m39

[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.

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2009 #2009 #killing adventure #doom killing adventure #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #mockaward

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2009): Introduction

...

Half-Life can wait. I miss Doom already.

click

Ladies. Gentlemen and Others, welcome, to the Doom WADs’ Roulette, where I review the best WADs according to Doomworld’s Top 100 WADs of All Times and (now) Cacowards. Today, we are starting to check out the “Cacowards” BEEP “2009” BEEP roster. Here are the rules:

#1 We are playing on GZDoom (ver. 4.11.3).

#2 We are playing on Hurt Me Plenty.

#3 Vertical aiming is on.

#4 No infinitely tall monsters.

#5 The WAD will be downloaded from the archives unless it’s not there among other reasons.

#6 We are playing WADs shown on a current roster from top to bottom split into three leagues (top 10, runners-up and honorable mentions, and other WADs).

#7 Lighting is set on modified Classic along with modified fog effect.

#8 Deathmatch WADs and the winners of the Worst WAD award do not count.

click

Welcome to the end of the beginning... of the third millennium that is. The year is 2009; Usain Bolt sets a new world record in three running competitions, Facebook ends up with over 350 million users (it also adds a like button) among a billion people using the Internet, Michael Jackson passes away, and, unfortunately, the year 2009 is also a year where the word was introduced to the webcomic knows as Homestuck. It would later become a plague for people who read it (including me), to the point of having one of the Zodiac signs branded into their brains.

In the video games department, 2009 has many sequels that can be considered GOATs, such as Assassin’s Creed II, Modern Warfare 2, and Left 4 Dead 2.

As for the Doom franchise, id Software, the company that started it all, is purchased by Zenimax, the company that owns Bethesda. Not to mention the second Doom 3 novel being released along with Ultimate Doom on iOS.

Cacowards 2009 was once again written by Scuba Steve, along with Patrick Pineda (Metacorp) (returning from Cacowards 2008), Ryan Nematollahi (hobbs), and Sarah Mancuso (esselfortium) contributing to the ceremony. It introduced the section I’m bored, where you would have to create a map before New Year’s Eve based on the idea from the random idea generator. It also swapped Action Doom with its prequel in the Did You Know anniversary side section.

When it comes to that year’s roster, I have to say, that I won’t be ableto review at least one or two WADs. I am 100% sure, that I won’t be tackling Ghouls vs Humans, due to it being a multiplayer WAD, and I wouldn’t care more for these WADs. The other WAD I am not sure if I’ll be able to review is Tribute – a Skulltag-exclusive, singleplayer WAD. I tried to play it on Zandronum, Skulltag’s successor, but it had missing textures and broken scripts.

And Skulltag, from what I’ve seen, is kind of an ancient source port at this point (no mouselook that I am used to, not to mention being unable to use mouse in a menu, arrow keys used in movement as a default option and much less player-friendly options changing), so if I’ll come out of my comfort zone and play that WAD with clenched teeth, I’ll do it based only on my blind playthrough without any screenshots.

Now with that out of the way, let’s take a look at the first WAD on the list.

You check the roster.

-_-

Oh, great… another Mockaward winner.

Let’s hope I’ll be able to finish it, unlike the previous winner.

#doom #doom wad #introduction #doom mod #doom 2009 #2009 #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette: Revenant Awards 2008

You look out of the bunker. You see nobody.

Okay, I think they are gone now. I’m back on the surface.

THE IRON KUNG FU DOOM GUY – REVENANT AWARDS 2008 EDITION

Well, folks... We did it. 15 years of the best Doom WADs (according to Doomworld and not even all of them) reviewed. It is another big milestone, yes, but only one WAD will win one of the awards, and in this ceremony, we will be choosing four winners (not counting the ones by default).

Okay, enough of the pretentious rambling. Let’s start with the first category.

SOLE SURVIVOR – BEST ONE-MAP WAD OF THE YEAR

In this case, we have a surprise. The winner is the underdog – Escape from Castle Chezcrea. I do realize that XXXI CyberSky is a better map in almost every department, but unfortunately, that map is also a slaughter-type one, and I’m not really fond of these. At least Chezcrea is more accessible.

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

Here, though, Eternal and his WAD, Gravity, easily win. Thunderpeak has its moments, yes, and gameplay-wise is more interesting to play, but, like many other ZDoom before it, it tends to have annoying and unnecessary moments that feel questionable at best. Not to mention Gravity looking much more pleasant and original compared to the other WAD.

PLATINUM REVENANT – BEST 10-19 MAPS LONG WAD/MEGAWAD OF THE YEAR

Another category, another slam-dunk by Eternal, this time with Remain 3. It feels like a reverse situation with Sole Survivor, where one of the two WADs (in this case Deus Vult II) is better than the other one in many departments but I still prefer the other WAD because it’s not a slaughter map/WAD. In that category, Eternal’s WAD lost; in this, however, his WAD won. Even when most of the non-slaughter maps from DVII are better than in Remain 3, I would still rather play the latter.

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

I thought it would be harder to choose the winner here, but it wasn’t that hard. Of course, I removed Eternal Doom IV and BGPA from the equation because these are just more of the stuff that I hate in their predecessors. Meanwhile, Community is Falling 3 and Cold as Hell: Special Edition might be technical marvels at the time they were originally released, but the former’s almost entirely juvenile humor and the gameplay becoming more and more annoying as you progress, and the latter’s questionable decisions with some new mechanics and changes in gameplay, soured my enthusiasm for these WADs (but at least I managed to finish Cold as Hell compared to Community 3).

And so were are now with two golden eggs – Urban Brawl and Chex Quest 3 (or Chex Quest Trilogy as I like to call the latter). One is the FPP Beat ’em Up that came out of nowhere and became an instant classic that I am appreciating more and more with each passing day; the other is basically Doom for children that even adults can enjoy.

But there is one thing in Chex Quest Trilogythat makes it better by an inch– expectations. Urban Brawl is the prequel to Action Doom, an already fun homage to Contra and similar games, so people thought they would get a fun game too after playing the previous one (and they got); Chex Quest’s concept sounds like a perfect recipe for disaster and people were expecting flop before ending up surprised that it was a high-tier quality product. That’s what makes CQ3 the winner in this category.

But you know what? There is still a part of me that badly wants to play Urban Brawl again. Even if it’s not a winner of this category, I’ll still play this when the Decade of DOOMstruction returns as an honorable mention. I seriously need to try it again to see if I’m not losing my marbles.

OTHER AWARDS

And now for the WADs that won by default. Starting with Golden Spider (best episode replacement) and its winner, Back to Basics...

sigh

This WAD is lucky there wasn’t any other episode replacement, let alone the vanilla one.

But let’s not forget about Diaz: Last Hours of Purity. I didn’t like it that much, but it still deserves an award for being a gameplay mod for Doom. And so, I’ve come up with an award for it (and the future gameplay mods as well) – Tei Tenga’s Arsenal award for the best Doom gameplay mod of the year.

cricket noises

What? I couldn’t think of a better name.

CONCLUSION

And that’s all for the 2008 roster of Doom WADs. At this point of writing, I have reached the half point in Doomworld’s yearly lists of the best WADs. And that’s in almost four years since I started reviewing these things, with shorter or longer breaks.

