[v1.1 Beta] Emblem - Vanilla Ultimate Doom Mod/Mapset

[JustAthel]

 

View the final trailer here!!

 

Emblem is 9 level replacement mod for The Ultimate Doom (-complevel 3). The wad is vanilla-compatible, meaning you should be able to run this in virtually any port with minimal problems, so long as your port of choice can support DeHackEd properly. This has been tested on numerous engines and environments throughout its development cycle, including (but not limited to): Chocolate Doom, Crispy Doom, PrBoom-Plus (-cl 3), dsda-doom (-cl 3), ZDaemon, Eternity, and even Vanilla Doom itself, both in DOSBox and on an actual Windows XP system. Is it overkill? Possibly, but hey at least all you vanilla fanatics can rest easy knowing it can run purely on vanilla specs.

 

Features include:

• 9 new levels, replacing base game's Knee-Deep in the Dead
• Separate DM arenas, for those wanting to frag each other in this thing
• Five whole new enemies (yep, five!), thanks to Doom 2 codepointers still being in Ultimate Doom
• Speedrunner routes, suitable for UV-Any%. For those trying any other category of running, well, you still have your work cut out for you :p
• A few devious easter eggs sprinkled here and there, especially one for all of you Doom 2 preferrers! :)
• An MP3 soundtrack put together by Adi Okanovich (aka @4dy)
• A ZDoom-based version, which should play nicely with any other mods without TOO much conflict

 

Spoilers for starting to play:

Spoiler

 

For those using some ZDoom-derivative port (L/G/Q/ZDoom, Zandronum, etc.), use the ZDoom version of the wad (titled zdemblem.wad)! If you run Emblem with the Dehacked patch, then not only will things break, but because of some specific old format editor things not being replaced, you run the risk of potentially softlocking yourself.

 

If you're using PrBoom or anything like that, it's easy to just drag-n-drop the whole file onto it and get it running. If you're using Chocolate Doom, use -merge instead of -file, and also tack on -dehlump at the end to ensure everything works. And if you're a masochist or just love the possibility of playing under DOS/Vanilla, you'll have to use DeuSF and DeHackEd to get it running. I trust anyone going down that route knows what they're doing but I'd be happy to give an explanation for those uninformed.

 

Spoilers for screenshots:

Spoiler

 

  

Known bugs:

Spoiler

• In vanilla/chocolate-doom, E1M7 and E1M9 will give you a savegame buffer overflow unless you check off the savegame overflow compatibility in chocolate-doom. Unfortunately, due to the size and scope of these levels, this was the only thing I could think of leaving without making the maps much smaller / emptier
• ZDoom-based ports don't seem to like DeHackEd. The final boss most notably might not properly spawn in, thus softlocking you.
• There is one specific point where you can trigger an intercepts overflow. THIS IS INTENTIONAL! It's part of your speedrun route which works if you're running this in vanilla OR have the option to trigger such bugs!

Appropriate credits:

Spoiler

Afrit -> Espi, Ebola, Tormentor667
Agathodemon -> Jimmy
Undead Scientist -> scalliano
Supershotgun sprites -> iD software and Minor Sprite Fixing team
Useful Doom Edits ->  Enjay, Nightmare, Malinku, Earthquake
Useful Flats -> Nick Baker
5th Episode Texture Pack ->  Nightmare
Noir Pack -> FuzzballFox and TheGreenHerring
SKY1 and SKY5 textures -> Mechadon
Blood Fiend -> Sprite edits by Eriance
Cage's Texture Pack, vol. 2 ->  Cage, Fox666, NeuralStunner (the latter two for the enhanced cacodemon marble texture)
Extra Lights Texture Pack -> FuzzballFox

Emblem MP3 Official Soundrack -> Adi Okanovich

 

Par Times

Spoiler

These times were achieved using the speedrunner routes, not the whole normal "get through the normal route as fast as possible." UV-Any% for those who care

 

M1: 0:45
M2: 1:30
M3: 0:25
M4: 1:30
M5: 1:15
M6: 0:25
M7: 1:10
M8: 0:15
M9: -:-- (not meant to be speedran, so whoever gets the fastest time can claim this one!)

 

You can download Emblem here! Current version: v1.1 Update Vanilla (Not yet on iDGames) (Separate MP3 WAD download)

Remember, run this with Ultimate Doom (-complevel 3)! I look forward to seeing your guys' comments!

