I will make no bones about it. Kaitlyn Anne Fox was my best friend. Better than anyone I've ever known IRL. She taught me how to love and care for a human being going through an appalling personal life, and was incredibly helpful and supportive in return, in spite of everything she was going through.
And now she's gone. Her sudden departure has punched a hole in my soul.
The community has lost a beautiful imagination and an undeniable talent. I have no hope in eternity of giving a fitting tribute to her and everything that she did for me, her other friends, and the community at large - she had twice the capability of modding Doom in fun and zany ways in her little finger than I had in my whole body - but I suppose I can try.
Therefore, here is a collection of small maps that I made for her, on three separate occasions, that I am officially releasing here as Project: Kate. I know it's nothing much, and scarcely makes up for the enormity of her loss, but it's really the best I can do right now. Putting this together has sort of helped me to deal with the grief, in a weird way.
During the course of the 5 years that I came to know her personally, I made maps for her birthday on two occasions - these are the first two maps. She was always a bit funny about receiving gifts, so maddeningly I never got any definitive answer as to whether these were actually appropriate or not. But she enjoyed Doom, clearly, as she kept on playing it to the very end. I just find it such a shame that she grew so distant from the community.
The third map in this set was made after her passing. An outpouring of emotion went into this map's creation, and it may be a bit "heavy", for want of a better word, especially for those who were at all close to her. Just a warning there, I guess.
Below is the download. I have many people to thank for the resources I used herein:
CREDITS:
Jimmy - maps, MAP02 MIDI (CREDITS file in the pk3 says MAP01 MIDI, this is inaccurate)
Baratus - MAP01 map layout
supermatt314 - MAP01 MIDI (original song "Smile" by Daniel Ingram)
stewboy - MAP03 MIDI
Mechadon - MAP03 skies
AD_79 - palette
Fuzzball - new color for menu and message fonts
rf` - Rainbow Laser sprites/code
MTrop - base sprite for birthday candles
zrrion the insect - medikit and stimpack (berserk recolor by Jimmy)
NiGHTMARE - additional textures
Cage - additional textures
Cloud textures retrieved from this page.
Kate Fox - for KATEA0, the RAINBLU texture, and for inspiring and supporting me and many others for so many years.
I love you so much.
DOWNLOAD:
Download Project: Kate. (v1.1) (3.2MB)
Dropbox Mirror
GZDoom required.
Demos/videos welcome. Just please don't use mods that break the gameplay.
I'm not looking for livestreams.
Code: Select all
Name: Project: Kate
Map Formats: Boom (MAP01), UDMF (MAP02-03)
Ports Tested: GZDoom
IWAD: Doom 2
Map(s): MAP01-MAP03
Gameplay: Single player/co-op
Difficulty Settings: Yes
Multiplayer Placement: No
Build Time: Perhaps a week (or two) of mapping in total
Requirements: No jumping, no crouching, no freelook - all disabledTHE MAPS:
MAP01: Grand Galloping Garden
Introduction to the general visual style I opted for. Was made for a birthday of hers back in 2015. I have my brother Baratus to thank for the basic layout, and ravagefox for the new weapon, which he made specially for this map. As for this map's name and midi choice, well, she loved the new MLP show, what can I say. A fully Boom-compatible map (including its ending sequence - done through DEHACKED) that I couldn't be bothered to convert to UDMF.
Find the CACOMANY easter egg. (not that it's easy to miss)
MAP02: The Heart Pad
I also made this for her birthday - this one is from 2014. I stayed up all night to work on this. The music is something special I made for it as well.
MAP03: For a Fallen Fox
Made after her passing. The last map in this set, it was made for the recent Abyssal Speedmapping Session 32, which occurred the day after I heard the news. I wanted to get something done in the 2(-and-a-bit) hours that I had allotted, which I could then flesh out later. This turned out to be a Boom map that I then repurposed for UDMF, but have kept the nojump, nocrouch and nofreelook restrictions (these now run through the whole mapset).
This map plays a little weirdly, yes. Believe me, every little design decision is intentional. From the arena geometry, to the lack of medikits, to the final fight, to the secret message secluded away in a private room. This is every bit my tribute to her.
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IN CLOSING:
I would just like to say that I fucking love this community. This last week has been the toughest time of my entire life. You've all been so supportive throughout this absolutely wretched time for me and her other closest companions, BouncyTEM especially, who has fallen upon the worst circumstances I can even begin to imagine.
Have yourselves the most positive and reassuring 2018 imaginable, and let it be a year of recovery from the grief and strife that this spectacularly dismal year has brought about. And hug your loved ones this holiday season. Life is precious.
Rest in peace, my sweet Kate. I already miss you like nothing else. I don't know when I'll stop dedicating my work to you. I loved you. I still do. I love you so fucking much.
