thewaver Posted April 3, 2021 (edited) Hi everyone. I would like to share with you something that I have been on working for roughly 2 years. It started as a mod that removed random damage from the game - something that always felt a bit of a weird concept in a game of skill, at least for me. After countless hours of tweaking and beating the original Doom 2 maps with my alterations (UV, 100% kills, pistol start - just to be sure everything was still playable), I started looking into mapping. And now, here we are. almost 2y* and 9 maps later. Correction - it is now 17 maps + 3 secret maps + hub, not 9! * If you're looking at that "2y" comment and wondering how it took so long... well, that's 2y since I began experimenting with modding. Mapping came much later. Also, I wasted a lot of time in the beginning with things like MANUALLY aligning textures (yeah, I didn't know any better) - so don't expect that to be a good measure of the quality of the maps provided. Just warning you in advance! Anyway, moving on... First, the mod. It is entirely optional to play with it - maps were tested with and without it - but I do believe it will improve your experience, particularly in regards to Health and Armor. And I would love to hear what you think of the changes too. Here's a full list of changes: Spoiler MeleeRange 44 > 48 MeleeThreshold ?? > 64 MinMissileChance 200 > 192 // MONSTERS Arachnotron Health 500 > 480 Radius 64 > 60 Height 64 > 56 Missile frames 29 > 24 Archvile Health 700 > 672 Height 56 > 72 Radius 20 > 28 Mass 500 > 400 Speed 15 > 16 PainChance 10 > 8 MaxTargetRange 896 > 768 Missile frames 94 > 96 damage 20 > 32 splash 70 / 70 > 64 / 64 Heal frames 10 > 12 Pain frames 10 > 4 BossBrain Health 250 > 240 PainChance 255 > 256 BaronOfHell Health 1000 > 960 Height 64 > 72 PainChance 50 > 32 Melee damage 10..80 > 48 HellKnight Health 500 > 576 Height 64 > 72 PainChance 50 > 64 Melee damage 10..80 > 48 Cacodemon Health 400 > 384 Radius 31 > 28 Melee frames 15 > 16 damage 10..60 > 36 Pain frames 12 > 6 ChaingunGuy Health 70 > 72 Speed 8 > 6 PainChance 170 > 192 See frames 3 > 4 Missile frames 19 > 18 spreadX 22.5 > 9 spreadY 0 > 1.125 damage 3..15 > 6 Cyberdemon Health 4000 > 3840 Height 110 > 112 Radius 40 > 44 Mass 1000 > 4000 PainChance 20 > 8 MinMissileChance 160 > 128 Missile frames 66 > 60 Pain frames 10 > 6 Demon Health 150 > 144 PainChance 180 > 128 Radius 30 > 28 Melee damage 4..40 > 24 DoomImp Health 60 > 72 PainChance 200 > 192 Melee frames 22 > 24 damage 3..24 > 12 Pain frames 4 > 8 Fatso Health 600 > 576 Height 64 > 72 Radius 48 > 44 Mass 1000 > 1200 Speed 8 > 6 PainChance 80 > 64 LostSoul Health 100 > 48 Height 56 > 40 Damage 3..24 > 12 See frames 6 > 4 Missile frames 22 > 24 PainElemental Health 400 > 480 Radius 31 > 28 See frames 3 > 4 Missile frames 15 > 16 Revenant Health 300 > 288 Height 56 > 80 Radius 20 > 28 Mass 500 > 400 PainChance 100 > 64 Melee damage 6..60 > 36 Missile frames 30 > 24 Pain frames 10 > 6 ShotgunGuy Health 30 > 48 Speed 8 > 6 PainChance 170 > 192 See frames 3 > 4 Missile frames 30 > 32 spreadX 22.5 > 9 spreadY 0 > 1.125 damage 3 * 3..15 > 4 * 6 SpiderMastermind Health 3000 > 2880 Height 100 > 112 Radius 128 > 124 Mass 1000 > 4000 PainChance 40 > 8 Missile frames 29 > 32 /* type changed to Arachnotron plasma */ ZombieMan Health 20 > 48 Speed 8 > 6 PainChance 200 > 192 Missile frames 26 > 48 spreadX 22.5 > 9 spreadY 0 > 1.125 damage 3..15 > 3 * 6 // PROJECTILES ArachnotronPlasma Radius 13 > 8 Height 8 > 16 Speed 25 > 24 Damage 5..40 > 24 BFGBall Radius 13 > 16 Height 8 > 32 Speed 25 > 24 Damage 100..800 > 960 tracerCount 40 > 60 tracerDamage 15..120 > 48 BaronBall Radius 6 > 8 Speed 15 > 16 Damage 8..64 > 36 CacodemonBall Radius 6 > 8 Height 8 > 16 Speed 10 > 12 Damage 5..40 > 24 DoomImpBall Radius 6 > 8 Height 8 > 16 Speed 10 > 12 Damage 3..24 > 12 FatShot Radius 6 > 12 Height 8 > 24 Damage 8..64 > 36 PlasmaBall Radius 13 > 8 Height 8 > 16 Speed 25 > 24 Damage 5..40 > 24 RevenantTracer Radius 11 > 8 Height 8 > 16 Damage 10..80 > 48 /* always track */ CyberDemonRocket /* derived from Rocket, used by CyberDemon */ Radius 11 > 8 Height 8 > 16 Damage 20..160 > 64 Splash 128 / 128 > 64 / 128 Rocket Radius 11 > 8 Height 8 > 16 Damage 20..160 > 120 Splash 128 / 128 > 128 / 128 // WEAPONS // DPF = Damage per Frame = Damage per Shot / Frames per Shot // DPF BALL 960 / 60 = 16 // DPF TRACERS (48 * 60) / 60 = 48 BFG9000 Weapon.AmmoUse 40 > 80 Weapon.AmmoGive 40 > 80 Fire frames 40 || 60 > 60 // DPF 12 / 3 = 4 Chaingun Weapon.AmmoGive 20 > 40 Weapon.AmmoType "RbClip" Fire frames 8 > 9 || 3 spreadX 5.6 > 4.5 spreadXY 0 > 1.125 damage 2 * 5..15 > 12 // DPF 12 / 4 = 3 Chainsaw Fire damage 2..20 > 12 range 65 > 64 spreadXY 2.8125 > 2.25 // DPF 24..48 / 16 = 1.5..3 || 144..192 / 12 = 12..16 Fist Fire frames 22 || 17 > 16 || 12 damage 2..20 > 24..48 berserkDamage 20..200 > 144..192 // DPF 12 / 12 = 1 Pistol Fire frames 19 || 16 > 16 || 12 damage 5..15 > 12 // DPF 24 / 4 = 6 PlasmaRifle Fire frames 23 || 3 > 16 || 4 // DPF (120 + 128 - 8) / 24 = 10 RocketLauncher Weapon.AmmoGive 2 > 4 Fire frames 20 > 24 /* no 8 frame delay */ // DPF 96 / 32 = 3 Shotgun Fire frames 44 || 37 > 32 /* no 3 frame delay */ damage 7 * 5..15 > 8 * 12 spreadX 5.6 > 4.5 spreadY 0 > 1.125 // DPF 192 / 48 = 4 SuperShotgun