Atmospheric Extinction - a Boom mapset (Now on idgames!)

[Gez]

The sprite cropping is caused by slicing the rendering into several separate threads so that they can be run in parallel on multicore CPUs for a significant performance boost. You can also find the same idea in Rum & Raisin Doom. A side effect of this is that if sprites are much wider than their actor, they run the risk of sticking out of their render slice, and getting cropped as a result because the renderer for the next slice will not know it has to render it.

 

Even without sliced rendering, you can get that effect quite easily. Put a large sprite in a small sector, place a one-sided wall that hides that small sector from the player, and bam, the sprite disappears. Try this file: just move forward a bit towards the fireblu screen, and suddenly you'll find the tree pops out of existence, before it should logically do so. In GZDoom there's a way to actually tell the engine that the sprite is larger than its in-game collision box, so you can give it a large enough RenderRadius and that'll take care of the slicing issue as well as any other unexpected disappearing act.

 

hidetree.7z

[Kyka]

Thanks Gez this is good to know for future reference.

 

On a side note, is there any area of Doom technical stuff that you don't know much about. Asking for a friend. :)

[azerty]

Great map! I played the first 2 and really liked them. I might play some more. Great balancing in these maps. I love maps with some resource management and I think it is handled pretty well here. I used smooth doom so doomguy's face is kinda glitching out that's my fault sorry for that.

 

[Clippy]

 

 

Gorgeous map 

 

[Velvetic]

Beta v3 is available in the OP along with the change log.

 

This one is to address the ammo and health economy in the first episode, and to spice things up a bit in MAP03. Expect updates to the rest of the maps this week.

[Sectorslayer]

Amazing work! Textures and layouts are terrific. Have to study this one…

[Velvetic]

Beta v4 is available in the OP along with the change log.

 

Unless the maps are still unbalanced and/or broken in some way, this update could also be a release candidate. Also, expect some fights to be a bit nasty, except in MAP06, that map is meant to be fun, not a challenge.

[Blip]

I just finished playing the mapset UV saveless pistol starting each map and damn these maps were amazing. As others have said they were on the easier side most of the time but there's nothing wrong with that. I enjoyed every map, especially the ones after map06, I thought they were bangers.

 

The only nitpicks I have is that in some maps there seems to be a bit too much ammo (especially shell boxes) and health (map06 and map09 especially have a lot of megaspheres in the bfg arenas) and that the last fight in map09 is way too safe unless you press all switches in uvmax fashion. If you reduce the amount of health and ammo I think the maps will be a lot more challenging, though if you leave them be I don't think it is that big of an issue, they were really fun anyway :)

 

Amazing mapset, can't wait to see more from you!

 

Edit: I just noticed you updated the maps, so maybe some of my nitpicks are not valid anymore. I'll probably replay them with the new changes sometime in the near future once I finish recording PUSS X.

[Terminus]

Hey mate, congrats on the release again! Finally got around to giving this a spin and played the first four maps.

They were a ton of fun and the visuals are absolutely incredible, I love the music a lot as well! You clearly put your all into this project and it shows.

 

Here's a couple of notes I have regarding the maps I've played:

Spoiler

MAP01:

The texture of the border at the bottom is wrong at the edges.

 

Another possible mis-texture as the other side has a different texture.

 

MAP02:

Man, this fight kicked my ass sideways.

It felt like a huge difficulty spike compared to everything else in that map by a long shot. Do note that I actually missed picking up the SSG so I had an incredibly hard time, but even then I don't know if that'd have mattered, seeing as you're pitted against an Archvile, a whole bunch of Revs and to top it off 2 Pain Elementals that punish you if you try to use the RL.

 

MAP03:

Another good fight, but I noticed there's absolutely 0 health here. There's a whole lot of BFG ammo but either you forgot to add health, or it is like that on purpose and then it's just plain evil. :P

 

 

I'm having an absolute blast with this mapset and I will let you know my final thoughts once I finish playing it.

Definitely can't wait for the rest!

[ReaperAA]

I'll agree with Terminus about "that fight" on Map02. I think that fight is way too jarring of a spike compared to everything before it. I know there is a secret switch (that leads to a megasphere) nearby, but without the megasphere and without SSG (for those unlucky to not go to the other side of the map), that fight is a sure killer. That fight could use some toning down.

