The DWmegawad Club plays: Ray Mohawk 1 & 2 (It's Our Tenth Anniversary!)

[LadyMistDragon]

@Roofi: that's probably because practically all of his maps were for PUSS. I really liked his maps for March of the Speeddemons though

 

Map 22: The Man With the Mohawk

by @Peccatum Mihzamiz

 

Hey it's a Peccatum map! The midi of the hocus pocus focus ends up feeling all the more appropriate.

 

 

The largest map, both in terms of enemy numbers and in size quite easily, but one that is ultimately easier than anything since Map 15 or so at least. Although that's not exactly replicated in my awful gameplay. Among other deaths, one came thanks to a cadre of Archnotrons, another one came from a trio of Slyor that are part of the host that appears in the welcome desk central room and the other one....I don't really remember but I'm still leaving out probably 4 other deaths. I can say however, that this map is incredibly linear with its Doomcute basically no larger than its size deserves. It's not really up to Peccatum's usual standard of inventiveness, but on the other hand, it's all quite merciless. Still, it's fun to wreck otherwise strong opponents with the cell charger. I also think the Arachnotrons which teleport into the central room are best ignored in favor of other enemies, but I dunno.

 

Just a word on the red key path. The ambushes here are actually quite nasty as compared to the red key path. Thumbs down for all the hitscanners teleporting into one place though; that was so lazy. The attacks around the red key were quite nice. I failed to get the computer map secret which was strange because I flushed all but one sink/toilet.

 

In the last room or so, things pick up like you'd expect and in addition to Cyberdemons, there are also some Cacos here that make movement quite difficult. It was here I stopped after the evil Cacos made things difficult because I was quite tired at the time. It's probably my sixth favorite map.

 

 

 

 

lmd_mohawk2_22.zip

[Roofi]

9 hours ago, Garlichead said:

@Roofi I really enjoyed reading your reviews on this thread. Hope to see you on some other iterations

 

Thank you for your comment ! I also enjoyed reading the comments of every participant in order to compare my taste.

 

 

[NiGHTS108]

MAP20: Ray Of Hope

By Scypek2

Kills: 94%

Items: 90%

Secrets: 60%

Time: 15:35

 

What a strong closer this is! Ray Of Hope has the best detailing of the entire wad, it's not even close. Sorry Mall Rats, I like your combat more but it really does not compare. Unlike the first Icon Of Sin we've seen this month, this one is posed as quite the threat, I really like stuff like the ominous sight of the tail at the start, and the TV in the basketball court which even shows an image of the huge beast. I'm not sure what on earth these buildings are supposed to be, my best guess is a hotel, but I appreciate Scypek not restraining himself here and just feeling free to do whatever crossed his mind in regards to the detailing here, as it creates a lot of memorable encounters and sights. I love the bar fight, the slot machine in the same room, the multiple demonic sports games going on, the wrecked library, etc. The combat definitely doesn't disappoint, but I'd argue it isn't even the main point here. The best part of the map is definitely saved for the end, not just the climatic rooftop duel, but even slipping into the beast's mouth and destroying it from the inside! What do I even have to say, it's just epic. This map is awesome, one of my favourites for sure.

 

Grade: A

Difficulty: A

 

 

MAP21: Trippy Entryway In The Sky?!

By Philnemba

Kills: 98%

Items: 91%

Secrets: 60%

Time: 4:23

 

Sadly for Ray Mohawk 2's first bonus map I smell mispotential. The name and amazing Deltarune MIDI make this one seem more interesting and memorable than it is, and although the visuals fail to disappoint I won't lie the combat could be stronger all things considered. I mean it doesn't suck or anything, but the only part I found remotely interesting was whenever the map used Arch-Viles and the early flamethrower fight to be honest. I didn't hate this map, actually I quite liked it, but there definitely could have been more to it. It's fine enough as a smaller secret map though.

 

Grade: B+

Difficulty: D+

 

 

MAP22: The Man With The Mohawk

By Peccatum Mihzamiz 

Kills: 93%

Items: 69%

Secrets: 42%

Time: 20:08

 