Speaking of breaks, I need to finally finish both the original Half-Life and its Source remake Black Mesa. It might take me less than a week; it might take more than that. It will depend on how many WADs from the next year will check out. Either way, after one day of finishing both of these, I’ll start properly looking at the 2009 WADs.

Thank you all for reading my life-coping slop. I’ll see you next time.

Bye.

#doom #doom wad #award ceremony #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 1 #doom 2008 #2008 #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards

[m39]

My thoughts on BGPA

Hello.

I am speaking from a bunker because it's 4/13. And we all know we cannot stay on the surface when that day happens.

Anyway, I tried to take a look at BGPA Missions: Liberation, the spiritual successor to Operation Overlord created by the same guy.

And, well, it ended basically the same way as the previous WAD, with me not being able to pass the first area (or in the case of this WAD, the first map) because Uber Hoovy shredded all of my health immediately after I pulled out my foot from my cover... Every single time...

I should be surprised, but then again, it was once again created for a particular crowd of people; in this case LAAGers.

I wished to say more about this WAD but my adventure was so small I don't think it's worth talking about, plus I don't want to waste any more of my time.

So... that's it. Taking care of Revenant Awards 2008 now.

I'll see you then.

Keep your heads low today while you can.

#doom #rambling #BGPA Missions: Liberation #doom wads’ roulette

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Cold as Hell

I don’t know how to start this review properly. So I’ll just say that this one will be one of the unorthodox ones where it’s based on just one playthrough (blind one I will add) and without screenshots.

Got it?  Good! Let’s finish up the 2008 roster of WADs.

G10: Cold as Hell

Main author(s): Jonaya Riley

Release date: November 2004 (original version)/November 21st, 2008 (Special Edition)

Version(s) played: Special Edition

Required port compatibility: ZDoom/GZDoom (depending on version)

Levels: 16 (intro map + 15 regular maps)

Cold as Hell is a total conversion WAD created in 2004. Now you might be thinking how this WAD got Cacoward in 2008 when it was released four years before that.

As I said, this WAD was released in November 2004 (development started in early 2004). From what I’ve gathered, people liked this WAD, but it had problems with stability and bugs alongside other controversial features in its gameplay. The 2008 version is supposed to have much fewer bugs (those that happened were patched out) and controversial stuff being toned down.

The WADs plot focuses on the alternative 1950s in the fictional US base in Greenland, where our protagonist, Henry Mills, the veteran of WWII and the Korean War, is sent there. This base is supposed to be his final post before retirement, but let’s get real people. Before retirement almost always means shit about to happen/is happening.

I played this WAD in the Action mode (or as the WAD calls it – Combat Style); these modes affect the mechanics that I will talk about later.

Now let’s see what the freezing hell known as Greenland has to offer.

Do you like snow and military/research buildings full of brown and grey? Well good! Because Cold as Hell will offer you that. I’m not saying this WAD looks bad, far from it, but I feel like it’s somewhere in between being diversive and bland.

Like, yes, the maps don’t feel entirely repetitive and each has at least one great-looking area (the final map or two especially tend to go nuts), but at the same time, after reaching the second chapter, I started to feel like a mouse going in circles in a maze looking for cheese in the endless parade of snow upon snow outdoors and grey/brown corridors/rooms/bathrooms indoors.

I don’t have anything bad to say about the music. I might be too used to action-filled tracks instead of the ones in this WAD, but at least I understand that these tracks fit in a snow base overrun by demons while you are playing as an average soldier doe instead of badassery incarnate Doomguy.

Cold as Hell is more unlinear than a typical WAD. You have a set of objectives and you can basically do them in any order. Sometimes you might complete the objective by accident or replace one with another when the plot moves forward. Personally, while I didn’t mind most of them, I feel like there were at least one or two objectives that were annoying and made me run around the part of the base like a maniac trying to find a key or any other important item.

Oh, and by the way, the keys are now brass, silver, and/or steel; they are smaller and their colors make them harder to notice. You might run into one of these by accident.

The WAD is based on a hub system. Once you reach the second chapter, you can choose which part of the base to tackle first. If you don’t know where to go, take a look at the objectives; they show you where to do the task.

Like games that popularized this trend, this WAD has notes and audiologs scattered throughout the levels. While they mostly focus on the lore, some of them have helpful information for your objectives so it’s worth taking a look at them.

Cold as Hell also introduces the bleeding mechanic, where you have a chance to start doing it after getting hit by an enemy (no matter if it’s a scratch or a fireball). In case that happens, you can use a bandage that you can find lots of it around the base. Since I played on the Action mode, the bleeding rarely happened and I was walking with a full stock of 30 bandages in my pocket for at least half of the WAD.

One of the bigger cons of this WAD is that you move slower than the original Doomguy. At best you might be running slightly faster than walking in the original games. As if that’s not bad enough, you get even slower when you are low on health. Good luck trying to dodge fireballs while you are moving as slow as molasses.

Would I call Cold as Hell hard? Yes. Is it hard for the good reasons? Not really. As I mentioned above, because you move slower than usual in WADs, it’s harder to dodge enemy projectiles, not to mention the additional, new projectile sprites that are harder to read and the fact that you might end up screwed when you end up without ammo in the magazine and you end up reloading your gun (it’s automatic in Action).

Also, yes, there is a reloading mechanic. And honestly, I think I experienced worse stuff in other WADs with this but I don’t know.

And by the way, I don’t think there is even a singular piece of armor in this WAD.

But at least you don’t fight the hitscanners and there are moments where fellow soldiers help you.

Changing the subject, Cold as Hell adds some new enemies, most notably the previously mentioned new hell noble and two imps, along with some of the original monsters acting differently (with Pain Elementals now acting closer to Cacos).

The worst new enemy to fight were grey, melee imps, who acted like a kid on a sugar rush, jumping all around and making you waste half of your ammo in a clip most of the time before actually hitting them, and what feels like ripping your balls off by simple touching them; the windup is that small.

But at least the new weapons sound good. And they function rather well overall, with most of these acting like original guns with some stuff changes to be more akin to the post-WWII weapons plus the flamethrower and Garand that can be upgraded to rapid-firing bullets.

Now I know about the glitches and stability issues that haunted the original version of this WAD. All I can say is that I didn’t experience something like that while playing the special version. It seems to be bug-free.

Cold as Hell is a mixed bag for me. I like some of the WAD’s ideas like the overall location and weapons, but I feel like for every good idea there’s also a bad one (that and unfunny combat most of the time). It might be great from a technical point for the 2004/2008 standards, but overall, this WAD is not for my tastes.

And that’s all when it comes to the 2008 roster of WADs. Well... almost all. I still have to check if BGPA is as bad to play as Operation Overlord. I’ll try to play one to two maps in that WAD and just speak my short thoughts on it. I won’t be doing a review on it. After that, I’ll start making Revenant Awards 2008.

See you all next time.

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2008 #2008 #cold as hell #doom cold as hell #cold as hell WAD #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #top ten wads of the year

[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.

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2008 #2008 #Escape from Castle Chezcrea #doom Escape from Castle Chezcrea #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #top ten wads of the year

[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.

