The DWmegawad Club plays: Sign of Torment

[espilka]

MAP21 Misery - K: 100% / S: 0% (HMP, continuous)

 

Darkness.  Dark ambient ringing through dark ambience.  And starres.  This map should not have been hard enough to die four times in, but the hitscanners, nay!, the Spectral Imps have now come to their own.  Chaingunners hidden behind pillars are dangerous, yes, but not as dangerous as even lesser foes that you only see too late.  Also there is the atmosphere.. it is not directly Lovecraftian (or maybe it is...it's difficult to say, but it has similar effect on me - that is to say, i get mentally transported), but i would still call it eldritch.  The infernal islands in the pitch black void surrounded by starres, are eerie enough but the caves - retouched from the earlier version i played - are incredible.

 

Progression is as we have gotten used to, but with some added complexity - or does it merely feel like that?  i don't know, i have to admit, the atmosphere simply takes me someplace else.  Along the way i tried to look for the secret, but was too overwhelmed by the experience to have much chance of being effective.  What is certain is this is just the beginning of the journey through darkness.  And i'm afraid of what is coming.

 

Eldritch.

[Azure_Horror]

I did play most of the maps in this WAD. They were fun!

However, I find it hard to write the full feature reviews for the club...

 

I will definitely write something, because I like the WAD. For example, here is something about Second half of episode 2:

 

Map15 - “Rule of Nines”

The minimap has clues for important progression details - this is a really cool idea, but sadly the map itself is pretty linear, so minimap is not used much outside looking for the secret exit. What I really like about this map - the final column section with archviles and stuff.

 

Map31 - “Apocalyptic Omen”

That map name may be a spoiler, methinks...

Apocalyptic Omen is an alternative variant of F.O.A.D (map 11). Not a super-special map, but not a bad one either. Funny thing I noticed: in the plot, this level is a distraction from the main progression. Looking for bonus levels in cursed dimensions of Sign of Torment is not a smart idea, all things considered... And to add an insult to injury, map 15 had a clearly marked warning about a secret exit!

 

Map32 - “Layers of Time”

This level is so damn cozy and beautiful! I especially like the doom1-doom2 subsection - it looks really well with the textures chosen.

 

Map16 - “Them Bones”

I think that Them Bones suffers from being placed right after maps 15 and 32. Like map 15, it is also a longer episode 2 map. And it is also an slow-paced journey map like map 32. Even the crushers are there, just like on map 32! In total, map feels somewhat tiring and unoriginal. But in vacuum, its not a bad level at all. And being tiring kinda fits with the overall theme of the WAD, so I can't bring myself to dislike this level...

 

Map17 - “Absence of Reality”

What a fun level! New, unexpected foe - a red turbo-pinky (as they say, "Red Uns Go Fasta!"). New Boom sorcery - a multi-directional jump pad. A wonderful display of silent Boom teleporters: a single blocky building with 4 different rooms inside it. And a funny section with reappearing damaging floors on small islands. You also fight the cyberdemon on those islands! Last, but not least, the non-reality white void corridors are also used quite well. They started to feel a bit stale on map 16, but map 17 implements them in an fun way.

 

Map18 - “Stellar Tombs”

Overall artistic direction of this map feels Misri Halek meets Going Down episode 2. And 'Behind You' moment felt very fun, despite seeming like a cliche...

 

Map19 - “Broken Mirror”

A map. Or maybe the map (spoiler alert for episode 3). I did get a secret inside a room with two parallel realities, but I have no clue, how I managed to do it...

 

Map20 - “The Decay of Disregard”

This is one of my favorite maps, I think. The map start with its small, but explosive arena show-down reminds me of Ozonia Episode 3 maps. The weird silent teleporter hub in the center looks cool and works very well for a setting.  The cyberdemon library uses heavy doze of deliberate awkwardness to crete a spicy encounter. It is a cruel Ribbiks-style setpiece, IMO. I like it!

And the final parade of spider masterminds is a funny ending for both the map and the episode. The oversized spiders need more use, IMO. Some people may say that 6 big spiders is not a huge challenge - but neither are 10 revenants! Yet revenant groups are still fun part of the game - so mapmakers should not shy away from mastermind inflight parties!

 

Episode 3 spoilers:  TormentSignGuy should have payed better attention to the red text at map 20 - it explains everything which will happen soon. 'Darkness is coming' 'You don't want to go there' - it is all true... But the episode itself is really cool, and I really wait to see what the other club members think about the episode 3 maps.

 

20 minutes ago, espilka said:

And i'm afraid of what is coming.

Yes, you should be afraid. The things ahead are scary indeed...

[LadyMistDragon]

Map 20: The Decay of Disregard

 

I'm not sure I understand the map entirely, as things still seem pretty gloomy, but there might actually be a note of hope, despite the flavor text's promise we will not like what we encounter if we insist on pushing forward.

 

Still, it's got more verve and style than F.O.A.D. even if the pacing for a shorter map was ahhh, a little on the sloppy side. The initial outdoor fight with the Cyberdemon on the middle knoll was pretty nice though, the snow not being the least of reasons for that! Arch-vile replacement is beyond stupid though. Anyways, head into the next room, go forward in time, back in time, enter another white-visioned maze, engage in incidental encounters that mostly work, and at some point, engage in a close quarters battle with 2 Cyberdemons. The stupid outside-time maze was probably the worst part though. Enter brick, kill some guys, find the end, kill replacement hitscanners. Yawwwwwn. I do like how the squares in the center are in 3 different styles like the red key area of the last map. Red stone, volcanic area, and snow-covered areas are almost suggestive. Like Layers of Time. Kill the Mastermind appearing after all 3 keys, head to her corpse, go into some sort of basement dissolving into nothingness and engage in a multiple-Mastermind battle that didn't quite work out how we would've liked. No matter, it's clear this was never intended to be like F.O.A.D. so let's just take this for what it is.

