Titan 2 (TITAN2.WAD)

The advent of source ports with "advanced" features drove authorship in two additional, different directions. One of these strove to make Doom closer to the popular first person shooters of the time, making mapsets featuring hub systems and missions (Quake II) or using scripting to augment the story with cutscenes and the like (Half-Life). The other path was more comfortable using graphical enhancements, e.g. slopes and room-over-room geometry, as well as scripts to render an experience that was relatively close to Doom's gameplay, just slightly more dynamic. Ixnatifual was definitely a disciple of the latter trend. TITAN2 was released in 2009, some five years after the publication of his debut, Titan. It is a ten-level episode for Doom II and was designed for play in GZDoom.

The adventure began on Saturn's famous moon. Some strange geological activity beneath its surface resulted in a "thaw" and the UAC established a base there to see what could be gleaned from the unusual phenomenon. You got sent in after communications with the outpost went dark. You discover the beginning of an invasion by Hell, of course, and successfully stop the latest incursion. The powers behind the assault gloat because your Pyrrhic victory leaves you stranded in the inferno. The demons fail to realize that they are now trapped in the abyss with you. Titan 2, then, is the story of how you fight your way through Hell to the architect of your imprisonment.

Jesper's 2004 release had a few good things going for it but I wasn't a fan of the stale techbase layouts. I can still feel Rasmussen's style in the details and encounters but he has clearly made some progress in level design. It could just be that most of the episode is based in Hell. The transition to Stygian scenery was the point where I felt the original loosening up. There is a bit of "Titan the Way Ixnatifual Would Have Done In 2009" with the secret level, though, which uses the basic idea of the original's "Mineral Storage" (MAP01). It's still a little static compared to the surrounding material but Jesper has made the layout and combat much more dynamic. Excepting the painful Hell knight balcony I think that his techbase-fu shows some real growth.

The author does not shy away from discussing his difficulty sensibilities in the .TXT and you would do well to pay attention. The particular details of the encounters do not really change between HNTR, HMP, and UV. Rather, each step on the slider increases the level of Satanic saturation. If you love a long, slow grind through the hordes of Hell then Ultra-Violence is the choice for you. Players who enjoy a freer range of movement may want to dial it down, though. Hey, Not Too Rough feels like a ghost town at times (especially if you've seen the sort of monkey-piles that await on the highest setting) but the new monsters are perfectly capable of slaying a careless player dead. You'll still have to weather some slaughter scenarios in "Bowels of Gehinon" (MAP07) and "Coliseum of the Damned" (MAP09) so keep that in mind if you shrink into a corncob at the slightest sign of one.

There are a handful of new regular monsters. The plasma trooper is a tougher zombie and, as you can imagine, fires carefully metered streams of energy projectiles. The Lord of Heresy is the winged super-Baron and fires spreads of green stuff. It also has an ultimate attack - signalled via a distinct bellow - where it fires an expanding halo of Hell noble slaw. The Afrit is not the revenant / mancubus flamethrower spamming variety but a heavy flier with less health than the Baron. It has a normal attack, a fireball that does moderate splash damage, and area-denial fire carpets. I like it more than the Bruiser demon since the latter has slay-you-dead fireball combo attacks as well as spreading, explosive waves for boss-tier mobility control. I'd probably appreciate them more if their debut encounter wasn't such a clusterfuck.

There are two surprises, those being the boss and a holdover from the original Titan. I didn't get a lot of quality time with the Hectebus this go-around since the (secret) level sets you up to quickly cook it using a BFG but I remember them as being super-annoying. You only have to face down one, though, so its weird spread pattern has a chance to shine. I also lucked out into having an invul left over after clearing MAP09's slaughter smorgasbord. I can sort of see a fun boss encounter in the design of the Supreme Fiend. The intent appears to be clearing out the explosive homing mine phase and ducking behind cover to mitigate the sure-to-kill-you BFG blasts. I'm grateful to have invulnerability / BFG zerg as an option, though.

Oh, yeah, you get a minigun as the SSG equivalent for the chaingun. It chews through ammo quickly but will slay monsters just as fast and the high rate of fire makes for potent single-target stunlocking (or spray and pray!). The only downside is, of course, the windup but it feels like it could be a great weapon when you're not getting mobbed by UV's beefy packs of enemies. It's too bad that the bullet ammo isn't compensated to boot. I feel as though the bestiary would have a lot to offer in smaller, tightly-designed scenarios a la Valiant but it loses a lot of its impact when the creatures are thrown at you in droves.