[Velvetic]

 

24 minutes ago, Terminus said:

MAP01:

 

The texture of the border at the bottom is wrong at the edges.

 

Damn, I thought no one would notice that, gotta change the texture, can't align it without misaligning the upper texture.

 

24 minutes ago, Terminus said:

MAP01:

 

Another possible mis-texture as the other side has a different texture.

 

Honestly, I don't see it.

 

24 minutes ago, Terminus said:

MAP02:

 

Man, this fight kicked my ass sideways.

It felt like a huge difficulty spike compared to everything else in that map by a long shot. Do note that I actually missed picking up the SSG so I had an incredibly hard time, but even then I don't know if that'd have mattered, seeing as you're pitted against an Archvile, a whole bunch of Revs and to top it off 2 Pain Elementals that punish you if you try to use the RL.

 

This is a huge difficulty spike, although it was meant to be the last area you go to. I just gave the player the option to go there first if they want, and balanced it if they choose to grab the yellow key first.

 

24 minutes ago, Terminus said:

MAP03:

 

Another good fight, but I noticed there's absolutely 0 health here. There's a whole lot of BFG ammo but either you forgot to add health, or it is like that on purpose and then it's just plain evil. :P

 

Hehe, indeed it was intentional.

 

I'm glad you're liking it so far, also thanks for playing it!

 

8 minutes ago, ReaperAA said:

I'll agree with Terminus about "that fight" on Map02. I think that fight is way too jarring of a spike compared to everything before it. I know there is a secret switch (that leads to a megasphere) nearby, but without the megasphere and without SSG (for those unlucky to not go to the other side of the map), that fight is a sure killer. That fight could use some toning down.

 

I can see why that would be a problem, maybe I'll lock that door so you can only visit that area after grabbing the red and blue key.

[Clippy]

This is great stuff so far - I'll keep coming back for more!

 

 

[Gibbon]

Gonna try this on ReBOOM, since I also added UMAPINFO support to it.

 

Edit: ReBOOM gets - R_TextureNumForName: OSWTCHEA not found

 

I'm guessing this is strictly for PrBoom / ZDoom / other advanced source ports?

Edited October 2, 2021 by Gibbon

[Velvetic]

1 hour ago, Gibbon said:

Gonna try this on ReBOOM, since I also added UMAPINFO support to it.

 

Edit: ReBOOM gets - R_TextureNumForName: OSWTCHEA not found

 

I'm guessing this is strictly for PrBoom / ZDoom / other advanced source ports?

 

Oops, forgot to purge the unused strings from the SWITCHES lump.

 

Edit: weird, downloaded ReBOOM, got rid of the SWITCHES and ANIMATED lumps for testing, the source port crashes when starting a map.

Edited October 2, 2021 by Velvetic : testing stuff

[Gibbon]

1 hour ago, Velvetic said:

 

Oops, forgot to purge the unused strings from the SWITCHES lump.

 

Edit: weird, downloaded ReBOOM, got rid of the SWITCHES and ANIMATED lumps for testing, the source port crashes when starting a map.

Ahh, it requires a limit removing source port?

[Velvetic]

3 minutes ago, Gibbon said:

Ahh, it requires a limit removing source port?

 

That would be a yes. I can't imagine making MAP06 work with it's 39k (73k uncompressed) lines under any limits.

[Gibbon]

No worries then, I will test it with From Doom With Love instead.  Looks amazing.

[Velvetic]

Release candidate 1 is now available in the OP, these are the changes:

 

Fixed a misaligned texture in MAP01

The yellow key room in MAP02 now requires you to get the blue and red keycard before accessing it

Placed 3 stimpacks in the BFG fight in MAP03 (at least it's something)

Reduced the number of megaspheres in the BFG fights in MAP06 (from 3 to 1) and MAP09 (from 4 to 2, and removed a pair of soulsphere/mega armor)

Placed CO-OP spawners in the ending map

 

If anyone wanna help with the ammo/health placement (don't want it to be difficult, but at least challenge the player just a little bit), mention me here or DM me with suggestions.