 

 

 

[Crusader No Regret]

map 32: 100% kills, 18/19 secrets

 

  The secret count looks daunting but in the end, I got all but the megaarmor one in the IWAD homage area.  Turns out a bunch of the map's secrets are in the IWAD homage area and are mostly acquired the same way so familiarity will land around 40% of them before even needing to put effort into searching.  There's a number of switches almost entirely obscured by wall except for a narrow peephole that open up secrets so be on the lookout if a high secret percentage matters to you.

 

  I'm not quite sure what the intermission text and map title were getting at.  Could be a reference that went over my head.  But the setting was compelling enough even without catching all the subtext.  Early on, I thought maybe I'd returned to map 14 but without the ice, snow, and corruption.  It appears to be a new location though, at least the parts that aren't a reference to something else.  Tried jumping into the well at the cyberdemon fight anticipating a secret or hidden route, nope it was just death.  Not sure what the penalty for messing up the letter puzzle is as the idea clicked after staring at it for about a minute and I guessed correctly first try.

 

  Map has some quirks which caught my attention.  There's no cell ammo in the back portion past a one-way drop so over-dependence on the plasma rifle could very well find one dry when one wants it. (in my case, I messed up on ending the map with full ammo, though it ultimately doesn't matter due to the start of map 16) It's pretty easy to get stuck in a pitch black passage that leads to a secret.  There is a hidden switch that will light it up though the placement feels random: a texture that's never been used for a switch up until now so there's no reason to suggest that this one time, pressing use there would do something.  Feels rather easy to miss 100% kills, more so on continuous.  Some teleport ambush monsters are in random corners or other places one might not think to step into.  I still like the map overall though these little details bemuse me.

[Celestin]

MAP21: Misery

 

The dominant colour of the final episode is black - the burnt metal reminds me of UAC Ultra a lot and it's an aesthetic I've always liked. I can't say the same about the combat. It's yet again island hopping and taking out teleport ambushes. There's one good fight and that's the rocket launcher secret - an archvile mixed into a crowd of revenants is a welcomed change after taking out hitscanners or invisible monsters in the tunnels.

 

Aside from its new look, Misery feels like a rehash of concepts I've seen in this wad before.

[Pechudin]

MAP21: Misery (UV, PS, No-Save)
And here we are in the third episode. The theme is Black, and the music from now on is mostly going to be ambient drones which combined with the overall dark theme give a really uncomfortable feeling, which work to the map's benefit. The theme will get a bit stale by the episode's end but for now the blood inscriptions on the walls are disconcerting. Well, at least it's not TNT written in blood or "Romero".

The gameplay is a bit of a rehash of the previous maps - jumping from one block-island to another and - actually I need to talk about that seamless transition that makes you really believe you were walking on the roof of a real building - the effect is almost un-noticeable until you think about it. Granted, this is not the first time it was used (MAP17 used it first) but this combined with the underground cave really sells the feeling of 3D space.

The cave is jagged, tight and populated with the Invisi-Imps and Spectres which are almost invisible in the gray environment. Use that Chaingun and just spray the air in front of you. I found the secret RL and here I have to agree with the Entity - the RL really makes no difference since all combat is either against small groups of low tiers or VERY close quarters. About the only thing it was useful for was dispatching the Archie in the secret itself.

So, that's the first map of the 3rd episode. In my opinion the quality of the maps is about on par with E2 but the atmosphere, dark and oppressive, can get a bit tired. The music choice is probably the main culprit there since it's all drones except the couple of final maps. They do make you creep forward, checking every corner, especially with the Kain's habit of silently repopulating the already visited areas.

EDIT: The red letters on the floor make a comeback. They are a bit edgy. The edge will get more pronounced. I think the Entity may have some anger issues.

[espilka]

MAP22 Whispers - K: 90% / S: 33% (HMP, continuous)

 

Here we go... first things first, i had to play this map in two parts because after managing the RSK section and then losing sight of the WSK i got too overwhelmed by it all to continue for a few hours, after finally realizing it's time to traverse to the other side, where i had gone first but managing to effect nothing but some kills, and deaths.

 

But yes, kid gloves are off, on all respects.  Especially regarding the highly complex non-linear progression in some of the most expansive and intricate layouts.  i have no idea if i'm making the combat difficult for myself for no reason or what it is about the use of the enemies but i tend to just get killed as it was my maiden run on HNTR.  Of course, the most hardest part is the RSK section, with jump pads, damaging floor, Arachnotrons and Hell Knights firing freely at you as you simply try to get away... only to finally figure out, you can't get away before you realize one more jump pad needs to be activated (and you didn't just make a limp jump), located amid the lava floors.  Coming back from eventually getting the WSK, there was a rather nasty ambush with the hooded figures, Pinkies and Fiends... that also took me many tries to get through, whereas most of the situations i cleared at least on second try.

 

It's gorgeous, grotesque, haunting, intriguing, a bitch to play, and brilliant - and eldritch.  Like i said before, the visuals were very good before, but now they have been taken to another level.  And even if it's makes me feel like the newbie that i was years ago, struggling to get through an easier version of the events on HNTR, now having the same struggle on HMP, i love every aspect of it.   At least i managed to find one of the secrets this time, the RL and few goodies beside it, in the grotto.  This all took me over an hour and ten minutes, by the way - though i did use some time to try and find rest of the secrets to no avail.  i left some baddies alive, particularly along the pathway at the end of which was available some weaponry and ammunition.  And this map did not even have a single Cyberdemon.

