40oz

I once received a private message from someone requesting me to test their map. For days I couldn't get to my desktop to play it. When I finally had the time, the map was only half finished, and took me a few minutes to play it. I located a few texture misalignments and other little bugs but mostly I didn't have much to say. It felt rude that I made this person wait so many days for such a limited response that they could have gotten from anyone else. I've played Doom enough to be able to look at where monsters are placed and have some sort of an idea of what the gameplay would be like. If I could just take a stroll around the map just to review it, snap a few screenshots, and give the mapper direct feedback on my thoughts, I could be a little more present as a tester in the community. But at this moment, they have to wait a long time just to have 5 minutes of my time to look at their map. There once was a time where it was a question whether Doom would be compatible with certain devices. There's no question that the devices we have today have to processing power to run Doom very efficiently, but now it's a question of making these devices compatible with Doom. My motivation to continue mapping and developing projects for Doom is still very rich, but I'm being held back because I don't really have the technology that allows me to be as present as I can. I'm not alone in feeling that there's kind of a wall here that needs to be broken down, right?

Is it a coincidence that every fucking thing ever wants to be a social media platform? Where is all this motivation to create communities, notification systems, and constantly update the interface coming from? Why can't anything just be good at doing what you want it to do?

I don't know if I want to lug it around with me, or leave it in my car. I have a macbook at home which is nice to sit in the living room with but I never feel good about taking it outside of the house.

I've never had good experiences with a laptop. Is that what you use?

wowza!

Nice work Lokust, this looks pretty cool!

Sorry this is doesn't address the thread topic directly, and not trying to play down my expectations for future Doom goliaths, but I've been clued in recently about some long time doomworld members who will be releasing their own projects for the first time in a looong time and I've been pumped about that.

when master say you gotta come in work on Saturday and she dont even bring bagels

Doom is a rare shooter where you get the opportunity to fight many hundreds of monsters at once. There just isn't enough fun and chaos to channel through a single or few giant boss targets. Dealing with different arrangements and presentations of monsters just has such a larger range of opportunity for fun and complexity. Unfortunately that doesn't really leave much leeway to innovate with when it comes to delivering a sense of finality to a set of maps. But as a diehard space marine that's a charge im willing to eat as consolation for a game that does just about everything else right.

@Octavarium that beard works for you! @Doom_RO so does yours!

This is the best picture yet!

Here's another "ME ME ME" post to throw into the pile. I'm sure someone will read it though. I go through ups and downs. In a lot of ways I'm very happy. My wife and I are very happy together. I have friends and family that care about me as I do them. I have a job where I do the least amount of work I've ever been hired to do and it pays more than I've ever made before. It seems almost criminal; at times I have more money than I know what to do with (which is a bold thing to say, but I choose to live by low means) On the other hand, there are some life-sucking circumstances that cut into me and can really get me down. Working in an office was amazing at first but after a year of working there, I really do feel the sense of hopelessness and dread people tend to associate with office work. It's hard to describe without being there, but you start to become more alert to the fact that the work never changes, the system is very broken and too tangled up for any one person to fix, and you have to put on a friendly face towards people you want to roundhouse kick in the throat. It's like that in a lot of jobs, I'm sure, but being in the calm lonely environment of an office really facilitates the mind to dwell on it. That said, lately I've been fortunate enough to do some real self evaluation and identify some crucial character flaws in myself that I have been ignoring for so long that, having only been aware of them recently, I can't belief the kind of direction these flaws have enabled me to go in. I made it a new years resolution to be better about owning up to my mistakes. Before recently, whenever I did something or allowed something to happen to me that I'm not proud of, I kind of become a recluse and avoid friends and family until I learn to figure out how to cope with it on my own. This has created a distance in a lot of my relationships that made it impossible to develop any real close bonds with anyone. I always want to come off as perfect and people just don't feel comfortable around that. They like being around someone they can help or give advice to, and it really doesn't feel that bad to talk about something stupid that you did. I've heard that seeing a therapist is really useful, even for totally mindful people. I've heard it highly recommended even by people of whom I'd least suspect of needing it. I've seriously considered it for a while, but after allowing some select people in a little closer to my life and making the first move towards being the kind of friend that I'd want for myself, my mind has been clearer and easier to manage. Another thing I've been reminding myself a lot lately, is the euphemism that anything you hate is a projection of something you hate about yourself. I always thought this was only partially true, but I've found that the mind builds some pretty crazy barriers to discourage certain ways of thinking. I hate for example, how much noise pollution is on the internet these days. There's so much useless content that consumes all of your time and there's nothing of value to take away from it. But when I really think about it, I think I've allowed the internet to tamper with my attention span. I have a lot to say, and so does everyone else here. And what I have to say is very important to me, and it hurts when I get indication that people don't read it. Still I can't bring myself to read all the posts in this thread. So when I feel compelled to think that Doomworld is full of mindless attention whores I think the real problem is that I'm getting exactly as much attention as I'm putting out there.