Weapon.AmmoGive 8 > 4 Fire frames 56 || 51 > 48 || 48 /* no 3 frame delay */ damage 20 * 5..15 > 16 * 12 spreadX 11.25 > 9 spreadY 7.1 > 2.25 // AMMO Cell Inventory.MaxAmount 300 > 400 Ammo.BackpackAmount 20 > 80 Ammo.BackpackMaxAmount 600 > 800 CellPack Inventory.Amount 100 > 80 Clip nventory.Amount 10 > 20 Ammo.BackpackAmount 10 > 80 ClipBox Inventory.Amount 50 > 80 RocketAmmo Inventory.MaxAmount 50 > 40 Ammo.BackpackAmount 1 > 4 Ammo.BackpackMaxAmount 100 > 80 RocketBox Inventory.Amount 5 > 4 Shell Inventory.MaxAmount 50 > 80 Ammo.BackpackAmount 4 > 16 Ammo.BackpackMaxAmount 100 > 160 ShellBox Inventory.Amount 20 > 16 // ITEMS Berserk Inventory.Amount 100 > 0 ArmorBonus Armor.SavePercent 33.335 > 50 GreenArmor Armor.SavePercent 33.335 > 50 Armor.SaveAmount 100 > 50 Armor.MaxSaveAmount 200 BlueArmor Armor.SaveAmount 200 > 100 Armor.MaxSaveAmount 200 // OTHER ExplosiveBarrel Radius 10 > 12 Height 42 > 36 About the maps: - UDMF format, but not using any scripting or required 3D (dynamic lights are used, but they're purely aesthetic). Tested on GZDoom (Doom, strict, compatibility mode), also compatible with ZDoom (thanks SilverMiner for the assist!). Don't know about others. Sorry, I'm a newbie. If anyone wants to help me improve compatibility then I'll appreciate it immensely. I don't think I'm using any port-specific feature like slopes and cameras. - Harder than Doom 2. Easier than Valiant / Sunlust / Eviternity. I'm not experienced enough to give a better evaluation, sorry. - Each level has 1 secret Armor and 1 secret Backpack near the start + more Armor pickups hidden further down the map. Finding these will skew the difficulty considerably. - Item placement and availability was designed with Pistol Start in mind. - Each map (except for MAP01) has 100 Health and Armor (Armor is in secrets) per 32 monsters, up to a maximum of 600. Don't play recklessly! (This is halved in UV and Nightmare and doubled on ITYTD and HNTR) - Maps are mostly linear and heavily symmetrical. There are no intentional points of no return. - Maps are structurally and narratively connected. - Maps are all 5-10min long. - Infighting is disabled. - No teleporting monsters behind the player. There are some closets though... (particularly in map 8) - Secrets within a map will be mostly hidden under the same type of feature. - Some things will only make sense later (wink-wink, blue doors) - I don't want to give the theme away :) - All map names start with "C". - All maps have a "multiple of 32" number of enemies. - I STRONGLY advise having mouselook enabled, but it's not required. - Jumping and crouching are not disabled, but are also not necessary to navigate the maps. Nor is any kind of special platforming. If you're interested in giving my work a shot then all feedback is welcome, but I am very curious about: - Fairness of fights, difficulty progression, etc. - Difficulty (by comparison with popular WADs) - Item placement. - Ammo excess / scarcity at the end of the level. - Any sort of bugs. - Better naming for the project :D - Any important information that I forgot to disclose. Anyway, I hope you enjoy! There is a full changelog inside the archive, if you're curious about the mod. Feel free to play without it too :) (screenshots on next post) Update history: Spoiler 2/4/2021 - v1.0.0 - Release. 4/4/2021 - v1.0.1 - Tweak shotgun damage - Tweak BFG fire rate - MAP02 - Tweak Arachnotron encounter in red skull chamber 7/4/2021 - v1.0.2 - Remove Machinegun - Fix Revenant melee attack - Reduce damage dealt by lave by 75% - MAP01 - Add 100 HP - Add 50 Armor - Rework many room decorations - Remove SSG secrets and give direct access to the weapon - Add more Rocket and Shell Ammo - MAP02 - Rework many room decorations - Replace AVs in the first AV encounter with Barons - Rework both skull key room encounters 8/4/2021 - v1.0.3 - Increase PlasmaBall damage 20 > 24 - MAP03 - Fix missing textures - MAP05 - Add 100 HP - Add 50 Armor - Tighten AV room architecture - MAP06 - Add 50 Armor - Change some Revenants with Pinkies - Rework first 2 AV encounters - Hide edge lines from map - Fix wrong insta-death sectors - MAP07 - Tighten void area - Hide edge lines from map - Reduce number of AVs on return encounters - MAP09 - Add 100 HP - Add 50 Armor 12/4/2021 - v1.0.4 - MAP03, MAP04, MAP08 - Rework encounters to prevent backtracking and door-fighting - Rework many room decorations - MAP05 - Rework room decorations to match the new themes in MAP01-through-MAP04 13/4/2021 - v1.0.5 - MAP06 - Replace Revenants with Pinkies + Arachnotrons at the start - Block projectiles and hitscans through first cage - Raise platforms leading to first cage - Thicken bars near map exit - MAP09 - Add triggers to lower Mancubus platform - Restrict AV sight on first AV room 16/4/2021 - v1.0.6 - Remove custom ammo drops from enemies - MAP01, MAP02, MAP03, MAP05 - Rework many room decorations - MAP01 - Add secret with 50 Armor - Replace secret with 100 Armor with 50 Armor 17/4/2021 - v1.0.7 - MAP01, MAP02, MAP03, MAP04, MAP05 - Redistribute Health pickups - MAP01, MAP05 - Use dual skies - MAP04 - Fix player starting position - MAP06 - Rework first encounter - Reduce number of Cacodemons inside first cage - Add Rockets to first cage - Thicken pilons on northern AV encounter - Reduce number of AVs from 3 to to on western encounters 18/4/2021 - v1.0.8 - Add 100 Health to each map (300 > 400) - Start each map with 50 Armor - MAP06, MAP08, MAP09 - Reworked some encounters 22/4/2021 - v1.0.9 - Add new custom sky textures - Split definitions for Player and CyberDemon Rocket - Increase Player Rocket splash damage - Reduce CyberDemon Rocket splash damage - MAP01 - Tweak some geometry in Hell world - MAP04 - Rework first secret - MAP05 - Fix lava damage - MAP06, MAP07, MAP08, MAP09 - Add Chaingun pickups 28/4/2021 - v1.0.10 - Fix missing punch sound - MAP04 - Reduce hitscan enemy count - MAP05 - Reduce hitscan enemy count - MAP07 - Hide visible monster closets - Rework encounters - MAP08 - Fix some linedefs - Reduce enemy count on last encounter - MAP09 - Rellocate Berserk and other pickups - Rework secrets - Rework Revenant placement in first AV room - Widen walking ledges in second AV room - Deepen pits in second AV room - Keep middle section doors open 08/05/2021 - v1.0.11 - Fix ammo display on HUD - Tweak audio tracks 09/05/2021 - v1.0.12 - Speed up weapon switching - Fix duplicate inventory ID 10/06/2021 - v1.1.0 - Add Chapter 3 (3 new maps) - Reduce CyberDemon health to 2000 in bundled maps - MAP07 - Rework some encounters and layouts 30/06/2021 - v1.1.1 - Increase BFG damage to better represent defaults - Speed up SuperShotgun rate of fire to better represent defaults - Add "narrow" randomization to Berserked Fist damage - MAP01, MAP02, MAP03, MAP04, MAP05 - Rework geometry - Rework glowing sectors 12/07/2021 - v1.1.2 - Replace Stimpacks with 10x Health Bonus - Reduce Armor and Health pickups by half on UV and Nightmare - MAP03, MAP05, MAP08 - Rework secrets 24/07/2021 - v1.2.0 - Add new map to Chapter 3 - Add Chapter selection Hub - Rework aesthetics of Chapter start and end teleporters 10/08/2021 - v1.2.1 - MAP12 - Add extra Imps and Pinkies - Rework some geometry 12/08/2021 - v1.2.2 - MAP01, MAP05 - Block some encounter exploits - MAP02 - Rework red key room geometry - Replace red key room Mancubus with Arachnotrons - MAP03 - Fix broken teleporters in secrets near chasm - Reduce number of Pain Elementals in CyberDemon room - Tweak AV placement on last 2 rooms 13/08/2021 - v1.2.3 - MAP05, MAP09, MAP14 - Fix end map linedefs not triggering 17/08/2021 - v1.2.4 - MAP01, MAP03, MAP05, MAP06 - Tweak some step textures - Remove orphan roof teleporters - MAP02 - Fix crusher floor linedefs - Make BFG a secret area - MAP04 - Add new secret with BFG 22/08/2021 - v1.3.0 - Add 5th map to Chapter 2 - Tweak some ammo pickup values - MAP09 - Change last encounter so it connects to MAP10 29/09/2021 - v1.4.0 - Add 5th map to Chapter 3 - Tweak Armor placement to better support playing without the mod 30/09/2021 - v1.4.1 - MAP14 - Tweak last encounter - Tweak some textures 02/10/2021 - v1.4.2 - MAP14 - Tweak some textures - Remove death pits 03/10/2021 - v1.4.3 - Tweak Ammo placement on all maps - MAP07 - Fix some linedefs so they work in "Doom (strict)" compatibility mode 06/10/2021 - v1.4.4 - MAP06, MAP10, MAP13 - Rework towers and bridges (floating platforms) - MAP06 - Fix secret sectors without a destination teleport 22/10/2021 - v1.4.5 - MAP01, MAP03, MAP04, MAP05 - Increase enemy variety - MAP06, MAP09 - Rework most encounters - Rework some geometry 16/01/2022 - v1.4.6 - Add custom Skill descriptions and effects - MAP05 - Rework first section / encounters - MAP06 - Rework some geometry 18/01/2022 - v1.4.7 - MAP06 - Rework some geometry - Rework initial encounters 28/02/2022 - v1.4.8 - MAP05, MAP06 - Rework some encounters - Rework some ammo placement - MAP06 - Rework some geometry to block loose projectile paths 16/04/2022 - v1.4.9 - Fix Fist triggering distance - Tweak CyberDemon and SpiderMastermind pain chance 14/05/2022 - v1.4.10 - Reduce Shotgun and SuperShotgun projectile count, but increase projectile damage to even totals 31/01/2023 - v1.4.11 - Increase HP and AP per level to 100 per 32 monsters (x2 below default difficulty and x0.5 above default difficulty) to a maximum of 600 - Add new secrets to maps with >128 monsters (to hide the extra AP) - Tweak monster counts and placements on some levels (144 down to 128) - Add a BFG to all levels after the first of each episode - Change skill level descriptions and prompts - Add MAP16 - MAP04, MAP06 - Rework geometry 07/04/2023 - v1.4.12 - Rework some HP and damage values to ensure multiples of 12 - Add MAP17 - Add Computer Map to the end of all levels 28/04/2023 - v1.5.0 - Rework hub to give access to Episode 4 maps - Add placeholders for MAP18, MAP19 and MAP20 - Add MAP32 (accessible through hub secret) - MAP07 - Rework BFG secret using portals - MAP11 - Use actual portals - MAP17 - Rework some geometry in Plasma room 15/07/2023 - v1.5.1 - Decrease damaging surface tick interval from 16 to 12 - Remove ALWAYSPICKUP flag from Health and Armor bonus and SoulSphere - Tweak some hitboxes for more consistent values (minimal adjustments for most, meaningful change for Arachnotron) - Move Berserk powerup out of secrets and place it near Backpack rooms - Add multiple enemy variants to increase encounter diversity - Rebalance ammo pickups (count and location) to match individual encounter needs rather than ongoing totals - Add dynamic lights