Rambling about a Doom 2 level that i love.

[DankMetal]

Don't you feel the need to make something like this when you like so much a piece of media sometimes? When someone mentions the topic of “best doom 2/Sandy Petersen levels”, I always go on a tangent about The Spirit World, so I'm writing this post to express everything I love about this map.

 

This level doesn't need an introduction, it has already left a big impression on some doomers. Go to any playthrough of this level, or to some reupload of Getting too Tense, and you will see a handful of people commenting things like “This is my favorite level!”, “One of the best maps of doom 2” “I really like the song”, etc. I'm one of them.

 

According to Sandy Petersen, this map was based on a dungeon made by his son, and it shows! There are nonsensical things on this level. The layout is freaking weird, the use of textures is a bit… funky, to say the least. It looks like something out of the mind of a kid, and that's something I will always appreciate about Sandy's level design: this childlike imagination that you can feel throughout all of his levels (maybe excluding the ones made by Tom Hall).

 

It's one of my favorite depictions of hell so far. This weird, warping dimension that challenges our perception of reality and appears to have a mind of its own. Those fleshy rooms, that spinal cord hall, and some of the enemies rising from some guts and intestines, gives me the impression that this level is, somehow, alive.

 

This also translates into the gameplay of the map. Why is there a lava throne that lowers a lift to have access to 2 skull switches? I don't know, I guess that's a tradition in Hell! There are other moments like this in the level, but they are not so overly weird that it makes the experience frustrating.

 

It also seems like Sandy wanted to take some risks with the enemy placement, too. This is the only official level with 2 Spider Demons, and near the end, you will fight against TWO archviles with little to no cover. Sure, this is nothing compared to today's standards, and Sandy gives you a good amount of invulnerability spheres, but i guess that, for its time, this was one of the scariest and most tense moments in doom.

 

And I can't talk about this level without mentioning the song that accompanies it, Getting Too Tense. Clearly inspired by Gustav Holst's “Mars Song”, this is one of the most atmospheric doom tracks ever, it really feels that you are near the end of your journey, and hell is throwing everything that it has at you. One of my favorite tracks in all of doom, honestly.

 

Spoiler

Doom 2:

 

 

Gustav Holst:

 

(CURSE YOU FREAKING COPYRIGHT BOT)

 

I know that Sandy gets a lot of mockery for doing some of the most infamous levels in both doom 1 and 2, but let's be honest, neither Romero or McGee could ever make something as visceral, raw, and experimental as “The Spirit World”.

 

What do you think about this level? Do you like it, hate it, ordon't care about his existence? Is there any level that makes you feel this way? I would be more than interested in reading your comments!

 

Thanks to @DoomGappyfor helping me out writing this.

[fruity lerlups]

maps 26 to 29 are all 👌. id really backloaded their best work on that.

[Plerb]

It's interesting how songs derived from Mars, the Bringer of War are a common theme throughout id Software games that Bobby Prince scored. Commander Keen 5's last level straight up uses that song, and both The Ultimate Challenge from Wolfenstein 3D (which was also in Doom 2) and Getting Too Tense are derived from it.

[Individualised]

11 minutes ago, Plerb said:

It's interesting how songs derived from Mars, the Bringer of War are a common theme throughout id Software games that Bobby Prince scored. Commander Keen 5's last level straight up uses that song, and both The Ultimate Challenge from Wolfenstein 3D (which was also in Doom 2) and Getting Too Tense are derived from it.

Getting too Tense also features Bobby's signature motif. I wonder if that was an intentional choice as a nod to how often he was inspired by that song.

[DoomGappy]

I have started to feel the same way about e1m5 recently, after replaying episode 1 a lot for Amalgoom. I also have a specific fondnes for doom2 map11. These are the two striking ones from the original games, and perhaps it's because of the specific action packed run-and-gun-and-get-behind-cover way these levels play. 

[Xeogred]

I won't say I love it but it's definitely iconic and has some strange personality. According to my last notes on another UV/PS run a few years ago, the beginning pissed me off haha. "Stupid beginning, just run to get invulnerbility and better items. Red door hunt."

 

Overall though, I'm actually a big fan of Sandy Peterson's weird maps (with the exception of The Citadel, hate that one). I think Sandy himself joked nobody would want new maps from him nowadays like Romero is cooking up... but dang, I'd be pretty excited to play some new maps from him myself... it's not really a style anyone else can replicate. Although Doom 2 The Way id Did is an excellent megawad in my book and captures the spirit of Doom 2 in general.

[cannonball]

The Spirit world isn’t in my opinion Sandy’s best work, but it is fun to play and if you know how to route it. Then you can blaze through most of this with a bright white screen obliterating everything with the BFG. By todays standards Sandy could have been meaner but back then the map is just good fun and harks back to the aesthetics of some of Inferno’s maps.

PS thanks for writing this, it is always great to see someone put their passion so eloquently into words.

[JoJo_BadDoom]

Always loved this level, feels like an adventure

[Maximum Matt]

Shootable wall to open the final door, with no clue for it.

False walls hiding enemy nooks.

Five invulnerabilities.  

Two of the northernmost rooms are inessential.

Pits in the final room you can fall and get stuck in (in HNTR).

Nah, this level ain't Sandman's best. 

[Noiser]

I love the texture choices in this map, and the main alcove with bright red walls are very iconic!

[prfunky]

Oh right, Spirit World! Yah, I'm not too good at Doom so I get my butt kicked

very quickly in the higher level maps like this. Still, earlier this year I found this

level to be extremely useful when testing translucency of projectiles and

explosions in Zandronum (prob. any ZDoom-based but Zand is where I was living).

 

Notice from my pictures that the SourFace projectile launched (as a test) from the

arm cannons of Carcinobus have ended up with a different color than the their

resulting SourFace "monster". It seems certain portions of the Doom palette

interact/combine with the red-lava background to create this. I'd originally made

two different versions of the Carcinobus and each had their own color of fire. Upon

seeing this stage test, I scrapped the red fireballs I'd already made for the red

Carcinobus and instead made both green & red flavors of the Carc fire green

fireballs (when they're not releasing SourGrapes' alternate fire that is...)

Spoiler

 

[DankMetal]

5 hours ago, Maximum Matt said:

Shootable wall to open the final door, with no clue for it.

False walls hiding enemy nooks.

Five invulnerabilities.  

Two of the northernmost rooms are inessential.

Pits in the final room you can fall and get stuck in (in HNTR).

Nah, this level ain't Sandman's best. 

I'm gonna freaking kill you.

Nah, but talking seriously, those weird gameplay descissions are what make this level otherworldly for me, like you don't belong here, i don't know how to explain it (but i don't excuse that softlock in HNTR, that's quite stupid).

But in that case, what is your favorite level made by Sandiego? I would love to hear your opinion.

[Cutman 999]

You like spirit world until you remember chasm is less weird and more charming.

[Chezza]

Aesthetically and atmosphere wise, I agree. This map stands out and feels like it's deep in hell where no mortal entered alive, but now a threat is trespassing and invading their home once thought unreachable, just like what they're doing to Earth.

 

Lots of gimmicks. Some are dated and frustrating, but entertaining nonetheless. The layout is a bit confusing, but if you're familiar with the layout then it's good fun.

 

Personally I would have reduced the number of levels of Doom 2 or break it down into chapters. However this is one of those maps I would always keep as I consider it amongst the best of Doom 2. It's just so far in the game not as many people can appreciate it.