What a strong closer this is! The Man With The Mohawk is a large scale infiltration mission into... some kind of building, I'm not very sure. After blowing up the path there and heading through some abandoned mineshafts, you'll make it to the main area. Similar to what is a lot of maps in this wad at this point, the visuals and detailing really appeal to me. Some highlights include the stickman who's being James Bonded to death, the dramatic lighting in the blue key room, the sleeping area and of course the final area with the satellite. Peccatum seems aware of how many toilets there are in this map, make sure to flush as many as possible for some goodies later on. The combat probably is more "power fantasy" like MAP15, but unlike that map I really appreciate the variety of fights on display here. I really like the Cyberdemon infight party in the previously mentioned blue key room, as well as the corridor that starts with a line of fodder but quickly devolves into Pain Elemental and Hell Knight madness. Also basically everything after getting both red and blue keys. The final fight shines pretty brightly, just BFG mayhem that slowly and slowly gets more chaotic, beautiful. Although I don't think this is the hardest Ray Mohawk 2 map, it's probably one of the most climactic

 

Grade: A

Difficulty: B+

 

 

- FINAL THOUGHTS - 

Ray Mohawk 1 total time: 31:14

Ray Mohawk 2 total time: 3:28:23

Total time: 3:59:37

 

Dude, Ray Mohawk fucking rules. I won't lie I had my doubts at first, I thought Rowdy Rudy was basically perfect in every way and Ray Mohawk's chances of surpassing it were minimal. I am happy to report I am fully ready to eat some crow. Although the first Ray Mohawk wasn't amazing, it still has charm and avoids any bad maps. The sequel however is simply consistently amazing. A sheer delight from start to finish. These maps are lush, bursting with wonderful detail, never slow things down, and all this mixed with definitely the most fun deh patch I've ever witnessed means I'd definitely call Ray Mohawk 2 another one of my favourite wads of all time. It's amazing. My final grade for Ray Mohawk's Manic Monday is a B, and a D+ for difficulty. I'd say it has even less serious attempts on your life than the already pretty casual Rowdy Rudy's Revenge. My final grade for Ray Mohawk 2: Ray Wreaks Havoc is an A, and a B+ for difficulty. For difficulty, Ray Mohawk 2 honestly felt harder than it actually was. I think that's mostly because as a whole, a lot of the difficulty is pressed into the ending.

 

Whole playthrough

 

Now for the grand ranking!

 

Ray Mohawk's Manic Monday:

Spoiler

05: Big Room Full Of Baddies :)
06: The Maw Of Industry
02: The Bridge
04: Little Oasis
01: House By The Bay
03: We Love Pollution

 

Ray Mohawk 2: Ray Wreaks Havoc:

Spoiler

19: Arch-Visland :)
18: Mall Rats
12: Beautiful Clean Coal
20: Ray Of Hope
16: Pier Pressure
01: Back Ashore!
22: The Man With The Mohawk

17: Poster Boy Of Mayhem
06: Hidden Ship In Pirate's Cove
09: Temple Del Sol
02: Ossuary Of The Hula Imps
03: Beachside Bookworms
08: Chocolate Island
21: Trippy Entryway In The Sky?!
13: Terraced Estate Of Terror
04: Surf's Up In Nuketown
07: WARehouse
15: Crowded House
10: Kalua Atoll
14: Lose Yourself To Dance
11: Vacation Gone Wrong
05: 11 Holidays

 

Total month ranking:

Spoiler

2-19: Arch-Visland :)
2-18: Mall Rats
2-12: Beautiful Clean Coal
2-20: Ray Of Hope
2-16: Pier Pressure
2-01: Back Ashore!
2-22: The Man With The Mohawk

2-17: Poster Boy Of Mayhem
2-06: Hidden Ship In Pirate's Cove
2-09: Temple Del Sol
2-02: Ossuary Of The Hula Imps
2-03: Beachside Bookworms
1-05: Big Room Full Of Baddies
2-08: Chocolate Island
1-06: The Maw Of Industry
2-21: Trippy Entryway In The Sky?!
2-13: Terraced Estate Of Terror
2-04: Surf's Up In Nuketown
1-02: The Bridge
1-04: Little Oasis
2-07: WARehouse
2-15: Crowded House
1-01: House By The Bay
2-10: Kalua Atoll
1-03: We Love Pollution
2-14: Lose Yourself To Dance
2-11: Vacation Gone Wrong
2-05: 11 Holidays

 

Edited August 29, 2022 by NiGHTS108 : Forgot to add Poster Boy Of Mayhem to the rankings. It's above Hidden Ship In Pirate's Cove but below The Man With The Mohawk.

[Pseudonaut]

+++Cydonia

 

I don't know what Arrival is but I guess I'll find out.