[garu32]

Works with GZDoom perfectly (I used Boom Strict compatibility mode)

[WH-Wilou84]

I've played the whole thing with DSDA Doom on UV (Pistol start on each map), and it's been a fantastic experience.
The wad plays as good as it looks (and oh boy it is gorgeous - excellent work on visuals, particularly on lighting and floor detail, it's clearly one of the prettiest OTEX mapsets I've played so far).
On Ultra-Violence I'd say the difficulty is on par with Ancient Aliens, which means high-octane action all around and nothing too punishing for experienced players.

I appreciated the episodic structure, allowing for a soft restart of the difficulty curve between each episode.
I found episode 2 to be harder than 3, by a small margin (thanks to some parts of map 05 with many Revenants).

Excellent soundtrack too, I particularly liked the tunes you made for maps 05 and 06 and would definitely like to use some of them in my own creations.

Killer stuff, highly recommended.

 

[Velvetic]

4 hours ago, WH-Wilou84 said:

I've played the whole thing with DSDA Doom on UV (Pistol start on each map), and it's been a fantastic experience.
The wad plays as good as it looks (and oh boy it is gorgeous - excellent work on visuals, particularly on lighting and floor detail, it's clearly one of the prettiest OTEX mapsets I've played so far).
On Ultra-Violence I'd say the difficulty is on par with Ancient Aliens, which means high-octane action all around and nothing too punishing for experienced players.

I appreciated the episodic structure, allowing for a soft restart of the difficulty curve between each episode.
I found episode 2 to be harder than 3, by a small margin (thanks to some parts of map 05 with many Revenants).

Excellent soundtrack too, I particularly liked the tunes you made for maps 05 and 06 and would definitely like to use some of them in my own creations.

Killer stuff, highly recommended.

 

Thank you! This means a lot to me.

 

These songs are actually in my MIDI pack ( https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/music/velvmidipack ) in the "newer stuff" folder with the exception being the title and text screen, which are parts of a song that is present in its entirety in the pack by the name of "Monologue For The Sun". So yeah, anyone can use these songs in their projects.

[Velvetic]

Final release time!

Changes:

 

Raised the blue key in MAP04 to be easily seen while on the upper level
Put some shell boxes in the main hub in MAP05 so that the player is not too ammo starved while exploring the area
Some archviles in MAP05 have different spawn location now
The archviles in MAP07 now spawn after you step on the red key platform (and the platform lowers so you don't camp there)
Replaced some pinkies in the yellow key maze in MAP08
Replaced the SSG with a rocket launcher and placed the SSG after the red key in MAP08
Placed some cacodemons and pain elementals on the final fight in MAP08
Replaced the secon archvile + revenant combo on the bridge section with a pain elemental and 2 hell knights in MAP08
Fixed the offset switch at the end of MAP09
Placed more indicators that you have to shoot the icon in MAP09

 

Thanks to everyone who helped playtest it, I'm forever grateful to all of you.

[EffinghamHuffnagel]

Soundtrack add-on has the same link as wad in OP.

[Velvetic]

1 hour ago, EffinghamHuffnagel said:

Soundtrack add-on has the same link as wad in OP.

 

Oh, thanks for letting me know, updated it now.

[LVENdead]

I finally finished up this WAD tonight, and I have to say it's just such an impressive experience all around. Visually, it's one of my favorite WADS I've played this year - I was utterly delighted by SOMETHING in every map, be it the overall theme, some kind of serene vista, the absolutely dense detailing, or just a lush color combination. The muted red palette goes a really long way here too. Of course, the use of OTEX really ties it together into a tight package, it's bursting with something interesting to see around every corner, but it doesn't really seem like it lives or dies on OTEX - it's really the masterful usage of the texture pack in tandem with everything else that defines how this WAD looks.

 

I love each of the episodes, but I can't decide if I like 2 or 3 better. I think The Reality Binder is easily the best and most impressive map in the set and it's kind of surprising you don't end the WAD itself with something equally grandiose. The multidimensional romp with the slaughterfest in the center is just such a high-octane ride that I don't think is matched at any other point, including the final fight. On the other hand, I love the "reality is melting" theme of episode 3, and I only wish it leaned harder into it. You seem to have a knack for selling it in your design (the doorways in the voids that look like portals to other worlds are just so much fun, I never get tired of the gimmick in any game) and I would have loved to see you go nuts with it.

