Thy Flesh Consumed

What is the story behind this episode? Was it cut from the original DOOM? Or was it something ID felt like putting in?

I used to think that this episode was a secret episode unlocked when u beat the 1st 3, but it apparently ain't. But it sure is one o'my faves!

At the time it seemed like id's last attempt to get more money from doom by re-releasing the original game with an extra episode tagged on. Although to be fair, i think a free patch was available which added the extra episode to your original installed version of doom. Mind you, this didn't stop people refering to this episode as 'Thy Cash Consumed'.

I believe that the story runs thus:
Somehow or other, after you defeated the Spider Mastermind, the demons got back to Earth before you could, and took over a space base there. What you see in E4 is that space base, totally corrupted and gone to hell.

Russell_P said:

'Thy Cash Consumed'.

Heh, I've not heard that before. But yeah Ep4 was id flogging a dead horse. Ummm no hang on, Doom hasn't died. Anyway, Doom had been out for some time, Doom2 had also been released and then "Ultimate" came along with an extra episode tagged on that didn't fit the "story line" or style of the original game but justified putting a new boxed version on the shelves.

It may have been done because the original was sold through shareware and the Ultimate version was commercially released and distributed and the extra episode helped justify that. That's just a guess. I don't know, and yes I'm sure there was a patch to upgrade previously bought versions so at least it was a pretty fair arrangement.

Whatever, to me Episode4 simply isn't part of Doom - which is a complete game and story told in 3 episodes. Ep4 may have some interesting maps (although most are not to my taste) but to me it will always be a mission pack added on after the fact.

Enjay said:

Ep4 may have some interesting maps (although most are not to my taste)

???


E4 is great! Some of the best commercially released Doom levels of all time! Who cares about the storyline especially since it was available as a free update to the original game.

The Ultimate Doom was made because GT Interactive wanted a commercial version of Doom, which was actually only available by mail-order or whatever. This was after Doom 2 was a smash hit and the publisher wanted to get more Doom out there, fast.

I believe that the E4 levels were actually the last levels, chronologically, made by the id guys (and the one other guy and girl who contributed). You can see a definite progression from Doom to Doom 2 to Thy Flesh Consumed in the arhitectural quality of the work done, and you can almost see how it's a precursor to Quake.

Linguica said:

The Ultimate Doom was made because GT Interactive wanted a commercial version of Doom, which was actually only available by mail-order or whatever. This was after Doom 2 was a smash hit and the publisher wanted to get more Doom out there, fast.

I believe that the E4 levels were actually the last levels, chronologically, made by the id guys (and the one other guy and girl who contributed). You can see a definite progression from Doom to Doom 2 to Thy Flesh Consumed in the arhitectural quality of the work done, and you can almost see how it's a precursor to Quake.

I cannot see any progression from Doom 1 to Doom 2. Most Doom 1 levels were significantly better. Thy Flesh Consumed has the highest quality overall but that has nothing to do with the time it was created, it's just that Sandy Petersen hadn't anything to do with it!

I agree that the maps are technically better in many respects than earlier episodes. They are more detailed, have more cunning tricks, are more ambitious in their layout etc. They are also a visual style that I find less appealing (predominamtly green/wood/rust combinations), IMO are less evocative of "real" places and I find them simply less fun to play. Quite why I enjoy them less really is just a matter of taste (closed argument I know) but they simply do not row my boat in the way the levels in the other episodes do.

Heh, episode4 was one of the best episodes in doom, however it didn't fit the story. These levels are alot harder and funner than some of the other doom levels (except of couse episode1 and some of the e2 levels, special e2m1, e2m2). Like the style of the levels too, except tim willits' levels (ew!).

I always viewed Thy Flesh Consumed as a free bonus episode for those people that had bought DooM Shareware. I certainly remember downloading it for free when it first came out.

I guess however that it could be seen as a last effort to 'cash in' on DooM (although I always thought that's more what Final DooM was though).

The Flange Peddler said:

I guess however that it could be seen as a last effort to 'cash in' on DooM

To my mind, it simply made the game available via an additional channel - you could then just buy it from a store. However you had chosen to purchase the game, you got an excellent additional episode. I don't see what anyone could have to complain about. (Except, I suppose, those with a compulsive need to purchase every id release, even if it duplicates something they've already got.)

It's really not different from when an old record gets re-released on CD with some bonus tracks.

Little Faith said:

It's really not different from when an old record gets re-released on CD with some bonus tracks.

Well, it is! Unlike Doom, which was upgradable for free you have to buy for these CDs. Something that annoyed me more than once.

Another part of the story I remember reading somewhere is that your bunny, Daisy was killed by demons, so you go back into the fray. That's where that bunny head, you're holding comes in. It was a pretty cheesy storyline, more funny than serious, unlike Doom E1-3's stories, and Doom ][s.

insertwackynamehere# said:

Another part of the story I remember reading somewhere is that your bunny, Daisy was killed by demons,

Right. That's the text screen you get after beating E4M8 ...

Torn said:

Like the style of the levels too, except tim willits' levels (ew!).

I beg to disagree. Both E4M5 and E4M9 are was miles better than his Raven* junk.

Graf Zahl said:

I cannot see any progression from Doom 1 to Doom 2. Most Doom 1 levels were significantly better. Thy Flesh Consumed has the highest quality overall but that has nothing to do with the time it was created, it's just that Sandy Petersen hadn't anything to do with it!

Succinct, and 100% correct! I couldn't put it better myself.
I always tended to think that most DOOM[] maps were bs, especially as I played Final DOOM before playing HOE ...

Please learn how to use quote tags. - Moderator

Linguica said:

(and the one other guy and girl who contributed)

uh

theresa chasar + tim willits + john anderson == 3 people who didn't work for id. tim willits didn't work on doom2 and only found a job at id after thy flesh consumed.

E4M2 and E4M6 are win. E4 is my favorite episode even if it's weird. They should've made a new boss for E4 though, the frads.

E4M2 and E4M6 also are coincidentally the only two john romero maps in the episode :P

E4 has some awesome levels, but i feel it has worse flow than any of the other episodes, in large part due to the fact it was constructed by a team of six mappers as opposed to eps 1, 2 and 3, which were largely constructed by a single mapper.

E4 has a lot more outdoor areas than any of the other episodes as well, and as such often has a different kind of spooky feel to it. the map design is great though, in large part due to the lessened height restrictions of earlier versions, which left E4 being far more vertical than any of the first three episodes.

but yes, it really really should have had a new endboss... without it it almost doesn't feel like a proper episode at all.

sargebaldy said:

but yes, it really really should have had a new endboss... without it it almost doesn't feel like a proper episode at all.

Agreed. That was the biggest disappointment - nothing of significance new other than levels. It was crying out to have its own boss monster.

[re: wishes the had been a new boss at the end of E4]

Fat chance there would have been one. By 1995 Carmack and Romero's attention was consumed by the project that they declared would make DOOM look like Pong (not). Ultimate DOOM was not a priority.