 

 

 

Edited December 2, 2022 by Athel : v1.1

[Walter confetti]

Looks cool from the screenshots you posted!

[Biodegradable]

Gave E1M1 a go. It's pretty decent. The sudden door teleport at the start is a little clumsy, but a fun nod to how Sandy Peterson did that a few times heh. Progression and combat is a little bog standard. The map's architecture has some presence with a good use of height variation, but it also has these pretty long, narrow parts that make it slightly bland. The layout doesn't really lend itself to making the combat all that dynamic. It's not terrible by any means, but a tad humdrum. Mind you, I understand its the first map, but ideally it should make a good first impression. Not bad, but not great. It's fine.

 

Gameplay:

UV | GZDoom + Zagemod

 

 

 

[JustAthel]

It was fun watching you play through it Bio! Thanks for the criticism - can I ask what exactly would make combat scenarios more dynamic in general? Are you referring to different enemy types or just where they're placed / what the player has to deal with at once? And are there other areas (aside from the hallways) where you feel I could improve upon?

[Biodegradable]

14 minutes ago, Athel said:

can I ask what exactly would make combat scenarios more dynamic in general? Are you referring to different enemy types or just where they're placed / what the player has to deal with at once? And are there other areas (aside from the hallways) where you feel I could improve upon?

 

Not so much enemy types, since this is the first level. Definitely more to do with placement. I think the level needs some extra sectors with some different shapes and perhaps some height variation would help spice it up a bit too. Just to help make encounters a bit more fun and unique. As it is, it feels a tad too old-school. You're definitely on the right track though. ;^)

[JustAthel]

Hey guys! I feel like I'm almost done with E1M2: Tech Handling in terms of layout - enemy placement doesn't really take that long for me to figure out anyhow, and with some good playtesting it should be good to go in the next couple of days. I've also made a couple of edits to E1M1, based on Bio's suggestions. You should be getting both in the next couple of days if I can keep this flow up. Afterwards I guess I'll keep doodling out maps to see which one sticks with me the most and work from there! Stay tuned, guys!

[JustAthel]

I have decided to release E1M2 - Tech Handling! I'm happy with the state it's at currently, though I feel like I can definitely add more, I've hit upon some sort of mapper's block and I don't want to risk making the level any worse. There aren't really any skill levels implemented (one or two harder enemies show up and that's about it for now, will tend to soon!) I have also updated E1M1 - Dig Site as well with a few more height changes, taking some of Bio's suggestions to heart. 

You can download both WADs in the opening post.

Here are some screenshots from E1M2!

[D4NUK1]

Im downloading both! Let's see how this plays, i will edit with some video or review
 

Pretty map with the standard quickness of map 01, i really like the touch of the secrets behind the initial door that is showed on varius wads, including DOOM 64.

Also, i see so many places referening or taking note of some zones of Episode 1,  like how the ending feels like the opening to the hangar in a nice way to put it. Also, the end teleported me with that chair, or is a placeholder?

Is feel the rigth number of shotgunners,  and is pretty easy to recovery health, even if i missed 2 secrets , im was expecing a secret botton in some of the pillars that resemblece the one of E1M1 xD

Pretty nice, but will like it more if the end part gets at least 1 or 2 enemies close to the ending. Like the first E1M1.

Video 2 is comming in some moments, as my internet is busy xD

Edited August 18, 2020 by jamondemarnatural : Video

[JustAthel]

Looking forward to it! Don't hold anything back now!

[D4NUK1]

E1M2 
 

I really liked the maze of the principal area, as is more used that the normal E1M2, would recomend some ligth glasses, but it's really just a preference thing.

Something i disliked is that there only 1 secret, as this is some mazey level, should have at least more secrets, and one with some chainsaw, as is was like that in E1M2? The lowered computer  that i humped in the minigun placement is like a secret hehe.

Some positives aspects is the placement of the enemies, i don't expected some pinkies, and the shotgunners blasted my face like 3 times, really make challenge in UV. And i like how the central point is to bring up the bridge, and how can you see the exit in the top of the bridge. Really hope to see more of this wad.

[JustAthel]

Thanks for your playthroughs and reviews of the two maps!