 

The music is also fantastic. I love how several of them weren't afraid to meander into something a bit unexpected, such as the jazzy woodwinds in Black Mountain (are those saxophones? clarinets? I don't know my classical instruments by ear :P), and each of them was interesting and gnarly enough to provide some great, energetic mood without getting old hearing on repeat. I realized that the MIDIs appear to be identical to the high quality tracks? I'm curious how you accomplished this - did you import the MIDI inputs from your DAW into a midi composition program or something (or vice versa)?

 

I do think if I had a true critique, it'd be that most of the fight setups are room-to-room/incidental fighting and isolated setpiece arenas, and I would have liked there to be a few more more interconnected spaces with roaming monsters. I didn't find much of the combat TOO challenging, and the latter maps were just so flush with resources that it seemed more like a matter of not getting cornered and blasted down than managing my health or ammo over the course of the fight. But hey, I think it should be telling that most of my "critique" of this WAD is just of wishlist of things I would have loved even more, like some kind of Doom glutton. It'd be like getting a juicy cheeseburger with crispy bacon on it and saying it'd be even better with caramelized onions.

[Velvetic]

@LVENdead Thank you so much for playing it! I'm glad you liked it.

 

The Reality Binder was conceived as a way for me to explore the ideas I had for other maps, as I was already with the thought that the whole mapset was only going to feature 9 maps. Various times during development I was fighting the map limit, but past experiences with unfinished and bloated projects made me lean more towards the "less is more" territory. And as for why it's not at the end, well, when I finished it I still had 3 maps to make, so for me it was a middle point, and it almost made me abandon the project.

 

Glad you liked the music! Those are saxophones in Black Mountain, that song got added after @northivanastan showed me a certain DM, and well, let's just say that that message made my whole year. The songs where mostly 50/50 regarding where they started, some where recorded before I made the MIDI version, and others got recorded and mixed after.

 

The combat critique is the one I'm most aware of, that can be explained by the fact that I'm not a good player. But be assured that my next project I'm willing to bring someone in to help and teach me more about combat and ammo/health balancing.

 

Once again, thank you!

[TheMagicMushroomMan]

Normally it takes a lot for me to get excited about wads, but man, those screenshots are amazing. The aesthetic and overall design in terms of texture work, color, geometry, architecture, and lighting is fucking incredible. The skies that you picked out couldn't be more perfect. Not only that, but the screenshots show great variety. 

 

I haven't even played this yet, but I can tell you right off the bat that you deserve the 90+ supercharges that your post has accumulated.

[continuum.mid]

11 hours ago, Velvetic said:

Those are saxophones in Black Mountain, that song got added after @northivanastan showed me a certain DM, and well, let's just say that that message made my whole year.

thought I might have something to do with that :D

 

Honestly I've been a bit excited for your next WAD since seeing your screenshots in the Doom Screenshots Thread, but haven't had much energy for Doom lately; definitely intend to give this a look regardless! It's another one of the mapsets this year that's going to deserve a Cacoward, but... the space is really competitive.

[Clippy]

Map was fun I died a bunch and got to play with the BFG. I like seeing it used in maps like this good fun 

 

 

 

 

[Foodles]

I just finished this up and I was really impressed - I thought the screenshots looked good so I decided to give it a whirl, not really reading any of the comments here so I didn't have high expectations as such. It wasn't long however before I was totally won over by the very impressive visuals and texture usage, I think in that respect the maps only get better as they go on and the micro-episodic structure means that the themes stay fresh and don't overstay their welcome. I'm by no means an expert on what makes good gameplay in a map but I found myself having fun playing through this. I enjoyed the relaxed nature of many of the fights - I found that if I played smart I could get through the levels without dying for the most part and I don't consider myself an especially good player (played on UV). I thought that ammo and health were plentiful, which is something that you could maybe tighten if you were looking to make it a bit harder. That said there were a couple of instances where I died, mostly from getting blasted by a spawning in arch-vile while having to dodge revenant rockets. Also great job with the soundtrack!