[Peccatum Mihzamiz]

+++Solar Struggle
+++Altars of Madness

[finnks13]

MAP22 - The Man with the Mohawk by Peccatum Mihzamiz:

31:36/8 Deaths
What a shame this couldn't be included in the main roster, as this is one of the best maps in the whole wad (I understand why, visplanes are a nuisance!) and would have fit perfectly in the second half as a break from the evil, similar to Map15. The map is set up as an infiltration mission of some evil villain's lair, casting Ray Mohawk as a James Bond-style hero, and this setup just works so well for the wad, all the doomcute around the base really brings it to life. There's even a large secret involving flushing all the toilets in the level, which was amusing to figure out.

 

I enjoyed the start of the map, crawling through and clearing the infested mines that lead to the rather breathtaking opening view of the villain's lair. Most of the combat in the first half of the map isn't too challenging, I had the most trouble with the small waves of enemies that spawned in the main room, until I realised you can just hide in the side paths, sniping the enemies from the doorway. The map did feel a little imbalanced, as the red key path is quite a lot longer than the blue one and you won't get the flamethrower by going down the blue path first - though you do get to interrupt a meeting, which was fun.

 

I feel like the combat does lose a little bit of steam in the final couple of areas, the yellow key trap just throws hordes of enemies at you, which is hectic but doesn't feel very thought through because it's really easy to hide in the room at the top, or the secret room. I also didn't really like the cyberdemon ambush at the end, it was quite annoying to get stuck on the infinitely tall cacos and die to a rocket volley. That being said, these complaints are minor because these areas weren't overwhelmingly challenging and I feel like the main effort behind the map went into creating this incredible lair to explore and that's done to near perfection.

 

Final Thoughts on Ray Mohawk 2:

I think Ray Mohawk 2 is a great sequel to the first one, it iterates and expands on the concept and chill, tropical vibe while going in a new direction due to the significantly altered weapon roster. It's also a wad that feels like it was made by two separate teams with two separate design ideologies and duct-taped together at the last minute. I really like the first half of the wad, the maps are all fun to go through and the best of them are some of the most fun I've had playing the game in a long time, since they manage to feel fresh but very familiar at the same time. The second half has some decent maps (12, 15 and 20), but is a wild departure from what the first half sets expectations for and wasn't very enjoyable.

 

I'm surprised that only one completely new enemy was introduced here, the Sylor, as they feel like a very natural fit into the roster with RM2's weaponry due to their higher health and high, but manageable, close range damage output - I always think that they have less health than they do because of their small size but this isn't a big issue. The cyberdemon alteration feels like it was only tested in one-on-one fights in large spaces, because it works really well for that purpose and that purpose alone. As rd has said in her post about map17's finale, you have to always assume that they're going to be firing at you due to their damage output, and I agree that it's definitely the best way of dealing with them since you can't rely on the standard cyberdemon shuffle. The problem with these cyberdemons come when they appear either in large packs in open areas, where you'll get randomly sniped by them significantly more often than with regular cybers because it's not possible to keep your focus on each of them when so much is going on, and when they appear in very small, cramped rooms, due to the insane amount of splash damage they dish out.

 

I've talked about my thoughts on the more difficult maps at length in my post about Map18 & 19, but in short, I found the combination of your unchanged survivability and necessity of ridiculously large hordes of the most dangerous monsters in order to be a threat to the player, really unenjoyable. I'm normally someone who goes for challenging maps, but the way difficulty was done here just didn't click for me and it meant both my deaths and victories felt unearned. I admit, this may be due to the day-by-day nature of the megawad club because I didn't get a chance to adapt to the mechanics as I would in a more continuous playthrough, but if I'm being honest I doubt this would have made much difference.

 

I don't mean to be so negative, I just haven't felt this conflicted on a mapset in a very long time - the first half is absolutely fantastic, it's a set of 10 maps that I can see myself revisiting to blow off some steam, but the rest is just not what I want from a gameplay standpoint. If I had to pick which of the two wads I liked more, I'd easily pick Ray Mohawk 1 - sure it's highs don't quite reach the level of the best RM2 maps but it's a much more cohesive and solid experience that I ultimately look back on much more fondly than the second.

 

(That being said, if a Ray Mohawk 3 were on the table with the same weapon roster, doubled health & armour limits and a more gradual difficulty curve, I would not say no to that!)

 

Top 5 Maps:

Map04 - Surf's Up in Nuketown by Cheesewheel

Map22 - The Man with the Mohawk by Peccatum Mihzamiz

Map09 - Temple del Sol by Moustachio

Map15 - Crowded House by NeedHealth

Map01 - Back Ashore! by Doomkid

[Napsalm]

+++Cydonia & Arrival

Edited August 29, 2022 by Napsalm

[cannonball]

MAP21 - “Trippy Entryway in the Sky?!” by Philnemba

 

Not a lot to this one, sure I get the entryway references but honestly apart from the point blank flamethrower guy fight at the start there isn't a lot that can kill you here. The most interesting fight is the outdoor secret area that throws revenants and a cyberdemon firing from the exit area.