 

Regarding your note about the chair in e1m1 - that was supposed to be more a throne than anything else, basically where the Emblem was found / will be found. I'm surprised that how thorough you were looking for secrets you didn't look behind it :p

 

Watching your E1M2 video gave me a few evil ideas to hide some secrets, so I'll definitely get back to expanding it pretty soon! I also didn't expect that one line at the chaingun area to be crossable so that also gave me some ideas!

 

I appreciate your enthusiasm behind the project! May I ask what port/wad you're using? Looks like GZDoom w/ the Vanilla Smooth weapons mod? It's interesting...

[D4NUK1]

It's only GZDOOM with hardware textures, SmoothDoom.

[Biodegradable]

Good stuff, fam. E1M1 is basically done, I only left you one note. E1M2 is awesome and I had no quibbles at all.

 

Here's my playthrough of both of 'em:

 

 

[JustAthel]

Regarding that clip in the wall in E1M1

 

Spoiler

Thats supposed to be a hint to shoot the wall to activate the secret - not sure how else Im supposed to hint at it. Its such a tease every time I see you open it xD

 

Thanks for the playthroughs and opinions though! Glad youre enjoying the wad so far!

[Angelwitch]

Athel! I'm glad you've got a good work-flow going, and it seems like you're enjoying creating this WAD :) I hope you'll complete it!

 

I enjoyed e1m1 MUCH more than e1m2, my only real criticism of e1m1 is the combat difficulty, I was able to open doors and shoot into rooms far too much. I thought your overall layout and design was quite decent, but the enemy placements and lack of monster surprises meant it was pretty repetitive and uninteresting. Throw some monster closets in there for surprise and to repopulate the map after clearing a room. Also, barrels! Blowing monsters up is always fun! :) E1M2 suffered the same problem as M1, but was not as interesting design-wise and so I really didn't enjoy that one. The lack of secrets is also a downer for me, but I know not everyone enjoys those.

 

Looking forward to seeing what more you can do! :)

[JustAthel]

Yeah I can admit opening doors and holding down FIRE isn't exactly the most interesting, I tried to branch out in E1M2 but it turned out to be much more of the same thing more or less. Thank you for playing it though! And don't worry, E1M2 will be expanded upon, I wanted to get it out to get some thoughts on the general gameplay.

I am having quite a bit of fun making the layouts, tbh - even if I feel as though I'm a bit uninspired in some aspects in general- Hopefully the next few maps we'll see an uptick in placements, etc. I'm going to be a bit more creative with teleports, closets, designs in general, etc. I also have something planned for E1M8, instead of the usual baron of hell fights, but I have to test and see how much it breaks mods-

[Angelwitch]

For inspiration, nothing beats playing other's WADS in my experience. Keep a note of the most interesting rooms/setpieces that stand out to you and then set something similar up in your editor, building on those ideas you found most interesting. Sometimes -nomonsters while playing a WAD that interests you can really help out too!

[TheOrganGrinder]

This seems like the kind of WAD that's totally my jam and I look forward to seeing the rest of the episode take shape.  :)

[JustAthel]

Hello and good evening everybody! Quick update (even though it's been a couple of days since E1M2's release-)! School's going to be starting back up soon for me and since I want to graduate high school on a relatively good note, my activity MAY be reduced. Then again, every single time I say that, I end up not following through with it so take this with a grain of salt.

My activity may definitely be shifted from this due to other projects I need to finish up, but I've gotten a good set of ideas for E1M3. No name yet, but this is basically aimed to be a sort of scientific laboratory where the scientists would examine other otherworldly artifacts. Clearly, whatever these creatures are didn't like the fact that we basically stole their belongings. Whoopsie.

Thanks you guys for the interest in the wad, and I'll keep y'all posted! It seems that dehacked doesn't play nice with mods, especially with what I got planned, but I can come up with an alternative for you guys running the wad with GZDoom + some other mod!

[JustAthel]

Hey guys! Status update - E1M3 is coming along pretty well! I figured out how to get screenshots into these posts but they seem to be a bit too big resolution-wise and I don't really feel comfortable sharing 3840x2160 sized images, not that there's anything wrong with imgur, just gotta learn if I can shrink down the images to be at least 1920.

