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The DWmegawad Club plays: Alien Vendetta

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Cynical said:

Which ones are even in contention with it for "worst in the wad"? Point Dreadful is the only thing that's even close to as weak. I'd take Caco's or Demonic Hordes over it any day, dry as they both are.


So far I'd put map03 in the same "disappointing" bucket as map07 and (spoiler!) after playing it last night, I'd put map08 there as well. But this is probably at least in part because I don't dislike map07 as much as you.

I mean, it's certainly disappointing that AV's map07 is basically just "Dead Simple version 6,275" but at least the map itself was reasonably fun to blast through, despite its lack of innovation. And map07 innovation is rare enough that when I reversed the order of 'trons and mancs in 100lineN.wad, people actually commented on it as a refreshing change. (Off hand, I can only recall map07 of CC4 as a big departure from the Dead Simple model, and my enjoyment of that was rather spoiled by its fondness for elevated, distant chaingunners in wide open spaces).

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Cynical said:

Which ones are even in contention with it for "worst in the wad"? Point Dreadful is the only thing that's even close to as weak. I'd take Caco's or Demonic Hordes over it any day, dry as they both are.

Maps 07 and 17 are the only two maps in the set that i'd say are weak, not just relative to the rest of the set but in general.. but yeah, there aren't many weak ones.

Map 06 - Hillside Siege

AV takes a pretty big step up in difficulty with this one, an adventurous outing built around a tech-base that has a relatively circular layout. This one is fairly linear in how it plays out, but it distinguishes itself with some brutal, bloody combat from the stretch. You *can* do the ol' stop 'n pop behind a doorway to get through a lot of the map, but for a lot of the bigger, stronger hordes on UV, infighting helps out tremendously. It's a very solid looking map, as one would expect from this mapset; its lightning is mostly very appropriate for the surroundings, and it is well laid insofar as texture work is concerned. Still, this one leaves a nastier impression than anything else that has come before and is one of the high points of the first episode.

Map 07 - Showdown

As others have noted, basically a variation on the Dead Simple concept, this time redolent in a texture scheme that suggests Plutonia more than anything else. It's alright, with the opening with the Mancubus being the nastiest thing the map has to offer. Other than that, it's a cakewalk that doesn't do much else to expand on the concept of a map 07.

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BlondieMcFilthy said:

Maps 07 and 17 are the only two maps in the set that i'd say are weak

Blasphemy! Nukefall is great.

@Capellan, AV07 is worse than the original Dead Simple, just by virtue of the arachnos being segregated from the main arena. Dead Simple clones are one thing; Dead Simple clones that are worse than the original are a far, far worse thing.

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MAP07 - “Showdown” by Anders Johnsen

dead simple clone, so i guess it will get mediocre reviews at best. the mancubus arena is an inner courtyard, separated by high walls from the rocky outside with arachnotrons, taken from plutonia's map07. tbh i've never understood what's so interesting about square arenas with mancs and arachnotrons.

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map07

A Dead Simple map that isn't much fun to play casually, but well suited to a brisk reality run. My favorite part was the view beyond the exit. This area doubles as a deathmatch arena. My write-up is short and forgettable, like the map.

A Dead Simple map that isn't much fun to play casually, but well suited to a brisk reality run. My favorite part was the view beyond the exit. This area doubles as a deathmatch arena. My write-up is short and forgettable, like the map.

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Hey everyone! First time poster, long time wad fan (funny enough, despite beating Doom 2 and many megawads, I've never actually beaten Doom 1). So great to finally to be participating in one of these!

This will be my first time going through this one, and to make things a little different/interesting, I'll be playing through this wad with the DemonSteele mod installed. For those unfamiliar, Demonsteele is a mod that focuses on close ranged sword combat and pretty much changes all of the mechanics of the base game so it feels like. There are guns, but ammo is severely limited.

I will be playing keyboard only (with turn speed tweaked) and on second-highest difficulty where you die in 3 hits by default. I think this will be interesting as I will likely have to use different tactics that most Doom players to get through these levels and look at them from a completely different perspective.

Onto level 1!