#doom #chex quest #review #chex quest 3 #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #2008 #top ten wads of the year

[m39]

Beyond the WADs’ Roulette - Part 10: Chex Quest 2

#10: Chex Quest 2

Main author(s): Digital Café

Release date: 1997

Version(s) played: CQ3 1.4

Required port compatibility: Vanilla (original version)

Levels: 5 (E1M1-M5 in the original version, E2M1-M5 in Chex Quest 3)

After the success of the original Chex Quest, it was rather inevitable for Chex Quest 2 to happen. Released around a year later, in 1997, and requiring the original game to launch, this add-on continues the adventures of Chex Warrior, with five new maps and (technically) new enemies.

Right after the events of the first game, Chex Warrior returns to his home planet. And although Bazoik is now safe from Flemoids, the same could not be said about the Chex City. I believe you can guess what happens next.

Just like the first part of the Chex Quest trilogy, this game was played on the unofficial GZDoom version of Chex Quest 3 which has all of the previous games along with the new episode.

With that out of the way, let’s take care of the remaining slime filth.

Somehow, despite being rushed, Chex Quest 2 looks better than its predecessor. There is a bigger variety of locations rather than just different parts of the facility next to mines and mines themselves. It kind of feels like people could live here, with a diner next to the spaceport, a cinema that plays homages to the black and white movies/cartoons, a museum with skeletons, paintings, and a hedge maze, and there is also even Civvie’s delight - sewers.

Sure the map where you explore the regular buildings and streets looks lackluster but like I said, this game was rushed. If the developers were given a proper time limit, they would’ve come out with something better.

Even the music sounds better. There are fewer parts where it sounds juvenile and cacophonic. My favorite track might be Museum... from the map called Chex Museum... ORIGINAL TITLE PEOPLE!

Map design is somewhere on the level of the first game. It’s still easy to not get lost on these maps, although I feel like it has more annoying moments with excessive backtracking (like going from red key to red door in Sewer System).

It still has some memorable moments like when go through each theatre in the cinema to get behind it and the annoying hedge in Chex Museum (at least you can see it this time).

Chex Quest 2 is noticeably harder than the first game. There are more enemies, more tougher variants, and Flemoids seem to start using cheap tricks to actually slime you. It’s still an easy game, though, where you barely get hit and you can beat it without saving without any problems.

There are new types of Flemoids but none of them feel like a completely new enemy. Quadrumpus Larva and Maximus are just reskins of Armored Bipedicus, Cycloptis, and Flembrane (but at least in Chex Quest 3, the second one has 2/3 of its original health and the latter can now move).

I think Chex Quest 2 is as good as Chex Quest 1, if not slightly better than that game. In spite of being rushed, it looks better and is slightly more fun to play due to enemies slowly starting to be dangerous instead of being walking targets to zorch.

After the second game, there was supposed to be the third Chex Quest. Unfortunately, it didn’t materialize. There were fans who tried to make it a reality, but it all ended up either as abandoned projects or rip-offs of other WADs with a different coat of paint. It looks like the official Chex Quest 3 ceased to exist...

...

OR DID IT?!

thunder

To be continued in Chex Quest 3.

#doom #chex quest #review #chex quest 2 #doom wads’ roulette #Beyond the WADs’ Roulette

[m39]

Beyond the WADs’ Roulette - Part 9: Chex Quest 1

Those alien bastards are gonna pay for ruining my breakfast.

#9: Chex Quest 1

Main author(s): Digital Café

Release date: 1996

Version(s) played: CQ3 1.4

Required port compatibility: vanilla (original version)

Levels: 5 (E1M1-M5)

Chex Quest sounds like something that should’ve been doomed from the start. A game for kids published by a cereal company made on the Doom Engine? That sounds like a stinky bomb set to detonate in the near future and ruin everyone’s day. And yet, to everyone’s surprise, it actually ended up pretty good for baby’s first Doom.

How did this all happen? Well, from what I know, it started with WatersMolitor, a promotion agency hired by the owners of Chex cereals. They wanted to create a game based on this product, to show that these cereals are... kewl... God, I think I will throw up.

So with a budget of around half a million bucks, this game was released for free in around 5.7 million of the Chex boxes, convincing some people to finally buy their slop.

That’s most of the basic info I’ll talk about in this review. Check other sites if you want to know more because I don’t want to waste more time (at least in this section).

As for the plot of this game, it takes place on a mining planet Bazoik. A volcano erupted there, and one (or some) of the chunks that ended up being taken by the squadron of soldiers contained larvae of a slimy creature that would be later known as Flemoid. It started eating the base’s/colony’s food and before everyone noticed, these walking boogers were now everywhere.

Since the regular weapons can’t do shit on these filths, the scientists modified the Intergalactic Federation of Cereals’ (AKA the faction that Bazoik belongs to) weapons, Zorchers, to instead teleport these bastards back to the dimension where they came from.

Since the feds now need someone to get to the mining planet and take care of the problem, one of the walking waffles, Chex Warrior, decides to take the mantle and volunteer.

Now, before we start properly talking about this game, I’ll let you know, that I played on the modified Chex Quest 3, which includes both Chex Quest 1 and 2, along with the third episode. This version was made by Aroenai, who created the icon for CQ3, and it is based on GZDoom (the original version was based on ZDoom).

With all of that out of the way, let’s finally take a look at Chex Quest 1, and see if it’s good.

For starters, Chex Quest looks pleasant for the eyes. It’s colorful and bright. And despite spending most of your time running around the facility near the mines that you visit on the final map, each map offers something different and distingue for lack of better words.

The music was also rather pleasant. It did sometimes sound like a cacophony in some parts but it wasn’t really that annoying (I heard worse tracks). I even like how Caverns sounds darker than the rest of the tracks, signifying the end of the Chex Warrior’s journey.

If you didn’t get it already, Chex Quest is basically Ultimate Doom for babies. It plays exactly like Doom I with a different coat of paint – killing monsters, grabbing items, searching for keys, maze-like maps, etc. Not to mention being simpler than the Doom I maps (at least in my opinion).

While most of the time the maps are pretty much typical stuff that the WAD-making beginners would do at the time, there are three moments that stick out. The first one is in the Storage Facility, where if you grab either a blue or red key, you won’t need the other one since both teleporters behind the colored doors teleport you to the same area with a mandatory switch.

The second interesting moment is in Arboretum, where at the end you encounter a maze between the facility and the entrance to the mines. And to make it actually challenging, the maze doesn’t show up on the map. It’s kind of infuriating, but I suffered through worse cases of maps not showing the areas (anyone who played Earth WAD will know what I mean).

The last moment comes from Caverns of Bazoik. As you walk towards the yellow key, there is a secret room that not only has another yellow key, but also another secret passage that will lead you to the final boss without all of the key hunting.

This game is child’s play, both literally and figuratively. With some amount of vigilance, you will be able to finish Chex Quest 1 without saving or even without getting hit by enemies. I would also say that it’s easier than the first episode of Doom I, but I believe it’s clear enough to notice that from playing the game.

