No saves

[xvertigox]

Recently I've started playing with no saves allowed and wow, I freaking love it. It makes the game much more rewarding (finally passing a hard point of the map), you learn the map and remember it better (playing it over and over if you die) and when you finish a map it feels like a real accomplishment (same as rewarding, I know). Normally it takes >5 plays to finish a map so it's not tedious (at least the maps I've been playing). Anyone else play like this? If not I highly suggest giving it a crack :]

[kmxexii]

It's a great challenge and I played no saves for awhile, but I recently stopped. I just don't have the time (or skill when it comes to WADs like HR). Good luck to those who continue the fight, however.

[Memfis]

I can't imagine how people can have fun while playing with saves.

[DeathevokatioN]

Playing with no saves makes Doom 666% more awesome.

[Mithran Denizen]

Several years ago I'd run through maps with my finger on the F6 key, but yeah, at some point I just realized that Doom was more satisfying to me without trying to trying to micromanage gameplay like a control freak. The only time I normally think to save is if I'm interrupted, but even then I'll often just quit and resume from a pistol start later.

While I play Doom more for a sense of fun itself rather than accomplishment, disregarding the ability to save adds a different risk/reward element to gameplay and affects the way that I approach the game. If a map is tedious enough that potentially replaying it a few times to finish it is a bleak prospect, then it's probably not the kind of level that I like anyway. In that case I'll usually just noclip to see whole thing, and then warp into the next map or quit.

[xvertigox]

Mithran Denizen said:

Several years ago I'd run through maps with my finger on the F6 key, but yeah, at some point I just realized that Doom was more satisfying to me without trying to trying to micromanage gameplay like a control freak.

lol I remember doing this very clearly. If I ever took 'unnecessary damage' I'd quickload and try again. I did this in a lot of games (especially Max Payne)[/quote]

I can't imagine how people can have fun while playing with saves.

Exactly how I feel now.

[Megalyth]

I usually only save after a particularly tough battle that I don't care to repeat, or if it's blatantly obvious that I'm about to have my own ass handed to me as soon as I pick up a key.

[Vordakk]

I just recently gave up on SUNDER.wad after arriving at Map 07. Saves or not, I just didn't feel like dealing with over 2900 monsters in a single level.

On topic, no saves using the IWADS or certain non-ridiculous pwads sounds like a cool idea.

[UnholyMessias]

I only play without saves in prboom with the right complevels doing every map in pistol start, not because im such of a purist but i want to challenge myself to the fullest and have the most fun that way. I also played with saves a few years ago but without is just far more exciting and rewarding.

[xvertigox]

UnholyMessias said:

I only play without saves in prboom with the right complevels doing every map in pistol start, not because im such of a purist but i want to challenge myself to the fullest and have the most fun that way.

Same here, no saves + pistol start. I think pistol starts are also very important otherwise all the nuances of the map are lost. That is of course unless the maps were designed to be played sequentially. Good thing about pistol starts it then you really never need to save, just warp to the appropriate map.

[TimeOfDeath666]

I don't use saves when recording demos, but I do use saves often for other things: like playtesting, learning a map, and casual playing.

I used to pistol start each map in multi-level wads for casual playing, but some wads weren't playtested for pistol starts and don't mention it in the txt file, so I play it safe.

[Xaser]

I'll pretty much always save my first time through a map. I'm a UV addict but don't exactly trust my survivability at first, but it's definitely rewarding to come back to the same maps later and no-save / demo them. :)

I did fairly recently do some playtesting for a WIP project via recording FDAs -- that was interesting, trying to capture my first actions. Seems to have worked in a few cases, since my stupidity found a few flaws in the map. :P

[Koko Ricky]

As I've gotten older, I've found myself saving less and less. Whereas I used to save many times within a single map (we're talking
"normal" sized levels as opposed to gigantic maps that take an hour or more to finish, which I still save quite a few times in), I save only once or twice a map now, sometimes only at the beginning. It can become frustrating if there's an area that is extremely difficult to pass, that I know I'm likely to die attempting. But yes, it is extremely rewardning. On Final Doom PS1, it's thrilling as fuck to go through as much of any of the three episodes as possible without saving.

[CODOR]

I'll save if I'm interrupted and then restore later, but unless it's a particularly frustrating map I'll ignore the saves and start over when I die.