[_goofyguy]

MAP18 - Stellar Tombs

In this level, you have to go through some tombs of course. The atmosphere here is quite well done, with the short ceilings and the egyptian style soundtrack with the bassline that hurts my ears. Shorter than the last few levels. Not much to say honestly.

 

MAP19 - Broken Mirror

Another shorter level. Not much to say on this one as well, which is never a bad thing I suppose. I will say, the red key room where it keeps teleporting away was fun mostly due to ‘ah that gosh darn key has done it again, where is he this time’. Hopefully future levels will have more for me to say, haha

[LadyMistDragon]

(Played yesterday and I've....other issue affecting my thinking so don't expect too much. (yaaaaaay!))

 

Map 21: Misery

 

Well, here we are! We will find out just how foolish the hell creatures were, with all their spiked corpses being scattered seemingly everywhere in....what sort of resembles a more gray-hued and darker version of an average techbase but with clear signs of unholy demonic architecture that might not have anything to do with hell for all I know. But once again, this map proves to be centered on jump pads. Although it's easy to miss the one that goes underground since it's a but separate from the rest of the other islands. The menacing ambience is certainly appropriate though. In particular, transparent Imps are now incredibly likely to be found in areas where they're hard to spot, causing health to naturally drop whenever they're encountered, with a close-quarters cave where we press a switch to activate a jump pad back having especial notability here. I haven't said much about the combat and that's because it's not terribly difficult, being as this is an episode opener. Sure, the ambush where we return to the island with the now-working jumppad is kind of a lot, especially if the hidden rocket launcher hasn't been located, but it's not overwhelming by any means. Also, it's annoyingly easy to overshoot the last island.

 

 

 

[Celestin]

MAP22: Whispers

 

I didn't expect such turn towards horror. Whispers is a creepy map, from gruesome decoration to soundtrack that would fit right into Quake, the foreboding atmosphere is unlike this wad displayed. A slow pacing helps a lot here, with long pauses between encounters making you anticipate something horrific. 

 

The combat is your typical Sign of Torment stuff, that means a lot of incidental fights and teleport traps. Bigger setpieces boil down to running around and firing rockets at the nearest enemy. What makes them harder than usual is a sparse health placement and a ton of hitscanners. 

[Crusader No Regret]

Map 16: 100% kills, 0/2 secrets

 

A curious mix of good ideas, bemusing moments, routine progression, and aggravation.  Putting in a form of a list.

 

Good ideas:

 

- Having a choice of which path to take at the start

- Providing visual cues to indicate which jumppads are active and which switches have already been activated in the large jumppad chamber.  This area also raises the skill requirement on jumppad challenges asking for skill with dealing with landing on slippery or damaging ground.  Thankfully, the ground around the jumppads themselves is always safe and stable to enable lining up correctly with them.

 

Bemusement:

 

- Runaway key.  Won't be the last time either that gimmick gets use.

- Cyber in the white lake.  It's so tall that its head sticks out, making it simple to shoot at it from the shore.

- In the crate room, how one side warps in turret chaingunners and replaces them with revenants while the other side reverses the monster order.

- Another map where one cannot return to the start room after leaving it.  Might as well top off any spent resources.

 

Aggravation:

 

- The crusher segment.  There's no helpful secret to skip it this time and unless one chooses to start with it, requires doing it twice.

- The secrets dangling tauntingly just out of reach and not working out how to access either.  I really would have liked that SSG in particular.

- Jumppad placement in the crate area.  Running at one when it's not active will most likely result in plunging into inescapable acid.  Conversely, trying to walk over one like it's solid ground (the case when a jumppad isn't active) when one is will also likely result in death.

 

map 17: 100% kills, 0/1 secrets

 

   The distinct visual style and some interesting Boom feature use help raise the memorability of this one.  Not the first time the set has used solid white and black for walls and relying on noticing color contrasts to help navigate but for some inexplicable reason felt more memorable here.  The speedy red demons make their introduction here and can pile on the damage if they get on your flank unnoticed.  Don't have a name, at least as far as ZDoom obituaries are concerned when dying to one.  They're too fast on the draw to safely chainsaw so other means (including berserk punch) are preferable to dealing with them without injury.

 

  Beyond the white door has the most interesting environments of the map.  The ground on the islands to hop between are changing from safe to harmful at timed intervals.  There's a few safe spots to take advantage of if you want to catch your breath.  There's the building where one lands on the roof and can also enter (thanks to clever Boom feature usage) that others have already spoken about.  There's the cyber duel back at the islands.  I found it easier to mostly stick to a safe spot and take the damage from the lava if it comes to that to dodge rockets than to jump around the islands.

 

  Rest of the map isn't as notable.  Not bad, just not coming up with words to say about it.

 

Map 18: 100% kills, 3/3 secrets

 

  For a welcome change, got all the secrets.  The berserk one dangled tauntingly out of reach but it turns out to be simple to access.

 

  Starts out looking like a tomb level that would fit in a variety of themes, a departure from what I'm used to from established Sign of Torment style.  The fallen ladder is a neat bit of detail.  After going for so long without a backpack, felt anti-climactic to have one handed out in the open though not complaining.  Fairly simple map to blast through, enjoyable enough.  Only died because of getting greedy trying to bait infights though did come close to death once from the "behind you" ambush due to my own inattentiveness.  The Boom feature use is rather restrained here, with only a few jumppads and slippery ground patches to contend with.

 

I almost got 100% items here too save for one 1% bonus that was located in a place I couldn't backtrack to.  So close.

Edited October 22, 2023 by Crusader No Regret : added map 18 writeup

[espilka]

MAP23 Die Alone - K: 99% / S: 0% (HMP, continuous)

 

Continuing partly in the same vain, the map has a couple of surprises.  After the running start, you soon find yourself in a pit surrounded by Arax and Manx.  This fight gave me considerable problems before, whilst now i got through considerably better, just blasting the Arax at first with rockets as fast as possible, and since i couldn't quite do that before it leaves me to suspect there's some alteration to the fight - but maybe not, maybe i just somehow did it wrong before?

