Ultimate Doom “In Name Only” - [Limit Removing] - Artist for titlepic/M-Doom etc needed

[Steve D]

Just wanted to mention that I accodentally played E1M3 after giving my own E1M2 a whirl because I want to steal the forklifts in it. Anyway, I thought E1M3 was a total blast! It seems completely unlike what I remember from the past. I basically loved everything about it. Combat was pretty fierce and very engaging, even though I failed to successfully die. Yes, my survival was a mild disappointment, but you can't win 'em all. ;D

 

Aside from the cool combat, great architecture and fabulous lighting, the secrets were incredibly fun and challenging to find. I located 5 of them, including the secret exit. I had to go back after I reached the normal exit to find the secret escape plus one other. Great job to everyone who worked on it. Can't wait until we reach the beta stage.

[cannonball]

Hello everyone, just a brief update regarding this wad;

 

E1M7 is hopefully approaching a finished state and as such the finish line might actually be in sight. E4M7 is still in an editing phase at the moment as well.

At this juncture there have been discussions in the background and a couple of maps may still need a little bit of tweaking. At this point I am happy to utilise what we have so it will be a case of going through a couple of maps until myself and Dobu are happy.

 

E1M8 @Armaetus I will admit complete fault for this because frankly I think I have steered this map to the point where we have a rather derivative episode closer that lacks a certain something. I do have an idea of cobbling something out of a couple of your versions (corrupt and non corrupt versions of the map) into something a little more interesting. If it is okay with you I would like to do this, if not we can just revise the latest version to tidy it up a little. Your call and I apologise for this happening so long after the latest version you posted.
 

E2M3 @DJVCardMaster - If you want to or are happy to revisit this with your own eyes, please feel free. If not I am happy to tweak the map in places to get it across the line. This probably needs a more widespread smoothing over, so I don’t know how easy this will be.

 

Otherwise apart from a couple of technical bits, every other map is fine and ready to go. Fingers crossed that we can get this into a release candidate sooner or later. I will order a box of shame to receive my mordeth award in.

[Nine Inch Heels]

7 hours ago, cannonball said:

I will order a box of shame to receive my mordeth award in.

I think you're selling yourself short. I get that this project has seen some time on the stove but, considering the circumstances as of late, I think it's fair to say that everybody has had a few difficulties making time for a project like this when there is so much else going on "in the real world".

 

Let's not forget that this project could have been dead and done in the water instead.

[LadyMistDragon]

Look, if Devilution isn't released this year, I'll eat my hat.

[Tristan]

1 hour ago, Nine Inch Heels said:

Let's not forget that this project could have been dead and done in the water instead.

 

I was leading this before cannonball, so it probably would have released in 2015 and sucked! @cannonball fwiw I still think I made the right decision handing over to you, don't be too hard on yourself <3

[dobu gabu maru]

E1M7 has been going well. Chaotic, but well.

 

 

I told cb that I intend to finish it before we enter May. I don't want to jinx anything, but I think it's very likely that this monster called "UDINO" may finally be out the door before 2024.

 

(By the way we're still waiting on a generous soul to drop by and make us a nice M_DOOM and TITLEPIC)

[Catpho]

Quote

By the way we're still waiting on a generous soul to drop by and make us a nice M_DOOM and TITLEPIC

@franckFRAG? :D

If you feel like it fF :)

[Captain Keen]

Played Episode 1 and really enjoyed it. Looking forward to the rest.

[Catpho]

There are apprently some minor bugs on E3M3 and E4M8. I played on dsda-doom 0.25.6, complevel 3, using the alpha build Dobu posted on page 30. Is it just stuff on my end or the map?

Spoiler

Floating cell pack in e3m3

 

Some sort of pit that can trap barons in e4m8

 

[dobu gabu maru]

Thanks for spotting those! I'll add them to the alpha next go-around.

 

Main route for E1M7 is done, just need to fill out the side rooms. Jumped up to 30k lines due to some unhinged copy & pasting on my part.

 

 

It may look big but it doesn't take that long to beat! I promise!

[DJVCardMaster]

I don't know what else E2M3 could change, I have a version that differs from the one at the OP  that is newer though, and I think I've already posted it when I made the changes back in 2021. It is already on one of the alpha versions I have. I'm mentioning this just to make sure it is updated in the main build.
Feel free to change anything that needs to be changed in order to follow the project's standards, as I won't have a single free day this year to do mapping consistently.