It isn't bad, but there isn't much of interest here, plus the blocking corpses by the blue key area claimed one pelt. 

Glad this was a secret entry as this would have felt out of place in the main roster.

[tonytheparrot]

Final Thoughts:

 

When I first picked up Ray Mohawk's Manic Monday around october after hearing of the imminent release of it's sequel, I didn't know what to expect outside of the tropical theme and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. What I love about this wad is not only the great combat thanks to the large areas, high quantity of fodder and generally high availability of ammo, but also the peacefulness of this massacre thanks to the easy nature of the maps and the midi selections. Also, as always, Doomkid still manages to make his vanilla maps look pretty while making them a vintage feel.

After I was done with the original, I started playing through the sequel when it was released and I was not ready. It not only turned out better and more consistent than I thought it would at first, but the weapons, as overpowered they were, weren't turning the maps into complete power fantasies and I definitely wasn't ready for the stretch of maps 16-19, which completely obliterated me. That said, I still enjoyed the hell out of this wad, enough for it to get in my top 10 favorite wads of all time, and even loved it even slightly more on this second playthrough. Also, as contreversial as the afformentioned stretch of hard maps was, it's actually my favorite it as it not only brought some of the best maps in the set, but I think it was also ballsy to include unexpectedly tough maps in a Doomkid CP with such overpowered weapons. Overall, Ray 1 is a very fun episode, Ray 2 is one of the best CPs that I know of, and both of these wads are absolute must-plays in my opinion.

 

 

Final Time Ray 1 : 37:04

 

Final Ray 1 Rankings:

Spoiler

 

Love:

Map 4

Map 1

Really Like:
Map 3

Map 6

Like:

Map 5

Map 2

 

 

 

Final Time Ray 2 : 4:07:32

 

Final Ray 2 Rankings:

 

Spoiler

Love:

Map 15

Map 19

Map 18

Map 1

Map 22

Map 10

Map 4

Map 9

Map 20

Map 3

Map 8

Really Like:

Map 12

Map 16

Map 17

Map 5

Map 6

Map 2

Map 7

Like:

Map 13

Map 11

Mediocre:

Map 21

Dislike:

Map 14

 

 

Happy writing and Dooming for september!

[LadyMistDragon]

Another day when I wasn't sure I'd bother with this this. But here goes!

 

Final Thoughts

 

Ray Mohawk 2 is representative of a style that hasn't really featured much in modern Doom but has been explored by Doomkid to some degree ever since his first single-player wad UAC Rebellion but became more fully crystalized in projects such as Doomed in Space and Rowdy Rudy: that of an enemy-heavy bullet hell enhanced by some swanking and deadly new weapons more suited to taking on large groups of enemies which also traditionally receive Dehacked makeovers. This is really just a long way of saying I'm incredibly shocked that there hasn't been more done in this style in favor of "muh pure vanilla." (since this wad merely operates largely on vanilla limits). The long-time but probably not future DBP mapper SuperCupcakeTactics comes the closest to a mapping style that leans "bullet hell" but given that they're operating under vanilla weaponry, they end up quite a bit more difficult and painful as a result.

 

Ray Mohawk (along with Rowdy Rudy) represent a considerably more accessible take on the style, underscored by an aesthetic clearly ripped from 80s action movies with cool replacement weapons and sprites to match. The Hula Imps are an incredibly fitting and metrosexual addition to the enemy roster. Most of the hitscanners clearly have a bad-ass look to them, with the straw-headed goatee guys obviously drawing inspiration from Duke Nukem. The Slyor also proved a nice complement with their flamethrower attacks proving worthy of fear on more than one occasion. Most of the other replacements are variants of the other ones, although the Cyberdemons now fire two different three-shot volleys at the time. Although the Revenants and Arch-viles are unchanged, as they should be. None of them seriously clash with the tropical setting in any way though.

 

The best part are naturally the weapons though. Not only are you provided with one of the most powerful pistols in any Doom wad that can put down Hell Knights and such in a pinch, you get faster-firing variants of your normal weapons. The heavies have been replaced entirely however. The cell cannon takes place of the rocket launcher but retains its explosive power which leads to some wonderfully chaotic and dangerous situations, all the more so when the Cyberdemon has received the same treatment. There's also the plasma replacement the flamethrower which really impedes your FOV but largely makes up for it with its bursting power.

