Doom 64 (DOOM64.WAD)

Doom has been ported to a staggering number of platforms but a select few of the commercial releases hold a special place in the hearts of a generation. The Playstation and the Nintendo 64 each got their own version (two in the case of the PSX's Final Doom). Both were created by Midway games and used the talents of three of the same authors: Randy Estrella, Danny Lewis, and Tim Heydelaar. They also featured haunting, atmospheric soundtracks from Aubrey Hodges. I am reviewing the 64 iteration first even though it was released later. Roughly a year and a half in 1997, to be exact. No offense to the PSX fans; there's just way more meat for me to sink my teeth into.

The narrative takes place after the events of the first two games. You're the sole survivor, haunted by nightmares of what you've seen and experienced. They didn't even send you to Mars; they just carpeted it with nuclear bombs. Something survived down there, though, and it's staging the next invasion. The resulting mutations could only be borne by reanimated tissues and they're more vicious than the previous brood. You have the most knowledge and you've survived where billions did not. You are sent to confront your worst fears head-on in the ultimate act of cathartic defiance.

Doom 64 was a forbidden delight for PC users. It remains exclusively available for the console that it was made for but it is essentially a total conversion. There are thirty-two brand new levels; all-new graphics; altered enemy behavior; and even a new weapon. If you for some reason had the assets back in 1997 then you could not have remade it in the original engine. The new special effects and level design features gave the world a different, enhanced feel. Things changed with the release of the Linux source code. The featuresets of ports closed enough of the gap for Samuel Villarreal to feel comfortable in heading up Doom 64: Absolution.

The Doomsday-based TC shares a somewhat similar relationship to the original release and its PSX conversion. The maps aren't exactly the same due to not only engine differences but also the fact that the levels were painstakingly reconstructed via screenshots. The Absolution team also added their own spin with new monster varieties and even levels. I remember downloading and playing the TC a few years after it was released but I never finished it and don't recall making it much farther than the first few maps. I can't speak as to its accuracy or lack thereof but it must have been a monumental undertaking.

Enter Doom64 EX, a source port that runs off the original cart's data. Kaiser has done a lot of work in getting disused classic games to run on modern operating systems and this was almost certainly a labor of love given his past history. It is the most accurate experience available on a PC without running it in an emulator. Plus you can actually make PWADs! While there has been a constant if low murmur of interest, EX user maps never really exploded as a genre. It's still more viable than Strife, at least. Hopefully the presence of large-scale projects like Beta 64 and Community Chest 64 will kickstart the production of smaller releases that form the lifeblood of a healthy scene.

There has been a glut of more recent projects hoping to bring the magic of Doom 64 to the GZDoom engine with varying goals. An in-depth discussion of their relative merits is outside the scope of this review but Retribution is probably the one to check out if you can't be assed to run EX yet want something that approximates the original experience. Without running a relatively older version of Doomsday, of course. If you're more of a Brutal Doom head then SgtMarkIV has you covered with BD64, built off a slightly older but inactive project called GZDoom64. I used EX for my playthrough because it best represents the worlds that its authors were attempting to make.

The base mechanics are pretty similar to Doom II. A handful of monsters were cut due to hardware limitations but some players will not mourn for the loss of chaingunners, revenants, arch-viles, or even Spiderdemon. The cast gets a new boss monster to compensate, the Mother Demon. She only appears in the final level. It would be a much more dangerous opponent if you were forced to handle it without the powered-up secret weapon or, for that matter, the BFG. Good luck if you try to stick it out using the "regular" arsenal; dodging its homing balls of red energy while avoiding its Maulotaur-esque exploding fire tracers is a tricky proposition.

Some of the monster behavior has been altered, significantly so in the case of the pain elemental and lost soul. The latter is less robust, only taking a single shotgun blast to kill, while also charging faster and more often. The lost soul is easily one of the two most threatening enemies in the modified bestiary. On the highest difficulty they appear as deadly player-seeking swarms that are difficult to outmaneuver. The other is the modified pain elemental which spawns the things. It would be bad enough just from the altered lost soul behavior but it also vomits forth two at a time. If an errant skull is aborted upon creation, e.g. spawning in level geometry or an actor, then its explosion carries the blast force of a bursting barrel. I found this out while using a wall for cover in "In the Void" (MAP31).

