The DWmegawad Club plays: Speed of Doom

dobu gabu maru · April 2, 2017

What is the DWmegawad Club?
This is a place where we settle down, have a cup of tea (or drink of your choice) and take a month to play through a megawad on our own, together! Any keen observations, criticisms, or frustrated ranting about it goes here in the discussion. As long as you want to say something about what you've played, feel free to speak your mind.

Can I join?
Sure. The only rule is that you have to play at least some of the levels in our monthly megawad to contribute, but you're generally encouraged to finish the whole thing, even if you've played it before.

What levels am I allowed to post about?
Whatever day of the month it is, is the upper limit for the map you can post on. So if it’s the 6th, you may discuss up to MAP06.

Do I have to post an entry every day?
Nope, not at all. This is only for our more enthusiastic members. As long as you play through it with us you’re part of the club.

When do we vote on the next month’s megawad?
Voting begins on the 25th of the current month. Remember to add one “+++” before your vote to make it easier to count. For example:

+++ Ultimate Doom

----------
>>>DOWNLOAD SPEED OF DOOM HERE<<

Gotta go fast! Speed of Doom is a 2010 alternating 2-man megawad by Josh “Joshy” Sealy and Darkwave0000 that’s hard and cool! Go go go play play play!

Author & Maplist:

MAP01 - “First Blood” by Joshy

MAP02 - “Mysterious Cove” by Darkwave0000

MAP03 - “Constrained Base” by Joshy

MAP04 - “Sedgemire” by Darkwave0000

MAP05 - “Cliffside Siege” by Joshy

MAP06 - “Dreamscape” by Darkwave0000

MAP07 - “Simple Prison-Yard” by Joshy

MAP08 - “Frenetic” by Darkwave0000

MAP09 - “Depredation” by Joshy

MAP10 - “Vile Pain” by Darkwave0000

MAP11 - “Transcension” by Joshy

MAP12 - “The Meat Grinder” by Darkwave0000

MAP13 - “Lucifer’s Tears” by Joshy

MAP14 - “Sledge” by Darkwave0000

MAP15 - “Descent to Core” by Joshy

MAP31 - “101001010” by Darkwave0000

MAP32 - “The Pyramid of Death” by Joshy

MAP16 - “The Core” by Darkwave0000

MAP17 - “The Shrine” by Joshy

MAP18 - “Silent Hour” by Darkwave0000

MAP19 - “Impure Serenity” by Joshy

MAP20 - “The Path to Hell” by Darkwave0000

MAP21 - “Resurrection” by Joshy

MAP22 - “Dead Echo” by Darkwave0000

MAP23 - “Poison Ivy II” by Joshy

MAP24 - “Hell’s Honeycomb” by Darkwave0000

MAP25 - “Death’s Nocturne” by Joshy

MAP26 - “Blessed Hellscape” by Darkwave0000

MAP27 - “Hais Temple” by Joshy

MAP28 - “Twilight Massacre” by Darkwave0000

MAP29 - “The Ruins of Kalnik” by Joshy

MAP30 - “Darkness Without End” by Darkwave0000

[/quote]

BONUS CONTENT
Doomwiki

DSDA

Kmxexii’s review

Lingyan203's playthrough
----------
OLD THREADS
2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

2017

Edited May 9, 2023 by dobu gabu maru

NuMetalManiak · April 2, 2017

I just love how clean that is, seeing them alternate between the even and odd-numbered slots. Same shit as before, playing on ITYTD just to see if teleport destinations check out and everything. Haven't played this one in a while.

MAP01 First Blood

So a berserk start. Well not really, opposition was light enough for me to just pew pew the enemies ahead with pistol. That's until we hit the outdoors, where it's pretty rough beginning. Place priority on hitscanners, do whatever to avoid fireballs, then find the blue key and enter. Then figure out the rest. Take it slow and steady and this one's in the bag.

Good music track. Quite jazzy and reminds me of Breath of Fire 3's soundtrack.