It wasn't until I heard about block chain and cryptocurrencies for the first time that I really started thinking about how, outside of paying with straight cash, money is being intercepted by third parties all the time. Credit/debit card transactions, legal fees, ATM fees, bank accounts, interest etc. Its all very seedy when you really take the time to think about it. Still, I get it. But its all really unproductive. Like really, loan officer? You're in the business of having money? That's your specialty?

Somebody get this actual real world life experience wisdom out of our shit parade. What do you think we are? Normal?

I appreciate the time you took to make these gifs just for a silly questionairre.

People don't usually chastise themselves.

The analogy of this place being an independent society that needs its own government and policing and isn't just a communal gathering of people who have a like interest in Doom is an argument that is so far gone from what I'm talking about that it would take me all day to bring you and anyone who empathizes with your position to a place of sanity. The amount of sarcastic shitpost likebait attention whoring that goes on in a thread like this would intercept the message I'm trying to deliver and it's just too out of control for me to even attempt to divert the attention away from all the noise. We can talk about it you're serious about it, but no Sgt Mark is not a criminal, and no one who has any sort of known popularity or status has a moral responsibility to do anything other than what they feel like doing, nor should he have any sort of punitive measures applied to him for doing that.

Isn't it obvious that nobody wants to consider his perspective for a moment before posting their angry tirade is punishment enough? I would not want to be in Sgt's shoes right now, and this opinion is completely independent of whether what he did / is currently doing is wrong or not.

If I'm being honest, I think a bit of my successful experience with mapping has something to do with natural talent. From an early age, I've had an ability to look at a picture of something and copy the details I see in a drawing with a pencil to recreate the picture with some pretty close accuracy. It's not perfect of course, but most people I've talked to have seen me do it and ask me how and I do it, and I honestly have no explanation for it. I can just do it. It didn't require any sort of training that I know of. I just look at the details and I can make it. Some of that has translated into my mapping because I can look at a pretty interesting screenshot, then observe the individual sectors that make up the image, then transpose it in the editor to create a similar looking thing. That's a skill I can't even begin to explain in a normal way to anyone other than "do it." That said, I and a lot of people I know have accomplished some really unbelievable and amazing things with enough practice, grappling with the mind, and patience. But I also believe that everyone has different manners of interpreting and absorbing information. So when it comes to mapping, having talent is a really good and motivating jumping off point to pursue a pretty solid mapping background, but there is certainly a lot of learned skills and practices that you need to develop in order to get anywhere that's pretty good. And you have to like it enough to sit down and do the work to get there.

This looks like a joke on the surface but is actually very useful advice. Just articulate everything that comes to mind with the purpose of simply filling the page. It doesn't matter if the sentences are fragments, or if they don't make sense or work in a cohesive way. Just write in a steady stream of conciousness. Once you have a whole bunch of noise, you can edit out what you don't like and improve what you like.