Arachnotrons and mancubi aren't too terribly different. The mancubus attack pattern doesn't seem to have the same odd series of angles but it still shoots in spreads. The arachnotron actually fires dual projectiles as well, they just do less damage each. I think that the most significant but subtle change is in the Cyberdemon. It appears to move a bit slower but its rockets are actually fired from the launcher which results in a natural decline when its projectiles are aimed at you. If you're dodging then they usually explode on the ground close to where the player was standing. To me, the ordnance travels significantly faster, but this may be a placebo effect. The bottom line: they make for an encounter that is much harder than its vanilla counterpart.

The nightmare imp is a new monster variety. It's just as tough as the regular imp but moves faster and has quicker fireballs while also being bluish-purplish and transparent. Their inclusion is far less burdensome than the changes to, say, the lost soul. The Hell knight and Baron are just about the same but they can actually infight. The change is carried over from the PSX version, which Doom 64 is based on. The player also seems to get hung up on monsters, an almost nonexistent occurrence in the original Doom where you can even "glide" on things for a speed boost. Facing down a pack of demons is way scarier when one is easily capable of pinning you to a wall.

The toolkit should seem pretty familiar. I feel like both shotguns have a tighter spread but I think that this is mostly a consequence of the game's more intimate range of combat. The SSG feels like it has a much faster rate of fire but this does not appear to be the case when making a side-by-side comparison. While still handy, it's been hobbled somewhat due to the changes to the lost souls and pain elementals. The chaingun feels like a much stronger weapon overall. I don't know if the rate of fire was tweaked but the pain stun component is invaluable in the majority of cases. The plasma gun is a little slower. I prefer the way that it sounds but it didn't feel as satisfying to use. The chainsaw has two blades and kills twice as fast; it's a powerful single-target damage dealer.

The big draw is obviously the unnamed demonic laser weapon, which the community has dubbed the Unmaker. The Doom Bible tool apparently wasn't in the Midway team's mind when they made it, though. It isn't a great armament to start with but becomes stronger as you acquire the coveted Demon Keys in the three secret levels. It increases the rate of fire at first and afterward drastically improves its power by causing it to shoot two and later three lasers per shot. It is ridiculously strong in its final form, chewing through both the Cyberdemon and Mother Demon at super speed. You won't find the laser cannon in but a few places, though.

You might think that a powerful weapon like this is only usable during continuous play but the functionality of Doom 64's perks is interesting. At least, it is in the EX engine. Simply acquiring a Demon Key appears to flag your playing session. If you use the "Restart Level" option from the in-game menu then you will still have it when the map reloads. In this way I was able to play each entry from pistol start while still powering up the laser gun for those rare occasions when it is available. As has been fully documented elsewhere, the keys also allow you to hasten the progression of "The Absolution" (MAP28) by sealing off three portals that usher in the initial wave of baddies during the level's first phase.

Doom 64 is often thought of as the spiritual second sequel in relation to the progression of engine features between 1993, 1994, and then 1997. The addition of colored lighting for the PSX version was important to its overall aesthetic but wasn't exactly what I would call a game-changer. Midway weaved in some new illumination effects for the 64, though, as well as fog and even skies both scrolling and parallax. They also got "limited room-over-room" which as far as I can tell isn't any different functionally from the way you would do it in vanilla. According to Tim, they just lucked out in having the sky render behind all level geometry. In idtech1 the sky texture supersedes anything that it happens to be in front of. This sometimes results in the upper portions of level geometry vanishing as you move around in some less visually polished PWADs.

Doom 64's main advantage is in its scripting capabilities. Of course, Hexen brought this to idtech1 with ACS back in 1995, but Raven's use was limited by its commitment to sword and sorcery in relatively realistic environments. Midway shows off early on with the ground-pounding device in "The Terraformer" (MAP02) or the insane molding machines of "Main Engineering" (MAP03), after which it blends into the underpinning of the levels. Every now and then you get a surprise that makes the map geometry look frighteningly malleable, though. The moving walls in "Burnt Offerings" (MAP22), for instance, or the pain elemental summoning font in "Spawned Fear" (MAP18). One of my favorite demonstrations of the scripting is one of the bonus offerings, "Playground" (MAP27). The transition from the arachnotron fight to Cyberdemon showdown would have been a great abstract centerpiece to showcase Hell as being composed of nightmarish chaos.

