Nihility: Infinite Teeth (NIHILITY.WAD)

Nihility is a work in progress. Years has finished the first episode in 2016 - occupying Doom's second - and is looking to turn it into a full-fledged megaWAD as time wears on. And, uh, I don't mind telling you that I am looking forward to what nightmares may come. The recipe is sort of Shores of Hell but the author mixes in some of the elements from Doom's alphas and betas. She also works in a bit of S.T.R.A.I.N.'s philosophy of adding in new blood to jazz up the otherwise familiar experience. Oh, yes - Nihility is vanilla compatible, crowbarring its gameplay changes both shocking and subtle in with DeHackEd.

I'm not really sure what the overall story is. The location of all the action resembles the Doomed Deimos base but the end text of the episode and a few of the level names - all of which are in German - subtly suggest a different framing narrative. I can't help but think that the player character is trapped in a very specific aspect of Hell, a fate reserved for those who commit suicide. I'm basing this on phrases like "...hear the sound of your family choke on your body", occurring after the final map, "Bestrafung", which a machine translator assures me means "punishment". There's also the name of the secret level, "Hirntod", corresponding to brain death. Heck; the main title of the project is Nihility and the phrase "NO LIFE" appears both in the end text and the actual level geometry. I suppose that I won't really know until Years continues to flesh out her adventure.

Nihility has a lot of things going for it. The design has solid shades of the original Doom with the author's own particular spin. Anyone well-versed in the episodes will be able to spot homages in aesthetics, structure, and gameplay. They feel more like lovingly cribbed cameos rather than spotlights around which the levels were designed. There is definitely a strong E2 feel from the opening level to the last. Snatches of immaculate, pristine techbase are juxtaposed against the malign influence of ultimate evil. Some of the side-areas have a stronger utilitarian nature, like locker rooms and hospital beds and computer banks. It's mostly quasi-realism, though, similar to The Shores of Hell but with even more height variation and interconnectivity.

The next thing you'll pick up on, perhaps even simultaneously, is the atmosphere. Nihility has no music tracks, reducing your aural experience to aleotoric performances constructed from the sounds of your weapons, the groans of the monsters, and carefully placed ambient noises. The last element ranges from beeping computers to running water to viscous liquids to humming machinery and more. Doom minus Bobby Prince, whether it's MIDI metal or his sinister pieces, is an odd experience but it absolutely works and hammers home a sense of desolation and... well... Doom.

The author sets things even further apart with the DeHackEd manipulations. The weapons aren't much different; the pistol is replaced by a slightly faster rifle and the chaingun with a likewise quicker machine gun. I think that the plasma gun is a bit stronger, too, but I have not learned to read DeHackEd in order to confirm my suspicions. Years also pads out your bullet count by another 100 for a grand total of 300 (600 with backpack). It's a nice gesture. I can't say that I ran into any of the ammo limits besides shells during my pis- err, rifle start playthroughs. I'm sure, though, that continuous players will enjoy being able to stock up for the very useful machine gun.

These changes are helpful considering the new monsters that Years has appended to Doom's classic roster. Everyone appears in their original formats, save for the lost soul, who has inherited some behavior from S.T.R.A.I.N.'s doppelganger. This will come as a surprise to anyone who has internalized its old behavior. It is now capable of shooting projectiles which it will do right before it charges and it can attack again while in transit. These fuckers can harry your ass, especially in open areas where they appear in greater numbers. On the other hand this makes them much more potent at infighting since they get to launch a ball of psychic energy in addition to their screaming strikes.

The rest of the monster additions follow a similar philosophy to S.T.R.A.I.N.. It eschews the difficult enemy behavior of the arch-vile, mancubus, and pain elemental for derivatives of the originals. The gray imp is a slightly tougher version of the original whose attack pattern is park and bark, much like the arachnotron. There are three iterations of the Baron. The first is basically analogous to the Hell knight and the second is a slightly tougher - and beiger - variant that stands and shoots just like the gray imp. The final version is derived from Vader's winged sprite edit, known elsewhere as the Lord of Heresy. It's sort of like a faster, tougher, more mobile mancubus, though the spread is the same for each volley. They're Baron plasma balls, too, which might make them harder to duck. I dreaded dealing with these guys but not as much as S.T.R.A.I.N.'s demon lords.

