The DWmegawad Club plays: Base Ganymede

[cannonball]

E1M2 - The teleport exit of the previous map kind of breaks the illusion of progression a bit, but otherwise this actually in some ways feels easier than the first map. Still your stock E1 foes here in a combat non-linear layout where very little is locked away. A couple of teleport ambushes refill some parts of the map but otherwise an okay map. Again the biggest threat comes from attrition as health is a little stingy. 

Like Map01 - here is an ancient UV Max for this map.

 

Spoiler

 

 

[dei_eldren]

E1M3 (HNTR, Continuous): K 99% (186/187), I 83% (31/37), S 66% (2/3), T 23:28, D 2 - First death in crossfire from Imps.  So now i feel the teeth for the first time, and they are sharp and unscrupulous.  Ammo, health and weaponry starvation is one way to create difficulty (for survival, i'm not sure it's difficulty per se in terms of gameplay), but it's also cheap and frustrating, and throwing in hitscanners, and ambushes, are a sure way to create those wonderful Gotcha! -moments - like pulling the chair from under your girlfriend as she's about to sit down when you were too young to realize it might actually be truly annoying (in an unfair Doom-level sort of way, maybe! that makes sometimes even better people rage quit!) and not a clever prank (who ever would've done that anyway?)

 

The map is large, with a beginning area, two larger sections, and a central area that connects them all.  Certainly the layout and design of the map is the best so far, and whilst the constant use of nukage seems to be thematic, i liked the design that one has to take the nukage-path to the gain access to northern area first time.  Biodegradable used the term brutalism for the architecture, and while i still don't like it, thanks to that, i am able to at least appreciate the consistently incongruously imposing designs a bit more.  Maybe it's intentional, i don't know.  But on this level, it must be said too, it work better than before.

i died after the lift from the starting to the central area, as my health was already quite low.  Barons of Hell and Cacodemons are now present, too, but the real danger so far has come still from hitscanners and my good friends, the Lost Souls.  If the difficulty ramps up like this, it won't be long until hordes of mid-tiers will be thrown at the player as unfairly as hitscanners, and i fear the moment this mapper realizes he has free use of the Cyberdemon.  Even on this level, this is no longer expected HNTR-level gameplay - thanks to the hitscanners and LSs - and i'm glad i made this choice.  If it takes me far, hope so.

 

The secret that i found was obvious, and i was correct in assuming what had opened up, making this the easiest secret exit i've ever seen.  i've no idea where the 3rd secret would be, and since i hit the switch of the secret exit without given any warning it was one, there's no indication, my unapologetic attitude was screw it.  The kill i missed (i discovered later with iddt) was in one of those water-filled caves, but also didn't matter since i was exited without my compliance - i might have run away for lack of ammo or health.  Those poor design-choices...  This level gets 3/5, because despite everything, there's a lot of good in it.

 

Since i enjoy people posting pics, i finally got around to it, too.  Quite unhappy about my health, given i'm going to E1M9.

 

Spoiler

Edited July 2, 2021 by dei_eldren : kill i missed

[Capellan]

 

[Book Lord]

E1M3

Doomsday Engine, UV-Fast, Continuous, blind run w/saves

 

On E1M3 Base Ganymede started playing like as a fresh and intense Ultimate Doom experience. The map size increased considerably, and the monster count surpassed two hundred on UV, even though more than 3/4 were zombies and Imps. Steady fireball volleys from the distance coupled with hurtling Pinkies were no pushover, but that is the reason why I play with -fast monsters in the first place: having efficient low-tier enemies doing their best to kill me, instead of wandering in circles like dopes. This is especially prominent with Doom.wad, where you do not have the SSG and designers are not tempted to use Chaingunners, Revenants and Mancubuses when they want some suppression fire on the player.

Spoiler

The place did not immediately spoil its magnitude, not even with the free Computer Area Map, which was essential for discovering the secret exit and completely useless for the remaining secret. Climbing out of the first building inside a pit, with interesting use of height variation to protect enemy snipers and offer them a broader line of sight, and finally unveiling the vast nukage reservoir on the top, was a short & sweet quest. From that wide open space, three possible paths branched off: one went through Spectre-infested nukage and stopped by the yellow door; another led to an extensive area, hosting a freshwater treatment plant and a lot of monsters guarding the YK; the third unfolded into the southern building, where BK lay forgotten in a sort of teleporting lab. The paths were independent and could be explored in any order; the normal exit required all 3 keys, RK being only an excuse for a short detour on damaging floor, with complimentary ambush.

Spoiler

 

 

 

The full basic roster was introduced without ceremonies, starting with Lost Souls on top of the elevator. I met the first Cacodemon behind a computer wall in the BK lab, soon followed by his fellows. I messed things up by stepping into the teleporter while dodging attacks, so I left badly wounded. Two Barons of Hell appeared suddenly in the water area and posed a real threat, because I was concentrated on lesser foes when they attacked me out of nothing. The same good use of Barons characterised the final room, where they emerged from an opening while I was looking elsewhere. The alarming number of bovine roars made me run like hell into the safety of the previous room, chased by frenzied Lost Souls. That semi-circular slime pool was indeed crowded; my hoarded rockets were gladly spent to vanquish demon ranks. Ammo and health were sufficient, but not plentiful.