to techbase type textures - Rework big portal geometry - Remap standard Dynamic Lights and Decals to new decorate actors - Replace Pistol with Machinegun - MAP02 - Fix Archvile encounter to account for infinite height monsters - MAP07 - Rework geometry near key pickups - Tweak last encounter - MAP09 - Rework secrets - Add cliff to penultimate arena - Tweak last encounter - MAP10 - Rework secrets - Expand outside area to be better connected - Rework island fight - MAP12 - Replace textures - Rework 3rd room geometry - MAP16 - Fix a sequence break in the BFG room - Improve corridor geometry - Tweak courtyard geometry to atenuate circle-strafing 26/07/2023 - v1.5.2 - Use spotlights on ceilings rather than omnidirectional lights - Many bugfixes and small tweaks - MAP13 - Fix instant-death sector 31/07/2023 - v1.5.3 - Exchange hitscan weapons and monsters with fast projectiles - Change Zombieman behavior - Exchange Machinegun for UACBattleRifle - Add liquid glow 11/08/2023 - v1.5.4 - Add glow to lights - Fix glow on liquids - Add progressive accuracy degrade to hitscan weapons - Add different color for player hitscan projectiles - MAP15 - Fix non-triggerable switch NB: Currently there's an issue with brightmaps. I am unsure how to fix it. Any help is very welcome, thanks! RbDoom_v1_5_5.7z Edited August 12, 2023 by thewaver : Update pack file and changelog 14 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 3, 2021 (edited) EPISODE 1 MAP01 - CONTRAST PLAYTHROUGH (v1.2.2): SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): MAP02 - CREAMATORIUM PLAYTHROUGH (v1.2.2): SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): MAP03 - CHASM PLAYTHROUGH (v1.2.2): SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): MAP04 - CRACKS PLAYTHROUGH (v1.2.2): SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): MAP05 - COALESCENCE PLAYTHROUGH (v1.2.2): SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): Edited August 12, 2023 by thewaver 8 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 3, 2021 (edited) EPISODE 2 MAP06 - CACOCAGES SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): MAP07 - COLLAPSE SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): MAP08 - CAROUSEL SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): MAP09 - CLOT SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): MAP10 - CLUSTERPHOBIA SCREENSHOTS (v1.5.5): EPISODE 3: https://www.doomworld.com/forum/post/2330425 Edited August 12, 2023 by thewaver 13 Share this post Link to post
LordEntr0py Posted April 4, 2021 Map 01 Playthrough. Since you hadn't included new music, I put my own tunes on. Video can't be monetised but it's not like I was going to make anything from it. :) Credit to Alkaloid for the soundtrack (this video includes the first two songs on their album, The Malkuth Grimoire). Fun map, some really nice architecture in there. I felt that it was a little unfair without finding the secrets (folks will suggest you avoid that) and lacked health in places (most notably after leaving the "light world" base and teleporting to the "hell world" base). Some of the combat encounters were a little humdrum -- most notably opening doors to find hordes of pinkies beyond. Favourite was the encounter with the imps, mancubi, hell knights and the Arch-Vile, which felt tense but doable -- especially since I had to run in and grab health inside (i just think they could have been medkits instead of stimpacks). Map 02 Playthrough Soundtrack tracks 3-5 on The Malkuth Gimoire Album. You didn't mention whether you expect continuous play or pistol starts, so I decided to retain the weapons I'd picked up. Since the ammo balance was pretty good, and since you're generous with the weapons you provide I don't think it mattered too much. I didn't enjoy the double AV encounter, partly because I lacked any weapons to decently snipe them with (probably needed a rocket launcher or cells at that point although I get that yu weren't providing rockets until later in the map). Revenant room was fun, but I thought the large mancubus arenas got a little boring (the YK one was a pretty interesting fight to get a foothold in but after that it was mostly circle strafing and mop-up). Getting chased to the teleporter by Arch-Viles was pretty cool, and I loved the return to the "light world". This was actually the point when I realised we'd actually been switching back and forth between parallel worlds. Great start to this one, and a really interesting theme with the recurring crushers. 1 Share this post Link to post