Grain of Salt · April 2, 2017

\o/

NecrumWarrior · April 2, 2017

I uh... I hate to point this out again... but the listings show Devilution for February even though yall played Revilution... fuck I look like a pedant now don't I?

paymentplan · April 2, 2017

Speed of Doom is one of those WADs I've heard a ton about. I've tried to play it several times, but I've never finished it. Hell, I'm not even sure how far I got those times before. I've watched tons of speed demos for this level set. I think part of my problem is coming to it after playing through and loving Resurgence. Speed of Doom feels mundane, somehow, by comparison.

Kind of a harsh judgment considering I've never played the WAD all the way through, huh? Well, I'm going to try to change that. Let's see if I change my opinion by the time the credits roll!

I'll be playing on UV, attempting a casual max of each map, without using saves (for now).

MAP 01 - First Blood

So I know I've played at least this map before. I remember not being too impressed. Starting off, one rushes through a dark cave, punching imps and zombies on the way. The cave abruptly dumps the player into a wide open arena containing a swarm of various low tier enemies and a few cacodemons. Overseeing this are chaingunners who could really ruin things if they weren't all standing next to explosive barrels. The building these demons guard could be an outpost or a weapons facility or whatever the player imagines. But it's locked by a blue key.

Outside, the player gets their first glimpse of the custom sky. The oppressive green clouded sky, coupled with the earthy greens and browns of the textures has a strange effect. Care has been taken here, but the colors give it a flat nature. Turning around after exiting the cave will treat the player to a lovely detailed cave mouth. The rest of the map is more serviceable and less pretty. Joshy's watery cave interiors are certainly well detailed, but there isn't much to do in them to spark any sort of appreciation. Especially the blue key area. Going in there before eliminating much of the horde can lead to a very tedious shooting gallery at the exit of the cave.

Things spice up a bit though after entering the building. The flow is directed and Joshy can create simple little encounters with teleport traps that are immediately more engaging than the player finding themselves in an open arena with many monsters. The little outside area attached to the building, with the crates, has an excellent view of the overwatch where the chaingunners were earlier. It's a great piece of architecture, and a great angle to see it.

The interior of the building is exceedingly flat, which is a bit of a shame, but making the best use of the explosive barrels to deal with spectres and cacodemons is quite entertaining. Once the red key is procured, the player heads up into a cave, not unlike the one they started in, and the map ends.

I don't think this is the most exciting MAP01. It's decently crafted, and there's a clear sense of aesthetic in the detailing. But there's not a ton to bite into. It's not immediately memorable, but it doesn't have to be. It's not making a statement, it's just a MAP01.

Kills - 100%

Items - 78% (or 76%? or 75%? not a fan of the font, but I do like the intermission screen)

Secrets - 100%

dobu gabu maru · April 2, 2017

40 minutes ago, NecrumWarrior said:

I uh... I hate to point this out again... but the listings show Devilution for February even though yall played Revilution... fuck I look like a pedant now don't I?

No pointing these things out is good! Also shows that I copy & pasted the outline of the old thread before I made the change.

Uhh I mean, HOW DO YOU KNOW WE DIDN'T PLAY THROUGH DEVILUTION LAST MONTH? HUH?

Joshy · April 2, 2017

Oh dear.

NecrumWarrior · April 2, 2017

So last month my gimmick for play was to try Ultra Violent for the first time, which I stuck with for the entirety of the main 3 episodes. This time around though I think I will stick to HMP since this WAD is specifically touted as hard, and while I am not expecting Ancient Aliens I do know my limits. However, to challenge myself a bit and try something different, I will be playing this Megawad entirely Pistol Start No Saves. I'll also be recording demos for it in QZDoom.

MAP01: First Blood

https://www.dropbox.com/s/3fu6c635b9zx57t/SoD_M01_Necrum.lmp?dl=0

Kills 100%

Items 100%

Secrets 50%

Time 4:19

Okay so first impressions of the actual WAD are that I really like the green sky and general green-ness of the WAD. I love green in Doom. It pops way more than the other usual tones of grey and brown. The font is a bit hard to read sometimes, particularly numbers in the hud. Sometimes I couldn't tell exactly how much health I had. The custom HUD is very cool on its own though.