EDIT: I'm trying to squeeze my last efforts at detailing the level, but gameplay-wise, I think I've lost north with it, so I think it will stay the same.

Edited April 25, 2023 by DJVCardMaster

[dobu gabu maru]

Alright, E1M7 "Computer Station" is ready for playtesting (UV-only). Should take ~20 minutes to beat.

 

The map can be fairly swingy, depending on how much ammo and health you bring into each room. The "blue" area in particular might be a bit of a bugbear; feel like some folks are going to get a kick out of it, and others are going to hate every second they're in there. Was a fun map to design all things considered—only had to cut one idea (a crusher gauntlet that was probably unnecessary).

 

EDIT: oh yeah, midi is "Copperhead" by Alfonzo. Literally would not have made this map if not for it.

[Catpho]

Heh, I got confused and only played it with the UDINO liquds file. Anyone who wants to playtest dobu's map should load it with the page 30 alpha so you won't be greeted with missing textures.

[Firedust]

OMG does this mean all the maps have been completed

[Omniarch]

13 minutes ago, Catpho said:

Anyone who wants to playtest dobu's map should load it with the page 30 alpha so you won't be greeted with missing textures.

And there I was thinking the HoMs were an artistic choice...

[Catpho]

Maybe another map, Omni.

[dobu gabu maru]

58 minutes ago, Omniarch said:

And there I was thinking the HoMs were an artistic choice...

 

All HoMs at the end of the map are indeed intentional! Was a challenge trying to walk the line between fun visual noise and sheer incomprehension. I'm not 100% sure how all ports handle HoMs but as long as it works in Zdoom & PrBoom, that's good enough for me.

 

1 hour ago, Firedust said:

OMG does this mean all the maps have been completed

 

Technically yes we have a full set of 36 maps that are playable from start to finish, but cannonball and I have a little more work to do polishing the edges of this thing. Neither of us are keen on keeping UDINO in this beta limbo however, so a release candidate is visible on the horizon.

[DJVCardMaster]

So, Cannonball can do edits to This version, no big changes, just small details and the baron at the end just TP's after getting the blue key. I don't think it is good for the map to have almost all its encounters unlocked since it is quite interconnected and every enemy just roams around it. So I think it could benefit itself by having more monster teleports, maybe. Anyway, I think that's all I could squeeze to it.

[Catpho]

Have my video playthrough of e1m7, split into 3 sessions:
 

Spoiler

 

 

 

It's great, as usual. The enviroment and the enemy visual staging was the bigger character this around e.g. I expected meaner lost soul fights :) I didn't spot anything broken when I was playing. Loved the side areas, and although I do enjoy visiting them for their own sake, I feel like I missed some reward for finishing them. Or did I not actually solve them?

Edit: forgot to mention that I played the opening sequence of the map when I loaded the wrong resource, so in the vid I already knew where to go. Everything that happens when I enter the lab proper is actual first-time play.

Edited May 13, 2023 by Catpho

[Catpho]

I also want to note that the mechanic to escape the baron cage in E2M4 (the one where you have to shoot the wall behind you) only works in -complevel 9 when playing on dsda-doom.

[dobu gabu maru]

11 hours ago, Catpho said:

I feel like I missed some reward for finishing them. Or did I not actually solve them?

 

That's on me! The secret sectors that hold the berserk and rad suit are borked in that version due to a dummy sector oversight—you're supposed to get them after solving the blue simulation sectors of each wing. So you did in fact get all the secrets—sorry that you spent so much time trying to puzzle it out! Nice playthrough btw, I'm very glad to see that the final area works as intended and doesn't cause too many deaths.

Good catch on E2M4 too—forgot that -complevel 2 doesn't like doors with linedefs in them.

[gudermannian function]

1 hour ago, dobu gabu maru said:

Good catch on E2M4 too—forgot that -complevel 2 doesn't like doors with linedefs in them.

