[Mapping Contest] 10 Years of Doom - Winners Announced

[Tarnsman]

21 minutes ago, SLOTH MARINE (CB) said:

my map.

CB'S HELLHOLE

CB'S HELLHOLE.zip

 

Build time was 9 days and it contains lots of custom sprites and is kinda hard and is Boom compatible 

 

The map name must include Alfonzo. See other examples in the thread.

[baja blast rd.]

CB's HELLHOLE

 

CB'S ALFONZOHOLE

[SLOTH MARINE (CB)]

3 minutes ago, Tarnsman said:

 

The map name must include Alfonzo. See other examples in the thread.

oh didn't read it, sorry!

[SLOTH MARINE (CB)]

1 minute ago, rd. said:

CB's HELLHOLE

 

CB'S ALFONZO-HOLE

smart

[AD_79]

Spoiler

 

Name: Alfonzo Tries to Prevent Donald Trump from Starting Third Impact
Map Format: Boom.
Ports Tested: DSDA-Doom -complevel 9. Only software rendering was tested, I'm hearing GL may break a few things?
Build Time: Roughly 50-55 hours.
Credits: Textures from Valiant (tree sprites are from here as well), AA, Sunlust, Zoon, Jimmytex, some textures by Fuzzball. Sky by Mechadon. Music composed by me.
Requirements: Jumping/crouching is not permitted. Freelook is permitted but discouraged.

Edited May 9, 2021 by AD_79

[ElementalHaven]

 

Name: Alfonzo Attempts To Relax From His Adventures And Temporarily Ceases To Exist, Reappearing Moments Later To Find His Home Demolished As It Was Seized Through Eminent Domain To Make Way For a Denny's, Which He Conveniently Forgot About
Map Format: Eternity UDMF
Ports Tested: Eternity 4.02
Build Time: Some unknown amount of hours over the course of a week and a half
Credits: Uses OTEX 1.1 by Ukiro and "Hall of Faces" by Jimmy from the Harmony MIDI Pack
Requirements: No jumping or crouching. Tested without freelook but you can use it if you really want to.

 

Edit: Did automap cleanup, fixed tagged secrets, replaced the inter-levelname with a levelpic, and updated the mapinfo

Edited May 13, 2021 by ElementalHaven : map bugfixes and mapinfo update

[Tarnsman]

That's the deadline! 

 

Map submissions will be played this upcoming weekend.

 

But a project that requires Alfonzo to be in the title couldn't possibly be complete without some Alfonzo Time(TM).

 

What is Alfonzo time? Well you know how in soccer when the match ends the refs arbitrarily add an unspecified time because bothering to stop the clock for stoppages is apparently too complicated? Alfonzo Time(TM) is kind of like that.

 

Invented way back in the TTV Zone and then given a name and officially birthed in the first Abyssal Session. Alfonzo Time(TM) is what happens when someone (most notably Alfonzo) is simply unable to finish their map in the allotted amount of time.

 

So if you need a little bit of extra time, you will be allowed to take it.

 

However if a map that utilizes Alfonzo Time(TM) places in a price position, that map will be penalized based on the amount of extra time used, and the penalized amount will be awarded to the map that would have placed in its stead.

 

How much Alfonzo Time(TM) will there be? Well like extra minutes in soccer, no one knows.

[Breezeep]

Spoiler

 

Name: Alfonzo throws hands with the Purple People Eater

Map Format: Boom
Ports Tested: GZDoom, DSDADoom, Eternity
Build Time: A week and a half
Credits: Base resource from Mayhem 18 Purple, with some additions by me, AD79 for the Music
Requirements: Jumping/crouching not permitted, freelook permitted but discouraged.

[Tarnsman]

Alfonzo time is now over.

 

I will begin playing the maps tonight.

[E.M.]

So when does the stream start?

[Breezeep]

Live now

[Altazimuth]

Stream is live again!