If crowdsurfing isn't your thing then it's still worth playing on lower difficulties. Just about every one of these Hell-themed levels is fun to poke around in and tends to afford you two different directions for you to start in what is fundamentally a loop-shaped progression path. It may not be a sandbox but I like getting to choose. I dig the underground cavern aesthetic featured in "Realm of the Unseen" (MAP08) and "Tartarus"'s caldera fortress (MAP03). "Demon's Furnace" (MAP02), "Goat Mansion" (MAP04), "Cacoastrum" (MAP05), and "City of Demons" (MAP06) combine with "Realm" to give much of the set a sort of slightly updated Doom II aesthetic that I really enjoyed. Some people who lived in the IWAD longer than I have will no doubt pick out even more references. It's not mostly founded on stuff nicked from id, mind you, but I know a "Tricks and Traps" homage when I see one.

Titan 2 actually has a variety of throwbacks to IWAD-like level design tropes, the sort of things that may make a "modern" player's head spin. None of them stand out in my mind as much as the weaving platform staircase in MAP04. It's a sneaky marriage of an old pitfall and new technology. In this case, each stepping stone is a lift that lowers ever so slowly into the lava below. It may be possible to run straight up with some crazy straferunning but doing so does not appear to be a practical endeavor. The space you have to cross appears to give the lift just enough time to sink below Doomguy's "climbing" capability. It actually dips under the surface of the molten slag for a good bit of time, too, so you can't just wait it out while you tap your foot.

There's a secret enviro suit nearby but its limited timer prevents you from tackling the obstacle in the most boring method possible. The only feasible way to best this challenge requires the use of GZDoom's JUMP function whether you're hurdling your way up each platform or skipping it all with one rocket-assisted bounce. It's a neat concept. At least, I don't remember seeing the two elements coming together quite like this. Other classically-oriented bits of design include monster closets built into interior room walls (i.e. the swastika-no-longer of the original Doom's E1M4), crushers, and goofy cascading monster closets. You'll see room-over-room geometry both decorative and functional but pretty much all of the slopes are used for window dressing.

Rasmussen has taken advantage of ZDoom's scripting capabilities but a lot of it appears to be tied to the deaths of monsters. It doesn't affect the nuts and bolts of the gameplay as much as it broadens the variety of ways in which an encounter can be paced. This is more obvious in the descending elevator battle in MAP09 but also applies to other climactic encounters. Some of the levels have longer invasions that come with a temporary change in music. Other more subtle aspects involve tweaks like changing the traditional lift timing to suit each one's particular purpose. I didn't see a lot of crazy geometry-changing events except for the exit obelisk that erupts from the ground after beating back MAP03's pain elemental invasion. A cool moment, to be sure.

The soundtrack was not written for Titan 2 but it all came from the same source - Damian Lee, aka "Lexus Alyus". Two of the songs - "Great White" and "Coma White" - are actually Marilyn Manson covers from the Mechanical Animals album. Each has a slow, almost relaxed beat and makes for relatively understated MIDI metal. "Doomed For the Last Time" is actually a rewrite of "Deep In the Code" with a slightly exotic flair during the guitar runs. "Stomping Grounds" and "Burning Flag" are thrash all the way while "Slow Stalker" and "My Island" feel closer to something that I could have heard during one of those '96-'97 era megaWADs. (Do I detect a hint of the Knight Rider theme in the former?) "Strange Places" is alone in its light instrumentation and foreboding atmosphere. "Refinery" is the last of the regular tracks and sounds like one of the funkier Rise of the Triad songs mashed up with some synthpop.

TITAN2 is a pretty cool GZDoom mapset. I'd definitely recommend it over the original, not to slam Ixnatifual's debut. It just feels more polished and rewarding to explore. If you like playing through Hell levels be they nameless Gothic citadels or vast infernal caverns then this ought to have you covered. Just make sure to set the difficulty to match your meat grinding comfort level.

TITAN 2

by Jesper Krag "Ixnatifual" Rasmussen

The Pits

MAP01

Kicking things off with this red brick Hell level. It has a sort of infernal depths feel because of all the pools of lava. The most notable are I assume the titular structures, which resemble a cross between waste chutes and prison cells. It's largely Doom II trash clearing in the corridor shooter style. The architecture looks pretty good but since most of it feels made up of corridors the central section and its grand staircase is where it really shines. It's also the scene of the first real shootout, a sizable teleport ambush funneled into the upper hallway that you walk down while entering. If the monsters don't get hung up before the stairs then you might feel a good bit of pressure. The grated walkway to the southwest is a neat feature.

MAP02

Demon's Furnace

Rectilinear beige brick with a cool-looking red rock annex and a few neat foundry sections. The super shotgun makes a welcome debut in a moment that feels like an echo of "The Crusher" (revenant gallery reveal while climbing stairs). The opposition feels a little thicker but it's still mostly hallway clearing. There's a pretty strong monster closet ambush on the westernmost side. The level has another "invasion" moment which I feel is probably going to feature heavily in the set but if they're structured like this map then I'll enjoy them. It's a multi-prong assault with a main invasion while a chorus line of imps sneaks up from the path of retreat. Fun stuff but I'm not so fond of the slow army of cacodemons lurking in the mirrored exit corridors.

