Continuing the previously set theme of hard skirmishes in small arenas. A wad of 20 levels, presented by @Argent Agent, in general, following a concept similar to 1FF, with the difference that the size of individual maps here is smaller in places and at the same time the average quality level of such is a step higher (the time frame does not pass in vain) and the degree of difficulty is a multiple higher.
Continuing the previously set theme of hard skirmishes in small arenas. A wad of 20 levels, presented by @Argent Agent, in general, following a concept similar to 1FF, with the difference that the size of individual maps here is smaller in places and at the same time the average quality level of such is a step higher (the time frame does not pass in vain) and the degree of difficulty is a multiple higher.
Settings and features:
* GzDoom 4.10.0, UV difficulty.
* The full passage takes ~ 4,5 hours.
* Hardcore.
Pros:
+ The ideas of most of the levels, in combination with the previously voiced thesis, fully embody the concept of puzzle, accompanied by melodies playing to match, especially on the M6.
+ M6 - "Town of Two".
+ M13 - "Dachshund".
+ M17 - "Pobla's Pavilion".
+ M18 - "Reignited".
+ M20 - "Give in with hell beneath".
Hardcore theme is now behind, then switch to... "thematic" one. Community type wad, which is, as usual in such cases, act as a collection of works by several authors, united by a particular topic. In this case in a direct context - each level was created to clearly reflect one or another architectural concept, as evidenced in particular by the text file folded into the archive. On the other hand in fact new ideas are, at least in the first half of the wad, as in the case of the final map, looks like rather interspersed, while the entourage itself follows the typical Doom II scheme - technical bases, urban landscapes, canyons, mixed reality, hell. Consists of 6 episodes with 5 levels each + 2 secret ones, for a total of 32 levels.
* GzDoom 4.10.0, UV difficulty.
* It takes ~ 7 hours to complete.
* On the M12 you need to get rid of all the Commander Keens, then return to the beginning of the location and press the switch. The yellow key is not needed to leave the level, it gives access to the secret.
Secret levels.
M15 -> M31. It's all pretty complicated. I will only note the fact that the secret exit is located in the south and, apparently, it will be possible to get to it only due to rocket jump and preliminary pressing of a series of hidden switches. It's hard to explain in one word - it's better to watch the video.
M31 -> M32. To the left of the main exit you can lower the wall, behind it there will be a teleport.
Pros:
+ M32 - "Agony Temple". A well-designed slaughter map, quite easy from the position of passage.
+ M21 - "Spider Temple".
+ M22 - "Mouth of Madness". A small map (only 10+ enemies) with a horror atmosphere.
Contras:
- M15. The map suffers from all the typical flaws that can be inherent in maps for Doom in general. Excessive confusion, enemies, including machine gunners, on distant hills, lame balance - I got stuck while getting to the center of the map, basically without ammo to move on. In addition, if count the approach of starting with a pistol, then the chances of surviving here would probably be even less. In the end I gave up trying to cope with enemies and entered the "god" cheat-code. Subsequently, however, it also became that, taking into account where the necessary switch is located, it would be impossible to pass this moment otherwise in my case.
- M27. Playing with chiaroscuro on this map ends up being more confusing and disruptive than an interesting element.
Wad presented consists of 32 levels (2 secret) divided into 5 episodes created as part of the annual NaNoWADMo, one of the features of which is a development time limit of 1 month. There are a number of custom textures involved, some of which came straight from Quake, new weapons and items are provided, some of which were taken from Hexen in particular, and some, apparently, were inspired by Powerslave. In general the wad sustained in terms of quality, begins to fail in the last third - the levels are conceptually repeated, the number of enemies ceases to be limited and what is happening is more perceived as a kind of filler necessary to achieve the cherished bar of 30 (not counting secret) levels.
* GzDoom 4.10.0, UV difficulty.
* Levels are generally compact and short in terms of time to complete.
