#Doom WADs’ Roulette

[m39]

Decade of DOOMstruction(2000s): 8-9 maps WADs

One thing I noticed about episode replacements is that these are always made for Doom I. Seriously, it’s like moths flying to the nearest light source. That and in at least 8/10 cases they pay homage to the first episode from what I’ve seen.

But anyway, here are the best episode replacements for the classic Doom games.

VANILLA

2000 – THE CLASSIC EPISODE

Let me tell you now, that if you enjoy homages to KDitD, you will enjoy this WAD. If you are like me and expect something more from these, you can skip it.

One of the biggest restrictions in making Doom I WADs is the much smaller amount of enemy types, with this game having only one high-tier and one mid-tier enemy with the rest feeling like cannon fodder, where only hitscanners have a chance to hit you if you are a god of dodging. And this WAD suffers from it, with encounters being either boring or tiring due to having a small amount of rockets and cells until around the second half of E2M7.

Other than fights, it’s basically (and probably mostly) a bizzaro E1 – simple, yet abstract locations and rather simple to play through maps, with maybe one or two moments where you get stuck if you are an idiot like me and miss an important switch right next to you.

2002 – CH RETRO EPISODE

This WAD gave me a better experience than the last one since it doesn’t feel like it overstays its welcome until around the second half/ last third and it doesn’t have tiring encounters with cacos and barons; just boring and, sometimes, annoying ones.

Still, it’s basically another E1-based episode replacement that doesn’t really add anything significantly memorable.

2004 – PHOBOS REVISITED

I think this WAD might be the best one by far. Taking the foundations of the original episode and flipping some of its concepts upside down, giving it a fresh experience to the familiar locations, utilizing original secret areas as regular ones, and also making it harder and better looking (it’s still rather easy though).

Out of all the vanilla WADs in this category (at least the ones that I replayed now), I would say to try at least this one. This one is good.

2008 – BACK TO BASICS

While better WAD than Ruma, primarily due to having no new, piss-poor sound effects, I’m still not fond of Espi’s level design.

While I appreciate how it is not yet another E1 reference WAD like the previous one and how it manages to do some tricks with the engine on vanilla restrictions, it still suffers from the boring and (occasionally) tiring fights with Doom I’s limited bestiary (although the fights didn’t feel as boring as the previous WADs), added with infuriating backtracking that I feel like it forces you to go through at least half of the map per one just to open a colored door/press another switch. Topped with some of the secrets being annoying to grab due to forced SR40/50 straferunning and the fact that you are forced to pistol start the final map because fuck you and your BFG.

While I still recommend playing this WAD (if at least for the secret map that is), I don’t think it’s worth playing further after E2M7.

WINNER

Let’s cut to the chase, people – Phobos Revisited earns the first GoldenSpider Nest award for the best episode replacement of the decade. It’s kind of hilarious how the vanilla WAD that references Knee-Deep in the Dead the most in the one that gave the most fun.

Even though I am not that fond of the rest of the WADs, I must choose the runner-up. And for me, it’s the CH Retro Episode that deserves to get this title. Back to Basics might be better than that WAD, but at least CHRE wasn’t as frustrating as BtB.

Now, let’s move on to the second half of this category.

SOURCE PORT

Let’s hope that the following WADs will give me more fun than the previous ones.

2003 – PHOBOS: ANOMALY REBORN

And we immediately start off with a bang.

This WAD has some of the most gorgeous maps ever created in the 2000s; made even more impressive that it looked like it was all made with nothing BUT Doom I stock textures. It all looks insane.

It’s not all sunshine and rainbows, though. Many encounters have a hard time living up to the standard of being actually fun, rather than being forced to fight barons with shotgun/chaingun, fighting hitscanners with next to no cover, or just being straight-up boring.

It’s not as great as it was when I first played it, but it's still a good WAD worth checking out, especially for its design and interaction with the environment.

2006 – THE CLASSIC EPISODE PART 2

A sequel to the original Classic Episode WAD, made by the same guy, and it’s at least 100% better than the original. Having a hub map that gets more corrupted when you reach it for the last time is great, along with encounters feeling much less boring, tiring, and (to some degree) annoying. And as for the complexity level of the maps, I guess it’s somewhere around the same level as the previous WAD, AKA not that much.

This one is worth checking out.

2009 – MAPGAME

Another, pretty solid WAD IMO. It kind of spices up the gameplay by switching the chaingun with a projectiles-based flare gun, and transforming spider mastermind into a much weaker turret (it’s still a hitscanner but at least it’s something fresh in the roster), but aside from these, it’s a rather standard E1 replacement with pretty locations (not as pretty as PAR though). That’s all I have to say for this WAD.

WINNER

And now, it looks like I have a problem since all of the WADs are good, but not really amazing. I would gladly give the second Golden Spider Nest award for Phobos AR, but then I am reminded that fun shouldn’t be hindered by pretty locations. So, ultimately, I give the award for Mapgame, and the other two WADs get named runners-up.

Now that I’m done with episode replacements, I can only hope that I’ll finally play some Doom II stuff in the next category.

I’ll see you then.

[wadbot]

roultt02.wad: Doomworld Roulette: Session 2 MAP02: Keep of the Valley of the Shadow of Death (4292, 1686, 176) Author: Various Date: 2016-12-21 Description: The second in a series of exercises that dares participants to break away from the trends and ideas typical in day-to-day Dooming. The challenge? Create a map that best depicts a theme generated by jmickle66666666's level theme generator. Themes were created, numbered and then hidden from participants, who were made to select a number at random in order to be assigned a theme. The event ran for just under two weeks, totalling 11 maps. These maps are designed to be played from pistol start.

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2009): Legacy of Suffering

Hey, kids. Ya wanna play some Deum 3 on Doom 2?

…

Okay, it’s not really Doom 3, but… eh… that will do.

G5: Legacy of Suffering

Main author(s): Logan MTM

Release date: November 28th, 2009 (original release)

Version(s) played: updated

Required port compatibility: GZDoom

Levels: 10 (8 regular ones, 1 post-credits and something called LOSINV01)

Now here is something weird from Brazil – Legacy of Suffering, AKA another one of those WADs that released its first part, and nothing else after promising more. In the case of this stillborn WAD series, we also have mixing original Doom games with elements of Doom 3. That, and the shotgun with four barrels (I’ll get to that in the longer moment).

This project started as a combination of two old projects, one from 2006 by Logan himself and 2007’s Dark Base by Maurício Rocks. The plot was different from what we got, there was supposed to be more artwork and even some 3D stuff; so basically, typical stuff that was changed in production.

The plot, meanwhile, happening right after Doom 3, focuses on a super soldier bloke, who got arrested because he was going insane, is now on a moon base, and that base ends up attacked by demons.

Since we will be tackling one of those ZDoom WADs that likes to use a huge chunk of the source port’s features (you know, those smelly wankers), I can only hope that it won’t annoy me as much as many others before it. Let’s take a look.

Disclaimer: Review based on two playthroughs without secret hunting.

You know how Doom 3 was around 75% walking through some dark tech base with occasional trips outside and in hell? Well, in this WAD, it’s, without counting the post-credits map along with taking place on the Moon instead of Mars, always walking through some tech base crap, except it doesn’t feel as dark as the original release of Doom 3.

That doesn’t mean the base looks bad; it looks good, and it has some nice details here and there, I especially like the sixth act with a monorail. I just wish it had more map styles.

The music is… good, I guess? I recognized tracks from Painkiller (I need to replay that game one day) and the remix of Sign of Evil at Act VIII fits like a glove; I just wish it wasn’t that loud (turn down the music volume just in case). Also, and it’s a more personal problem, I listened to so many great MIDIs from the past and future WADs that listening to the music with actual instruments in Classic Doom mods feels off. It doesn’t boil my blood as much as MIDIs.

The design of the levels doesn’t really feel that complicated. Even though the automap doesn’t show the layout (yep, it’s one of those), it was still a far cry from some of the bigger moon-logic crap I’ve played. I still recommend using IDDT on the map (at least on your second playthrough); I don’t think there is a shame in doing that in cases like this.

Our protagonist has regenerating health, so if you want to, you can wait in the corner like it’s another Gears of War or Call of Duty to come back to full health (although it’s kind of slow). I don’t really mind it.

I feel like the ZDoom cutscenes might be the least obnoxious ones I have experienced in ZDoom WADs. Sure, there are moments where it takes control out of you, but these are rather short, there is no annoying, pretentious dialogue, and most of the time, these are rather dynamic; they actually show stuff. You can even outright skip some of the longer cutscenes. It’s like the cutscenes evolved into being passable at worst, and if they are worse, then they almost evolved into this state.

