DOOM Retro v5.3 (updated March 3, 2024)

[bradharding]

JXC said:

I'm saying that the bobs and blood colors can be applied or changed to any monster and item, not just certain items and monsters that bob or have different blood colors. I did not say Doom Retro needed DECORATE. I was saying that Doom Retro can have something like DECORATE, but simpler. I don't need ACS, slopes, or any fancy shmancy ZDoom stuff for Doom Retro. I think a PWAD would be more challenging if new custom monsters would be added.

I guess what I could do is extend DeHackEd support a bit and add a "Bits2" key (or whatever). This would allow you to change all the unique DR stuff (bobbing, blood colors, per pixel translucency, shadow, etc.) on a per-thing basis without causing problems for other ports.

[JXC]

bradharding said:

I guess what I could do is extend DeHackEd support a bit and add a "Bits2" key (or whatever). This would allow you to change all the unique DR stuff (bobbing, blood colors, per pixel translucency, shadow, etc.) on a per-thing basis without causing problems for other ports.

Be aware that there is a program called Whacked4 that allows you to make deh and bex patches using tables. Here's the link

http://teamhellspawn.com/exl/whacked4/

[Hoodie]

bradharding said:

As for the Music/SFX problem (and I guess you mean you can't lower the SFX volume, only the music volume), try following VGA's instructions further up on installing VirtualMIDISynth.

No, when I turn music volume down, SFX get's quieter with it. I was playing BTSX and I can either play in silence, or I can have the music blasting out all sounds...


Oh I also want to ask if there is any way to shrink the messages size? I mean I like them but some doors will go into an ellipsis, like "You need the red keycard to op..."

[VGA]

Keep the music and SFX sliders at 100% in Doom Retro, they aren't working on recent OSes. Instead use Virtualsoftsynth's own mixer, it has a master volume lever on the right.

Also, I have discovered that the 2.x alpha versions are better than the 1.x stables. They fixed some lagging I had when beating maps. You have to register to the Coolsoft forum to download those.

[Hoodie]

I was checking it out and do i have to run it while I also run DR? The synth thing I mean.

[VGA]

Hoodie said:

I was checking it out and do i have to run it while I also run DR? The synth thing I mean.

If the installer doesn't manage to set it to the default midi device, you have to edit that registry key I posted earlier. Just make sure you add a soundfont to it, I'm using patch93's, it is about 60mb.

(You don't have to run anything, it just replaces the default windows midi device)

I'm having perfect results with the alpha-19 version of the beta 2.x series.

[Da Werecat]

Playing through some wads. I have a few thoughts.

- Perhaps mouse2 as another default binding for +use?

- Looks like the engine treats action 261 (ceiling brightness transfer) as MBF does: it affects things in addition to the ceiling. Boom didn't do that, and I think that the Boom way is the most sensible way.

- Rocket smoke is a bit too dense. Maybe spawn it less frequently?

- I thoroughly dislike this way of fixing the intermission blood splat.

- Partial transparency for sprites is weird. Flames are always transparent, even when they're supposed to cover something solid. It's like you can see through the flame AND through the object behind it.

- Maybe I'm wrong, but I think that sometimes barrels are flying around too fast. Is that because of the new corpse physics?

- A saw a background of a multi-patch switch light up along with the switch light.

- Some elevators are completely silent (not related to the common mapping trick).

[VGA]

After furiously obliterating everything in Scythe's MAP26 I was so happy with myself that I created this little thing as a souvenir, I'll leave it here:




@DaWerecat

Dude, why haven't you posted examples?

[bradharding]

Da Werecat said:

Playing through some wads. I have a few thoughts.

- Perhaps mouse2 as another default binding for +use?

Probably not. It's simple enough to use the m_doubleclick_use cvar or bind +use mouseX in the console.

Da Werecat said:

- Looks like the engine treats action 261 (ceiling brightness transfer) as MBF does: it affects things in addition to the ceiling. Boom didn't do that, and I think that the Boom way is the most sensible way.

Do you have an example?

Da Werecat said:

- Rocket smoke is a bit too dense. Maybe spawn it less frequently?

I like this how it is tbh.

Da Werecat said:

- I thoroughly dislike this way of fixing the intermission blood splat.