* The full passage takes ~ 5 hours. * Each new episode, i.e. every sixth level, progress is updated and the hero starts his journey with a gun.
1. You need to press switch and run to the lowered platform.
2. Press the wall.
3. After passing through the aisle press the switch and return to the train - the aisle has opened.
4. At the end of a long tunnel you can find a red key.
5. With it you can open the door leading to the secret exit.
At the same time, while grabbing the key, two cyberdemons are teleported.
M31 -> M32.
There are 5 crystals in the openings on the map. Another 1 is at the exit. To open a secret passage, apparently, you need to have to destroy those in less than 1 minute. It seemed to me that such restriction was unnecessary - I used noclip.
Pros:
+ The color scheme and overall spirit, especially the first episode, is a lot like Quake I, to the extent that it was adapted to the realities of Id Tech 1.
+ A successful combination of magical and technological elements.
+ M6 - "Emerald Castle". On this map, for the first time, the player can get a weapon, which can be referred to as a "magic plasma gun", combining the type of damage similar to weapons in Doom, and the rate of fire of Hexen.
+ M32 - "Hall of Champions". Archvile, 4 cyberdemons, a bunch of revenants in addition to a large group of elementals and also, in a separate room, a new kind of enemies, covering the entire area of movement with their attacks. 0 first aid kits and charges for BFG outside the starting area. To pass this map you will need to correctly calculate the main steps.
1. Kill only 1-2 cyberdemons so that the others do not attack the doomguy. Saved charges for BFG can be spen\ on revenants, press the switch, ignore all the accumulated enemies and proceed to the next location.
2. By running in circles press two switches, try to guess the moment and press the third one.
3. Proceed to the exit and then you can make sure that the map can be completed in less than 2 minutes.
A 9-level wad (1 secret; excluding epilogue), which is a remake of Knee-Deep in ZDoom (2007), which today can be called a classic of the genre to a certain extent. The main idea of such at one time was a rather demonstration of the technical capabilities of the port actively gaining momentum in those years (in particular against the backdrop of Doomsday and other developments). The first episode of the original Doom was taken as the example for the experiments, i.e. you will see kinda the same levels, but with a lot of innovations, including structural one. So, for example, the initially compact E1M8 here is radically different both in design and gameplay from it's ideological inspirer. In addition to the above an abundance of varieties of custom monsters and 2 new weapons are included.
1. First you need to get a white key. To do this you need to pay attention to the barely noticeable switch in the place marked in the screenshot. Pressing it will lower the liquid level and it will be possible to go to a previously inaccessible section.
3. Clicking on one of the sections lowers the opposite wall, but the trigger is out of reach. Here I thought it was a bug and used noclip, but in fact it turned out that after collecting all 6 keys you need to return to the computer available in the second zone, where the text about the loss of two keys was located.
esselfortium:
Press use on the “I dropped my keys” computer near the red key door.
The rubric goes on another untimely break, until the release of the next group of 5+ wads, meanwhile, keeping one old message in mind and comparing different aspects, I came to the conclusion that I will not make a return to the past and special exceptions in the first paragraph of it - taking into account the remake of Knee -Deep in Knee-Deep in ZDoom was considered 1/5 of the "main" points from community top anyway, i.e. 20 positions out of 100, than in general I will limit myself.
It's been about two months. During this time two creations managed to get from the list of notes to the release + one interesting work from DBP came out. Experiments with color reproduction and palette in the gaming industry have been and are being conducted throughout its existence. It did not bypass Doom either, where minimalism, in recent years usually represented by a combination of two to four primary colors, began as a bold experiment, like Stardate 20X6, which gradually passed into the category of ordinary elements. As something becomes habitual, something more radical is required for the subsequent "border shift". Probably, to some extent, this idea was guided by the authors of the first of the four wads under consideration.
Wad has 34 (4 slots are occupied by secret one and 2 goes for epilogue) levels, divided into 4 main episodes + a short 5th one as the finale, the color gram of which is represented mainly by one color - brown, divided into shades, from light to dark. To some extent this makes it related to the previously reviewed noir Rainy Days In Casablanca.
