The DWmegawad Club plays: 3 Heures d'agonie 3

[Magnusblitz]

MAP16: Inflictance

100% kills, 2/2 secrets

 

As Demtor said, almost a one room map, but it's a doozy. Lotta dangerous enemies in cramped quarters, so you need to be real good with your position, abusing the corners against the AVs and herding the group of cattle at the end. Lots of little frantic moments like trying to squeeze forward to get that SSG and shells without getting flamed. My only complaint would be that it's probably a little too lean on ammo - my first playthrough I just plum ran out of ammo against the final horde, and on my second playthrough, even being careful with my shots and making sure I got every little last bit of ammo (such as that shellbox on the imp ledge) I ran out of ammo exactly at the end.

 

Cool little bit some people may not notice, there's a small invisible wall holding the AVs in place until you move towards them, nice way to suddenly release them if the player tries to grab the ammo in front of them.

[Memfis]

17 - this map gets a free pass on a lot of things because it has kickass fucking music. It also reminds me a lot of And The Bloodshed Began, which is a very nostalgic wad for me. The arch-vile reveal behind the blue door is my favorite part. The plasmagun trap is a dick move though.

13 minutes ago, Magnusblitz said:

Cool little bit some people may not notice, there's a small invisible wall holding the AVs in place until you move towards them, nice way to suddenly release them if the player tries to grab the ammo in front of them.

I used to like putting such things in my levels but now I'm not so sure. It seems kinda unfair to arbitrarily change the way the map works without any indication or a logical explanation. Just "okay, now suddenly he can go here even though there is no in-universe reason for this". A visible barrier would be better.

[baja blast rd.]

Map 16: "Infligeance"

 

It's always really fun when you discover something very unexpected about a map. I wasn't trying to do a true speedy maxrun, so I didn't study the map in GZDB first, and it was only thanks to a failed jump to the blue armor that I discovered how you can cheese the end of this map, and decided to do some exploratory runs for a speedrun. Releasing all of those nobles early might seem like a detour that costs a lot of time, but it makes rocket splash extremely efficient, which more than makes up for that. (The more straightforward route is to free everything and hang around the steps/ledge where there were initially two HKs and spam the nobles safely from there, but you don't have enough rockets to clear them all out that way.)

 

Also a fun little fact: when you enter the exit area, a big cache of rockets becomes accessible behind the blue key door, next to the perpetually moving floor.

 

Spoiler

 

 

Edited November 17, 2017 by rdwpa

[Magnusblitz]

7 hours ago, Memfis said:

17 - this map gets a free pass on a lot of things because it has kickass fucking music. It also reminds me a lot of And The Bloodshed Began, which is a very nostalgic wad for me. The arch-vile reveal behind the blue door is my favorite part. The plasmagun trap is a dick move though.

I used to like putting such things in my levels but now I'm not so sure. It seems kinda unfair to arbitrarily change the way the map works without any indication or a logical explanation. Just "okay, now suddenly he can go here even though there is no in-universe reason for this". A visible barrier would be better.

 

I can see where you're coming from, but to me it seems like a good way to artificially simulate more detailed monster AI. As in the AVs will happily sit back and snipe you from afar, but once you get close they'll leave their post to run around and create mayhem. A barrier would better explain why they can't move in the first place (I thought it was just a block monster line at first to be honest, and those usually feel arbitrary) but the lowering of the barrier once you get close is still arbitrary, visible or not.

[gaspe]

MAP17: I recognize the music from ALT, and I think it works better in a longer level but it was nice to hear it. The level itself offers a series of very small encounters, the first arch-viles is probably the trickiest, and you have to be careful because the health provided is scarce.

[Capellan]

HDD issues resolved. By which I mean that I managed to salvage everything off the old one and copy it onto the new one I bought, though it took a few days. Thankfully I had most of it backed up already because the stuff I didn't took four days to copy out. Make sure you back up regularly, everyone.