I was glad to get the Berserk Pack right off. I just started Ancient Aliens Ep3 recently and that WAD opens with an all melee level, so I was ready for some fisticuffs. I didn't use it the entire time but I did utilize when it seemed convenient, despite there not being much of an ammo shortage. The map was very short. Not sure if this is indicative of the rest of the WAD, first maps in main games are usually short but the name does perhaps suggest a quickness to the level progression. The mixture of indoor-outdoor-cave settings was pretty cool. I am expecting these are a taste of the types of levels we may see going forward. Great map, can't wait for more!

baja blast rd. · April 2, 2017

MAP01: First Blood

This opener feels caught halfway between whether it wants to be a satisfying 'zerk-centric power fantasy or put up a modest challenge, and it doesn't really do either of them too well. Suffers from traditionalopeneritis -- would undoubtedly be stronger if conceived for a slightly later slot instead and moved here retrospectively. The strongest asset is the aesthetics, very modest geometrically and architecturally (clearly Speedmappy^TM) but pleasant in its simplicity. Strikes me as not being too far removed from the Mucus Flow aesthetic that happens to be co-author Darkwave0000's stock in trade.

galileo31dos01 · April 2, 2017

I thought this was going to be for May!! My emotions :'(

Oh well, if I start the wad the other week, can I post here? *reads the rules* Yes I can, yes I will!!

Joshy · April 2, 2017

For what it's worth, Map1, 3 and 5 were completed first (yes, rather speedmappily) before Darkwave0000 finished Map2, 4, 6 (if I recall correctly). Basically we sort of inspired each other to try and engineer maps that would fit in between each other thematically and gameplay wise, as well as trying to make it not so monotonous as well. So Darkwave0000 pretty much followed suit and added his own (brilliant) twists to the the thematic scheme for the early maps.

The zimmer and brown combination was mostly inspired by Alien Vendetta, Kama Sutra, and a map Boris did (it was a tutorial map for Doombuilder I think?).

Lingyan203 · April 2, 2017

Here's my playthrough of Speed of Doom if anybody gets stuck on a particular map. Good luck with this one guys! I hope the link to the playlist gets updated in the "Bonus content" section :)

Grain of Salt · April 2, 2017

prboom-plus, UV, continuous, no saves, no sound, keyboarding. I usually don't feel like waffling about individual maps, so I'll just give some carefully chosen scores (5 is a good score, the scale has to cover a lot).

MAP01: design 5.5/10, layout 4/10, monster placement 5/10

MAP02: design 5.5/10, layout 4.5/10, monster placement 5.5/10

galileo31dos01 · April 2, 2017

Ok, I recently downloaded the wad and decided to test it. I used Crispy Doom just to see if it works, apparently it does but this was just testing. As my english is not perfect, my reviews are going to be simple and concise. My way is:

Skill: Hurt Me Plenty

Gameplay: Continuous

Saves: Obviously

Controls: Keyboard

Map01: This is a nice opening, the first cavern looks good. Monster placement is fine for me. Secrets are ok. Nothing outstanding which is fine. I'm not too demanding to be honest.

For some reason in level 02 the first switch to lower the lift doesn't function. Should I ask, is this one case of the "Boom compatible" things that Crispy or Chocolate Doom can't get to work?? (sorry for my "noobness")

Joshy · April 2, 2017

10 minutes ago, galileo31dos01 said:

Ok, I recently downloaded the wad and decided to test it. I used Crispy Doom just to see if it works, apparently it does but this was just testing. As my english is not perfect, my reviews are going to be simple and concise. My way is:

Skill: Hurt Me Plenty

Gameplay: Continuous

Saves: Obviously

Controls: Keyboard

Map01: This is a nice opening, the first cavern looks good. Monster placement is fine for me. Secrets are ok. Nothing outstanding which is fine. I'm not too demanding to be honest.

For some reason in level 02 the first switch to lower the lift doesn't function. Should I ask, is this one case of the "Boom compatible" things that Crispy or Chocolate Doom can't get to work?? (sorry for my "noobness")

It is Boom Compatible so if Crispy Doom isn't Boom compatible, it won't work.

