Reclipse Episode V released! [Version 5.1 released]

Exceptionally-silly two cents of the moment: The name "Revclipse" is a bit unwieldy -- the 'v' throws off the link to the original word, and something like "Reclipse" would flow better and still fit the intended meaning.

[i'm helpful D:]

Deadwing: It happened in MAP03 and MAP05 to me (on UV).

Xaser said:

The name "Revclipse" is a bit unwieldy -- the 'v' throws off the link to the original word, and something like "Reclipse" would flow better and still fit the intended meaning.

Also consider "Reveclipse" / "RevEclipse". Or maybe "Revieclipse" / "Reveeclipse" (pronounced RE-VEE-CLIPSE).

NinjaLiquidator said:

Deadwing: It happened in MAP03 and MAP05 to me (on UV).

Thanks! I'll take a look on that. I'll probably add some secrets with ammo inside though haha

Xaser said:

Exceptionally-silly two cents of the moment: The name "Revclipse" is a bit unwieldy -- the 'v' throws off the link to the original word, and something like "Reclipse" would flow better and still fit the intended meaning.

[i'm helpful D:]

scifista42 said:

Also consider "Reveclipse" / "RevEclipse". Or maybe "Revieclipse" / "Reveeclipse" (pronounced RE-VEE-CLIPSE).

About the name, I actually was going to change the name to "Eclipse Revisited", but "RevEclipse" or "Reclipse" - which fits the 8 letters name limit - seems to be nice options too. What do you guys prefer? lol

I admit, if I were you, I'd go with Reclipse just for the 8 character limit. :)

Yeah, Reclipse is really good. The prefix "re" means again, and "Reclipse" contains "eclipse" in whole, in text and pronunciation. All by simply adding the r. Wow so good.

Okay, I'll change into Reclipse then! Thanks for the help guys hahahaha

Episode IV is released!

Download link: http://www.mediafire.com/download/fwnq2kq6in1wlqe/reclipse-ep4.rar

- It feature 5 levels: map 16 to 20.
- Map 16 to 19 are remastered ones from my old wads, but since some of these stuff were some of the most uninspired levels I've made, I've made really big changes to their layout.
- Map 20 is new one from scratch.
- Theme will be E2, tech base/hellish stuff.
- Enemy focus on Revs, Archies and Barons.
- You should take around one hour ~ one hour and half to finish all levels.
- Difficult level should be a bit higher than episode III.
- Boom compability.
- MAP1 and 2: Made some more visual enhancements.
- MAP3 and 5: Added more ammo.

Tell me what do you guys think! :D

Pics from previous page:

Looking good, and I love the idea of it.

Curious, will any Discovering the Hell: The Invasion maps be in this, or are those too recent? And do you recommend trying that too? I have that one lying around in the ol' to-play list.

More demos: http://www.mediafire.com/download/y2kmiy5rpy29mgc/reclipse16-20_rdwpa_fda.rar. Pretty lucky FDA session. Avoided what should have been certain death three or four times. One of the maps has two demos because I ended up getting stuck right in the starting room.

Strong maps as usual. The only occasional gameplay problem was blocking decorations in the middle of active playing areas (like in the start of map18). There were some HOMs and misalignments, not too many however. There tended to be visible two-sided lines on the automap that allowed me to sniff out exactly where a lot of traps would come from. These should be flagged secret if that isn't intended. The last fight in map20 seemed quite harsh, since there wasn't much health around and my armor was at 0%. I was lucky to recognize the sky texture as being an exit and then decide to hit the switch hoping it would allow me to leave. Overall that level was quite a bit meaner than the rest, I think, but I enjoyed it. I like the obscure 'puzzly' type things that are part of the progression. They managed to be challenging without totally stumping me.

PsychoGoatee said:

Looking good, and I love the idea of it.

Curious, will any Discovering the Hell: The Invasion maps be in this, or are those too recent? And do you recommend trying that too? I have that one lying around in the ol' to-play list.

Thanks! :D
About Discovering the Hell, I don't think so. I might do it a "remastered" version, but that would be for unknown very late release hahahaha Honestly, from my stuff I prefer Nevasca ( https://www.doomworld.com/idgames/levels/doom2/Ports/m-o/nevasca ) or this one. DTH series doesn't really have great gameplay, monster placement is very basic and some monsters are way too bullet sponge. (for this I can release a quickfix with better HP values haha). The aesthetics looks good though, IMO, simple and clean.

rdwpa said:

More demos: http://www.mediafire.com/download/y2kmiy5rpy29mgc/reclipse16-20_rdwpa_fda.rar. Pretty lucky FDA session. Avoided what should have been certain death three or four times. One of the maps has two demos because I ended up getting stuck right in the starting room.

