The DWmegawad Club plays: Bourgeois Megawad

[Capellan]

 

[Goody]

Two today!

 

Map 5: Almighty Sweep

UV | PrBoom+

"Oh, boy," I says to myself, I say, "now that this harmless Archvile is dead I don't have to worry about things being resurrected!" Beans. I thought I could leisurely take out that Cyber from down low before I started getting pelted with reborn chaingun pellets. That was mean. Good mean, though.

 

Map 6: Fade

UV | PrBoom+

Oh, good. Only one Archie. This one felt like a combat puzzle with many solutions and the one that worked best for me was zipping through that room with the up-high zombies so I could save them and some rockets for the end. Everything else got the chaingun or the SSG. Cathartic map. Loved it. Probably my favorite so far. Loved the music too.

[Biodegradable]

MAP07 - Tech Simple

UV | GZDoom

 

The Kid is back with another action-packed techbase map that once again places us in a courtyard utterly surrounded, but the Kid provides as the place is littered with weapons and supplies. I managed to skirt on by the skin of my teeth and use of infighting to get me out of a jam a few times. The map itself is sleek and stylish with the old-school Doomkid charm we all love him for. I enjoyed it just as much as MAP04 and can't wait to see what he has in store for me when MAP09 rolls around.

 

 

[Silhouette 03]

Map07: Tech Simple

It seems we've arrived at our mandatory dead simple map.

 

Yet another hot start, this time with enemies quite literally every which way. Fortunately, this map is filled to the brim with enough arms and ammunition to outlast them all. Your best bet is to book it at the starting area, make a mad dash for the rocket launcher and unleash hell.

 

With the name alluding to map 07 of Doom 2 and.. well, it being in the map07 slot, I was surprised that it was less of a Dead simple ode, and more of what makes up a deathmatch map. There are arachnotrons and mancubi, though.

 

My stats:

Kills: 100%

Secrets: 100%

Deaths: 0

[Capellan]

 

[rehelekretep]

map07 fda

fun map - although the start is probably the hardest part, with the rest feeling a little bit subdued in comparison (vile aside).

[DisgruntledPorcupine]

MAP07: Tech Simple

UV, no saves

100% kills, 1/1 secrets

 

This map starts you off in an outdoor area which appears to contain a small reference to E1M1, having a small pool of nukage in the centre with a mega-armour. The start here isn't quite a hot start, maybe a "warm" start. The arachnotron in the distance can see you right off the bat, but most enemies won't see you until you exit the nook you start in or fire your gun. I found the easiest way to handle this is to remain in the nook for a bit and pick off the surrounding imps with the pistol or nearby shotgun, exiting and re-entering the nook as needed. The arachnotron can be taken care of easily with the chaingun, and the rest you can use your rocket launcher on, with spare ammo from the other guns being used if you run out of rockets.

 

If you take a bit of a thoughtful approach to this map as laid out above, the upcoming rooms are relatively simple (no pun intended). The map has a fair few monsters packed into its relatively small surface area, but the layout is relatively friendly to you, giving you plenty of wiggle room to hide if you feel like you are being overwhelmed. It also gives you a berserk pack, so if you feel like going crazy and punching a bunch of stuff, you have that option too. After getting the blue key, the map ends with a squad of revenants, barons, and an archvile coming out on your way back around, but since you just got a BFG and a megasphere you can just charge at them like a madman and blast them away, pretty fun to do.

 

Fun map, and a nice looking classic-style techbase.