WH-Wilou84 · April 2, 2017

One of my favorite megawads ever.
It'll be fun reading your comments as well as some valuable trivia from Josh :)

stewboy · April 2, 2017

Don't forget MAP33 guys :)

This is also a great opportunity to see early stewboy music writing, as this was my first major project (after doing a few tracks for plutonia 2, and both claustrophobia 1024 packs). It's kind of inconsistent, looking back. I really like some tracks (eg 24, 25) and others just make me feel uncomfortable (eg 3, 16) because there are compositional issues that I would definitely have avoided if I wrote them now. I was wild and experimental in those days (totally unlike AA's soundtrack which is of course completely conventional and unexciting). Also I was 16 when I started on this project! Nobody is at their best when they're 16.

Joshy · April 2, 2017

30 minutes ago, stewboy said:

Don't forget MAP33 guys :)

This is also a great opportunity to see early stewboy music writing, as this was my first major project (after doing a few tracks for plutonia 2, and both claustrophobia 1024 packs). It's kind of inconsistent, looking back. I really like some tracks (eg 24, 25) and others just make me feel uncomfortable (eg 3, 16) because there are compositional issues that I would definitely have avoided if I wrote them now. I was wild and experimental in those days (totally unlike AA's soundtrack which is of course completely conventional and unexciting). Also I was 16 when I started on this project! Nobody is at their best when they're 16.

And I was 17/18 when I worked on this, hehe. I agree, there are maps in this that I'd gladly replace with my later maps, but I guess they still have their charm, as amateurish or imperfect they may be, and I have to push aside my perfectionism and accept what I've submitted. Also, I gotta admit Stewboy, the tunes you made for this project triggers a massive amount of nostalgia for me, it's just utterly priceless. As for the 'wild/experimental phase', I guess it's like how earlier albums of bands are always fresher sounding than their later albums haha.

Memfis · April 2, 2017

Ah Speed of Doom, good times:

Anyway, commenting without playing so stuff might be off.

01 - the midi makes this map, it is perfect for an intro. Pleasant greens, nice barrels on the walls.

DAZZER · April 2, 2017

I heard of the name Speed of Doom before, but I never thought it would be interesting for me cause the name sounded like a chillax type of wad for me (completly dumb I know). But it seems like its a classic Megawad and much people like it... so I will give it a run ! I will play it with PRBoom+,continuous, with saves on Ultra Violence :)

MAP01: First Blood
Time - 4:47

A pretty normal but good start I would say. Its like a tech base within a canyon or mountain I guess ? I like the outdoor areas with the waterfalls but the "Tech Base" is basically just a corridor with a room on its right ^^ pretty embarassing i died in the first 30 seconds because I didnt see the chaingunners in the outdoor area... I liked the use of the explosives in this one :) Most people place them random but here they really can be useful. But I would like the Map more if they removed the Red Key Room... It felt pretty rushed just to make the Map longer.

MAP02: Mysterious Cove
Time - 7:18

Oh boy I think I have an idea now what Speed of Doom is... I think this wasn't the last time I see this much Monster Teleports and Traps... But I like it ! yeah its pretty hard for MAP02 but It never was too much to handle with... Also I liked the Red Key room ^^ How often do you have the chance of Chainsawing a Pain Elemental :D ? I cant really say much about the Theme... its pretty abstract but i enjoy these natural feeling walls with the green slime.

Edited April 2, 2017 by DAZZER

Suitepee · April 2, 2017

Well this happens to be the second of three wads that I said I wanted to play this year. (outside of my massive request list) So I guess after I finish DMP2016 I might as well take this timely opportunity to also do my playthrough for the Club this month since I haven't been involved for a few months.

And just to say in advance, NO JOSHY NO! (a phrase I coined after Resurgence, which was the first time that a megawad really pushed my skill limits)

baja blast rd. · April 2, 2017

MAP02: Mysterious Cove

Really good map. The atmosphere is amazing, the polish of the natural areas is immaculate, and the layout has a lot of cool dynamic elements (multi-tier lift, stairs, big jump, etc.). This gameplay is still very much early megawad stuff in terms of armory and monster composition, but it takes place in close quarters, so you at least have to stay awake. The bigger fights tend to have plans for taking minimal damage that are shaped by the nuances of the environment, which makes the action more mentally engaging and adds replay value. Also cool delayed trigger trap at the end.

