Tom's Halls: A Doom Alpha Community Project (MUSICIANS WANTED!)

[Walter confetti]

I like to claim E1M8 alpha (aka E1M2), if possibile. Can i add parts removed from the final cut present in the Press release (like the nukage slime tunnel before the exit lift)?

[Faceman2000]

17 hours ago, Walter confetti said:

I like to claim E1M8 alpha (aka E1M2), if possibile. Can i add parts removed from the final cut present in the Press release (like the nukage slime tunnel before the exit lift)?

Alright, it’s yours! Adding the nukage slime tunnel is fine. Which episode are you going to make the map for? Bear in mind that if it’s Phobos, you’ll have to make sure you sufficiently distinguish your map from the final.

On 1/3/2024 at 7:54 PM, Plerb said:

Some thoughts about the remaining map slots:

• Considering E1 and E2 still don't have boss maps assigned and the alpha E1M8 and MAP10 seem like the best choices for that, I'm wondering @HEXWALKER if you plan on making either of your maps boss maps.
• I doubt enough could be done with the alpha E2M4 to justify having it in the roster. Every other alpha map has at least a couple features that were changed or removed in the final, but (bear in mind I'm just going off of memory) this one only has a lack of enemies, slightly different texturing, and doesn't have the starting and ending rooms. Even the keys and keydoors are in their final positions. It'd be basically indistinguishable from a map that was just directly based off of the final E2M4.
• COMM5 should only be used with another slot instead of being used on it's own.

So I actually broke my own rule and started on a third slot - I built a boss arena around COMM5. It feels appropriate because A) a boss arena allows the small structure to remain rather central to the design, and B) the textures present in COMM5 suggests it has some common lineage with the boss arena in E1M8. I’ve actually made a Phobos-themed version and a Hell-themed version and I’m not sure which I want to go with.

 

I largely agree with you on the Alpha E2M4. I’ve let it up there for completion’s sake, and there’s a part of me that’s intrigued by the concept of trying to realize a Phobos-themed version of it, but there’s really nothing to do with it.

 

I’m sorry I don’t have Beta E1M3 to show off yet - it’s getting close, but my baby boy has been really discontent these couple weeks which makes any mapping difficult. I think it’ll probably end up in the secret slot because, though I feel I’ve done a good job mixing things up a lot, it’s still pretty recognizable.

 

@HEXWALKER, anything to show yet? Per the original rules, you were supposed to show something in four weeks. We’ve not held to that rule in a while as IRL things in my life made that an impossibility and thusly it was unfair to hold other people to it, but the original point of that rule was to stop people from claiming spots and then just sitting on them, which seems to be more or less what you’ve done. You’re still welcome to those maps but I need to see that some progress is occurring.

 

@taufan99 and @nue have been MIA from the forums for a couple weeks - taufan’s already talked to me a little about what’s going on there but we’ll hopefully have an update when he gets back. Nue, please let me know how things are progressing for you when you get the chance.

 

Finally, thank you all for continuing to post map revs. I’m sorry I haven’t had a chance to touch them yet - life continues to be unexpectedly busy with little end in sight - but I promise I will get to them when I can.

[Plerb]

4 minutes ago, Faceman2000 said:

So I actually broke my own rule and started on a third slot - I built a boss arena around COMM5. It feels appropriate because A) a boss arena allows the small structure to remain rather central to the design, and B) the textures present in COMM5 suggests it has some common lineage with the boss arena in E1M8. I’ve actually made a Phobos-themed version and a Hell-themed version and I’m not sure which I want to go with.

Ok, that sounds like a good use of the slot!

 

I haven't worked on my E2M2 alpha map in a couple weeks due to getting burnt out on it and wanting to focus on other projects. I did rough out the progression though.

[HEXWALKER]

18 minutes ago, Faceman2000 said:

@HEXWALKER, anything to show yet? Per the original rules, you were supposed to show something in four weeks. We’ve not held to that rule in a while as IRL things in my life made that an impossibility and thusly it was unfair to hold other people to it, but the original point of that rule was to stop people from claiming spots and then just sitting on them, which seems to be more or less what you’ve done. You’re still welcome to those maps but I need to see that some progress is occurring.

I completely missed the four weeks part! Sorry about that! I actually do have something to show, but I am not at home at the moment, I will post some screenshots and a WIP map as soon as I can, most likely this weekend, if that is okay. Again, I apologize. 

[Faceman2000]

14 minutes ago, HEXWALKER said:

I completely missed the four weeks part! Sorry about that! I actually do have something to show, but I am not at home at the moment, I will post some screenshots and a WIP map as soon as I can, most likely this weekend, if that is okay. Again, I apologize. 

No problem! As I said, we haven’t really been enforcing it for awhile now. Looking forward to what you share!

[Walter confetti]

7 hours ago, Faceman2000 said:

Alright, it’s yours! Adding the nukage slime tunnel is fine. Which episode are you going to make the map for? Bear in mind that if it’s Phobos, you’ll have to make sure you sufficiently distinguish your map from the final.

Ok, thanks. For the episode, i choose E2 (Hell). The cavern parts will be more natural there.