All of Chex Warrior’s arsenal functions the same as Doomguy’s arsenal. It’s not really worth talking about them anymore aside from the Zorch Propulsor. If you play Chex Quest 3, this Rocket Launcher replacement will not give you a splash damage from the rockets which makes sense since these weapons are supposed to affect Flemoids and not you.

And speaking of Flemoids, as soon as the Federation’s scientists manage to find a way to defeat them, they become a rather easy target for even one dude to get rid of them from Bazoik. It’s probably due to not having any hitscanning attack, but it won’t stop them from covering you in their slime so much that you won’t be able to move.

There are five different enemies (all with names starting with Flemoidus). Commonus, Bipedicus, and Cycloptis are your typical melee, cannon fodder; you might have to try to let them hit you. The armored version of the second enemy is additionally capable of throwing slime from the distance, but it’s still cannon fodder that functions like an Imp.

The last enemy is Flembrane, a living wall of slime (that probably started all of this mess) that you meet at the final level and protects the other Chex people; it’s still a rather easy enemy since it doesn’t move and is basically a Baron reskin.

Honestly, the original Chex Quest game is worth checking out. A game that sounds like a guaranteed catastrophe on paper that ends up much, much better than you think. It is also a perfect introduction to the world of Doom games and WADs for your kids (if you have at least one of course). No matter what version you decide to try, just download it, take a look at it, and decide if it’s worth your time or not.

And while Bazoik is now free from the menace of Flemoids, for the Chex Warrior, it was just the beginning.

To be continued in... Chex Quest 2.

#doom #chex quest #chex quest 1 #review #doom wads’ roulette #Beyond the WADs’ Roulette

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Back to Basics

I don’t think I will ever understand why Espi was so popular. I mean, having the award named after yourself is pretty cool (since he died from cancer before even hitting his thirties), but two of the solo projects I’ve played make me question the quality of his WADs. Ruma was good but it had problems (with Super Slappy and other new sound effects being sub-par as one of these problems). Meanwhile, Suspended in Dusk might look good, but aside from that, it leaves very much to desire in other aspects, along with (in the best case) some of the problems that were haunting Ruma before.

And so, we are here today, to take a look at his last solo project that has been highlighted in Cacowards.

G6: Back to Basics

Main author(s): Esa Repo (Espi)

Release date: December 16th, 2007

Version(s) played: 1.1

Required port compatibility: Vanilla

Levels: 9 (Episode 2 replacement)

Back to Basics, as the name suggests, is an episode 2 replacement that focuses on being an old-school Doom WAD – abstract structure with vanilla compatibility for the lack of better words. With the first half being made out of the old project Espi had getting dust at that moment (with E2M1 dating back to 2001 if you look at its solo release).

I may sound harsh, but it will take a miracle for me to have fun while playing this WAD. After all, it’s on the first Doom, and considering the stuff Espi did that I played, I don’t have high expectations for this WAD.

Without wasting any more time, let’s take a look.

When it comes to vanilla standards, Back to Basics looks rather good. I think there is at least one area per map where it starts looking really great. Unfortunately, I feel like at least half of the content is suffering from the Quake Syndrome, where there are a lot of brown areas/locations. There are great-looking places as I said, like the ones where you have to pass by/through demonic flesh and guts; it’s a shame though that you have to suffer from the aforementioned brownness to get there.

At least there are no annoying new sound effects. That's always something.

Unfortunately it all goes further downhill when you start taking a closer look at maps’ design. I feel like this WAD repeats the mistakes that I mentioned in my Suspended in Dusk review, where the maps feel like overly complicated, mangled mazes that exist only to needlessly add time to your playthroughs.

It even has moments where you are forced to backtrack the large parts of maps just to press a switch/grab the key/go through the freshly open door that is right in front of you. One section of E2M2 where you have to press a switch to get access to the red key will make you go through one, godforsaken location 2-3 times depending on where you end up first just to grab this bloody key.

Even when (sometimes) it looks like you can go through the window that you will clearly fit, well guess what? Fuck you. It is actually an invisible wall.

Also, it might be only me, but I feel like there is at least one moment in at least half of the maps where you have no idea where to go and what to do, and you run around the map like a headless chicken to find that one switch/door to interact with; or at least that’s how it feels on the blind playthrough; other times it was much better.

There are even secrets that I feel like only the master of SR40/SR50 strafe running will get to. You might as well fly/force jump/noclip there if you haven’t lost your plot already.

And by the way, if you think about nuking the shit out of the siege cow at the end of this WAD with your secret BFG, guess what? Fuck you part two. You are forced to Pistol-start E2M8. Why? Because we need some of that additional chore to do. Fun? What’s that?

The only map that I legitimately like is the secret one. It has an interesting way to get to it, and its concept is fun with a bunch of floating islands with castle fortifications each. And it didn’t feel that much of a slog to play through.

Speaking of a slog, however, fighting monsters is one. Do you like shotgunning demons for at least half of the playthrough due to saving more powerful weapons for more than 1-2 Cacos or one Baron? Because Back to Basics will guarantee you that. I can’t even properly think how hard this WAD is; it’s just boredom.

I do realize that the problems with boring fights are more of an overall problem in Doom I WADs (probably because I feel like people make them as if it were for Doom II rather than Doom I), but there were WADs for Doom I that came before this one and there were ones that gave me more fun than BtB. This WAD (and many more in the past/future) would benefit greatly if most of the maps cut the enemies' amount and their size by around half of its current content, but that’s just me.

Back to Basics is only worth downloading for E2M9. Otherwise, it is a waste of time that offers nothing but a nostalgia trip to the first Doom if you are not into this.

You might be thinking that the next WAD to tackle will be BGPA Missions, the sequel/spiritual successor to Operation Overload created by the same dude, but no. After the experience I had with its predecessor, I don’t want to waste my time on BGPA. I might check it after dealing with the last WAD from the 2008 roster, but after the Enema Dude FooF, I am doubtful of that happening.

Instead, we will take a look at something different. But before that, there are previous parts of a certain trilogy to talk about.

Get some cereals people. This is gonna get slimy.

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 1 #doom 2008 #2008 #back to basics #back to basics WAD #doom back to basics #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #top ten wads of the year

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Thunderpeak

You know what? I am canceling my Eternal Dud Vier review. I tried to give it a chance but after only one map full of fighting monsters in darkness, annoying tiny enemies, irritating new sound effects (including Super Slappy from Espi’s other WADs), and of course, weird, cryptic stuff (although not as much as the original ED) among other things, I’ve decided that I’m not going to force myself to play a sequel to something that I didn’t like. I want to have fun and experience unknown WADs, not torture myself.

sigh

Now with that out of the way...

G5: Thunderpeak

Main author(s): Björn Ostmann (Vader)

Release date: June 16th, 2008 (in ZPack)/ August 13th, 2008 (standalone release)

Version(s) played: ???

Required port compatibility: ZDoom

Levels: 2 (originally E1M8 and E1M9)

Here is something interesting – a standalone version of two maps from the community project made by the winner of the Mapper of the Year award in the 2008 Cacowards.

But let’s take a step back for now... what am I talking about? Here is what happened...