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MAP06: Szymanski and Soto turn up the heat on us here with a map that's all about pushing the player through several rooms of uneven terrain. I gotta state that I absolutely adore the layout and love how much energy and carnage is packed into this relatively compact map, enemies sneakily positioned to fire at you from every angle in every room. There's a couple moments where you can catch your breath but it's designed to apply pressure on you for basically the whole map, and rarely do you feel confident enough that you can stride into a room and come out of an upcoming battle unscathed (especially later in the map where the health just disappears for some reason). It's a very clever, very devious map that showcases the strength of perched enemies; it's both prickly and brilliant. Part of me feels E1 of Hell Revealed should've been like this, but alas, I have to stop harping on poor Niv and Donner some day :P

MAP07: This wasn't actually that bad! I mean, first you have to get over the sheer disappointment of another Dead Simple clone, but it at least has a chance of killing you and lets you explore outisde the castle walls for a bit. As long as a map is dangerous I usually have a little bit of fun, even if it's a Dead Simple map. Fun, albeit the weakest map thus far.

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Map 07: Showdown

Wasn't that the name of MM's map 23 with the early taste of BFG slaughter? Anyways, this is frankly an easier, poor-man's version of Plutonia's Caughtyard that doesn't leave much of an impression. I do like the sort of amphitheater appearance of the Manc area, as though there would be spectators watching a gladiator match below. The outdoor area lacks any sort of lethality as you're almost never exposed to crossfire from the 'Trons and the Revenants are a peek-a-boo window shooting exercise.

As far as weaker maps in the set go: I'm not particularly fond of 01, 07, 10, 26 and 30 from what I can remember. The Dome thing especially can suck a lemon.

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map07: Well this is one of the easiest levels of this wad and simple.
I like of this map only the begining, the mancubus part is fun and hard but i think outside with the arachnos is easy and so simple, its like kill spiders in a lineal way, but i think that a wad need to have some easy map. Until now, the easiest maps are 01, 05, 07
3/5 stars
Other thing to consider is that it is a good thing that so many mappers based his maps in Dead Simple, one of the betters map of Doom IWADs. "kings never die" i have ear, well, good maps neither.
Dead Simple 4ever.
Here another attemp of video
Showdown UV MAX 3:46 min

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MAP06: Hillside Siege
23:59 | 100% Everything

I put this one off until tonight because I remembered various bits as being taxing/difficult, when in reality, after a few more years' experience (even on a higher difficulty level) it's really not that bad. I did die once, but only because I was insistently trying to telefrag the cyber, who refused to stand still, and I got careless and paid for it. The second time I played it safe and blew most of my newfound BFG on him. I like this map. There's a ton of meat, but they give you a lot of ammo to deal with it (though it would've been a lot tighter from pistol start.) As others have mentioned, it's almost all directly ahead of you, though, which makes it fairly easy to cheese your way through most of it. Progression-wise, I did get hung up once, near the end: I couldn't figure out how to get back into the yellow door, because I thought I had hit the switch that raises the bars, when in reality I had merely ducked behind it on account of the ambush; the use of the "on" texture for an un-activated switch threw me off, and has probably become one of my biggest mapping pet peeves. I seriously backtracked through the entire level looking for something I'd missed—when what I'd missed was a switch that already looked like I'd used it. On a plus note, I liked the mild platforming bits, both secret and mandatory; those are always fun.


MAP07: Showdown
7:21 | 100% Everything

Y'know what, I don't think this map's that bad. Probably that's because it's been one of my longest-lingering "What WAD's that level from again?" stumpers. (I had thought both Plutonia and Icarus at various points.) It starts off as a Dead Simple clone, and then opens up into something maybe a little more involving, but eh not really. The layout was obviously memorable to me, at least. And were those Eternal Doom textures I saw?

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MAP01 DEMONSTEELE ANALYSIS:

Wow.. tested this out UV Max with Vanilla Doom and got through it first try, Demonsteele took 10+ tries. I really gotta know the enemy placements off by heart.. so hopefully this will be an interesting analysis.