[GermanPeter]

This has probably been asked before, but will this be compatible with DrPySpy's Doom Delta?

Not that it needs to, of course, just wondering if this is something you could reasonably recommend.

[Faceman2000]

37 minutes ago, GermanPeter said:

This has probably been asked before, but will this be compatible with DrPySpy's Doom Delta?

Not that it needs to, of course, just wondering if this is something you could reasonably recommend.

It absolutely is! I’ve actually played through several of the levels with it for fun - I’ll be sure to give Delta Doom a shoutout as a recommended companion when we release this!

[GermanPeter]

Just now, Faceman2000 said:

It absolutely is! I’ve actually played through several of the levels with it for fun - I’ll be sure to give Delta Doom a shoutout as a recommended companion when we release this!

That's awesome, really looking forward to this one then.

[Walter confetti]

Started my remake of E1M2:

Spoiler

 

Layout (my take and original from 0_5RESOR).

Spoiler

In-game screenshots.

[YeOldeFellerNoob]

Hello. I HEAVILY apologize for not updating anything here. I have been SEVERELY burnt out for the past months with school and work. I have 2 of the songs finished (UN14 and 15). UN14 is a typical thrash metal song with a little synth section to spice things up, and UN15 is a re-imagining that is more cinematic and experimental.

MIDIFilesTomsHalls.zip

[Faceman2000]

Hey all, sorry for the radio silence. It's been a busy, busy couple weeks here. However, I managed to finish my first rev of the alpha E1M3:

 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XnXRVuFjkrFdHAIUEYRR81qNI2ccCarQ/view?usp=sharing

 

No DM or difficulty levels yet.

 

@YeOldeFellerNoob, @Cacodemon187, I should have feedback for you in the next couple days. Thank you all!

[Walter confetti]

Cool remake! Found a missing texture at the lift to the room leading to the yellow skull key:

 

Talking about map remakes, I have a alpha version of E1M2 remake as well: wa-tomh-alpha.zip

Tell me what do you think about this, i know that more monsters placement and better textures alignment (maybe) are needed, the other things are ok the way i did? Slot is E2M1 btw

No DM or difficulty settings too

 

[DrPyspy]

If automap.wad hasn't been claimed yet, I'm interested in adapting it for an E1M6 slot! 👀

[Individualised]

@Dragonsbrethren Hi, you were the original person to upload the screenshots of "UnusedMap" and others to The Cutting Room Floor. It would be nice to know more about these originated from, could you tell us anything??

Edited February 2 by Individualised

[Faceman2000]

On 1/21/2024 at 3:00 PM, DrPyspy said:

If automap.wad hasn't been claimed yet, I'm interested in adapting it for an E1M6 slot! 👀

Sounds great! It’s yours!

 

You’ll notice when you load up the map that there are two different versions of it - I made it twice at different scales since the image of automap is ambiguous at best. Feel free to choose either.

[DrPyspy]

 

 

Some of the stuff I got goin on so far! I'm currently keeping the visible area from the automap as faithful as I reasonably can, and expanding on the areas around it. Still trying to work out some satisfying routes through the map, but I'm feeling good about this so far! I'm going to try playing around with the mess hall and marine quarters textures to see if I can get some of those vibes in there without it feeling too mismatched.

[Walter confetti]

Looks really neat!

[Faceman2000]

I agree @DrPyspy! I'm excited to have you on the team and look forward to playing it!

 

@Walter confetti, I really enjoyed your map! Like you said, it's a little sparse for monster placement, but the overall layout, progression, and theming are great.

 

@Cacodemon187 I finally played through your most recent rev. It's a fun map, as it's always been. I'd like to reiterate my edits I mentioned before - the triple teleporting Baron trap is too much. Putting two Pinkies instead of the two Barons that teleport behind you would keep retreating from being an option. Additionally, the narrow hallway stair hallways where you obtain the chaingun in E2M7 - the ceiling should be raised a little bit. I understand this is how Tom designed it, but it feels really clunky running around with your head bouncing off the ceiling.

 

Finally, would you be able to build in a secret exit? I feel the nebulous nature of this map would lend itself well to one.

 

Taufan99 gave me permission to reopen DEV.wad COMM1, the early version of Doom II Map 28, so that is up for grabs once again. @nue and  @HEXWALKER, any updates/progress on your maps yet? I'm revising Spirit Drains further - I had some ideas that I think will help differentiate it further from E1M3 without radically altering the layout that I'm excited to share. After that I'll return to the Deimos-themed version of 0.5 E1M1.

[HEXWALKER]

2 minutes ago, Faceman2000 said:

 @HEXWALKER, any updates/progress on your maps yet?

Working on it now, actually! I intended to get some updates out a few weeks ago, but I ended up in the hospital. (Oops!) 

 

Wanted to spend some time doing some warmups beforehand, so I did that for another project. Will drop some screenshots here soon!