[xX_Lol6_Xx]

Got a bit busy, but here I am once again. Switched to chocolate-doom v.3.0.0, for the extra "challenge" of not knowing how many monsters you have to kill, or where a secret sector is

 

Bourgeois Megawad\Chocolate Doom\Hurt Me Plenty\Saves when needed

 

Map 05: Almighty sweep

Results: 100% of everything

Time: 4:38 min

Hot start, you know, I hate the RNG, Why? High damage roll from a revenant, thankfully there's plenty of health around the map (No, I did not die). Looks like a tech base for me, the enemy placement is very clever, especially the cyberdemon, but, it's rather easy to dodge his rockets. The real danger are the revenants, be careful

 

Map 06: Fade

Results: 100% of everything

Time: 4:43 min

This was my strategy: Instead of going for the SSG first, I got the shotgun and chaingun, killed both arachnotrons and all the zombies. And then I went for the SSG, the combat is very good, I find it very pleasant. The cyberdemon fight is tedious but it's not bad. Some revenants, pinkies, you know, mid tier enemies to worry about. The midi is very good too

 

Map 07: Dead  Tech Simple 

Deaths: 1 (Deaths so far: 2)

Results: 100% of everything

Time: 4:25 min

The best level so far (at least for me) It's very action packed, and has a lot of health if you know where to look, maybe there's too much plasma (it's not a complain, it comes in handy). It's... quite simple, and like Map 05, it's a little tech base corrupted by hell's power, like an E2 map. 

 

[Doritos420]

Map07 - Tech Simple

Fantastic level. The beginning area is an absolute frenzy, but so much fun. There’s tons of enemies but plenty of room to maneuver and dodge projectiles so it’s not as deadly as it seems. Lots of weapons and items are scattered around as well and it feels great to run through enemies while powering up your arsenal. Also I think the E1M1 toxic pond reference is a nice touch. At one point an archville spawned into the mix but I had a bunch of rockets to deal with him. After retrieving the key a bunch more enemies show up, along with another archville (BFG time). To cap off the level I had a punching match with a revenant. Great job! It feels like this map was a little easier than most, or maybe I’m just getting tuned to  the same frequency of this wad, usually I play fairly conservatively with slow progression but this one really rewards flying across the map at top speed.

[Decay]

Map07: Tech Simple

 

11 hours ago, Silent Wolf said:

Map07: Tech Simple

It seems we've arrived at our mandatory dead simple map.

 

To be honest I probably would've kicked Doomkid off the project if he submitted an actual dead simple clone.

 

This was Doomkid's first submission to the project and I think it turned out wonderfully in both DM and SP. The only change from the original version he submitted was switching an invuln to the megasphere, which is pretty generous honestly. I probably would now change it to soulsphere but there is no need for these maps to be needlessly cruel. It's a fun map to blaze through and it can catch you off-guard if you're not ready.

 

For what it's worth, in regards to the "hot starts" I think in skills below UV there are very few actual hot starts where you will die if you don't move. Otherwise, one has to consider the amount of playable space a DM map provides for SP - you have to make the most of it, so instead of leading up to an encounter, you're just immediately thrust into it for the most part because structurally there's just not enough room to do a whole lot more. Having maps have no monsters in sight even briefly just wastes space.

 

Prior to starting the map, we get the start of the "story" which is more or less oblique references to instances in the community. I won't highlight all of them but for this one I'll give an example

 

Your day begins with a bowl of cereal and a glass of orange juice. Upon logging into the forums, you prepare to check your newly announced multiplayer project thread.

 

Of course, Decay has posted, and immediately the thread wilted. Where he got these mystical powers to kill threads is unknown. Looking down, you notice your cereal defiled.

 

 

Edited June 8, 2021 by Decay

[Biodegradable]

MAP08 - Dwango'd Decay

 

RazGriz return's with their second solo effort, and while it's not as heavy a hitter as MAP05, it still provides a hot-start challenge with plenty of little traps to keep you dancing about the joint by having you start off in plain sight of both a group of hitscanners and a boner party just to your left to rain bullets and rockets all over your gormless face. I'd take my first death in a little while here thanks to a shotgunner, followed by an Archie who's gaze I neglected to break because the corner wasn't sharp enough and my idiot brain didn't think trying to open the door might've been a good strategy lmao.