* GzDoom 4.10.0, UV difficulty. The author strongly recommends using DSDA-Doom, because there may be bugs in Gz, although in general, as far as I can tell, with the exception of the M33 and M18, there are no serious problems with compatibility, and I personally don’t see the point in making an exception because of one wad.
The intermission text screens bear no actual meaning, but they do mark the levels that have the said secret exits.
* When picking up secrets you can hear a combination of Morse code. It is also used in screens between episodes.
* A large number of enemies, especially on later maps.
* Mostly in the first third there are minefields, which are deadly to enter. Both for the hero and enemies.
* On the M13 you can hear tunes referring to Darkwing Duck (NES) and, I thought, Mortal Kombat. There are other references in wad as well.
* Hardcore.
* Later maps show structural elements similar to the mentioned Stardate 20X6.
* It takes ~ 9-10 hours to complete (taking into account the wanderings on M34 and the fact that M18 and M33 will be skipped).
Secret levels.
Spoiler:
M7 -> M31. Approximately at the beginning of the level out of reach there is a little noticeable switch. Shooting it will unlock the ability to eventually progress to a secret level.
M11 -> M32. The secret passage is hidden behind the painting, on the left side of the main exit. Initially, it does not open.
Petyan:
The painting is the secret exit, you have to just go into it once the switch is pressed. The switch is on the side of the painting in front of the secret exit. The switch is really small, so it's a bit hard to notice.
According to the author a barely noticeable switch on the painting itself is needed to open the exit. In addition to that on the map I found another one, but I didn’t figure out what he was responsible for. M32, as a result, did not make it to the recording, but, however, the map is not particularly remarkable - a circle full of imps, who will be assisted from afar by archs, then cyberdemons will also be added.
M17 -> M33. There are several hidden switches. Part you just need to find, to access one you first need to make a shot in a faint niche, a couple will require a rocket jump. As a result, not far from the main exit, on the left, steps will appear.
Petyan:
Unfortunately i don't think i can find a good way to optimize or improve performance for gzdoom on this map - at some point it was extremely laggy on DSDA as well, so i think i and brendon squeezed everything we could to optimize the map. It's rather sad for me to say, but you'll probably have to skip it - or swap to DSDA, but i understand that it's not very convinient to just randomly swap ports between maps.
The location of the switches, as well as the exit to M33 itself, are shown in the video, but it was not possible to wander around the map itself - 14226 enemies are located on it. When loading performance drops to 1-2 FPS.
Petyan:
I suspect the reason for the lag might be the complex behind-the-scenes voodoo setup to ensure that different weapons teleport different enemies in.
The map has 21 different routes, which is all insured by boom mechanics, so i'm 100% sure it just overloads GZDoom. Can't really tell what is the exact issue, but will add it to the "known bugs" section.
A similar problem exists on the M18.
M26 -> M34. On the platform you can see the "red" skull. You can get it with a properly placed rocket jump. It will also let you avoid a very non-trivial last fight with a huge amount of archives.
Pros:
+ Unusual style, to match the old film, in the second half of the wad is also combined with surreal landscapes.
+ Musical accompaniment. Classical melodies, ambient, something reminiscent of old demo videos, like those made by the demoscene.
+ M11 - "The Ballroom".
+ M13 - "Objection!". First, there is a choice. Kill the "innocent" zombie, or ignore him and go to the teleport. In the first case a tough skirmish awaits with a large number of enemies, and in the second, a clash with a group of archviles, which will be very problematic to escape from.
+ M15 - "Surpematism". The first level in surreal-abstract style.
+ M19 - "Castle Jam".
+ M26 - "Triality".
+ M28 - "The Lost Colors".
