The Quirky Domain (A GZDoom map for Doom 2)

[FishyClockwork]

       

       

       

 

I made this map several months ago for a closed group project that recently was abandoned. And I decided to release it standalone rather than let it go to waste.

 

What makes this one special is, well, it's hard to describe without spoiling it since it's pretty much this map's main gimmick, which will become apparent soon enough. :P

 

It's a UDMF map that's been tested on GZDoom 3.4.0, and I recommend you use that (or a later official release).

(It should, in theory, also work fine in the latest devbuilds. Use at your own risk)

I strongly recommend you use the hardware renderer, as it was solely tested on it.
(Please enable GL lights if you haven't already.)

 

Intended IWAD is DOOM2.wad

There's only one new map, MAP01.

Besides the map the only new content are decorations, textures, music and some ambient sounds.

Freelook is allowed.

Jumping and crouching are allowed. (In fact, jumping is necessary for one platforming section near the end.)

 

Designed for single player, no coop and no deathmatch starts.

 

As for what the map is, well aside from the aforementioned gimmick (which can make navigation confusing), it is a map more focused on combat and exploration, visuals/details aren't the main focus, but I hope it still looks decent. Difficulty levels are supported, with ITYTD/HNTR being piss easy, HMP being moderate-to-a-little-difficult, UV is where the real challenge starts, and Nightmare for this map has its own monsters/items instead of sharing them with UV. As such, selecting Nightmare will not give you super-aggressive, respawning monsters and neither will ammo pickups have their amount doubled. Despite that, Nightmare is still on the bullshit-side of difficult by design. Having said all that, this is by no means a slaughtermap, not even on Nightmare.

 

There is no story (excuse plot) to this map, just a little something I want to share with the world.
Any feedback and criticism are appreciated. Have fun!

 

DOWNLOAD

Dropbox link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/zx60hfqa7b6f1zx/fcw-quirkydomain.pk3?dl=1

Idgames link: https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/Ports/p-r/quirkdom

 

Credits

Spoiler

New textures:
Some textures from the Community Chest 4 Resource Wad (cc4-tex.wad)

Some of Jimmy's textures (jimmytex.wad)

Lud's & BillGuy's volumetric light textures. (Yes, it's from the dead project.)

 

New sounds & music:
soundbible.com - Mike Koenig, Poorna RAo
freesound.org - wjl, tgfcoder, Timbre, juancamiloorjuela, simon.rue, drotzruhn, frasbr
modarchive.com - DreaMSectioN
Rogue Entertainment (Strife)
Raven Software (Heretic)

 

New decorations:
realm667.com including:

"Garden Trees" by Yuyu3

"Bushes" by Gothic, Xaser, Jimmy & Minigunner

"Hanging Marines" by TODM & Doom64hunter

"Hanged Player" by Anarchist

"Cyberdemon Gore" by Doom64hunter & Team TNT

"Stalagmites and Stalactite" by KDiZD Team, submitted by Mancubus

"Wall Torches" by Captain Toenail

"Chair" by Ghastly_dragon

"Food" by DavidRaven

 

You can find more detailed credits (including links for the sounds & music) in the PK3.

 

 

Please forgive me if I forgot some crucial detail as this is my very first time posting on Doomworld.

 

EDIT:

December 18th, 2018 update

Spoiler

Just a little bugfix in the final/exit area. A SkyPicker actor was misplaced, and some sectors didn't even have one. This was only a problem if you viewed the area in software or softpoly renderers.

Not relevant if you already played this therefore it's not worth bumping the thread.

 

Edited December 18, 2018 by FishyClockwork : Fixed a bug; not worth bumping the thread

[leodoom85]

Hey Fishy. For a first post, it's ok since you provided the necessary info in the post.

[Pegleg]

I agree. This was a good first post promoting a map--you provided all the details that you needed to let people know what they were getting and to attract them.

 

You wouldn't think it would be necessary to congratulate people for doing it right the first time, but you'd be surprised how many first-time map posters only say something along the lines of, "Here's my map. It's my first map. Play it and let me know what you."

 

By the way, welcome to mapping.

 

Also, good looking screenshots.