Monster spawning via scripts isn't exactly a revelation but it definitely streamlines the process by making the cumbersome construction of teleporter coffins unnecessary. The authors also use it to deliver player pickups as part of the multi-stage fights that take place in levels like "Watch Your Step" (MAP17). The raw potential of both is best showcased in the abstract bonus levels like, again, "Playground". The silent fade-in adds to the horror atmosphere since they aren't presaged by an obvious teleporter sound effect. It also fits in with Midway's hallucinatory Hell aesthetic. I wonder if they could remove enemies from the map by using scripts just as easily as they shifted the blue key around in "The Terraformer"? Having to escort a monster from one portion of the map to another would be a wicked way to unlock a secret.

The scripting plays into more aspects than just changing the shape of the levels or porting in enemies, though. It also allows for dynamic sector lighting, changing colors and brightness among other things. MAP02 is again a great showcase of this effect with the blue armor kiosk lighting its room up. It's also worth pointing out that the authors involved did a lot of painstaking sector light work in the early techbase maps, notably "Staging Area" (MAP01) but others as well. When combined with scripting and softer strobe levels it approaches the visual impact of modern PWADs like Sunlust, just with a much smoother edge. The variety of luminescence is a major contributor to the visual feel and ambiance of the final product.

There are a bunch of other little features not native to Doom II. Security cameras, for one. The monitors are only used to supply hints for puzzles but are neat to have. You can see a conveyor belt clear as day in "Staging Area" and scrolling floors appear in a few other isolated scenarios; there seems to be a lot of untapped potential. One of the things that really blew my mind was the specter-pit room in "Alpha Quadrant" (MAP06). After parts of the bridge collapse it doesn't look like you can make it across by running. The three mechanical-looking platforms actually function as pistons, though, and give you the vertical push you need to clear the gaps. I have no idea what's going on under the hood but it's too amazing to be confined to a single level.

The homing rocket-shooting turrets and dart traps are at odds with the popular image of Doom as a run-and-gun playground but it makes more sense in the context of what the Midway team was influenced by. According to level designer Tim Heydelaar they were looking at the engine features that Raven Software brought to Heretic and, more importantly, Hexen. The latter showcased a lot of environmental hazards including wall-mounted turrets and perilous platforming. Their fascination also explains the strong devotion toward puzzle play. The Doom 64 team took a lot of cues from Beyond Heretic but implemented and expanded on them in their own particular way.

And yes - Midway takes the original game's dungeon-crawlerish tendencies toward new heights. Or depths, depending on how you feel about having to intuit the correct switch to pull. There's usually a clue, though. Setups include the Rubik's cube room in "Outpost Omega" (MAP29) where you can find the first Demon Key as well as the laser weapon; the randomized blue keycard roulette in "The Terraformer"; or, perhaps my favorite, the sequence required to unbar the exit door in "Unholy Temple" (MAP23). While some bits of Doom 64 evoke my memories of ETERNAL, the last one actually brings to my mind its more complex sequences, chiefly Sverre Kvernmo's "Dark Dome". Interesting side note - some of the key placement varies based on the difficulty level, placing them outside of puzzles.

Hexen is the most obvious mechanical influence but it's tough to tease out what other things that the authors may have drawn inspiration from, if any. By Tim's own admission the designers were huge Doom fans and consumers of community content. For his own part, he specifically mentioned Memento Mori and The Plutonia Experiment, and it's possible that the other team members were familiar with the same things by way of peers sharing their favorites. I can definitely see some parallels in the way the Casalis designed their levels but I would hesitate to say that Doom 64's maps were derived from Milo and Dario's work.