LordEntr0py Posted April 4, 2021 Map03 Playthrough Music on this one still from the same Album -- The Malkuth Grimoire. Lost track of the numbers at this point, but the songs were all titled Dyson Sphere I through to Dyson Sphere IV. The various rooms in this map were a bit too symmetrical for my taste. Also, I think you could use mixed monsters more in each encounter to make things more interesting. Still a nice design, though. Those deep pits in the Hell World were unsettling. Highlight for me, and exception to the monster mix, was the imp encounter. The Cyberdemon arena takes second place for the mix of monsters, but I felt it was too easy to just circle strafe him. Maybe some pain elementals or other hard-to-ignore monsters would force players to shift focus and make him more of a threat.Map04 Playthrough Music: last three tracks on The Malkuth Grimoire. I like this more than the previous map. Highlight was that early room with the AV and the imps. And the corridor with the advancing column of cacodemons was great, too. Still very sparse on health. I wasn't sure whether I was supposed to be allowed to jump or not! Sorry if I cheated picking up that blue armour secret at the start. Another map that was a bit too symmetrical in places. And repeatedly hiding secrets behind the same map features means they don't really feel like secrets at all. When I can go through one door, find a secret, and immediately know there will be an identical secret behind the other door, I think it's gone a bit too far. One issue is that a lot of these fights lend themselves to firing at monsters through the chokepoint. It's not always the case, like the mancubus ambush at the red key, but when it is it makes the combat a lot less interesting. That "mirror arena" AV fight with the hell knights -- where you pick up the plasma gun -- seemed a bit unfair. cover was pretty much impossible to find and in the end I think I lucked out when the AV's fire was drawn by the hell knights. Maybe I missed something, but a little extra health might've made me feel it was more fair. Don't get me wrong! For all the criticism, I did enjoy this. And I LOVE some of the architecture. That... structure along the long corridor (after the cyberdemon fight) is phenomenal. I had to stop and admire it in both worlds. 2 Share this post Link to post
LordEntr0py Posted April 4, 2021 Last one for now Map05 Playthrough Music on this one by The Ocean - first couple of tracks from Phanerazoic II. This was by far my favourite map of the set so far. Nice to see those unexplored sections of the "Light World" base come together, and I loved the way the two worlds were kind of smashed together in this one. It's great situational storytelling. Combat was a lot of fun in this one, too, partly because of the way this encouraged a healthier mix of monsters, but partly because it wasn't possible to hide behind doors. One example is the imps/sergeants with the AV in the middle -- the AV wasn't at an angle where it was possible to reasonably fight it with the rocket launcher because the ledge got in the way. The other example is my favourite arena in the set so far -- the revisit of those arenas from the first level mashed up, with the AVs in the centre. Didn't manage to figure out the BFG secret, but managed all the same with the Cybie and those four (FOUR!?) archviles hiding behind the door near him. Really nice structure in that final room. All in all, good stuff so far. Something about that final room (and the screenshots of maps 6-9) seems to represent a step up in your mapping ability. Looking forward to playing the rest! 2 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 5, 2021 Thanks for the amazing work, LordEntr0py. I am already working hard on tweaking several of the things that you've mentioned and I hope to have a new release soon. I am not sure how I am going to tackle certain things, but I have plenty of actionable points that I do have some solid ideas about :) - stay tooned! 2 Share this post Link to post
Spie812 Posted April 6, 2021 (edited) First off, some comments about the gameplay mod. It's fine, I guess. Having the weapons slightly changed feels a bit weird but it's alright. I see the rifle but I'm not sure about its utility with such a low rate of fire compared to the chaingun. Also I had revenants randomly punching the air. I'm not sure what that's about. Looking at the mapset as a whole, I have mixed feelings. Travelling back and forth between hellish and techbase areas and revisiting older levels makes for a cool theme. I also really like the look of lots of these rooms, especially in the latter half. Many of these levels look really good visually. However, the layout of these levels consist all too often of a straight line of symmetrical rooms with the occasional branch. I'm not sure about the combat either. This set consists of a lot of hordes of a single type of monster, which gets old pretty fast. It also leans particularly hard on the SSG, which means that these hordes take forever to kill (see the 1st arena in map09). The latter maps are a bit better with enemy variety (after all, fighting two types of enemies is more engaging than fighting one), but the fights only take even longer as the monster count increases. I will also echo the sentiment that there needs to be a lot more health available. Overall, I think that the idea's solid, the rooms are mostly well designed, and the layouts and encounters improve as the set goes on. However, I really think that it could use a revamp in gameplay, mostly in increasing the variety of enemies in encounters and maybe giving more ammo for the stronger weapons to keep up with the monster count. Map-Specific comments: Spoiler Map01: The opening shot is good. The arch-vile group at the end came out of nowhere and I had no ammo left for it. I had to run past them. Map02: The opening room is cool here too, but the ceiling is perfectly flat. It kind of ruins the cavernous look the walls are going for. The mancubus room was tedious. The