Strong maps as usual. The only occasional gameplay problem was blocking decorations in the middle of active playing areas (like in the start of map18). There were some HOMs and misalignments, not too many however. There tended to be visible two-sided lines on the automap that allowed me to sniff out exactly where a lot of traps would come from. These should be flagged secret if that isn't intended. The last fight in map20 seemed quite harsh, since there wasn't much health around and my armor was at 0%. I was lucky to recognize the sky texture as being an exit and then decide to hit the switch hoping it would allow me to leave. Overall that level was quite a bit meaner than the rest, I think, but I enjoyed it. I like the obscure 'puzzly' type things that are part of the progression. They managed to be challenging without totally stumping me.

Thanks rdwpa!

I've fixed most stuff you've addreseed (and more watching from the FDA's haha). Your very cautious playstyle was really interesting and fun to watch, though I've got surprised the way you handled the Mastermind in the end of MAP18! About map20, you have missed one area (an outdoor area close to the RK), which had the extra armor and a secret with a BFG hahaha. I think that would have made progress a little bit easier. Still, I think I'll add some exit signs so the player will know he's at the end and a teleporter after BK door to the armor+BFG area.

At least, I was worried that the light puzzles could hurt the progress, but I think things went quite fine haha

Thanks again :)

Have anyone else played the lastest levels?

Deadwing said:

Have anyone else played the lastest levels?

Yes, but before making fdas for this I wanted to finish the Japanese Community Project :P
Here are the fdas for E4.

All the maps were really tough and I had lots of fun playing them. There were also many hilarious moments, you will see anyway :)

-MAP18: the puzzle in the comp southern area was nice, at first I thought that the solution was more complicated
-MAP19: you can open the door behind you and there's a hom.
-MAP20: in the wooden stair at the sectors from 123 to 126 there were some homs.

gaspe said:

Yes, but before making fdas for this I wanted to finish the Japanese Community Project :P
Here are the fdas for E4.

All the maps were really tough and I had lots of fun playing them. There were also many hilarious moments, you will see anyway :)

-MAP18: the puzzle in the comp southern area was nice, at first I thought that the solution was more complicated
-MAP19: you can open the door behind you and there's a hom.
-MAP20: in the wooden stair at the sectors from 123 to 126 there were some homs.

Thanks gaspe!

Sorry for taking long to anwser, I'm going to fix these bugs!

Glad you liked the levels, it was a lot of fun watching the FDA's. In map 18, before the Spider Mastermind, you missed a cell pack that would've been a lot helpful in that fight haha (and propably you would have avoided the death). I will add a light effect on it so people won't miss it. Also, map 20 needs more ammunition, for sure haha

Version 4.1 released!

Download it here: http://www.mediafire.com/download/by89ia6h8f4udo9/reclipse-ep4.1.rar

Changes:

-> Level 1, 2 and 3 got another revision, with more detailing and better monster placement. I hope they don't look now subpar compared with the rest of the mapset.
-> Difficult levels set for Episode I and II.
-> Bugfix and balance changes for Episode IV (maps 16-20), according with gaspe and rwpa feedback and FDA's :)

Time to work for episode V! It will feature:

- 6 new levels (maps 21-26)
- Hell/Plutonia theme.
- Probably the hardest batch of the wad. (still on IWAD levels of difficult, or a bit higher)
- Same design principles of this wad, aka non-linearity, setpieces and hidden monster placement, but with some new elements to make things more interesting.
- Deadline is going to be september (I hope)

For now, here's the version 4.2 with an updated level 1 and some bugfixes:

http://www.mediafire.com/download/q8a4fdgcz2b0wc1/reclipse-ep4.2.rar

http://i.imgur.com/8ZtJBWh.png?1

http://i.imgur.com/RcPVME2.png?1

Deadwing said:

- Probably the hardest batch of the wad. (still on IWAD levels of difficult, or a bit higher)

e4 was already a lot harder than the IWADs.

rdwpa said:

e4 was already a lot harder than the IWADs.

Harder than plutonia? Well, that was unexpected haha
I tried pistol starting some later levels on Doom 2 and found them more difficult than I was expecting

Deadwing said:

Harder than plutonia? Well, that was unexpected haha
I tried pistol starting some later levels on Doom 2 and found them more difficult than I was expecting

Plutonia might be comparable I guess, but a lot of the harshness seems to come from surprise traps that sharply decline in threat level with foreknowledge.

Doom II isn't balanced for pistol starts, so you often have to know where the weapons/powerups are to get off to a smooth start, and at that point then they become a piece of cake.