Just about anything you do in life can be made better when planned for in advance. Considering how advanced computers are today, designing maps for Doom can be done so quickly and painlessly that the idea of planning them on paper in advance seems needlessly archaic. Nevertheless, my best and favorite maps I've made were always planned on paper before transcrbing them to the editor. There are many different ways to plan maps out in advance, and the one I'm describing below is one that works for me, and it may not work for you. But in my experience, this particular process I use detailed below keeps me focused, motivated, and confident during the entire map design process. Below is a speedmap I created in 3 hours. It may not be my best work but I was also sidetracked with documenting my work for this tutorial as I went along. Still, the process worked very well for me and I think it can work for you. (sorry for the potato camera) First Draft Planning my maps on paper usually involves a two-stage process. The first stage of this process is to draft some diagrams of a map layout. The diagram consists of rooms, which are generally these amorphous blobby/oval shapes that are roughly proportionate to the size of the rooms they will represent. These rooms are strung together with lines that may indicated ways in and out of the rooms. I draw an arrow in and out of the layout to indicate start room and exit rooms on the layout. At this particular point in the process, I haven't decided on a theme or any specific events in the map. I just take the time to draft out some potential layouts until I come up with one that uses a progression I feel I want to move forward with. Sometimes the maps are linear, sometimes the maps are more arena based, sometimes they go all over the place. Here I've drafted 9 different potential layouts, and I picked the one on the top right that seemed simple enough for me to move forward with for this tutorial. This process took me about 15 minutes. Second Draft After picking a draft I like, I begin the second draft on a second sheet of paper, first by redrawing the map diagram I selected off to the corner of the page. The second draft involves two separate parts. The first part is listing off some fun memorable events that might make the map fun, unique, or special. I get these idea either from stealing ideas from maps I've, or watching videos of doom gameplay. Here are some that I listed for this map. build stairs to a central platform crusher that you use to kill monsters 3 archviles while riding a lift raise a bridge over a pit cyberdemon vs. mancubus stampede outrun a horde of pinkies platform jump across crushing pillars lost soul swarm /w rocket launcher chainsaw /w invulnerability catwalk with sniping arachnatrons After the list is made, I begin drafting a more detailed version of the map diagram I selected, which has a bit more detailed account of the shapes of the rooms, the structure of the map, and some scribbly notes of some events I want to use in the map. For this particular map I selected the stairbuilding to central platform, and crusher used to kill monsters. The drawing gives a reference to the size and complete layout of the map. I've seen people draw maps on paper where they use graph paper and draw the maps where specific measurements are used. I prefer a more lazy approach where I just get a quick visual of what the map looks like, and then leave the precise measurements to when I'm working on Doombuilder. Depending on how the map plays, the size and shapes of the rooms are subject to change, anyway. This process took me about another 15 minutes Doombuilder Now that the layout of the map is drafted on paper, this is used as a reference for the rest of the map building process. this keeps me from getting distracted or confused about how the map should play and look like. I begin the map drawing the basic shapes of the rooms. For starters, the map is almost entirely textured the same way, and I prefer to use either a 64 or 32 width grid for everything except doors, switchpanels, windows, and steps. The rooms are mostly rectangles, octagons, and squares, connected with corridors. Layout I continue drawing the rooms and stringing them together with corridors, using the map drawing as a reference until the layout of the map is complete from start to finish. The map in question is very bare-bones looking, but the idea is to get the basic structure set up, then continue building the map in more and more detail it looks the way you want it to look. Once the rooms are all connected together, I then begin drawing stairs, windows and focusing on the changes in height, so the player can see the things I want the player to see. At this point the player should be able to casually walk from the start to the exit room in a few minutes. Functionality Once the layout is complete, I begin working on the linedef actions of the map. I draw doors seperating rooms, and switch plates that activate certain events I want to happen in the map. The idea is make the map feel a little more interactive. The player should be pressing switches to cause something in the map to change, or accidentally triggering traps. I use the notes I scribbled on my paper as a reference. I wanted a massive crusher at one point in the map to use as a weapon against monsters. I also wanted some stairbuilding sequences. Since these are integral to the maps design, it's important to me that these particular functions are working before decorating the map further. It's important to test the map during this phase. While playing the map, I found the map was a little too short so I added some additional snares and minor puzzle solving elements to extend the map out a little without having to improvise some extra mapping to my already drafted layout. Thing Placement I frequently move the player start around to places I want to test on the map, since the start room of the map is already designated. I also start the player on top of some weapons and ammunition for a quick monster-killing kit to test specific traps. I often start monster placement by putting monsters in traps only, and leaving the rest of the building empty. Its important to me that the traps are as effective as possible. Incidental combat monsters are added later in areas that seem a little too sterile. Once the traps have been effectively tested, I move the player start back to the beginning and break up the monster killing kit by spreading it out throughout the map. Often I indicate where specific weapons on the map will be located, but on this particular map drawing I did not. Detail/Lighting The last step of the map building process comes after the map is functionally complete and playable from start to finish. The idea here is to take what I've created and make it look pretty. So I add little light fixtures in places, computer panels, support beams, light gradients and shadows in ways that don't compromise the functionality or playability of the map, so the map can be a little more pretty. This part is pretty relieving because the map looks pretty shitty up until this point, but it's important that this part is saved for last because any drastic changes that need to be made during the map building process is made significantly harder when you are also dragging/deleting detail sectors along with it. This tutorial isn't really as clean as my usual tutorials, but for those who may be uncertain about how to go about the mapping process, this is how I do it. I've tried many different techniques and methods and this one is the one most effective for me. It works best at keeping me focused, the objectives clear, and process efficient. Refer to some of my other tutorials such as "Five Steps on how to start a map" and "How to get rid of Mapper's Block" for some other useful tips that will also contribute positively to this map design process. Thanks for reading! Link to the map below (Doom 2, MAP01, Limit Removing, no skill levels implemented, tested in prboom-plus cl2) https://www.dropbox.com/s/5vlgs35ys2uzq7a/dwtutorial_40oz.wad?dl=1