Why?

Da Werecat said:

- Partial transparency for sprites is weird. Flames are always transparent, even when they're supposed to cover something solid. It's like you can see through the flame AND through the object behind it.

I think it's just the Lost Soul where this a problem, and only when they're facing away from the player. I know it doesn't look right in this instance, but I think the effect looks great overall.

Da Werecat said:

- Maybe I'm wrong, but I think that sometimes barrels are flying around too fast. Is that because of the new corpse physics?

You may be right. I'll look into it. Thanks.

Da Werecat said:

- A saw a background of a multi-patch switch light up along with the switch light.

Do you have an example?

Da Werecat said:

- Some elevators are completely silent (not related to the common mapping trick).

Do you have an example that I can work from?

Thanks for your feedback.

[Da Werecat]

bradharding said:

Why?

The pixels that were chopped off - they're part of the gfx, they're supposed to be there. The only problem is their color, due to some bizarre (but hardly unusual for id) palette mishap. It's a bit like cutting a hole in the health bonus because it has a grey spot.

261:
http://i.imgur.com/FsXKeIb.png (Sunlust MAP01)

Glowing switch:
http://i.imgur.com/xW1XEhb.png (Extremal Doom E1M3)

The first elevator on the same map is silent. I noticed on another map that the sound isn't absent, but misplaced. The problem disappeared at some point, after loading a savegame (it wasn't the first time I loaded a savegame on that level).

Liquids aren't exactly in sync if they weren't liquids from the start of the map:
http://i.imgur.com/C8ctAm1.png (Sunlust MAP15)

Reloading a savegame fixes that.

[kb1]

VGA said:

After furiously obliterating everything in Scythe's MAP26 I was so happy with myself that I created this little thing as a souvenir, I'll leave it here:

http://i.imgur.com/E6p6JdJ.gif


@DaWerecat

Dude, why haven't you posted examples?

Is that Doom Retro's famous water effect? I haven't had the time to check it out yet. Man, I might have to steal that code :)

[Krazov]

The water effect is amazing.

[Csonicgo]

Unfortunately some changes today have broken the Linux versions with a segfault. I'll try to figure out which revision started this bug.

[Da Werecat]

More feedback.

- It looks like the "Secret" linedef flag doesn't work as it's supposed to - the wall is displayed normally on the automap.

- TEKWALL5 looks more like TEKWALL2 (X offset of the patch is ignored).

- Brightmaps require tweaking: http://i.imgur.com/MQOoBoC.png http://i.imgur.com/1oUqi1B.png

- Lost souls don't always glow (although they usually do): http://i.imgur.com/ds0uKOn.png

I was about to report some serious bugs, but then I saw the new release. :)

[bradharding]

Da Werecat said:

More feedback.

- It looks like the "Secret" linedef flag doesn't work as it's supposed to - the wall is displayed normally on the automap.

- TEKWALL5 looks more like TEKWALL2 (X offset of the patch is ignored).

- Brightmaps require tweaking: http://i.imgur.com/MQOoBoC.png http://i.imgur.com/1oUqi1B.png

- Lost souls don't always glow (although they usually do): http://i.imgur.com/ds0uKOn.png

I was about to report some serious bugs, but then I saw the new release. :)

Thanks again!

In DR secrets are a bit different in the automap. They are displayed like they should, but as soon as they are opened/triggered/whatever, their secret flags are removed so they appear normally on the automap.

Could you provide an example of the TEKWALL5 problem? DR tweaks TEKWALL1 so it displays like in Vanilla Doom (to counter a fix in R_DrawColumnInCache()), but I wasn't aware of this one.

With the brightmap examples you provide, I don't see a problem: all lights and displays in that texture are fullbright as intended.

The lost soul problem looks the same as what happens with the secondary bfg projectile (which happens more often). I haven't found a fix as of yet, but I'll look into it some more.

[Da Werecat]

bradharding said:

In DR secrets are a bit different in the automap. They are displayed like they should, but as soon as they are opened/triggered/whatever, their secret flags are removed so they appear normally on the automap.