[Paar]

@Tarnsman Hi. I just watched your recent stream of the maps and am saddened by the fact that you had to play glitched version that I have initially uploaded but fixed relatively quickly after. Is there a possibility that you have downloaded it before I updated the link? It fixed the problem with red platforms raising too high. And the missing switch texture was indeed because of Slade removing all ANIMATED textures from the wad. I had to create dummy sectors with all the animated textures and flats and unfortunately missed that one.

It was a nice playthrough however, enjoyed watching it. Hope you enjoyed it as well. Thanks.

[Tarnsman]

Thanks for letting me know. I will download the updated version for when I replay it. I will be playing all the maps multiple times.

[Tarnsman]

Update:

 

Winners will be announced on Friday 5/14 so that I can make sure I play every map at least three times.

 

I want to thank everyone who contributed, the quality of the submissions was outstanding, picking the winners is going to be a daunting task.

 

 

[Scuba Steve]

1 hour ago, Tarnsman said:

...make sure I play every map at least three times.

 

I'm sorry.

[Jimmy]

I'm throwing in a quick update to my map. It should address a couple of bugs including the final fight being possible to softlock.

[Paar]

Is bugfixing of submitted map allowed though? I would like to have it confirmed as I would like to fix two bugs in my map as well but to me, it seemed... I don't know, unfair? You know, polishing the map well after the deadline. Just my thoughts.

[Jimmy]

Oh I did ask Tarns beforehand. He allowed it (for me, anyway - best to let him confirm one way or the other himself).

 

I'm mainly updating just so anyone else who wants to play my map gets a bug-free experience. Tarns didn't run into any aside from a slightly broken cutscene, which considering some of the whoppers I left in, was very fortunate. :P

[Tarnsman]

I am judging by what was completed at the end of submissions. If you want to bug fix for other people playing it, that is fine.

[Scuba Steve]

Can I just say, I clearly made a map to be a cheeky joke, but it was fun to open Doom Builder after almost a decade of inactivity and relearn how to map. Making my map was the most bizarre arthouse thing I have ever done; every element of the map revolves around trying to generate different sounds and a layout built around the notion that the player will never see anything. I had absolutely no idea what to expect watching someone play a map blind, but when Tarns successfully completed the first of 3 blind arenas using a hand-sketched map that looked similar to the actual map, I felt like I had accomplished the goal I set out to do. Now, normally I love watching Tarnsman lose his shit and shout profanities on his stream, but when he struggled with the 2nd arena, I felt like I had failed the experiment because what I thought would make sense was apparently too confusing--this despite the fact that playtesting had seemed to indicate the final two arenas were easier to navigate than the first.

 

Watching the final stream revealed a lot of quirks that could be implemented to avoid frustrations in a 1.1 release... but I don't really think this concept has much life in it beyond the initial concept.

[Paar]

I have admired Tarnsman's dedication during playthrough of your map, I must admit I wouldn't be so patient :D. Reminded me of old PC dungeon crawlers a little, due of the necessity of map drawing.

[Tarnsman]

Awards time!

 

Firstly I’d like to thank everyone who made a map, the quality of the submissions was outstanding. All the submissions stood out as their own unique things due to the wide variety of themes, concepts, and gameplay styles present throughout. From sprawling exploratory adventures to tightly constructed punishing romps. A collection worthy of stand alone releases that made picking the winners a struggle full of difficult choices on what got snubbed. Great job everyone involved.

 

Without further ado, let's start off with the...

 

 

 

 

I’ve always had a soft spot for the weird kind of hell theme that is The Spirit World. But even if I didn't, Cannonball's entry makes up for what it lacks in thematic originality with a fantastically punishing hot start which utilizes pain elementals and specters to make your starting weapon as much of a threat as the enemies around you. The map is nice enough to give you an invulnerability if you can maneuver to it, but using it to ease the process of clearing the starting area or BFG cybers means you won't have it for more even trickier encounters like the RK encounter later which has some great usage of hell knights in their proper role as lesser Doors-With-Health(™). Top it all off with some traditional exit viles and you have a fantastic little hell map.

 

 

 

Beyond the fantastic title, adorable fake backpack, meme secrets/textures, and general goofiness that lend the map that sort of charm you expect from these types of entries; Obsidian produced a wonderful little jungle aqueduct map featuring great usage of a small number of monsters placed in threatening positions, made more threatening by the way the map doles out its resources to the player. A very enjoyable experience all around.