 

But you probably want to hear some thoughts on the maps! Well, that's sort of besides the point due to the considerably faster-paced gameplay making up for any perceived design weaknesses to a large degree. Mostly, any sign of faltering comes from mappers who didn't quite take advantage of it. As a result, it remains consistent fun all the way through in a manner that most megawads could only hope to achieve in 32 maps. Although I did start to get quite burned out at the end, there was maybe 1 or 2 maps that I didn't think were essentially enjoyable. This one gets an 8.5/10

 

Now, the list of my 5 favorite maps!

 

1. Arch-visland (a shitty Alfonzo pun) by RonnieJamesDiner & rd: The other rd map almost matches up, but it's hurt to some degree by the severe claustrophobia. Thanks to RonnieJamesDiner being the co-mapper here, there's nothing here that feels unbalanced, either when it comes to the size of the layout and the arrangement of monsters. Also, the two opportunities where you get to mass-kill Arch-viles were so satisfying. Top marks for a map I barely managed to reach the end for.

2. Temple Del Sol by Moustachio: In a set that practically invites magnum opuses, this one takes the cake! Large and open-ended with a satisfying amount of Doomcute and only moderate difficulty, this one comes very close to taking the top spot. Environmental storytelling shines like nothing else and the Revenant attendant in the museum gift shop at the end was a crowning touch

3. Beautiful Clean Coal by Doomkid: Doomkid finally makes a definitive mapper statement with this large and intense map. Maybe just a touch exhausting but this music is so cool and threats come thick and fast not dependent on mass teleporting behind the player! Well-done

4. Pier Pressure by Noiser: Nicely Plutonian and cinematic combat. Some of the gimmicks might be just slightly wearying but visual design and action were supremely on point.

5. Hidden Ship in Pirate's Cove by Ubergewei: Ok, the backtracking was a little ass here, ngl. However, this was an incredibly engaging adventure all the same. The pirate ship and ambushes were all really nice.

 

PS: Oh fuck it. Here are the ranking for the following 5 maps

 

6. The Man with the Mohawk

7. Ray of Hope

8. Crowded House

9. Poster Boy of Mayhem

10. Surf's Up in Nuketown

 

 

 

 

And I guess that's it. Unless PRCP2 wins, I'll be back next month (although if Cydonia wins, I probably won't be playing every day since I already gave a rather lengthy take on Arrival in the Wadazine that I suspect would rank among my best if anyone were to say what writing they liked the best from me: alas....)

 

Edited August 30, 2022 by LadyMistDragon : Added rankings and changed rankings for the #4 slot

[cannonball]

MAP22 - “The Man with the Mohawk” by Peccatum Mihzamiz

An oddball of a map to finish the encore of Ray Mohawk, summed up by the midi choice for this map.

This map is essentially linear until you reach the main hub where you have a blue and red key path to explore. The red key is lengthier and tougher to breach, though I must confess that the combat was not the most compelling. Another episode of either the combat being easy to diffuse or slightly frustrating. Add to that the fact that you will be faced with some lengthy backtracking. 

Beyond this is the yellow key and finally the final room. The combat here is okay, nothing too difficult, though the final fight I died a few times due to being stuck by infinite height on the descending cacodemons.

Overall I wasn't total enthralled by this, but it is an interesting entry and is quite breezy, despite the size.

 

Final thoughts

 

Ray Mohawk 2 can be split into two sets, the first following the light hearted run and gun of Doomkid's work, the second offering a more hardcore experience. Despite the usual mixed bag nature of the project, the good certainly outweighs the bad for the most part. There are decisions made that would never work in a normal wad, and for the most part it plays out well. There are a few times where this became overly excessive, but these moments were few and far between. 

Overall this is a great wad and certainly a wad to sit down and replay after a tough day at the office.

Overall score - 4/5

Favourite Map - Map17

Honourable mentions - Map 03/04/15/16/19

[Magnusblitz]

Falling behind again, what else is new?

 

MAP13: Terraced Estate of Terror by Gokuma

100% kills, 1/2 secrets

 

A nice and sedate map to get back into the swing of things (and if was playing these without a break, nice after the gimmick flamethrower map and slaughterfest of last map) - basically a linear stroll through the titular terraced estate. You'll quickly gather all the weapons in your climb (unless you miss the flamethrower like me), culminating in the BFG at the top where you'll need to tussle with three cyberdemons for the red key. It actually took me quite a few attempts here - the new BFG definitely does more damage, but it still possesses the same charge-up pattern which makes it really tricky to use against the new cyberdemons and their super-fast projectiles.