 

 

[Doritos420]

Map08 - Dwango’d Decay

Fun map. It seemed a bit easier than some of the other previous hot starts. The beginning is a bit brutal but in the underground tunnel there’s plenty of health pickups if you were unlucky at the beginning area (though the monster closet caught me a bit off guard). I liked the layout of this map, somewhat symmetrical, easy to follow. I took this map on a bit more cautiously than the last map, the music is a bit creepier so it lends itself to slower exploration. Once you get to the teleporter courtyard it’s pretty easy to get the mancubi to bbq the other enemies and let everything infight. After that to get the blue key you need to fight 2 archvilles in a row. Instead of fighting the 2nd archville in the bottlenecked blue key room I ended up circling around to get a more advantageous fighting position (really fun that you can have multiple approaches to this last fight).

Edited June 8, 2021 by Doritos420 : Spellijlng

[rehelekretep]

map08 fda

some right pesky viles here. too much ammo/weaponry imo; i didnt even use the plasmagun!

[RottingZombie]

Regarding the crash on level 5 of the quiet version, it crashes when i play on HMP and using cheats idkfa, iddqd, and noclip (though i disabled noclip before exiting). It did not crash on ItYtD with no cheats, if it helps at all. Using PrBoom+ 2.6um.

 

I'm glad this was chosen as the months wad, I may have put it on the backburner for a long time otherwise. I'd only previously played the first few maps.

[xX_Lol6_Xx]

Bourgeois Megawad\Chocolate Doom\Hurt Me Plenty\Saves when needed

 

Map 08: Dwango'D Decay

 

Results: 100% of everything

Time: 3:32 min

 

Another fun map, it's a bit short but can be challenging if you're not prepared. Just like the previous map, maybe there's too much ammo (and just like in the previous map, it comes in handy) Maybe the toughest part is going back to the blue door, since a lot of monsters spawn in. A lot of infighting can be provoked here, especially the hell knights and mancubi. The classic doom music really fits the map. 10/10, I just loved it.  

[Capellan]

 

[DisgruntledPorcupine]

MAP08: Dwango'd Decay

UV, no saves

100% kills, 1/1 secrets

 

I found the hot start on this one to be pretty tough at first, particularly those damn revenants. Best route I found was to just circle strafe around the hitscanners to stop the missiles from connecting, and quickly pick up everything in the room and leave the revenants for later. Next up is a hallway overseen by an arachnotron at the end with some other baddies throughout. Just use the sides as cover here if the arachnotron ever decides to start firing at you. Up the stairs after here you will find the plasma rifle and an encounter with shotgunners, mancubi, and a hell knight to get the red key. Opening the red door gets you the rocket launcher. You'll want to take care of the revenants on the starting ledge now with your new weapons, because you will be teleporting over there next.

 

Going through the yellow door leads you to some shotgunners and an archvile, and you'll soon start hearing the sounds of a lot of monsters teleporting. A wide array of demons teleport into the area that previously contained the mancubi, just past the next door. This fight is probably the highlight of the map for me, quite a large number of monsters to fight and it can get pretty chaotic. After this, just exit through the blue door.

 

Another fun map. And shoutouts to Dark Halls, one of the best midis in the original games.

[VoanHead]

Oh hey, my internet problem has been fixed. Time for some catching up

 

MAP 4: TUTORIALS WORK (Crispy, UV w/Saves)

A short, punchy map that doesn't have a lot of enemies on board. But watch out, that doesn't mean it's just a bunch of zombiemen littered everwhere, lots of tough foes wanti ng you to stay dead in this map. Ammo was incredibly tight, and forgive me for saying this, but I found the super chaingun kinda useless in this map, hardly used it at all and left with max ammo for it. You'll have to rely on infighting for this one, as it'll save you plenty of trouble. The secret surprised me lmao, couldn't exactly catch what he said, but found it charming. Is this some reference I don't exactly get?