Makes sense. Yeah, I was looking at the wall when it was already opened.

bradharding said:

Could you provide an example of the TEKWALL5 problem?

http://i.imgur.com/Em3jqio.png http://i.imgur.com/yVzbMk0.png (E2M2)

TEKWALL3 also has this problem (I only noticed it because of these shots).

bradharding said:

With the brightmap examples you provide, I don't see a problem: all lights and displays in that texture are fullbright as intended.

There are some green pixels that shouldn't glow, especially on the first shot. The second shot only has a few dots. The way I understand it, you don't actually have masks for these effects, you just use color indexes, right?

Oh, and a minor nitpick: http://i.imgur.com/8tYqyLH.png

White seems to be affected by some colors, even though it's additive.

[Brewtal_Legend]

I seem to be encountering a bug.

I wanted to bind the +alwaysrun toggle to gamepad3. When I did it manually in the cfg file, it would crash doom retro on startup. When I removed the line, it started fine. But then when I tried using the console to bind it, it crashed right out of the game.

running winxp and using a logitech f310 gamepad.

[bradharding]

Da Werecat said:

...
http://i.imgur.com/Em3jqio.png http://i.imgur.com/yVzbMk0.png (E2M2)

TEKWALL3 also has this problem (I only noticed it because of these shots).

Thanks for this. I'll investigate what's happening.

There are some green pixels that shouldn't glow, especially on the first shot. The second shot only has a few dots. The way I understand it, you don't actually have masks for these effects, you just use color indexes, right?

Yeah, no masks, just the color indices, so things aren't perfect for some textures. I'll look into these some more.

Oh, and a minor nitpick: http://i.imgur.com/8tYqyLH.png

White seems to be affected by some colors, even though it's additive.

This is the result of an attempt to make blues more prominent, since there isn't much blue in Doom's palette.

Brewtal_Legend said:

I seem to be encountering a bug.

I wanted to bind the +alwaysrun toggle to gamepad3. When I did it manually in the cfg file, it would crash doom retro on startup. When I removed the line, it started fine. But then when I tried using the console to bind it, it crashed right out of the game.

running winxp and using a logitech f310 gamepad.

Thanks for the report. At this stage +alwaysrun can only be bound to a key. As for why its crashing, I'll look into that straight away.

[vesperas]

Hi everyone,

First of all I'd like to say thanks to Brad for his wonderful work on DR. I've been using it for quite some time and it's been a very pleasant experience so far. Then I'd like to ask: I've noticed that even if the messages are set to off in the options menu, they still show up when you save/load a game (for instance, "<mapname> saved" or "<mapname> loaded"). Is this intended? I feel like they are out of place in this context. I would also suggest to remove entirely the "messages" entry in the options menu to clean it up a bit and implement a console variable/command instead. Let me know what you think :)

A huge thank you to the whole Doom community!

[bradharding]

vesperas said:

Hi everyone,

First of all I'd like to say thanks to Brad for his wonderful work on DR. I've been using it for quite some time and it's been a very pleasant experience so far. Then I'd like to ask: I've noticed that even if the messages are set to off in the options menu, they still show up when you save/load a game (for instance, "<mapname> saved" or "<mapname> loaded"). Is this intended? I feel like they are out of place in this context. I would also suggest to remove entirely the "messages" entry in the options menu to clean it up a bit and implement a console variable/command instead. Let me know what you think :)

A huge thank you to the whole Doom community!

Glad you like it! Messages are set to off by default since I feel player msgs during a game are distracting and are unnecessary clutter. And I've changed the message option so it only does the player messages, and messages incurred by entering cheats or using a menu option, etc., are still displayed. I want to keep "messages" in the options menu to keep it consistent with Vanilla DOOM, and you can toggle them using the "messages" cvar in the console (although it works the same way). Thanks for your suggestions though!

[bradharding]

Continuing the momentum of regular point releases, v1.8.4 has been released and can be downloaded here.

[vesperas]

bradharding said:

Glad you like it! Messages are set to off by default since I feel player msgs during a game are distracting and are unnecessary clutter. And I've changed the message option so it only does the player messages, and messages incurred by entering cheats or using a menu option, etc., are still displayed. I want to keep "messages" in the options menu to keep it consistent with Vanilla DOOM, and you can toggle them using the "messages" cvar in the console (although it works the same way). Thanks for your suggestions though!

That makes sense. Thank you for taking your time to answer me!