arachnotron-mancubus room was a bit better. Squish. Map03: When I mentioned straight lines of rooms, this is what I meant. Map04: The starting elevator really needs its textures aligned. Hell, most of the maps could use a texture alignment pass. The stark lighting in the first rooms is cool. I also like the ending tunnel. Layout and combat is as a whole way better than 02 and 03. Map05: I like revisiting old levels. The monster hordes get a bit thick here and it starts to drag (apparently I missed a BFG though). Map06: A new setting helped keep things fresh. Map07: Probably my favorite in the set given the setting and variety of fights. The arch-viles get a bit annoying. I kill two then four more warp in. Map08: Lots of elevators, circular rooms, and cool moving parts. The ending room takes a long time if you want to kill everything there. Map09: Clearing these arenas takes forever and a half. Each. Seriously, this level needs like four times the amount of rockets or an earlier BFG or something. 1 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 6, 2021 Thank you, Spie812! Enemy variety is something that I am revisiting right now! In the start, when I didn't know any better, I was afraid that mixing enemies would result in the fights being cheesed with infighting. Now I know better and I'm "fixing" it :) The map linearity / symmetry is a harder issue to tackle. I am not sure how much I can change at this point without redoing large portions of the work. But the feedback is 100% valid and something I am definitely keeping in mind.. As for the Revenants punching the air - coincidentally I noticed this just yesterday while tweaking MAP02. I will try to fix it ASAP, though I have no idea yet what causes it. Good catch!. Have to get to work - will look at individual map comments after the workday - huge thanks! 0 Share this post Link to post
Helm Posted April 6, 2021 Hello, sir! Here's a first batch of impressions on map 1-3 and some high level thoughts at the end. I hope this feedback is of use to you :) 2 Share this post Link to post
MattFright Posted April 6, 2021 Hmm i feel like it was a bit odd for the mapset/mod come bundled in a zip rather than a pk3, especially because while a few people know it's as simple as just renaming it, a lot of people might get confused and think there's some complicated setting up to do. About the actual maps and mod though, here's my thoughts on the maps individually with my first impressions on the mod on top (playing on Ultra-Violence, by the way): MAP01: Spoiler This is an odd start... I can tell you're very creative because this map shows it, but it really could've used a bit more polish. There's a bit too many doors at the start (you might've thought too much about the believability of the structure and not enough about the gameplay flow of it), which slows movement down a loooot unless you're saving (which i wasn't). The super shotgun is also a bit weird in how you get it? I thought it was going to lower over time as i had to survive the hitscanners, but apparently you just have to cross an invisible line to lower the bars... It certainly could've been more intuitive and a bit more challenging than when you find out you can't only ignore that room altogether, but also block off the hitscanners with the two secret switches. About the weapons... The shotgun certainly feels extremely powerful now which is kind of nice, maybe the super shotgun too? Kinda? I do like the pistol and the chaingun but i'm not sure it's much of a difference still (not that it's a bad thing of course). Now, onto the hellish version of this map, that i really didn't enjoy. No matter what you do or where you go you always get cornered by extremely tanky enemies and are forced to take damage without any room to dodge... which also leads me to the point that this map isn't fun to move through. Pretty much no height variation, very cramped spaces, mostly all corridors. You can probably make these a lot more fun with some tweaks to the geometry as a whole and the enemy composition. Ah, and the archvile at the center of that first hell arena? ...Maybe that was a bit too much. I don't have much to say about the end of the map since i just ran out of ammo there... Not sure it's even completable in UV? MAP02: Spoiler This map makes me think you made a lot of these encounters based on your own difficulty beating them rather than what someone would experience when playing it blind. Firstly, there's nothing wrong with making extremely difficult maps, but even the mapsets most known for their teeth gritting difficulty (Sunder, Sunlust, & others) give you time to think, to analyze the challenge, they give you room to recover, room to dodge, etc... You should always think "once someone enters this room, what will they first do?" because once i started walking the pathway and hearing cacos coming up behind me i began running and rushed through what i could, which inevitably led me to getting firstly blasted by all of the demons in the next room, but also immediately crushed. Crushers can also have good executions, but in this map they only really serve to slow down the pace of the fights or to frustrate the player with instant deaths. Also, the machinegun does feel really redundant, it'd probably make