Tartarus

MAP03

Another portion of the vast, infernal complex. This one stands out more for having a handful of really cool setpieces. The two circular structures to the northwest look nice but come with some lukewarm combat surprises. I also like the eastern ravine. The obvious standout is the marble tower in the center of the crater that dominates the middle of the map. It's kind of dangerous to navigate since you're exposed when running around but the big threat is the finale, a swarm of pain elementals in a relatively open space... without the lost soul limit! It's a very simple setup but can quickly spiral out of control. You can always retreat, though. My favorite feature is the exit switch structure that erupts from the ground once you've killed the last pain elemental.

MAP04

Goat Mansion

Going for something of an E4 wood and metal-style level. The opposition is dense because this is a Hell noble showcase and features two new monsters. Both are introduced in miniboss roles but the Bruiser demon fight is much scarier. It's a tricky pistol start because you can push in several different directions and wind up short on ammo, especially when confronting packs of meat like the aforementioned goat men. The look is pretty solid and it has a few neat (if potentially frustrating) gimmicks. The southern platform sequence requires you to run and jump or you won't get very far without dying. The finale is tough because of the raw strength of the Bruisers but there is plenty of cover for you to play it safe. I suppose that you might have a bad day if all of the big guys died at once...

Cacoastrum

MAP05

If you've been rolling guns and ammo then this won't seem so crazy. Otherwise, beware. The level's big gimmick is a huge wave of cacodemons at the start. They are capable of following you to the other segments of the level so it helps to know where the super shotgun and rocket launcher can be found. There are a handful of other cacodemon ambushes, too. One of them puts you under approximately the same level of pressure while another mirrors the "Tricks and Traps" ambush. My favorite architectural oddity - for whatever reason - consists of the staggered columns in the SSG room.

MAP06

City of Demons

A "Downtown" style Hell map. I dig the infernal vibe. It's kind of tricky to start because there are a lot of directions for you to push in and powerful monsters (like afrits) to wake up. All of the higher-tier weapons are buried inside the buildings so you'll have to sort that out if starting from scratch. Each progression point opens up a cadre of monsters to invade the playing space. They start out in a bunch but they'll probably have spread out by the time you realize that they are roaming. You get one of the invasion-style encounters inside the northern building, too, but it pales in comparison to the street slaughters.

Mineral Storage

MAP10

A remake of the original Titan's MAP01, a congested warehouse. It's far more action-oriented and channels the same spirit of low-grade slaughter as the rest of the episode. It has a pretty hectic opener since you're sort of driven amongst the crates to root out troublesome snipers. There is a very big speedbump when you hit the teleporter pads, though. Four Barons are already plenty to tackle with the combat shotgun but they're followed up by the huge clog of Hell knights on the overlook. The caco swarm is way more fun. The darkened store room behind the yellow key door harkens back to the level's original incarnation. The demon lords do a good job of ratcheting up the dread and the final boss came as a bit of a shock.

MAP07

Bowels of Gehinon

This is a big ol' crazy slaughter level. The opening sort of reminds me of "The Catacombs" but the moment you hit the ground floor the invasion is on. The BFG does a lot of work but it can't be expected to hold its own. The rocket launcher is through the southwestern door and provides the extra "oomph" required to take out the mess of Hell nobles that you'll be inevitably left with. Once you sort them out it's on to a meaty clear of Deus Vult-ish gothic marble and infernal caverns. Sometimes you're chewing your way through packs of goat men and at others it's cackling as you splatter a catwalk crammed full of imps. I like the trickery involved with the blue key. Pretty fun from a slaughter perspective.

Realm of the Unseen

MAP08

This one is more of a "Living End"-style map. Hell has some impressive fortifications in the infernal reaches. The opening is about as nasty as the level gets since you're short on health and ammo early on and must weather a basic trooper teleporter invasion. They're pretty lethal in these circumstances! Once you've put down the insurrection it's back to standard scenery-chewing. Some of the surprises / traps feel very IWAD-ish. Others, like the teleport wave that enters from the southern side of the exit wing, are more representative of the PWAD's meaty / ammo-sponge encounter design. Tough to break into but fun to explore.

MAP09

Coliseum of the Damned

Back to slaughter but minus the post-carnage exploration. The opening is a mostly marble gauntlet of three challenges. They range from invul crowd-surfing to get weapons to supplement the minigun; a metered, "Descent"-style elevator fight; and a senseless zombie slaughter. The finale provides the meat of the combat and is a long, invasion-style brawl. The monsters come in four distinct waves of types while a largely ineffectual crowd of Hell nobles looks on. Once you've slain the final challenger a series of automated lifts makes sure that you can get to the stands... and gives the goat men an avenue to reach you. The final boss is super dangerous but there's a good chance for you to have a leftover invul sphere after rooting out the bleachers.

UNBRINKABLE