The easiest comparison to draw may be the most superficial. "Cat and Mouse" (MAP25) is a bonus level that consists of a deadly maze where you're stalked by a Cyberdemon. It bears some resemblance to the terror invoked in Plutonia's "Hunted", which features arch-viles in a mess of corridors sectioned off by walkover-triggered doors. The latter is more terror over the former's creeping dread, though, since you can hear the many archies and they move much faster than Doom 64's lumbering Cybie. Randy gets his mileage through a combination of angles. The rocket launcher draws out the length of the encounter, for one, and you don't have masses of missiles to make missed shots meaningless. The foggy haze also helps and monster-specific walkover lines teleport the Cyb to distant locations to aid in the uncertainty.

Some bits like the open crossfire yard of "Dark Entries" (MAP15) and the arachnotron clearing of "Burnt Offerings" feel the closest to the Casalis' work. This is partly due to the incongruous green grass in Hell and beige stone textures lining up with Plutonia's quasi-Mesoamerican theme. I wonder how much of this was due to the many-faces-of-Hell concept that was abandoned early in development. The open arena design of "No Escape" (MAP24) brings to mind "Cyberden" or even Memento Mori's "Showdown", especially when considering the eight-pronged central structure.

Doom 64 overall is still a very different experience from Plutonia in just about every conceivable category. Its pacing is slower overall and many of its encounters are weighted toward monotypical groups of monsters that simplify the prioritization of threats. I don't know if the authors would have done anything different had they access to the chaingunner, revenant, arch-vile, or even the Spider Mastermind. It would have changed up some of the filler material, which tends toward hallways sporting either zombies or imps with the occasional Hell noble. Knee Deep in the Dead had plenty of scenarios where you were forced to juggle mixed groups of monsters as they roamed around the corridors of the Phobos base.

I dunno how difficult it is to play Doom 64 with the Nintendo 64's controller and I wonder how much of the encounter design was based around any of its limitations. When it comes to larger encounters I feel that the team was fonder of attempting to overwhelm the player with brute force as evidenced through demon hordes and flaming skull swarms. This outweighs the chaos of open-layout brawls like "Even Simpler" (MAP09) and "The Spiral" (MAP19). These free space shootouts still exist, though, which implies the expectation of some level of mobility. I think that the neo-lost souls are harder to outmaneuver than any single revenant rocket. They aren't destroyed when they collide with a wall or actor so they can path to seek the player and then repeatedly bite the everloving shit out of him or her.

As I look back on these levels I find it difficult to make a generalization without some heavy caveats. If I were to summarize Danny's style then it would be economy of design as far as his marriage of map flow to each level's layout. His works are generally simple hub and spokes that reuse main spaces for multiple encounters through judicious monster spawn scripting. Say what you will about backtracking; he manages to keep it fairly interesting. When his maps aren't simple then they're closer to Tim's in being challenging to explore either due to the number of overlapping paths or in the case of "Eye of the Storm" (MAP14) allowing you to approach your goal from two parallel albeit identical paths.

Separating Randy and Tim feels more difficult. Each author has a challenging puzzle lying in wait for you, e.g. Danny's dense demon key warehouse in "Outpost Omega" or Tim's sequence-locked switches in "Unholy Temple". Estrella is the primary purveyor, though. Some of his stuff utilizes Doom 64's unique features for moments like "Terraformer"'s blue shift but "Final Outpost" (MAP08) is his real showcase. He also seems to be the guy most prone to punish you with a trap built from sector machinery, mostly crushers but in one instance a dropaway floor in an exit room. I also think that he's the one to go to for "hot starts" and open-air crossfires. Part of this is because he's responsible for "Even Simpler" (MAP09) but he carries the same energy into "Dark Entries", "Burnt Offerings", and "No Escape".

Where Tim stands out is his sheer consistency. Apart from "The Spiral" (MAP19) and to a lesser extent "Into the Void" (MAP31), his portfolio features well-developed levels built out of complex layouts that you slowly open up. They're also structured around a central hub-type location. There are a few major subversions, of course. The entirety of "Spiral" IS the hub and "Void" is complicated mainly by the use of teleporters. "Pitfalls" is the big change-up, though. It starts out looking like a bog-standard starting room and then quickly swerves away and toward an epic adventure as you dig deeper into Hell's underbelly.