+ M34 - "Fool's Valley". The most patient and capable players will be able to play chess and mahjong with two archs. In case of victory they give bonuses, such as, for example, a megasphere. On video #4, ~3:14:00 and ~4:12:00 respectively. The key card to access the secrets can be obtained in two places. In a kind of slot machine, where it can disappear at the same time, or is guaranteed from a platform with a cyberdemon, it will not be easy to take the one from him in the latter case.
On the way to mahjong there is a moment that is not obvious, against the background of all other similar segments. It seemed to me that the moment shown in the screenshot cannot be passed without a jump, but according to Ravendesk it's still possible:
Doing platforms one by one won't work, yeah, you won't have enough speed.
You should cross it from this position in one motion. You can also ignore the left platform, can only run across the 3 on the right.
To exit the level it is enough to find 2 of 3 skulls. The video shows all of them.
Contras:
* Not a small percentage of maps relies on tough skirmishes with a large number of enemies in spacious locations, be it caves or somewhere else. Sometimes such a combination looks quite successful, but at the same time there are levels where the locations themselves are unremarkable and the idea of pushing doomguy with an armada of creatures for the nth time does not generally look fresh or interesting.
* There are a large number of platform elements. If those are alien to you, and especially annoying, then you should pass by. There are not just a lot of them here, they are combined with difficult battles, and M34, same as it's confusing secrets, is completely tied to this mechanic.
Last edited by UnknDoomer on Thu Jan 23, 2025 11:19 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Wad of 14 levels- 11 main, epilogue, 2 bonus. The story is told from the perspective of a cyberdemon who, by the will of circumstances, lost his favorite weapon and was turned into a human. Angered by this state of affairs, he begins his journey.
From gameplay features. Weapons have been reworked, with a total of 5 new varieties:
1. The pistol here has been replaced with a rocket launcher with 200 ammo, which also doubles as a hand-to-hand combat tool.
2 & 3. Other notable examples are the twin plasma gun and the rapid-fire six-barreled rocket launcher, which occupied the original slot at number 5.
4. The double-barreled shotgun received a subtype with accelerated reloading, but the damage from it is weaker than from the usual one.
5. Double chainsaw.
There are new types of monsters:
1 & 2. Two new types of lost souls, one of which explodes when destroyed.
3. Modified gray elemental.
4. Archives that die with one shot, but have the ability to bring their own kind back to life.
5. Mechanical lions with shields. Formidable opponents.
6. Zombies in armored self-propelled vehicles.
7 & 8 & 9. Zombies with double-barreled guns, plasma guns and rocket launchers.
10. Stone imp. Fires projectiles like a cacodemon, but it cannot be killed with a single shot from a double-barreled shotgun.
The maps are relatively compact, but at the same time quite intricate - a significant emphasis is placed on pressing many switches, puzzles and platform elements take a place as well. These components are combined with non-trivial collisions with enemies in narrow corridors. There are many cleverly hidden secrets - I never figured out how to get a BFG, twice in a row, but on the other hand, until it came to the third attempt, there were more cartridges for a new plasma gun.
* GzDoom 4.10.0, UV difficulty.
* Hardcore.
* An easter egg can be found on the M9, which is a reference to the game SUPERHOT (2016).
* It takes ~ 6-6,5 hours to complete.
Pros:
+ M4 - "Sleeping Cell".
+ M5 - "Thread Carefully".
+ M10 - "Penultimate Punage".
+ Soundtrack in general.
+ Successful replacement of plasmagun and rocket launcher.
New, rather transient, wad from the DBP forum. This time in a militaristic style. Consists of 10 levels focused on run & gun gameplay. Despite the fact that the choice of such a theme at first glance may seem like a hackneyed cliche, among other things, a prototype simulator for the military was made on the basis of the Id Tech engine, in this particular case, from a gameplay position, the impression is generally the opposite, although and the entourage itself is quite typical - USA kind army vehicles, wastelands, apparently, conditional Iraq.
Starting with the next release the authors decided to switch to a two-month development cycle. As a result no more than 6 works will be published during the year.