As I mentioned earlier, there is a secret map that you can play after the credits roll. It’s good, I guess? It kind of reminded me of the first trip to hell in Doom 3 (maybe it inspired that map).

Despite its name, Legacy of Suffering won’t really let you suffer with its difficulty. It is challenging, don’t get me wrong (mostly because projectiles are now faster -_-), but it’s not really a ball buster.

It gets interesting since the enemies have some new moves on their sleeves. Shotgunners and Chaingunners can now dash-attack after being hurt (luckily, the latter start firing much later), Pinkies barely feel pain and have a chance to ram at you (spectres don’t get these bonuses), Revenants fire two missiles instead of one (and can fire after throwing a punch), Barons have a chance to shoot three fireballs instead of one, Arachnotrons drop cells after they completely disappear (like all of the other demons), and Lost Souls have reduced health (and new, more annoying sound effects).

The WAD also adds three new enemies to the roster. One is the regular mob – Super Shotgunner, wielding its namesake and having more health than any other zombie (from what I’ve experienced).

The other two enemies are bosses; there is a super Hoovy that has an upgraded chaingun that occasionally fires rockets as well. The other is called Shadow Guardian, which is basically a digitalized Hell Knight from Doom 3, that can be only hurt by plasma, and fires a deadly AOE attack after getting hurt.

Typically for such WADs, you also get new weapons. I mentioned a shotgun with four barrels at the beginning of the review, and that’s what the cannon shotgun is. You can fire from one barrel or from all four at once with the alt-fire; it is also the only weapon that requires manual reloading.

The second new weapon is launcher chaingun (or what the fuck is it called), which you steal from the uber Hoovy. It’s basically a chaingun on steroids with a small rocket launcher attached to it.

Like the old enemies, the old weapons get some changes. You reload the super shotgun slightly faster; there is a small delay before the regular chaingun starts firing; you punch faster but weaker (you can also kick); you can swing your chainsaw now with the alt-fire; and the plasma gun now fires a blue BFG ball with the alt.

Legacy of Suffering is an interesting specimen. Out of all of the ZDoom WADs from the 2000s that sacrifice the fun and gameplay to focus more on the source port’s features, this one feels like it could age the least poorly.

Do I still recommend it? Kind of? It’s worth taking a look at it but not for more than one or two playthroughs at once.

The next WAD on the list is an interesting case since it requires Skulltag to play. I’ll see what I can do with it. If the first map breaks down, I’ll let you know and probably cancel the review of the next WAD.

We will see.

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2007): Epic

You know what folks? Change of plans! I must play something else before Community Chest 3 kills me with its marathon-long content. So let’s take a look at another WAD on the list before gathering material for CC3 between reviewing other WADs. And today, we have a perfect WAD that will jump-start my heart back out of the boredom.

G8: Epic

Main author(s): Alexander S. (Eternal)

Release date: October 10th, 2007 (database upload)

Version played: ???

Required port compatibility: Boom/Limit-removing

Levels: 5

Epic is one of the earlier WADs created by Eternal, who actually started posting WADs in 2007. Not only did this WAD earn one of the Cacowards but the author himself also earned the Mapper of the Year award; all in the same year, making it all look like he was just getting started. But we will have to play this WAD to see if it was all well deserved...

Spoilers: It was well deserved.

While it might not look as good as some of the other WADs released in 2007, Epic still looks great. And it’s mostly due to taking place in desert-like areas (with some jungle parts sprinkled here and there) that might give you ancient Egypt vibes. And since I’m a sucker for ancient shit, of course it would hook me in. The final map with the titular citadel is something worth seeing yourself.

Now, I’ve seen people calling this WAD an Egyptian one, but I’m not entirely sure about it, since the maps look like they have elements not only from Ancient Egypt but also from Mesoamerican civilizations. Not to mention some of the modern/army base-looking buildings here and there.

Music-wise... I think it’s all right. Nothing really to complain about, although I feel like the tracks for Sand-Storm and The Citadel are too short for such maps. Not to mention hearing Daedalus’ leitmotif so many times in the past that it gets infuriating.

These maps aren’t that complicated. You just need to remember that there are two moments on Arc of the Pendulum where you have to shoot a switch to progress.

Each map has something different to offer. A Fool's Paradise has you fighting somewhere that looks like a dock built near an ancient temple. Sand-Storm is a big, sprawling level where you can go to most of the locations in any order; you end up here by the teleporter in the previous map and you end up blowing the one from the other side, killing two poor shmucks in the blast radius. Arc of the Pendulum spends most of its time in some castle complex before ending up back in the jungle, near the train station that leads to the citadel. Helltrain makes you board the train at the end of the previous to get to the next map.

And of course, the titular Citadel, which on the foundation level is Sand-Storm again but on a bigger scale, but it tends to fresh it up, with six keys to find instead of three, a short visit to the Martian vessel, you even visit the titular building itself after taking care of the outdoor area surrounding it.

There is also one thing that doesn’t happen in the WAD – supposedly, it would make (at least some) hanging corpses destructible, like the hangmen Keens.

Now, I don’t really think Epic is hard. Sure, there are some tougher moments, but it never really felt like I was about to turn into the walking punching bag for demons. And even though there are cheap moments like with monsters hiding in corners/popping from the ground or hitscanners in the wide areas that don’t really have anything to hide from them, I think I can forgive the author for these for now since this was one of his earlier works (and the hitscanner thing happens rather rarely).

Some of the enemies get updated sprites. Hitscanners now wear different headgear per type, Imps are darker and have yellow eyes, and Revenants’ eye sockets are now green, reminiscing their Doom 3 variant.

Although I don’t remember encountering many bugs, the author recommends not playing the Citadel with the latest (at the time) version of PRBoom among other problems.

Epic might be unpolished in some places but I believe it’s one of those WADs that every Doom WAD enjoyer should play. It’s an excellent introduction to the man's work of Eternal (even if that’s not actually the first WAD he created), and it’s the biggest proof of why he was regarded as the best map maker of 2007.

Now, as for Community Chest 3, as I said at the start, I’ve decided that in the case of the community projects, I will play them the first time and gather the screenshots of where the secrets are/interesting locations between reviewing other WADs; in parts. By now I’m halfway done with CC3 secrets and I’ll try to finish searching for them before tackling The Ultimate Torment & Torture.

Until then, I’ll see you all next time.

Bye!

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2009): Whispers of Satan

G8: Whispers of Satan

Main author(s): Paul Corfiatis and Kristian Aro

Release date: September 15th, 2009

Version(s) played: Final version (I guess)

Required port compatibility: Boom

Levels: 36 (standard 30 + 2, plus (on ZDoom) two super secret maps, a credits map, and a warp map)

Paul Corfiatis and Kristian Aro, the dynamic duo behind 2002 A Doom Odyssey (well, mostly done by the former) come back to deliver another WAD – Whispers of Satan.

Its story begins in around August 2005, when Kris meets with his buddy in crime, to talk about making a Doom II megaWAD with a couple of super secret, ZDoom-exclusive maps after finishing one of his WADs (Death Tormention 3). The work on this WAD started in October 2006, and it took almost three years to finish.

The WAD’s plot is not really worth talking about since it’s another one of Doom II’s unofficial sequels but not really WADs. On the bright side, at least I can say that it is not as cringy (when it comes to intermission screens at least) as the Doom Odyssey.

Now, when I played the Doom Odyssey, I felt like I played the more polarizing Ultimate Doom with a plot that wasn’t self-aware at all. However, I feel rather optimistic that Whispers of Satan will be better than that over two decades old WAD. So let’s not waste any time, and take a look at it.

I’m surprised how this WAD looks great. Usually, the levels have at least one, great-looking landmark. Not to mention the changing sky and 5 themes across the WAD (not counting the secret levels) that make it not boring for the eye. These themes are:

Techbase,

Techbase with some brick walls,

Plutonia-like,

Plutonia-like with some Hexen elements,

and, of course, hell itself.

Liked the music as well. I’m struggling to find which tracks were the best ones; Base Stalker is definitely at the top, but I am not sure about the rest; maybe Nebula's Keep and Orgolia as well?

Anyway, changing the subject, I don’t really think Satanic Whispering is complicated. Like most of the other WADs with complexity like this one, it has a couple of getting-stuck moments, but besides these, you can go through these levels rather fast without enemies.

