Alpha 1 Trilogy (ALPHA1.ZIP)

The first time I played the Alpha 1 Trilogy was as part of a compilation megaWAD by Legacy engine advocate Jive. It greatly impressed me back then and that level of awe still carries through to this day. Rob Schweiner authored the three parts of ALPHA1 at different times, but uploaded a .ZIP package of the three separate WADs (ALPHA1, OOZI, and SOURCE as MAP01, MAP02 and MAP03) as early as '97. The current version has a few edits dating to '98, but it's all vanilla compatible, with Schweiner lamenting the infamous visplane limit in the author notes. The story is familiar, but welcome. There's an alien (re: demon) outbreak at the Alpha 1 base, and you're sent in to clear it out and eliminate the source.

If I had to compare the Alpha 1 Trilogy to anything, it would be striking a balance between the labyrinthine, abstract techbases of Rick Lipsey and the more polished but no less exploratory levels from Russian authors like Lainos. The Alpha 1 Trilogy levels are Eternal Doom big, and pushing between 300 and 400 monsters. They're mostly little guys but they're used in a way that makes them feel dangerous when you're not fighting the bruisers. The maps are pretty non-linear as I understand it, with progression gates tied to keys. The route you want to take in order to explore each level is up to you. If you hate switch hunts, then you'll find some solace in Schweiner's gameplay, where the effects of buttons are usually straightforward.

Schweiner's architecture shines in this mapset, alongside the varied yet coherent texture themes. Every major room has some recognizable landmark that clearly differentiates it from the others. Even the most hallway-centric level, OOZI, is hard to get lost in. SOURCE, the final level, is by far the most distinctive, but the others have some neat stuff, from the opening Alpha 1 base courtyard to the enormous drain pipe of the sewers in OOZI. It's just a lot of fun to run around in, even when you're not ducking imp fireballs and shotgun blasts.

If you like large, somewhat exploratory levels, you should really download and play the Alpha 1 Trilogy. They are certainly among my favorite maps dating from '97-'98 and from what I've seen one of the most obscure level packages among Doom players. I really wish Schweiner had published more material; he certainly ranks up there with Bob Evans and Jim Flynn for me, at least.

ALPHA 1 TRILOGY
by Rob Schweiner

Alpha 1	MAP01
The first map in this series is an enormous techbase, clearly divided into two sections. To the west, an outdoor area and adjacent compounds, where you obtain the blue and red keys. You have to have both to get into the inner base, which then opens into another exploratory assault. Your first few forays will be intensely dangerous with the snipers lurking in windows and all the imps that are hard to keep track of. Action steps up once you cross the threshold, with the standout encounter being the final room, which is flush with monsters to begin with. I love a lot of the visuals, like the baron / invul ambush room or the large outer courtyard. The only bit that may catch some people is how to get to the blue doors in the yellow key room. (Check those corners!)

MAP02		Oozi
		As the name suggests, there is a ton of nukage to wade through in this map, but plenty of rad suits to do it with. Your entire adventure through the southern area, which includes ruins long forgotten and tracing the path of the nuclear waste, leads to the reactors themselves, which you can see long before you ever stand next to them from a balcony to the north. All of the segments, like the underground courtyard or the tech facilities, look very nice. Some neat fights in here. Of course, the finale is to be expected, with the first few arch-viles to keep the player on their toes. The one that sticks out in my mind is the southern area. Schweiner tucks some sergeants away in easily-missed places and the moment when he unleashes another horde of imps into the already paranoia-inducing ruins section brings some legitimacy to an often-disregarded threat.

Origin	MAP03
Alpha's finale starts out in the seedy underground of the base and moves into the hell which lay beneath in several stages. There are a lot of really cool visuals here, from the long, western hallway riddled with piping to the massive underground chasm and parts beyond. I mean, if you're gonna go strolling around any of the levels purely for visuals, it would be this one. Schweiner also steps it up in the combat department. Expect more devious fights and traps, like the chasm, where you're assaulted from both sides from various heights. The standout is probably the end, which follows a tricky-when-fast Cyberdemon fight. On an island in the ether, you flip switches to release monsters into the arcane clearing. You can hit them as fast as you feel like for an impromptu slaughter or take things at your own pace. From start to finish, a level I will certainly never forget.

THE ALPH
AND THE OMEGA