The /newstuff Chronicles #189

An odd mix this week, with weapons mods and monster replacements galore, and some real oddities, such as an animated music studio and a zodiac-themed map. Fans of jokewads also have something to amuse themselves with, I'm afraid. Amongst all this there are also quite a few genuinely good maps, including some promising creations by new mappers.

• Fear Construct by Kyle "MasterOfPuppets" Casteel
  240kb - Legacy + Doom2 - SP - 3 maps - (img) - (img)
  I enjoyed this set of three maps for Legacy. The architecture is not overly elaborate, but looks fairly attractive throughout, and the action is intense. I suspect they are intended to be played consecutively, but all three maps are playable from pistol starts (though maybe not with max kills). Maps 02 and 03 are quite a scramble if you start from scratch, with low health and ammo - especially in map02. The most noticeable Legacy features are 3D walkways.
  
  
• The Zodiac: Aries by Milian Moritz
  298kb - Zdoom + Doom2 - SP - 1 map - (img)
  The first in a series of SP maps based loosely around the signs of the zodiac. Other than that little gimmick, it's just a very solid and challenging Zdoom map. There is some swimmable water, but otherwise few Zdoom features are on display. There are some tricky cyber confrontations, so I'd suggest using the odd savegame until you're familiar with the layout.
  
  
• New World 2 by Daniel
  4,230kb - port + Doom2 - SP - 18 maps - (img) - (img) - (img)
  The indefatigable Daniel presents us with yet another multi-level wad. This one is based partly on his unfortunate Female Doom, but with the tasteless content mostly stripped out. This requires a port that supports dehacked patches, and a few of the maps require jumping (map01 needs it at the very start, but I haven't found any other places where it is essential in order to complete a map - I haven't checked this systematically though). The maps all look good (if you liked New World, you'll like this for sure - plenty of outdoor/natural environments), and many of them are great fun to play too. Themes and situations vary considerably. The secret map (31) will appeal to those who liked Plutonia map11 and Equinox map10, though it is a fair bit easier once you know where to get the useful stuff - after you get the BFG, it isn't much of a challenge any more, since you have stacks of plasma. Map16 is called Stonehenge, and is a good reworking of a theme that has been used in quite a number of Doom maps. Health and ammo seem well balanced on most maps - you can expect plenty of close calls, but shouldn't need to non-berserk too many demons.
  
  
• Journey of No Hope by CodenniumRed
  57kb - Doom.exe - SP/coop/DM - 1 map - (img)
  This fairly small and simple map is a promising start for a new mapper. The design is good - it reminded me of the outdoor areas of E4M6, with maybe a little E4M8 thrown in. The level of detail is about right - nothing is bare, but nothing is over-fiddly either. Gameplay isn't difficult, with plenty of health and ammo supplied. A large part of the map can be skipped (without using any tricks), which is a slight blemish. The soulsphere secret is not terribly easy to reach, but you don't really need it, unless you're recording a Max demo (which might be quite fun, come to think of it). To the author's credit, the map really does work with Doom.exe too - no HOMs, VPOs, etc.
  
  
• Moonlight Sonata by Ivar 'jallamann' Remøy
  83kb - Zdoom + Doom2 - SP - 1 map - (img)
  The only port I got this to work with was Zdoom. I don't think it uses Zdoom features (and no jumping is needed), but it's the only port I found that would tolerate a texturing error. Apart from that rather serious blemish, the map is quite fun, though the design features quite a mix of themes. There is a fairly nasty ambush near the berserk pack, but otherwise it isn't too difficult if you proceed with reasonable caution. The berserk should come in handy - I used it to get rid of a baron, and then found I had no ammo shortage. Incidentally, it is possible to skip most of the map using a little switch-from-below trick to pick up the red key very quickly, and exit in well under a minute.
  
  
• The Studio by Jimi
  889kb - jDoom + Doom2 - SP or nomonsters - 1 map - (img)
  This is a weird one. It's a small map with a few monsters to kill, but that's not really what it's about. It is set in a sound studio, which erupts into life when you press a particular button. Keyboards start to play and drums spring spontaneously into action. It's not so much a wad to play as a demonstration of what jDoom can do via its DEDs. Incidentally, you can play the map in other ports (just extract it from the pk3 file), but the automated studio doesn't work then, of course.
  
  
• LOST SOULSPHERE: Gold Edition by Xaser
  4,101kb - Zdoom + Doom2 - SP - 10 maps - (img)
  I'll just give this one a quick mention, since it is a new version of a wad reviewed in T/nC #173, with a few changes to weapons, sounds, graphics and music, and a new map07 (which I found kind of boring and repetitive). It's a very silly jokewad, but a few of the maps are fun.
  