 

 

MAP10

Thoroughly enjoyed this. The grey/white and bright red aesthetic looks great, and there are some fun bouts of action, too. I'm not surprised at the comment that Wilou often stretched the three hour rule.

 

The spiderdemon room is probably the only real misstep of the map. It's just a collection of helpless monster turrets that can be ground down from safe cover.

 

 

MAP11

This, on the other hand, very much feels like a speedmap. A vast preponderance of a single texture (though the metal + blue combo does look nice), and a very simple orthogonal layout with symmetrical architecture and encounters.

 

Eminently forgettable.

 

 

MAP12

A lot of back and forth switch hunt busy work here. Not much impressed with that. I know it's a low effort way to fill out the content of the map, but the key words there are "low effort". The player can tell it's padding.

 

It's a shame really because I think the basic bones of the map might have been alright if it had been allowed to be a more free-flowing, with more interconnections and a less regimented method of advancement.

 

 

MAP13

Not my thing. I basically just hid down in the HK/caco area at the bottom of the lift and let the monsters funnel in toward me, then mowed them down with the full backpack of cells I'd acquired on previous levels. I think I had 11 left by the end.

 

 

MAP14

That yellow rock texture is not nice.

 

Lots of set-piece battles here. I can certainly see the from-pistol-start intent of them, but I just crassly stomped them all with the ordnance I'd carried over from previous maps.

 

The floor-lower line on the yellow key is the slow kind, which makes it trivial to yoink the yellow key without waking the monsters. Needed to be the "lower to 8 above" linedef type, which drops the floor a lot faster.

 

 

MAP15

A decent enough canyon level, though that is one ugly ship in the eastern lake. Interesting idea for the use of an invisibility power-up, though I am sure it has been done before.

 

I think the outdoor areas could have done with some overhangs and the like – places where there was a change from the 192ness of it all. Such protrusions would also have allowed for a break from all that tranrock5 as well, which would have really helped make the place feel more fleshed out. It was a mite bland, as is, with the interior areas being almost the only place the light level changed and so much of the map being slathered in one texture.

 

Missed the secret exit, which honestly was due to a lack of effort in looking for it. I kind of saw the main exit and forgot about it being map15 :) If you're at least cognisant of the level number, you should find it pretty easily.

 

 

MAP16

Got absolutely wrecked on my first shot at this map. Second attempt went a lot better, though I'm certainly glad I wasn't trying to pistol start it.

 

This is a very compact map with a plethora of enemies for the real estate. Block monster lines can be abused to give you some space, though, and seem actively harmful to the map's action at times; for instance the AVs trapped in the exit area. They're rather a waste of time, given their inability to go anywhere.

 

Found the parkour secret after killing everything, which means I'm going into map17 nicely stacked on armour.

 

 

MAP17

Another small level, this time in a marble and zimmer one two punch of green. That colour dominates almost everywhere, in fact with all the flats except for the teleporters also being green. Honestly, I think throwing in a few contrasting bits and pieces would have lifted the map, looks wise, but I can at least acknowledge the commitment to theme.

 

Gameplay-wise, it seems like early AVs are going to be something of a thing in this set, as we have seen them several times, now. I liked the mapper made anattempt to use arachnotrons, though generally the execution was a bit lacking: they were mostly turrets, and severely constrained in movement even when they weren't. 'trons are a tough monster to use well though, because of their size.

 

And now I have a BFG.

 

 

 

And so now I am up to date after my HDD issues, though I honestly can't say that will last very long: I'm not sure how much time, if any, I will get to play this weekend.

[TheOrganGrinder]

MAP16: Infligeance

 

It's probably a good thing that I left this one until today after slogging my way through the bloody meatgrinder of MAP32 because I don't think I'd have had the patience for the more elegantly orchestrated (though no less intense) carnage of this intimate affair otherwise.  It's short, sweet, and compact enough that the trial-and-error nature of its start, finding a strong position from which you can slowly dissect the messy crossfire of the opening chamber, is inoffensive; @franckFRAG's offerings in this WAD do follow something of a theme there, don't they?  Fun and games and bullets.