What do you mean by halfway?

I've noticed that, because of the square non-rotating hitboxes, monsters move pretty fluidly and efficiently in narrow orthogonal corridors. There are some maps in Kama Sutra and in Alien Vendetta that take place in these overdetailed ashwall caves, and they're pretty cool to look at but they're kinda ridiculous to maneuver in, and the monsters can barely figure out how to move. I haven't implemented this into any maps I've made yet, but if you were to cluster a bunch of monsters together in a map like that, they might jam up at the choke points and not be able to move very well, but if I created these orthogonal railways out of monster block lines, they might be able to form single file lines and actually move around in a cluttered natural-rock map like that. I haven't tried it yet but I'm fairly sure it would work better than to let the monsters free roam on their own.

I suffer from excessive existing

Many of Doom 2's monsters have built in anti-circlestrafe mechanics. Mancubi spray fireballs in different directions, Pain elementals create new monsters when they fire, revenants have tracking missiles, archviles can target you from behind other monsters, arachnatrons have superfast rapid fire projectiles, etc. Just using these monsters isn't always enough, though. Doom's predictable monster AI will only get you so far. Most of Doom's weapons are most effective up close, and its convenient that monsters tend to walk in the direction towards the player. You can shake things up by placing monsters where they are suspended on a raised floor, across a gap, or in a cage where they can't endanger themselves and instead, take potshots from a distance When the player can't lure them into a cozy choke point, they're pressed to advance toward them. You can use tricky terrain like pits you can fall into, ledges, bridges, catwalks, platform jumps, damaging floors, and interspersed cover while the player is being fired at to influence how he/she proceeds. In my experience, my favorite approach is to think about gameplay in terms of linedef actions. Linedef actions can be used to control when exactly the player alarms as many monsters as you want. If you use them strategically, you can piss off a whole bunch of a cacodemons at once when the player is standing in his most vulnerable location. Or you can teleport imps around from every possible angle. Or you can close a door behind the player so they can't run away. The best mappers don't get too attached to any one strategy and mix it all up to best fit the situation.