Anyway, one of the main "gimmicks" I wanted to focus on are these "generators" that are around the base. I wanted to make it so you'd have to shoot them, but it doesn't seem as though Vanilla has a gun trigger for lowering floors, unless I missed something. Down below is a link leading to a few screenshots of areas I've worked on. Hopefully the gameplay will be a bit better in this map. I'll also be touching up the other two maps to make them a bit more interesting. Stay tuned!

Link to E1M3 - Research Labs WIP screenshots

[JustAthel]

Hello again, everyone!

September has been quite a busy month for me. Let me not beat around the bush here - I am NOT ready for senior year, as much as I say I am 😭
But hey, I've been getting rather comfortable with the editor! And I have quite a lot to share with you guys!

E1M3 is... well, it's getting there. You can play through the level's layout and go on to E1M4. I still have to add enemies, fix some things up, add details, etc. I think I can consider the level 80% done?

In the meanwhile, I've sort of been bouncing back and forth between E1M6 and E1M7, two maps that I'm honing in to ensure that everything plays out smoothly. I got my little album of images that you guys can see here!

Now that I've gotten comfortable with all of my tools, I'm now going to go all out and not let my "newness" stop me from trying out new things. There's going to be quite a bit of fun stuff added that's taking advantage of the fact that this is an Ultimate Doom modification. Thanks iD for leaving all your codepointers in the exe intact! Making the layouts and decorating them really isn't that much of an issue, and I hope I can deliver something that you guys will be able to enjoy. If I can push vanilla to it's absolute limit, I will.

I'm also going to be retouching the other maps I've done (E1M1 and E1M2) to sort of keep them in line with the new things I've learned in later levels. Thanks for showing interest in the project, and I'll keep y'all posted on any other information that I want to make public! :D

[JustAthel]

Sooooo I got a bit to update you guys on, huh.

 

First off, sorry for my radio silence - just like I had predicted, school's been on my case. In fact, they're starting to really ramp up with college stuff like instant decisions, college essays, etc. I'm afraid this project has taken the backburner as of late. But... with my school going back into remote, I think I'll be able to get the maps finally finished up! There really isn't anything I can properly show that I haven't already, at least nothing too different. But... I've had the absolute pleasure of running into @4dy, who was kind enough to make an entire MP3 soundtrack for the episode!

Come take a listen to the Emblem OST and go give him some love! These tracks are pretty much everything I was wanting in terms of atmosphere, and from me testing out the maps that I have so far, they pair perfectly! 

The trailer for the wad will be up, hopefully in a few days - by then I'll also have some actual screenshots to share! I'll also be starting to livestream me working on the maps as well, but I'll share all those appropriate links when the time comes.

 

Thanks for checking out the project, and I'll see y'all in a few days!

[4dy]

1 minute ago, Athel said:

Sooooo I got a bit to update you guys on, huh.

 

First off, sorry for my radio silence - just like I had predicted, school's been on my case. In fact, they're starting to really ramp up with college stuff like instant decisions, college essays, etc. I'm afraid this project has taken the backburner as of late. But... with my school going back into remote, I think I'll be able to get the maps finally finished up! There really isn't anything I can properly show that I haven't already, at least nothing too different. But... I've had the absolute pleasure of running into @4dy, who was kind enough to make an entire MP3 soundtrack for the episode!

Come take a listen to the Emblem OST and go give him some love! These tracks are pretty much everything I was wanting in terms of atmosphere, and from me testing out the maps that I have so far, they pair perfectly! 

The trailer for the wad will be up, hopefully in a few days - by then I'll also have some actual screenshots to share! I'll also be starting to livestream me working on the maps as well, but I'll share all those appropriate links when the time comes.

 

Thanks for checking out the project, and I'll see y'all in a few days!

Cant wait for the Map Pack to get out !

Anyway it was a great honor to work with you man , i am happy that you found the soundtrack to your liking =D 

Love your maps , love your work , cant wait to drop the trailer with ya !

[JustAthel]

Hi all! The trailer for Emblem has finally been released! With this out of the way I'll finally be able to show you guys the progress I've been making on the maps! Stay tuned in the coming days!

 

Link to Emblem Trailer!

[4dy]

6 hours ago, Athel said:

Hi all! The trailer for Emblem has finally been released! With this out of the way I'll finally be able to show you guys the progress I've been making on the maps! Stay tuned in the coming days!

 

Link to Emblem Trailer!

Alright :D ! 