 

MAP 5: ALMIGHTY SWEEP

Man did this one swept me off my feet the first time I sank my teeth into it. Right off the bat you're greeted to a bunch of zombiemen, not bad, right? Wait until you see what's waiting for you on the outer area, small caco cloud, perched revenants, a few scattered chaingunners here and there ready to pick you off when you least expect it, and some imps. I worried more about the caco cloud since you know vanilla limits make enemies infinitely tall, thus hindering my movement when I get surrounded by them. Make a quick run to pick up as much arms and ammo as you can and run up the stairs to hide from the danger below, all while taking out Mr.Baron and Mr.Archie that are waiting for you there. Trust me, it'll help to take em out. From there it shouldn't be too hard to take out the cacos flying in from the stairs, the revenants perched on the top when you advance into the level, and rush down to take out the stragglers and for some ammo in case you missed it. Advancing further into the level you should stumble into some mancubi and arachno's here and there, no biggie taking em down. The big concern is when you go fetch that blue armor just waiting for you is when cybercheeks and a load of revenants and one archvile that spawn in. Going through the teleporter where you took out the couple of mancubi should lead you to the key and some more ammo to deal with them bones waiting for you down there. Make quick work of them with your rockets, all while being wary of the cybercheeks and the archvile's hitscan attack and resurrection of dead foes and you're golden. Going up the stairs should lead you to confront more foes, but they easily infight one another so most of the hard work there is done for you. From there taking out the cyberdemon shouldn't be too bad, just peek-a-boo shoot him with the plasma behind him where he can't reach where you are, or outside below if you're feeling brave and it should be easy peasy lemon squeezy.

 

MAP 6:FADE

Not gonna lie, this map was kind of a snooze. Dealing with the enemies from the beginning wasn't bad when you could use your trusty shotgun and super chaingun to take care of them, and earning the rocket launcher to deal with the mancubus and foes below wasn't too difficult either, when you could just rush down and fetch the key and plasma, taking down the pinkies and lone baron, scurry along back to the top and play peek-a-boo shooting plasma with cybercheeks just like in the previous map. From there, opening the blue gate should lure the revenants to you, which are quickly dispatched with the berserk if you nabbed it. From there the archvile isn't a problem since you can either A)Telefrag him or B)Take him down with the remaining rockets. The enemies below are also quickly dispatched with the remaining ammo. I'll hand it to this map, its got good amount of ammo to deal with everything, but overall just felt 'meh' to me.

[Decay]

Map08: Dwango'd Decay

 

This was Razgriz's first submission to the project. It actually turned out really well and has a true oldschool feel to it when you play it in deathmatch. In the SP portion, it's actually one of the few maps that utilize all 3 keys, and feels like there is a real sense of progression. When speed running, this map can be deadly if you're not paying attention. Taking it nice a slow gives it a nice sense of a leisure stroll through a map made long ago.

[Biodegradable]

MAP09 - It's Not a Donut

UV | GZDoom

 

Well, this one was a breeze. I guess the Kid wanted us to have another breather here, so I expect MAP10 to bring back the intensity tomorrow. Anyways, MAP09 itself is just as swanky as DK's previous maps, but indeed, it's a lot easier this time. Probably one of, if not, THE easiest one of the WAD so far. Not to say it wasn't fun though hehe. It's a lovely little cakewalk of a map. Can't really think of anything else to say about it really, which is a shame. Might wind up being one of the more forgettable entries, but time will tell on that front.

 

 

Edited June 9, 2021 by Biodegradable

[Doomkid]

Bah, looking back, Map09 is way too much of a pushover. There should have been an AV in the "upper cage" bit near the start that eventually teleports back in front of the Red door to have at least one pressure moment in the map.. Ah well, hindsight is 20/20!

[Silhouette 03]

Map09: It's not a donut

*Homer Simpson voice* Mmm.. Donuts.....

 

This one is significantly easier than the last map, namely due to the... well, there's no real hotstart ( three zombiemen, for one, and the high tiers are used a lot more conservatively. The one courtyard area is probably the most difficult, though by then you should have a rocket launcher and Plasma Rifle, and a decent amount of ammo for each weapon. The only time I died was to a revenant projectile that found home.