First room of the level has 4 stationary enemies, two imps and 2 basic grunts. Attacking one only gets the attention of the enemy of the same type so I snuck up on the Zombiemen first and took them out, then I went for the imps (who were so close together I could get them quick). The sergeants were easy.

Red Key Room: There are 3 imps standing around spread out so it can be awkward since I'm playing on keyboard and circle strafing isn't the easiest. I had to run up the stairs and take out the sergeant. and then took out the imps one-by-one as they walked up the stairs. After grabbing the key, a 3 imp monster closet opens up and it is difficult to avoid taking damage. Thankfully there are 2 stimpacks (which actually recover 1/3 of my health on a 3-hit pack, thankfully). In the secret room, the blue orb in this added 2 additional hits to my 3-hits, so i mow through the imps to take it, usually taking a hit in the process. I also go through the waterfall and get my shotgun with 18 ammo (enemies don't drop shotguns in this so ammo can only be found with the actual pickups which are reduced), and the chaingunner is taken down with no problem.

Central Hell Knight Room: By this time there are two imps waiting to ambush me, but there are monster fights everywhere instead. I hide around the corner and pop out and slash them and while the Hell Knight is distracted with an imp (in this he's programmed to throw his fireballs at you nonstop pretty much at your pistol's rate) I unloaded my pistol on him. I also used up most my shells taking out everyone shooting at me around.. which sucks because the stairway has 2 sergeants and an imp wating for me so i gotta pop up and run at them when the opportunity strikes. The room with the chaingunner has 3 imps pop out, but my sword has good enough range that I can slash and take them out. Plus I'm blessed to see 2 health opened up with it!

In the room that's opened up after pressing the switch, there is a cacodemon (which in this mod is replaced by Heretic's Disciple enemy and a bunch of other enemies, so I stand outside the doorway and hack away (something tells me this will not be the first time saying this).

In the next room, I try to go after the imps hiding behind the gates (you can slash through gates, thankfully!) and regained my health. After that, I jump into the pool with the spectres, which move twice as fast to balance the mod, so I take a hit but they're gone. I also take out the spectre behind the gate in the secret room. The sword has a suprisingly long range! I go in, get my armour (2 more additional hits!) and exit the stage!

Other notes: I really like the creativity of the secrets of this level. I liked green but not dangerous liquid, and I really the opening in the last room. I even liked the green torch to exit the level. Nice little touches like that make these kinda maps charming.

...jeez if this wall of text is for the first (and probably shortest) level, I'm scared to see what's next, yikes

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Map 06 -- Hillside Siege - 102% Kills / 100% Secrets
Got lucky and got the cyberdemon telefrag this time, not something that's happened often for me on my many plays of this map. I don't really mind it not being a given, though, as it's nearly as satisfying to hurl his body off of the ledge as it vaporizes from the final BFG shot.

A lot of later maps in the hills/base theme remind me of "Hillside Siege" in various ways, though in this case that's perhaps more a matter of shared fundaments of solid mapping than it is one of conscious influence (though there are at least a couple of maps in Kama Sutra where the influence from this map and its younger sibling "Clandestine Complex" is more definite). Nevertheless, this is one of AV's most popular early-game maps, and the followup to map 04's introduction of the block/squad-style monster placement that characterizes much of the rest of the WAD, where homogeneous groups of monsters are used in sets to create heterogeneous combat encounters by way of placing them in proximity to similar groups of different monsters such that they play off against each other almost automatically. This particular method is not as common a way of doing things today as it was in AV's own time, but the basic idea--of simultaneously balancing/managing different attack types and enemy speeds in one developing encounter--is still very much shared, and in that sense I think in AV we see a move away from the HR-type 'zone of influence' approach to creating hard combat towards something new and different.