 

MAP17: Chlorophyll

 

Another largely monochromatic level from @datacore here; MAP06 was brown, MAP14 was orange, and today, our theme is the colour green.  Looking ahead I see that the mapper has one other level in the WAD, and with a name like Hemoglobin, I'm expecting maybe red?  I'll find out next week.  This one's a rather more slow-paced blend of castle and cavern elements that unfolds steadily as the player pushes ahead but never really ramps up the gameplay to frantic heights, and that's okay, after a couple of rather intense maps this change of pitch is a welcome one.  Which isn't to say the map is entirely without its shockers, between the surprise revenant who pops out of a closet next to the plasma gun and is right in your face, throwing punches at you, and the noisy legion of spiders that await at the map's climax.

[rehelekretep]

i dont have a demo for 32 as i loaded it up when i first played the wad and 'noped' out; ill try and play it this weekend i think (along with m29 & 30 :o )

map15 fda

boats! 100% secrets! 10/10

 

map31 fda

more boats! some of these traps were a little soft-pedalled for my liking, but it was still enjoyable.

 

map16 fda

intricate painbox. i ran out of ammo and then the viles were 'released' from their invisible blockade (a cruel trick) so i left the map.

 

map17 fda

i appreciate the infighting opportunities in this map, also some opportunities for some small-group herding/dynamics (esp w viles). very cool. the only miss-step was the mastermind room; if those arachs were arranged in more of a semi-circle you could use the mastermind for cover and also use some tracers while hitting her body to hit them as well. as it is (with the painfloor as well) theres no incentive to take a risky move and dive into the room so its cg or useless ssg to take them out.

[Demtor]

 

MAP17 - “Chlorophyll” by Datacore

gzDoom - UV – pistol start/saves

 

A well placed map in this WAD’s lineup. I enjoy a broody evil temple plod about and now was a good time for one. The few AV tricks early were interesting. I enjoyed getting the SSG as the first weapon and the PG as the second. Can’t beat that!

 

I really dig the look and feel this map. It’s all very unique. Each frame of view has a lot going on in it without being over the top. The color scheme is great too and went well with the green (VERY green map, lolz) liquid running throughout. There was a challenging bit before the BSK but with so much possible infighting, it was kind of a let down. Especially the SMM fight. What was the point of the arachnatrons there? Things felt a bit too cramped in each instance. Loved the exit aesthetic as well..

 

Perfectly fitting dark midi here as well.

[Magnusblitz]

MAP17: Chlorophyll

100% kills, 1/1 secret

 

I tend not to pay close attention to the authors' names when playing, but reading it here I can definitely see the similarities to MAP06 and MAP14 - same general "mini dungeon crawl" layout, with good use of stairs and detailing to keep things somewhat interesting, and perhaps an overuse of Arch-Viles. I think this is definitely the best looking one - the marble always look great and I think the pale green marble with the vivid green slime is always an underrated color scheme - and Demtor shows a lot of the cool details I liked throughout as well. I also like those 1x2 teleport pads for some reason.

 

Gameplay is okay, it is a very linear assault, and a lot of it feels like just placing AVs for the sake of placing a monster in front of the player. The SMM room is also pretty weak, far too easy to one-shot her with the BFG and then it's a chore slowly taking out the arachnatrons in the corners.

[Memfis]

18 - hmm, this felt rather hardcore compared to everything we've seen so far (with the exception of 32 I guess). And I'm not exactly in the mood for hard levels as I'm playing this wad very casually. If the following maps turn out similar in difficulty, I might drop out.

 

Anyway, it's a good map. Wilou's best in the wad if I remember correctly. Very striking visuals once again (the tan walls make me think of Perdition's Gate), really satisfying fight where you'll be trying to make the cyberdemon hit these damn arch-viles, generous enough ammo and health distribution. High quality "speedmap".