This is a complevel -3 project right

[dobu gabu maru]

24 minutes ago, gudermannian function said:

This is a complevel -3 project right

 

Ah yup yup! I always use -cl2 as shorthand for anything limit removing, but this is technically -cl3 sice it's Ultimate Doom, not Doom 2

[dobu gabu maru]

Alright, I've updated a number of maps and collected them all into a zip file here. No version number attached to these unfortunately, but it really shouldn't be too many more updates before we're finished. Only big change from this collection is that E2M4 has had its red 'n blue puzzle room changed to a Chasm-esque run through cacoland. It keeps the flow of the map intact and is considerably less confusing than the previous area (I also reduced the baron lock-in encounter by 10 seconds because it does tend to drag). E4M7 is officially next on the docket.

 

A side thing, but I've updated most of these maps with my new automapping process that keeps the automap simple and readable (you can check E3M9 for a quick example). I was considering touching up the automaps for the rest of the set, but dunno if that's overextending my authority or if people would have an issue with that. I personally would like a clean automap set, but that just might be a weird hang-up of mine.

[cannonball]

I really like the changes to E2M4, really interesting to see the same cluster of cacos get used for two separate sections of the map. 

 

Edits to E2M3 are coming along slowly but surely, most of the visual touching up is done, it is just a case of repopulating the map in a similar vein to the original and hoping everything flows nicely. There are a couple of more combat puzzle set ups mixed in now that again I will need to balance once I get to that stage. Then @DJVCardMaster I will send it back your way to make sure you are fine with everything.

 

As for tidying up, I am happy to have my maps touched up in the automap once they are in a stage where nothing major will be changed. I am pretty bad at doing this, aside from hiding most of the trigger lines at least.

 

[Johnny Cruelty]

hey is there a wad that contains all the levels so far 

also how is progress!? just discovered this project and I really loved D2INO

[FEDEX]

I think UDINO_Alpha6c is the last compiled stage

[dobu gabu maru]

On 5/19/2023 at 9:36 PM, Johnny Cruelty said:

also how is progress!? just discovered this project and I really loved D2INO

 

We're wrapping up! Just have to edit two maps and then we're likely ready for the release candidate, so I'd just wait for that.

 

On 5/19/2023 at 6:38 PM, cannonball said:

As for tidying up, I am happy to have my maps touched up in the automap once they are in a stage where nothing major will be changed. I am pretty bad at doing this, aside from hiding most of the trigger lines at least.

 

Y'know, that's a good idea; maybe if I have enough time for the /idgames release, I'll do a pass-through on all the maps. I prefer not to edit anything without an author's permission, but I figure the automap is one of those things that like, me and maybe one other person care about.

[dobu gabu maru]

Okay, my edits for E4M7 are mostly finalized. Download here. Difficulties included, automap isn't finished yet.

 

It's a weird map. I originally complained to peanut that it felt too bloated and long, but then while editing it... I added like 150 more monsters and made it take 30 minutes to max. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ The issue for me is that I wanted to double down on the map's title, and to do so I had to just keep throwing monsters at the player in order to generate any kind of threat. Due to that, if you play it slowly the map isn't all that difficult, whereas if you're not cautious and zipping around, you're bound to bleed your resources dry. It honestly could have less resources (considering you get to max shells fairly quick), but I wanted to make combat as explosive as possible—hence rockets littering the setting like beer cans at a Korn concert.

 

Ammo can also be fairly tight on the final encounter if you don't optimize BFG shots and waste them trying to plink down masterminds. Perhaps I could have some cell lower when you drop each of the SMM pedestals, but I like the current gimmick of the arena, where all the ammo & health you see is (mostly) all you get for the entire fight. Maybe I'd lean more generous if this was an E3 map, but E4 really is just doing its own damn thing at this rate, so I don't feel all too worried. Will have to see if people still think it's too grindy or exhausting in playtesting; at least I tried to streamline the player's path through the map!

 

So with that set, the last task I'm officially undertaking (before another round of playtesting I suppose) is adding difficulties to Time of Death's E4M9. Wish me luck????

 

EDIT: Oh yeah, the midi is "hush" by Paul D... an unused relic from the original NOVA, believe it or not! Been looking for a place for it for over a decade, and I think I finally found it!

Edited June 3, 2023 by dobu gabu maru

[General Rainbow Bacon]

Looks like a great map!  The midi didn't load though.  I got the regular e4m7 music when I looked at it.  Yes, good luck with adding difficulties to ToD's map.  Probably going to be Hard, Really Hard, and FUCK hard! right?  Anyway, excited to see this finally get out the door soon.