Love the Trailer , Athel ! It was a great journey working with ya , cant wait for the mod to come out !

[JustAthel]

"The coming days," huh. Wow. I, uh... probably should have been a bit more specific.

But hey! I'm still alive... at least I think so. Got some motivation to finally work on the mapset a bit more and I feel like I got enough to share. You can see why I haven't really been keeping posted much, aside from school and everything. I kind of have everything in a sort of organized mess when it comes to developing this. Also I figured out how to upload images to the forums properly, so that took long enough. Here's a few screenshots to show what I've been up to as of late.

 

Spoiler

E1M2 has been getting some retouches in various areas to feel a bit more lively.

 

E1M3 look a bit more like an outside area, the insides still need enemy placement and deco.

 

E1M4, with a new enemy implemented! Mere cannon fodder but too many of them sneaking up on you could hurt quite a bit.

 

E1M6 - A new world?

 

A gallery link of all these screenshots and a few more can be found right here. All I really need to work on is these maps and E1M9, so there's still a lot to go before I get an RC out.

 

Welp, there's my daily required amount of sunlight for the day. I'm gonna go hide for another couple of weeks before coming back, see ya!

[JustAthel]

It's totally been two weeks later, mhm yessirreee don't you dare check the calendar, just take my word for it.

 

^{A shot from some part of E1M5. Rather proud of how I did this, to be honest!}

Anyway, hey guys! This projects still alive and kicking and so am I. After working on and off on the entire project for the past several months, taking into account school, work, general life stuff, etc. I have now finally decided to give this grand announcement -- Emblem is nearly done! Or is it...? I have decided to release a public alpha/beta of everything I've done. Note that not everything is final -- there are nerfs that are needed, actual enemy balancing/placements, layouts to finish, etc. But this build has it so that you can play through all 8 maps and somehow access the exit, even if the path to it seems a bit filler. I say 8, because E1M9 is going to be quite the doozy to make, what with the image I've got in my mind for it that I've had since the very beginning of this project. 

 

I'm posting this here for two reasons - one, I need to back my stuff up a lot more. Two, I figured it'd be best if I get the general DW community's thoughts for what I can add, any errors I need to catch, and just overall getting a feel for everything. I'd highly recommend reading through this post before clicking the download, as there's some nuances that need to be addressed to get the thing up and running smoothly.

 

Spoiler

For those using some ZDoom-derivative port, keep in mind that the DeHackEd patch DOES replace the super-shotgun, SS Nazi enemy, and a handful of other Doom 2 specific things that may not play nicely with another mod that replaces those things. I have not tested this with any mods. Remember, this is a mod meant for The Ultimate Doom, not for Doom 2!

 

If you're using PrBoom or anything like that, it's easy to just drag-n-drop the whole file onto it and get it running. If you're using Chocolate Doom, I find running the -merge command works with everything. And if you're a masochist or just love the possibility of playing under DOS/Vanilla, you'll have to use DeuSF and DeHackEd to get it running. I trust anyone going down that route knows what they're doing but I'd be happy to give an explanation for those uninformed.

 

In the final release, the new assets I've used will be properly credited to the original authors. The only thing I'm really claiming to be my own is the maps.

 

If you're down to serve as another set of eyes and want to spoil yourself on any of the new additions I've put in, then don't let me stop you from clicking on this link which should get you the alpha/beta. (Emblem Alpha 1121.zip)

 

I look forward to seeing the reception this gets, and thank you guys for checking out this project as it is nearing some form of completion.

[4dy]

YES! :D

[JustAthel]

AYOOOOOOOOOOO!! Emblem has now reached RC1! I'm glad to release it like this, but this is not the final version! Go check out the OP to get updated on everything that's happened! Thanks for following the project so far, and I look forward to seeing how people react to the things I have here!

If you're interested, I've recorded a live playtest before releasing this, which isn't EXACTLY the same as this but gives a good overview. THERE ARE BIG SPOILERS FOR SECRETS AND THE LIKE SO PROCEED WITH CAUTION!
 

Spoiler

Emblem -- Live Playtesting Stream! (YouTube)

 

[Fabricator]

Dude, nice work on getting your episode out into the wild! Got a soft-spot for E1 replacements so I'll definitely be giving this one a spin sometime! :) Keen to see some of these custom monsters too!