for a good pistol replacement though. All in all this map feels like it's only not frustrating by saving mid fights... which i can't see being very fun. MAP03: Spoiler I just noticed that revenants seem to punch outside of their range (and therefore punching the air), you miiiight wanna fix that, because it's really janky. Also, while this is the better map so far, it still suffers from a lot that the previous maps did. Too much symmetry (predictable layouts, doing the opposite side that is just identical feels like an unnecessary chore), too many enemies (most of the time you're cleaning up health sponges, and they usually bodyblock what could've been fun to traverse level design, like with the imps in the yellow crosses room or the pinkies in the cyberdemon room), and the biggest issue by far being the lack of health and armor all throughout the map (especially in areas full of hitscanners, where you'd need health the most), requiring you to play flawlessly and save mid-fights. MAP04: Spoiler Instant death pits? Uh... now these are something that can never be good or fun for a map, so i'd say please do avoid those. Otherwise, same criticisms as the previous maps except intensified by a factor of two or three. I will say that the visuals in this one are absolutely stellar though. MAP05: Spoiler Well it's a mixture of most of the previous maps, so all of the criticism given before applies here too, but this is really pushing the enemy counts to absurdity in a not very good way. This is where i started saving midfights. MAP06: Spoiler I like the break from cramped spaces and more visual variety in this one, but a lot of the gameplay issues still haven't been addressed here. Afterwards: Spoiler I don't want to be demotivating, but it really don't changes much from the formula from here (except the maps get closer and closer to impossible or just incredibly unfun to beat), especially the final map which i just iddqd'd through (and even then it took a considerable amount of time to finish because of the amount of cyberdemons). I'm sorry if i've been too harsh, i did really like the visuals, and the concepts and ideas you had were really neat, but the particular execution of them just wasn't very fun. I'd suggest releasing standalone maps and getting feedback from the community to refine your skills in level design and your own style before making a large mapset like this, since it can help you avoid falling into the same pitfalls of level design so often and to not have to massively overhaul already made maps. 2 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 6, 2021 Thank you very much, Helm and MattFright! I am already polishing maps 1 and 2 based on the given feedback. It is tremendously appreciated! My biggest challenge remains "fixing" the symmetry - that may take me another year or so (to essentially design a different half part of the existing maps). BUT, I am already addressing: - Most of the stuff brought up about map 1. - Key encounters on map 2. - The enemy variety. - Mod bugs (i.e. Revenant melee attack). - Removing Machinegun. I would also like to extend a special thank you to the people who have been giving me feedback through PM. I will create a SPECIAL THANKS list and bundle it with the pack. Please let me know if you'd like to NOT be there :) 1 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 6, 2021 Found the issue with the "drunk" Revenants - I accidentally deleted a "loop" inside DECORATE. I should post an update later tonight. Thank you all for your invaluable contributions! 0 Share this post Link to post
Helm Posted April 6, 2021 Why do you want to fix the symmetry if I may ask? Let's explore the idea, I'm quite curious if you need such a drastic fix for your maps. And try Vile Flesh a moment and tell me if you'd fix the symmetry there. 1 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 6, 2021 4 minutes ago, Helm said: Why do you want to fix the symmetry if I may ask? Let's explore the idea, I'm quite curious if you need such a drastic fix for your maps. And try Vile Flesh a moment and tell me if you'd fix the symmetry there. Thank you for the recommendation :) - I will give it a spin as soon as I have addressed some of the "easier-to-tackle" feedback here :) 1 Share this post Link to post
Bri0che Posted April 6, 2021 Just finished 3 maps and all I can say is that I really enjoy the whole design. Just simple. just f***ing simple, but simply good. I kinda enjoy the minimalist architecture plus I'm a great fan of symmetry (very well done symmetry btw, I love how you make the parallel univers), so... What els ? The gameplay is quite intense in the good way, you feel really satisfied to win each fight, and that's exactly what we want in Doom. Thank you for this sharing ;) 2 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 7, 2021 (edited) UPDATE 7/4/2021 - v1.0.2 - Remove Machinegun - Fix Revenant melee attack - Reduced damage dealt by lave by 75% - MAP01 - Add 100 HP - Add 50 Armor - Rework many room decorations - Remove SSG secrets and give direct access to the weapon - Add more Rocket and Shell Ammo - MAP02 - Rework many room decorations - Replace AVs in the first AV encounter with Barons - Rework both skull key room encounters RbDoom_v1_0_2.zip Edited August 12, 2021 