 

MAP14: Lose Yourself to Dance by sluggard

100% kills, 1/2 secrets

 

Ye olde hub map, with one path for each key; all three needed to exit. I did most of the red path first, doubled back to get the blue key, finished red, then yellow (which I honestly didn't even realize was a path until I got to the end and found I needed three and not two keys). The red path gives you the flamethrower and BFG, and the blue gives you the rocket launcher, so doing those first helps make the yellow pretty easy. Again, the BFG is presented here to fight the cybers with, which actually is kinda a tough fight. The platforming was a bit annoying, but I liked the rest. One drawback was there seemed to be some weird unnecessary copy-pasting - all three of the hotel rooms are exactly the same, as are the two revenant rooms at the start. Can't move some furniture or boxes around or add some details to break it up?

 

MAP15: Crowded House by NeedHealth

100% kills, 0/1 secret

 

Crowded indeed, with 800 monsters stuffed into some tight corridors, but it's almost all small fry, so you can blast through it pretty quickly (22:30 finish time for me, plus reloads). The action is pretty constant throughout, with a steady stream of enemies laid out across the map, punctuated here and there with the odd ambush. Even the cyber fight isn't too threatening as long as you're quick enough to run back outside. Resources are also delivered pretty steadily, which is nice. Most of the map is shotgun/blaster, which is fine, since the blaster is so overpowered anyways. There's a cell launcher halfway through and a flamethrower near the end, but neither got much use from me. Architecture is pretty nice - it's a bit different from most of Ray Mohawk in that it has that modern approach of nicely detailed, but abstract, architecture instead of trying for lots of recognizable Doomcute. There's a lot of archways that drew my attention to the sky, which is pretty nice (this is actually the second map to use it, but the last map didn't make me stop and consider it the same way). The overall lack of a clearly defined visual theme might make it a bit forgettable in a way, but playing it felt pretty fun and it feels like one of the more impressive maps in the set.

[Magnusblitz]

MAP16: Pier Pressure by Noiser

100% kills, 1/2 secrets

 

A series of arena fights, and to be honest I thought the first one alone could make a solid level, albeit a bit on the shorter side. The first section is mostly shells and bullets, you get a flamethrower but with very limited ammo. It's open air with plenty of dangerous snipers (revs, arachnatrons, mancs) on the outskirts, with nowhere to hide - gotta keep running and gunning. The wall of revs that gathers to the south is especially painful, and after trying to avoid them I finally settled for slowly whittling them down. I really liked the Doomcute here, the red/white lighthouse is thematically great, and it was also fun scuttling the ship and watching it sink into the water.

 

The second area is kinda meh, more of the same (clearing out all the snipers surrounding the play area), but at least the battle with the cyberdemons and the forced blur sphere is interesting - with the way the cybers fire multiple shots now, they end up firing in a spread of directions which demands some skill, but doesn't feel unfair. I think this is actually the best use of the new cyberdemon in this WAD so far.

 

The final area wore me out a bit, just so much high-tier monster meat, and so many dangerous projectiles - the cacodemons being upgraded to baron fireballs hadn't been too noticeable before, just dodge em the same way, but here it's really easy to catch a stray and instantly die or come close. Ammo was not a problem, but as I was constantly getting my health shaved down I was wanting for health. Overall, I really liked the first area of the map, the second and third stretched things out a bit too much for me.

 

MAP17: Poster Boy of Mayhem by Aurelius & rd

100% kills*, 3/4 secrets

 

Hoo boy, this was a toughy. It really deviates from the typical Ray Mohawk playstyle - rather than being given a multitude of weapons and ammo and huge hordes to chew through, this one has some tough combat puzzles for the player and required quite a lot of creeping (which actually makes the Super Mario MIDI quite unfitting). Much of it has very stringent ammo limitations, especially early on - I actually ended up using the regular knife quite a few times. Overall I found it quite polarizing - there's bits I liked a lot, and stuff I didn't.

 

I did like the balance for the most part - it felt tough but fair. I also liked the hunt for the Morbid Angel posters (once I figured out there was indeed a hunt - the one in the east with the dead caco finally clued me in, I hadn't even found the blocked-off teleporter yet!), as I'm always a sucker for a "find the five hidden doodads for a secret" design trope.