Spoiler

This map had a lot to offer: challenging combat, competent visuals, and a good sense of exploration and adventure. The high monster count and increased map size were a bit unexpected at this stage and I wonder how the WAD will evolve from here on. Secrets department was the only one I found disappointing on this playthrough, but I am afraid this will be a constant of Base Ganymede.

[Biodegradable]

E1M3

UV | Continuous Play with Saves | GZDoom + Dead Marine

 

This early into it and I already miss my beloved SSG. Anyways, things are starting to amp a little as we find ourselves with a slightly larger body count and the Lost Souls and Barons have shown up to play. I just hope Khorus uses Barons sparingly because those big red dickheads are going to become a chore otherwise as we progress. This map carries on with that classic E1 techbase feel to it, but at what feels like an ever-so-slightly larger scale. I noticed I was feeling a little ammo starved at certain points, so that might be a hint of the kind of struggles we might encounter more as we progress and combat becomes more intense. 

 

 

[Dazel]

E1M3
(GZDoom, UV, pistol start, saveless)

Death Count: 0/0

 

Oh hey now we're talking. This map's a lot more what I was looking for from this wad, higher and stronger monster count abounding. Ammo is still plentiful, you're given more than enough bullets to make ample use of the chaingun you get early, and the berserk makes conserving ammo all the easier. I might've gotten a bit zealous with the berserk. Just a bit. 

Spoiler

 

The map makes you work for the shotgun, placing sergeants out of reach until you reach the big outdoors room, but once you get it there's very little pressure in terms of ammo management. More than enough rockets for all of the Barons, and if you're running low on bullets to deal with cacodemons, the chainsaw also keeps that from being too much of an issue. There's not much in the way of actual difficult combat encounters, aside from the long-distance shotgunner ambush, and the cacodemons in the blue key room, which are only really a problem if you make the mistake of jumping in the teleporter before clearing the room out, which in retrospect to how it's arranged, might very well be the point. The other big fight, with Barons near the exit, not only gives plenty of room but keeps the Barons from leaving their nukage pit, making it an easy task to unload your rockets. The secret exit feels a bit tacked on, like the map was finished and then Khorus remembered that it's E1M3 and needs a secret exit and slapped a switch near the end to open the door. Biggest hope moving forward is that the fights move to more structured encounters, as the three small ones you're given in this map are the highlights in comparison to the otherwise drip feed that gives you most of this map's 235 monster count. The difficulty spiking also leads me to specify that I'll be playing saveless, and will go ahead and add a death counter, though I haven't died yet in this set.

🟊🟊✭☆☆

[DisgruntledPorcupine]

E1M2

UV, pistol start, no saves

100% kills, 0/1 secrets

 

Another nukagey techbase, I honestly found this one to be a bit easier than the first level despite the higher monster count. It's a fair bit longer of a level so the monsters end up feeling a bit more sparse, at least to me. One thing that I kind of like in this wad so far is the dim lighting. You knew Dark Halls had to show up at some point, it's just too fitting. Not enough techbases with this sort of vibe out there I think, at least in the wads I've been playing. Another thing to note, I just realized in this level that Jupiter is in the skybox for this episode. Super cool little touch to add to the mapset's theme.

 

Combat is easy, as mentioned before. Still all fodder to sift through, and the level arms you a bit heavier this time, giving you a chaingun and a secret rocket launcher (which I failed to find, but it is far from needed). You also have some rad suits to deal with the nukage this time, as you'll be wading through it a bit more frequently in this level than the previous one. Despite being easy, I thought the level was pretty fun and the monsters were well placed and dispersed.

 

Solid second level, although I'm still left anticipating when the wad really hits its stride.

 

E1M3

UV, pistol start, no saves

100% kills, 1/3 secrets

 

And just like that, the monster count balloons to over 200 monsters. I totally forgot to look for the secret exit in this one too, so boo me for that. As the monster count suggests, this level is far lengthier than the previous two. I didn't look at my time at the end but I believe it took me about 15 minutes. Thematically the level is largely the same as previous ones but blown up in scale, the lighting being pitch perfect as ever (I especially like the dark cave section, very neat atmosphere there).

 

Difficulty-wise, it is a small step up from the previous ones. Cacodemons and barons are introduced into the mix here.. Luckily you have a readily accessible rocket launcher and a decent few rockets, so the barons are not too much of a headache to deal with. You are also given a berserk pack if you feel like living on the edge and you are out of rockets. The level also chooses to be a bit sparing with the health it gives you, so the hitscanners do have the potential to wear you down a bit over time here. That's mostly the only threat to your life though, with the few ambushes the level throws at you being generally low on venom, and the monster placements mostly being easy to deal with.

 

An alright level. I would have liked some more exciting moments within the level's lengthier runtime, but it's well designed and is a great continuation of the wad's atmosphere.