This assumes you play "Hillside Siege" aggressively, of course, which is something the map supports admirably--it's spacious, but never so spacious that simply blazing by or circling around everything is entirely trivial, and allows monsters to pursue the player effectively while also containing a handful of natural checkpoints which variously fuel and complicate constant forward motion (e.g. the blue door dropoff, or the vile + barons meat-gate near the end of the first loop, which can only be handily circumvented by ducking it for the V-sphere/cyber-ledge secret). Ammo is well-judged, requiring efficient use of each of the arsenal's mainstays rather than allowing a player to lean too heavily on just one weapon, and healing is plentiful enough to subsidize a (un)healthy quotient of black eyes and bloody noses, allowing for loose, risky roughneck scrapping in favor of a more stressful/refined display of precision and concentration. On the flipside, the level's linear flow and segmentation of its battle spaces via regular doors and bounding walls also allows for a more methodical (if much slower) campaign of systematic reclamation for players more inclined towards that playstyle, requiring less agility but a more careful utilization of ammo resources, since a few spots along the route represent a significant ammo-tax if not immediately charged into/through, especially the initial entry into the elbow-shaped yard below the cyberdemon's vantage. In all, it's quite balanced, variable and organic given the relatively simple monster placement style; if there's a downside it's that the linear/segmented route presents something of an 'either/or' proposition as a far as playstyle goes. That is to say, you either blitz through from the outset OR you take the more methodical approach, as trying to do a little from column A and a little from column B will tend to see you quickly and decisively door-marshaled into taking the slower approach whether you like it or not. In that sense, it could be said that the map really only comes into its own on a replay, I suppose.


Aesthetics here are somewhat simple relative to many of the set's other maps, but it's a sort of simplicity that has aged quite well, emphasizing clean visuals and the scale (esp. vertical) of chunky, imposing architecture. Broadstroke sector-lighting predominates, and is very tastefully handled given the expanses you'll be seeing it over, mainly presented so as to simulate shadows and lightcasting off of buildings and through windows with the sky itself framed as the main source of illumination. It's 2002 and you don't see any of that 'neutral-bright floodfill is fine since we're under open sky' stuff here, eh? Actual cosmetic detailing is pretty limited, texturing is painted with a broad brush, the 'natural' terrain looks a bit more topographically artificial than what a modern audience may be used to seeing today (under the same engine limits, I mean), and the overall sense of shape is persistently squarish, and yet it all gels quite nicely into a believable and immersive presentation, which is again a matter of love and care. It's totally linear, but disguises this well by segmenting off areas with walls and lanes that can occasionally be seen over (and persistently heard through/over) and via its looping route. This is the type of aesthetic that flourishes through layout and base architecture rather than through detailing or mosaic texturing, certainly. My favorite bit is the staircase after the elbow-yard, split by the marble lionface pilaster (with head-kebab) at the top, with little but the sky showing through the dual threshold until you reach the top--quite striking. The level also sports one of the coolest opening shots in the WAD, certainly.

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Map 07 -- Showdown - 100% Kills / No actual secrets
I suspect this level is named more for the cordoned-off deathmatch arena (a glimpse of which is visible at the very end of the SP route) than anything. The first startup demo for AV shows a rather one-sided duel taking place here, incidentally.

So, it's a Dead Simple map, a supratrope as old as time even when AV was contemporary. Not a particularly good one by genre standards, either, I feel...the mancubus portion and the arachnatron portion don't segue naturally into each other (so there's no real sense of unfolding or reveal), and neither has much edge as a one-off fight, with the mancubus battle arguably being easier than Sandy's original m07 (since the player can powerfully exploit elevation and distance), and the 'tron segment feeling somewhat shoehorned in, as Vendettaguy has little recourse but to munch a trail of spiderlings one by one as they occupy a narrow grassy rise above the gatehouse's moat (with a handful of them perched in turret-nests with limited overview). Not particularly remarkable but not finicky enough to actively aggravate, I suspect that the main thing dragging down the 'tron segment is that it's composed of two completely symmetrical, linear parts. The little switch-rooms probably could have been done away with in entirely in favor of better line of sight for the mirrored groups of 'trons, I think, which would likely compel the average player to do some fighting from the moat, and thus make the monsters and ammo down there seem more purposeful--as it is you might only want to drop down there to get some rocket top-ups to speed the action above, otherwise having that stuff down there (esp. the few scant handfuls of fodder monsters) feels to me like it mainly just adds an ungainly element of detour to overall mapflow.