  
• DEtective Corn Slug v. Brassy B by BLAKE STONER
  938kb - port + Doom2 - SP - 5 maps - (img)
  Another wad by the creator of the appalling Sadhus Chauffeur Trio. This one isn't quite so bad though. It's still a "joke" wad, and certainly features some very bad design indeed, but there are some signs of talent, and evidence that some work went into it. The fruit-based ideas are kind of cute, and I actually enjoyed playing map03 (looselt based around Doom2 map31), which was quite challenging. The other four maps have no worthwhile gameplay though.
  
  
• DoomNiel - Daniel Adventure by Daniel
  8,510kb - Zdoom + Doom2 - SP - 5 maps - (img)
  This wad does not work with the current version of Zdoom, and Daniel has not clarified which versions of which ports (if any) it has actually been verified to work with. I modified the wad by removing a skin, and it then worked OK in Zdoom 2.0.63. I believe Daniel intends to release an amended version, so I'll just give it a screenshot and this brief mention for now.
  
  
• CDoom v1.9 by Carlos Guariglia
  171kb - it's a port
  This is the linuxdoom 1.10 source code ported to DOS, while retaining maximum compatibility with Doom2 1.9. Essentially, it's an open-source clone of Doom2.exe v1.9 - something that would have been very useful indeed back in 1998. It also has a setting to provide demo compatibility with Final Doom. Sadly, I can't get the sound to work in XP, but CDoom 1.9 could be an interesting base for further development.
  
  
• CDoom v2.05 by Carlos Guariglia
  232kb - it's a port
  This port is based on MBF and has added support for 3d features such as jumping and 3d floors. This is a new version.
  
  
• ARMAS 04 (Weapons 04) by Daniel
  354kb - port/dehacked - weapon replacement - (img)
  Replaces most of the weapons. The most interesting changes are to the rocket-launcher, which now lays mines that explode after a time delay, while the BFG functions much the same as the original, but is Pacman themed (see the screenshot).
  
  
• ARMAS 28 (Weapons 28) by Daniel
  1,527kb - Zdoom/other ports(?) - weapon replacement - (img)
  Another set of replacement weapons, some of the silly variety - for instance there is the Smarties gun, as seen in Lost Soulsphere. The BFG replacement does some weird stuff (which crashes prboom, incidentally) - a glob of gunge sometimes rises from a victim - this hangs in the air for a while and hurts anything that comes into contact with it.
  
  
• D-Gun Weapon Set 1.5 by Ralf Wueltener (update by Xaser)
  252kb - port/Zdoom - weapon replacement/enemy modification - (img)
  Xaser has built upon Ralf Wueltener's weapon replacement, and presents us with two versions: one for Zdoom, one for any port that supports dehacked patches. The main addition is the Glass Shard Launcher.
  
  
• Xaser's Fury by Xaser
  434kb - Zdoom - weapon replacement/enemy modification - (img)
  More replacement weapons... I must say that I find the sniper scope annoying, but some of the guns are quite cool. The new BFG can certainly clear a room in a great hurry, and the Flak Cannon does its job nicely. Some of the monsters are changed, with green imps replacing the human enemies.
  
  
• Doom Monster Replacement - Marines by Daniel
  504kb - port/dehacked - enemy modification - (img)
  The first of two sets of new monsters by Daniel. Marines replace most of the monsters here, with different weapons in many cases. The animations are good, and the enemies look quite natural - not too surprising given that they are based on the original marine sprites. The monster sounds are replaced by sound bites of typical dialogue, which I imagine could start to grate after you've heard each of them a few dozen times.
  
  
• Doom Monster Replacement - Zombies by Daniel
  452kb - port/dehacked - enemy modification - (img)
  I wouldn't say the guys in this monster replacement really look like zombies - they're more gunslingers of various types, military and others. Many of them are based quite closely on baddies from other games. Again, they all look quite good.
  
  
• Extra Guns for Zdoom 2.0 by Daniel
  1,467kb - Zdoom 2.0 - extra weapons - (img)
  This is more a resource wad than anything else - you need to use a cheat code to get the extra weapons. The weapons look rather good and interesting - some toss grenades of various types, others are more electrical in nature, and there are of course ones that chuck out projectiles, missiles, etc.
  
  
  
  Re-releases
  Five wads this time. I uploaded two of them, while myk decided to upload three wads by Mark Klem, presumably because they were no longer available online following the disappearance of Klem's webpage. Klem is best known as a composer of Doom music (e.g. STRAIN, MM, MM2, Requiem), but was also a prominent mapper in the mid-1990s.
  
