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Foodles

Do people care about title screens?

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Is it worth me going to all the effort of making sum new title screen and intermission pic for my wad,
come to think of it, are people even bothered about stuff like new level names and exit text or is it just the content of the levels that makes a wad good?

Sure they are nice touches to have but would people really care if someone released a really good megawad but it didn't have a new title pic or intermission screen etc.

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It is not needed, no, but it shows me that the author really put the effort into making their wad. It just shows how even more creative they are, something I can tip my hat to. Custom music also helps a lot imo.

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I wouldn't really care either way, personally, but for the minimal amount of effort it takes, I'd say it's worth including at least a new titlepic and new level names.

A really awesome megawad without any new graphics is better than a half-decent megawad with a new titlepic, interpic, and level names.

Between two megawads that are simply 'good', though, I'd rate the one with new art assets subjectively higher, and I think such simple graphics are an easy way to add some flair and/or polish to a project, so long as they look appropriate and aren't total crap.

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Guess it depends on whether you want to spend a large amount of time doing something that is ultimately thankless, but appreciated.

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Even if players only briefly see the titlepic, it can help set the mood or atmosphere of a wad, especially when there is new music to go along with it (and the music can just be some track used later in the wad; it doesn't have to be intended for a titlepic).

If you're creating a megawad or a small episode, you should create a titlepic, even if it's a relatively simple one with just the name of the wad in stylized lettering. Might seem like a lot of work for something that will possibly be seen for only a few seconds, but it's worth it. The style of the titlepic should match the theme (or even colors) of the wad, obviously. You could even use textures to patch together a titlepic, like Suspended in Dusk does.

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If I made a title screen, it would probably be just a screenshot of one of the areas in the wad with like a sepia tone added and the name of the wad put over the top, kinda like Scythe's.
I have no artistic talent so anything more complicated is out of the question, same with new music although I could always appeal to the community to lend a hand in that department.

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Foodles said:

Is it worth me going to all the effort of making sum new title screen and intermission pic for my wad,
come to think of it, are people even bothered about stuff like new level names and exit text or is it just the content of the levels that makes a wad good?

Sure they are nice touches to have but would people really care if someone released a really good megawad but it didn't have a new title pic or intermission screen etc.


I like all of that stuff but I think of it as polish. It's not essential to the experience but it helps make the WAD shine.

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I quite like to see new TITLEPICs and INTERPICs on larger .WADs (so a single map replacement I'm fine with it being left out), but really I think every map should have it's own name.

Exit texts are a bit different for me, as a .WAD in a MAPINFO-enabled port may as well use one, but a vanilla compatible .WAD would need to get up to the first text screen to justify it, I think.

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I think larger WADs (Episode replacements or bigger) look nice when they have their own title/intermission screens. Not really needed for a single level unless it's something truly titanic.

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I hardly care or even look at title screens or level names. Just the content of the levels (or gameplay behavior changes, whatever the wad is about) for me.

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It's nice to do those things, but I don't really care if they're not there. The quality of the maps themselves is most important.

I admit that it helps if there's something to personalize the WAD a little, to make it stand out a bit, whether it's new graphics (even just a new sky texture), or new music. Just one thing that's not a stock DOOM resource makes things a little more memorable.

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I usually won't like a large pwad almost instantly if I load it and it has the normal Doom2 intro. I don't know why this is, but I just feel like it shows that the authors don't care about their wad enough to put out the new welcome mat, so I don't care about coming in. The exceptions to this are Doom and Heretic, where I find that a renamed episode name is just fine.

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I really liked the intermission screens in Doom E1-3 and Heretic. That and the map names help set the atmosphere.

But I guess it's a lot of trouble to make those graphical maps, and don't remember any other episodes or megawads that used custom ones. Putting just title names in the intermission screen (and in automap via DeHackEd) is easier, so that's something to shoot for, if you have time. Having just good map names alone can help set the mood (I mean, map names that are evocative and representative of the map).

The title screen isn't too important to me, but if it's a full-fledged megawad then it adds a nice touch.

If you're just releasing a single map, I'd say don't bother with any of that stuff and just put the title name and maybe some background story in the TXT file.

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hex11 said:

If you're just releasing a single map, I'd say don't bother with any of that stuff and just put the title name and maybe some background story in the TXT file.


Very much agreed. Even the background story isn't really necessary.