The switches open a pair of secret doors sealing off the exit, and killing all of the spiders bridges a gap behind those doors, incidentally. Thus, it's a less-pressuring "Dead Simple" with a pair of symmetric door/window-fights as a bonus. Yeah, okay, whatever.

Visuals are fine, though the keep itself is suspiciously underdecorated. The best idea is the asymmetrical waterfall rolling down from the hills on one side, and the dusky floodfill is certainly preferable to the more commonly seen bright floodfill often used in outdoor areas. So, it's 'fine', like I said, but that's all it is, and in context it comes off as a noticeably less polished/nuanced piece than most of the set's other levels.

One of Alien Vendetta's few really weak maps, I think, though perhaps not the one I'd personally call the weakest. I have a sneaking suspicion that Anders felt no real passion for this one (perhaps excluding the DM arena!), and that it exists mainly as a nod to standing tradition.

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A note on AV 06 doorway marshalling:

One of the many, many genius touches in Hillside Siege is how the Tetris-block layout frequently puts you under fire from multiple angles if you even try to door-camp. The yellow door has Manc snipers over the first room to harass you. The chokepoint after the blue-key dead-drop offers cover, but if you try to fight from there, the pinkies and mancs will be coming at you from both sides. The Cyberyard has a window on the side overlooking the door; if you try to door camp, you find yourself in an enfilade situation, and if you try to fight through the window, you'll get stuck since you won't have enough ammo to do it.

In short, the tactical advantages of cautious play in AV06 are minimized with a combination of a very clever layout and very well considered thing placement that constantly pulls the player forward, both for efficiency and for resources (maybe I'm reading too much into it, but I don't think it's not a coincidence that there's tons of health, but only a single green armor half-way through the map; I suspect it's meant to keep you always going for that next healthpack). Aspiring mappers, if you study only one map, this is one of the best you could possibly pick. Almost everything you need to learn about layout, item placement, and encounter design, you can get a master class in just by studying Hillside Siege. And, shit, it even looks great!

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Cynical said:

One of the many, many genius touches in Hillside Siege is how the Tetris-block layout frequently puts you under fire from multiple angles if you even try to door-camp.


It is trivially easy to door camp the map in HMP continuous. I have first hand experience :)

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Cynical said:

A note on AV 06 doorway marshalling:

One of the many, many genius touches in Hillside Siege is how the Tetris-block layout frequently puts you under fire from multiple angles if you even try to door-camp. The yellow door has Manc snipers over the first room to harass you. The chokepoint after the blue-key dead-drop offers cover, but if you try to fight from there, the pinkies and mancs will be coming at you from both sides. The Cyberyard has a window on the side overlooking the door; if you try to door camp, you find yourself in an enfilade situation, and if you try to fight through the window, you'll get stuck since you won't have enough ammo to do it.

In short, the tactical advantages of cautious play in AV06 are minimized with a combination of a very clever layout and very well considered thing placement that constantly pulls the player forward, both for efficiency and for resources (maybe I'm reading too much into it, but I don't think it's not a coincidence that there's tons of health, but only a single green armor half-way through the map; I suspect it's meant to keep you always going for that next healthpack). Aspiring mappers, if you study only one map, this is one of the best you could possibly pick. Almost everything you need to learn about layout, item placement, and encounter design, you can get a master class in just by studying Hillside Siege. And, shit, it even looks great!


I feel like the map could have used more spiderdemons. The nukage pool was a good spot for one. The cyber up high could have been a spiderdemon too, and it would have been easier to telefrag. The two mancs in the tower could have been spiderdemons, the ambush sergeants in the cubbies could have been spiderdemons, and all the map's cacodemons could have instead been flying spiderdemons. There was a lot of room for improvement.

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Cynical said:

Which ones are even in contention with it for "worst in the wad"? Point Dreadful is the only thing that's even close to as weak. I'd take Caco's or Demonic Hordes over it any day, dry as they both are.


No point in ranking them specifically, but the maps I dislike the most in AV are 03, 07, 21 and 30 I think.

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MAP07 Showdown

A glorified mancubus arena, leading to a valley-lite where arachnotron hunting and switch pressing takes place. Next!

