Doom music [fomerly "easiest level in Episode 4"]

E4M8 has to be the easiest level in the episode from pistol start. There is a ridiculous amount of health and plasma ammo in this level and more than enough armor. Throw in a blur sphere and the map officially becomes a joke.

E4M4 is silly, short and definitely not challenging at all.

BurningCadavre said:

E4M4 is silly, short and definitely not challenging at all.

yeah, maybe we should have a community project where mappers come up with a replacement for it. I hate that map. Looks like they just wanted to throw in a DM map in the middle of the episode. Map really doesn't fit.

BurningCadavre said:

E4M4 is silly, short and definitely not challenging at all.

I agree, it seems like it was put together quickly to use up space. The fighting is very easy, and the difficulty is around the same level as E2. It's the only American McGee map I dislike.

E4M4, E4M7

E4M7 just uses a lot of various and unnecessary dead ends. The author wanted to make the level challenging via not signing the locked doors. E4M4 is a pussy task to complete, the first level is even harder than it... (4 Barons on Easy?!) And, of course, E4M8 must be a joke since it uses that overused friggin shit music.

I really like this episode, with its sinister and colorful building style, and E4M4 is not an exception, but I agree that this level is odd in terms of difficulty. 7.5 years ago, when I was relatively new to Doom and played through E4 on UV, this level was so unchallenging that I thought I was on HMP.

E4M8, while slightly harder, was also hugely easy, and felt really relaxing after getting through previous levels. But it still has a great dynamical gameplay, which provides a good challenge when switching to UV-Fast or Nightmare and playing it in Compet-N style.

As for the music track "Demons On The Prey", I also consider it dull, and I think it was tasteless to put it on four levels with such different atmospheres -- E1M7, E2M5, E3M5, E4M8.

SAV88 said:

"Demons On The Prey"

Best track ever. It fits for almost every style of map.

Graf Zahl said:

Best track ever. It fits for almost every style of map.

I dunno if I'd agree about it fitting with almost every style of map, but it's definitely a great track.

esselfortium said:

I dunno if I'd agree about it fitting with almost every style of map, but it's definitely a great track.

Good for castle levels. Not so good for base levels although it fits well into E1M7.

Well, some off-topic: my musical taste is a little uncommon for a doomer, as I'm not a great fan of UDoom/Doom2 music, except from a few nice tunes like E1M2/E1M8/E2M1/E3M2. I personally think that the music in Duke3D and console games (by Capcom/Konami/Sunsoft/etc) is generally more colorful. Same for many great tracks from PWADs: MM (such as levels 5, 9, 18), MM2 (3, 18...), Requiem (5, 13, 15...), HR (11, 17...), AV (8, 20...), Scythe (19), Scythe 2 (18), 2002ADO (E2M1, E2M4), and so on.

SAV88 said:

HR (11, 17...)

These two are actually ROTT soundtracks. The one that belongs to 11 is called "Chant", while the another is "Oww". Good music, although made for not the best game.

As for easy E4 levels, I consider also E4M3 and E4M5 a bit too easy related to the really hard ones (E4M1, E4M2, E4M6), and their visuals are just horrid.

Graf Zahl said:

Best track ever.

Really? The music in E1M1, E1M4, E1M5, E1M6, E1M8, E1M9, E2M1, E2M3, E2M8, E2M9, E3M2, E3M3, MAP01, MAP07, MAP09, MAP23, and the victory music from both Doom and Doom2 are all much better.

Processingcontrol said:

Really? The music in E1M1, E1M4, E1M5, E1M6, E1M8, E1M9, E2M1, E2M3, E2M8, E2M9, E3M2, E3M3, MAP01, MAP07, MAP09, MAP23, and the victory music from both Doom and Doom2 are all much better.

This is incorrect. E1M7 actually is one of the best tracks in doom.

It has the best opening of any track in Doom. And then the saw wave comes in with a disappointing melody. :(

Really, though, it always felt like it was building up to something epic, but it never did. Maybe if the second 'verse' was something different instead of a retooled melody line.

I once wanted to do something with it myself, but then I didn't.

I'll probably have to tune in and say E4M4. It's nothing compared to say..E4M1 and E4M2.

D_E1M7 wasn't meant to be melodic or epic. It's not a tune you would hum while taking a shower or dance to, it doesn't sport a catchy hook or make your veins pump with adrenaline. It doesn't need any of that because it's an evil fucking track.

Never_Again said:

D_E1M7 wasn't meant to be melodic or epic. It's not a tune you would hum while taking a shower or dance to, it doesn't sport a catchy hook or make your veins pump with adrenaline. It doesn't need any of that because it's an evil fucking track.

I'm not saying it's bad, it's just far from being the best track in the game. I think good game music should add to atmosphere of the level, but also should be enjoyable outside of the game.

Mr. Chris said:

I'll probably have to tune in and say E4M4. It's nothing compared to say..E4M1 and E4M2.

You mean E1M5? It is one of my faves, too. I think D_VICTOR is my all time fave, tho, with E1M8 close on its heals.

Hellbent said:

You mean E1M5? It is one of my faves, too. I think D_VICTOR is my all time fave, tho, with E1M8 close on its heals.

I think he's talking about the episode's easiest level, not music.

Easiest level, for some reason I find E4M2 to be easy. Probably 'cause I play it a lot compared to the other E4 levels.

My 2 cents for d_e1m7: I think it is a great track. I love the dark, evil sound to it. With the right soundfont, it can sound amazing. Usually the Sawtooth Lead is a bit weak, but overall I think its melody is very fitting.

.

The reason I've always hated D_E1M7 is that I had always lost my way and had been searching for the right way for infinite hours... and I really got bored with the track itself. In opposition, levels that have an unforgettably nice tune ended sooo abruptly for me...

Cell said:

The reason I've always hated D_E1M7 is that I had always lost my way and had been searching for the right way for infinite hours... and I really got bored with the track itself. In opposition, levels that have an unforgettably nice tune ended sooo abruptly for me...

like e2m8 for instance. You could have idmus your way out of the looping track doldrums.

The problem was that the classic 3-episodes DooM didn't have the cheat "idmus"... :D

pcorf said:
Good for castle levels. Not so good for base levels although it fits well into E1M7.

I tend to think it goes best in techy places, although all this is very subjective and already affected by where it was placed originally. But its grim march-like theme goes well in tunnels and that twinkling sound at about 1:40 is what gives me the techy impression, as if it were the somewhat creepy sound of a computer system. It's one of those pieces that kind of defines the key mood of the game, coupled with the action and the texturing styles.

It is a versatile track, I'll give it that. It fits well in both E1M7 and E3M5.

E2M5 doesn't count, though, as nothing fits well there.

Anyone have Perkristian's collection of doom music? Those are pretty damn good. Listening to Suspense right now (e1m5).

We have a replacement for all of those levels.
It's called freedoom...

Yeah, I'm going to be the first person to say it, but Sinister (D_E2M6) is a better tune than Demons on the Prey as far as I'm concerned. Actually, I find quite a few tracks better than E1M7's, but Sinister is similar enough that it makes a good comparison.