[FishyClockwork]

Thanks, though I'm not exactly a stranger to mapping. :)

[Suitepee]

https://www.twitch.tv/videos/268129212 (3rd one played, about 30 minutes in)

 

This is the kind of thing I want to see in more GZDoom maps. Bar the "LOL" humour at one point, this was an awesome portal-led experience. More please!

 

[guineu]

Really fun map to explore and the difficulty was balanced at the right spot for my tastes. Didn't try Nightmare despite reading about it, maybe on a future playthrough.

 

Recorded my playthrough:

 

 

[FishyClockwork]

Nightmare is for when you're done with UV and want to give it another go, but with more frustration. Or if you're a masochist. :P
(Though I'm sure even Nightmare may be too easy for some folks. Heh.)

 

I'm glad you liked it, btw.

Edited June 2, 2018 by FishyClockwork : Don't want to double post.

[SuperArjunaButt]

This map is awesome.  I'm making a portal-heavy mapset myself, and WADs like this always push me to make my thing just that much more different.

[Bauul]

Looks really interesting, I'm a sucker for good portal use.  I'll give it a try this weekend! 

 

5 hours ago, SuperArjunaButt said:

This map is awesome.  I'm making a portal-heavy mapset myself, and WADs like this always push me to make my thing just that much more different.

 

Slight bit of shameless self-promotion, but if you're interested in portals I made a map for Confinement 256 that made extremely heavy use of dynamic portals to rearrange the level as you play through it.  You might find it interesting.  It's the last level of the community episode so if you want to skip right to it, just use "map conf54" in the console.  

[SuperArjunaButt]

1 hour ago, Bauul said:

Slight bit of shameless self-promotion, but if you're interested in portals I made a map for Confinement 256 that made extremely heavy use of dynamic portals to rearrange the level as you play through it.  You might find it interesting.  It's the last level of the community episode so if you want to skip right to it, just use "map conf54" in the console.  

 

Yaaas, thank you!

[FishyClockwork]

Bauul, I really, really enjoyed your map. Nice concept! :D

[MFG38]

This map rendered me speechless. I absolutely loved it.

[FishyClockwork]

Did a little update.

 

The plasma gun you can get early now counts as a secret but only on UV and lower. (Because that same plasma gun is the only one on Nightmare.)

Added a few more items here and there.

 

Updated link in OP.

[StormCatcher.77]

I think this map will be an excellent example, as with the help of portals, mappers can renew the classic gameplay ... I'm very glad that the maps that use portals are starting to appear. It is the sense of gameplay that is what sets this map apart. The visuals of individual locations is quite diverse, but they are very conditionally joined together. It is felt that your original goal was not to create a whole visual style. In everything that I see,  feels good surrealism. Even looking at the automap, I can see that you was have fun to creating this map :3 It's very positive feeling...

 

The gameplay did not seem difficult to me, although in the industrial location I was once killed by arachnotrons. Player can leave some monsters  to roam on the map ... and then with horror to face them all in a narrow corridor ... (see my demo). The moment near the yellow key, made me say - WOW! This place is played and it looks really cool!

 

In general, great work! Definitely we need more maps with similar mechanics ...

 

 First Demo Attempt - GZDoom 3.3.2

 

In my collection:

- Visuals (4 / 5)
- Detailing (3 / 5)
- Gameplay (5 / 5)
- Atmosphere (4 / 5)
- Difficulty (3 / 5)

 

- Overall ... (4 / 5)

 

[FishyClockwork]

I hope you recorded that demo with the updated version I just posted. :P

[StormCatcher.77]

I think, unfortunately not... ;] I download it ... maybe yesterday.

[FishyClockwork]

Sorry about that. :P
I don't have the older version anymore. I could try to run the demo anyway and see what happens just for the lulz.

[StormCatcher.77]

Here is version that i stored in my arhive:

 

The Quirky Domain.zip

[FishyClockwork]

Thanks.

[Bauul]

Just finished it now, took me 33 minutes on HMP.  I really enjoyed it, good job!  I finished with 94% kills and 0% secrets (I suck at finding secrets).

