Ultimate Doom on Steam resets difficulty when I save (help)

[imnrk]

Hi, new to this forum so if this post breaks any rules please let me know.

 

I got Ultimate Doom on Steam during the summer sale, and have been enjoying it since then.  However, I recently wanted to play through it on Nightmare mode, but whenever I save the game, the difficulty resets to something lower.  This is a problem for me as I only ever have the time/patience to play 2-3 levels in one session.  I also like to save at the beginning of each level so I can keep my guns if I die, but that's something I can manage without if needed.

 

I do use a source port, Odamex, however I don't think this is the problem because I tried another source port, Gzdoom, and I had the same problem.  I would just try it and see with the base game, however I can't even beat the first level when using the arrow keys to look so that isn't happening.  (the difficulty stays in Nightmare when I save in the first level, and ONLY the first level.  In all the the other levels, it will reset when I save.

 

Anyone know what's causing this or how I can fix it?

[CapnClever]

Seeing as how no one's answered this yet, and that I can't naively reproduce the problem myself, I'll need some additional info in an attempt to diagnose the issue:

1. What method do you use to save the game? From the menu, F2, F9, maybe something else I'm unaware of?
2. How do you verify that the difficulty has changed?
3. Is the problem precisely after you save the game, or is it only after you've loaded the saved game? If the former, does the game correctly load into Nightmare difficulty after saving?
4. Does this problem occur on other difficulties?
5. Does this problem occur across the various episodes?
6. Does this problem occur when directly warping to a map instead of through the menu? This can be done in Odamex using, e.g., "odamex.exe -skill 5 -warp 1 8" via command line or shortcut/batch.
7. Does this problem occur using Doom2 or Final Doom IWADs?

[Moustachio]

I think the problem here is that vanilla Doom actually has a really buggy NM mode when it comes to saving. Whenever you reload a save in NM, the monsters revert back to normal speed and (this goes for all vanilla difficulties) the monsters forget where you are. It actually makes Nightmare a lot easier at times since you're not dodging lighting fast fireballs and running away from the fucking Flash (pinkies/spectres) on every map past E1M2. That being said, it's not the challenge you're looking for. I always play Nightmare on Crispy Doom. This is as close as you can get to a vanilla feel while also fixing numerous bugs and removing limits, and Nightmare plays exactly as intended.

 

I'm surprised to know that this still happens in GZDoom for you though, so, if this isn't the issue, then who knows. You can use idclev## (#1 being episode number and #2 being map number) to skip around and see if the glitch is happening on other levels.

[imnrk]

1 hour ago, CapnClever said:

Seeing as how no one's answered this yet, and that I can't naively reproduce the problem myself, I'll need some additional info in an attempt to diagnose the issue:

1. What method do you use to save the game? From the menu, F2, F9, maybe something else I'm unaware of?
2. How do you verify that the difficulty has changed?
3. Is the problem precisely after you save the game, or is it only after you've loaded the saved game? If the former, does the game correctly load into Nightmare difficulty after saving?
4. Does this problem occur on other difficulties?
5. Does this problem occur across the various episodes?
6. Does this problem occur when directly warping to a map instead of through the menu? This can be done in Odamex using, e.g., "odamex.exe -skill 5 -warp 1 8" via command line or shortcut/batch.
7. Does this problem occur using Doom2 or Final Doom IWADs?

1.  I go into the menu and hit the "save game" option.

2.  I know the difficulty has changed because the shotgunners miss a lot, and fire really slowly.  

3.  It seems somewhat inconsistent, I've had it occur both when loading a save and when saving.

4.  I can't tell for other difficulties since I only go by how the enemies slow down.

5.  It does occur across various episodes.

6.  It happens whenever I save, but I didn't realize that warping was I thing so I could always just warp to the next level when I load up the game.

7.  No idea, I don't have either of those games.

[Voros]

It's probably a better idea to play with

-skill 4 -fast

instead. Nightmare's an unbalanced joke, and speedrunners love taking it on. I wouldn't recommend it for normal playthroughs though.

[Moustachio]

4 minutes ago, Voros said:

Nightmare's an unbalanced joke, and speedrunners love taking it on. I wouldn't recommend it for normal playthroughs though.

Having started a TNT playthrough on NM, I can say that speedrunning can easily get you killed on a continuous run. In fact, I actually found it easier to play it almost slow and tactically. It's a whole new playstyle that I've never really used in Doom, but it's kind of fun because I actually feel like a MARINE infiltrating HELL (hell being full of infinite demons that are all coming for your ass).

 

^{That being said it's so fucking hard fuck this difficulty.}

[CapnClever]

5 hours ago, imnrk said:

2.  I know the difficulty has changed because the shotgunners miss a lot, and fire really slowly.

6.  It happens whenever I save, but I didn't realize that warping was I thing so I could always just warp to the next level when I load up the game.

Given these, we can use a couple levels as reference points to determine if Nightmare is working correctly in its entirely or only partially. The "fast monster" changes in Doom are, according to the Doom Wiki, based on the following three things (numbering added for clarity):

 

Quote

... (1) Demons and the related spectres move and attack twice as fast as usual. (2) Some projectiles are sped up to 15 units per tic, making imp and cacodemon fireballs 50% faster than usual, while hell knight and baron of hell projectiles are 33% faster. (3) These and other monsters also attack considerably more often, usually moving very little as long as they have their target in sight, which makes hitscan enemies considerably more dangerous, and the player's fist and chainsaw much less useful.

We're going to focus on (1) and (2), as these are easier to perceive.

• For (1), start a Nightmare game and warp to E1M8 (IDCLEV18); press the switch and note the speed of the Demons (on Nightmare they move obnoxiously fast, but if you need a reference point warp here on Ultra-Violence for a comparison). Save the game and note their speed again. Then reload that save and note their speed again.
• For (2), start a Nightmare game and warp to E2M9 (IDCLEV29); immediately you will be attacked by Barons, whose projectiles are moving faster than on an easier difficulty (again if you need a reference point check this level on Ultra-Violence). If you can, navigate to the door and open it, noting the projectile speed of the Cacodemons as well. Re-warp to the level and save the game, noting the projectile speed again. Then reload the saved game, noting the projectile speed again.

As for what the results mean:

• If these speeds are also changing as a result of saving or reloading the game, then there's a definite problem and you should try this in Vanilla Doom (E1M8's test, at least, should be trivial to perform).
• If there's no noticeable change at all and everything is fast, then we know Nightmare is working properly to some degree: we'll need a more constrained environment in Ultimate Doom to test the third speed-based difference.
• If there's no noticeable change at all and everything is normal-speed, then it's possible warping from the game is affecting this issue. In this case, you'll want to use command-line interfacing to start the game with the -warp and -skill parameters so there's no interference. "odamex.exe -skill 5 -warp 1 8" should do the trick.

[Diabolución]

Another good level to test quickly the Nightmare mode.

 

https://www.doomworld.com/files/file/18385-abc/

 

Download and load this PWAD for Ultimate Doom (dtwid-le.wad). Warp to E4M8. Basically, if the cyberdemon does not teleport away while does start to shooting instantly and with no pause, it is Nightmare mode.