Getting this all to work.

[Harbinger]

When I was younger I played DOOM and I loved it. Just recently I started playing it again and I decided to try and make my own levels. Simple enough I thought, just download a program or two, and get started. Well after hours of searching the internet, I've gotten this far:

I downloaded ZDoom, DeePsea, and the shareware version of DOOM.

And now, I have NO IDEA what to do. I've read through some starting tutorials but it seems there is something I'm just not getting. I'd really appreciate it if someone could point me in the right direction.

[Macil]

DoomBuilder is probably a better/easier to use map editor. http://www.doombuilder.com/

And you aren't technically supposed to be able to use pwads with the shareware version of doom - I'm not sure if ZDooM enforces this.

[Snarboo]

I recommend Slade, personally. It's similar to Doom Builder but in some cases better supported. The 3D mode is great, and making maps is usually as easy as just drawing the sector how you wish it to appear. It takes more finesse than that, obviously, and has its quirks as it's still in beta. Whatever you do, do not look all the way up or down in 3D mode, as that will crash Slade in a hurry.

If I get a chance, I'll write a really simple Slade tutorial. :)

[Zippy]

I recommend Slade, personally. It's similar to Doom Builder but in some cases better supported. The 3D mode is great, and making maps is usually as easy as just drawing the sector how you wish it to appear. It takes more finesse than that, obviously, and has its quirks as it's still in beta. Whatever you do, do not look all the way up or down in 3D mode, as that will crash Slade in a hurry.

I'd say try Doom Builder to start learning how to map, since it isn't beta. Once there's experience under the old belt, then go ahead and give SLADE a try and see what you like.

Personally I still would use Doom Builder. I find SLADE to be lacking in user friendliness compared to Doom Builder.

[Snarboo]

It's down to personal taste, really. But you're right, Doom Builder is the best way to start mapping these days, as it's easy to use and well documented and supported. I just prefer Slade, having used both. :)

In any case, if you try searching for Doom Builder tutorials, you should find quite a few. I think even the main Builder site has a small one. Remember, start off small. Try making rooms of various sizes and shapes that connect to each other, than add doors, lifts and switches. Add a couple monsters, a player start and you should have a decent first map. Your first map doesn't have to be perfect, nor are you obligated to release anything you make, either.

Doom mapping is as much an art as it is a technical thing, so do what you feel looks and plays best. Before release, find people you trust to give you critiques of your map to learn what you might be able to do better. When you feel you have enough vanilla mapping knowledge under your belt, try moving on to more complex things such as "3D" Bridges and Boom conveyor belts. Save things like ACS scripting, slopes, transfer heights and true 3D bridges for later, when you are experienced.

[Harbinger]

Ok, I downloaded Doom Builder, and I'm going to try it out, just a few questions:

1.) Do I need anything else aside from the Doom Builder? Like Zdoom?

2.) What you said about the Shareware version. Do you mean that I'm going to need to get a full copy of DOOM before I can play the levels I make?


And thanks for helping.

[LogicDeLuxe]

You're not allowed to use PWAD's with the shareware Doom. You could try Freedoom for a start instead. Though, you really should consider buying your Doom. If you're lucky, you can still find the "id anthology" somewhere. And id itself still sells the "Colector's Doom".

Whatever you do, do not look all the way up or down in 3D mode, as that will crash Slade in a hurry.

That's quite an anoying bug and renders it pretty unreliable.

[Snarboo]

It's best if you have a copy of the full version. If you don't have one, what are you waiting for?! :D The full version of Doom, Doom 2 and Final Doom can be snagged from Amazon or id's site in the Doom Collector's Edition for about $9-$20, which should give you a ton of levels to draw inspiration from.

You do not need ZDoom to use Doom Builder. In fact, if you just have Doom 95, you can make the levels and load them up with that. However, it's best if you use what is known as a "limit removing" port. The original Doom .exe had a bunch limitations on the number of lines, sectors and sprites that could be drawn on screen at one time. With a limit removing port, you don't have to worry about that, but you still want to limit yourself. Pretty much any port these days is limit removing, including ZDoom. :)

You also want a port that supports graphical tricks, such as "3D" bridges. Being Boom compatible is also a bonus, as Boom added a ton of new features and effects that weren't in the original Doom. ZDoom supports both of those things, but there are other ports that do, too.

[Harbinger]

Alright, I'm starting to figure all this out. I'll look for the old copy of DOOM I had, but if I can't find it I'll look elsewhere. One more question though.