 

The layout was about what I'd come to expect from this wad, though I really like the old-school feel of Kid's maps. There's something I find strangely comforting in the use of stock textures to make simplistic maps, something straight out of the 90's. I'm glad that some mappers are returning to the roots of doom mapping, so to speak. I know for a fact that I'm probably stealing this quote from someone in the community(was it Tango? I can't remember) but limitation often breeds creativity. Same thing goes with level design.

 

I know I'm probably going a bit off topic, but I've come to love abstract level design with a passion. Often the best combat encounters are made with the use of abstract level design, look at some of the modern... I'm probably going to piss off a lot of people with this phrase.. Boomer shooters, and all of them make use of abstract level design ( to some degree) to make combat encounters memorable, and most off all, fun. Let's link this back to deathmatch. The reason why a lot of people in the community loved deathmatch wads ( and deathmatch in games like Counter strike and Quake ) , was the level design, where everything in the environment had a point. Ledges could make for good sniping positions, doorways make for good choke-points, etc. The level design complimented the gameplay in a noticeable way, is what I'm trying to say in this probably overlong and disorganized tangent.   

 

I also discovered how OP the duel bladed chainsaw can be. I killed two barons in the space of a minute using nothing but the chainsaw. Out of interest, is the chainsaw actually used much in deathmatch play? I've always thought of the chainsaw as a situational weapon, rather than a workhorse weapon.

 

My Stats:

kills: 100%

Secrets:100%

Deaths: 1 

 

 

 

 

 

[Decay]

7 hours ago, Doomkid said:

Bah, looking back, Map09 is way too much of a pushover. There should have been an AV in the "upper cage" bit near the start that eventually teleports back in front of the Red door to have at least one pressure moment in the map.. Ah well, hindsight is 20/20!

To be fair not every map needs to be super intense. Remember, this wad is supposed to be, mostly, just a fun thing to rip through, and on that front I think this map hits that goal. The difficulty is also increased slightly when you're going for a speed run. It certainly loses most of it's teeth when you're methodically chipping through everything, but being easy does not make it a bad map.

 

However, if it's not engaging from a general play perspective that is something more worth thinking about...

 

Anyway, Map09: It's not a donut

 

It actually was in fact a donut when it was first submitted, and arguably retained quite a bit of it's donut structure in PVP as well. This one was one of the very last maps put together for SP, and maybe it shows. It was a more difficult layout to work with, but in hindsight there was probably more I could do with it. That is alright though. On the aesthetic front it achieves an oldschool taste, and I believe the game play is iwad-ish, so the goal was met here, barely.

[Doritos420]

Map09 - It's Not a Donut

The beginning area looks very tame (only two enemies ahead) then after firing a shot the rest of the hitscanners come out of hiding! This level is very linear compared to what we’ve seen so far so I took it a bit slow for this level. You can see some revenets hiding outside but be careful since they can still shoot rockets at you. After going through a bit you get to the courtyard where you get absolutely obliterated if you try and rush in for the key. My method of taking this on was to snipe the revenants with the rocket launcher through the previous cubby hole (made the next area a lot easier). Getting the keycard will spring a chaingunner trap that feels like it would be right at home in plutonia. After that its an easy cleanup of an archville and his gang of lost souls. I enjoyed this map, like Decay said if you try to speedrun it, it would be much harder, especially with the chaingunner trap.

[Capellan]

 

[DisgruntledPorcupine]

MAP09: It's Not a Donut

UV, no saves

100% kills, 1/1 secrets

 

The layout in this one is probably the one that felt the most like a conventional SP Doom map so far, and sure enough if you IDCLIP over to the DM variant it is quite different, with a couple of missing walls to connect some of the areas together. There was something about the aesthetics in this one that I liked quite a bit, like the hallways with bars on the sides that have cliffs visible through them, and the central grassy area. It's a nice outdoorsy techbase.