[40oz]

Saving is for christians. Jesus Saves.

[yellowmadness54]

I've never used saves...ever. I.. probably should have so I don't just quit when I die after getting far into the map or replaying it.

This thread has inspired me to do the opposite of what the OP is encouraging.

[Phobus]

I don't know if I'm playing the wrong maps, but most of the time I neverconsider not saving as I rarely want to repeat large sections of a 20 minute map due to a minor mistake near the end. Likewise, when I forget to save and find I've been knocked back 10 minutes or so my first reaction is to say "right, fuck it... I'll come back to this later" and then go do something else.

Short maps or esy maps are obvious exceptions to the above, but even then I might save if I see something that looks like it might be tricky, or I find myself in a low-health situation that I'd rather make it out of than have to retake and possibly do worse on.

Trial and error is a great way to play Doom, but not when your trials are 10+ minutes long.

[yellowmadness54]

When I play Wolfenstein or BLOOD, I find myself saving a whole lot more.
On normal DOOM and DOOM2 maps, they are typically small, and you can breeze through them. Wolfenstein's maps are longer, harder, and more confusing. Same with BLOOD.

Dooms map design is just really different from those, as they are more....compressed?

[I'myourtarget]

I used to save constantly... then I started playing Left 4 dead 2 and the habit of saving was pretty much lost from me.
But it's better than when I used to save a millisecond before that fireball hit me to kill me.

[Graf Zahl]

Memfis said:

I can't imagine how people can have fun while playing with saves.

I can't imagine that some people really think that their way of doing things must be the right one...

[xvertigox]

Graf Zahl said:

I can't imagine that some people really think that their way of doing things must be the right one...

I don't think he meant it like that, it's more that after playing with that extra edge it feels less satisfying when playing with saves to a pretty significant degree. Do you play with or without saves?

[Nomad]

I've never quicksaved in Doom (or really any game but something like Fallout because losing progress in those is way more nervewracking). I only save in most games when I'm done with my session.

[hex11]

Yeah, I've been playing like this for months. It started when I had to switch laptops and the "new" (used) laptop didn't have a battery. So I keep all my filesystems read-only and then of course it's not possible to save...

Anyway, I've come to prefer this because it does raise the stakes a lot. It's sort of like roguelike games, except you don't have to start back on the first map when you die, just the current level.

I normally just carry any weapons and gear (armor, health) over from the previous map, until I either die or quit playing. Then it's pistol start time!

Also, if I can't get past a difficult map this way, then after many attempts I'll lower the difficulty level (normally I play on HMP, without mouse). If I can't beat a map on ITYTD, then that's the end of the road for me.

[ducon]

40oz said:

Saving is for christians. Jesus Saves.

Jesus saves, no words of praise
No promised land to take you to
There is no other way

[Memfis]

Graf Zahl said:

I can't imagine that some people really think that their way of doing things must be the right one...

There is no right or wrong way to play. I didn't mean to criticize anyone for playing with saves.

[Xaser]

40oz said:

Saving is for christians. Jesus Saves.

That explains the Resurrection. He just hit Quickload.

[The Pursuer]

I only save when

1.I'm done playing a game session

2.A map is ludicrously hard (No Chance or Sunder level difficulty)

Otherwise it's a clean play session

[DoomUK]

I'm a pussy and I quicksave constantly in any game that permits it.

[Varis Alpha]

I usually don't save that much nowadays, I've realized. I usually just use the resurrect cheat instead.

[UnholyMessias]

Phobus said:

I don't know if I'm playing the wrong maps, but most of the time I neverconsider not saving as I rarely want to repeat large sections of a 20 minute map due to a minor mistake near the end. Likewise, when I forget to save and find I've been knocked back 10 minutes or so my first reaction is to say "right, fuck it... I'll come back to this later" and then go do something else.

Short maps or esy maps are obvious exceptions to the above, but even then I might save if I see something that looks like it might be tricky, or I find myself in a low-health situation that I'd rather make it out of than have to retake and possibly do worse on.

Trial and error is a great way to play Doom, but not when your trials are 10+ minutes long.

Its not because of the maps but probably because of the way you play, when I changed from saving a lot to not saving i played a lot more careful and now i dont die in pretty much every map except for the really hard maps of course like HR. Maybe at the beginning it is frustrating playing without saves but it makes you so much better and its just overall more exciting.