* GzDoom 4.10.0, UV difficulty.
* An easter egg can be found on the M8 referring to a credits line from the original version of Rambo 3 (1988), notable for, among other things, the intense degree of "cranberry" that was generally characteristic of a number of films of that time period. Rumor has it that later in the United States, in view of the well-known events in September 2001, it was recognized as "politically incorrect", relative to the realities prevailing by that time, and cut out of later revisions of the film.
* The M10 epilogue, in turn, refers to George W. Bush's speech on an aircraft carrier on May 1, 2003.
* Traditionally for the DBP wads, a number of sound effects are borrowed from classic beat 'em ups, while the final scene refers to the classic arena from the Street Fighter series.
* It takes ~ 1,5-2 hours to complete.
The topic of wads that have become official additions to Doom / II has already been raised many times before. About a year has passed since Arrival was considered and the list managed to expand by 4 more positions, totaling 18, or 16, if do not take into account those clearly categorized as radically different from the classic TC, as REKKR (10) already featured earlier and added to October last year Harmony (17).
1. Final DOOM: TNT - Evilution (1996).
2. Final DOOM: The Plutonia Experiment (1996).
3. No Rest for the Living (2010).
4. SIGIL (wiki) (2019). Official wad from John Romero. Sequel in progress.
5. Double Impact (2011).
6. No End in Sight (2016 / 2019).
7. Deathless (2018 / 2020).
8. BTSX EP1 (2012).
9. BTSX EP2 (2014).
11. Doom Zero (2019).
12. Syringe (2019 / 2021).
** 13. Earthless: Prelude (wiki) (2021). Planned to review it later. Full version is still in progress.
* 14. Revolution! (2001) + Midi Pack (2016).
15. Arrival (2021).
* 16. Anomaly Report (2022).
* 18. Base Ganymede (2009 / 2012).
As a result, in the foreseeable future, it is planned to consider points 14, 16 and 18, i.e. 3 wads.
One of the classic wads. Consists of 33 levels, 2 of which are secret and 1 bonus - specifically the 33rd was added with the release of the Midi Pack in 2009. At the time of release it was positioned as an unofficial continuation of the events of Doom II. It's been 15 years since the original. Zombies and the remnants of demons were taken and enslaved and sent to rebuild the destroyed Earth. As usual something goes wrong and they rebel, led by some sort of a new hidden leader. Doomguy is on the line again. The levels are pretty small. Difficulty, by today's standards, can be assessed as a low one.
* The fonts are quite specific.
* On M8, at the beginning of the level, you will need to use a rocket jump, and at the end there is a risk of a soft lock, if you go down on the platform and fight with three pinkies - the doomguy will be blocked on the lower floor, without the ability to return to the top.
* The passage of most of the M10 can be ignored if you will make a rocket jump near the start and pick up the red key.
* It takes ~ 3,5 hours to complete.
M15 -> M31. There is a switch in the southwest, pressing which will remove the barrier blocking the path to the secret exit. The exit itself is located not far from the main one, you need to run from the cliff to the side of a seemingly inconspicuous wall.
M31 -> M32. The usual exit plays the role of a secret one.
Pros:
+ M6 - "Wasted".
+ M14 - Dead End".
+ M18 - "XS".
+ M21 - "Hausterium".
+ M23 - "Pyramid of Pain".
+ Soundtrack.
+ With rare exceptions, most of the old wads may seem quite archaic to today's... layman. Revolution! in this respect is a fortunate exception.
+ The last third of the wad can be called as the most interesting in terms of the original architecture of the levels.