The two more exotic additions are the kamikaze trooper and what I'll call the wraith, only because its sprite is clearly derived from Doom 3's monster of the same name. The former mostly appears in the later levels of the episode. It either arrives as part of monster closets that cause the player to second-guess their initial approach or as spoilers who arrive in the middle of larger, more orchestrated teleport ambushes. They explode when either killed or as their attack and lack the deafeningly obvious announcement, procured from Serious Sam. I don't recall ever feeling betrayed by their placement, though. The wraiths are another story and function as faster, lithe variants of the standard pink demons. Of all Nihility's monsters these left the biggest impression me due to the coupling of their deportment with some very distinct enemy sounds. You'll want to be a steady shot when a group of them are bearing down on you because they will be on your ass and tearing it up after the slightest lapse of awareness. Many of my episodic stumbling blocks were situations where I was forced to confront groups of wraiths in tight confines. The machine gun is your friend. Be prepared to park in a corner and spray wildly.

All of these new creatures give Nihility an undeniable edge of unfamiliarity and handily complement the freewheeling Shores of Hell theme. It's further augmented by textures new and old, area-specific ambient noise, a total lack of any musical soundtrack, and level titles that are at the very least immediately foreign to me. It's a multi-faceted attack on just about every plane of player expectation, resulting in a potent atmosphere that I hope will be plied toward new angles as Years further develops the overall shape of the megaWAD. Speaking of attack, the author is not content to merely tread water in the IWAD's setups when it comes to combat. You'll still get incidental fights but Nihility is equally parts trappy with monster closets, teleport ambushes / repopulation, arena battles, and even the occasional black magic of monsters jumping around using devious teleport lines.

Nihility is an aggressive, unusual mapset and it does a great job of expanding the action of the original Doom without really stepping on its sequel's toes. I don't know if the author has the room in DeHackEd to make the rest of the episodes feel just as fresh but I believe that I'm going to love watching Years try. You'll get more than you bargained for if you're just looking for a plain Shores of Hell replacement. For those who are open to something a little more off the beaten path with the added surprise of it functioning in vanilla, there's Infinite Teeth.

NIHILITY
INFINITE TEETH
by "Years"

Dammerung

E2M1

It contains some very clear homages to "Deimos Anomaly". The sheer volume of monsters and other elements, however, makes for a different experience. Deviances include your brief moments walking around outside and the number of areas connected together by teleporters. The monster closets come on pretty thick. You should be fine as long as you don't get too ballsy and try to consume your rifle ammo in lieu of the punchy shotgun. There are some pretty cool areas to journey through; I particularly like the marble and blood annex to the east.

E2M2

Speicherung

Combining familiar elements of "Spawning Vats", "Refinery", and "Containment Area" with new material to form a sprawling adventure that's full of secrets and surprises. There are crates but no crate maze, not to rule out a differently-labelled labyrinth. The pressure is always on, especially in those dark areas where Years is fond of throwing spectres at you. You'll also see the first appearance of a slightly unfamiliar-looking Baron who teleports away to build tension for the inevitable showdown. While there are a handful of great, panic-inducing ambushes, my favorite encounter takes place behind the yellow key door. It forces the player to move or be overwhelmed from several different directions while continuing to be wary of the new lost souls.

Obstgarten

E2M3

The homages are becoming subtler, leading to a cool, dangerous level whose major threat is less monstrous mobs and more sheer exposure. All of the windows and portholes give monsters plenty of vantage points for a ranged assault. There are still a few en masse teleport ambushes but nothing on the level of the big finish from E2M2. Again, the true danger is a result of the monsters' ability to filter through the layout and surprise the player in a more organic fashion. The big glut of wraiths who feature as the level's finale came as quite a surprise. They announce their presence with all the authority of an agitated skeleton, not that they felt anywhere near as dangerous.

E2M4

Die Hallen

Borrowing inspiration from E2's largest levels, most obviously "Halls of the Damned" but also the more tech-oriented portions of "The Spawning Vats". It's a wicked, sprawling map that uses the mobile wraiths and rapid-fire gray imps to really lean on the player. This leads to some great firefights like the ambush in the northwestern area. It treats you to a bunch of monsters on the opposite ledge, cacodemons running in between, and stuff immediately in your face. A lonely column serves as your initial cover. The northeast nukage / pillar room has that same sort of nervousness about it. It's very open but most of the floor is poison. I really dig the architecture. It adds a feeling of height and depth to some of the areas to play against the generally flat feel of E2.

