DOOM 2 IN NAME ONLY - Misc. (2014)

Ever wondered what’s the deal with all those “Doom 2 In [X] Only” community projects? (e.g Doom 2 In Spain Only, Doom 2 In City Only, Doom 2 In Song Only, exc) — well, this is the unseen mastermind behind it all. Released in 2014, after a pretty troublesome development lasting a whole 2 years (even winning it the infamous ‘Mordeth Award’, given out to WADs with the longest development time), Doom 2 In Name Only follows the steps of other notable megaWADs such as Kama Sutra (2005) and Fava Beans (1995), with it’s usage of all vanilla textures across it’s 30 level campaign (not counting the secret maps, those go insane with custom assets)

Containing an extravagant cast of contributors, with many of it’s levels authored by a plethora of notable personalities across the Doom community, such as Tristan Clark, Adam Windsor, Jason Root (AKA Hellbent), and Cyriak (yes, THAT Cyriak!), this WAD seeks to recreate all of the original 32 levels of Doom 2, based entirely on the map titles; ending up with quite the nutty map variety. Despite the lackluster resources, this mapset contains an incredibly varied range of levels. But of course, all… mostly, sharing that good old, action packed carnage!

With it’s levels being not too cluttered with enemies and being relatively easy while still being a healthy challenge to experienced and new players alike, think of games like Super Mario World: not too easy, but not too hard either, just hitting that intermediate sweet spot. …But well, I said “mostly” because, like any other megaWAD, Doom 2 In Name Only is no perfect community project; some maps do suffer from the dreaded Evilution Syndrome, unnecessarily ballooning their runtime with huge level layouts and confusing puzzles. (e.g the now infamous map 19, lasting over 40 MINUTES). But don’t let that turn you away; for the most part, Doom 2 In Name Only is a must play megaWAD for any adventure seeking Doom purist like myself, and a great addition to anyone’s WAD collection.

ICARUS: ALIEN VANGUARD - Team TNT (1996)

Here’s a real oldie: Released in late 1996 by the famous Team TNT, now immortalized in gaming history for authoring TNT: Evilution, the first half of the commercially released Final Doom, and Boom, the mother of all source ports; Icarus is the true sequel to Evilution, unlike Revilution, with the original team of mappers and composers from that game having returned to work on the project, even continuing on the same mapping quirks as the original Evilution. How cute! But unlike Evilution, Icarus ditches it’s predecessor’s massively scaled adventure maps for more easy to digest, bite sized levels; ensuing on the likes of Doom 2's simplistic, and compact level layouts. (Sorry, Drake O’ Brien)

Despite having been released the same year as Evilution, Icarus demonstrates sizeable improvements in level design from it's designers, with even many of the so called “bad” mappers of TNT returning once more — like if coming back from meditating in a waterfall; the authors of Crater, Baron’s Den; and more importantly Cristopher Buteau, the author of the horrible, HORRIBLE Habitat, finally reaching the community's redemption and proving themselves as mappers with their new and improved contributions to Icarus. Rocky would tremble at such an inspiring tale.

Also unlike Evilution, Icarus sports all new cast of MIDIs for every map in the megaWAD, which, in my opinion, have got to be some of the best ever MIDIs composed for a Doom WAD. Icarus' soundtrack drips with atmosphere, suspense, epicness, and action; and for the life of me I cannot imagine how it'd be like to be playing Icarus with Doom 2's boring old stock tracks. The new MIDIs, courtesy of team MusIcarus, make every level feel like it's straight out of a movie, accompanied by Icarus' visuals, which, although dated by today's standards, are still a treat to the eyes and full to the brim with atmosphere and 90s charm (e.g the screenshot shown here, being of map 22, set in a cemetery with gravestones containing the names of members of Team TNT... Nifty, if not a bit morbid!) It may be almost 30 years old, but in my opinion, Icarus: Alien vanguard is absolutely timeless; a hell of a piece of gaming history, and one of the landmark megaWADs of all time.

DEEPATAK - Jack Vermeulen (1998)

Speaking of 90s Doom charm, Here’s 1997’s DEEPATAK! Originally a test map by Jack Vermeulen to test out DeeP’s custom asset capabilities, DEEPATAK’s appeal comes more from it’s sheer absurdity rather than it’s gameplay; think of WADs like The Sky May Be… But actually playable. Despite only being one map, DEEPATAK is full to the brim with all kinds of variety, every room you enter is guaranteed to be completely different than the other; paired with it’s massive map layout, which is bound to make you get lost at least once, and a fittingly ridiculous MIDI of ‘What Is Love’.