 

Then there's a section in a ruined dark techbase, and i still couldn't figure out the secret plasma rifle - which, i suspect, would prove to simpler than one expects.  The finale is something else, though - at least flirting with slaughter.. you now return outside of the starting building, and the tens and tens of Revenants you flee from at first are now waiting for you, along with a couple of Cyberdemons.  Plenty of rockets and plasma are available, but it's still for me pretty tough going when you open the door and they start swarming out.  Infighting is a thing here, too, and at least they killed one Cyberdemon for me behind closed doors.

 

Died quite a few times along the way, but dying is the new normal in the third episode - though i'm sure with practice it'd be doable with at least a small amount of deaths only.  Even the final Cybie standing inside the building wasn't easy to kill, thanks to the precarious surroundings, even with the improved plasma rifle.  The Arch-Vile fight in the blackened techbase gettin the WK was pretty mean, not having got the plasma rifle - took me a few attempts to run to safety.  It's a good map with some creepy moments, even if much simpler than the last one, near linear - par for the course.  Very atmospheric and beautiful, as well as interesting to play.  Still, to be honest, have some ambivalence about how i feel about it - but that might not be a bad thing once in a while.

[_goofyguy]

MAP20 - The Decay of Disregard

Last map of Episode 2! And it's a doozy, throwing you almost immediately into a blizzard of cyberdemons and archviles. The cyberdemons are used pretty consistently throughout the level, which is fair enough considering they're somewhat easier to take down with the BFG4200 that is the plasmagun. This level also marks the first appearance of the Spider Mastermind, runner-up for Most Disappointing Final Boss. Since we don't have the bfg, they're more of a problem to deal with, although the invisiball and infighting certainly helps. Some mediocre puzzles and a decent atmosphere completes this level. Overall, I like it a hell of a lot more than F.O.A.D. Easier? Certainly, though still not easy. It just seems to do everything better. Looking forward to the last episode.

[Celestin]

 

MAP23: Die Alone

 

The floors and ceilings are plastered with a word "die" - whatever is following the player character, it clearly is fed up with them. Indeed, Die Alone is harder than previous maps, with traps that are intended to murder the player.

 

The map begins in a corridor of revenants, where you have to run forward to a jump pad at the end. It leads to a pit with arachnotrons and later mancubi on the edge, shelling you while you have to run around and not die. A dark techbase that follows leaves little impression, aside from a plasma rifle bait. This one got me, I won't lie.

There's one setpiece I didn't enjoy, it involves a string of floating island connected by jump pads, with a cyberdemon in the middle. I still don't like jump pads and I doubt it will change. The ending is fun, as you return to the start where you can make the revenants infight a pair of cyberdemons.

 

Like MAP22, Die Alone has a great atmosphere and some good fights, yet there are still elements I don't find as good as they could have been.

[UUN4]

MAP22: Whispers

UV | Pistol Start | Saves used

K: 64% | I: 68% | S: 0%

I don't usually do well with scary stuff in general, so people mentioning that this level is a horror-centric one made me anxious. The few Doom WADs I've played I wouldn't consider scary at all; I suppose most of the "horror" of those came from combat encounters. However, this level had me on edge from beginning to end as a genuine horror level (especially helped by the music, aesthetics, and general atmosphere). I felt anxious every time I turned a corner or opened a door, ready to shoot at whatever might appear (the voodoo doll in the chainsaw hallway definitely got me enough to shoot it and take damage). The actual combat lowkey served as a breather from the level's horror vibe since shooting stuff is the backbone of Doom and I know how to shoot stuff. In any case, I'm happy I managed to get at least somewhat out of my comfort zone with Whispers.

 

MAP23: Die Alone

UV | Pistol Start | Saves used

K: 90% | I: 22% | S: 0%

I don't have too much to say on this level. The initial segment of the level telling you to run into and out of a hall of revenants and then later having said revenants infight with cyberdemon(s) at the end was fun. The very-obviously-trapped plasma gun "secret" was pretty funny; the level also straight up telling me "die you piece of shit" was also pretty funny (I admittedly have only paid attention to bits and fragments of the story, but I vaguely know that something is just fuming at us going by the red text throughout the WAD). I agree on Celestin that the jump pads don't really make for good combat elements since they aren't consistent enough to be reliable (although - unrelated to this level - they make for pretty good exploration), as evidenced by the aforementioned fight with the cyberdemon surrounded by a string of floating islands.

[General Roasterock]

Map 19: Broken Mirror

Spoiler

 

  The first fight I’ve struggled with in the wad so far was the one with the four switches in the achromatic gazebo, and that was solely because I pressed all four at once and wanted to see what happened. It turns out that flooding the room with monsters makes it hard, but I’m happy to get a challenge. 

  Every time I see the ornate stonemasonry come around in these maps, I am far more interested in the way that architecture is going. The circular room by the secret that shifts to another set of colors was a pretty impressive way to show what is ultimately an inconsequential shift in reality. It’s more interesting than going into the blank world to either scrape the wall until I find another color or keep the automap open, because let’s be honest that’s what this whole thread is doing. I would much rather have the dicing of castles by hell’s influence than to simply close my eyes.