Last edited by UnknDoomer on Thu Jan 23, 2025 11:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Wad of 33 levels, inspired by, among others, Doom 2 The Way Id Did (2013, Cacowards 2013) and Memento Mori (1996, top 100). According to the author, it is made with a bias in the "old school" style. In terms of entourage, the first 2/3 and, as a result, most of the time, are dominated by tech bases and seemingly typical fortresses, occasionally diluted with original concepts or some ideological borrowings, in particular from Plutonia, such as M13, as well as machine gunners found here and there on the heights. The last third is the exact opposite of the first two - the most remarkable cards are concentrated here, which are quite different from each other. In the context of the story component, AR can be called an alternative look at the events of Doom II.
M31 -> M32. At the beginning of the level you can find a map. You will need to press a series of hidden switches. Access to one of these appears to be broken. Or, at least, I didn't manage to find a trigger that would remove the wall blocking the passage. As a result - noclip for pressing the last switch.
Pros:
+ M8 - "Tanker".
+ M15 - "Colosseum".
+ M31 - "Echoes Redux".
+ M32 - "When in Romero". The map can be called a compilation of familiar elements of the original E1 from Doom, or, on the other hand, what the "extended" version of E1M1 might look like if it came out not in 1993, but in 2022.
+ M22 - "Technochasm".
+ M26 - "Valley of Shadows".
++ M27 - "Trenches". One of the most difficult to pass, but one of the most remarkable maps.
+ M28 - "Nightfire".
Contras:
- M29 - "End Times". The difficulty balance on this map is questionable. In particular the presence of archviles in certain fragments can lead to a complete block of the further progress, in the absence of ammo to deal with them.
- M30 - "Anomaly". Once again, the boss is the icon of sin, access to which is somewhat difficult - after many attempts I could not adequately reach the target point in the form of a brown curb. Used the jump.
Last edited by UnknDoomer on Thu Jan 23, 2025 11:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.
The last, for today, wad, which passed into the category of official 6 days ago, 9.05.23. Unlike the previously reviewed two, it is focused on working with the original Doom. As a result of the double-barreled gun and a number of varieties of enemies doesn't exist here. Actions take place on one of the moons of Jupiter, hence the name, in honor of the base on one of those. Consists of 27 levels divided into 3 episodes. Wad somewhat departed from the typical, in some places frankly hackneyed, but at the same time existing to this day, narrative scheme of the type tech bases -> also them, but interspersed with hellish elements / fortresses of one kind or another / insert similar -> hell.
* GzDoom 4.10.0, UV difficulty.
* Quite a serious shortage of ammo and first-aid kits at most levels.
* Hardcore.
* It takes ~ 4-4,5 hours to complete.
Secret levels:
Spoiler:
E1M3 -> E1M9. At the beginning of the level it will not be difficult to find a map. Another question is that you can get to the secret switch, apparently, only by rocket jump, and if you have, for example, 50 HP and 100 armor left, then this will not be enough to make the jump. Luckily you won't have to keep track of your HP for the whole level and, sometimes in vain, you won't have to try to keep it - it's enough not to pick up armor and a black first-aid kit until it's completed. After rocket jump, in my case, with the initial parameters 100/100, the values 37/69 remained. A similar problem occurs on E1M7, where, in turn, due to the low amount of health, you can not reach the usual exit - I had to enter the code "god".
E2M5 -> E2M9. Toward the end of the level you will need to pass a corridor with acid. You can see a switch behind the torch. You need to shoot it and go back, climb the platform up. Nearby you can find a secret exit.
E3M6 -> E3M9. You need to press the switch in the hidden section. One barrier will be removed. The second lowers automatically when passing nearby. The secret exit on the map is in the circle.
Pros:
+ The Ultimate Doom is not particularly, as in general, not in demand in the modder environment for a long time. As a result finding a good wad under it, especially if you take the timestamp of 201X and beyond, is very rare. BG is a good exception in this regard.
+E1M8.
+E2M4. Almost the entire level will need to go without weapons.
Contras:
- Excessive use of hazardous surfaces.
Last edited by UnknDoomer on Thu Jan 23, 2025 11:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Made a new topic on doomworld, where it's possible to suggest wad / map to record. Among other things, it is supposed to fill the gaps in anticipation of certain releases in this way.