 

What I didn't like - well, like Capellan, I pretty much had to give up at the yellow door fight. Just tried over and over and couldn't make it work. I see the concept, it's an interesting one, but the cybers just are too dangerous and don't die quickly enough to the flamethrower. (I do note that sometimes they seem to die quicker than others - I wonder if there's some port shenanigans going on. Certainly the lack of autoaim costs me some seconds I see rd used to soften them up before they could shoot back). To those who were able to beat this legit, I salute you. I also wasn't a fan of the slime in the secret area, though I suppose if you're smart enough to clue into using the berserk knife to cut through the AV train you can sprint through it before dying to the sludge. Oh, and I really hated the start - even knowing what was coming, I still got unavoidably thwacked by a revenant about 3/4ths of the time.

 

Overall, an impressive map craftmanship-wise, and had some things I liked but pulled down by some really mean bits.

Edited September 1, 2022 by Magnusblitz

[baja blast rd.]

On 8/29/2022 at 8:21 PM, LadyMistDragon said:

1. Arch-visland (a shitty Alfonzo pun) by RonnieJamesDiner & rd: The other rd map almost matches up, but it's hurt to some degree by the severe claustrophobia. Thanks to RonnieJamesDiner being the co-mapper here, there's nothing here that feels unbalanced, either when it comes to the size of the layout and the arrangement of monsters. Also, the two opportunities where you get to mass-kill Arch-viles were so satisfying. Top marks for a map I barely managed to reach the end for.

 

Thank you all for liking these maps btw (or commenting honestly if you didn't). Trying to comment more on stuff I worked on so I'll start here. 

Once I teamed up with Aurelius and RJD, I was expecting that the finished maps would end up in similar slots, so I knew I wanted some contrast between them. So 19, which was started later, switched it up from many of 17's choices based on what seemed like it'd fit 19, such as: BFG as the cell weapon instead of the cell cannon, very resource-rich and with almost all the weapons, fights that mix together or can spread more across multiple areas (like the cyb horde that gives chase doesn't have to be finished off entirely at first, and if you leave, the remainders greet you at the RK door), more intermixed monster groups, revenge against archviles, and also easier difficulty than 17 overall. A couple of True Facts: this pinky actually drops this BFG, the pinky that appears to guard the YK is the highest-ranking monster in the map, and the waterfall arachnotron in the RK area is named Rachel Atwater (rude monsters just partying while I'm trying to get my screenshot). The "(ft. Miley Cyrus)" in the official name is "inspired" by Steve D. The BFG9002 has a top-tier place in the pantheon of custom weapons, so I'm happy we got to make something for it. As an aside, it can one-shot cybies, but that is more a fun curiosity than something that is ever needed (RM2 gives out cells like candy) or even worth it (too dangerous).

 

17 ended up being a gauntlet microslaughter deal, which is a surprising thing for RM2 to have, but very early on, Aurelius and I were talking a bunch about the modded mechanics, so that is why it went in that direction. Some extra stuff: the starting knife is pretty powerful even without berserk, and its stacked attack is great at pain-stunning; it's kind of fun to take out a lone early manc or vile that way, although it does have its limits. I also play the secret area (berserk) knife-only; the knife is ridiculous and can even two-shot a baron. Outside the last fight, which I talked about, the more difficult fights can be defused with aggression. The blaster is so good at pain-stunning that in the first center-area fight, it helps to really avoid playing passively against the viles. And if you leave the skeleton greeting party alive until circling back around to them, you can plow through with the cannon, spending as little time dodging vile blasts as you can. (The fights have multiple approaches that work and were balanced around less-than-perfect ones; I'm just sharing how I play rather than saying "this is the correct approach.") And another True Fact: the drinks give you lots of armor but they make you tipsy (screen tint) because they have high bac (blood armor concentration). Except those watered-down ones near the yellow key, which must be full of revenant backwash or something.

[Azure_Horror]

In the august of 2022, I've got a bit tired and was not able to write reviews for all Ray 2 maps.

 

But Ray 2 is one of my Favorite WADs ever, so I decided to write a proper conclusion for DwMC Ray Mohawk Duology.

 

1) Why I liked Ray 2 WAD in the first place.

WADs I play tend to be on a "challenging" side of the scales. Sometimes, it is something rather tame, like Plutonia Experiment, Eviternity or Ozonia on UV (or its equvalent). Other times, it really hardcore mapsets, like Wormwood III, Fractured Worlds or Sunlust. Nevertheless, only rarely I gravitate towards walk in a park an enjoyable hike type of difficulty curve (think stuff like UV in Doom 1 the way ID did, or lower difficulties of classic mapsets). Why - I have no idea. Just an obsevation.

 

This all leads to the following point:

Beating challenging WADs often requires to push the limits of your skills and your arsenal. Oftentimes, the classic Doom 2 weapons felt like the most crucial limiting factor to me. "If only I had slightly more firepower, that fight would be much less demanding..."