On June 16th, 2008, a community project known as ZPack was released (a sort of Community Chest focusing on the ZDoom source port). One of its contributors was Björn Ostmann (one of the main team members behind KDiZD), who made four maps (plus one with Tormentor). Two of these maps (Thunderpeak Powerplant and Termination) ended up as a highlight of that project (at least that’s my guess), so Vader decided to release these maps (with slight tweaks) almost two months later as a singular WAD, simply titled Thunderpeak.

Now with that out of the way, let’s see what people like about these maps.

I like how this WAD looks. It somehow gives me the Simplicity vibes except, you know, not that simple. I really like the bridge in the second map that leads to the boss area (not to mention the buildup to the fight as well). But the first level tends to have some banger-looking locations as well.

I like the music too. The use of Grand Design from Hellcore is always considered a pro for me. This track is a blast. But the two other tracks from Termination (Caverns and Death Wind (which is a remix)) are rather okay.

I wouldn’t call this WAD complicated. There might be some annoying things like the piss-poor vent sections (secret ones or not) and some worthless ZDoom features (I still wonder why some of the sound effects related to these are unbalanced), but it wasn’t that hard to figure out what to do where. Powerplant focuses on restoring the power back in the second half of the titular building, and Termination is basically a boss map with his lackeys between you and him.

These two maps aren’t really hard. They tend to have bullshit moments here and there but overall, I didn’t have much trouble with enemies.

Since this is ZDoom made map, we will of course encounter new enemies. Aside from two Imp variants that I already met in the past (Catharsi and Howlers), there is Cybruiser, a Hell Noble that functions as a weaker Cyberdemon. Get used to him people; he will become a guest enemy in many WADs in the future. There is also a boss of the second map – Terminator; multiple attacks that hit like a truck, and he has a health of a truck; he might be the only enemy that is legitimately hard in this WAD.

I’ve seen only one bug at the end of the first map. I think it looks like some kind of ZDoom script that either wasn’t entirely removed from the ZPack version, or just didn’t work at all.

Despite its problems, Thunderpeak is a rather enjoyable WAD. I can see why many people saw these maps (along with the other two from Vader) as a highlight of ZPack. Worth checking out.

Next WAD on the list is...

-_- Oh great. Another Espi WAD...

Boy! I can’t wait to hear annoying, new sound effects for my weapons again...

...

Shit...

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2008 #2008 #thunderpeak #doom thunderpeak #thunderpeak WAD #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #top ten wads of the year

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Urban Brawl

Here I was, a stupid chubby bastard pretending to narrate like “Max Payne” in a world that looks like Frank Miller’s “Sin City”, sitting on my overpriced gamer chair, thinking if I need one or two playthroughs of “Urban Brawl” for my review...

...

That’s all of the narration you're gonna get.

G3: Action Doom 2: Urban Brawl

Main author(s): Stephen Browning (Scuba Steve)

Release date: September 8th, 2008 (original version/database upload)/September 8th, 2021 (Reloaded version)

Version(s) played: Remaster

Required port compatibility: (G)ZDoom

Levels: 10

Urban Brawl is a prequel to the 2004’s Action Doom, where instead of a first-person Contra homage, it’s a first-person Double Dragon homage. And if you read the intro... Yes... It’s going to be another one of those unorthodox reviews I made... without any screenshots.

scare chord

Changing the subject, let’s talk about this WAD.

The making of Urban Brawl began months after the release of its predecessor. However, instead of taking a route of Action Doom with promotional stuff, contest events, etc. it was created under the nose of the Doom community, and revealed the same day it was released. It can be downloaded like any other WAD (although this is more like a ZDoom-based game than a typical Doom WAD), but in the past, you could buy the special edition for 10 bucks until May 20th, 2010. Aside from having a CD case, the special edition also included the survival mode (with zombies FYI).

The plot of this game (mostly written by Darknation and voice acted by Mike Lightner in cutscenes) takes place a decade before the events of the original Action Doom. You are still playing as the same guy but as a drunk, single father ex-cop (who has PTSD due to an event that he describes as Saigon). One day you return to your home to find out that your child has been kidnapped. I don’t think I have to explain to you what happens next.

Now, before we start, let me tell you that I thought I would play the original version from 2008 since I downloaded the game from the archives thinking it was that version. Turns out it’s a remaster from 2021 which is more compatible with modern source ports and PCs, adds additional moves, and tweaks the visuals among other things.

So, fuck it; sticking with this version; I’m not interested in scouring the Internet for the original version of this game. And besides that, I can immediately scratch remaster from my bonus WADs list.

Now, without wasting any more time, let’s find out if this game is better than its predecessor.

Urban Brawl has a completely different style compared to Action Doom. Gone are the Doom sprites sprinkled with some Contra-looking stuff in between; now everything looks like a comic book. Not gonna lie, I kind of like the direction this game went to. It’s pretty colorful without counting the cutscenes (which are black and white), and most of the sprites look distinct for the lack of better words.

Music was also rather enjoyable to listen to. It was created by Ralph Vickers (Ralphis) who would later co-create Double Impact in 2011. My favorite track might be Pump’d from MAP04.

As I mentioned earlier, this game is more or less an homage to beat 'em-up games. You go around beating people up until you are allowed to go further. No switch hunting, no finding keys, no shitty hitscanners; you just ravage the leaving shit out of your neighborhood to find your kidnapped child. You don’t really need anything deeper than that.

...

Okay, there is some deepness to this game.

In the case of more noticeable additions to this game, there are multiple endings. It mostly comes down to what will you do after defeating the first boss, but there are other factors as well.

No-context spoiler for the good ending ==> wreck the car.

There is also a score system that feels pretty useless aside from the casino section in the main bad guy’s skyscraper where you can use the points on slot machines.

Now this might be a small problem, but I wish the subtitles in cutscenes could be synchronized better with spoken dialogue.

Now changing the subject, Urban Brawl can be kind of challenging on the normal skill level, especially at the beginning when you don’t exactly know what to do and how to utilize your attacks but after a while, you will be uppercutting fools who will go right unto your fist; but that ain’t mean the game will suddenly become easy, okay?

Your fighting skills include regular and strong punches, the aforementioned uppercut (dual pressing alt fire), grabbing and throwing the enemies, and ground pound that takes part of your health, along with being able to carry one melee, ranged, and special weapon.

When it comes to enemies, the roster includes a huge amount of baldies, black guys with shivs (yellow ones can throw it), fatasses, prostitute-looking twats, guards in suits (most of them have a gun), and, people’s favorites, Goth babes (chuckling).

And as for the weapon roster, when it comes to more unique stuff, there is a bottle of whiskey that functions as a liquid armor before using it or someone’s head, and we even have a taser that stunlocks probably almost every enemy that is mid-tier at most. Also, the melee weapons have limited durability, so try saving these for tougher bastards.

Fellas, I’m going to be honest with you – while Urban Brawl isn’t entirely my cup of tea because it’s kind of awkward to fight in it, I think it might be better than Action Doom, both as a standalone game and as a successor to it. I might give it another shot in the future. After all, it’s just a blind playthrough. I will probably find it better next time.

And as for the next WAD to check out, it’s Eternal Doom Fo-

...

E-Eternal Do-

...

Eternal...

Eternal...

Eternal...