 

The combat as mentioned by others before me is one of the easier so far. The outdoor area does feature quite a few revenants, but you have some cover to work with and a plasma rifle to spray them with, which you can use to tackle them in either the outdoor area or go back to the start and take some out through the narrow bars there. As Decay mentioned earlier though, this one can definitely provide some new dangers for speedrunners with its chaingunner ambushes, and the big party of lost souls, chaingunners, and an archvile at the end. If you are just playing casually and taking your time though, it's not too dangerous.

 

A breather, but a cool level with a look and layout that I really enjoyed.

[xX_Lol6_Xx]

Bourgeois Megawad\Chocolate Doom\Hurt Me Plenty\Saves when needed

 

Map 09: It's not a Donut

Results: 100% of everything

Time: 4:23 min

 

In deed, it's not a donut, although the shape is very similar to one...

Another map I like, it's a bit harder than the previous maps, but it's very fun, packed of action, but, not a whole lot of health. The revenants are placed in a very smart way I must say, so I'd prioritize them. The chaingunners are bit annoying, though, but they're not a big problem since there's enough cover. 

[VoanHead]

MAP 7:Tech Simple (Crispy, UV W/saves)

What an absolute banger this map was. Action packed, ammo and health are used sparingly here, and multiple ways to approach this map. Usually, I wind up playing a map once and that's that, but I couldn't help myself on replaying this one. Like the rest of the maps played, infighting is your friend here, while your enemies are busy making foes out of each other, you can either go for the medium tier baddies that'll give you trouble, or aim at collecting everything and tackling everything sporadically. If there's one thing this wad teaches you is to wing it and just go with your gut when conquering maps.

 

MAP 8:Dwango'd Decay

A pretty simple map, a little bit linear since the battles can be done in piece meal. My main concern here is just the archvile placement, there's two that will spawn in, one in the lil room with the blue key and shotgunners in it, which can be peek a boo'd shot with the ssg or rocket launcher, and the spawned outside that'll resurrect conquered foes when you reached the red key. Now, you could just barge through the other exit of the lil blue key room to fight them head on, or your other option is to loop around the other way like I did and let the Archvile get partially caught up in the crossfire of the projectiles of his resurrected friends, softening him up so you'll just hose him down with plasma. Nice start and progression through this map, but I felt like it was kinda anti-climactic in the end.

 

MAP 9:It's Not a Donut

Yeah it's a uhhhhhhh...um...it's a bagel! You'd have to be a fool if you thought this map looks like a donut b/c it looks more like a bagel! Now, health is really tight this time around with this map. Is that a bad thing? Not so much if you're looking for that thrill, by this time around if you're having difficulties with the maps I'd recommend lowering down the difficulty. You won't get a moment's peace around in this map, everywhere you'll go more monsters will be waiting around for you in the corners, luckily enough, you'll be strapped for the ammo in dealing with these foes, the only good thing I will say about these maps is that it pushes you to be more bolder, encourage infighting amongst your foes, and to be consistently on the lookout for projectiles and getting better at dodging stuff.

 

I'm not sure what the opinions are to this wad, (and I seriously hope I won't offend Razgriz, Decay, and Doomkid, since idk what they personally think of this wad and I don't wanna make them think I'm saying BDM is crap or anything) but I'd like to compare the wad Coffee Break to Bourgeois DM in the quality of these maps for singleplayer: short maps, while what they lack in size they make up in pulling the rug and surprising you in were you go, forcing your hand to act quickly or else you're gonna get creamed. Maybe at the end of this we'd be down for some matches on dm for zandy?