[TJG1289]

E1M2

(UV/Continuous/Saves)

100% kills and secrets

Time: 5:48

 

A little easier than the first map, mainly since I'm playing continuous, so I already have a shotgun that I can use to blast imps in the face with. It's another fine map. Nothing special, but it's fun enough. Spectres get added here, but their placements could be swapped out for pinkies and it wouldn't make a difference; it's not like they're in dark areas. There's some rad suits for the toxic sludge this time, so you shouldn't have to worry about taking any damage at all, as long as you use them wisely. Chaingun gets added here, along with a hidden rocket launcher here that you absolutely do not need. Grabbing the blue key causes enemies to teleport in to several areas of the map, but since this is all zombies and imps, it's not a threat at all. Map looks nice, but it's pretty nondescript. 

 

E1M3

100% kills and secrets

Time: forgot to look, but maybe around 10 minutes?

 

The ante has been upped. The rest of the non-boss monsters make their appearances here, including like 6 barons. In addition, the monster count has ballooned to over 200. Thankfully, the map isn't that much harder than the other two. You get at least 2 backpacks, and a berserk, so the odds are a little better for you, plus rockets for the tougher foes. Playing a Doom 1 WAD, means no SSG, so that means the RL is a little more essential for taking out barons and cacos. There's a decent amount of rocket ammo, but you should still make sure to conserve it, as there's not enough to take out every baron with it, and you do want to use some rockets for shotgunner and imp clusters. The biggest troll in the map is running across slime to grab the red key, to only have 3 lost souls pop up in front of you, blocking it. Meanies. The automap you grab at the beginning of the level can help you find a hidden alcove around this area, allowing you to hit a switch to open up the secret exit. Map is nicely detailed again, and does feel a little more distinct here. Feels more like a base than the last 2 levels did. Really fun map.

[Thrustpeak]

This is my first time participating in this, and this seems like something up my alley so I'm excited. A bit late on this so I'm just going to post my thoughts on the first 3 maps all at once. 

 

UV | Continuous w/ Saves | PrBoom-Plus 

 

E1M1
Techbase that visually wouldn't seem that out of place in Knee-Deep in the Dead—albeit a bit more open. The bodycount was higher than I was expecting for an E1M1 replacement, and while it wasn't exactly challenging I get the feeling it's prepping to start ramping up even more. With the nukage everywhere and it wanting me to trek through it it has me worried that there will be liberal use of damaging floors going forward which I'm rarely a fan of. 

 

E1M2
Well, i'm still in the nukage at the start but I'll forgive it because I always love when maps have continuity from one to the other like this. The nukage later in the map has my fear of playing this wad mostly with a green tint and on a timer growing, but i'm hoping it's just a theme for these early maps. Getting the rocket launcher and chaingun here had me expecting to meet some greater resistance, but aside from more enemies than the last map none of the beefier members of the roster made an appearance. All in all, another map I have no major complaints about, but also not much that stood out to me. 

 

E1M3
It was a bit disappointing to see the feeling of continuity the first 2 maps had go away so soon, but after hitting tab and seeing the 235 monster count I knew I had finally gotten to the ramping up I have been expecting. Lost souls, cacos, and barons all make a sudden early appearance. I had a blast mowing through the hordes of enemies in the dark, watery cave section, and the final fight with all the barons since I had enough rockets to make short work of the bulk of them. It was enough fun to make me forgive the nukage sections and the damage I was forced to take in it grabbing the red key. Also, bonus points for somehow reading my mind and having a berserk pack right when I was thinking punching things harder would be nice. This was the best map yet, and it feels like the first real example of what I should expect from the rest.   

Edited July 3, 2021 by Thrustpeak

[Soul_Runner]

E1M3 - K - 100%, I - 100%, S - 100%, Time: 10:56
Pistol Start, No Saves, UV Max, Not Blind
First level with over 100 monsters, straight into 235 monsters
A nice quick chaingun, very nice, also a computer area map which i can't complain about at all.
Two backpacks is a bit unnecessary but a backpack is a super good item to be getting, shotgun not far away to.
Blue key room isn't particularly hard, looks decent and the secret in here with the tech panel is quite good.

Gives a bit of immersion like your pressing a button to lower the lift. After the Blue key area, i head straight into the door on the right, getting a rocket launcher, super useful later and get a green armor blocked by two spectres in the dark, impossible to see unless you draw them into the light.

Outside we get a berserk so no more ammo needed for pinkies and spectres, followed by more rockets and barons. Could berserk them, but i use rockets instead to be lazy. After hitting the switch we get some more rockets to take out a horde of imps and some surprise shotgunners, followed by the yellow key and a short route back guarded by cacos. Hopping down into the acid with 4 rad suits, would never need this many, i zerk the spectres and move round to open the yellow door.

Nice big room here with some cool design, with one secret which is easier to find if you remember tricks learned for previous levels for secrets, which then opens the path for the secret exit. Dealing with some barons and some more smaller enemies, thats all the kills with an alright map for difficulty.

Not to hard but could die if you make some mistakes. Theres some unnecessary duplicate weapons in the map, but handy if you didn't find them in earlier parts.

[DuckReconMajor]

E1M3 - prboom-plus 26um - complevel 3 - skill 1 - pistol start - used a save

 

Well that was a ramp-up. I tried recording a demo on skill 2 and died fairly quickly. I switched to skill 1 and still died but i did make a save before then so I had to quit demo recording and switch to load it.