Each of the authors had a hand in the super-secret map, "Hectic" (MAP32). Accessed via an arcane ritual, the original intent was to award the player with a "Features" in-game menu option that allowed access to built-in cheats like God mode. The selection must still be unlocked in Doom64 EX but remains open afterward through your config settings. It's a tiny death trap hub. Randy's segment reflects his sensibilities by thrusting you into a shocking arachnotron firefight and following it up with a fuck-you quick crusher. Danny's challenge leverages his fondness for scripted transformations by dangerously altering the chamber after your initial impression. Tim's feels the most divorced from his style at first glance but the grid of slow cycling-lifts is a classic Doom staple (see E2M3 / "Refinery"). Combining it with the network of dart traps results in a highly concentrated deconstruction of his cerebral level design. If you take your time and build an accurate mental map of all the moving parts then you can make it through without suffering a single strike.

Three of Doom 64's levels are normally accessible through the Features menu. They are not built like the rest of the entries and better resemble the setpiece encounters typically seen in larger levels. Randy's "Cat and Mouse" (MAP25) combines his tendency toward including miniature labyrinths in his levels with a start that faces you against a Cyberdemon... and then forces you to locate your gun and its ammo in the maze. "Hardcore" (MAP26), by Danny, best reflects his more complex level design by combining overlapping pathways into two circuitous loops. Tim's "Playground" (MAP27) appears to be incongruous when compared to his relatively large maps but its deathly haze meshes with the otherworldly atmosphere of "In the Void". He wasn't any stranger to knockabout fights, either, looking at the chaos of "The Spiral" or the ancillary areas of "Dark Citadel" (MAP13) and "Unholy Temple". The big surprise is his use of scene-changing scripting. Not to forget the shifting earth of "Pitfalls", of course.

A thorough look at this masterpiece would not be complete without considering Aubrey Hodges's background music score. It is a collection of desolate, ambient soundscapes and puts the final nail in the coffin - so to speak - that is Doom 64's haunted and horrific atmosphere. I've enjoyed virtually all of the inclusions found in PWADs but they rarely if ever compare to the sheer menace and loneliness imparted by Aubrey's soundtrack. It's one thing when you're actually in the grip of combat but the spaces in between have been some of the most unsettling that I've ever experienced in the idtech continuum. I'm genuinely interested in seeing how the Playstation version - and perhaps even the PSX TNT Evilution / The Plutonia Experiment / Master Levels conglomerate - feel after having played the 64 iteration.

The Midway team really put its heart into Doom 64 and I was drawn inexorably in to its unique aesthetic. I find myself wanting to see what the user community has done with the release of Kaiser's EX. Maybe someday an intrepid coder will see fit to develop an equivalent work for the Playstation for a similarly authentic experience. If you really enjoy a horror atmosphere in your Doom gameplay but haven't yet played the 64 branch then you should at least give it a try. It may be just the thing that you've been waiting for.

NOTE: You will need the actual game data from the Doom 64 cart in order to use Doom64 EX. It is not provided by its author in any way, shape, or form. You can get the Doom64 EX source port here.

EDIT: We sort of knew that this was coming, but Doom 64 was officially re-released on 03/20/20. You can purchase it for $5 on the non-GOG platform, console or otherwise, of your choice.

DOOM 64

by Midway Games incl. Randy Estrella,

Danny Lewis, and Tim Heydelaar

Staging Area	MAP01
by Randy Estrella
A spooky intro and I hope demo of the team's guiding principles. Randy showcases a handful of relatively unintuitive design decisions to let you know what sort of trickery may be afoot. The starting platform is a riff on the leap of faith from Doom II's "Entryway" but a couple of secrets actually return you... and you'll have to for the equally obscure "Hectic". There are several timed switch puzzles including but not limited to the blue key and a number of gaps that you can sprint across. Colored and dynamic lighting a la the shotgun guy ambush and the wicked cool pillar in the penultimate room debut. I also like the added engine features, e.g. the vertical two-way door and the conveyor belt. The combat isn't necessarily tough but the beefy demons feel as though they can easily trap you.