[Snikle]

MAP17 - Chlorophyll

The green and the curves made me think of the Sunlust visual style, albeit less polished and slaughtery. That’s where the similarities to Ribbiks’ and Dannebugina’s long WAD of sadism end, though, since the level is pretty short and straightforward. Go out, kill shit, get key, open key door, kill shit, end. It was fun enough, but had a few corridor fights, usually with Hell Knights, which is not too fun. Too sum it up, the open outside areas with the Sunlust-y curves and the enemies roaming free were pretty good; the other, indoor stuff was not. Still a good-looking level, like a competent ‘90s WAD.

[TheOrganGrinder]

MAP18: Nassima

 

Annnd break time's most certainly over.

 

Between this level and MAP10 I want to say that this designer's signature style involves techbases with a limited and strongly-defined palette, with yellow and black tones dominating here like some kind of bee factory, though I'm really not sure if a sample size of two is sufficient for such an observation.  The overall flow of the level is a somewhat less smooth compared to the earlier offering, with a feeling of dashing back and forth through the level's central two rooms and a greater emphasis on large ambushes, one coming just before the collection of the blue key as a small swarm of cacodemons backed up by a pair of arch-viles are unleashed, and another coming as the red key is grabbed; the latter is a lovely two-pronged assault with a pack of monsters being unleashed right in the player's face and various reinforcements teleporting into previously-cleared elevated positions to rain down fire and make falling back a more nerve-wracking prospect.

[NuMetalManiak]

MAP16 Infligeance

 

Don't like it, very cramped even for Swift Death's standards, gotta watch arch-vile and hitscanner wall at the start. A surprising death trap should you attempt a sequence break and run for the exit area. One of the secrets can be reached in a similar jumping way. Still, don't like this one much.

 

MAP17 Chlorophyll

 

I wish these maps were sorted by difficulty, because maps like this and MAP14 are way too easy especially coming from the secret levels and MAP16. It's not Sunder-detailed, but it's quite the green map. Anything else? ALT MAP06 track too.

 

MAP18 Nassima

 

Basically the WH maps seem like slightly harder versions of the Datacore maps with more custom textures being used. This one does have an interesting chaingunner wall though, and the fights after the red key were worthwhile. Interesting map overall.

[Snikle]

MAP18 - Nassima

A beige speedmap with some bite to it. Looks are interesting and again I was reminded of Sunlust. Not because of curves this time, but the layout here made me think specifically of Cave Culture (One of my favorite Sunlust maps). Plus, I saw a Sunlust texture bordering those little doors. I liked how the first secret was literally the door behind you at the start, that was a bit cheeky and fun. Is it weird to always check those doors? Anyway, the gameplay here was hard enough, I left the level on 2% health. See, it isn’t always cheating to play continuous! I chose not to get the SSG since I brought one over from before. I killed some shit, got some keys, and then the level ended. The last horde before leaving was the best here, but I could’ve done without the two barons on the ledge by the exit. What was the point of the red door that just overlooked everything else? I also found the secret that was activated by hitting the hidden switch in the AV/caco/chaingunner-corpse area, but didn’t get through it because, again, 2% health.

[gaspe]

MAP18: At first I didn't like the tan/orange metal texture, it's less detailed than the other textures and gives a bad impression, though after a while I got used to it. I think that the combination of colors was good. Lately I'm starting to dislike this trend of making this kind of visuals, but I can withstand it occasionally. Combats were good with a nice use of the cybers that are both useful for infighting and still very dangerous for you.

[rehelekretep]

map32 fda

this feels very much like one of those maps that when you know the layout, its quite fun to blast through. however, as an FDA experience this isnt what i like; there are too many overt 'tricks' that make this feel like a battle against what the mapper is going to put you through next, rather than it feeling like a real challenge - specifically the annoying demon trickle that spawns behind you when you go towards a lone cyberdemon on the steps. i also ran out of plasma quite frequently when i had cybers in the way so had to cheese them (which was quite easy at one point - not sure if intentional?).