by thewaver 0 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 8, 2021 (edited) Small update this time, mostly small tweaks and bugfixes. Currently working hard on improving MAP03 fights. UPDATE 8/4/2021 - v1.0.3 - Increase PlasmaBall damage 20 > 24 - MAP03 - Fix missing textures - MAP05 - Add 100 HP - Add 50 Armor - Tighten AV room architecture - MAP06 - Add 50 Armor - Change some Revenants with Pinkies - Rework first 2 AV encounters - Hide edge lines from map - Fix wrong insta-death sectors - MAP07 - Tighten void area - Hide edge lines from map - Reduce number of AVs on return encounters - MAP09 - Add 100 HP - Add 50 Armor Edited July 24, 2021 by thewaver 0 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 12, 2021 (edited) UPDATE 12/4/2021 - v1.0.4 - MAP03, MAP04, MAP08 - Rework encounters to prevent backtracking and dorr-fighting - Rework many room decorations - MAP05 - Rework room decorations to match the new themes in MAP01-through-MAP04 Edited July 24, 2021 by thewaver 1 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 13, 2021 (edited) This will probably be the last update I'll post until I get some more feedback on maps 6 through 9. Unless I find some bugs / issues, of course. UPDATE 13/4/2021 - v1.0.5 - MAP06 - Replace Revenants with Pinkies + Arachnotrons at the start - Block projectiles and hitscans through first cage - Raise platforms leading to first cage - Thicken bars near map exit - MAP09 - Add triggers to lower Mancubus platform - Restrict AV sight on first AV room Edited July 24, 2021 by thewaver 0 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 16, 2021 (edited) UPDATE 16/4/2021 - v1.0.6 - Remove custom ammo drops from enemies - MAP01, MAP02, MAP03, MAP05 - Rework many room decorations - MAP01 - Add secret with 50 Armor - Replace secret with 100 Armor with 50 Armor Edited July 24, 2021 by thewaver 0 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 17, 2021 (edited) CRITICAL HOTFIX! UPDATE 17/4/2021 - v1.0.7 - MAP01, MAP02, MAP03, MAP04, MAP05 - Redistribute Health pickups - MAP01, MAP05 - Use dual skies - MAP04 - Fix player starting position - MAP06 - Rework first encounter - Reduce number of Cacodemons inside first cage - Add Rockets to first cage - Thicken pilons on northern AV encounter - Reduce number of AVs from 3 to to on western encounters Edited July 24, 2021 by thewaver 0 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 18, 2021 (edited) CHANGELOG 18/4/2021 - v1.0.8 - Added 100 Health to each map (300 > 400) - Player now starts each map with 50 Armor - MAP06, MAP08, MAP09 - Reworked some encounters Edited July 24, 2021 by thewaver 0 Share this post Link to post
DavidN Posted April 21, 2021 (edited) I really liked these, even though they got beyond my level fairly quickly :) Some people will definitely find the modifications disorienting because they're so close yet different from the usual weapons, but I quickly grew to appreciate what you were doing and how they altered the balance of the game. Your mapping style is really unique and distinctive as well, with the decoration and carvings on the floor. I think that the maps were taking me back and forth through two different versions (techbase and hell) of the same places? I wasn't quite able to piece it together - perhaps some more unmistakable landmarks would help if that's what you're going for - but what I saw was a really interesting slightly different take on Doom! Oh - and yes, definitely rename the file to a PK3 instead of a ZIP, if your file host allows it! This will make it much clearer how it's intended to be run. 2 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 22, 2021 Cheers, David - Excellent video. I laughed my ass off. I guess the term I'm looking for is "Jolly good" :D If you have a chance, IDDQD through the last 3 levels and check out the designs - any feedback is much appreciated ;) 1 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 22, 2021 (edited) CHANGELOG 22/4/2021 - v1.0.9 - Add new custom sky textures - Split definitions for Player and CyberDemon Rocket - Increase Player Rocket splash damage - Reduce CyberDemon Rocket splash damage - MAP01 - Tweak some geometry in Hell world - MAP04 - Rework first secret - MAP05 - Fix lava damage - MAP06, MAP07, MAP08, MAP09 - Add Chaingun pickups Edited July 24, 2021 by thewaver 0 Share this post Link to post
Suitepee Posted April 28, 2021 https://youtu.be/C32uBMrIU_A My playthrough starts at 38:00, although I only correctly load the mod about 30-40 minutes later. I really don't like the lack of infighting & monsters unable to damage each other combo, to be honest. The 9 custom maps were not a good showcase for this mod's potential. 0 Share this post Link to post
thewaver Posted April 28, 2021 (edited) CHANGELOG 28/4/2021 - v1.0.10 - Fix missing punch sound - MAP04 - Reduce hitscan enemy count - MAP05 - Reduce hitscan enemy count - MAP07 - Hide visible monster closets - Rework encounters - MAP08 - Fix some linedefs - Reduce enemy count on last encounter - MAP09 - Relocate Berserk and other pickups - Rework secrets - Rework Revenant placement in first AV room - Widen walking ledges in second AV room - Deepen pits in second AV room - Keep middle section doors open Edited July 24, 2021 by thewaver 1 Share this post Link to post