 

 

 

Not every map needs to be super hard or super intricate. Sometimes it's fine to have just a nice AA themed floating tech base with a fun little interconnected layout. The nobles and cyberdemon encounter has a good use of damaging floors to force the player into a more precarious situation than they would normally be in and I always appreciate when a map finds a way to make fighting the three biggest types of imps more interesting than just the standard circle strafe. 

 

 

 

Portals are cool. Eternity is cool. People should make more maps for it. While this map could basically be described as three long hallways and there are certainly some mono-textured areas that might not be the prettiest in the traditional sense, it had a certain je ne sais quoi to it for me. (Maybe it's just Stewboy's fantastic midi) It reminded me of one of those early 3D platformers where you navigate a space that vaguely resembles something floating over a nebulous void. The interconnected weaving open paths and portal usage did a great job of making the paths feel like more than just a hallway and the abundance of higher end weapons and ammo made gameplay nice and breezy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

I debated what to make the 5th award. I was originally thinking something for best title or a viewer’s choice award, but given the quality of the things that got snubbed, I figure I might as well just make it an unofficial 5th place.

 

Jaska's secluded town starts of with a powerful opening shot and remains an atmospheric visual treat throughout. Rather than some of the bolder color choices present in other entries, the use of more muted colors work well here with the natural sunlight the glazes over the village's exterior. The way you navigate through the map, descending under the town only to come back up through a building exterior and then platform across rooftops to reach the archvile tower and exit is a good use of 3D space that helps reinforce the sense of place the map has.

 

 

 

While there were many maps that did a great job at being both small and yet satisfying, Scotty was the one who ultimately did it the best (at least in the traditional sense). Coming in at a measly 87 monsters, Scotty's purple and orange sea base mixes both fantastic monster placement and selection with transforming map segments to both maximize its gameplay and its space. The lower health cyberdemons are also a great addition that allow for certain encounters to be still high threat but not as meaty as they would be with a traditional cyber. The map also looks great.

 

 

 

One of the things I was impressed with was how many submissions straight up looked great. That was not the case with Scuba's map. Because this map doesn't look like anything. Literally.

 

The very first map submitted to the contest, it's hard to do more with less than what Scuba was able to achieve with just three rooms. (Three rooms that took me longer to complete than any other map in the contest.)

 

Playing Literal Blind Doom was one of the most fun (yet frustrating) things I've ever done, and Scuba perfectly captured that with this map. While I may have not been able to figure out the 2nd room on my blind-blind run (once you know what's in the room it's easier than the first room to navigate blind) I judge the map an outstanding success.

 

 

 

Because a map in the top 3 utilized Alfonzo Time(TM) we have a 4th place given to the map that would have placed 3rd if not for Alfonzo Time(TM).

 

With my personal favorite title in the contest (although that was also a very strong competition) an_mutt delivered with a wonderful BTSX tech base that's supposed to be an Alfonzo/Tarns collab. Fun concept (and limit overflows) aside, this map could be right at home in BTSX E1. Great layout, visuals, flow, and gameplay. I love that the red key is technically not needed as all it does is give you a radsuit cross a 20% damaging floor to progress further in the map, which is a great use of a damaging floor. The map in general has very good damaging floor usage. From the ones at the start that make the first encounters more threatening and push the player forward with limited resources into a gauntlet of sniping monsters. To the climatic arena fight where you need to dodge the perched cyberdemon while refreshing your radsuit as you wait for the lowering floors to allow you to progress.

 

 

 

Absolutely inspired. If first playthrough were all I was judging these maps on this would have won first place, but even after the initial glee of experiencing this gem faded, I knew that it deserved more than just bonus prizes. 

 

A retelling of three of the episodes of Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, as filtered through the adventures of Alfonzo and Tarnsman through out the years. If you haven't seen the show or know what the various jokes through out the WAD are referencing you're not going to get the same enjoyment out of it as I did but even if you can't appreciate those things, this is the sort of work that can be appreciated on concept (and more precisely, commitment to realizing said concept) alone.