The truth was a burning green crack through my brain. Memories of beautiful locations ruined by the switch-hunting puzzles only the biggest 90s adventure games nutjob would’ve come out with. Demons teleporting behind you after they spot you making you waste your precious ammunition. Questioning why many people enjoy this MegaWAD despite how terrible its cons are. I was about to play the sequel to “Eternal Doom” from 1997. Funny as hell, it was the most horrible thing I could think of.

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2008 #2008 #urban brawl #doom urban brawl #action doom 2 #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #top ten wads of the year

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Gravity

G2: Gravity

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

Release date: October 18th, 2008

Version(s) played: ???

Required port compatibility: Limit-removing

Levels: 2

And so, we reached the final 2008 WAD from Eternal – Gravity. The one that got one of the Cacowards. Does it mean however that it’s better than Remain 3 and XXXI CyberSky?

Well... There is only one way to find out...

I don’t know what else to say. Let’s just play this WAD.

Gravity looks great. Out of all Eternal’s WADs from the 2008 roster, this one probably has the best-looking locations. Especially the second map with the castle complex, but the first map still has strong highlights like the field full of ancient-looking/out-of-this-world structures.

Musically it could’ve been better. The music in the first map is kind of good, but the one in Gravitown feels underwhelming; it feels like it should have been playing more MIDI instruments instead of just one (maybe there is another one that I didn’t hear).

I wouldn’t call this WAD complicated. There are moments here and there where you have to guess where to go next after pressing a switch, and the spiral staircase in Gravitown is kind of annoying to use to jump from it to another platform, but overall, the two maps aren’t that bad to play through.

Gravity is a rather easy WAD. There might be some dickish moments and the final fight in the Gravitown with monsters teleporting across the part of the outskirts surrounding the titular town can be annoying but I don’t think you will have that much trouble with it.

I still think Remain 3 is the best WAD when it comes to Eternal’s 2008 WADs, but Gravity is still pretty darn good to play. Give it a shot.

Next time, we will be tackling the sequel to the Action Doom. Expect something much different from that WAD.

See you next time.

Bye!

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2008 #2008 #gravity #gravity WAD #doom gravity #doom gravity WAD #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #top ten wads of the year

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Deus Vult II

Remember when I said that I would complete (or rather almost complete depending on the circumstances) two regions in AC: Valhalla (with other game in between)? Nevermind! Going back to WADs now otherwise that game might drive me crazy. But I’ll also increase the number of regions to complete between parts of the review to TWO, or else THIS WAD will drive me insane.

Speaking of today’s WAD and insanity...

AVE MARIA!!! DEUS VULT-

You slip and centrally hit your head on your desk.

...

Ow...

G1: Deus Vult II

Main author(s): Huy Pham (Doom Marine)

Release date: February 25th, 2008

Version(s) played: 2008-02-25c (that’s what the textfile says)

Required port compatibility: Boom

Levels: 13 (mostly spread across the slots; the last three maps are optional)

Yep, I finally said the joke thing that I forgot about in my original Deus Vult review (read it here before reading this one).

Deus Vult II is, as some of you may guess, the sequel to the 2004’s Deus Vult – a slaughter map so big at the time of its release that it had to be split into four parts to work on some of the slower computers (as an option). And then this WAD came out and said OI! Why not do the same with more maps that look better?! And then it happened.

There is so much stuff about this WAD in the text file, mentioning map details, new enemies, new weapons, etc. I will only mention that some of the maps are mentioned to be finished around the Summer of 2004; my guess is that this WAD was in the making since the release of the original Deus Vult map.

Plot-wise, demons happened on Mars, you beat the demons, and then you find out that Earth is filled with demons too. It’s time to kick some more ass.

How much humanity do I still have after the suffering I went through with this WAD? Well... Time to find out.

Now, I have seen WADs and maps that looked breathtaking in this review series in the past. Deus Vult II, at this moment, takes the winner’s cake in the visuals. Some of the maps look like complete masterpieces, and while some of you may think it goes slightly too far with details, I think I saw worse cases of over-detailing in Doom maps.

These maps also have many different bios for the lack of better words – tech bases, Japanese mountain, Egypt (Mastahpiss :] ), ruins, and, of course, hellish locations.

The soundtrack was... fine, I guess? It had bangers like in MAP20 and MAP23, but in some places, it had tracks that sounded annoying (MAP19), felt too short for a map (MAP21), might feel off (usually MP3 tracks), or weren’t even playing at all (I’ll get to that later).

What’s funny about the soundtrack, is that it can be different depending on which source port and version of the WAD you play. The regular version is from the archives, while the ultimate version can be sent directly to someone by the author after asking him by email (or just finding it on the internet at this point in time). The only difference is that MAP12 and MAP22 use a soundtrack from Lord of the Rings in the ultimate version.

The MP3 tracks will only play on ZDoom-based source ports; other ones that can play boom-compatible WADs will instead use MIDIs. I wish there was an option to choose if you want MP3 tracks to play on ZDoom-based source ports or not; like a separate WAD with just MIDIs.

Changing the subject, aside from two maps on the blind playthrough, Deus Vult II isn’t really that hard to figure out. Some of them just have more annoying elements than the other ones, like the forest in Crouching Demon, Hidden Arch-vile, inspired by the legendary Grove, and being equally annoying here as well.

There are also two cases where you climb a mountain, and it’s also annoying; not because of the climbing itself but due to the enemies constantly popping from the ground behind bushes as you get close (in Eagle’s Nest at least there are bushes).

The two really annoying maps were Stargate and Unholy Cathedral (not to confuse with the one in the original Inferno episode) – the former due to being a mangled maze of a map, and the latter for having a moon-logic level of hidden switches in some cases.

But there is some interesting stuff that makes me grin like an utter goober; like how you transition between most of the maps organically (especially at the end of Stargate and Desert Temple with the ancient portals).

Entryway Pass has some kind of uber barrels in the blue key area, where these are much stronger than the original ones; and surprisingly, they only appear in this location.

I also like the concept behind You Shall Not Pass, where you run away from the boss mooks through the entire level until you reach Invun and decimate them (at least the ones that don’t fly away to the other side of a map).

The final level is MAP29 – Saint Peter’s Gate, and from there, you can choose how to end the WAD. You can just end it by going through the left gate; you can choose the right gate to play the original Deus Vult map (thank God that I don’t have to play it); or, you can go straight on your path, ending on a secret level.

Although, I feel like The Manliest Fight EVER feels misplaced, because after beating it you are rewarded with a weapon that you can get 3-4 maps earlier and you end up booted back into Stargate. It’s like something was missing between MAP13 and MAP19.

There are two types of hard in Deus Vult II – manageable and insanity. The former happens in most of the WAD; despite tougher moments, there is still a chance that experienced players won’t really have that much of a problem with some of the tougher moments. The latter type happens less often, but it has a chance to scar you for a long time; fight in the hub area of Unholy Temple, the entirety of Hell’s Vendetta, the secret encounter in Crouching Demon, Hidden Arch-vile, and probably the second half of MAP31 are the biggest examples that come into my mind.

This WAD utilizes two new enemies as replacements for Wolfenstein SS and Keens, both appearing from MAP21 onwards. The first one is Hell Cleric, which has 200 health, barely flinches, and fires a volley of three fireballs at you. In large groups, these guys can fuck you up (proven by the Minas Morgul Requiem section in Hell’s Vendetta).