I decided to just screen record it instead of viddump and i probably will just go with this method from here on out.

 

Anyway this level is big, with yet again slime everywhere. The outdoor hub part i think is pretty cool. Just a bit of metal to walk around on. 

I kept searching everywhere for the yellow key and ended up grabbing blue key instead. Which I didn't need until I'd already found the yellow key lol

 

video

Spoiler

 

 

[Doritos420]

E1M3 - Waste Recycling

Spoiler

 

Beastly map compared to what we’ve seen previously, tons of monsters in this one. This map gives you the automap early on, great for not getting lost and for picking what way to go. It’s also helpful for finding secrets and giving you clues on where monster traps will be. When first tackling this map I was blindsided by a shotgunner hidden in an alcove and took away half my heath (must have been some bad RNG). This map doesn’t play around. 

 

From here we get to the main hub of the level. A toxic pond with some sort of dock in the middle that splits into 3 main areas.

 

At first I took on the southern building since it looked the easiest. In this area we meet up with the caco demon as well as the lost soul. I liked how after you teleport to the key you’re stuck in a cage as the cacodemons advance towards you. It was around this time I was running low on ammo. I found there’s not much shotgun ammo in this map, most of the time I was leaning on the chaingun instead.

 

Next up I went east. You can get a rocket launcher early on (the imp giarding it gave me a bit of a spook). Here we’re also introduced to a pair of bruiser brothers. We also get a berserk (great for specters and pinkies) I also really liked the dark spooky area with the yellow key and tons of imps. It seems like a marine was killed here while he had the key (nice little environmental storytelling). At first I totally missed the little shortcut area from here to earlier on in the level.

 

Last area is great too, you have to jump down into a toxic pit full of specters and then open up a shortcut to the north building. There's a big final gight with tons of enemies and barons in the nukage vat, very fun. I knew there was a secret switch somewhere to get to the exit but couldn’t find the trigger to open up the wall and ended up looking it up instead.

 

So far its my fav map yet.

[LadyMistDragon]

E1M3

 

Starting in a cave is more oppressive, because there'd be little reason otherwise. You essentially in what I believe is a storage and monitoring facility of sorts that likes to hide keys in caves for godonlyknows what reason. Was the UAC conducting mining operations? because there seems to be no other sign of them.

 

Mr. Freeze's musical style tends to be a little too bichordial for my tastes but  this and E1M1 slowly have grown on me, despite them seeming a little boring on first listen. I'm not sure that this map is quite difficult enough to earn such a tense track as this, but I'm liking it a lot more.

 

Anyways, the enemy count is noticeably becoming more dense, though the amount of sergeants is still low, otherwise, I'd certainly be dead. Coming upon the darkened slime pit with the half a dozen or so spectres on the way to the exit sort of scared me off, but don't worry too much. Further exploration will net you a rocket launcher. As I wasn't really focused however, I didn't figure that out until it was almost too late, and exited this area with 11 health. I only ended up grabbing the secret in the first room after spotting the goodies in the blue key room and pressing on the T-shaped monitor until part of the platform they were on lowered.

 

Furthermore, shotgun ammo was quite tight, so shotgunning imps was frankly not that feasible after a while. You do end up picking up a berserk pack not that far from the first Baron pair, so you can at least punch the demons and not waste valuable chaingun ammo. There's a decent amount of bullets, but not so much that you should go overboard, not that you'll have much choice. When you opened the darkened cavern with the yellow key at the end, don't hesitate to fire your rockets at the vast hoard of imps within. You'll end up getting some back when you finish anyway.

 

Pass beyond the yellow door at the northern end of the map and then take on the Cacodemons, Demons, and Lost Souls. But you're not going to have tons of ammo at this stage so try to move around and get the Barons to infight with them. Also, enter the blue door to kill the zombies because otherwise, they'll pile into the slime behind the barons and you may not be able to afford hitscan damage at this stage. Unfortunately, I was not thinking much about infighting, so I ended up shotgunning three barons in a row and went into the blue room afterwards. I thusly would end up finshing the map with 3 percent health. Finding the secret exit was slightly obtuse, but ultimately not difficuly to do. I guess this is like a secret passage to the guard station? Eh, whatever, I'm going to see a friend soon.

[MelonadeM]

E1M3

GZDoom, blind playthrough, UV with continuous saves

Honestly I did not like this very much. Maybe it's just because today decided to go way too extra on me allergies-wise, and I couldn't focus as much as I wanted to on the game, maybe it's because I decided to play a brand-new mapset on UV when I'm not even that good at this game, but whatever the case, I feel like this map may be a bit too big of a difficulty jump.

Ammo was scarce for me, but to be fair I also used it in really silly ways, like blasting myself with rockets when I could've used a completely different, much safer means of progressing that also would've preserved ammo further.