[bradharding]

I've just uploaded another small point release of Doom Retro, bringing it up to v1.8.5. Nothing major, but it does include Fabian's fix to support "linguortals". You can grab it here.

[Average]

I think I've found a small(ish) issue with controller movement. Playing through BTSX 2 using a controller it seems there is a 'jump' that can't be made. It's in map 07. There's a room with lots of pillars. Making a 'jump' from the central pillar to the first ledge with a switch isn't possible.

There is a similar issue in ZDoom too though it seems a little more profound. Looks like full forward movement speed isn't met on the controller.

Edward over at the ZDoom forum suggested it was the controller but I've tried a Logitech F710, official 360 and a Dual Shock 4 (using DS4Windows) with the same result... :)

[bradharding]

Average said:

I think I've found a small(ish) issue with controller movement. Playing through BTSX 2 using a controller it seems there is a 'jump' that can't be made. It's in map 07. There's a room with lots of pillars. Making a 'jump' from the central pillar to the first ledge with a switch isn't possible.

There is a similar issue in ZDoom too though it seems a little more profound. Looks like full forward movement speed isn't met on the controller.

Edward over at the ZDoom forum suggested it was the controller but I've tried a Logitech F710, official 360 and a Dual Shock 4 (using DS4Windows) with the same result... :)

Would this be the outdoor area towards the bottom of the map? At about (1184, -1136)? I've just done a quick play through using an MS 360 controller, and was able to make all the jumps without a problem. I also have a F710 - I'll just have to find it...

[Average]

Yeah, it was that area. However, after popping out to work, coming home and trying again all seems to be okay... I'm not sure why that would happen.

Sorry for wasting your time. :)

[vesperas]

A possible bug in DOOM Retro v1.8.5: the messages don't get displayed after typing certain commands in the console, like 'iddqd'.

Use case:
- Start DOOM Retro with messages enabled;
- Pick up something and watch the message appear on the screen;
- Open the console;
- Type 'iddqd';
- Close the console;
- Pick up something else;
==> Messages aren't displayed anymore.

I would also point out that the delay that's been added when you exit a level by using a switch is also present when you exit through a teleporter. In my opinion it doesn't look that good :)

Thank you

[bradharding]

vesperas said:

A possible bug in DOOM Retro v1.8.5: the messages don't get displayed after typing certain commands in the console, like 'iddqd'.

Use case:
- Start DOOM Retro with messages enabled;
- Pick up something and watch the message appear on the screen;
- Open the console;
- Type 'iddqd';
- Close the console;
- Pick up something else;
==> Messages aren't displayed anymore.

I would also point out that the delay that's been added when you exit a level by using a switch is also present when you exit through a teleporter. In my opinion it doesn't look that good :)

Thank you

Thanks, vesperas. I've just replicated the messages bug and will work on fixing it for the next release. And I'll also look into only keeping the delay when exiting using a switch.

[vesperas]

I'm unable to start No Rest For The Living from the command line. This is what I've tried, with both doom2.wad and nerve.wad in the same directory of the DOOM Retro executable:

-iwad doom2.wad => nerve.wad is not picked up and starting a new game leads to entryway;
-iwad doom2.wad -file nerve.wad => nerve.wad is picked up but the game treats it as a generic wad (i.e. automap says NERVE.WAD MAP01)

Am I missing something? The WAD laucher works fine.

[bradharding]

vesperas said:

I'm unable to start No Rest For The Living from the command line. This is what I've tried, with both doom2.wad and nerve.wad in the same directory of the DOOM Retro executable:

-iwad doom2.wad => nerve.wad is not picked up and starting a new game leads to entryway;
-iwad doom2.wad -file nerve.wad => nerve.wad is picked up but the game treats it as a generic wad (i.e. automap says NERVE.WAD MAP01)

Am I missing something? The WAD laucher works fine.

nerve.wad is only "autodetected" from the WAD launcher, so "-iwad doom2.wad" won't find it. But "-iwad doom2.wad -file nerve.wad" should work. Just checking this myself, strangely, it works fine when both wads are in a different folder to the exe ("-iwad \wads\doom2.wad -file \wads\nerve.wad") but not how you're trying. Thanks. I'll look into fixing it.