There are, however, some questionable decisions. Like, for some reason many of the maps use the rule of two switches AKA there are at least two switches near each other in the copy-pasted areas with (almost always) copy-pasted groups of enemies. These moments feel like a filler, and I think these are mostly related to Paul’s maps. Kristian’s maps do have moments like these as well, but at least he tried to make each of the switches’ routes different from what I can remember.

There are other annoying moments as well; some of them feeling like a fossil of an abomination that refuses to die. Shitty backtracking (like with the case of the red key in Basement Jazz), too dark moments on a map and not being able to return in some cases is one thing, but also bringing back secrets that you have only one chance to reach? Didn’t this shit die years ago?

Also, another icon of shit on MAP30, because why the hell not? Let’s inflate Romero's head’s health as well! What could go wrong?!

sigh

Let’s talk about secret maps for exchange. The first regular one is a homage to Star Wars (the good times when the only thing in this franchise that was mocked and screamed to the heavens by rapid fanboys were prequels), while the second one is a more classic Wolfenstein reference (I don’t have pictures of that map because I don’t want to be marked as a bloody nahtzee dick rider).

There are also three, ZDoom-exclusive maps (technically four but you can only get to the last one by console commands). The first one is Ein Lustiger Ort (a funny place), of which one half is pushing voodoo dummies into teleporters with weapons and running like hell to exit from siege cows, and the other… the other half is… Okay, fellas, remember that... seedy secret in Ultimative Geheimnis? Yeah? Well, the second half (if you want to get to the second, ZDoom secret map) is basically that… sprinkled with impse-

projectile vomiting

Technical problems

Okay, I’m done.

Now, the second ZDoom map is 1994 Revisited, and it’s basically what the title says; it feels like it makes fun of the maps that are stuck in 1994 while also celebrating them. It even ends on another icon of shit… which makes me hate the Verge of Revelation’s icon of shit even more since MAP34 (kind of) makes fun of how the megaWADs end with this crap and yet they still shove one in MAP30! What is this?! Chuck and Doyle: Rabies Ravagers: The Movie?! Did the 2020s use time travel and brainwash the authors that one time?!

Okay, let’s calm down and change the subject because the third ZDoom map is interesting. You have to reach the end of Sintlabs but instead of pressing the exit switch, go back to the starting area and you will find the secret exit that will lead you to Hidden Warp Zone. It all boils down to choosing to end up either in Playgrounds of Caesar or Halls of Cocytus, and that’s it.

Whispers of Satan isn’t really hard. It tends to get tougher in the final third, and it has cheap, if not outdated, moments (pop-up monsters, traps with hitscanners, moments with demons teleporting behind you after being in front of you), but if you are experienced with WADs, you won’t have a bigger problem with this one; there is no slaughter map around there.

There is, however, an interesting part of Undervilla, with Mancubi behind walls, and while it is yet another bullshit difficulty bump that I’m surprised is still used, I can’t get myself to hate it because it references to Hexen, where the trap walls with the same texture started firing projectiles. It’s kind of funny, not gonna lie.

There is also… uhm… a new enemy if you can call it that… It’s called Cybie… has a higher pain chance than cyberdemon… and has different sound effects… And I refuse to talk about it more because I feel dirty even thinking about it.

I don’t know if this is a bug or something, but in the icon of shit area in 1994 Revisited, half of a time, the crushers that were supposed to destroy Romero's head didn’t work. Maybe it’s related to the red area near the teleporter that takes you to the icon of shit area, but I’m not entirely sure.

Overall, Whispers of Satan is a pretty good WAD. It does feel archaic in places, copy-pasted switch areas feel like a joke, and there are still fragments of problems that plagued Doom Odyssey, but still, it is a better WAD than the authors’ 2002 project.

The next WAD on the list is Demons of Problematique 2. Let’s hope we won’t end up with another Cheogsh 2 fiasco.

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2009): Killing Adventure

Br1: Killing Adventure

Main author(s): Ruba

Release date: September 5th, 2009 (database upload)

Version(s) played: ???

Required port compatibility: ZDoom

Levels: 32 (30 + 2 standard)

Killing Adventure… confuses me. At first glance, it looks like a typical 1994 slop made by a twat who has more farts in his head than brain matter. But something tells me there is more to it than it shows. It might actually be self-aware Troll WAD made to piss people off.

Is it true though? From what I’ve heard about its author, he was definitely a troll in the community. But I must play this WAD to be entirely sure about it, so let’s get into it.

Starting with me, feeling like WADs from the mid-90s’ looked better than Killing Adventure. I do realize that the maps were done like this on purpose, but it doesn’t change the fact that they look overly basic, stale, dull, and other synonyms of the word boring.

I liked the music, though. At least half of it feels relaxing to listen to (MAP11 might have the best track), although, there are also tracks that are more blood-pumping.

I hope you like patience because this WAD will test it. Although the maps are simple and I don’t think you will get lost playing them, almost all of the maps seem to feature one, rather small square/rectangle/whatever-shaped area that constantly repeats itself and has the same roster of enemies in (probably) almost every single one of them. You might feel like you are running in circles.

Thankfully, there are maps that create shortcuts after reaching a key or some other important place. That’s always nice in a WAD.

Some of the maps tend to be more interesting than others. Jail for instance will kill all enemies in cages when you reach the end of it, so, if you want to, you can spice it up by ignoring everything on your path (except barrels of course) and just run to the exit.

Hundred Demon Fortress (I’m slightly changing titles to be written correctly) is basically a pun to the fact, that you fight one hundred Pinkies in the area next to the start.

Death Row Ultima, meanwhile, makes you choose the correct switch to open the door with Romero’s head, otherwise, it sends an Arch-vile squadron on your ass. Still a better ending for the WAD than another Icon of Shit.

There are also maps that use Keens either in the form of secret-hunting or just stagnating your progress until you kill all of them, with Column Shift Punch Halls being the biggest example of the mechanic related to them.

Also, three of the maps from this WAD use fans’ favorite – chess-moving floor filth.

vomit noises

sigh

I don’t think it’s worth talking about how funny this WAD is since it’s yet another case of LUL SOS RANDUMP crap that most of the Mockaward winners at this point did.

I’m gonna say it now, but Killing Adventure feels like Mock 2 lite. I only watched MtPain’s April Fools’ review on the latter, but I felt like the WAD was making fun of many elements that appeared in the Doom maps back then (hell, even now), focusing on one thing per map. This WAD, as I said earlier, most of the time is the same thing with one, small area repeating itself ad nauseam. Its joke, at best, became stale after MAP11. And I’m surprised that I managed to properly play these maps twice without falling asleep.

Most of the time, the WAD was rather easy, but there were moments when it got hard (not for a good reason of course). Arch-viles on Grey and Easy smell of lots of bullshit (I got lucky on my second try), and Pyramidal Hell might look like hell, but if you know how to get to the exit, you can just grab an invun and run there (secret exit is behind the regular one).

And, uhm… I think that’s it. Killing Adventure tries to be funny, yet now that I think about it, it fails to deliver on that. It fails as regular WAD, a joke WAD, and it’s basically a worse version of Mock 2 on every level. You might get a chuckle out of it when you play it the first time, but after that, there is nothing to laugh at.

Let’s hope that’s the last poor-quality WAD from 2009. Luckily, the next Doom map on the list promises something better.

Don’t read my next review if you are afraid of clowns.

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Escape from Castle Chezcrea

Okay, people. Enough of the cereal kid shit. We are back at the familiar, bloody, and gory territory.

G9: Escape from Castle Chezcrea

Main author(s): Paul Hiebert (Creaphis)

Release date: February 16th, 2008 (original version)

Version(s) played: 1.1

Required port compatibility: Boom

Levels: 1 (MAP30 replacement)

Looks like we have another underdog today, people.

Escape from Castle Chezcrea is the first Doom WAD created by Paul Hiebert (at least the first one uploaded on the internet). So that means I will try to go easier on this map.

I have nothing else to say, so let’s take a look at the map.

For starters, I like how this map looks. It looks like a prison wing of the castle with torture chambers and machines turning bodies into meat. There is even a part with the sewers at the last third of the map with a leaking pipe that has blood/liquid meat swimming through it. If you could try to guess a concept of a map just by its title and if it fits, this one would fit rather well. it would be only better if there were an original music track.

Chezcrea is rather simple to understand – you try to escape the titular castle through various locations until the floor near the fake exit collapses and you are forced to escape through the aforementioned sewers. Not to mention going through the tunnel darker than the asshole (to the point that it doesn’t even show on the minimap) before the sudden drop.

Overall, I don’t think you will get stuck while playing this map. It’s rather easy to understand where to go and what to do.