The second new enemy is much, MUCH worse – Flying Balrog AKA Afrit the flying Baron; and not just a typical Afrit that’s just a kind of tougher, flying Baron variant with new attacks, but the Scythe 2 beasts that can wreck Cyberdemon 1v1. Luckily, they have only 1500 health compared to the original’s 2500.

You thankfully gain two new weapons. You now wield two pistols instead of one, which means bullets won’t be any more useless to you until you find a chaingun.

There are also Sauron’s Gauntlets which are basically melee BFG. It shreds through every enemy, including flying Barons. The only one who still has a chance to kill you with these gloves is Cyberdemon.

Now remember when I said that some of the music tracks don’t play at all? It happens with the first three levels, and it looks like it’s due to the newer version of GZDoom having problems with some of the MP3 files. Gee, at least it could play MIDIs as a failsafe, but screw that, I guess.

Deus Vult II is a better WAD on every level when compared to the original map... it is also harder than the first DV. If you enjoy slaughter maps/WADs, you will be in heaven playing this WAD.

As for me, I am really excited to leave this WAD behind and play the next one on the roster list. It is Eternal’s final WAD from the 2008 roster.

But until then, I’ll see you next time.

Bye!

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2008 #2008 #doom deus vult #deus vult II #doom deus vult II #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #top ten wads of the year

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): XXXI CyberSky

S2: XXXI CyberSky

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

Release date: September 3rd, 2008

Version(s) played: ???

Required port compatibility: Limit-removing

Levels: 1 (MAP31 replacement)

If you thought Remain 3 was too easy for you (and you have masochistic tendencies probably), here’s XXXI CyberSky, a slaughter map created by Eternal that was uploaded around a week after the previous WAD; and don’t worry, it won’t be the last slaughter map/WAD from 2008.

...

I have nothing else to say. Let’s begin the torture.

Despite sounding like a map with a futuristic base setting, XXXI CyberSky is actually hell and brimstone. A really nice-looking hell and brimstone I might add. I would definitely say that it looks better than most of the maps from Remain 3 and that WAD looked really good.

This map uses a track from Heretic’s E1M1; it might be stock, but at least it’s not from the classic Doom games. And I guess it kind of fits for the slaughter map; I don’t know. I would like it more if it looped properly.

If you remove enemies from this map, turns out that CyberSky isn’t really complicated to begin with. You might get stuck slightly longer in the areas with net-shaped corridors but overall, you would have to have brain damage to not know where to go next and/or what to do.

At this point, you should know that this map is hard. I mean, it has almost 1.8 thousand enemies on Hurt Me Plenty only. And yet, I feel like it’s one of the easier slaughter maps I played. Hoovies are pretty scarce and don’t even reach the 5% of all enemies, there is plenty of ammo, health, and armor, and with the knowledge of some of the secrets, you can turn some of the tougher fights into a cakewalk.

If you need a hint with this map, here are two – kill siege cows with Super Shotgun in the first area one at a time and in the western part of the map when you press the switch surrounded by fortifications, just run to the next area and slaughter everything that dares to come to you.

There is one bug I’ve noticed near the end, if you press the left switch when it goes down after pressing the middle one, it will jump back to its original place like a pop-up monster.

XXXI CyberSky is another good map by Eternal. I still prefer Remain 3 over this one, but somehow I enjoyed it more than I thought I would despite it being a slaughter map. Give it a try if you are into these types of maps/WADs.

Now that were are done with the Silver League, time to give both WADs a chance to win one of the Revenant Awards; with Remain 3 going into the Platinum Revenant category and CyberSky to the Sole Survivor category.

As for my next review, I might take a longer break than usual before tackling that one. You might have probably noticed that I no longer make a week-long break after reviewing a WAD (either because I got some rest due to not starting to make these reviews after one day of break or due to me wanting to play AC: Valhalla in between). And since the next WAD to tackle is Deus Vult II (which includes the original 2004 map in the MAP29 slot), I guess I will complete two regions in that game instead of just one along with one of the games in my Steam library in between. I’ll probably complete another region before my second playthrough just in case I don’t get another burnout earlier.

With that information out of the way, I’ll see you all next time.

Bye!

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2008 #2008 #XXXI CyberSky #doom XXXI CyberSky #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #runner up

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Remain 3

I wouldn’t be surprised if Eternal won two Mapper of the Year awards in a row if not for the fact that you can only win it once in your lifetime. As if having a WAD getting a Cacoward in 2007 was not enough, not only did he manage to do that again in 2008... but also filled both runner-up slots with the other two. Complete and utter madman!

Today, we will be taking a look at Eternal’s first out of three WADs from the 2008 roster.

S1: Remain 3

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

Release date: August 26th, 2008

Version(s) played: ???

Required port compatibility: GZDoom

Levels: 13

Remain 3 is the only WAD on the roster that requires a specific source port rather than just a limit-removing one. It took over a year of work to be created (it started in 2005 but there were breaks in between), and I’ve run out of interesting things to say in this section, so let’s just jump straight into this WAD, shall we?

For something out of 2008, Remain 3 doesn’t have the rights to look this good. Even with the knowledge that some of the maps were made back in 2005, and might look basic, this WAD makes up with the atmosphere for the lack of better words. From different kinds of tech bases/labs (both in grassy or desert areas), to the cities and more unusual places like the rocket silo and the meat factory. The further you go, the WAD gets prettier and prettier.

The WAD’s soundtrack consists of classics from the older WADs like Icarus, HRII, STRAIN, and others (one of the tracks feels like it was out of Batman WAD, but I’m not entirely sure). Hell, even the stocks used in MAP06 and 09 fit like gloves (I’ll tell you why later). The track from Wrongday could be something different in my opinion, but asides from that, the soundtrack is pretty damn great, not gonna lie.

Remain 3 isn’t a complicated WAD to finish. There were some annoying moments for sure, but these were relatively rare.

What I noticed about this WAD is that it feels like it is structurally split between at least two types of maps.

Maps from Wrongday to the Bridge of Death feel the most original, with the original concept as a foundation like infiltrating the base or crossing the titular bridge.

The Crusher to the Pits are more like an homage to the maps from the original Doom II, with maps 08 and 09 actually being almost the same as the original ones but with slight changes, additional areas for a more organic transition from one map to another (this is with every map in this WAD), and tougher enemies.

Refueling Base to Downtown meanwhile, while still taking a concept of their original variants, make something completely fresh out of them.

To describe some of the maps this WAD offers, in Base-Court you visit some kind of village that might be populated by cannibals, with a food line near the butchery, and a hangman nearby.

Circle of Death focuses on stealing a rocket that takes you to the Meat Factory, in which you kick it back online to unlock a passage to the Downtown.

The last map is full of interesting landmarks, having a hotel with broken elevators, a bar next to the supermarket with a freezer room, some slums with hobos standing around, a construction site occupied by Imps, a playground near a park, a water pool area, etc. it looks incredible.

I don’t think this WAD is hard. Sure, there are cheap moments here and there occasionally, but it wasn’t going too far in my opinion.

