#doom wad

Let’s see if this episode is less confusing than the last one.

EPISODE 3

This episode might be the best-looking one. It’s still similar to the previous episodes, but there is something in the outdoor areas that might make you stop for a moment, especially Lake of Fire.

I’m not gonna really talk about the music here since it’s just three new tracks. I’ll only add that they are good.

I think the maps in this episode were easier to understand than the ones in E2. Finding the secret exit was much easier, and it was by accident. I also like how the episode doesn’t completely replicate some of the more annoying stuff from the original Inferno, like Unholy Temple or Limbo.

This episode is where the WAD starts to get kind of challenging, although for me, it was still nothing compared to some of the other WADs, even the non-slaughter ones. The fight with the spiderbitch was at least better than in Dis.

No talking about bugs because I didn’t encounter them. Take a look at the Doomwiki for it.

That’s all for this episode. It’s a good E3 replacement that removes some of the annoyances of the original episode.

As for the entire WAD, I would say it’s good as well. Like I just said, some of the annoyances of the original game are removed, and while sometimes the WAD adds its own (especially in E2), there is more of the former than the latter. It’s even more impressive that this WAD is a Doom I WAD. A community project nonetheless! For those reasons, it deserves bigger recognition for not making me want to sleep. It doesn’t feel bloated. Worth checking out.

Oh boy… It’s gonna be one of these…

G4: 5till L1 Complex

Main author(s): Lainos

Release date: July 21st, 2012

Version(s) played: 1.4

Required port compatibility: limit-removing

Levels: 1 (MAP01 replacement)

Today, we will be tackling another realistic city map, although in this case, it’s much more a bunch of smaller towns with a nearby futuristic colony rather than a real-life metropolis translated into a Doom WAD – 5till L1 Complex, created by Lainos. I remember playing one of his maps in the past – Comatose, which basically felt like this map, but bigger, more apocalyptic, and struggling on GZDoom. Let’s see if this map works better on UZDoom than its successor.

The map looks great. A lot of details and that other Doom-cute shit. It definitely gives me the post-apo vibes, even though it feels like half of the map looks habitable. Then again, there are two abandoned towns to the south and east of the colony, so what do I know.

The music is from an anime series called Angel Beats, and it’s fine. It fits well for the map, but I don’t think it’s my cup of tea.

Almost all the weapons have new sprites (the fist, meanwhile, is just mirrored). I don’t mind them; these are fine as well, except for the BFG replacement, which looks really bizarre.

Surprisingly, the map doesn’t feel complicated: Just go south to find the red key (by jumping from building to building), enter the so-called Phoenix colony, go east past it through the walls and find the yellow key near the shore, then find the hidden switch that will raise a structure to the blue key. From there, just go straight west in the maze. The map will only feel like it’s dragging since you are looking for ammo/weapons and enemies to kill.

Climbing on earth or rocks tends to get really annoying, since you have to find that one spec of dirt to climb on, and it’s usually in one place only, forcing you to go from one end of the moat to another.

There are invisible walls here and there, and while these are also annoying, they’re not as much as climbing, since there are less of them than the latter. Besides, at least they prevent you from soft-locking yourself.

Fighting on this map felt annoying (which is probably how I feel with most of these maps); it wasn’t hard, but the amount of enemies spread across vast areas started to piss me off by the time I entered the colony. Not to mention how you start out ammo-starved, forcing you to finish off pinkies and imps with a fist or a peashooter, respectively. May God guide those who decide to UV-MAX this map.

While playing the map, I managed to find one stuck imp and a couple of buildings/structures disappearing when you are placed in front of some of the shorter ones.

Stability-wise, I only had a very short freezing when it comes to loading the map.

And that’s all for 5till L1 Complex. Like every realistic/city map, it looked great, felt kind of overbloated, and killing enemies will make you want to rip the remains of your receding hairline. But not gonna lie, out of many maps such as this, I think this might be the least painful. I can’t exactly pinpoint where and why I think like that.

Anyway, we only have the third episode of DtWiD before finally saying goodbye to that WAD.

DTWID EPISODE 2

I have nothing to say here, so let’s just get to the review.

The second episode looks similar to the previous one, AKA abstract and simplistic, but with the coat of Shores of Hell (a mix of tech and hell architecture). Like with E1, my opinion is that I’m fine with this case.

Still liked the optional soundtrack, and still not sure which one of the new tracks is the best here.

The maps themselves felt more complicated than the ones from E1; they felt more mangled, and I ended up stuck more times than previously (usually by my fault).

Ore Processing felt like half of it was unnecessarily dark.

In Vault, there is a time-wasting opening of the titular area before fighting the siege cow.

Not to mention how some of the areas in other maps will suck your health dry with toxic slime and boiling blood if you don’t know where to go and what to do next.

Like the original Shores of Hell, this episode is noticeably harder than its predecessor, but still easy. If you know where the secrets are, you will have enough rockets and plasma to deal with barons and some of the cacos (when there is more than one); just don’t overuse these on the cannon fodder and pinkies.

I didn’t notice any bugs while playing the episode, but I think there was one with the optional soundtrack, where the track for E2M9 isn’t replaced.