 

 

Map 20: The Decay of Disregard

Spoiler

 

  If there’s one thing I can count on Kain for, it’s the placement of a boss monster. As the difficulty shakes upwards, the whole desire for making the fights harder is definitely noticeable. I’m torn on the double Cybers guarding the Red Skull, because it’s a really threatening fight that teeters on aggravating with how little space you have to fight against rockets. Between that and the opening romp, I felt demanded for a lot more of my focus, and it was a riot. I’m glad that the Spider Mastermind retains her stature, and this map seems to make up for her absence and then some. It’s not the best invis abuse I’ve seen but it’s one that proves confidence in the powerup. 

  Overall, I’m happy that the entire episode did more to expand upon the universe than simply saying that it was dipped into an entire bucket of ivory paint. Having this alien world connected to another realm so dark that the spot on the floor is shitting its pants about you going there is a good transitional story beat. 

 

 

Map 21: Misery

Spoiler

 

  This is the exact kind of environment where this wad should excel. From the abstraction in nullspace, to the context sharp with edge, clearly Kain is in his element. The whole hog nature of dropping straight into super torture hell, filled with meat hooks, flaying, machinery of gore, all the things that could add to this environment. The music now being beyond MIDI format has free range to drone on and suggest the death that hangs around. It makes flesh hell look downright goofy by comparison. 

  The combat has also gotten substantially more threatening on a consistent level. I had not even mentioned the Blood Fiends up until this point because they were inconsequential to the fights, but now they’re keys of a balancing act of handling immediate threats vs. longer range hitscan damage. 

 

 

Map 22: Whispers

Spoiler

 

  This is the second map that has taken me over half an hour to finish. I am very thankful that the quality of this megawad keeps things interesting. Whenever I think there’s a stride that’s going to begin the golden age for this levelset, I am greeted with another batch of rectangular hyperdetailed rooms set with hitscanner ambushes that refill upon a single backtrack, because that’s exactly why I’m playing a set advertised as a narrative thriller. At least the voices are more talkative now, hinting at Doomguy or his species’ involvement with the destruction brought about by Hell. It’s something. I even was a bit unnerved at the sudden flash overwhelmed by curses of the text.

  That’s all I have good to say. The jumppads are still momentum inconsistent, some needing a running start, some needing a single step in order to not throw you into deep space. The whole White Skull section is goofball logic, and I ended up doing the platforming portion twice before the key was even there. Spectre Imps are now wearing out their welcome, as the environments are dark enough to where they go nearly invisible at any range, and there’s no windup to their attack like a traditional Spectre so you’re likely to just watch a fireball teleport in front of your face. The Super Shotgun being in a secret is criminal, as you are chaingunning most of this map down without it. This should've been the one called Misery, it fits.

 

 

[Pechudin]

MAP22: Whispers (UV, PS, Saves: HELL YES WTF YOU THINK IMMA DO THIS SAVELESS???)

So, to those who are doing this saveless.

 

ARE YOU INSANE??

 

Probably noone, because this is where the gloves are off and instead hitscanner-ambush-no-health spiked knuckles are donned instead. I am torn on this map. The oppressive and ruthless atmosphere is very well done, everything kind of works towards that purpose:

• not a lot of health combined with silent teleports amps up the paranoia
• that amazing flash-to-the-"DIE"-room was startling
• jagged geometry makes even the walls themselves intensely hostile - combine that with your only reliable big damage dealer being the RL

The encounters themselves (the setpieces) are also much more substantial - the map's only AV is used well, the Mancubus ambush is butt-clenching and the HK/BoH fight is interesting - kill the weaker HKs to reduce the number of angles enemies can get you from. It's obvious Kain has fully released the malicious self and I am there for it.

 

On the other hand, this map provokes intense frustration as well. The centerpiece of this is the god-damned HK/Arachnotron fight. I must've reloaded that one like 30 times before figuring out I could just nab the RSK and leave (even that is not too easy), and it's all due to the jankiness of the jumppads. Awful fight. The Mancubus fight has decorations which block your RL shots which is annoying, and the platforming up to the final WSK's resting place is also a crapshoot (ok that one is on me).

 

But ... on the other hand that kind of makes sense, no?? This episode is supposed to feel unwelcoming. Does that excuse the objectively hostile deisgn? Without knowing the mapper's intent I cannot know. I will say this, however - I accept it. For now.

 

EDIT: This is probably the closest vanilla-ish Doom can get to slow creeping horror style. I like it, and it's thematically consistent with the October. Also, I will not even mention the tricks that are commonplace now - sliding doors, 3D spaces etc. I just wish those decorations weren't in the way all the time.

 

Oh, the story as well! It seems like the Entity is reminding us of some of our misdeeds. Perhaps they are referring to the reason we were imprisoned (if you recall - we were a prisoner and this mission is our chance for redemption - that ship has sailed). or perhaps it was the misdeed that attracted the Entity? Kinda reminds me of the story of Insanity's Edged and Winter's Fury.

Edited October 23, 2023 by Pechudin

[LadyMistDragon]

Map 23: Die Alone

 

You know, I think this whole thing would be more effective if the word "DIE" wasn't pasted in literally every section of square footage in parts. But in most ways, this is an unqualified success. There's still little incidental sections and a look hardly different from the preceding two maps, but at the same time, there's plenty of cool little stuff. For instance, take the "Secret" door after having already found the hidden plasma rifle (by pressing a purple-lighted computer in an obscure room with nothing else), then end up in a room of lava! We can exit out of here easily enough.

 

The white key setpiece was pretty nice! It's always nice to deal out against Arch-viles and there's two of them here! As predicted, we can telefrag the far Cyberdemon after going through a surprisingly engaging series of jump-pads. The ending though.....we're expected to run from the Revenants at the beginning, but the issue is that we've got to deal with them as well as a Cyberdemon or two in quite a small room! More oddly, there's a chaingunner apir  and Arch-vile that are kind of toothless because hiding from them takes little effort. Anyways, I'm a little low on energy so I just ran for the exit as soon as sufficient room had been cleared out. But if there's more ambushes like this one, things are looking up!