MAP32	Hectic
by Randy Estrella, Tim Heydelaar, and Danny Lewis
	The team crammed some of the worst death traps they could think of in the extraneous levels. This one is a joint venture, though. Most of the stuff in the start is designed to kill you one way or another. There is a way to the green armor, though, and it's an essential item. Estrella designed a claustrophobic killbox vs. three arachnotrons. Killing them with the rocket launcher has a certain amount of luck factor since you can get splashed or trapped. There's a super-dickish crusher trap that follows it up to administer a coup-de-grace, too. Danny designed the Hell knight bamboo pole fight. It's brilliantly dickish since the rocket launcher kickback can push you off if you don't compensate for it. Tim's lift and dart emporium is the easiest for patient players. The moving geometry will give you the cover that you need if you wait for the opportune moment.

The Terraformer	MAP02
by Randy Estrella
This techbase map has a bit more fun with scripting and light effects while continuing to showcase a trap fetish. The blue highlights activating in the red arrow tunnels is a neat visual moment. The titular apparatus is even more so, though. Watching the thing pound a hole for you to jump into is a freakin' awesome. The architecture is pretty neat even without considering the mechanism. The blue key room is a nice-looking storage area and the yellow key section has a cool abstract tech center feel. Randy regularly uses imps so the combat is still relatively easygoing. A ton of chaingun ammo allows you to really tear monsters up. I think that the traps (blue and especially red key) are the most dangerous aspects of this level.

MAP03	Main Engineering
by Danny Lewis
	Fun times with scripting. Dan makes your eyes pop when the fast-moving sector machinery lays out the metal cross early on. It's also mirrored toward the end where it creates a pit including switches in the center of the penultimate room. The author gets a lot of use out of the level's relatively small space by staging multiple encounters in the same chambers. The enemy placement is a bit monotypical and weighted toward imps, their nightmare brethren, and cacodemons. The aerial fight that comes with the yellow key offers a nice brawl and doesn't feel quite so grindy. I like the dickish "I-can't-believe-it's-a-rail" that keeps you in the upper tier.

Holding Area	MAP04
by Randy Estrella
Getting a bit tough, now. The author tosses you a hot start where you have to punch your way through a couple of specters and imps to get the shotgun. It takes a bit to get used to when you're so familiar with Doom's model and the 64 edition has a lot less wiggle room as far as it applies to squeezing past monsters. The following bit is a tiny switch-fed labyrinth with a neat red alert strobe effect when you snag the soul sphere.  There are some Hell knights stashed around and a bunch of imps at the top of the stairs. I think that the lost souls are by far the most dangerous monsters, though. You can't afford to rest until you've killed each active one and there are quite a few in the outdoor area as well as the chamber leading to the exit. I dunno how anyone is supposed to figure out the secret level sequence apart from trial and error.

MAP29	Outpost Omega
by Danny Lewis
	This beefy gauntlet is pretty tricky from a pistol start. You'll definitely want to find the not-secret chaingun since it's thick with cacodemons and, gulp, pain elementals. I managed to scrape by thanks to some handy infighting but that exit room got a bit intense. The other thorny combat issue is the caged mancubus brawl. The true meat of the map, though, is the Rubik's cube built around the laser gun and red Demon Key. Good luck sorting through all the various switches shootable and otherwise. The normal red key isn't even in the same room and the weapon itself is not in an intuitive location. The UAC obviously didn't want it to be found.

Tech Center	MAP05
by Tim Heydelaar
Tim's debut in the lineup eschews some of the crazier scripting spectacles for something that feels like a classic Doom level. The eight-way nexus is a neat way to start off the map and gives you plenty of directions in which to explore. The outdoor / balcony area to the north looks awesome and I like the final room with the central computer console hub. The network of rooms and tiny connecting hallways to the northwest feels like a Sandy Petersen bit and just manages to avoid overstaying its welcome. A fun map all-around.