 

And Ray Mohawk 2 adressed this dream of mine. The odds may be stacked against Ray, but Ray definitely has enough destructive power to overcome them! Playtesting Ray 2 in 2021 was a huge learning opportunity for me. I was able to forget about limits of standard Doom 2 arsenal. Instead, I was forced to focus on other Doom combat fundamentals like movement, positioning, and dancing around hazards. This felt very liberating, and the Ray 2-inspired skills transitioned surprisingly well into "normal" Doom gameplay.

 

2) What I think about Ray Mohawk duology today.

In their core, both WADs embrace one simple idea: "Doom is an Action VideoGame from the early 90-ies". So, there must be action, it must be fun, and its okay, if everything looks a bit cartoony and/or reidicolous. Essentially, @Doomkid replaced the survival horror elements of Doom with more action, sorta like in Contra series. The whole design of Ray 1 points into that direction. You shoot enemies, enemies shoot you, it is good fun!

 

This leads to subtle, yet very obvious gameplay changes of Ray 1: a very strong melee weapon (the knife), and a very reliable pistol replacement. The levels themselves can be described as "just good doom maps, with beautiful sunny viauals", but the rework of two most basic weapons impacts pistol satr gameplay quite drastically. It also enables hit-scan heavy enemy compositions in open spaces. Such idea would require an obligatory chaingun in the normal Doom ruleset, but Ray Mohawk has the empowered slot 2 rifle to even the chances. And if you manage to reach close combat, than most foes become fun to stab with a knife, even without the berserk! "It's all coming together!"

 

Ray Mohawk 2 is "Ray Mohawk 1, but more". Now all the weapons got extremely strong buffs like a standard melee attack in Ray 1 did. This feels very apropriate for a sequel of contra-style action game, and it also allows for another twist on "Doom with more action" concept.

 

Essentially, the knife, the saw-replacing gauntlets, the pistol, and the basic shotgun are the SSG-tier powerwepons.

And the auto-shotgun, blaster, cell cannon, flamethrower? The are BFG-tier Powerweapons! This aloows for huge weapon variety in what looks like modern challenging gameplay scenarios. It also naturally eases the player into some pretty hardcore challenging gameplay. Map 02 of Ray 2 is essentially a Plutonia 2 style of map, with all the archvile/rev madness this implies. Yet, the most basic slot 2 and 3 guns are more then sufficient to make the short work of the opposition! When map 06 provides the semi-full arsenal of true power-weapons, the player feels like they are the king of the world, and can take on any challenge. Are they right? Depends on the player. But the later maps of Ray 2 WAD absolutely deliver in the "any challenge" department, thats for sure.

 

3) Some other things of note.

- Renamed difficulties. This is a genius idea, that mostly solves the whole "how difficult the UV is supposed to be anyway?" issue. If the difficulty is called "Seeking Validation", than complaining about it being frustratingly unfun sounds silly. Especially when there is another difficulty called "Playing For Fun"! Hat's off to @Doomkid for this simple, but wonderful idea! It is a bit sad that Ribbiks didn't come up with a similar design when making WADs like Stardate20X7 and Magnolia...

- Weapon Testing. If nothing else, both Ray Mohawk WADs provide lots of ideas for interesting deHacked weapon alterations. Wanna a novel power weapon for your mapset, but has no idea, were to start? Check the Ray Mohawk duology, and use it as inspiration! Ray 2 is a whole treasury of power weapons, and Ray 1 highlights, how a ultra-powerful melee tools can coexist with normal doom 1 arsenal. Moreover, the knife is similar in both mapsets, and it works very well even in Ray 2! It allows you to somewhat approximate, how Ray 2 super-gunns would work in a "normal" gameplay.

- A proper Duology. Apropriately for a Contra-inspired game, Ray Mohawk 1 has a pretty serious excalation in its final level, with bigger guns, crueler monsters, and very unusual environments. And after that final level, the madness of Ray Mohawk 2 feels very fitting. On its own, Ray 2 looks silly and extreme for the sole purpose of being silly and extreme. But Ray one delivers quite a lot of realatively normal gameplay situations, only to allow a glimpse into insanity in its final level! After that, the whole Ray 2 progression feels quite natural. Hell, it even has some cool continuity nods: both WADs introduce cyberdemons on map 06, for example. And the occasional fully hellified locations of Ray 2 maps 11 and 20 feel like nods to the finale of Ray 1.

Edited March 8, 2023 by Azure_Horror