I also feel like this map just throws everything and the kitchen sink at you, considering this is Doom 1 assets. So far before this map, we've seen zombiemen, shotgunners, pinkies and spectres. This map basically introduces almost every other enemy in the game, cacos, lost souls, and even barons. I don't mind that, but I have to wonder if the difficulty's spiking up this much early on, how will things turn out in the later levels? Will it just plateau (or even get worse, like Doom 1 does) or will this mapset find a way to actually challenge the player even with these few assets? It will have to be seen, I suppose.

Navigation wasn't that confusing, at least, which is a really good thing for a map this size. The author giving you the map early on is also a good decision, I would've been lost had I not checked it in advance near the toxic pit. There is ONE exception, the blue key room with the teleporter, I really feel like it should have been made more obvious that it's there and not just via light, because when things are heated I don't really pay attention to light, I pay attention to where the enemies are and which way they're shooting. It's the one thing that I truly hated here.

I also just played plain horribly today, but again, I blame allergies. I pause several times in this here video just so I can give my allergies the attention they demand, because god damn they are the worst

Video:

Spoiler

 

 

[Capellan]

 

[dei_eldren]

E1M9 (HNTR, Continuous): K 100% (74/74), I 90% (9/10), S 100% (1/1), T 9:37, D 4 - Really hot start, especially having only 44% health, but still i should've not died even with the amount of zombies around, but i did once.  Next i ventured into the tunnel killing more zombies on the way, where i was prevented access to the underground facility section without a YK, so the only choice left was to go into the small building on the yard to gain it.  Together with E1M3 this layout and visual design is in my opinion an improvement over the first two maps, so this level is looking really good so far.  What i suppose to be the security building itself is smartly designed inside, too, and without much hassle the YK is acquired.

Through the YD there is a slightly dangerous situation with the enemies being on much lower ground, and was there a Cacodemon in this part, too?  Not sure, but here i certainly lost some more health, which is by now getting dangerously low, despite trying to play ultra-cautiously.  i wish i could've just attacked the main room head on, but less than 30% health and nukage-flow i can't risk it with all the Imps and zombies also sniping from farther away, since there's even only one radsuit available (i don't think two would have been too much to ask, giving what's coming ahead...one is just enough if all goes really well.)  Takes me a moment, but finally i'm able to go forward, to gain the RK for the exit door and the only secret of the level.

Of course, as i get the secret, the Cacos swarm in.  Running low on radsuit and health, tackling them isn't that simple, unless i was content to run away.  Which would've been the smart thing to do, but for some reason i decided to take them head on then and there, and die three times attempting it - sometimes from radiation, sometimes from their hits.  So, with wisdom brought upon by much experience rather than intelligence, i finally run away, and kill them with rockets from the door.  Useless deaths.

 

This was a really good level; finally some real inspiration in the design and execution, and even the secret was a decent one.  A bit more health and armor around would've been fair, not to make it artificially difficult for someone in my situation, but that's not a big deal since i enjoyed playing through it (except for those three deaths by the Cacos, but that was my own fault.)  i don't necessarily know why this was a secret level, but maybe that's sometimes a good thing?  Anyway, well deserved 4/5.

 

Some pix from after the fact.

 

Spoiler

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

Edited July 4, 2021 by dei_eldren

[Pechudin]

Huh, I might do this one. Been going through some Ultimate DooM Wads recently. UV until the WAD breaks me, pistol starting each map and hopefully saveless. Playing on GLBooM+.

 

E1M1:

        Neat little opener, but the map definitely does not show what the WAD will deliver in the future. Perhaps it's to lull the player into a false sense of security? Short review for a short map.

 

Deaths: 0

Verdict: Ho-hum.

 

E1M2:

        The relative lack of health is starting to show, and it's interesting how this WAD makes even Zombiemen a credible threat. A death by thousand cuts, if you are not careful. Fireballs you can dodge, not the case with bullets. Watch those corners for Sergeants! The map is still fairly easy, and the Chaingun makes its first debut.

 

Deaths: 0

Verdict: Made me dip below 50% health.

 

E1M3:

        Well this is a bit of a jump, from 100 to 250 monsters. The map feels large, in number of areas and in the size of an average area. The opener can be quite brutal if the Zombiemen roll favorably on their damage and accuracy, as it will be quite some time before you reach your first Medikit. The ammunition balance was a bit skewed in favor of the Chaingun, hundreds of bullets but not many shells. Not something I see very often, usually the Shotgun is the default weapon.

 

The WAD is getting harder though. Most of the map I was hovering at about 50% health, at some points even lower. Every Stimpack was a godsend. I kind of wasted a Berserk pack on the pair of Barons while trying to punch them out.

 

EDIT: This is one of those maps where it's harder to find the regular exit than the secret one. I could not for the love of life find the route of the Red Key, must've missed something really obvious.

 

Deaths: 0

Verdict: My kingdom for a Stimpack.

[Pechudin]

E1M9:

        Rude start, you are pretty much guaranteed you will drop to below 50% health by the end of the opener. After that, the map is pretty much easy unless you get stuck. I bailed out after the Red Key, no idea how to get the RL and I had no incentive to remain and kill the Cacodemons. What was the purpose of the Berserk in front of the exit switch? Continuous players?

 

Deaths: 3

Verdict: Rude but short.