 

Thank you Jimmy.

P.S. I would totally read "Bottledick". Get on it Fonz!

 

 

 

The love child of Dr. Latency's Freak Report and Heteodoxical Hinderance AD's sprawling map went for the Plutonia route of pretty directly referencing the source material while still crafting something new and exciting.

 

This green quest through a tech base and eventually subterranean cave network is fantastic from start to finish. The gameplay is varied and well balanced between standout encounters and good incidental combat that keeps the flow moving forward. I love the theme and colors. I love the midi. I love the way the parts of the map greatly vary in height, from the normal starting area to the tall dam area, to the short elevated area hugging the sky for the final showdown with Donald Trump the zombieman trying to start Third Impact. And I can't possibly forget to praise the surprise elevator cyberdemon who is an absolute champion.

 

A truly excellent submission.

 

 

 

I went back and forth multiple times as to what map was going to win first place but ultimately it was the strong sense of place and adventure I got from Breezeep's mountain top concrete fortress that won out. Other maps may have done an individual thing better, but for me this was the map that did the most things the most well.

 

Pretty much everything I praised in AD's map can be repeated for this map. But where it distinguishes itself is in the lush scenery and more concrete structures that manage to ride that fine line between feeling like a real thing/place but while also maintaining the more abstract doom feel and not going too far into the doom-cute representation. (I also appreciate the reference to BTSX E2's Danish flag sky with this map's Icelandic flag sky.)

 

Great job Breezeep.

 

 

Thank you again to everyone who participated. Everyone should be proud of their work.

 

For clarification on the prize pool side since we had someone use Alfonzo Time. Since Breezeep used 32% of Alfonzo Time, that $320 dollars will be subtracted from the 1st place prize and awarded as $250 to the 4th place map which would have placed 3rd and the remaining $70 to the 2nd place map.

 

If you won an award (or multiple) please contact me to claim your prize. @Breezeep@AD_79@Jimmy@an_mutt@Scotty@Scuba Steve@Jaska

 

If you were mentioned in the honorable mentions due to the overwhelming quality that made even narrowing down honorable mentions hard, please contact me as there will be a $50 honorable mention bonus prize. @cannonball@Obsidian@DMPhobos@stewboy

Edited May 15, 2021 by Tarnsman

[Catpho]

Congrats to everybody! The screenshots posted over the last month showed tons of dedication and talent. Especially satisfying to see Breezeep's name on the winners list, at 1st place even! Dude has been a master mapper for nearly a decade without much fanfare compared to some other cool mappers, so it's great to see some major recognition at last. 

 

Thanks to Tarns for the contest as well. You are a legend and a half dude, and it's awesome to see so many cool maps made for the contest.

 

Edit: btw, are we going to get a zip of all submitted maps, similar to Jimmy's contest? Some levels here seemed to be submitted through DMs

Edited May 14, 2021 by Catpho : werid errors

[esselfortium]

Congrats to all the winners! Amazing work all around.

[Paar]

Thanks for the contest. Even though I haven't won anything it was a nice and fun experience. Congratulations to all winners.

[Jimmy]

Well done everyone! Great fun. Shoutouts to Tarns's two adoptive sons AD and Breezeep who deserve their win. :D

[Soulless]

1 hour ago, Catpho said:

are we going to get a zip of  all submitted maps, similar to Jimmy's contest? Some levels here seemed to be submitted through DMs

That would be great. It will be rewarding to have one of my maps among these monsters!

Congrats to everyone participating, to the winners of course, and to @Tarnsman for the contest!

[Yugiboy85]

Congratulations to all the winners, especially breezeep haha. Dude, you should be more confident with your work, you make great stuff. Keep at it ^^

 

 

[Jaska]

16 minutes ago, Yugiboy85 said:

Congratulations to all the winners, especially breezeep haha. Dude, you should be more confident with your work, you make great stuff. Keep at it ^^

 

 

 

What wait, she/he isn't confident? Amazing map. 

Thanks for the contest! Really cool, inspiring and fun stuff.