I like the cleverness in most of the secrets. The best one is with the pickaxe. If you press the use key on it, you grab it, and you will be able to break through the gap in the wall in the nearby area with the conveyor belt to get a secret rocket launcher.

I would also mention that in the original version, there was a puzzle placed somewhere in the halfway point of a map; and judging from the textfile that it was moon logic level of complexity (AKA utter bullshit), I don’t think you will feel like something was missing.

I would not call Chezcrea a hard map. Sure, you are usually forced to punch demons before reaching the area with the yellow key where you will find green armor and a shotgun nearby, and there are some bullshit moments here and there (mostly involving fighting demons in complete darkness) but honestly, it was still an easy map (at least when compared to the tougher WADs from 2008).

Escape from Castle Chezcrea is a fun map to play. I am even capable (to some degree) forgive some of its cons due to it being probably the author’s first map. Give it a try.

Only last WAD from the 2008 roster to go people. I’ll see you then.

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Chex Quest 3

Well, folks... This is it... This is the reason why I reviewed both Chex Quest 1 and 2 before tackling this one.

After over a decade since the last Chex Quest game, people thought there was no Chex Quest 3...

They were proven wrong.

G8: Chex Quest 3

Main author(s): Charles Jacobi (Chukker)

Release date: 2008

Version(s) played: 1.4

Required port compatibility: ZDoom

Levels: 5 (E3M1-M5)

Out of the ashes of Digital Cafe comes the official Chex Quest 3, and sweeps out one of the Cacowards.

But first things first – how did this game come to fruition? Well, back in 2003, one of the WAD makers, Boingo the Clown, asked one of the Digital Café employees, Charles Jacobi, if the latter could do some artwork for the WAD project called Ultimate Chex Quest. Charles, after playing what was made of that WAD at the time, has resparked the interest in this franchise in himself. In late 2007, he showed a sketch of a new Flemoid that would later become one of the new enemies in Chex Quest 3, and people enjoyed it.

The lead artist of Digital Café eventually wanted to make a new episode instead of a new set of maps. And with the help of a couple more guys who worked in the same company + others, Chex Quest 3 was released in 2008.

it has been a decade since the invasion of Flemoids. Everything seems to be at peace. Unfortunately, those alien bastards want that damn, A+ quality food Federation has so they launch a complete invasion on the planet Ralston (that’s either the capital planet of the Federation, or probably where Chextropolis is, or maybe even both, I don’t know). Chex Warrior, while stationed at the central command station that’s overrun by Flemoids, jumps into the ship and flies to the planet, trying to save his people from these slime bastards one last time.

If you didn’t read my two previous reviews, I will be playing the GZDoom port of Chex Quest 3, simply for better performance.

Let’s take a look at this episode, and see the conclusion of Chex Quest.

When compared to the previous Chex Quest games, this one is on a whole other level. It’s a gigantic leap in quality. Sure, it’s mostly due to the fact that over a decade passed since the second game so the standards and/or experience in WAD making has increased, but take a look at the locations in this game. It’s not just one overall area like the base on a mining planet or metropolis with few landmarks; it feels like you are traveling all over the world and then some before even reaching the planet.

You start at a space station, then respectively land on a command base, use the metro system to get into the Italy-inspired town (with an orchard that you find upon reaching half of the map), and even visit a national park with a couple of log cabins; and it all ends with a mothership meteor that you get inside and teleport every last Flemoid out of it.

The music in CQ3 also peaked as well. Andrew Benon who created music for the previous games came back for the final time, now with help from Sabrina DiDuro, who made four tracks for this game. I feel like almost all of it sounds engaging and epic, with Chancer being the best one out of the last batch of tracks.

It’s not really worth talking much about the levels’ design. It’s basically similar to what was in the previous games, with some annoying backtracking and one section with a maze (this time at least you are looking for a key).

Here is also something that I didn’t mention in my last two reviews – all of the Chex Quest games don’t show you the amount of ammo to the rest of the guns that you don’t use at the moment. It gets kind of annoying that in order to actually see the ammo amount, you have to switch to another weapon. It might be a nitpick, but it’s frustrating for me.

Chex Quest 3 is harder than Chex Quest 2, there is no doubt. I wouldn’t call it hard per say, you can still finish it without saving or getting hit, but the chance for that is much smaller compared to the previous installments.

The only actual hard moment in this game is when you reach the motherbase meteor in the fourth map and you fight lost soul replacements. It’s more annoying than legitimately hard since you think you are done and you suddenly get rammed by another one of those buggers (and there are 37 of these on this map).

What this game has compared to the previous one is actual new enemies that are not just reskins of the old ones. And while Super Cycloptis, Flem Mine, and Lord Snotfolus are basically replacements for Cacos, the aforementioned lost souls, and the cyberdemon, Stridicus is a faster Pinky with 1.5 of its health, and Flembomination is a boss monster that constantly shoots a volley of two slime balls until it flinches.

While I do recommend trying the GZDoom version of this game, it makes the last map unplayable due to the bug that makes it so it doesn’t register the picked-up keys; both the new flemkeys, and the regular ones. Thankfully, the give keys command seems to work and allows you to finish this map. Like I said just a moment ago, it might be the effect of the GZDoom port since from some of the footage I saw, I don’t think it affects the original version.

Ignoring the key bug in the GZDoom port, Chex Quest 3 is a great conclusion to the trilogy, offering the hardest, and prettiest episode from the original developers.

As for the entire trilogy, Chex Quest as a whole is a lot of fun that starts relatively good, and it gets better as you go further with installments. Like I said in the past, CQ3 has all games in one WAD file, so you don’t have to check what the original versions were (although I won’t stop you from checking them out).

If you are interested in more of the stuff dedicated to Chex Quest, check some YouTube videos (especially the one from AVGN for the fun factor).

And that, folks, marks the end of the journey through the world of Chex Quest. I’ll see you next time.

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette: Revenant Awards 2005

DOOMGUY AND THE REVENGE OF THE HELLISH GOBLET OF CHOCOLATE – REVENANT AWARDS 2005 EDITION

Since 2005, I have been a waste of air and space on this God-forsaken planet (but not as much as some of the other losers you will see being laughed at on the Internet) for the entire decade. In the same year, the Doom franchise reached twelve years of existence by that point. Not to mention the second Cacowards appearing in 2005. So why won’t we take a look at the WADs that were rewarded to some degree by that award ceremony in the rip-off of mine?

SOLE SURVIVOR – BEST ONE-MAP LONG WAD OF THE YEAR

Choosing the winner for this award was kind of tough; not only due to it having five contestants, but all of these maps having at least one incredible thing (for the 2005 standards) to offer. On the other hand, most of these maps have annoying shit in them. Jägermörder 2 looks and plays incredibly well in spite of six years of hell development, but the beginning part of this map is such hitscanner-filled bullshit that it has a chance to make you not want to play the rest of it. HeDRoX is really good on its own, but it kind of fades in when placed next to the rest of the one-map WADs of 2005. And Temple of Chaos 2 has a gimmick that does incredibly well... over the cost of fair difficulty, unfortunately.

So now we are left with Dutch Devil’s two maps – Altar of Evil and Total Control. Both are really good, both are equal when it comes to quality, and both have similar background areas when you look at the window (without counting what surrounds the map) but if I have to choose one, I will give the award to Altar of Evil. Simply because it doesn’t have hitscanners. And also because it has custom monsters as a bonus.

PUG-OF-PINK – BEST 2-7 MAPS-LONG WAD OF THE YEAR

When it comes to the Vanilla section of this award, there isn’t really that much to offer since both For Whom the Bell Tolls and Suspended in Dusk are basically fine WADs. But at least I can say that the former WAD doesn’t have obnoxiously tight mazes or annoyingly painful to listen new sound effects. And for these reasons, For Whom the Bell Tolls gets the award in the Vanilla section. Suspended in Dusk might look like a masterpiece but it doesn’t change the fact that it’s not really that fun to play.

As for the source port section, Hi-Tech Hell 2 - Alien Tech gets the award too (by default though). I could care less about the plot in this WAD along with the cutscenes, but Alien Tech is rather fun to play and looks incredible by the standards it was released.

Comparing these two winners, Alien Tech gave me more fun than For Whom.  

FULL DECK OF DIAMONDS – BEST 30-32 MAPS-LONG MEGAWAD OF THE YEAR

Karma Shawarma better be thankful for winning this award in the Vanilla section by default. Now look, I’m not saying that this MegaWAD is bad ‘cause it’s not. It looks impressive by the vanilla standards and has some really good levels in it (especially Stairway to Heaven), but it’s targeted closer to the people who eat a bunch of slaughter maps for breakfast in a row. Not to mention how the reasons behind this MegaWAD getting Mockaward still baffle me, but I already ranted about it in my review of this WAD.