Although it does come with it’s cons; due it’s confusing layout, it can be very tricky to actually find what you want, and can accidentally run into fights without the necessary firepower to tackle them properly, and that mixed in with the sometimes crammed corridors connecting certain areas; but overall, DEEPATAK is one hell of a time capsule, from a time when Doom mapping standards were all over the place, in which OG Doomers and Doombabies alike are assured to find enjoyment in.

PHOBOS - Roger Ritenour (1998)

Meet the original Equinox. Probably the most gorgeous, and architecturally advanced WAD to come out during it’s time, along with it’s sister WAD, ‘Earth’, Phobos is one of the most technologically impressive mapsets to come out of the 90’s, with it’s epic scale, impeccable atmosphere, and exquisite detailing (makes you wonder the things Roger could’ve acheived as a mapper if he stuck around for longer). Although it’s gameplay is a bit messy (as is for most 90s maps, unfortunately), with some areas consisting of completely empty rooms with fights that can be beaten in less than a minute (another symptom of Evilution syndrome).

But even then, it absolutely makes up for it with the author’s ability to immerse the player into it’s alien landscapes. Be warned though, Phobos’ levels are absolutely massive, and will take even the smartest of Doom players quite a while to figure out the next ways to progress. It’s really the first map of the WAD that takes the spotlight however, the other three just don’t compare to the sheer cinematography of it, elevated by that amazing MIDI.

I actually remember first playing this WAD at school, with the volume turned all the way down, and I kept imagining it would have some sort of Star Wars-y music in the background; it was quite the treat to open up the WAD on my actual computer later that day and discovering that it had the exact same music I imagined it would have. It really feels like something straight out of the Star Wars saga, more than the actual ‘Star Wars Doom 2’, ha!

GROVE - B.P.R.D (2004)

“Wait… Grove?! Why is Grove here? Everyone knows Grove!” -- Well, it certainly is a popular WAD, but I think this map just doesn’t get as much praise as it truly deserves; It’s always seen as more of a tech demo, with lackluster and repetitive gameplay, with the only reason for it being famous is because it was made by B.P.R.D, the author of Nuts.WAD, Equinox, and The Mucus Flow. But I wanted to write a section on it because of it’s emotional significance to me, and why I think this level is actually marvelous.

This map evokes a big sense of child-like nostalgia on me, a sad, sinking, empty, but comforting feeling. Sprinting towards the unknown, with the only thing in your view being trees against the ever beautiful twilight. I won’t get into much detail here, but I’ve always associated scenes like these with an ever so prevalent thought in my life, the growing desire to just run away from my life, forgetting about everything and die a peaceful death, surrounded by foliage clashing against starry skies. Dying a cold, slow, but ultimately happy death, side by side, with only my fading consciousness accompanying me, and the very thing I love the most: nature.

It’s a thought I get every so often, and it might seem a little depressing to you, but it always helps in calming me down. This level is basically the embodiment of that thought, running through it’s fields as B.P.R.D’s beautiful original MIDI plays softly in the background evokes a sentiment in me unlike any other videogame I’ve played, getting lost in the world of Grove; it feels like the ending of something. It’s always a wonder to discover areas I’ve never seen before, it feels like being the first person to visit a long abandoned place, in the middle of nowhere, and appreciating all the little landmarks, wondering what could’ve been of them in the past; it’s really melancholic. I personally always like to travel to that little area with the broken well, and just stand there for a while talking to myself, and imagining that I really am in there. I have been led to places like Grove many times in my lifetime, and they always bring these same exact experiences; it’s comforting to have a piece of media that portrays that feeling perfectly, makes you feel like you’re not alone after all. Grove is my all time favorite Doom WAD; If I ever reach the end of my life, I want it to be in a place, far, far away, just like this one.

I’d like to thank you for having gone theough all of this little page I wrote, it may be a short read, but damn did it take me a long time to make. Doom is a thing that I’m really passionate about, and I’m happy to have shared that joy with you. I guess that’s it for now, but who knows, maybe one day I’ll write a sequel!

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