That’s all I have to say about episode 2. Has problems and is more polarizing, but I had more fun playing it than the previous episode. It looks like it removed some of the more annoying quirks of the original episode, which I’m glad for (at the cost of new annoyances, but still).

Before tackling the final episode, there is another one-map WAD to check out from the 2012 roster. It doesn’t seem to require (U)ZDoom, so it might be easier to check secrets and get screenshots.

G3: Putrefier

Main author(s): Edward Cripps (Ed)

Release date: October 25th, 2012 (database)

Version(s) played: ???

Required port compatibility: GZDoom

Levels: 1 (MAP01 replacement)

Once again, we are playing a map made by Ed Cripps. I played his previous maps AKA Sin City 1 and Valhalla, and, from what I can remember, I liked them in spite of being flawed.

While this map doesn’t have a plot, I think it takes place in the same timeline as Valhalla since there are at least two computer panels name-dropping that map.

Let’s see if it’s less polarizing than Ed’s previous maps.

Putrefier looks great. The visuals might be the best part of the map. While it mostly tends to get samey indoors, it gets jaw-dropping when you look at the buildings from windows and while outdoors.

That and also some 3D models here and there, usually involving demonic growth.

I’m not fond of the music here. It’s Zombi 2’s theme cover that, while not bad, feels overly dramatic for a Doom map. I feel like a MIDIfied ending music in Blade Runner would fit better, now that I think about it. Or maybe if the track was just MIDIfied.

The map also has new sound effects; these were fine. Some stuff typical for a (G)ZDoom WAD like from Quake 2, and some other stuff that didn’t bother me. I have nothing else to add.

Putrefier is kind of annoying to play, since you have to guess which switch does what where while also forcing you to travel from one end of an available part of the map to another. It gets repetitive and mind-numbing after a while, and the aforementioned similar locations don’t help.

The map wasn’t really that hard. I don’t remember how hard Valhalla was, but I do know that this map has more random mosh pits attacking you. At least you don’t have to wait for half a map for armor this time.

I liked the moment where a swarm of Pinkies was coming from the boss area; it was still easy, though (not that I’m complaining).

Also, there was only one stealth shitling. I thought there would be more of this crap, but thankfully, it didn’t happen (at least on HMP).

There are two new enemies. One is called Pustule, which is a red Spawn from Quake I but made out of demonic biomass and much easier; this one at least doesn’t act like a jumping jelly bean on crack.

The other one is called Valhalla (yes, the same name as the 2010 map), a corrupted power core (I guess) that shoots barrages of powerful projectiles and periodically summons more Pustules for distraction.

Also, I might add that the map slightly chokes up when loading.

I think I would put Putrefier on the same level as Valhalla, AKA good but flawed. It’s not overwhelmed with GZDoom features, it looks great, and it could’ve had better gameplay. So, yeah, you can give it a chance.

Artfight attack on @arborix

G1: Doom the Way id Did

Main author(s): various (project led by Jason Root (Hellbent))

Release date: December 11th,2011 (original release)/February 24th, 2012 (1.1a)

Version(s) played: 1.1a

Required port compatibility: vanilla

Levels: 27 maps (three episodes; all in standard format)

Well, would you look at that? Another WAD that replicates the original game while adding its own spin. That’s an interesting choice for the first Cacoward winner.

But anyway, what is Doom the Way id Did? Well, it’s the first installment of The Way id Did series, made out of four main WADs, three spin-offs, and a MIDI pack. Its development cycle lasted around 42 months (16 if you only count the final incarnation) and was finally released in December 2011, with version 1.1a released in February, 2012.

The concept of this community project was to replicate the style of the original game’s map makers, AKA John Romero and Sandy Petersen (and probably Tom Hall as well).

Did this CP succeed? I don’t know. I’m checking it on its own cords, but I might throw a line or two about the similarity between it and the original Doom here and there.

And, just like with every WAD with episodes, I’m splitting the review into three parts (don’t expect me to do all episodes in a row).

EPISODE 1

The first episode looks like KDitD, AKA bizarre and simple tech base, which isn’t really surprising since the maps try to replicate the vibes of the original game, not to mention being made with vanilla restrictions.

But, yeah, I guess this WAD does its job well here. I wish I could say more, but this post would turn into a school essay. Besides, I feel like it will be the same thing with the other two episodes.

Music-wise, while there are stocks (which is probably one of the rare occasions that these are tolerated in WADs), you can also play the WAD with the custom music made by Mr. Freeze. And it’s good to listen to, although I’m not sure which track is the best in E1 (maybe the one in Military Bunker).

Fun fact: the optional soundtrack would later be used in Base Ganymede (specifically when its final episode was released in 2012).

DtWiD’s first episode was rather easy to play through. I don’t remember getting stuck, but I wasn’t fond of Reactor Complex forcing you to backtrack a long distance after grabbing the blue and yellow keys.

Bizarro KDitD is rather easy, although it has some bullshit encounters sprinkled here and there. I think it’s tougher than the original episode but, frankly, I think even the easiest WAD out there is harder than Knee-Deep in the Dead.

There are some bugs here and there, described on the Doomwiki. From my personal experience, I think I found one of the slime pools not damaging me.

That’s all I have to say for the first episode of Doom the Way id Did. For another E1 homage, it does a good job. It’s even more impressive that it is a community project that didn’t completely feel boring.