 

 

[General Roasterock]

Map 23: Die Alone

 

  I feel like the subtext is trying to say something.

  As funny as it is to see the entire map look like a scribbling of the notebook of a teenager who’s just been grounded, the juxtaposition of having this against this new white text works. At least it works until the white text leads to a trap and confuses its whole purpose without even a hint of influence from old red. Again, the Cyberdemons are killer. The sniping one on the cliff fight brought about good tension and made the void believable with the way the islands are scattered about, and the two fighting the Revenant mass at the start was a cool reincorporation. However, that mass is probably what kept me hooked for most of the experience. I knew I would eventually have to go back and fight that horde somehow, and after being armed with a beachhead’s worth of explosives around the exit, I was prepared. It was a bit of a let down for the wave to be crippled by Cyberdemons, but it wasn’t a wrong way to handle it.

[Crusader No Regret]

map 19: 100% kills, 2/3 secrets

 

  Never did solve the mystery of the one room which flips realities when crossing the halfway point and I suspect is involved in the missing secret.  Oh well.

 

  Forgot about parts of the map soon after playing it.  This includes the whole red key segment which is interesting now that my memory has been jogged.  Kind of frantic since one enters via a one-way lift into a surrounded situation and it's a scramble to reach a defensible position.  Balancing on platforms over liquid while chasing a runaway key is also an interesting setpiece.

 

Short on words to say about this map.  Maybe I'll go back later and add more.

 

map 20: 100% kills, 0/1 secrets

 

  Correctly called that the starting chamber cannot be re-entered after leaving.  Played the map through 2-3 times and even with the megasphere, the opening fight seemed to pummel me down to around 20-30 health each time.  Progression is rather intuitive.  Venture into side areas to find the keys.  Bring them to a central area and use them to open up the path.  Use the transport switches to access the various side areas.  There's a number of cybers to slay, with the pair in the enclosed library being the most tense.  Having buffed guns definitely twisted the encounter into my favor as lightning upgrade + Thunderbolt upgrade let me unload plasma at them with drastically reduced risk of retaliation.  The area reminiscent of E1M6 felt like a breather with no cybers to grind down.

  Upon using all the keys to open up the path to the exit, map closes out with a 4 spiderdemon brawl.  Grabbed the invis, bait them into infighting, finish off the survivor.  Easy and enjoyable enough closer to the map.  One more spiderdemon to hose down, a death exit, and end of episode and kicked back to the title screen.  Secret sense was not working here and not a lot of incentive to track it down on continuous.

[_goofyguy]

MAP21 - Misery
Holy shit.

First level of the last episode, the black themed one, and the ambience gets real the second you start the level. The music is fucking terrifying like something out of a rom hack horror, the level decoration is horrific, and to top it all off, the invisible imps blend in perfectly with the background. Where was this in the first episode???
Otherwise, a good first level. Combat's relatively simple (Well, about as simple as you can get with camouflaged imps and revenants), The jump pads are back yet again. Seriously, this shit belongs in a horror game.

MAP22 - Whispers

Yeah, like I said, more horror game stuff. Music's still horrifying, the brief room transition into being plastered with the word 'die', areas that sure as shit look like they're battle arenas but turn out to be COMPLETELY EMPTY. The combat in is level is a relief from the constant dread this level places on you. Even more jumpads, but I'd be lying if these aren't some of my new favorite levels just for the horror.
And I don't even PLAY horror games!

[espilka]

MAP24 Save My Life - K: 100% / S: 0% (HMP, continuous)

 

Comparing the stats on Doomwiki to HNTR, i really doubted my ability to get through this, but decided not to chicken out just yet after all.  Well, the increased Arch-Vile count presents considerable problems, but for sure not more so than the map in general.  Besides, it's once again an incredible map, so let's not allow fear to stop us from continuing to the chalky end.

 

One of my Top 3 favourite moments of the set was here, the Cyberdemon double entendre, where you stand between them in void-corridors while they have their way with you.  It's not a moment to be particularly literary so on my maiden run (blush!) when faced with the situation i was quite at a loss, ha-ha!  i emerged now with 1% health, and after trying to redo it, result was the same.  Well, they are big and rough.

 

i lost count how many Arch-Viles were on that RSK platform, but that was probably the toughest encounter.  The Cyberdemon too should not be that difficult to kill but he is - plus that health tends to go once again particularly low so any tiny weebit of damage from him means the end.  Kind of hard to avoid amid those platforms!  The Spidermama encounter was baffling at first, but manageable when taking the unexpected direct approach.. at least there's stimpacks to help the player on his way :D  Who needs Megaspheres or Soulspheres for such trifles as running through lava gunned down by an angry big-brained bitch?

 

My words would fail at describing the grotesque beauty of the library with raining blood.  It works.  Loved the small effect of the Spectral Imps turning red when shooting at them.  The ambush was deadly.  i lost count but 5-7 tries was required (how does the health get so low here?)  i survived the Cacodemon-Mancubus ambush amid the basalt rocks - probably my finest performance in the map.

 

Everything in this map is as it should be.  i'd usually complain about the meanness of the set, but here it is justified thematically, and managing to crawl through the ordeal gets one sanctified.  But one thing is for sure.  It doesn't get better.

 

Regarding the controversial jump pads, in their defense i do disagree that they'd be dodgy in any way.  For me they are reliable and consistent, and for example in MAP23 they were not the problem for me once, not even in those platforms with the Cyberdemon in the middle.  Maybe it's possible some ports handle them slightly differently?, but i'm playing in Woof! without any issues with them.