I did not feel like going for the secrets or even the free blue armor, but it is not necessary.

Edited April 2, 2017 by rdwpa

Memfis · April 2, 2017

02 - it's amusing to play these relaxing Darkwave maps. Nice mysterious atmosphere, good use of brown walls and green stuff. Boom elevators are awesome.

rehelekretep · April 2, 2017

heard a lot about this mapset, watched a few demos (map30 Okuplok - we're in for a treat! :o ), but never actually played it at all.

ill be doing my usual UV/pistol starts/no saves/FDAs/never finishing a mapset inside of 30 days as usual :D

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

map01 FDA

fun little opener. a little bit too spacious imo; the chaingunners took themselves out completely and the cacos just meandered over and blocked the way out of the BK area.

got both the secrets which was nice.

not the most memorable of openers but still competently made and nice midi choice :)

Edited May 9, 2017 by rehelekretep

rehelekretep · April 2, 2017

map02 FDA

featuring absolutely trash attempts to punch arachnotrons and mancubi!

interesting map. its got some great quirky touches, but then some more annoying bits like the BA pick-up: why is the ledge so narrow! >.<

also the start of teleporting and dumb-waiter enemy placement, not too bad here but from everyones comments in this thread and while it was being chosen in March's thread i think this is just the beginning...

Edited May 9, 2017 by rehelekretep

NuMetalManiak · April 2, 2017

MAP02 Mysterious Cove

So one thing you might have noticed if you haven't already (and if you haven't look at the first posts in the thread) is that joshy gets the odd-numbered slots and darky gets the even-numbered slots. And with that knowledge, you can easily identify their styles. And in the darkwave's case, it's the organic cave layout seen here, with lots of green and stuff around. Some actually annoying ambushes right off the bat, with a few pop-up monsters. Yep, it's one of those maps (that FUCKING arachnotron, jesus christ). Some interesting ways to get secrets, involving the lifts here mostly. Darkwave also likes the tucked-away switch type of secret, which is here for a rocket launcher. But of course, getting secrets can be rather punishing in this regard. Darkwave also liked to put monsters directly in front of a monster only teleport linedef to put them behind the player.

bioshockfan90 · April 2, 2017

GZdoom, HMP no saves until I go insane, pistol start. Got that? Cool, let's play this WAD. I don't really think I've ever given it a serious attempt, so this should be fun.

MAP01: First Blood|3:36, 100% kills|

First off: not counting secrets this month, only reason I did so last time was due to it being NEIS.

Anyway, this was a really cool Tyson-y start to the WAD. It's nice to see chaingunners again, and maybe a more fast-paced energy floating around compared to the last go around. The green sky is absolutely stunning, and there's a lot of cool things to do and see here. Something that I noticed that might be just me is the comparison of the BK area to that ONE cave view in the early AV map, I forget which one it was, but it had almost the exact same view. Every time I go through and play this first map, that's the vibe I get, and I can't unsee it. Doesn't detract away from anything tho. :[

Layout's simple but it's the first map so it gets a pass. Barrels on the wall nicked me a free chaingun early on. Oh and on a final note, it's really cool how each map kinda "connects" upon finishing the prior one. Love it when WADs do that.

4/5

MAP02: Mysterious Cove|7:48, 94% kills|

Really cool landscapes and really cool architecture sums this map up. From the elevator techbase-thing, awesome acid caves, it's pretty easy to size this map up as a hit to home run. And it is.

That's all I would have to say here, but this is also the start of some of the infamous "instant monster" fights that show up in this WAD, and while I don't mind it for now, it could become a problem, but.... No big deal, we'll see how it plays out. But for now, we're off to a great start.

5/5

paymentplan · April 2, 2017

MAP02 - Mysterious Cove

This time I took notes! My last writeup was kind of scattered, so I hope to correct that.