  
• The Lost Mines by Mark Anthony Klem
  83kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 maps - (img)
  This map attracted quite a lot of attention in its day, and it's certainly a good map. Nice and atmospheric, with plenty of thought given to lighting, and little touches of realism. It's massively over-ammoed though, and with power-ups aplenty, the cyber fight at the end is very one-sided. Still, in those days it was quite standard to provide an invulnerability whenever there was a cyberdemon, so the lack of one here is a step in the right direction. Actually, the cyber fight can be quite hectic if you make the mistake of releasing the big guy while lots of monsters are still teleporting in behind you (I seem to remember doing that the first time I played this map).
  
  
• The Halls of Death by Mark Anthony Klem
  76kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - (img)
  Not a bad map, but rather plain and repetitive, with little variety in architecture or textures. At one point there is a spiral staircase effect that would have benefited greatly from a silent teleporter. There is an extreme excess of ammo and power-ups, to the point where you can only get into danger if you are really careless. Oddly, you can exit without getting the yellow key - I don't understand the mechanism, even after looking in an editor.
  
  
• Fragtime Marine by Mark Anthony Klem
  254kb - Doom2.exe - SP/coop/DM - 1 map - (img)
  A rather large and possibly confusing map. It's highly non-linear, but you can skip large parts of the map (including some of the more dangerous sections) if all you're looking to do is exit. When I first played this map, I died quite a few times before I worked out what was what. Generally the battles take place in cramped surroundings, so try not to get cornered.
  
  
• Quest for the Red Key by John Nelle
  417kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 4 maps - (img) - (img)
  Well, if we can have a lost soulsphere, we can certainly have a quest for the red key. However, you're not fighting against it, and this isn't a joke wad - just four good standard maps where finding the red key is not essential, but quite useful since it opens up a stash of goodies. All four maps offer an interesting challenge (you'll need to think here and there, and use your resources intelligently), and at the very least acceptable architecture. Map04 seems to require a rather tricky jump, unless I'm missing something. It also contains a pit from which you can't get out, but otherwise the play bounces along well in this wad.
  
  
• Rest in pieces by Mark Walton
  34kb - Doom2.exe - SP - 1 map - (img)
  The design here is rather bland, with lots of plain walls and right angles, Wolfenstein-style. However, to compensate, the gameplay is quite tight and challenging - even when I knew my way around quite well, I found I was getting low on health and in some awkward situations.
  
  

fp

Looks like people are getting the weapons mods for some reason.

SP! And more Daniel, ehh... hmm, better take a look at that New World 2.

Remember when there was a script that would turn "first post" into "I am retarded"?

Looks like people still haven't learned.
(PS: Third post, w000. I am the shit.)

I uploaded a wad yesterday but it wasn't reviewed. Will it be reviewed next week?

Kapt'nMullet said:

I uploaded a wad yesterday but it wasn't reviewed. Will it be reviewed next week?

Unless it was rejected, then chances are it will be reviewed next week. It's ideal to get them in by friday evening to see them reviewed, but that's not to say people can't play it on their own.

Ah Mkfrgtme, I have very fond memories of playing that map in Co-Op and DM. Personally I think it's Klems best map and one of my old favourites. I didn't realise it wasn't in the archives.

Heh, half the /newstuff this week is Daniel. Does this guy ever slow down? :)

Hyena said:

Remember when there was a script that would turn "first post" into "I am retarded"?

Don't remember that one, but I do remember it turning into "I made a poopie" a long time ago...

/me downloads New World 2 straightaway

New World 2 by Daniel
4,230kb - port + Doom2 - SP - 18 maps - (img) - (img) - (img)
The indefatigable Daniel presents us with yet another multi-level wad. This one is based partly on his unfortunate Female Doom, but with the tasteless content mostly stripped out.

Yes, that's better.


MUCH better!

Hey, Graf, New World 2 changes are dedicated to you.

Since my first wad post, I never had the luck to have my wads reviewed by Ultimate Doomer again... those other reviewers are poor; they're never happy with anything and put defects in all wads. They could be grateful 'cause an old game still have those people makin' the game greater.

Xaser - you like to make some weapon mod, let's kick ass on ZDoom .64!

Before I forget: don't download DoomNiel.Wad here; I put a fixed version in archives.3dgamers right now. It will run in ZDoom 2.0 63 and its best mod is the music.

woo forgot it was sunday, time for some weapon mod fun

Daniel said:

those other reviewers are poor; they're never happy with anything and put defects in all wads.

Aren't you a bit harsh? The only one of your WADs that was torn apart was Female Doom and that was fully justified. I can't see anything wrong with today's review of New World 2 and that was NOT done by UD.

Just be glad Deathz0r isn't here anymore. His reviews fit your above quote perfectly.