Reclipse's maps and encounters on the other hand seem to preserve a lot more of their threat level during replays.

Episode V released! (finally!!)

This episode is called "Merging World" and features 6 new levels:

21: The Abyss
22: Skelleton's Gardens
23: The Archipelago
24: Hanging Fortress
25: Helltown
26: The Colisseum

I tried to make each level quite different from another, which differs from previous episodes, where the levels were like parts of a bigger structure. This allowed me to try some more experimental levels, though I'm not really sure if it will work. In the end, each level took like 2 weeks to finish (which is a loooot for my standards) and they ended being quite complex (again, my standards lol) Difficult-wise they're on par with episode IV, which I think it's a good skill ceiling for this. Some setpieces might be harder though, and I'll certainly need you guys help to balance this hahaha

Each level will take around 20 minutes, so they're not that big, but total playtime of this episode might go to 3 hours. Tell me what do you guys think, and, of course, FDA's plz! :D

Download here: http://www.mediafire.com/download/cl9o993twd88gtm/reclipse-ep5.rar

Pics:

Kudos on all the mapping! Looks good.

Fdas for Episode V. Like the rest of the wad I really liked this one too, even though I wasn't really persistent in some maps. It's an interesting take on the hellish themes, and I liked lots of the design decisions of this episode.

MAP21: I don't think it's particulary friendly for a pistol start, the ammo seems to be measured so much that you can't waste a single shot. I understood only after I looked at the editor how to get out from the area with the cyber, that lift is hard to notice and most importantly you have to be aware of the rockets.

MAP23: even in this one the start is rather tricky, and it seems that you are bound to visit the eastern section first so at least you'll more weapons

MAP24: I think you really need to put block-monster lines in the turrets at the red key, I did fall the monsters into the pit :P
I quite like also the idea of how get the yellow key though it should be highlighted some more imo

MAP26: it's quite the start :P i'm surprised that I managed to progress a bit in this one

Overall there could be some more ammo around in some points, especially if you put pain elementals, but you can decide better what to do after you watch the demos.
It's quite weird the purple sky, it gives somehow a happy mood to the "weather" of levels.

Another strong episode. Here's some FDAs.

Ammo balance felt tight, but fair throughout. I never found myself completely out of everything and mobbed in a corner. However, I can see how map 21 could go horribly wrong if you don't take the path with the plasma rifle before encountering the cyberdemon. As gaspe notes, it didn't seem like the kind of situation where it'd be possible to kite around him and ride the hard to identify lifts to safety so maybe some extra shells or a second plasma rifle pick-up wouldn't go amiss.

Other miscellaneous thoughts:
21: The three radsuits behind the blue door felt somewhat strange and useless, especially given how the major obstacle involving hurtfloors in the yellow room is at the other side of the map. I assumed they could be used to find a secret in the area around the cyber platform or something.

22: The two SSG aren't immediately visible because of how they're positioned next to the marine corpses. I found them both quite easy to miss.

24: I was able to knock the baron on a pillar into the lava in the red skull key room.

Also, the lift that leads into a revenant seems very harsh - if you have the wrong gun out and back-pedal on reaction you get trapped in a 64 unit wide corner with no space to dodge.

25: I got very lost in this map while trying to figure out how to progress before finding the switch that opens the blue key room path. I think this is just a case of me being a bit dopey.

Looking forward to this Deadwing. Love that you keep the monster count around ~100, as a lot of other maps tend to get bloated in E3. Also like how the levels look pretty without needing superfluous detail--very classy.

Looking forward to playing this, maybe later in September when my playing surface is more comfortable.

If I made a megawad I think I'd keep the monster counts in e3 commensurate with those in e1-e2 too, though it might be e5-e6 and e1-e4. 300-1500 monsters per level for the most part, mostly long and large levels.

Thanks for the feedback, guys!

gaspe said:

Fdas for Episode V. Like the rest of the wad I really liked this one too, even though I wasn't really persistent in some maps. It's an interesting take on the hellish themes, and I liked lots of the design decisions of this episode.

MAP21: I don't think it's particulary friendly for a pistol start, the ammo seems to be measured so much that you can't waste a single shot. I understood only after I looked at the editor how to get out from the area with the cyber, that lift is hard to notice and most importantly you have to be aware of the rockets.

MAP23: even in this one the start is rather tricky, and it seems that you are bound to visit the eastern section first so at least you'll more weapons

MAP24: I think you really need to put block-monster lines in the turrets at the red key, I did fall the monsters into the pit :P
I quite like also the idea of how get the yellow key though it should be highlighted some more imo

MAP26: it's quite the start :P i'm surprised that I managed to progress a bit in this one

Overall there could be some more ammo around in some points, especially if you put pain elementals, but you can decide better what to do after you watch the demos.
It's quite weird the purple sky, it gives somehow a happy mood to the "weather" of levels.