It would be better if there were no stealth enemies in the last two maps (sigh) but at least it’s like one/two enemies per map.

The new enemies definitely spice up the roster, being used already in the older WADs/maps although without the KDiZD makeup this time. It has typical stuff like tougher variants for Imps and Nobles (along there are other ones too) and a bunch of old new zombies like rocketeers and rapid-firing blondies, but it tends to offer more unique variants like super-shotgun zombies, marine zombies (sucks due to no attack windup), half invisible orange pinkies that breath fire and spit out lost soul after death (like they were possessed), Cyberdemon with spiderdemon’s legs, tortured soul as a miniboss of MAP11, bouncing skulls from Happy Time Circus (slightly less annoying now), and Tornado Demons who are basically arch-viles but with wind powers and teleporting around. Hell, you even get attacked by a helicopter in MAP10 (basically a flying spiderdemon), not to mention barrels with napalm in the last two maps (even if they don't technically count as enemies).

The only bug I’ve encountered was with enemy bats playing helicopter crashing instead of their screeching. That was weird.

Remain 3 is another great WAD from Eternal. Fitting in almost every place perfectly. Not to mention using GZDoom in a way that is not a script galore (done badly). Full recommendation; go play it, folks.

But as you might already guessed, we are not done with Mr. Eternal. Tune in next time, as we will take a look at the second runner-up of 2008.

Bye!

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2008 #2008 #remain 3 #doom remain 3 #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #runner-up

[m39]

Doom WADs’ Roulette (2008): Community is Falling 3

If you are a casual Doom WAD enjoyer, you have probably heard of Samuel Villarreal AKA Kaiser; a man who (with the help of others) created an unofficial PC port of Doom 64 that had additional content known as Doom 64: Absolution. Later in 2008, he did it again, but more streamlined, without the additional stuff the Absolution had.

But we won’t be talking about that port. Today, I have something else to offer.

Br2: Community is Falling 3

Main author(s): Samuel Villarreal (Kaiser)

Release date: March 10th, 2008

Version(s) played: ???

Required port compatibility: ZDoom

Levels: 36

In yet another case of a sequel that I played before the original WAD, we have Community is Falling 3; (probably) another case where you will laugh only if you were an avid user of Doomworld when the events that were used as a foundation of this WAD’s plot happened.

Being complete in over 2.5 years, this WAD made Kaiser never touch ZDoom again. This bad boy squeezes a shit ton of features from the source port it relies on, but, and I’m going to say it now, compared to filth like 007 WAD, it feels rather quaint; less obnoxious if you could say.

Its plot was based on events from 2006, when an unfinished version of Knee-Deep in ZDoom was leaked to the Internet; now dramatized and made more ridiculous than ever.

But... do I consider this MegaWAD funny? Well... why won’t we jump ahead, and surf on some Doom forums.

Quick announcement before that: This will be another unorthodox review from what I usually cook; it is based only on my unfinished, blind playthrough because there are still 12 other 2008 WADs to try (and AC: Valhalla in between these) and I don’t want to waste that much time on such a complicated beast of this WAD. So apologies if I forget about something related to the WAD and for the lack of screenshots.

For a shitpost WAD, CiF 3 looks rather good. Despite being almost nothing but techbases from what I’ve seen, they felt rather distinguishable. The biggest examples are usually the maps that take place in Newdoom and ZDoom forums respectively, with the former ones looking more simple while the latter being overloaded with details.

The music was fine but annoying. Many tracks are the rock ones that sound obnoxious to me; not to mention how LOUD they are. They might fit into the jokey nature of this WAD, but they tend to overestimate their welcome.

Would I call this WAD complicated? Not really. You basically go to one place to talk to someone, then to another place to talk to someone else when you are not fighting.

Sometimes you are in some hub-looking map, where you can buy weapons, inventory items (yes there is an inventory mechanics created by Kaiser before it was properly implemented to ZDoom), ammo, health, and armor.

The items you can use vary from typical armor/health stuff and grenades to the beacon that will allow you to summon friendly marines to help you.

Unfortunately, the farther I went to this WAD, the more obnoxious it has become. Even naming our protagonist at the very beginning was annoying due to the mechanics related to it. Dialogues were sometimes too long without any way to skip all of them at once, there was a time-based mission (oh, my favorite -_-), some of the other missions were annoying as well.

But nothing compares to the mission where you are defending some core and you have to destroy 9 beacons to stop the enemies from constantly summoning. They kept coming no matter how many marines I deployed and some of the beacons were in such obscure places that I had to cheat to actually find them (hey, it was either that, or using the jetpack); and I can’t do both of these things at the same time.

And speaking of jetpack, this is some next-level jank people. Despite knowing how to operate this junk, it feels sluggish and is hard to control.

And yet, despite all of the bullshit, and the boss that disappeared to the ground (probably), I was stubborn enough to get past this mission... and right in the next one the lemming I was supposed to escort ended up stuck in the rock after teleporting and couldn’t get out of it. That was the moment where I said Fuck it, and just stopped. Because it was either this or knowing that it might happen again.

And now... for the moment you all have been waiting for... How funny is this WAD?

the sound of blowing wind

Fuck if I know; I didn’t laugh even once while playing it. The most amusing part of the plot was when the ZDoom forums’ users were portrayed as a bunch of fart-sniffers who were addicted to their godly source port’s features and linedefs. There was also a marine playing Picard YTPMV, and the pink marine (I don’t remember his name anymore) complaining about the ZDoom addicts.

But aside from these, it’s just random nonsense sprayed with F-slurs. This feels childish even by 2008 standards. But still, it was a better effort at trying to make me laugh than the previous Mockaward winners (aside from How Not to be Seen).

The feelings I have towards the difficulty of this WAD are the same as its gameplay – it gets more and more annoying as I play. Props to Kaiser for giving the enemies an intelligence bump when they actually start dodging my attacks but it crosses the line with some of these (like hitscanners for instance).

Not to mention many types of new enemies, including humans drawn in Paint (both melee and projectile ones), bipedal assholes (hurr durr), tiny, annoying drones, and super-fast carts. There are even bosses.

Of course, you get new weapons as well, like a meat cleaver that you can throw at enemies and a machine gun that looks like a party tube.

Aside from at least one bug that I mentioned earlier, I don’t think I encountered more of these. Maybe the glitched-out suits of some marines if that wasn’t intentional.

Community is Falling 3 feels like a WAD of its time; the plot being related to stuff that won’t really be enjoyed by someone who wasn’t a part of it, mostly juvenile humor, mostly annoying music, ridiculous gimmicks and missions, and so on. It might be a technical marvel by 2008 standards, and I played worse, but still, I wouldn’t recommend this WAD.

Since all the WADs from the Bronze League are now reviewed, there is nothing else to do but promote them to the Revenant Awards, with this one going to the Off the Wall category and Diaz going to the completely new category (that I still don’t have a name for) dedicated to the gameplay mods.

Tune in next time, people, as we will be checking out the first of the Eternal’s WADs from the 2008 roster.

Bye!

#doom #doom wad #review #doom mod #doom 2 #doom 2008 #2008 #community is falling 3 #doom community is falling 3 #doom wads’ roulette #cacowards #mockaward