Albtram-Haus

E2M5

A large and difficult map. If the wraiths didn't have your respect before then they will probably earn it here. The ammo is also pretty tight, with no secrets to be found apart from the classic "teleport pad in a pit actually leads to the plasma gun". Most players probably wouldn't bother. There's a cramped and dangerous Hellish annex that showcases the pissed-off Baron, a little tougher but much more persistent than its lesser brethren. I also like the small secret annex. It's a descendant of E1M2's "Nuclear Station" and debuts the kamikaze troopers alongside a pretty straightforward BFG trap. Tough but electrifying.

E2M9

Hirntod

Years dials things up for an intense map with many memorable moments. It's the most modern-feeling of the levels so far and is built around several teleport arena fights in the central room, which sports a sacrificial skull structure. This includes a soft finale featuring the kamikaze troopers. An  earlier battle is full of the newer, super-lethal lost souls. There's an element of environmental danger to the southeast given its enormous channels of blood. The northwest creates an atmosphere of paranoia and action that's not unlike Aliens thanks to teleport lines, moody lighting, and quick-moving wraiths. There's a long, secret sequence to the BFG - complete with Spiderdemon showdown (!) - which begins in a limited-availability locker room that must be opened, I think, by the zombie inside. If you blink, you'll miss it. Having the BFG in hand changes the character of the final battle, a pretty cool feature. Outstanding stuff.

Blutfabrik

E2M6

The layout looks more like classic E2 and includes homages to "Command Center" as well as flashes of E3 ("House of Pain"). However, the truth is that it's deviously complex with all the "solid" midtextures and windows. Navigation via automap or otherwise will be a challenge. The author is kind enough to offer some neat shortcut teleporters to point you in the right direction. It's got the same sort of combat elements as E2M5 but Years is more free with the ammo. There are also some neat little touches built into the abstract layout. The medical facility / lab areas and the grisly spikes that await you at the bottom of the blind drop past the western crusher gauntlet give the map a nice sense of place. The rising blood trap just about fucking got me. A very cool level.

E2M7

Kloneteildienst

Another enormous techbase map. It's very well interconnected and has some impressive major areas. One is an enormous segmented staircase running from west to east as well as the tall, circular hallways that dominate the center of the level. The author lays on the claustrophobia and tougher Baron monsters. It makes for several deadly encounters like the big rush of wraiths in the southeastern storage area as well as the ambush in the darkness of the red key zone. One of my favorite bits is the long sequence of timed triggers which lead to a sinister secret area featuring... chambers containing stasis-bound marines! There are other bits of technology, too, which suggest that the is facility is being used to manifest monsters. This includes the Lords of Heresy but the green marines were a surprise to me. Fun stuff.

Bestrafung

E2M8

Here it is, the biggest one of all. "Bestrafung" again takes a couple of elements from "Refinery" (the rippling floor) as well as E3M5 (the four corner teleporter boss arena). It's still very much the author's creation and seemingly centered around a handful of large, outdoor areas that serve as battlegrounds for highly dangerous firefights. E2M8 appears to be a hotbed of monster closets, teleporter traps, and punishing enemy placement. I was pretty conscious of the danger of the Lords of Heresy but I didn't really feel their power until this map. I'm sure that some of the scenarios - like the barrel room to the northwest - would have gone much smoother if I'd saved a few rockets. The southern yard with yellow key begins as potential hitscanner Hell and then moves into teleporter-induced claustrophobia when you return at a much later time. The eastern section leading up to the finale is perhaps my favorite sequence. The nice big windows expose you to the various flying and landbound monsters as you nervously await the raising bridges. I'd hate to think about taking on the penultimate Hell noble fight without having that invul. The Cyberdemon showdown is in a pretty cool area with a suitable techno-Hellish casket. You'll want to get rid of all those pesky fliers before kicking the big one off. Big boy comes with his own crowd of potential supporters... who will all kill each other if given the opportunity. A fantastic finish.

NO PARTICULAR NIGHT OR MORNING

This post is part of a series on
Doomworld's 2016 Cacowards

The Top Ten	Best Multiplayer	Runners Up
Tech Gone Bad	AeonDM	Warphouse
Ancient Aliens	32in24-16	THT: Threnody
Nihility: Infinite Teeth	Best Gameplay Mod	Bloodstain
Mutiny	Doom 4 Doom	Strange Aeons
Absolutely Killed	Mordeth Award	Echelon
Elf Gets Pissed	Doom the Way id Did:	Shadow of the Wool Ball
Comatose	The Lost Episodes
Miasma	Mockaward
Alpha Accident: Terra Nova	Ludicrium
Japanese Community Project	Mapper of the Year
Blades of Agony E1	Lainos