I got New World 2 a few days back, liking it a lot, what i especially like is that the levels arent puzzley and nonlinear (some non-linearity is good, but too much is annoying), theyre more like a series of small, intense, 'short sharp shock' battles, also some nice secrets (like a very mordeth ledge-walking one in that 'mystery house' level) too

Downloading numerous other ones now..comments tomorrow

We need a 'download-all' button. :P

Opulent said:

We need a 'download-all' button. :P

Better even a checkbox at each WAD, and a "download selected WADs" button at the end :)

Maybe the reviewer should put all the wads in a zip file and put that up for download.
heh, these are actually good ideas. :)

heh, New World 2 is actually pretty good.

The flats are screwed to fuck though.

Lutrov71 said:

Maybe the reviewer should put all the wads in a zip file and put that up for download.

Or just point your FTP client at ftp://3darchives.in-span.net/pub/idgames/newstuff/ and have at it.

dn: Didn't you use the face from the status bar of "DEtective Corn Slug v. Brassy B" as your avatar a while ago? A coincidence, or something more sinister?

It comes from an ancient wad simply composed of a female replacement for the statusbar face. Used it together with the quake 2 female marine skin for a while.

eh, gonna stop.
I'm going on vacation, i'll be a long time out of internet. About 2 months or more. Next week is the last post. Thank you for the patience. I'll finish Neo Doom, but it will take a lot of time.

darknation said:

The flats are screwed to fuck though.

play it on ZDoom

boris said:

Better even a checkbox at each WAD, and a "download selected WADs" button at the end :)

Seconded

Dron said:

Seconded

Thirded.

Has any of you guys been able to download a version of 'DOOMNiel - Daniel Adventure' that actually works? Is there any already available for download? I've grabbed it from two different places yet haven't been able to play it with ZDOOM V2.0.63a, the only source port I've tried running this mod with so far...

Has any of you succeeded in playing this title? I know Grazza has, but he had to make some manouvers at the moment he did... I was wondering if there was already a working version available somewhere... If so, I would really appreciate if you could provide me with a link, and, also, I'd like to know what source port you've used.

Thanks a lot in advance,

Ariel.

Have you downloaded the new version that Daniel recently uploaded? He claims to have tested it with Zdoom 2.0.63.

Has any of you guys been able to download a version of 'DOOMNiel - Daniel Adventure' that actually works?

Remove s_skin from the data lumps using wintex, run.

Personal reviews:

New World 2
As ive already said, a great effort, nice-looking, fun levels that arent too hard, and dont have many puzzles, just a series of short sharp shocks, mainly to monsters, from my shotgun barrel. Nice secrets and cool levels, ranging from tech-bases to semi-ruined castles. Its my personal Wad of the week

Fear Construct
Quite good, from what i remember, nice detailing, though a little dark when running in Legacy GL, not to mention legacy's dynamic lights dont really light things up, just change its colour, but i found my way round ok, i died when almost at the end and hadnt saved, so didnt finish it

No Hope
Quite E3-ish with bits of E2 and even E4, short, but fun while it lasts, lots of weaker enemies to mow down which is quite cool..but by no means 'too easy', so watch your step!

Moonlight Sonata
I played this in a funny order, cause i thought you where allowed to jump and leaped on the 'inacessible' teleport pad, whoops!. Still its quite challenging, but no insane, though i did die a few times, mainly at the beserk pack ambush, and once survived it with low health and the baron had me. Otherwise a good wad, and the detailing is awesome!

DoomNiel-Daniel adventure
Man, are these maps even supposed to be possible?, They are insanely hard, though, thanks to absolute luck, i actually managed to escape the castle on level 2, the entryway of which becomes infested by revenants, hellknights, archiviles and a spider-demon. Also cacodemons drift around outside and fire through the windows, often catching you in the back and killing you (i had 23% health at that point). Level 3 is the best of the ones i played, and has very nice design, though i didn get stuck in one area and had to no-clip out (there might have been a proper way out, but a cyber that was roaming outside un-nerved me and i didnt stay in the side rooms for too long...). Also, wierdly, there are strippers and other sexy women wearing very little gyrating in the middle of raging battlefields for some inexplicable reason, oh well, they did the same in duke nukem i suppose, also there is some woman who just stands around, who is also taken from duke 3D. Finally daniel has stuck pics of himself in everywhere, and even made a sprite of himself as a skin (which buggers up the wad), and has put his voice in many of the sound effects (in..er..spanish (?))..its a doom vanity project I AM A MORON I AM A MORON , ah well, its still cool..the level designs themselves are great, though if you want to look, use no monsters heh

New World 2 rocks it, just like the original did. Definitely too much ammo and supercharges, but the designs are great. Daniel is definitely the master of natural outdoor wads at the moment.

BlackFish said:

Thirded.

Fourthed

Journey Of No Hope could of been better if it was a bit harder. The architecture was quite nice though.