MAP06	Alpha Quadrant
by Danny Lewis
	Danny pivots away from the straightforward feature showcases and toward weaving the latter into a complex layout. The southwestern portion of the map is fun to explore with its overlaid staircases and secret passages. The enormous pit to the north is a great atmospheric moment. I was almost expecting to die when I froze up and got taken to the bottom but the multitude of specters is much scarier and kind of survivable. As long as one doesn't wedge you in while you're trying to climb the nearly invisible stairs out. The bouncing platform puzzle is freakin' awesome and adds another advancement to Doom 64's toolkit that I wasn't expecting. The combat leans heavily on Hell knights and Barons. The big pink guys make their debut here.

Research Lab	MAP07
by Tim Heydelaar
It's funny to think that it took this long to actually run into some nukage. "Lab" is a tight network of passageways based around a 3 x 3 grid of rooms. Tim keeps it fresh with the scripting and it's neat how you return to the cages glimpsed at the beginning. The center is fun to slowly unravel but the main highlights are the tech corridors toward the beginning and the toxic tunnels at the end. The former gives me a sort of "Refueling Base" vibe.

MAP08	Final Outpost
by Randy Estrella
	R.E. rounds things out with the last base level. It utilizes monotypical monster placement and has a handful of tricksy puzzles. The inner water chamber has a couple of timed lift sequences to throw off slower players. The plasma gun is pretty easy to get unless you haven't figured out that the cameras are a thing yet. The yellow key will probably be the main source of frustration since the switch alcoves echo the myth of Tantalus, forever grasping above and below, never to be satisfied. The combat is pretty fun. The final room is probably my favorite since you're on the outer edge against imps with a second-phase switch-up. I also enjoyed the walls-fall-down spawn ambushes in the computer room.

Even Simpler	MAP09
by Randy Estrella
Whoa! This take on "Dead Simple" is a real brawl. The key to getting started is to kill the free-roaming mancubus. Afterward you can sort of settle into a groove, at least until you open up the side areas. I was not prepared for the storm that unleashed but I managed to survive all the same. The invul sphere spawn-in certainly helps. There is more ammo in the outer corridor but the good stuff is moderately booby-trapped.

MAP10	The Bleeding
by Danny Lewis
	The green grass around the gazebo feels like an odd detail but we're just getting started. This level is thick with beasties, particularly in the outdoor area. It makes for some pretty tight combat. The ceiling detail in the central structure is neat but my favorite bit is the water temple and cavern leading up to it. This is in spite of the fact that the front part is infested by lost souls. The cascading waterfall is a neat detail and you also get the debut of the BFG. The courtyard is pretty packed for the finale. Hopefully you found the secret weapons.

Terror Core	MAP11
by Danny Lewis
Going with a watery halls vibe. It's a highly interconnected level and features a bunch of monsters, opening with a chainsaw slaughter of specters and imps. The outdoor yellow key area showcases some of Doom 64's "limited room-over-room" but it's exactly what you'd expect to see in a 90s user map. The area is also notable for a couple of ornate secrets as well as an enormous lost soul ambush. It actually has a few good fights crammed into it; the opener with flaming skulls and demons ain't too shabby either.

MAP12	Altar of Pain
by Tim Heydelaar
	This is a neat nested layers level, most of which consists of the titular altar. The opener has you at the monsters' mercy; the cacodemons are more mobile than you and imps, Nobles, and mancubi attack from the inner and outer walls. It's a rough start and will have you running the outermost ring until you find the super shotgun at which point you can make a decent stand. The structure is a little tricky to navigate since the player is in a constant process of opening up small new side areas and connecting pathways. It's definitely worth it, though. The mess of Barons in the altar room is a bit much but the reward easily outclasses all of the following enemies.

The Lair	MAP30
by Danny Lewis
Another tight, meaty map. The first major portion is an outer yard and the overlooking balcony where you start at. The second is a cool temple which houses the next demon key. This puzzle's significantly easier to figure out but makes up for it by debuting the arachnotron and some other chunky beasties while you explore. The sewer annex is a great non-sequitur since it's only populated by lost souls. When they are (quickly) killed it becomes a highly atmospheric leg of the adventure. It added a fantastic aura to the process of uncovering its secrets.