And as for the source port section, the choice between Scythe 2 and Congestion 1024 couldn’t be more obvious and one-sided: Scythe 2 easily gets the award in this section. It’s just a great MegaWAD that doesn’t feel polarizing like Congestion 1024 was (although that WAD project had some strong moments too). Not to mention being a great sequel to the original Scythe WAD.

And yes, Scythe 2 gave me MUCH more fun than Korn Shoe.

OFF THE WALL – BEST PARTIAL/TOTAL CONVERSION WAD OF THE YEAR

Another case where one WAD is much superior to another. In this case, it’s Simplicity gaining the award over Happy Time Circus. Happy Time Circus might be the most unique map in this roster but unfortunately, it is just an okay map at its best, with a strong start and ending, and an utterly tiring rest of it. Simplicity is just incredible and you should check it out, like immediately.

OTHER AWARDS

There is one last WAD to reward. And that is Crimson Canyon earning the Platinum Revenant award for the best 10-19 maps long WAD/MegaWAD of the year. It doesn’t really distinguish itself from other WADs/maps but on its own, it does a good job. And also, since I forgot to mention it in my review, I like the fluent transition between the maps.

CONCLUSION

And that’s all for the 2005 edition of the Revenant Awards. Another year of WADs from the 2000s decade done. Time to take another week-long break before returning back to making WAD reviews. But not with the 2006 roster of WADs, but with Perdition's Gate (if I manage to launch it since it is a really old, archaic WAD).

I’ll see you in the future.

Bye!

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2005): Altar of Evil

Three days after the 413 reckoning.

You come out of your bunker with a shovel in your hands, and some random stray cat tied to your waist.

A- Are they gone?

...

You hear nothing.

Oh, thank God! They came back to their degenerate caves.

You come back to your room.

Now, let’s get back to work.

S2: Altar of Evil

Main author(s): Ronald Lubbelinkhof (Dutch Devil)

Release date: March 8th, 2005 (original release)/ July 7th, 2005 (database upload, updated version)

Version played: Updated

Required port compatibility: ZDoom

Levels: 1 (MAP01 replacement)

Our second runner-up WAD (or rather map) from 2005 is Altar of Evil. And spoiler warning (because I don’t know what to say in this section): It’s better than For Whom to Bell Tolls; and no, the fact that it needs ZDoom doesn’t mean anything in that department.

So why won’t we take a look at this map, and see what works and what doesn’t?

Altar of Evil looks really good. It tends to get repetitive due to how the texture pallet is almost the same in every room but somehow I didn’t feel like it constantly looked the same. Honestly, for me, this con sounds more like a nitpick due to how the author makes it all look incredible for the lack of better words.

What’s funny about this map, is that whenever you look through the window, there is nothing but emptiness; not even when you are looking at a place where the nearby room is; suggesting that the titular area is in some God-knows-where location.

Sound effects from Doom 64 and the music from Doom I are almost always welcome for me when it comes to Doom II WADs/maps.

This map isn’t really that hard to understand, although it is kind of ridiculous when you have to press the door near the beginning to reveal a switch that will open the door you just pressed.

As for more interesting stuff, the first key you acquire (the red one) is actually needed for the exit area, but you basically end up going around the map to actually reach the red door.

Also, in one of the secret areas, there is a hidden switch that will open up an area across the secret, leading to an optional area where you can get Plasma Gun and Rocket Launcher earlier.

Altar of Evil is kind of challenging. Half of the time it’s rather fair with battles, but another half is basically you ending up surrounded by Imps that bombard you behind cages/bars. The fact that there are 361 Imps on Hurt Me Plenty doesn’t help. But to be fair, I’ve played levels that were more annoying and had more unfair difficulty. And knowing that Altar of Evil doesn’t have even one hitscanner is a blessing.

This map also adds new enemies to the roster; and depending on which skill level you choose, you will fight either two new types of monsters, eight of these, or none at all.

On HMP you will encounter Flame Demon and Nightmare Spectre, both of which are just tougher variants of Pinky without any new abilities. It probably wouldn’t surprise me if the rest of the new monsters were like this but I might be wrong here.

Also, five original enemies have a new look now.

The new Imps’ look doesn’t help with fighting them.

The only bug I’ve encountered was with new Pinky variants having scuffed attack sound effect that actually plays when they manage to bite you.

With all of that in mind, I can definitely recommend Altar of Evil. As I said at the beginning, it is better than the previous WAD and its cons are more like nitpicks for me rather than actual problems.

And speaking about both runners-up, they get promoted to the Revenant Awards 2005 too (For Whom the Bell Tolls to the Pug-of-Pink section, and Altar of Evil to the Sole Survivor section).

Welp... Guess it’s time for me to take another two-day-long break (technically just a day of a break after uploading this post since I finished this review yesterday). But after that, we can finally take a look at the best ten WADs of 2005 (according to Doomworld).

I’ll see you then.

Bye!

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2005): Congestion 1024

As of writing these words, I’m done with my indefinite hiatus. After playing the rest of the WADs spoiler-tagged by Dean of Doom, checking out the ones that might mind-fuck your brain, and watching some stuff not related to Doom, I am confident to come back and take care of the rest of the WADs from the 2005 roster. And considering what WAD I’m about to review, it will probably help me even further.

G6: Congestion 1024

Main author(s): Various (project kickstarted by Rachel Schmitz (Negatronica) and led by Thomas Lutrov (Lutrov71))

Release date: November 25th, 2005 (original release)/ December 2nd, 2005 (database upload)

Version played: ???

Required port compatibility: Boom (the text file recommends ZDoom and PRBoom)

Levels: 32 (standard 30 + 2)

Congestion 1024 is the second WAD on this shitshow that has restricted rules after 10 Sectors; this time making the playable parts of a map no larger than the size 1024*1024 (going larger when it comes to backgrounds was fine). It was inspired by Exquisite Corpse, a map with a similar gimmick but instead of one big map stitched together with twelve smaller maps, this WAD is basically structured like a regular MegaWAD.

Now the maps with 1024^2 size tend to be small (supposedly smaller than Dead Simple), so we will see what the mappers have to offer when it comes to the limited size.

The restriction definitely didn’t tarnish how the maps look. While most of the time the maps look just fine, some of them look incredible like Garden of the Descent and A Jagged Stroll, both maps taking place in a canyon-like area. There is also Nullspace Junior, a condensed version of the original map, and yes, it was created by the same person. There might be other maps with stunning visuals but these three are the ones that I can think of the most.

Without counting MIDIs from other WADs, rendition of songs/music tracks from other games, and Bantam (which has an unchanged track), the soundtrack was created by Rachel Schmitz, who we met earlier due to her Happy Time Circus map (she was also a founder of the WAD project). These tracks were good to listen to. Other tracks were (almost all the time) also good.

What’s funny is that this version of Death Bells (played in A Bridge Too Far), is the same, scuffed one from Alien Vendetta, missing bell noises. I don’t know if the track broke while this map was created, or was it from some rare version of Final Doom that I don’t know about.

I don’t really think this MegaWAD is convoluted (asides from Bantam during my first playthrough). Despite being small, these maps have something to offer to differentiate themselves from each other.

While you will encounter maps that are nothing more but a bunch of squares and rectangles squished together to fit the restriction, some maps like Claustrophobic Sting try to make something more uniquely shaped rather than introducing another squared arena/arenas.

House of Shadows is probably the worst example of squishing as many tight corridors as possible. Not to mention shitty chess stairs.

I guess some individuals still thought that such a thing was a good idea back in 2005.

There are three instances where you end up forced to Pistol-start the next map. The exits where you die happen in Gothika 1024, the previously mentioned Claustrophobic Sting, and Magus.

Caco District has a fun moment where some of the buildings in the background start to go down as you progress, implicating that these are crumbling down due to demons destroying them.

There is also another Dead Simple copy with barely any changes. And yes, this WAD does end up on another shitty Icon of Sin map. And this time you are forced to wait God knows how long before finally being able to press the switch that will end the last map.

Speaking of waiting, some of the maps think that stagnating the progress by shoving really long platforms to lower is a good idea. Well, here’s a spoiler for you: it’s not. It makes playing the map boring; not as much when fighting monsters but when there is nothing else to do... well, bring some snacks, pal. You are going to wait for a few moments.