[TJG1289]

E1M9

(UV/Continuous/Saves)

100% kills and secrets

Time: 4:01

 

We've got the hottest of starts here, as about a third of the map's monsters are in this opening area, and they're immediately on your ass like you owe them money. There's a chaingun to the back left from where you start, so if you're pistol starting, make your way there, and hold down fire. There may be a lot of baddies, but since this is the Doom 1 bestiary we're talking about, it's nothing too dangerous. This is the only tough part of the level, as the rest is more closed in, with limited opposition, though there are some teleport traps that happen behind you. In the s-slime trail room, you can find the lone secret which will take you to the rocket launcher that could help with the cacos that teleport in. Your reward for finishing is a berserk pack at the exit, which is great for my continuous playthrough.  Level design is on par with the rest so far. Solid and short map.

[Endless]

I'm back, and this time with lots of interest on this particular megawad. Base Ganymede was among the very first megawads I've ever played in my Doom career, and it's one that left a big impression on me, even if I didn't finish it. But nows the time to get back into Jupiters moon and kill some daemons! I'm also going to be playing on both GZDoom and DOOM Retro, playing each map twice in total on UV. I also want to take my time to get better at reviewing per-map. I'm been dealing with some general burn-out about everything, so I want to try and get better with this kind or daily-basis pacing. So, let's get going now.

 

E1M1

 

The first map of the iconic Base Ganymede . One of the first megawads I played in my life (and I haven't even completed it at the time of writing this) and this is one of the best maps to introduce us to this new adventure. The fact that it is completely vanilla makes this map attractive to almost any eye. The architecture is simple, but well defined, the details are varied but not super complex. The difficulty is probably the biggest divergence, compared to the classic Ultimate Doom, as it doubles the amount of enemies but offers us more than enough opportunity to survive.

 

The main entrance takes us through a small sewer path, which then reveals a main building with a courtyard in which we will find a considerable horde of enemies; Pinkies, Zombies and Imps, ready to attack us. Luckily, if we are careful and patient enough, we can overcome this area without much difficulty, but I can certainly see that it offers a leap far superior to what we would find in the 90s, although of course, it's not Plutonia either. The fact that this is a map for Ultimate Doom means that we won't have to worry so much about an extreme variety of enemies, but much more cautious positioning and traps designed to leave us without maneuverability.

 

The scenery, combined with the fantastic skybox, make this an iconic map in my opinion. Maybe it's because I have my nostalgia glasses on, or maybe it's simply the interesting structure and good scenery combined with a natural landscape that make this map one that gloriously represents the beauty of simplicity. Combined with a source-port that replicates the vanilla Doom graphics and we have beauty.

 

I love this map and hold it in high esteem and will certainly not let it go. It's fast, fun, concise, simple to manage and offers more than enough variety, while functioning as the perfect ''Entryway'' to Base Ganymede.

 

E1M2

 

The second map throws us into a secret tech-base in the depths of a cavern full of nukage. This place gives me the feeling that it is a processing center, but as the levels have no names, I guess it is up to our judgment to decide exactly what it is; based on the style and layout it has, I can say that it is a perfect processing center. I'll leave it at that! That map, like the previous one, follows a simple path with a tighter, more traditional layout that proceeds to entertain us for a solid 3 to 5 minutes. The encounters are more varied but this time they are not as explosive unlike the first map, however, they always remain stable and offer an excellent continuity that helps create a satisfying sense of progress.

 

The beginning of the map launches us to an excellent and damaging entrance with a small cave, once inside the base we proceed to explore the interiors that gradually open up more and more, revealing an excellent combination of interiors, exteriors and even sewers/undergrounds, giving a peaceful sense of dimensionality to the map, as well as an attractive and basic design that works wonders thanks to the classic texture palette of Ultimate Doom. On the other hand, we also have a scenery that makes excellent accompaniment to the enemies from the first moment. A pity that the MIDI is not original (E1M2: "Dark Halls" by Robert Prince (from Doom)) but the choice is more than satisfactory and combines perfectly with the style of the map, dark halls, indeed.

 

This map is not as brutal as the previous one (heh) but it has an acceptable and solid challenge, that if it was from the 90s, I'm sure it would have been considered somewhat superior to the norm. Of course, this was released in 2012, and we are currently in 2021, so I can say that it still offers more than enough entertainment thanks to a good variety of encounters, a high but acceptable number of demons and just the right amount of ammo to survive. A very good map.

 

E1M3

 

Among the rocks and well shrouded in darkness, lies a huge tech-base waiting to be cleansed of evil. E1M3 is, in stark contrast to the first two maps, much larger, boasting over 200 UV enemies and enough explosive combat in excellent scenarios to make you spend 10 to 20 minutes fighting on it. It's a big map, no doubt, but it's also one that tries to keep the player in his seat without scratching his head, sticking us to the mouse and our fingers to the WASD to keep us going. From engaging to fun, and above all, more challenging but always welcome!