Mysterious Cove, by Darkwave0000. This map is intensely atmospheric. The player is treated to an ominous start, a dim cavern, with a dead marine front and center. The midi choice here is excellent. It adds to the tension as the player pokes their way through the cavern and intensifies the occasional ambushes.

The very first ambush upon picking up the shotgun is quite startling. The detail in this room is astonishing. From the little lights guiding the player's eyes to the shotgun to the slime waterfalls encircling the green armor. The detailing adds to the spooky atmosphere. The titular cove feels alien and unwelcoming, ratcheting up the player's anxiety.

Moving ahead from the shotgun and the player will trigger a second, more dangerous ambush with arachnotrons and cacos backed up by imps and other low tier baddies. Incautious play can cause a quick death. There's a nook to back into if the crossfire gets too bad, but rushing on might be the safest way forward. Another comment on the detailing: it never once gets in the way of the player's movement. There was a moment of panic when I fell into the first slime pit and had trouble escaping, but the slime is nondamaging. This is an important note; all too often a mapper can detail more than necessary, adding little bits and bobs for the player to get stuck on. Not the case here.

Forging ahead, the player may stumble into the exit room. A blue key is needed to proceed, and the player will certainly feel like a big climactic fight is in store for them. Fixated on either side of the mysterious cove are two tall buildings. The first of these is navigable by elevator. Completionists will be happy to find a secret by exploring all the floors accessible by the elevator. On the first floor, the player is treated to some wonderful indoor detailing and some tight corners. The red key waits, next to a sleeping pain elemental and a chainsaw.

The use of the chainsaw here is great. As mentioned above, this indoor part is quite tight, giving the player a great chance to chainsaw down some demons on the way out. Using the red key opens up a path to the final of the two tall buildings, this time guarded by a pair of hell knights. I didn't feel plucky enough to try to chainsaw them, opting to pick away at them with shotgun blasts, instead. A bit of platforming, and the player will be in another nicely detailed indoor part.

By this time, my nerves were shot. Dealing with the hell knights had me expecting another tough fight. Picking up the chaingun triggers a mild ambush, giving the player a good chance to use their new weapon. A switch appears which lowers the stairs in the other room, but there's also a hidden switch that reveals another elevator. Below, grabbing the rocket launcher will get the player in a panicky ambush of revenants and a mancubus.

The underground storage area is full of crates, slime, and the blue key. There's another good opportunity to conserve ammo with the chainsaw, if desired. By now, the tension is high. The blue key ambush is exceedingly dangerous, with more cacos and arachs and a glut of imps. It's tense, but good health placement means the player is never in too much danger.

Some well planned layout leads the player straight out of the blue key building with a direct path to the exit. This kind of stuff is really important to prevent players becoming lost. After all the buildup and foreshadowing, the fight in the exit room is a touch anticlimactic, but still a challenging a battle. I unfortunately expended all of my rockets immediately after grabbing the launcher and was unable to find any more. Rockets would have made the final fight easier, but more enjoyable.

And that's it! An exceptional, nervewracking map. It was tough not to just immediately jump into MAP03. But I needed a breather. stewboy's intermission music is quite nice and uplifting. The perfect tune to celebrate victory and take a brief break.

Kills - 96%

Items - ??%

Secrets - 40%

gaspe · April 2, 2017

Good times indeed, it takes me back to when I started to play pwads...

MAP01: nice opener overall, I like how it introduces also that particual visual style of the wad.

souio · April 2, 2017

I'm going to be playing this with a bit of a twist

I was born with mild cerebral palsy, so my reflexes and motor skills aren't up to par with most of the population. However, that's never stops me from playing through WADs on UV with pistol starts. One of the fun things about having crappy reflexes and a testament to Doom's game design is that there are always creative ways around the hard parts that don't require lightning fast reaction times and it turns the game into a kind of puzzle.

So I'll be analyzing this WAD's level design in-depth; mentioning the parts I have trouble with, and how I overcame them. I usually play with saves, then once I figure out the difficult parts, I try to go all the way through. Booting it up now!

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The DWmegawad Club plays: Speed of Doom

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