Congestion 1024 is rather challenging, especially its last third; although I question the fairness of the difficulty since there are maps that tend to forget their sizes and shove as many monsters as possible to these already cramped maps, with the previously mentioned Magus being the worst case of being too cramped with monsters.

This WAD project isn’t really that buggy from what I’ve encountered, but there are at least a couple of these described on Doomwiki if you are interested in reading that. The worst case I encountered is definitely with Close Quarters, to the point of not being able to finish this map properly unless you noclip through a door that acts like an invisible wall for some reason. How did this was even greenlit to this project, is a complete enigma to me.

Congestion 1024 is a fine WAD, I guess. I would say that it’s good at best. Some of the maps are great, some are the opposite of great, and most of the time it was... eh.

Honestly, if I could choose between this WAD and 10 Sectors, I would still prefer Congestion 1024 because while it has bad maps, none of these come close to the awfulness of 10 Sectors’ MAP21.

Thankfully (for me), this is the last megaWAD with over 30 maps from the 2005 roster. The next one has seven of these, so hopefully I won’t spend that much time finding secrets for the second playthrough for the lack of better words.

I’ll see you then.

Bye!

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette Bonus Round: Nuts 3

As a reminder from my Earth WAD retrospective, this review was made from playing this map with No Monsters enabled. While it is possible to finish this map normally, it wasn’t tested with monsters from what I’ve read on the Doomology site, and... come on people! It’s one of the Nuts installments! These maps are basically shitposts at this point.

B10: Nuts 3

Main author(s): B.P.R.D

Release date: June 28th, 2003 (database upload)

Version played: ???

Required port compatibility: ZDoom (the most compatible at the time of release)

Levels: 1 (MAP01 replacement)

So yeah, we are skipping straight into the third installment of this trilogy of Joke maps; because the first one got a spot in the Top 100 Most Memorable Maps, and the second one wasn’t even tacked on by MtPain27. So now we are stuck with Nuts 3 - Triple the Nut, Double the Mongoose.

So here is the backstory of this trilogy for people who don’t know: Nuts started out as a test map to see if B.P.R.D can upload Equinox into the database without any problems. It was a success... at the cost of making B.P.R.D famous only for this map and not really Equinox.

So in June 2003, B.P.R.D uploaded another version of this map called Nuts 2 - 2nd and/or 1st Anniversary Gold Plated Plutonic Aloy Coated Eight volume Nuclear Donkey Edit, which is basically an actual shitpost of a map, rather than just an upload test. And not even June passed and he released Nuts 3, an actual sequel to the first map.

The plot is no less insane than any other map’s plot written by B.P.R.D: You buy a black balloon for your Nanna’s birthday (I guess you tie it to her grave since you are probably playing as Doomguy). Then the balloon starts getting bigger until it pops, and you end up god knows where (the text file says it’s some kind of meteorite with an ancient temple on the west). Now try getting out there.

With all of that out of the way, why won’t we finally take a look at the last installment and see how it all ended.

There is no denying, folks; this map is fucking blyatiful. For a shitpost map, B.P.R.D took his time to make it look incredible. Then again, it’s B.P.R.D. All of his maps/WADs that I covered looked amazing.

The same can be said about the music. I don’t even need to say anything else just check the track out yourself:

Nuts 3 is rather easy to understand. You must reach the top of the Star Temple to use the star beam to come back to your reality.

There is some stuff worth finding out. For instance, you can find a sign leading to the Equinox facility, implying that this map and the Equinox WAD might share the same universe.

Also, in the northern part of the map, you can find a star-shaped teleporter that will take you to the Secret Place (Rest your weary FPS) full of goodies.

Look, folks, if you actually want to play this map with monsters enabled, be prepared for an absolute nightmare. A sea of demons at the very beginning, sprayed later with Arch-viles resurrecting the corpses and screwing you over, topped with a tower where you end up surrounded by Cyberdemons. Not to even mention five Cyberdemon rocketeers spraying you with rockets as you climb the temple.

The reskin of the BFG doesn’t help you either. Say hello to another case of Nuts 3 shitposting. Now looking like some kind of portable, orbital strike caller, while functioning the same way as BFG, it doesn’t show any particles. Not from shooting. Not from hitting the enemy. Nothing at all.

There is one bug I’ve encountered while playing Nuts 3. On a certain high level of the temple, if you take a look at the rocket platforms, the invisible platforms that simulate these things flying will go apeshit and show you a floor texture rocket platforms have.

Also, from what I’ve heard and seen, some of the demons get stuck within each other and can’t move.

The best way I can describe Nuts 3 is a high-quality shitpost. B.P.R.D could just stop on Nuts 2 and go on with his life and yet he decided to make this map too; in just two weeks.

If you are interested in watching some madmen managing to finish this map, even killing every possible demon on the map, here’s a video of Decino doing it, and also the part on MtPain27’s first Sawed-Off WADs fun pack where he talks about the map... with some pretty pretentious descriptions how the music feels like (starts at 14:13):

There is one last bonus map to check out before finally kickstarting the 2005 roster. Tune in next time, folks, as we will come back to Hellcore to take a look at its MAP32.

Bye!

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2005): Konga Songa

You know what? It’s time to appease Slaanesh.

Time to review something seedy.

...

Kind of...

Sort of...

Not really.

G5: Kama Sutra (Hurr Durr)

Main author(s): Adolf Vojta (Gusta) and Jakub Razák (Method)

Release date: March 9th, 2005 (database upload)

Version played: ???

Required port compatibility: Vanilla

Levels: 32 (standard 30 + 2)

Okay, let’s get this out of the way first. Kama Sutra is not some Rule 34 WAD that will make twelve-year-olds giggle like Japanese schoolgirls every second map (that honor goes to HDoom). It’s actually a spiritual successor to Hell Revealed... which means you might spend days trying to finish it after taking a couple of breaks if you are not some Doom-speedrunning masochists that the authors of this WAD are.

It is also one of the first WADs that not only earned one of the main awards but also one of the bonus ones. In this WAD’s case, it was Mockaward for the funniest WAD of the year.

Did it deserve the reward, though? Like any of these two? Well, let’s find out.

For a vanilla-compatible WAD, Karma Suta looks great. While there are some duds that are basically Hell Revealed-like maps but different, there are maps that might make you drop a jaw on the floor. And just like Suspended in Dusk, some of the better-looking maps have amazing details; not as close to the stuff from the previous WAD but having more soul than there due to the bigger variety of biomes.

The music wasn’t annoying to listen to. In fact, some of the tracks were absolute bangers. This soundtrack includes stuff like a scuffed version of Smooth Criminal, a shit ton of music tracks from Duke Nukem 3D and Rise of the Triad, and even a MIDIfied version of Stairway to Heaven (which is the best track; and it comes from someone who either didn’t listen to the original version or can’t remember when he did that).

When it comes to understanding how the levels play, Karmic Suit isn’t hard. Sure, some of the levels are kind of mangled, and backtracking in some of these is really obnoxious but I don’t think there was anything particularly awful.

Oh, and also, most of the time, you end up levels by going through the same-looking teleporter.

Most of the levels tend to have something that makes them stand out from the others. I’ll try to explain some of these:

The Hidden Engine has an interesting mechanic in that you don’t use the keys you got. The passage that leads to the exit opens up just by grabbing the keys themselves (since the name of the map).

Time Is Tickin' Out makes itself look like time is passing by with each grabbed key; it even gets darker with the last key. It’s like the time was passing differently in the dimension (probably) you grab the keys.

Execution starts out with you on an electric chair, referencing Death Row from Duke Nukem 3D.

Miss Sporty is kind of hilarious since you are basically wrecking demons’ arses on a sports stadium. The concept of Doomguy ruining demons’ day when they all want to have fun kind of makes me chuckle.

Cyber Machine starts out with you trying to run to the nearby teleporter and you have to slowly get there with platforms that slowly go down (you will end up soft-locked if you aren’t fast enough) while defending yourself from Cacos. A funny moment that I wish the middle part of this map was (I’ll get to that later).

The Train Is Approaching is a homage to Alien Vendetta’s Clandestine Complex, down to the similar style and music track used in both maps. It is also a complete migraine maker since even if you know where to go, you will still end up going through the long, mangled paths, even when the next objective is right next to you.

Traps, if you didn’t get it from the title already, has shitty traps that are basically a fuck you kind. Sure these traps are just barrels and not some firing squad of Hoovies but it was still filth to experience. Also, there is another fun moment when you lower the blue key from the hanging cage.

Cow Face, asides from accidentally looking similar to the cow’s head, gives me Plutonia’s Hunted vibes. Not really with Arch-viles in the labyrinth but with the yellow and red keys having their respectful switches on the other side where there are supposed to be.