1. Bad Dream (2023).
Meanwhile. Usually I do not record single maps, but decide to give a try to https://www.doomworld.com/forum/topic/1 ... -everyone/, due to interesting concept and stylistics. Version 1.1, GzDoom 4.10.0, 17:57 in Doom time and ~ 40 minutes in overall to beat on UV, with, as it ofter goes in such cases for me, a bunch of save / load sequences took a place. Missed 2 secrets and 4 monsters somewhere.
Mastermind can be telefragged, while Cyberdemon, with enough luck, might be skipped, I guess, while you will able to access the switch. Still, it rather easier to kill him. Another method, that is probably possible, but will take long - hit & run, so you can deal with him with just bare hands.
Perhaps in further I'll set out the new rubric for the maps specifically.
The MAYhem series dates back to 2012 and currently has 11 wads, taking into account the release of MAYhem 2023 at the end of April. Four elements can be called unchanged components:
1. Release closer to May.
2. Exactly one month is allotted for development.
3. Levels, regardless of context, are small and generally focused on run & gun gameplay.
4. The concept is always based either around certain technical limitations, or general specifics, be it the color scheme, the size of the maps, compatibility only with a rarely used port (Eternity Engine), themes / textures of a certain genre, for example, in the spirit of Quake or Blood. To a certain extent, these facts make the series related to the creations of the DBP forum.
Specifically I will focus on, in my opinion, one of the most interesting varieties - the limitation on the size of the playing field, which affected, in general, 3 out of 11 wads, of which, in turn, 2 will be considered.
---
Wad of 35 levels, 32 are ordinary, 2 of them are secret, 3 are bonus, the main feature of which was the technical limitation in the size of the level within 2048x2048.
* GzDoom 4.10.0, UV difficulty.
* Sound effects have been changed.
* The last third of the wada is filled with some pretty challenging levels. There is a shortage of ammo and not simple skirmishes, in particular due to the sometimes excessive placement of archviles and cyberdaemons in narrow corridors.
* Hardcore.
* It takes ~ 6-6,5 hours to complete.
Secret levels.
Spoiler:
M15 -> M31. On the way to the main exit you can see a blue orb. If you run from the exit to it, you will notice that the passage is open. Going into it, you can find a teleport.
M31 -> M32. On the map you can see a small waterfall. If you make a shot under your feet, then the doomguy will throw under one, but he will not be able to survive, while it is simply impossible to get into this area initially. Apparently, the matter is in the switch in the north of the map - it can be pressed again after it has already disappeared into the ground. After that it will be possible to go down into the water, then lower a couple of walls and get to the coveted secret exit.
* M33, M34 and M35 can only be accessed via the console.
Most likely due to not full compatibility with the latest version of GzDoom.
*M24. On this map, apparently, the algorithm of one of the switches is broken, which does not allow you to leave one of the sections without a noclip.
*M28. A similar problem towards the end of the level, after the battle with the cyberdemons.
- Overestimated difficulty on a number of levels, especially on M28, M29 and M30, where dealing with the boss without the use of cheat codes looks a little doable - a very decent supply of missiles is required.
Last edited by UnknDoomer on Thu Jan 23, 2025 11:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Wad of 34 levels, 32 main, of which 2 are secret, plus 2 bonus. This time the restriction was made with an emphasis on linedefs, and the style, according to the authors, was made more gothic, although in general the context remained about the same, the same applies to complexity, somewhere it is moderate, somewhere clearly above average. The final build didn't meet the typical MAYhem deadline, and was actually released 4 months later, in September of that year.
* GzDoom 4.10.0, UV difficulty.
* Hardcore.
* It takes ~ 7 hours to complete.
Secret levels.
Spoiler:
M15 -> M31. It is enough to find the yellow key and follow one of the doors.
M31 -> M32. It is located next to the usual exit, on the left. To access it, it is enough to make a shot at the main portal.