Can you make stand alone games?

What I mean by this is, can you create a bunch of levels, put them all together and make it a complete program with a main menu, difficulty, full chapters of levels, story, and all that jazz?

[Snarboo]

It depends on the port. Some allow for custom IWADs, such as EDGE. I think ZDoom allows for this too. You need to be able to create 100% free resources for your standalone IWAD and make sure that it is neither dependant on Doom nor uses any of its resources, otherwise it's illegal. You don't have to actually code anything new, per se.

Check out FreeDoom for an example of just such a project. It's basically the communities attempt at creating a totally free Doom 2 IWAD that replaces everything - levels, sounds, music, graphics and textures - with free material.

[LogicDeLuxe]

Can you make stand alone games?

What I mean by this is, can you create a bunch of levels, put them all together and make it a complete program with a main menu, difficulty, full chapters of levels, story, and all that jazz?

Sure, if you have all sprites, graphics, sounds and several special lumps like texture definitions as well. Some TC's for the Doom engine don't need any Doom version.

It sure would be much easier starting with a sole map for an existing game.

[Classic Doom Guy]

Can you make stand alone games?

Yes. With Zdoom specifically, you can change EVERYTHING.

Here's what I recommend. Start small, but think big. Get Zdoom. Don't use any other port. Don't use Legacy. Zdoom is a port designed with the editor in mind. It runs every PC version of Doom, as well as the Doom Engine games: Heretic, Hexen, and Strife. Forget about Duke and Quake and all that. It's more advanced. It's apples and bananas. Doom and Doom Engine is what you should be after at this point.

Doom Builder is what you want. When you fire it up, select Doom as Hexen mode. This mode is the most complicated, but it's also the most versatile. And it's really not that tough. In Doom as Doom, you can only do the limting functions that Doom had. In Doom as Hexen, you can do all the new control features that Hexen had. It doesn't mean it will look like Hexen. It just means that Zdoom thinks you're playing Hexen, even as it shows you all the Doom graphics and sounds.

Want to make an imp activate a complicated series of actions? Now you can. Want to have groups of monsters fight each other? Now you can. Want to creat the illusion of stepping onto a vehicle and riding it around? Now you can. Want to kill a whole room of Cyberdemons just by flipping a switch? Now you can. Want to gain the Arch-vile's powers and bring monsters back to life to fight on your side? Yep. You guessed it.

All this and more is possible with Zdoom. Skyboxes, cameras, scripted cutscenes with dialouge, you can create it. All you need is time and artistic talent.

And oh yeah, you can replace every map in the game, and even go beyond the original amount, as well as replace every graphic, right down to the HUD and menus.

But first, start small with a few rooms, make a crate or two, a switch that activates a remote action, and have a few monsters come out. When none of it works, we'll be here.

And I'm still a n00b myself...

[Enjay]

And to answer an earlier question: Zdoom does enforce the no loading levels with the SW version. If you try and load an additional WAD with the SW IWAD, Zdoom will tell you that you can't do that and tell you to register.

[Classic Doom Guy]

Oh, I forgot to mention:

Just go on ebay and grab Doom2. It's all you really need. It contains the most monsters and weapons to start off with.

You could get Heretic and Hexen, but Doom2 is the best starting point. The original doom isn't as complete.

Also get XWE. It's a bit advanced for a beginner, so don't worry quite yet about how to use it, but get it for later. You'll need it when you get into DECORATE and MAPINFO to really make your own stuff.

So the checklist is:

Doom2
Zdoom
Doom Builder
XWE

Word of warning about XWE, it writes changes directly into the wad you're working on, so you'll have to back the original up. There's no save button, it just writes the changes as you do them. It prompts you, but if you don't know what you're doing, a simple test or play around could really screw things up so be careful. Wiping out or renaming literally anything in the wad will cause Zdoom to crash if you don't keep track of what you're doing and make other changes accordingly.

But that's step 20 and you're on step 1 so don't worry about that yet.

[LogicDeLuxe]

Forget about Duke

I realize that this is a Zdoom forum, though the Build engine as well has features worth mentioning. Especially:

Want to creat the illusion of stepping onto a vehicle and riding it around?

Why sattle with an illusion when you can have the real thing in Build, as you can see in Duke 3D (trains, spaceships, shuttles) and Shadow Warrior (tanks, remote cars, boats).

Sure, there are a lot of nice features speaking for Zdoom. It's actually a pitty, the two-dimentional bsp tree still prevents us from having room over room and moving sectors.