Oh by the way, that's the second time I see a berserk pack in a rather strange spot. And as far as maps I don't like goes, it's MAP30 and the one MAP25 that didn't make it to the 2nd release.

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The levels I haven't liked so far are 9, 13, 14, 20, 21. I'm still on level 25 though. Since I'm travelling next week, I hope I finish it in the next days.

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Hey, everybody. This is T-Rex, and after a few days of playing some Doom wads, with Vorpal's Black Label being the last wad, I am now ready to take on Alien Vendetta. This has been a long wait, and it's about time the DWMC is going through this epic megawad. As we all know about its backstory, it started off as a one-man project by Andy Johnsen with the intention to be a Hell Revealed tribute, but later on in its development, more mappers (some of which are still around) have collaborated and the result is a wad with a good variety of gameplay. Some are large-scale adventures, while others are intense slaughterfests, particularly a great portion of mid-late maps in the set. The main highlight of Alien Vendetta, though, is the level design. It's high-quality all the way (though there's a few that are average) to the scope of Requiem and Eternal Doom. So, without further ado, time for me to get the show on the road. This is Alien Vendetta, played in vanilla Doom, on the HMP difficulty, and using the Plutonia IWAD (as I do that with any super-hard megawad).

Map01: Sunset (Martin Aalen Hunsager)
100% kills, 100% items, 100% secrets
Time: 02:27

A short and sweet introductory map that is made of bricks and metal in the style of Quake. The eerie music track captures the mood of the level very well. I really like the layout and there's pretty neat parts here and there. Ones that stand out are the slime waterfall you can go through and run up a passage to the super shotgun, and how you have to hump the green torch near the end in order to reveal the exit. Monster placement is all lightweight enemies, so this is a pretty easy map (though I know a couple of mid-tier enemies make appearances on UV). Overall, it's a really good starting map which gets you psyched up for more.

Map02: Rusty Rage (Anders Johnsen)
100% kills, 100% items, 100% secrets
Time: 03:38

Anders Johnsen, the team leader, graces us with ye olde techbase map here. It feels just like Episode 1 of The Ultimate Doom, but Johnsen has shaped it in a way that makes it fresh, like the earthy rock indentions, and some wooden crates. There's more enemies, with some of tougher ones thrown in like mancubi, hell knights, and revenants (including arch-viles on UV/NM). Nevertheless, it's still a cakewalk, but it certainly gives you a taste of things to come later on. Be very careful, as there's several snipers and ambush traps that can catch you unawares. The nukage pit is harmless, and be sure to check the switch behind the slimefall for the soul sphere. Then you get the ending where the exit is closed off just when you approach it, and you need to open it through a switch that is revealed at the same time. Fun map, and while it's still easy, there's a few tricky spots.

Map03: Cargo Depot (Mattias Berggren/Kim Andre Malde)
100% kills, 100% items, 100% secrets
Time: 04:45

Personally, I thought this way an okay map. After all, there's some features that help make the map interesting (thanks to Kim Malde), despite it being so boxy for the most part. I mean, there's the city towers behind you at the start, the rocky cavern with the waterfalls where you get the yellow key, and there's the MS NIGHTMARE ship out at sea outside the area with the blue key. Again, this is another short techbase map, and it's pretty straightforward too. At the area with the blue key, it is imperative that you take out the sniper revenants first, but keep on moving while doing so in order to avoid getting chewed by the demons. Also, watch out for the spectre ambush as you obtain the lowered blue. Fortunately, the area is wide, so they shouldn't be so troublesome. The ending takes you through a railway tunnel, which is a nice touch. Not a bad map at all, IMO.