[gaspe]

1 hour ago, rehelekretep said:

i also ran out of plasma quite frequently

I think that the cells given were a bit too much calculated, I also gave up because I didn't have enough of them to deal with the monsters left.

[rehelekretep]

glad it wasnt just me then :D

i think its a mistake; with a run & gun map like this i dont want to worry about my cells

[Memfis]

19 - this is a hard level that keeps pressuring you at all times. Let's say I'm not in the mood for that. The looks are good and seem Sunlust-inspired.

Edited November 18, 2017 by Memfis

[Magnusblitz]

MAP18: Nassima

100% kills, 3/4 secrets

 

My initial impression upon seeing that ugly custom texture (not even sure what the color is... I guess it's called sandy brown?) and tiny little lift, but this turned out to actually be a nice, if initially tough, map. I definitely died a few times trying to get the cyber to properly infight with the blue key guardians, figuring I'd leave them alone to finish each other off, only to then spawn a bunch more baddies (including another cyber) on the red key. Oh well. Turns out the easiest way to deal with them is to go back through the blue door, as the teleporter there deposits you on the ledge right outside the red door, which you can now go through and kill everything from above. Or take one of the secrets that puts you above the start, also a nice little safe spot. Fun map.

[PsychoGoatee]

On 11/10/2017 at 6:55 AM, TheOrganGrinder said:

MAP10: Jessie

Points also for the not-a-secret 'bonus' room (though its blue armours make it quite the find even if it's not tagged as a secret) with its Within Temptation tribute wall, it's a nice little easter egg for the attentive player.

 

I love Within Temptation, saw them live once so far! Great band.

 

MAP05 - “Violently Imply” by Necrotikflesh

 

I started this map with 16 health and 30 armor from the previous map, not a great situation there for me with the Archvile and co. It was a test and I did not do overly well.

 

MAP06 - “Ombres Boueuses” by Datacore

 

Another map that drops me right into the wringer, though not nearly as much dying Doomguy as the previous map. I'd like a map to start off with maybe a beach chair and a spot to relax, for a change, maybe some refreshments. Lots of switches right away, solid respectable Doomery though.

 

MAP07 - “Six Seulement” by Oxyde

 

Good looking map, the aesthetics with the use of green and classy texturing, more variety in architecture, quality stuff. A zillion revenants and enemies in general Barons etc right off the bat on HMP, it's your textbook hectic map. A bit more hectic than I'm looking for, some crowded corridors to traverse and whatnot. Impressive design for the time limits.

 

MAP08 - “Storm Warning” by Memfis

 

Very cool map, that blue cyber texture reminds me of my fav Memento Mori map High Tech Grave, I like how it has 55 enemies on HMP, I feel I have more room to breath and whatnot. Good looking, and good playing. You know I died several times of course, chaingunners and whatnot, and I started off this one with 48 health. Though there were a couple smaller health pickups at the entrance. Fun map, cool music by the way! The next map also has cool music.

[gaspe]

MAP19: Very tough level, you are never safe until you can finally take the exit. I liked the moving platform, some unexpected monsters can come up or down. The encounters were more on the dick-ish side at first. The RL area at the edge with the waterfalls was my favourite spot visually.

[TheOrganGrinder]

MAP19: Deficience Aigue

 

Given @franckFRAG's other contributions to the WAD so far I came into this one expecting another intense and tightly managed combat puzzle, and this one delivers exactly that, though the overall feel of it isn't quite so abstracted a space as some of the mapper's earlier entries; there's a higher level of detail and a greater sense of the different areas of the map as places rather than simply as differentiated moving parts within a puzzle mechanism.  I feel like there are a couple of parts where success or failure hinges on the player's ability to dart in to an area and swipe additional weapons and supplies just before a flood of enemy reinforcements cut off your access to those necessities, though it's a relatively soft barricade that can be dragged about, thinned out, and ducked around via teleporter or careful positioning.  It's enjoyably bloody, too, with an abundance of cells and rockets with which to deal with the massed walls of high-tier opposition and the twin Cyberdemon turrets that bracket the exit.