[Plerb]

I haven't done very much work on my alpha E2M2 map in like a month, largely because I don't find mapping E1 style to be as fun as E2 or E3 (though I do feel like it works best as an E1 map and I don't want to change it to be Hell themed), and my inspiration for mapping has mostly been towards Doom 2 stuff the past month. I don't want to completely drop the slot, but if anyone would be interested in collaborating with me to finish this, please let me know. :)

 

 

Also, since there's enough free slots for 28 maps, maybe if the alpha E2M4 ultimately gets used, it could go into an E1M0 slot.

Edited January 28 by Plerb

[Walter confetti]

A more revamped version of my map: wa-tomh-v1.zip

 

Added more enemies and a pair of extra routes.

No difficulty settings and DM spawns yet

Edited January 29 by Walter confetti

[Cacodemon187]

23 hours ago, Faceman2000 said:

@Cacodemon187 I finally played through your most recent rev. It's a fun map, as it's always been. I'd like to reiterate my edits I mentioned before - the triple teleporting Baron trap is too much. Putting two Pinkies instead of the two Barons that teleport behind you would keep retreating from being an option. Additionally, the narrow hallway stair hallways where you obtain the chaingun in E2M7 - the ceiling should be raised a little bit. I understand this is how Tom designed it, but it feels really clunky running around with your head bouncing off the ceiling.

 

Noted, I'll tweak that Baron trap to make it not so annoying to deal with. About the narrow stairs, I had the idea to somehow communicate to the player that they should walk down the stairs rather than run, that way they don't bump their head on the ceiling. Something like a sign that says "no running on the stairs". Having a special texture just for one map seems a bit odd for this project though, so if you're not a fan of that I'll just raise the ceiling.

 

On another note, how does "Railway Park" sound for the map's title? @nicolas monti

 

I've already decided how to add the secret exit btw, I should have a new revision ready within the next week or two :)

Edited January 29 by Cacodemon187

[nicolas monti]

1 hour ago, Cacodemon187 said:

 

Noted, I'll tweak that Baron trap to make it not so annoying to deal with. About the narrow stairs, I had the idea to somehow communicate to the player that they should walk down the stairs rather than run, that way they don't bump their head on the ceiling. Something like a sign that says "no running on the stairs". Having a special texture just for one map seems a bit odd for this project though, so if you're not a fan of that I'll just raise the ceiling.

 

On another note, how does "Railway Park" sound for the map's title? @nicolas monti

 

I've already decided how to add the secret exit btw, I should have a new revision ready within the next week or two :)

A good name @Cacodemon187 it makes sense, I see some inspiration on the 'quarantine' map of my Alpha Centauri wad, the tracks and the shadows from them.

[Cacodemon187]

On 1/29/2024 at 12:48 AM, nicolas monti said:

I see some inspiration on the 'quarantine' map of my Alpha Centauri wad, the tracks and the shadows from them.

Lol yeah, Alpha Centauri was the first wad of yours that I played, it left a big impression on me cuz of the awesome lighting and the monorails :)

[Plerb]

Here's a revised version of my un41 cover. I've been sitting on this for a month, and I was planning to do more with it, but I think it sounds good enough how I left it. I mostly just altered volumes and adjusted note timings slightly. Feedback would be nice.

TheBeginningOfDOOM v2.zip

Also, is it okay if I add the songs I made for this to my public MIDI resource?

 

I also keep forgetting to revise my Doom Bible map, I'll get to that soon enough.

 

Edit: Also, the OP needs to be updated to remove taufan99's COMM1 map from the E2 section. In addition I think the claimed maps that are of an uncertain episode should be moved to a new section under Current Tentative Maplist instead of having them in Available Maps.

Edited February 3 by Plerb

[Plerb]

And here's the revised Doom Bible map! The only changes are: I fixed the softlock with the bezerk secret area, I retextured the opening area to look more hellish, and I changed the skulls behind bars to an SP dude. Pretty minor stuff.

 

dbible_plerb_v2.zip

[DrPyspy]

 

Got the first version of my map ready! I'm currently calling it the Enlisted Quarters, where the marines eat, sleep, and do some other third thing. I put together an edit of un20 (the Man in the Box midi) just for this map, which is included in the wad. Currently, there is an issue with some monsters occasionally teleporting in very late, causing some annoying backtracking if they slip up and you're aiming for 100% kills, but I'm hoping to rectify that in a future version.

 

 

DrPyspy_TomsHalls_E1M6_a1.zip

[Faceman2000]

Awesome! It may be a couple days before I get a chance to give it a spin as I’ve family staying with us and a huge project going on at work this week, but those screenies look absolutely delicious and I’m excited to play it!

[Cacodemon187]

Hey there @Faceman2000 @nicolas monti, I'm pretty close to finishing Railway Park, but I've run into an issue.

I believe the map has become too long for its own good, I feel like after the red key the map starts to lose momentum :/

I have an idea though: would you two be okay with dividing the map in two and having one route lead to the normal exit and the other to the secret exit?

 

The normal route would be the same as the current progression up to the blue key, and Monti' section would be used for the secret exit route. This way the map doesn't become unnecesarily long (unless you're maxing), and there's a cool secret exit gimmick.

 

Here's the map to visualize my idea; the highlighted section would be the secret route.

Spoiler

 

What do you think?