 

It did slightly feel as though you bounced from one cool GZDoom powered idea to the next at times, which as a GZDoom mapper I can completely emphasize with.  Some of the effects were extremely well done though (I loved the translucent, frozen enemy effect, and some of the corridor effects were genuinely surprising).  I'd love to perhaps see a smaller map from you where you took just one visual style, and perhaps just one or two GZDoom effects, and ran with just those.  You've clearly got the talent.

[ReX]

I, too, disagree with the way Mockingbird died.

 

But levity aside, this is a must-play for someone looking for the surreal (some of which is visually implemented in an MC Escher or Salvador Dali style). As Bauul said, there is a surfeit of GZDooM effects; and while there are portals galore, there are some other very cool effects (such as the translucent/frozen enemies) sprinkled throughout.

 

My play-through was at HMP skill level, and I found the difficulty to be just right (although I'm curious to see how the difficulty ramps up at UV or Nightmare skills). The 2 changes that I suggested after playing the first version, are to provide a backpack without putting it in a secret area, and to provide a super-shotgun without putting it in a secret area. I also found the platforming near the yellow key to be very frustrating. FishyClockwork subsequently added air control in the area, which will make the jumping much less problematic for the average player.

[FishyClockwork]

I suppose I should link the ZDoom thread for more context.

https://forum.zdoom.org/viewtopic.php?f=42&t=60736

 

1 hour ago, ReX said:

The 2 changes that I suggested after playing the first version, are to provide a backpack without putting it in a secret area, and to provide a super-shotgun without putting it in a secret area.

That is something I'm unwilling to do. Especially the SSG. There never was supposed to be a SSG in the first place but I added it as a early secret anyway after I got some feedback elsewhere. (Not here and not from ZDF.)

I don't want to make the map easier than it already is.

[ReX]

1 hour ago, FishyClockwork said:

That is something I'm unwilling to do. Especially the SSG. There never was supposed to be a SSG in the first place but I added it as a early secret anyway after I got some feedback elsewhere. (Not here and not from ZDF.)

I don't want to make the map easier than it already is.

Fair enough.

 

I'd like to point out that the addition of the super-shotgun & backpack as non-secrets was a mere suggestion, not even a request. The suggestion simply reflects my preference, based on my style of game-play. By the same token, I completely concede your right to craft game-play the way you envision it ought to be.

 

[For my part, if I truly needed either item I could have used the console cheat to obtain them.]

[FishyClockwork]

A quick fix for GZDoom 3.4.0
The map used to compensate for a bug that's been fixed engine-side in 3.4.0

Quote

fixed - sector sounds were not translated through static portals properly

That compensation has been removed since leaving it in would result in certain sector sounds (mostly doors) being heard twice.

(As a side note: I've also updated the ZScript version number, meaning you can't run this map on anything earlier than GZDoom 3.4.0)

[Faux Magician]

I gave this a play though with Guncaster, and I managed to find your little secret. Wish I brought some coffee.

[FishyClockwork]

I was wondering if anyone was gonna find it. :P

[FishyClockwork]

This is now on idgames. Thanks to everyone who gave their feedback/opinion!

[Ravitex]

Amazing map, some locations and especially the music really give me an Unreal I vibe. Well, not that Unreal's maps had this use of portals or anything, but still.

I'd say I'm not a huge fan of the messages in the automap, like the dog and the mockingbird thing, but maybe that's just knitpicking.

Anyway, played twice, one time without any mods on HMP, the second time with Zion on UV until it froze and crashed. Zion is quite performance unfriendly so I don't think it was a problem with the map itself. Found only 2 secrets though, one by going through a fake window and one to find the plasmagun behind bars.

[Marlamir]

I'm really glad i found this map, quite lately but still :). It was such a awesome and on few places mind-blowing experience. Greatly done level design with nice and clever ideas like those "room-line" portals that are use very effectively. This and few more ideas made my jaw drop few times. Combat is fun and is nicely done, there nothing that much special but is fun. There is a lot of thing i really like and man revenant jumping on a jumpad is propably the most hillarious thing i see in a long time :) . There will be only two small complains, i was going out of ammo few times. The music was glitchy few times, i thought this is because perfomance issue  but i had still solid 60+fps when music start to glitch so i'm not sure what was going on here. Other than that this was awesome journey.