[Doomkid]

48 minutes ago, VoanHead said:

I'm not sure what the opinions are to this wad, (and I seriously hope I won't offend Razgriz, Decay, and Doomkid, since idk what they personally think of this wad and I don't wanna make them think I'm saying BDM is crap or anything) but I'd like to compare the wad Coffee Break to Bourgeois DM in the quality of these maps for singleplayer

Coffee Break is a classic, so I'm by no means offended by the comparison! (Also I'm down for DM on any port whenever I'm online)

 

EDIT: Actually, that reminds me - if you guys are enjoying the wad, please be sure to say so, so @sponge knows - I spoke briefly with him some months ago and he essentially said what wads are picked for the Unity port comes largely down to how often he hears them recommended. Deathmatch in general is in desperate need of more exposure and accessibility, and I think the wad will serve that purpose well if it's picked for consoles. My theory is that the Dooming masses would love some splitscreen DM goodness, they just don't know it yet because they've never had a taste of it on maps designed specifically for it by long-term DM veterans! Every gaming friend I've ever had loves local Doom deathmatch, it's an irreplaceable experience that needs some revitalization.

Edited June 10, 2021 by Doomkid

[roadworx]

MAP06: Fade

UV, Pistol Start; Woof!

 

this one felt a bit more slower and less hectic than previous maps. there's bursts of the fast-paced action that we're more used to, but for the most part the map consists of shooting enemies from a distance and taking cover - although, that may just be my own overly cautious playstyle. the most difficult part, at least for me, was getting the ssg; having the hell knights and revenants to push you out of cover and into the open made the encounter into a race to the end of the hallway and back in order to kill the arch-vile (this was before i knew you could telefrag it, mind you). however, other than that, it was both slower and a bit easy. still a good map, though.

 

also, i just wanna say that the intermission text made me laugh irl, it was great lol

 

MAP07: Tech Simple

UV, Pistol Start; Woof!

 

HOO boy this one is nuts. the moment you go for the shotgun in front of you, you're immediately thrust into the action; it's a bit misleading at first as it doesn't look like a hot start. until you're able to carve out a safespace for yourself, the action is chaos incarnate and i absolutely love it. this doesn't last through the entire map, of course. the rest of the map is for the most part laid-back - that is, until you go for the plasma rifle. what was once a room full of the bodies of your enemies is repopulated with an arch-vile and a small posse; this genuinely spooked me a bit. it was quite unexpected, i have to say, as you think that the map is gonna keep up the slower pace until the end. this one is by far my favorite in the set up to this point :)

 

also, i was caught off guard by the chaotic nature of this one - after map03 i wasn't expecting doomkid's second map in the megawad to be like this.

 

MAP08: Dwango'd Decay

UV, Pistol Start; Woof!

 

this map marks the return of traditional hot starts, albeit one that's not as difficult as some of the previous ones. once you actually get going into the map it can be pretty unforgiving, though still enjoyable; i noticed there's many opportunities for infighting which is always fun. once i got to the yellow key door, i began dying repeatedly. i thought this was one of the most difficult encounters in the wad so far...until i remembered that i had picked up a plasma gun less than a minute ago. that made it much easier lol

 

while i did enjoy this map, getting frustrated due to dying over and over (it was my own fault, ofc - my memory is complete garbage) put a bit of a sour taste in my mouth. however, i still do think that it's just as good as the other maps in the set.

 

MAP09: It's Not a Donut

UV, Pistol Start; Woof!

 

yeah, no, that's not a donut alright. that's a doom map.

 

shitty jokes aside, this one felt a bit easier than previous maps, and possibly even a bit shorter. the hot start is honestly barely a hot start at all, though the map quickly picks up the pace once you reach the courtyard. it's filled with enemies and makes for a rather chaotic scene until it's dealt with, and even there's the red key trap which is one of the much nastier ones thus far. it's easily dealt with with a rocket launcher or plasma gun, but if you get caught off guard (which was the case for me) you'll die pretty quickly. other than that, there's not really any other encounters of notable significance; i have to agree with doomkid in that the arch-vile is misplaced. it really wasn't much of a threat in its current spot.

 

either way, i did like this map, and i think that even if it wasn't meant to be a breather it seems to work well as one considering the two previous maps. as a final note, this map has the best song from tnt: evilution, and if you disagree then you're wrong

Edited June 10, 2021 by roadworx