 

The layout is undoubtedly superior to the previous ones, but tries to keep the path system simple enough that it could practically be classified as a hub; go for the blue key in a dark area with tight paths full of waiting Cacodemons, and then go for the yellow one in a nice classic tech-base passage that will surprise you with a few well-prepared enemies through canyons with rivers of acid and metal nooks and crannies. Finally we reach the exit area but first we have to take a small detour to the red key, but not before facing a considerable handful of enemies that can be easily evaporated thanks to our impressive clicking skills with the rocket launcher. A sweetness from start to finish that clearly establishes its priorities: give us a large map but a stable fun without wasting our time. Attractive and well varied, the map follows a comprehensible layout that aids steady progression, but also offers plenty of variety of rooms, paths and secrets waiting for you to explore.

 

While the number of enemies is much higher than previous maps, they are well placed and decimated throughout the map. Even the large hordes are more than acceptable for the average player, preventing you from feeling suddenly drowned in a rampage of unrestrained slaughter. This is a good balance that I find extremely appealing, and one of the advantages of knowing how to map Ultimate Doom.

 

From start to finish, I enjoyed it, especially the area with the acid cannon that then opens up dark caverns filled with Imps and Cacodemons. A blast!

 

 

E1M4

Looks like today the 4th is actually no E1M4 day!

Edited July 4, 2021 by Endless

[Book Lord]

E1M9

Doomsday Engine, UV-Fast, Continuous, blind run w/saves

 

My ideas might be a little old fashioned, but I maintain that a secret level has 3 typical purposes: 1) detach itself from the main course of the WAD and depict weird, alternative, or unusual environments; 2) provide something different in terms of gameplay, with a good opportunity to show off gimmicks and oddities; 3) give the player some bonus or reward for having found and explored this hidden place. An episode M9 does not need to tick all the boxes, but in my opinion this one does not even try.

Spoiler

There is quite a hot start to this level, where you have former humans and imps in front of you, a row of Demons on the right ready for the chase, and a second mob of imps, which you must dodge to reach the chaingun and the essential cover in the left corner of the courtyard. The gameplay does not change very much whether you play continuous or pistol starting, at least on UV -fast: move quickly or they will kill you on the spot. Once the outdoor area is clear, one can have a look at the simple yet compelling visuals of this installation, possibly a power plant or a communication tower.

Spoiler

Unfortunately, there is not much else to recount here. The STARGR security building hosts only a small room with the YK and mild resistance. The other branch has the yellow door and after some more rabble you reach a large room with a winding nukage river. You must pick up a radsuit, proceed to the end, take the RK guarded by Lost Souls and retrace your steps, watching out for new arrivals. My protective suit started running out while I was fighting Cacodemons, so I pulled off a nice zigzag move between them to get off the slime and then dispatched them with rockets without a scratch. The secret rocket launcher is unmarked, but can be found by looking at the automap, as I did. The berserk pack in front of the exit switch, used to avoid reaching E1M4 in the worst shape because you found the secret level, tells a lot about the author’s mindset. A good level combat-wise, but in my opinion a bit disappointing as a secret one.

Edited July 4, 2021 by Book Lord

[Dazel]

E1M9

(GZDoom, UV, Pistol Start, Saveless)
Death Count 0/0

 

A hot start that would've likely given me my first death of the run had it not been for another early and easily accessible chaingun. The map's first fight, a coverless firing squad of zombiemen that's only really likely to kill you if you're playing continuously and have low health, is its hardest and also most memorable. Once you get that, the biggest challenge this map throws at you is managing to keep from the hitscanners needling down your health for the rest of the map, with very limited health pickups until you get the berserk at the end. That berserk was enough motivation for me to go back and do cleanup on the monsters I had missed, but with only one radsuit it was more than a little schiesty getting through without dying, but I did manage, if only just barely.
Didn't even die once.

Spoiler

With that aside however, this map felt like a step back in most ways. The encounters are less forceful than E1M3, the layout, progression, and secrets far less intuitive, and it feels like this is a secret map not because it's quirky or outside of the norm of the set but because it doesn't meet the standards being set by the rest of the episode. Overall bland and forgettable, but brief enough to not overstay its short welcome.

🟊🟊☆☆☆

[Book Lord]

 

13 minutes ago, Endless said:

E1M4

 

Just to remind that it was stipulated today (the 4th) is the secret map E1M9 day. It might be helpful to put the maps in the exact order in the OP (E2M9 after E2M5, and E3M9 after E3M6).

 

On 7/1/2021 at 9:37 AM, Capellan said:

Are we just playing a map a day from the 1st to 27th, i.e. e1m9 would be on the 4th and e1m4 on the 5th?

On 7/1/2021 at 10:20 PM, dobu gabu maru said:

 

Sure, we'll try it this way. Dunno if it's smart to do it like this since folks habitually know to play secret map + regular map, but Doom 1's episode structure doesn't even follow naturally with the days of the week, so.......

 

I'll type in bold for people: secret maps get their own days.

[Thrustpeak]

UV | Continuous w/ Saves | PrBoom-Plus 

E1M9 
The big pack of enemies at the start looks more intimidating than it actually is as I don't believe it even contained any shotgunners. Honestly, it doesn't feel like there is much to talk about here. Short with mostly non-stop action. The strangest thing is that it felt easier than the non-secret level preceding it. Typically I expect secret levels to up the ante in some fashion, but—if I wasn't paying any attention—I could have just believed it was E1M4. Berserk pack in front of the exit switch is a nice gesture for continuous players to not head into the next map low, but I kind of wish it had been given at the start to give the option to go through the level in a different fashion. 