[Celestin]

MAP24: Save my Life

I've been thinking if the writings you see on the floors are visualisation of thoughts that something is sending through the protagonist's mind. If so, I can imagine some eldrich presence flooding his minds with hateful calls to kill himself. And succeeding a lot.

 

Save my Life is another three-way hub with some interesting fights. The one where a wall of pinkies is pushed towards you on a conveyor belt is clever and caught me by surprise. The part where you are trapped in a crossfire between two cyberdemons and somehow don't die (I think it's some trick with death exit, but I'm not sure) was strange, but otherwise harmless. On the other hand, there's the red key fight, which is the cheapest encounter I've seen in a while. Tiny arena, four archviles that revive monsters killed in a previous fight and a mounted cyberdemon that can hit you even if you're hiding behind cover is a recipe for a long string of deaths. If you're low on health here, you are screwed, because Kain doesn't like placing medikits outside the hub.

 

Outside this one fight, it's a solid map.

[Azure_Horror]

1 hour ago, Celestin said:

On the other hand, there's the red key fight, which is the cheapest encounter I've seen in a while. Tiny arena, four archviles that revive monsters killed in a previous fight and a mounted cyberdemon that can hit you even if you're hiding behind cover is a recipe for a long string of deaths.

 

This fight was brutal for me too.

But I am not sure, that I am ready to call it cheap: There is a tiny semi-safe spot on the jump pad platform, right in front of the cyberdemon. By carefully dancing on that spot, it is possible destroy the cyberdemon, while avoiding all the damaging things (mostly, cyber rockets and archvile fires, but some projectiles can appear too). After the cyber is done for, there is just enough cover on the arena below to ambush at least some of the viles. With viles dead and/or lured away from the escape jump-pad, you can leave the arena. After that, you are in much better position: you can shoot rockets from outside the arena and you also can raid the rest of the map for resources.

 

All in all, the red skull fight reminded me of ultra-challenging genre (think Wormwood WADs, Sunlust, Fractured Worlds, etc.) - it is merciless, but there seems to be a way to dismantle it reliably... That said, I didn't have enough time to test if my approach can be made 100% consistent with enough practice - so I may be wrong in my assessment of this encounter. It still may turn out to be too RNG dependent, no matter how hard one tries to prepare...

[General Roasterock]

Map 24: Save My Life

 

  Ugh.

  I have been turning a blind eye to how obviously tryhard the words on the ground have been for this entire set because I felt like it would improve as the maps did. If anything it’s gotten worse. The temper tantrum throughout the last map is still going, confusingly bouncing back and forth in tone between “this land is so horrible that you would be better off ending your own life now” and “I FUCKING HATE YOU GRAAAAH”. I don’t care if you put my whole address right next to it, walking into a room in Doom and being greeted with big sector art saying “Kill yourself” is hilarious, and yet its played in this wad like it’s the coolest thing ever, that some malevolent force is badgering you intermittently. It’s not.

  What the hell even was the double Cyberdemon room? They can’t kill you because of the exit floor trick where the player is invincible while standing partially above an exit floor. Why am I here? All they do is bash you down to 1 HP and then die off screen. I wish the wad showed torment of the player in this way more often, as its on theme with what the text says that we’re going through, despite the usual Doomguy spirit prevailing through every level thus far. Instead, it’s been an hour or so after I’ve played this and I only remember those things and a couple Arch-Vile fights that shot the difficult curve up, if not unreasonably. I didn't have as much of a problem with the Red Key. The angles out of view of the Cyberdemon are enough, and the damage potential of the new PR does enough to put the Viles down before they can corner you. It's the first time I've really noticed how much of a benefit it is for specifically immediate pressure, and probably why it is so heavily encouraged whenever it shows up in a map. It doesn't save anything, but it's not a cinderblock shoe either. 

[LadyMistDragon]

Map 24: Save My Life

 

The background menace that has been evident through the previous three maps suddenly decides to become much more present here! The messages aren't any more pointed and the constant refrain of "DIE" is starting to go beyond parody. No matter, this was an extremely interesting map and now my favorite of the megawad so far!

 

For instance, the void areas have suddenly become considerably more menacing for no other reason than the foreground in them now feels much closer and gives an extra little bit of tension. I'm not entirely certain that the main character is convinced the entity is serious, but that's not terribly important. What's important is what the impact of it is making us feel.

 

In any case, heading up some stairs through another room and into a battlement without having encountered anything can't be good....and indeed, we are charged by a whole host of pinkies that thanks to some floor physics appear to move just as fast as Mauler Demons! But we can hit the switch behind them once they are dead that opens a series of portals. This will culminate in the black key, whose acqusition triggers an incredibly vicious trap consisting of a frontal assault squad of Mauler Demons, Undead Warriors on platforms and andArch-viles behind everything else with a Cyberdemon overseeing everything else But wait, it's not over! At some point before we can put down the Cyber, another Arch-vile along with a Mauler Demon or two appears!  Kain is really starting to become quite skilled at springing Arch-viles at inopportune moments and they....I forgot where I was going. Oh well, no time!

 

So we find the black skull key door, which both leads us back to a certain central hallway and leads us to a number of options. One is a particularly scary-looking void and on the other end is one somewhat less intimidating....lmao. We encounter some hitscanners killed fairly quickly with the plasma rifle but at the very end....an ambush of Mauler Demons and Revenants awaits, along with some hell knight turrets and it takes a good amount of luck to get through. Maybe one might want to leave some Revs alive but that will likely make things more difficult. See, hitting the switch at the top reveals in addition to a Cyberdemon directly in front, at least THREE Arch-viles! Rocketing might be the best way to deal with these guys, but that assumes they all don't just make a beeline in our direction. I'm with Azure Horror on this one and don't view it as being unfair, despite the rather incompetent gameplay on display.