Thanks gaspe! It was fun watching the FDA's.

I tried going with the purple/pink sky to avoid making things too monotonous, not sure if worked well though haha. If I went with a traditional red sky, then it would be like half of the wad with red stuff, so I wanted something different that would also feel "alien".

About the levels, I think you were on point with most issues haha

21: I think I'll go with koren suggestions and add a plasma gun somewhere in that big room making fighting the cyber less of a chore. Also, I'll make the lift a lot more recognizable and add some ammo close to where the pain elemental is (also an extra switch).

22: You did a pretty god job on this one, if wasn't by that unlucky Revenant's rocket that fucked things hehe D:

23: The beginning of this one is also a problem hehe I think adding some cells with the plasma will encourage more the players to use it in the first battles (also reducing ammo starving). And gotta fix that BK passage hahahaha damnit, I didn't knew it was so easy to pass through lol

24: My favorite run of all of them. And how you did manage to kill the cyber with only 2 BFG shots? lol I take normally 5. The monsters surely need to be blocked, and I will make more obvious that there's something in the YK linedef.

25: I'm glad that the teleporting cyber kinda worked well haha You missed the switch in that SP_FACE room that would led to more resources (also one building was left unexplored), so the last room would be more bearable. I'll make the switch easier to recognize and make the resources more visible to make them harder to miss. Also, I guess the beginning could have been more easier.

26: That lower room setup is fucked up =x I think I'll add a soulsphere to make it more bearable. I hope this will make it more balanced if the player want to go for it early.

Overall, it was really fun to watch the FDA's. These levels were the hardest ones (both by difficult and design), but I'm surprised they worked well, still with lots of things to fix. You have played mostly carefully and it was nice to see lots of traps and stuff being predicted. Thanks again gaspe!

koren said:

Another strong episode. Here's some FDAs.

Ammo balance felt tight, but fair throughout. I never found myself completely out of everything and mobbed in a corner. However, I can see how map 21 could go horribly wrong if you don't take the path with the plasma rifle before encountering the cyberdemon. As gaspe notes, it didn't seem like the kind of situation where it'd be possible to kite around him and ride the hard to identify lifts to safety so maybe some extra shells or a second plasma rifle pick-up wouldn't go amiss.

Other miscellaneous thoughts:
21: The three radsuits behind the blue door felt somewhat strange and useless, especially given how the major obstacle involving hurtfloors in the yellow room is at the other side of the map. I assumed they could be used to find a secret in the area around the cyber platform or something.

22: The two SSG aren't immediately visible because of how they're positioned next to the marine corpses. I found them both quite easy to miss.

24: I was able to knock the baron on a pillar into the lava in the red skull key room.

Also, the lift that leads into a revenant seems very harsh - if you have the wrong gun out and back-pedal on reaction you get trapped in a 64 unit wide corner with no space to dodge.

25: I got very lost in this map while trying to figure out how to progress before finding the switch that opens the blue key room path. I think this is just a case of me being a bit dopey.

Thanks koren! I haven't watched the FDA's yet, but I hope to do it today after work and give more detailed feedback :D

dobu gabu maru said:

Looking forward to this Deadwing. Love that you keep the monster count around ~100, as a lot of other maps tend to get bloated in E3. Also like how the levels look pretty without needing superfluous detail--very classy.

Thanks! I like to keep the monster count low especially because the maps are usually short or mid sized. Also, I want to keep grinding as low as possible to try to make things flow better. I'm glad you liked so far, though! More 4 maps to finish this haha (3 of them are actually remixed, I hope it doesn't take too much time)

rdwpa said:

Looking forward to playing this, maybe later in September when my playing surface is more comfortable.

If I made a megawad I think I'd keep the monster counts in e3 commensurate with those in e1-e2 too, though it might be e5-e6 and e1-e4. 300-1500 monsters per level for the most part, mostly long and large levels.

Thanks rdwpa! :D
Well, if the maps is something like Eden then I think the megawad would work really well haha

Deadwing said:

Thanks gaspe! It was fun watching the FDA's.

Glad you enjoyed them and found something helpful to fix stuff. Personally I like the purple sky, it adds a quite unique look to the episode.

how you did manage to kill the cyber with only 2 BFG shots?