Map04: Seclusion (Mattias Berggren)
100% kills, 100% items, 100% secrets
Time: 07:48

We get another techbase map by Berggren, this time bigger, and the difficulty picks up here. Pretty neat how this map picks up where the previous one left off as you start at the railway tracks near the end of the tunnel. There's quite a lot of meat to plough through. I find this to be more akin to The Innocent Crew style slaughter than Plutonia/HR as the hordes are mostly little guys, with a few of the tougher enemies mixed in. There's plenty of ammo as well, so you won't find yourself short for the most part. The red key is a very nasty trap as a bunch of hitscanners will pop up immediately and start firing, so you'll have to be quick and take your time gunning them down. I like how the area with the red key doors is an obvious homage to E1M5: Phobos Lab of Ultimate Doom. Get ready for a couple of intense fights in the last parts of the map. You get revenants, zombies, imps, and barons at the switch which raises a bridge across the river below from the other side, then beyond the yellow key door, there's a wild monster party in the hallway to the exit, and guarding the switch is an arch-vile. Intense map through and through, but it's a lot of fun.


Okay, I shall leave it here for now. I'm itching to play a few other wads for the time being. See you again in the next couple of maps.

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Map07: a Dead Simple style map. I like the idea of the mancubi area that resemble somekind of coliseum but overall it's a quite underwhelming level. I think that the Dead Simple is actually more challenging than this one.

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MAP08 - Beast Island
ZDoom, UV - Pistol Start, KIS(%): 100/100/100

A level with highly linear progression, but with memorable atmosphere thanks to the good combination of environmental design and background music from the game called "Lands of Lore 2". Like other linear style level, your object is simple; move forward and kill everything in your way. But don't worry. There are some ambushes to spice the gameplay, like two same monster closets in a row from that narrow cave. And don't worry about the supplies you left behind. There are always teleporters to take you back to previous zones. The island fortress has lots of secrets and a final boss. You may fight against a Cyberdemon with your plasma rifle. But you can find a BFG inside the fortress, so it's up to you. While the combat is just okay, I won't forget the impression about this level since the day I played it for the first time. Yes, the background music is important to make a good level.

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Map 02: Rusty Rage DEMONSTEELE ANALYSIS

UV, 3 "HP", No saves

What is interesting about this mod is that the tougher (well, Doom 2) enemies like Revenants, Archviles and Mancubi are actually made into the easier enemies as you swing your sword so fast you hit stun them until they die. (Although Mancubi are upgraded so that they shoot 5 vollets of 4 fireballs at a time so fancy footwork is required). So in that case, Imps and the hitscanners seem to actually be the toughest non-boss enemies when out of ammo.

I found this map actually easier than the first map. I think one of the reason was both the abundance of health packs and shells everywhere so I was able to shoot my way through this for the most part.

I think the designer of this level has a little fetish for blowing up large clusters of enemies in an explosion (I kinda do too lol). There's an exploding barrel at the beginning near the Sergeants, there's exploding barrels near another group by the exit, and there's a rocket launcher in the room with the Soulsphere which, when collected, opens up 2 closets full of chaingunners, which can pretty much all be taken out with one rocket each. Gotta say it made the level satisfying and was awesome when I got a "Strike" by clearing all of the enemies in one blast.

Another highlight was the pinkies in the sewage area (which are trivial with my melee focus) and having them all rush at me while I slash them to bits. (Wish I had a GIF of me doing that.. looks so satisfying)

Toughest part was the curved hallway at the beginning of the level as the hitscanners were out of my sword reach and would drain my 3hp pretty fast.

But yeah, explosion parts and pinky rush made this to be a fun level. Can't wait to see level 3! (And I'm dreading Map 06 from what people are saying here)

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MAP07 - “Showdown” by Anders Johnsen

The deadliest part of this map is the manc arena at the start, those fireballs can wipe you out pretty fast with no armour. After that its all mopping up. I finally did get some armour, with only one imp left in the map. Not much else to say, its pretty simple stuff. Interesting continuity effort at the end though.

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map08

I prefer the previous map to this one, by quite a lot actually. map07 is short and uneventful, but map08 is of moderate length and consistently irritating. Most annoying moment was ignoring the cliff revenants and imps, which there is basically no ostensible reason to kill, and taking ~60 damage from infinitely tall imps in the telefrag sequence. Map geometry was annoying, too, particularly the impassable lines at sea, which are quite a bit closer than they actually need to be to prevent VPOs. Seemed like it was only possible to be dealt anything above chip damage in irritating ways (aforementioned imps; hitscaners you might not see until they shoot at you; the point-blank imp warp-in, where it's possible to take a scratch or two no matter what if you happen to be standing in the wrong spot at the outset), and there were no engaging or challenging fights or even skirmishes to make up for the nuisances.