 

After this, we enter a bloody library, with a series of traps on the way to getting a plasma rifle! One of these traps throws a large group of transparent Imps our way, and it's here the surprisingly spooky bloody rain leaves us with an advantage because the Imps' shapes really stand out here! Plasma rifle ends with two Arch-viles and Mauler Demons. This would be sadly predictable at some times, but right now, we don't care!

 

Finally, we head to the first void mentioned earlier, which ends with a portal to a cave, and upon taking three steps...we're transported to an extra-dimensional space where two Cyberdemons will almost certainly reduce us to 1 percent health before shooting the two switches that take us back to the previous cave! Anyway, we transport to a basin with a formation in the middle and once we press the switch on top, Cacodemons and Mancubi attack us. Protip: you don't have to stay in the center. Although it's still quite tricky.

 

The last bit...well, unfortunately, the Revenants can't all be targeted reliably because they're in alcoves that are too high up to fire consistently, but the other challenges here are fine, although we probably didn't need another Arch-vile at the switch.

 

From here, we can finally collect the white key and get the hell out of here. Very cool level, with encounters that leave a serious impact, even though the monster count sits around 110.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Pechudin]

MAP23: Die Alone (UV, PS, Saves: Yes)

I'll have to concur with Roasterock here, this one is leaving my memory mere minutes after I finished playing it. The start is ear-shattering but brief, after which a somewhat entertaining Arachnotron/Manc circle-pit follows. Had my first death at the AV/Imp trap - kind of expected them since the pillars were there.

 

I forgot this map had the Hatred-level edge in it. I laughed out loud when the "Die you POS" appeared, but Kain later informed me the message is not for the player per se. Unsure what that means, I hope the message is not for us (as in the player in front of the monitor), that'd be a bit much. I am also growing a bit tired of the myriad teleport traps. The Cyberdemon fight was pretty easy, just jump without stopping too much and it's done. The final fight was not too hard either (what were those AVs for if we can dispose of them before opening the doors?). The Dark Plasma chews through the Cyberdemons pretty quickly.

 

The "Secret" was expected but funny. Also - does the letters being in white indicate a second presence? Verdict - ech, I'm tired. Not feeling this map, chief.

[Celestin]

MAP25: Everlasting Pain

 

Everlasting Pain takes a Tricks and Traps approach to design, meaning there is a central hub and you need to search its spokes for the way forward. The problem is, the hub is a tiny room with a cyberdemon in the middle, which you are not allowed to kill until the very end of the level. You'll have to run back an forth through this place, each time risking catching a rocket. I feel bad for anyone trying to beat this saveless, as it's a roll of a dice if you die or not.

 

The map requires you to find six keys, each one guarded a self-contained challenge. Most of them are creative, but also annoying, especially because none of them contain health. There are medikits in a room by the hub, but it again requires you to get past the cyberdemon. As for the keys themselves, there's a dark room where enemies attack you from the shadows, circle-strafing around a spiderdemon and a crowd of revenants, jump pad obstacle course, a surprise attack of shadow imps and two sections where you have to spam rockets towards the enemies. The one with imps and platforms of hell knights is the hardest fight of the map, again, due to a lack of health and projectiles flying from every direction.

 

I'm not a fan of this one, the lack of health and cramped design makes it annoying to play.

 

I'm skipping voting for now, I'd like to see what gets recommended for the next month.

[Horus]

+++Garrulismo

+++Good Morning Phobos

+++Nostalgia

[Pechudin]

MAP24: Save my Life (UV, PS, Saves: Yes)

The map should've been called The Wailing Void or something. Really digging the music, especially the faint chime that feels like it was taken from some Horror RPG Maker game.

 

The dark void asthetics is still not quite wearing out for me, and the red letters on the floor have become the background noise. Kain REALLY comitted to this theme here, but I can't imagine it was fun pasting those sectors everywhere. I liked the starting techbase - something resembling the original human architecture that was left not completely corrupted. The Entity is growing hostile as well, with some morbid suggestions that perhaps should merit a content warning?? I laughed a bit at the "Unalive yourself" - perhaps a missed opportunity to have a joke death exit here (alas, that'd completely shatter the atmosphere this WAD is going for). The final message - "It's not going to get better" can be interpreted in two ways - a good and a bad one, hope it's not the second one.

 

As the fights go, it's a mixed bag. There's some nice tight fights like the library fight which makes the invisi-Imps easier to see in blood rain - something that I think Kain will not in this WAD, which is a golden opportunity that was sadly missed. I can think of some fun encounters with places you stand in to make the enemies visible. Then there's filler like the SMM crusher - completely pointless except to perhaps show that it's not only you going through torture, and the Mancubus/Caco fight. Then, there's also the bizzare like the Pinkie bumrush which is, I suppose, designed to kill you if you have the RL out. And there's the Death Exit/Cyber room where the quirk of that specific floor special keeps you from dying. Unsure what this is supposed to symbolise but I am familiar with this trick from WADs like the TNT Threevilution or Plutonia 7 (@General Roasterock), except there it's to take the piss. Perhaps it's like a flashback to a Guantanamo Bay-style torture room? Lacks some flashing lights. The room with the Revs perched on ledges was also kind of a filler.

 

The one thing that did remain in my mind is the fight that's sure to net everyone the most deaths - I audibly said "Oh shit THIS room", recalling my testing sessions. The best tactic I found was to quickly jump back, kill the Vile that spawns behind you and hug the wall, aggresively hosing down any Viles that turn the corner. This way, you are safe from the Cyber's rockets and can keep the Viles coming one at the time. I still died 4 times but surprisingly I was not too frustrated.

 

Verdict - a map that turns up the heat in the difficulty department but whose strongest card is the MIDI which is haunting but strangely calming. I just like that bell chime.