bad. Took me like, probably 10 minutes to complete, had to memorize the optimal movement to not waste time getting to the key switches and then not die to loose stragglers that I didn't kill with BFG tracers. Not gonna go for 100% kills, I think I could definitely do it with enough tries, but I don't have the motivation.

 

Beluga // didy // 2007 // GZDoom, UV, No Saves

Cute tech-base, suffers a little from the way the non-linearity structures it, but it's chock full of cute little details. The vent secrets, the red keycard being slowed down by the conveyor, the yellow keycard teleporter thing. The final fight is a little bit anticlimactic but the whole map is full of fights that could go a lot harder on you, so that might just be nitpick-y. I don't like the midi much either, but it does fit the atmosphere. I liked it.

 

Clockwork 70 is a standalone release of my Mayhem 2016 map but with Doom 2 stock textures. The Mayhem 2016 version contains Quake textures. Both maps are very much identical in layout and gameplay wise.