[Biodegradable]

E1M4

UV | Continuous Play with Saves | GZDoom + Dead Marine

 

Hmm, bit of a letdown after E1M3 if I'm being honest. This might be the first map of the WAD to leave me feeling a little deflated. I honestly can't bring myself to say very much about it. It's not bad by any means, but feels more of what we've already done so far. E1M3 felt like an escalation of things, while this one feels like its just going through motions. It almost feels like a beta version of E1M2 in some respects. I reckon those little underground caves could've been utilised a lot better in regards to progression to make it more interesting and stand out more. Maybe I'm being a little harsh given it's only the 4th map, but it just a bit too same-y to what we've been through already. This map just lacks some individuality in my humble opinion.

 

 

[princetontiger]

All of these maps evoke the awesome Doom I techbase theme. I'm enjoying them! None of them are too difficult (so far)

[MelonadeM]

E1M9 - GZDoom, UV blind playthrough with continuous saves (not really for this map, please see below)

 

I exited to E1M4 when I was at E1M3, and saved over my file as I entered that level, so I used a level warp cheat that retained my health/armor/weapon stuff to get myself to E1M9. Duly noted - make a new save file for the beginning of each map (which I messed up here, because I recorded E1M4 before this, and had the quicksave set to that - question for GZDoom users, is there a way to change which save file you quicksave to? Without exiting and opening the program back up, I mean)
Stuff that I get from this map won't carry over to the rest of my playthrough, whatever I got left with when exiting E1M3 will be what I'll enter E1M4 with (mostly because, again, I already recorded E1M4 before going to E1M9 and don't care to rerecord, especially seeing as this is a blind playthrough..)

 

Okay, now, about the map: I'm kind of disappointed. The map starts out mean and throws a bunch of hitscanners, imps and pinkies at you as soon as you enter, which is doubly dangerous when you're like me and enter this with like 11% health, but after that... it's kinda there, definitely not as difficult. The exit room gives you a berserk kit, and I was fully prepared to get ambushed when I hit that switch, but no, it's the end of a level. I don't know why it was put there. Is this just the author's attempt to give you some sort of reward for finding the secret level? Because it's not terribly exciting, honestly. "Oh, look, we're giving you a recharge! Not a soulsphere though, don't be greedy now!". I guess the level isn't terribly difficult to warrant a reward, but that's not really a good thing either way, it's a secret level.

 

It could be much worse, but this really doesn't leave much of a lasting impact.

Video:

Spoiler

 

 

[DuckReconMajor]

e1m9 

 

Forgot today was secret map and recorded e1m4. i have it banked for tomorrow now.

Then I did e1m9 and forgot to hit record! So I re-did E1M9 and since I knew the route I could smash through it speedrun style.

I like short maps I can run through so I enjoyed this. 

E1M9 gave me the most E1 'blasting through zombiemen" feeling so far which I dig

 

Spoiler

 

 

[LadyMistDragon]

E1M9 - Power Station

 

I don't really understand the purpose of the little room with the crates and yellow key. It doesn't really matter though.

 

The start was quite hairy though. Grab the chaingun in the corner and then, stand and fight. Or be like me and run around like a chicken while gunning down foes and you still might survive. Besides that, and the architecture in this opening starting area, there's nothing that marks this as a 'secret' map. There's still far too much slime for this kind of location, but it is what it is.

 

The map has only 80-something enemies, but still maintains the intensity of the previous map, not the least because of well-placed Cacodemons. I'm not completely certain why a group of monsters teleports behind you after you've passed beyond the yellow door a certain ways. The run across slime to gain the red key is probably the best part. You may find yourself running slightly low on ammo while fighting the Imps, so run across the slime, not forgetting to check the wall like me, so a teleporter will take you to the ledge you killed the shotgunners on and a rocket launcher. When you cross the linedef around the red key, prepare to fight off a few Cacodemons which teleport in from the other end. If you get the Lost Souls and Imps to infight, all the better, but keep firing at them anyway. Your radsuits' power doesn't last forever.

 

The exit chamber contains a berserk pack, which feels like a ridiculous troll to pistol starters. Death count is still only one, which I suppose is much easier to achieve when you're not playing keyboard-only.

Edited July 4, 2021 by LadyMistDragon

[Soul_Runner]

E1M9 - K - 100%, I - 100%, S - 100%, Time: 4:10
Pistol Start, No Saves, UV Max, Not Blind, 1 Death
Love the hot start, lots of monsters, nice open area to run around in, always fun for me.
Like the corner staircase in the side room where you get the yellow key.
Rocket launcher secret can be useful but after the rest of the map, if you have little health, dying here can be easy due to imp fireballs, lost souls and damaging floor.
The cacodemons that teleport in aren't really a problem as they fly into the room and are mostly out of the way, unless you run out of ammo.
In general, a short sweet map with a chaotic start which i enjoy and the most memorable for me being the zig zag acid room.