Stairway to Heaven is like a min-golf course; with almost each section dedicated to one of the weapons of your arsenal. it is also my favorite map of Konga Silly.

And speaking of silly, we have reached a moment that gave Kombat Slaughter Mockaward: MAP30 - <|> AKA Pica as I like to call it.

What’s up with this map, you may ask? Well, you have to choose between kids and adults routes. Choosing adults will send you to the arena... with a naked woman spreading her legs and flashing you with her pussy...

You facepalm. You are filled with cringe.

...that functions as Icon of Sin... and you have to shove rockets up her glory hole... while being bombarded by up to eight siege cows...

...

...

...

You have now officially lost a plot.

You bash your head on your desk.

Okay, look, I get it! Czech people have a different sense of humor, and it was made in 2005, the time that such a thing was much more acceptable and probably hilarious... but seriously?! That’s the reason why this WAD was rewarded as the funniest WAD of the year?! Another shitty Icon of Sin boss with Cyberdemon-made firing squadron that just so happens that looks like Vagineer’s face and has a Cancan dance music... THAT COMES FROM ONE OF THE LEMMINGS GAMES?!?!

You bash your head on your desk several additional times.

You know... I could... I could partially understand Khrono Sumo getting Mockaward due to more levels having funny concepts than just MAP30, like Miss Sporty or Stairway to Heaven to some degree. But the fact that I didn’t see anything funny mentioned asides from Pica in Cacowards 2005, makes me question the Doom community’s sense of humor back in that year, along with how low it was. It’s ridiculous.

And by the way, you wanna know what the kids route is? You simply wait for an exit to lower while dodging up to eight Cyberdemons attacking you. It still reeks of bullshit but I would rather play this than suffer through another Icon of Sin ending.

And no, I ain’t gonna show you the adult route, because 1. I have no pictures of it, 2. Even if I had pictures of it, Tumblr would probably shadowban me for posting it, and 3. I’m not playing this route because I’m not into completely naked bodies, real-file, or fiction. Look at this map somewhere else.

At this point, you should realize that Kurkuma Salad is really hard. I can’t explain exactly the difficulty of this MegaWAD, so I’d like to kind of repeat myself from the beginning of this review: if you are a masochist that beats WADs like that for breakfast every day (and is probably to speedrunning too) then you will be in a viscera-filled heaven. But if you are closer to someone like me who’s not exactly into a few hundred monsters on the screen/area, you will probably finish this WAD once, and not touch it for a very long time, if at all.

Let’s come back for a moment to Cyber Machine. I briefly mention its middle part not being good, and that’s because you are forced to fight in a tight area with four cows while their alcoves open up and close down one at a time; not to mention pressing switches in these alcoves after dealing with them (in a specific order I might add). Playing this map normally is a chore. Playing it while also Pistol-starting is a nightmare since you have to deal with Cyberdemons with nothing but the Super-Shotgun. You might as well jump on a teleporter in the middle of that area (if your source port allows that).

At least I can say that the last area is somewhat fun if you don’t play it on UV.

Then there is Hard Target. A shit-ton of enemies for the sake of a map with a shit-ton of enemies, around half of the map having damaging floors, pop-up Cyberdemons. being surrounded by three of these at the starting area where they will keep bombarding you unless you know where the telefragging teleporters are (at least two of these, third Cyberdemon will die in the mosh pit of demons behind him), the flood of tomatoes and meatballs after dealing with one of the switches that lead to the exit or something like that; these are just a few things that I remember about this hellhole. And the fact that this map ends up sandwiched between Stairway to Heaven and I’m just a DOOM Addict (which is a pretty cool map) doesn’t help.

My advice to you asides from not playing on UV on your first playthrough: Ignore stuff in the center and focus on switch areas.

Asides from a few graphical glitches that I encountered, and some of the music tracks being slowed down (for unknown reasons) and/or not looping properly, there weren’t any bugs around this WAD. There is still stuff written in Doomworld and in the text file though.

Also, even though this WAD is vanilla-compatible, it’s still better to use a limit-removing source port since most of these maps are too big/have too much stuff in them to be saved. Here’s Adolf Vojta’s answer to that problem:

Who use savegames nowadays anyway?

Not you apparently, at least in 2005 when you were a speedrunner, therefore a masochist (probably).

Hindu Book of Monkey Fun is a better Hell Revealed sequel than HRII. At least it looks better than that WAD, and it gave me more fun and had more maps that were more than just shove as many enemies as possible mentality.

Unfortunately, after playing this MegaWAD twice, I think I’m’ experiencing burnout at this point. Not to even mention the personal stuff I have to deal with. So to not make myself completely go apeshit, I’ll take an indefinite hiatus from reviewing.

I know there are some WADs that were spoiler tagged by Dean of Doom, a new official add-on to the Unity port, and then there is My House.WAD that’s getting insanely popular. Need to try all of this before coming back.

I’ll see you all... in June in the best-case scenario.

Bye.

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2005): Suspended in Dusk

G4: Suspended in Dusk

Main author(s): Esa Repo (Espi)

Release date: October 8th, 2005

Version played: ???

Required port compatibility: Vanilla

Levels: 4

After Ruma from 2002, we once again welcome Espi to review one of his WADs. This time it’s Suspended in Dusk, a four-maps-long WAD that supposedly maximizes the potential of Vanilla Doom compatibilities by making maps as detailed as possible (by the 2005 standards that is). Let’s hope it won’t come out at the cost of fun.

Okay, let’s get it done with the obvious one – This WAD looks great. And it’s even more incredible that it was done without features from any source ports; it is all vanilla stuff. Sure, the doors opening sideways is just a trick and not real; yes, some of the elements are in the ground before popping out; And, of course, boxes held by a crane arm are just standing on invisible platforms; but if back in 2005 you showed this WAD to someone, and told them it doesn’t require a limit-removing source port, they wouldn’t believe you; I guarantee that.

There is also some new music... which is just stuff from Doom I...

Oh well. It’s still better than stocks from Doom II.

There are also new sound effects, and they are meh at best. It kind of repeats the problem I had with Espi’s previous WAD that I reviewed. I can’t remember how these new effects sounded in Ruma but I don’t think they were better here. Bullet-shooting sounds really off, explosions feel like they were cut short before they ended, and then there is Super Shotgun blast, which sounds now like some kind of slapping mixed with another gun sound. I don’t know where this sound effect comes from but I know one bloody thing for sure; IT DOESN’T FIT WITH THE SUPER SHOTGUN HERE!

But okay, sound effects aren’t worth our time. How about the levels themselves. Are they fun to play?

Not really.

gasps

It actually feels tiring to play all four maps to some degree. And it’s all because of their mangled mazes.

Now I know that the Classic Doom maps usually have a maze-like structure, but here it feels like most of the locations are mazes built out of tight corridors. You will constantly get lost even if you technically know where to go and what to do next.

What’s worse is how the equal amount of time you are forced to backtrack from part of the map to another after using a switch to open one, stinky door; especially when it’s right next to you. And there are barely any shortcuts unlocked; neither after doing what I just said, nor the ones that would lead you back to the previous areas.

While you usually get a shortcut when you grab a key and you can finally use the colored door back to the previous area, in the rest of the cases, almost every time you might as well earn a middle finger that will dangle over your head while going back through the same, tight corridor mazes that you have just suffered through before.

sigh

At least you start the next level where the last one ended. That’s always a plus for me.

Surprisingly, Suspended in Dusk isn’t really that challenging. Even before you get the Super Shotgun after getting the blue key in the third map. It tends to get really cheap though with its difficulty, with how many times it throws hitscanners above or below your position; especially in the second half of the WAD.

Now let me tell you something, folks – even if I think the third map might be overblown and the biggest chore to play when it comes to this WAD, it has a funny moment at the beginning where you damage a bunch of cacos with exploding barrels that you just teleported to give yourself some bigger chances to kill them (especially if you are Pistol-starting).

Not to mention the teleporters encounter after grabbing the blue key on the same map.

Also, at the hub area in MAP04, there will be two Arch-viles teleporting out of pentagrams that pop out of the ground. It’s literally straight out of Doom 3. And it’s great.

This WAD might look great even by today's standards (which I know shit of by this point in time), but the bugs show how the time partially tarnished it with how some of the stuff used for tricks are now exposed due to the newer source port I used with this WAD.

Suspended in Dusk look amazing, there is no denying of that, but it all comes with the cost of fun factor getting hit by the geometry of the maps alongside other questionable decisions. I wouldn’t call this WAD outright terrible, it is far from it, but I don’t think I would like to play it again in the nearest future.

