Want to try out GZDoom?

[BabyDibbert]

So I've spent time in Easy FPS Editor. It's a fine little editor but I'm concerned it will ultimately hold me back in a few ways. Just having an elevator platform alone would be nice. So I thought maybe I should look into GZDoom.
I was hoping to find some sort of "getting started in GZDoom development " documentation. Does this exist? Some kind of beginning to end... from install to working rooms/level.
Does an ultimate guide exist or am I piecing together info from here and there Solitaired? That's what I'm currently doing, not very well.
I'm confused as to exactly what it is. If I understand correctly it's a doom editor that you can modify with your own assets.
Thanks so much.

[Kappes Buur]

In a nutshell:

To start with, there are a number of Doom map formats,
https://doomwiki.org/wiki/Map_format
https://doomwiki.org/wiki/Map_format
and source ports
https://doomwiki.org/wiki/Source_port
https://zdoom.org/wiki/Source_port
and it seems that every beginning computer programmer is dead set to publish the latest and brightest source port out there. However, what is really going on is that 90% simply use an existing code base and just modify a small portion to suit their own need.

To start out with mapping some people recommend to start out with the original Doom format or Boom format, which includes most existing source ports. Some source ports, like BOOM, incorporate standards like MBF, MBF21, ID24, and so on. It's simple and does yield impressive maps, see maps (pwads) done for DOOMER BOARD PROJECTS. A lot of mappers, however, do not progress any farther than that. I recommend using GZDoom from the beginning, it is just as easy to learn and gives added benefits down the lane.

A while back, too many years ago for me to really remember, a different standard (source port, engine) was created, ZDOOM. AT first it were capabilities available in HERETIC and HEXENMappers which were incorpocated into the ZDoom engines. Then many mappers, who found the original formats too restrictive, asked for more and more features to be included, just read this WIKI page about Special Lumps. A lump is simple any entry found in a doom map. With the advent of hardware rendering GZDoom was established with featurs like dynamis lights, 3D floors, and so on.

GZDoom offers these features, see viewtopic.php?t=80447
GZDoom has also been used in many standalone games: https://zdoom.org/wiki/Standalone_games

Personally I am biased towards the mapping formay GZDoom: Doom2 (UDMF).
UDMF (Ultimate Doom Mapping Format) is the latest standard to superceed all other standards. To a varying degree of sucsess it is adopted by most other source ports, but different from GZDoom.

In step with the various Doom formats two other programs were developed and refined,
Doombuilder which became Ultimate Doom Builder and
SlumpED which became Slade.

Both are indispensible for the mapping scene.

There are the main editors:
Ultimate Doom Builder for map architecture
with these configurations https://i.imgur.com/3WlQX5o.png
Slade3 for map architecture and editing lumps
Eureka for map architecture (no UDMF)
Deepsea for map architecture and editing lumps (no UDMF)

There are three WIKIs of note:
for G/ZDoom https://zdoom.org/wiki/Main_Page
for DOOM, etc https://doomwiki.org/wiki/Entryway
for Slade https://slade.mancubus.net/index.php?page=wiki

For completeness, there are other source ports https://doomwiki.org/wiki/Source_port
Youtubw is full of helpful tutorials, one I like to suggest is https://www.youtube.com/@doomedit
Authors such as decino, DavidXNewton, Chubzdoomer, lazygamers channel, Bridgeburner, Doomkid come to mind.

Everyone is incouraged to try any map editor and discover what works for them, or not.
To experiment is to learn.
Happy fragging