[Memfis]

20 - this felt like a longer and boringer version of Map17. The aggressive Cyber Rainforce midi didn't fit the dark monotonous corridors at all. Fights got tedious quickly. Way too many monsters and not enough powerful weaponry. Maybe a RL at the start and tons of rockets everywhere could salvage this map.

[Snikle]

MAP19 - Deficience Aigue

 

Another hard affair. God moded again at the end, since I didn’t want to sit there for ten minutes shooting rockets into stationary Cyberdemons. Fun level altogether though, especially the horde, which sadly did not get to interact with the cyberasses blocking the switches that hold up the pillars that block the exit (My, aren’t we getting a little convoluted here?) Could’ve used without the AV teleporting into the bottom area, and later coming topside and rezzing shit. As for visuals, they were nice enough. Liked the slow elevator that constantly ran between the low and high areas, letting enemies go between floors. Maybe too many radsuits lying around for a real challenge, but for casual play, it’s perfect.  

[Snikle]

Well, thanks to my shit internet, I just double-posted. Fuck this.

[TheOrganGrinder]

MAP20: Donjon Sanglant

 

I find myself in agreement with @Memfis about the disconnect between the music and the visuals here; more broadly, I feel that the various elements that make up the gameplay experience here (music, visuals, combat gameplay, pacing) feel disconnected and often seem to work at odds to one another.  You've got fast-paced and upbeat music that contrasts with gloomy and atmospheric corridors and steady, bordering on plodding combat, with a corridor-centric layout that encourages holing up at a strategic corner or choke point and holding your ground against a stream of onrushing meat.  There isn't enough room to run about as the music seems to encourage; and there's too much demonic flesh for the player to chew their way through relative to the gloomy atmosphere the dark, low-ceilinged corridors of green brick seem designed to evoke.  Swap out the MIDI and tone down the monster count and I think you'd get a better gameplay experience out of the resulting combination.

[Pirx]

MAP12 - “Spirale” by Ch0wW

 

expected a xaser-esque spiral from the tite, but it's more like an oldschool map, reinforced by the hr / rott midi. now, as i'm reading the comments on this, making the player pass the same area repeatedly and run into new monsters at every pass can be seen as a refreshing, but also a tiring element. i did not have the rl yet when i ran into that ghost spectre at the red door, ignored it by simply running through the creature, and did not have much trouble with the rest of the cast - there were viles and skeletons, but not in slaughterlike numbers.

 

 

 

MAP13 - “Funeste Rendez-vous” by FranckFRAG

 

watching rdwpa's video before made my task easier, heh. the start is not too complicated, although markedly more violent than most maps before, but the part with the archvile pillars still required some patience. which i exchanged for some quicksaving.

 

 

MAP14 - “Epsilon indi” by Datacore

 

i liked the idea of having reached an ancient fortress under on a planet of epsilon indi. its visuals have a bit of quake, hexen, and udoom's ep.4 sky, but brighter. gameplay - ok, rather linear, with monsters mostly in front of the player, but not bad.

 

 

 

MAP15 - “Ile paradisiaque” by Roofi

 

you reach an island, start with small fry hunting and progress to mid-tiers towards the end. a light-hearted adventure map with a fitting music that doesn't seem to to take itself too seriously. again, you have to cross the same areas repeatedly. the infight situations are the strength of this map. at least, that's what i enjoyed most, especially with the imp horde.

 

[gaspe]

MAP20: I agree that the music track is out of place in this level. Visuals are monotonous even if it uses a rather safe style (those green brick + red is a nice combo),  the gameplay was quite a slog.