Thankfully, the next WAD on the list is also the one that was the winner of the Mockaward of the 2005. So let’s hope it will lighten my mood after this WAD.

I’ll see you then.

Bye.

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2004): Phobos Revisited

We previously met Rex Claussen back in May of the last year (as of writing this) when I took a look at his Star Wars total conversion The Darkest Hour. It was one of the more polarizing WADs I’ve played due to how much of a mixed bag it was. Have a link to that review if you are interested: ==>

Today’s WAD of his is, however, anything but a total conversion. In fact, it doesn’t require any source port to be played with.

G7: Phobos Revisited

Main author(s): Rex Claussen

Release date: September 9th, 2004 (original version)/ September 13th, 2004 (modified version)

Version played: Modified (I guess)

Required port compatibility: Vanilla

Levels: 9 (classic episode standard)

If you didn’t notice the purpose of this WAD by its name by this point, Phobos Revisited is another episode 1 replacement that tries to replicate the magic of the original episode with its more.. unique spin for lack of better words. However, unlike, for instance, Phobos WAD from 1998 which tries to look more realistic, this WAD prefers to be closer to the original aesthetics of Knee-Deep in the Dead, to the point of (at least partially) replicating the geometry and pathing of the original levels.

Did it succeed after almost two years of development? Well, let’s find out.

Visually this WAD does a good job. While it is simplistic and abstract, it fulfills the purpose of being a homage to Knee-Deep in the Dead. Many times I felt like I was playing the original Doom I. It’s that similar. It even has more details due to the standards from the time it was released.

Unpredictably, playing this episode replacement is basically the same as the original one. I’m not complaining about it, I’m just stating the obvious.

But truth be said, it’s not one-to-one recreation of the OG levels’ progress. Many times it subverts and/or extends how you progress. Phobos Revisited even utilizes locations that were originally exclusive for secrets. That’s kind of awesome.

As for the other interesting stuff, the PR version of Central Processing has a set of barrels where, if you blow up the leftmost one while looking at them, you will push the Voodoo Doll unto Megaarmor and Soulsphere. Sure, you will get hurt, but it will mean nothing due to the items I’ve just mentioned.

There is even a funny moment at the very end of the WAD, where you can choose the teleporter to one of the three death zones. These zones differentiate with what demons blow you up.

Phobos Revisited is really easy. Sure, it is harder compared to the original episode, and there are at least two moments where you end up surrounded by enemies unlike in KDITD, but for an experienced player that finished some of the harder WADs released between 1994 and 2003, it will be nothing more but walking through butter.

It kind of gets harder in E1M9 and E1M8 but, as I said earlier, it’s still an easy WAD.

Phobos Revisited is a rather enjoyable trip to the past for people who want to play the first episode again but done differently and modernized (by 2004 standards) and even for people who want to enjoy some good Doom I WAD that doesn’t waste their time (like me).

Next time we will be taking a look at...

at...

You look at the next WAD on your list.

Uhm... Guys?

Is it me or does this WAD look especially demonic?

Hell Revealed II WAD:

0_O

I’m doomed...

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2004): Grove

After his 2001 WAD, Equinox (link to my review: ==>), we welcome once again an alien in disguise known as B.P.R.D. This time, we will be taking a look at one of the two WAD projects that were connected with him. And we are going straight through the rabbit hole with this one.

G4: Grove

Main author(s): B.P.R.D

Release date: January 26th, 2004 (original release)/February 26th, 2004 (database upload)

Version played: Original version

Required port compatibility: ZDoom (and probably any port that is not Boom)

Levels: 1 (MAP01 replacement)

Like in my Equinox review, I played this map before, primarily due to Dean of Doom spoiler tagging it. And let me tell you something: there was a reason why he did that.

Grove is... unique. It is some of the most intriguing Doom maps I’ve played in the past (at least by 2004 standards). Almost everything in this map feels so bizarre that you feel like there needs to be a sequel just to increase the lore or whatever there is in the map’s world.

Now, let’s dive into this map further to see what secrets it hides.

Don’t we all hate Chaingunners? Not only do they tend to ruin your fun by being the most obnoxious hitscanners in Classic Doom but turns out they can also steal your crops. The latter thing happened to our hero of this map: Being sick of some Hoovy (here called Smugla) stealing his mushrooms, he grabbed a gun and went after the Fatass through the hole he came out. After climbing out of the tunnel Smugla made from another side, he ended up in some inhuman place near the robber’s house, surrounded by forest. Our hero finds a map with an X in its upper-left corner. Thinking that this is where more mushrooms are (after taking what was near the Hoovy’s house) he decides to go there.

This map looks... fooking hell, it’s something incredible. Sure, it’s mostly just a shit ton of forest around you, but the atmosphere of this map and the mystery of its world is what makes it great. Once again, B.P.R.D’s unorthodox thinking and planning are shown in his body of work at his best.

And Grove’s music track makes it even better.

It’s something really alien in it but also calming at the same time. I know, I’m not saying much but, words can only barely describe what happens on this map.

Your task on this map is rather simple: collect three skulls and put them on three pedestals with hands to exit the map. Typical stuff for a Doom map but getting each skull is where it gets interesting:

Blue skull is inside the tomb, where the ruins are. To access it, you must travel to the hidden stone circle (by the teleporter hidden in the woods where the map shows) and press the skull switch to unlock the tomb.

Red skull is in the cemetery but the entrance to it is barricaded. There is another passage through the cave, however. Don’t forget to press a hidden switch on one of the steps to come out the other side.

Yellow skull is inside the Smugla’s vault. You can open it with one of the switches in Grove Central. And the skull is actually a decaying head of a bisected Arch-vile.

But the way of getting the skulls is not the only interesting thing in Grove. The map that you will find doesn’t show the topography of the level. It’s more like a treasure map, showing you only clues about what is where.

You might also notice some 45 degrees turned squares on a map. These are actually secrets. There are five of these, and by finding all of them you can gain access to the super secret. I won’t tell you what the secret is. I will only say that you can get a Plasma Gun with a shit-ton of ammo to help you.

As I mentioned earlier, Grove mostly takes place in the forest, surrounding you from everywhere. And while it’s not a problem, it becomes one when you have to move between the trees to get to important places and/or secrets. It gets especially annoying when you try to find a small, stone circle, where you will be moving from one end of that part of the forest to another just to accidentally step on it. I can promise you that it might take you a few minutes at best at your blind walkthrough when you finally find it. And I’m not even talking about getting out of the forest.

Also, let me tell you that this map tends to look really dark in some of the sector light modes. You won’t be able to see almost anything. If you have trouble with that, you can set it on Legacy or something else that can give you some brighter lighting.

Now, before I’ll move on, let me tell you something. If you get stuck at the beginning of the map, take a look at one of the bookcases inside the house.

Grove can get challenging sometimes despite having only 57 enemies on HMP. The first good idea is to get the Super Shotgun from the well before getting even close to one of the points with the exclamation mark shown on the map (remember to drain the water near hands first).

The main reason why this map is difficult is due to the severely limited ammo. Unless you know where the secrets are, you will not have ammo to deal with the final army of hell Nobles at the very end of the map, nor with Smugla himself.

Yes, Smugla appears as an enemy. Thankfully, or rather unthankfully, he is nothing more but a reskin of Spider Demon. If you brought Plasma Gun from the Super Secret with you, he will go down easily.

I’ve encountered some bugs while playing Grove. The most noticeable one was with the secret that has a big mushroom. For some reason, the area that covers its surrounding with shadows has a ceiling with a floor texture on it... WHAT?!

I have no explanation for this. Maybe it’s related to the newer versions of ZDoom/GZDoom.

Also, I noticed a small square of void near the generator behind Smugla’s house.

There is more of this stuff written in the text file. I think there was a bigger chance for those to appear in the past than now since I didn’t encounter any of these.

Grove may not be a masterpiece (trees are the main con) but I think it’s still awesome. It’s something that feels like it shouldn’t work and yet everything clicks in the right place. This map is one of the two reasons why B.P.R.D got named the Mapper of the Year in Cacowards 2004. And he made this map in almost two weeks! This is insane!

And also, if you want more, here’s Dean of Doom part where he talks about this map (part starts at 17:12):

I hope my experience with Grove won’t ruin my time with the next map on the 2004 roster.

See you next time.

Bye!

...

WARNING

SPOILERS OF THE SUPER SECRET BEHIND THE WALL

Huh... I always wondered if an author of Grove is an alien.