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08: Another Cyberdemon? Okay. The beginning is very atmospheric, which fits with its adventure feeling. It's veery linear, until you get to that fortress, where you have more space to breath. I didn't feel the gameplay though, the setups could've been more interesting. Most of times you deal with monsters in one direction, then some snipers here and there, and after you get to the fortress area, you have to deal with a bunch of harmless HK and Mancubus with a super shotgun. Cyberdemon battle wasn't also a big deal, though I used the BFG I've got from the level 6 ;P 6/10

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Map08
Not a fan of the invisible walls in this one. Would it have been so hard to put some kind of ‘barrier’ to justify them, like a 32 high wall around the waterline? Also not a fan of the stringy corridor parts of the map and the numerous blind drops the map requires of you. With infinitely tall monsters on, that’s a recipe for being invisibly clawed.

Other than that ... it’s okay. Nothing all that special really, but competently assembled. I did better than average (for me) for the secrets, which helped keep me on top of the resistance I faced. The cyber battle was a bit easy given how long you’d had to listen to him stomping around beforehand, but in 2002 I probably found him a lot more challenging.

Interesting to see an encounter (with the rev turrets, before you reach the castle) where ignoring the bad guys to just head for the teleporter actually appears to be the deliberately optimised path. Other than that, nothing terribly memorable here. It was mostly a lot of monster closets, it seemed (though at least some of them were behind the player, this time).

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map06 - 102% kills, 66% secrets - fde here

im not sure how i feel about this map. on the one hand, playing it blind, i ran out of ammo and it was essentially un-completable (no berserk, and im not going to start punching barons!)

but on the other, once id realised i had to speed through certain areas(screw you archvile!), and use infighting to the maximum the map became a lot more fun, and demos of this map are very entertaining with almost constant action.

as a thing, generally, i dont think i like doom maps that 'force' you, or guide you (a less negative word i guess) to play a certain way, as 1) maybe i dont want to play that way specifically, and 2) if you're as dumb as me it makes completing the map on a first try almost impossible.

one of the most recent that sticks with me is 'Code' from AAliens - that i didnt even realise was meant to be played semi-tyson and even with this knowledge i had no desire to replay it.

this was also my chief complaint with HR (foreknowledge very much required) and this Hillside Siege does make me think of a more polished, less sharp-edged early HR offering.

the MIDI does its job - a touch repetitive but a full speed run takes up your attention and is over quite quickly so not too bad. its also a little bit jolly/up-beat which puts me even more in mind of some of HR's RoTT jaunty tunes.

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map07 - 100% kills/secrets fda here

a rather plain Dead Simple here. the interior mancubi arena was a little ugly but the action and visuals do step up a bit once you exit the castle.

the lighting is alnost universally flat which doesnt help either.

the map is reasonably fun to actually play, but nothing special. not much to see here to be honest.

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Map07 – Showdown by Anders Johnsen

Just to be different, I died several times in this one. I probably died as many times as I did in Hillside Siege! But only at the start. This is the kind of set-up – buncha Mancs with spray-fire in a small area – that does a number on me. Never played this before so I was hesitant about teleporting. Then when I did teleport, Johnson pulled a dick move by putting the destination in a box, so when I did the natural side-step, I slammed against a wall and got fried. Thanks, Anders! ;P

Ah, and then I was on a fairly narrow path up top, the kind of place where I like to slide along a wall, but Doom walls are kinda sticky, so that slowed me down at certain critical points and I died again.

Once the Mancs were dead, the fun was over. All that mess with the turreted spiders, and the Revvies stuck behind doors so you could blast them through the windows, was not a thrill.

There was some nice cast gradient lighting again, which we see in pretty much every Anders map. No complaints on that score.

One of these days, someone's gonna go big using the special sectors in Map07, instead of doing these small knock-offs. Maybe someone already has?

Thumbs up for the opening killbox, thumbs down for the rest.

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