[DOWNLOAD NOW!] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

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Deathmatcher
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[DOWNLOAD NOW!] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Deathmatcher »

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RELEASED!
DOWNLOAD HERE!


Scroll down for screenshots


After a lot of hard work and frequent visits to zdoom.org my megawad is finally shaping up for release now, so I would like to present it to you and take this opportunity to thank everyone that I pestered with my (mostly ACS-related) questions over the last two years here.

Project history

DTS-T is a 33-level megawad for ZDoom and GZdoom. The idea to do something like this all by myself came up in 1998, where I designed the first one or two levels. Back then, the game was running on the TNT IWAD using Doom95.exe. By 2000 I really got started on this, finishing about 60% of the levels until the end of 2004. A five year hiatus from the project ensued...

In 2010 I resumed development on DTS-T, now running on the Doom2 IWAD. The decision to make this into a ZDoom megawad was already made in 2004 but it wasn't until 2010 that I really got going into ACS scripting. The fourth of the four chapters you see presented below was done with ACS scripting in mind and in the last couple of months, I revisited all of the older levels, unifying and smoothing the experience, adding ACS scripts where originally crude classic Doom mechanisms were in place. I "beautified" all the spots that looked way too "1994-ish", added voice acting to the levels and threw in weather effects here and laser beams there to further intensify the experience. I decided that a ZDoom exclusive mod should allow jumping and crouching and spent weeks making all 33 levels robust for these movements.

Despite being ZDoom exlusive, DTS-T still is supposed to have a classic touch to it. Most of the time, you will only encounter the classic Doom and Doom2 monsters, although I did add a few surprises here and there. In many of the older levels, I mostly use ACS scripting to guide the player a bit, for example in cases where a switch does something far away. Later on, there is a bit more scripting: There are complex puzzles in some of the levels; there are conveyor belts; there is a time limit on one level and in another level you are required to kill every single monster to get teleported out, rather than finding a physical exit. There is a slope here and there but most of the time I used conventional architecture. And of course there is voice acting in every level. Nothing intrusive and skippable most of the time, the voice acting is supposed to guide you through the story and create a bit of atmosphere.

Lately, I came to play more and more with GZDoom, so I made sure to tweak things here and there to look good in the GL renderer as well. All the screenshots below were done in the GL renderer with dynamic lights on and texture filtering off.

I am currently playing the game over and over, balancing things, fixing the last ugly spots. My brother is going to play through the finished game soon, giving me final feedback. DTS-T is just a couple of weeks away from release.

About the story

A hidden UAC base on Phobos: Not satisfied with their achievements, scientists have developed a new kind of teleporter, capable of not only sending things through space, but also through time and into different dimensions. There were two prototypes of this machine but one morning, one of them was found missing! Needless to say that one lone marine is sent through the second device, to find out where the missing prototype might be and who is behind the theft...

Features

-33 new Levels from scratch, that have never been released (with the exception of two demo levels a decade ago)
-Explore four wholly differing realms, ranging from medieval castles to dusty tombs, to a sinister space station, and apocalyptic and hellish regions never seen before!
-Lots of references to pop culture: Subtle (as well as not so subtle) allusions to those fantasy, adventure and space operas you all grew up with!
-ACS scripting in all levels to bridge the gap from classic Doom gameplay to wholly innovative puzzles and mechanics.
-Voice acting! (yay! :D)
-A fistful of Realm667 assets thrown in: Just enough to enrich the experience, without digressing too much from the classic doom gameplay.
-Music from all classic Doom games, Hexen and Hexen 2, Quake2, Duke Nukem and more, to always create the right mood, whether you battle through dungeons or tech bases.
-Slow and consistent ramp-up of assets and difficulty. If you want to see Plasma Rifles, Arch Viles or Cyberdemons, you have to play far into the game.
-Supports ZDoom and GZDoom.
-Jumping and Crouching supported (but not mandatory).
-Designed for a Singleplayer experience, ITYTD to Ultra-Violence supported.

Not included

-Multiplayer (Unfortunately, I had to cancel my coop ambitions at some point, because ACS scripting got too complex).
-Nightmare! (It's untested. I might do a Nightmare!-patch later on, though)
-Icon of Sin typed final level :D

Difficulty

DTS-T was built to have a slow and steady ramp-up in difficulty. The first couple of levels are fairly easy, about KDITD difficulty. The difficulty then ramps up to about Doom 2 level by the middle of the game. The final chapter is probably a little above Doom 2, maybe somewhere between TNT and Plutonia, with the hardest levels scratching Plutonia difficulty. It never gets unfair, though, and stays below Scythe difficulty. This is my personal perception, of course, and might be perceived differently by other people.


Game overview with screenshots


Prologue

It all starts on Phobos, where the super-secret DTS-Device waits for you to step through! I used patrolling marine actors, as well as the scientists from Stronghold to breathe life into this introduction level. The level borrows some room concepts and texture choices from E1M1 to be in line with how the original Doom starts out. It was created in 2012.

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Chapter I

The first chapter throws you into the medieval realm of Blackshire. I used fog and Jon Washburn's wonderful weather effects to create a dismal atmosphere. These levels are the oldest of DTS-T, having been created around the year 2000. Needless to say they went through a couple of revisions since then. They are simple and quick to play through and should set you in the right mood for things to come...