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I don't really pay that much attention to them I usually just boot up and keep pressing enter till I'm in the game and I don't really care about my stats I usually just skip over them. But I do like the idea of having a WAD with unique title and intermission images, to me, it gives the WAD more personality.

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Finish your maps before you move on to title pics. Custom intermission screens are far better than title pics. In the case that intermission screens are ugly they are far worse.

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Considering the amount of time it would take to make the maps for a megawad, a titlescreen/interpic isn't a great deal of effot. Regardless of what everyone else thinks I'd do one even if they're just edited screenshots like you said. Failing that there's plenty of talented artists around these parts that are generous with their skills if you ask and your project interests them.

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I think I agree wholeheartedly with everything Ralphis said. If you've got a large wad, a having no new TITLEPIC is uncalled for. Even if it's just some resized image of an atom bomb explosion or something. Anything will do. Also new CWILVxx graphics to rename your maps with are great for any size wad.

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I like playing a WAD and seeing everyone's custom title pic. Some are truly badass and fit the game well, some are kinda... meh. But it's always nice to see something new.

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Nope for me, all I want is to record a nice map or make some challenges. But I can say that I dislike the title screen of Community Chest 1 and Revolution!, it's so ugly and sloppy designed!!!

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It depends on the quality of the titlepic for me. If I open up a WAD and find a shoddy looking title picture that looks like it was thrown together in Paint, then I'd rather have had the Doom 2 title pic.

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Vanguard is a good example of a wad that had a really, really simple title screen but was still effective. it was bold and stuck with you (or me), even though it was almost completely lacking detail. simple gets the job done. including it really pulls the whole thing together as a finished product.

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Here are some of the titlepics I've done over the years. They're all pretty simple and probably took no more than 10-20 minutes each:

http://img51.imageshack.us/img51/4973/lepic.png
http://img687.imageshack.us/img687/1403/verge.png
http://img30.imageshack.us/img30/7763/lepicf.png (PalPlus palette)
http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/4162/hellucination.png
http://img143.imageshack.us/img143/2789/helltrap.png
http://img89.imageshack.us/img89/6395/rjsle.png
http://img845.imageshack.us/img845/114/creep.png
http://img703.imageshack.us/img703/5508/wsnakes.png

I guess I can blame Photoshop for the little effort required, but you can probably use any image editing program to create similar effects. Also, I wouldn't mind taking requests as long as they're not too picky and the project is near completion.

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Tango said:

Vanguard is a good example of a wad that had a really, really simple title screen but was still effective. it was bold and stuck with you (or me), even though it was almost completely lacking detail. simple gets the job done. including it really pulls the whole thing together as a finished product.


In the 5 minutes it took to make, my graphics abilities were stretched to their limits.

IMO it's best to just do a quick job with a titlescreen - it makes your project look more complete and professional and it really doesn't take much effort. Minimalism is totally fine (and if you're as artistically disinclined as me, it's pretty much mandatory).

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I felt the gritty title screen that UAC Ultra had did a nice job of just setting the mood from the onset. While they obviously aren't mandatory, they are nice and I think most of us appreciate them.

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skillsaw said:

IMO it's best to just do a quick job with a titlescreen - it makes your project look more complete and professional and it really doesn't take much effort. Minimalism is totally fine (and if you're as artistically disinclined as me, it's pretty much mandatory).

Pretty much this.

Also, don't forget custom music, any megawad where the soundtrack starts off on D_RUNNIN usually makes my heart sink.

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DeathevokatioN said:

Pretty much this.

Also, don't forget custom music, any megawad where the soundtrack starts off on D_RUNNIN usually makes my heart sink.


At least it's isn't that bunny music, that music is even scary.

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DeathevokatioN said:

Also, don't forget custom music, any megawad where the soundtrack starts off on D_RUNNIN usually makes my heart sink.


Custom soundtracks are pretty much a must for a MegaWAD. Naturally, a whole new soundtrack is best and really gives the whole thing a personal touch, but even just stealing music from another game (like Hell Revealed did) isn't the worst way to go about things.

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Megamur said:

Custom soundtracks are pretty much a must for a MegaWAD. Naturally, a whole new soundtrack is best and really gives the whole thing a personal touch, but even just stealing music from another game (like Hell Revealed did) isn't the worst way to go about things.



especially since donner & niv stole some of the best midis you can hear in doom wads, ever, imo.

sure, i don't care so much about the titlepic as i care about the maps themselves, but i think that a good megawad deserves a good picture.

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