M32 -> M33. The normal exit leads to the M33.
M33 -> M34. Likewise.
Pros:
+ M3 - "Venom Canyon".
+ M14 - "You Are Workshipping a Sun God". The action of the level begins and ends on the submarine, while in between you happen to visit the fortress. Closer to the start of such, I observed a drawdown of frames. The issue was resolved with a simple restart. What caused it is not completely clear, because there is no abundance of any elements here.
+ M31 - "Benedictine Convulsions". Successfully implemented level in the style of surrealism.
+ M33 - "Isolation Game'. Small puzzle level. No opponents. You need to press the correct series of switches.
+ M16 - "Sacrificial Circle". If we proceed from the paradigm that "hard" cards should be accompanied by no less "hard" soundtrack, then M16 can be called an exemplary standard, where the cover of the famous Rammstein track acts as such.
+ M19 - "Still More Mayhem".
+ M26 - "Jadeamir".
+ M28 - "Merciless".
Contras.
- M30. As you know, a joke repeated many times ceases to be such. The same is equally applicable to certain techniques in the construction of maps. If on M29 the presence of 1500 enemies is to a certain extent justified and a certain balance is observed, turning into a kind of "combat puzzle", where the player will try to cope with the armada or break through it and leave the level, then on M30, to the eyeballs packed with cacodemons, , by the way, used, but successfully, a year earlier in MAYhem 2048, as well as a number of other wads, everything looks rather faded.
Last edited by UnknDoomer on Thu Jan 23, 2025 11:20 pm, edited 1 time in total.
The theme of total conversion during the existence of modding as such has taken on all sorts of forms. What is the port of Castlevania: Simon's Destiny (NES) or Hocus Pocus in 3D, with the preservation of the entire entourage, or the experimental port of Mortal Kombat II based on GzDoom. Somewhere nearby, simpler TCs always followed, interspersed with individual game elements in ordinary wads and so on. Today's instance in question stands apart from all the others. The short story is this. Once in the vastness of the network, the author stumbled upon a video about a little-known and forgotten category C shooter, of which, at the turn of the first half of the nineties, and somewhere later, enough were created. It was and remains so, gathering dust somewhere on the long-forgotten pages of the World Wide Web, if one detail is not remarkable - the overwhelming degree of surrealism of what is happening, which later served as inspiration for creating what is being discussed here.
In the latest build at the moment, 1.41, there are 6 extensive levels - it will take from an hour to an hour and a half to complete each one, but I limited myself to only the first. There is an arsenal, but, with the exception of a double-barreled shotgun, it is not very typical - where did you last see a boomerang as a starting weapon? Or what about the monkeys throwing exploding bananas?... The same can be said for the opponents - toothy French toasts with sunglasses, bipedal TVs showing static, flying lips and even more bizarre creatures. The amount of health and armor, as well as remaining at the level of opponents, if using GzDoom, is not displayed. A number of elements are clearly drawn from other games, notably Corridor 7: Alien Invasion (1994). The action begins in some strange mansion, where you have to consistently perform one task after another. Otherwise, the gameplay, adjusted for local features, is generally typical - collecting keys, moving through portals, exploring rooms. There is a store where you can buy ammo and other items for coins that drop from enemies.
Then one could write another paragraph or two, but, as they say, there is no point in looking for a deep idea where it does not exist, besides this, here is one of those cases where it is better to see / play once than to read and describe. In part, parallels could also be drawn here with Escape from Monster Manor (1993) with 3DO and Killing Time (1996), but, unlike them, I can only say that here the first impression of the unusual nature of what is happening passes quickly and literally after 30 minutes of gameplay begins to become very boring, exposing the root cause of the failure of such projects - the unusual style alone is not able to pull out all the other missing elements, such as balance, level architecture, etc.
Settings and features:
* GzDoom 4.10.0, Hard (UV) difficulty.
* ~ 1 hour and 20 minutes for the first level.