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Chapter II

Chapter II sets you into the realm of Gogypt, where I used egyptian and gothic themes. Discover ancient temples and sinister cathedrals. Tan-colored fog and dust clouds create the right atmosphere in the outdoor areas. These levels were originally created between 2000 and 2002. The episode is similarly short as the first one but is also progressively harder than Chapter I, with Revenants and Cacodemons joining the fray.

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Chapter III

After castles, tombs and temples, the marine travels into the far future. I built a UAC space station with 6 decks, each deck being one level. A part of the episode also plays out on an asteroid.
I designed these levels in 2003 and 2004. The episode is substantially longer than the first two and also a bit more difficult.

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Chapter IV

The final chapter of DTS-T takes the player to the so-called Apostruct. This is a hub level from which the player travels to individual levels. The reason for the hub is to give the player some choice of the order in which he plays the levels but the levels themselves are played in a linear fashion. This is the largest, most difficult and also the newest chapter of the game. I built the levels between 2010 and 2012, after a five year hiatus from the project. Some levels have a hellish theme to them but I explored totally different styles here and made heavy use of ACS scripting in some. There is a lot of variety in this chapter but each level in itself has a very consistent theme. If you play on Ultra-Violence, you're in for a good challenge once you reach the Apostruct!

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Last but not least, a screenshot from one of the two secret levels:

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I hope you like what you see and I'm looking forward to your comments. I will keep you updated about the project and a release date here.
Last edited by Deathmatcher on Sun Dec 02, 2012 2:32 pm, edited 4 times in total.
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Springy
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Springy »

Oh man this looks amazing, I can't wait I like that virtual reality effect you have in one of those shots, reminds me of an AOW map. Keep up the good work.
mckracken
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by mckracken »

very tasty screenshots.

dont be afraid of 667 monsters - i would say 50 old 50 percent new would be a good balance in my opinion.
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Enjay
 
 
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Enjay »

Looks very interesting. :yup:
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Pisstepank
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Pisstepank »

Looks really nice! Looking forward to play it.
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lizardcommando
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by lizardcommando »

This looks pretty neat. Too bad it's not coop compatible though. Oh well. I still can't wait to play this.
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Nash
 
 
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Nash »

The fog doesn't blend well with the unfogged skies.
Zombieguy
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Zombieguy »

Eagerly tracking.
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Shadelight
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Shadelight »

Looks pretty flat IMO.
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Djiel
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Djiel »

Pisstepank wrote:Looks really nice! Looking forward to play it.
^Exactly what this guy said.
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E.C.S
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by E.C.S »

Oh my~

Totally waiting for the release of this :D
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dljosef
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by dljosef »

Having seen the screenshots of this so far, I'm so gonna look forward to playing this.
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The Ultimate DooMer
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by The Ultimate DooMer »

This is the sort of thing we need more of.
Nash wrote:The fog doesn't blend well with the unfogged skies.
I had this issue at one time, SetGlobalFogParameter was the perfect solution. However it is GZDoom only, the non-ZDoom way is to edit the sky so it looks a bit foggier. (PSP's colorize feature was what I used for LTSD's foggy skies)
Blue Shadow
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Blue Shadow »

I agree with Nash; in the egyptian-themed episode the environment around you is dusty (fog) while the sky is clear, which looks odd. I also agree with BlazingPhoenix; some of levels look flat and empty. Lastly, I'm not too keen on the use of the skull textures as the main and only theme in the area seen in the last screenshot of episode 2; it looks amateur-ish (no offense).

Other than that, I'm intrigued to see how it plays. :wink:
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Deathmatcher
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Re: [Release 2012] DTS-T - a megawad for ZDoom and GZDoom

Post by Deathmatcher »

Thanks for the feedback so far, guys. I'm happy to see that you are intrigued by what you see. :)

DTS-T has come a long way and, as a result, some of the levels date back several years. I spent the better part of my free time since summer polishing all the maps and bringing especially the older ones up to par with the overall standard of the project. It was my goal to create a fun, atmospheric and well-polished experience, rather than KDiZD-level of detail all over the place (loved KDiZD by the way! :D). When playing, I hope that you will see the love that went into the overall thing, even with a room or two being a bit "old-fashioned".

I am currently setting for a (tentative) release date of December 1st, 2012! I have spent the last weeks polishing things, fixing bugs, letting my brother test the levels and working his feedback into the maps. The next days I am going to wrap things up, playing the whole thing one last time, tidying up files, writing a readme - and being ready by the coming weekend, hopefully.

A word on the sky fog: I must admit I was a bit surprised by this feedback because it never occured to me. I had a lot of construction sites on the project over the last few weeks and, while it stayed in the back of my mind, looking into sky fog just wasn't a priority. Feedback from my playtester was also "we don't need it". If I can scrape some hours together, I will have a look at it tomorrow or something, but as someone said, it's GZDoom-only and DTS-T is supporting ZDoom, so to me it's not a mandatory feature. Well, we'll see...

Stay tuned guys.

*edit: fixed typos and stuff*
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