I read how to do it by a post here in the forums but I don't remember where and who was the author. Basically the trick is to wait for the cyber to shoot the 2nd rocket, then you shoot with the bfg and land the shoot in point-blank after you dodge the 3rd rocket. More or less. I don't always succeed though :P

Btw as you said that only 4 levels remain, does it mean that there won't be MAP31 and MAP32?

gaspe said:

Glad you enjoyed them and found something helpful to fix stuff. Personally I like the purple sky, it adds a quite unique look to the episode.

I read how to do it by a post here in the forums but I don't remember where and who was the author. Basically the trick is to wait for the cyber to shoot the 2nd rocket, then you shoot with the bfg and land the shoot in point-blank after you dodge the 3rd rocket. More or less. I don't always succeed though :P

Btw as you said that only 4 levels remain, does it mean that there won't be MAP31 and MAP32?

Haha that's awesome. First time I saw something like this D:

Well, about 31 and 32 I think I'm going to release two outtakes short levels from the original eclipse. They're pretty gimmicky, though lol

Version 5.1 released: http://www.mediafire.com/download/dr4x0hrtpocgylo/reclipse-ep5.1.rar

Changes:

21:
- Removed lower unpegged from a lift texture.
- Changed lift texture in the cyberdemon room, so make it more recognizable.
- Added a plasma rifle in that big room, along with some other layout changes in that area.
- Fixed soundblock bug in the last room of the level.
- Added ammo close to the Pain Elemental.
- Moved the radsuits to a location closer to the last area.

22:
- Positioned the Super Shotguns further from the marine corpses.

23:
- Fixed a Skybox bug in the initial area.
- Removed damaging sector effect in wrong place.
- Added some ammo in the initial area.
- Made Super Shotgun more acessible in the arch-ville setpiece.

24:
- Added monster block lines in RK room to avoid them to fall.
- Removed damaging sector effect in wrong place.
- Made YK switch more recognizable.
- Changed the revenant in the cramped setpiece to a Cacodemon.

25:
- Made a switch and resources more visible to the player.
- Fixed soundblock bug in the last room.
- Made the switch to the RK building more visible.

26:
- Removed stimpacks and added a Soulsphere in the lower room setpiece.

koren said:

Another strong episode. Here's some FDAs.

Ammo balance felt tight, but fair throughout. I never found myself completely out of everything and mobbed in a corner. However, I can see how map 21 could go horribly wrong if you don't take the path with the plasma rifle before encountering the cyberdemon. As gaspe notes, it didn't seem like the kind of situation where it'd be possible to kite around him and ride the hard to identify lifts to safety so maybe some extra shells or a second plasma rifle pick-up wouldn't go amiss.

Other miscellaneous thoughts:
21: The three radsuits behind the blue door felt somewhat strange and useless, especially given how the major obstacle involving hurtfloors in the yellow room is at the other side of the map. I assumed they could be used to find a secret in the area around the cyber platform or something.

22: The two SSG aren't immediately visible because of how they're positioned next to the marine corpses. I found them both quite easy to miss.

24: I was able to knock the baron on a pillar into the lava in the red skull key room.

Also, the lift that leads into a revenant seems very harsh - if you have the wrong gun out and back-pedal on reaction you get trapped in a 64 unit wide corner with no space to dodge.

25: I got very lost in this map while trying to figure out how to progress before finding the switch that opens the blue key room path. I think this is just a case of me being a bit dopey.

So, I've got finally some time to watch the demos, and woah, I was impressed haha I'm pretty sure you're used to play way harder wads hahaha The way you handled level 26 was fucking impressive, I was very tense and thought you would die lots of times (especially because you didn't went for the optimal route). It was nice that you also found lots of secrets. About the issues you've addressed, I agree indeed and I hope they're fixed in 5.1. Thanks koren!

Finally had a chance to download this. When I download a big WIP, I'll usually open it in Slade and take a look around; see if there's interesting textures; maybe re-organize the internal structure to see if there are extraneous things. First thing I noticed here was that one of the entries was named RECLIPSE. It's another copy of the wad. With different content.

What I found different in the second 'inside' wad.

There's a slightly different version of MAP01.
Early empty layouts of MAP21-26.
Maps 27, 28, 30, 31 and 32; which are actually Maps 01 and 16-19 of the original Eclipse.
Dehacked with the original HUSTR_22 map name.
Additional music: D_SHAWN3, D_MESSAG, D_DDTBL3, D_TENSE.
A different version of D_THEDA3.

Both of them have a duplicate BROWN1 texture.

I have no idea how any port handles a wad inside a wad, especially with different versions of the same map. I assume the 'inside' wad is a backup version, but since it has additional content, I thought you should know so you could consolidate them and/or delete the 'inside' version to reduce wad size.