MAP13	Dark Citadel
by Tim Heydelaar
	It isn't necessarily the most complex but this one feels like the largest level so far. It helps that a vast portion of the map is an outdoor colonnade. The opposing squat pillar / staircase deathtrap has a similar vibe. The former is the scene of a few good fights, the cacodemon / Baron one the better since the monsters aren't all bunched up when you start the fight. The library wing is the coolest new look but deficient in the combat department. The zombies and Hell nobles are desperately in need of the revenant to freshen things up. The yellow key shrine is a wicked spooky setpiece.

Eye of the Storm	MAP14
by Danny Lewis
Dan takes his own crack at a tight, single-location compound. The keep is sort of similar to "Altar of Pain" in the way that it's structured since you move from the outermost region toward the inner. The natural flow makes it a bit simpler to explore, though. As long as you can get the start sorted out given the arachnotrons and Barons in the water. The objective is a balcony visible from the beginning of the level and the source of not one but two storms of lost souls. They're very real threats but not quite as shocking as the small army waiting for you where the parallel paths converge. Mostly because you don't notice the pain elementals in the back at first. Love the battlements and crenellations.

MAP15	Dark Entries
by Randy Estrella
	This one was a bit of a surprise. The entry Hall isn't too crazy up until you activate the homing rocket turrets. I wasn't expecting that! There are a couple of teleporter wings for you to fight through. The first one isn't too long and has a one-shot switch puzzle. The hint is obvious but easy to overlook. The meat of the map is in an extensive outdoor wing with some wicked cool architecture and a crazy run-or-die yard. It's the sort of thing you might find in a Skillsaw level. It has a bunch of staged arachnotrons plus a few Hell nobles providing some infighting opportunity. Awesome stuff.

Blood Keep	MAP16
by Randy Estrella
Very cool level. It's a big, exploratory complex and opens on a hot start to get the blood pumping. The super shotgun isn't too far away and you'll want it for that initial cacodemon wave. Randy leans heavily on player exposure with bunches of imps lurking in various sections of the periphery. Depending on where you happen to be standing you're prioritizing either them or the cacos. The author throws a few lost soul clouds your way, none encounter so perilous as the finale. This is less because of the flaming skulls, though, and more the lack of warning of what happens next. The library is a great detail to keep the map feeling grounded, same with the statue-lined passageway that leads to its facade.

MAP17	Watch Your Step
by Danny Lewis
	A pair of death arenas. The first one consists of catwalks in blood trenches, hence the level title. It feels considerably more dangerous because of your limited mobility and the monsters include lost souls and pain elementals. The second is a more structured series of ambushes. Its most dangerous element - a pair of Cyberdemons - can be quickly swatted by way of the earlier afforded BFG and the secret invul sphere. Not that I wanted to try on two of the infamous D64 Cybs for my first experience. The atmosphere is great; I love the haze in the blood canals.

Spawned Fear	MAP18
by Randy Estrella
A delightfully classic-style map that has you zipping back and forth through a common network of corridors. The outer area where you start reminds me of those clean green-carpeted techbase levels like, I dunno, Kurt Kesler's KBOOM_8. The library theme makes another welcome appearance. I was most thrilled to see the debut of a naturalistic badlands. It occupies almost half of the level and has a fiery trench for you to explore as well as some bloody brawls. The pain elemental ambush is, err, a pretty heavy "hold the line" moment. Speaking of ol' skullslinger, the scripted portal in the opposite wing is a great set piece.

MAP31	In the Void
by Tim Heydelaar
	One of the most unique settings so far. The community has its own ideas about Hellish voids but Doom 64's fog and bleak blue-green color gives this one a character all its own. It's a tough level. The pain elementals are the stars due to the open layout and the demons in the catwalks keep you hemmed up just long enough for them to spawn some lost souls. The ground-bound combat is weighted toward using the super shotgun and occasionally the rocket launcher to pound Hell knights and Barons. It's easy enough to escape with the blue demon key, I think. Killing the five or so pain elementals who spawn in, though, requires careful use of cover. I realized here that they can effectively attack you through walls via an aborted lost soul spawn. Savage!

The Spiral	MAP19
by Tim Heydelaar
A simple but punishing death arena whose major motif is a giant curved staircase on the outer edge. The opening offers a nice Skillsaw-esque crossfire of mancubi and Hell knights for you to manage with the rocket launcher. The tables turn when you reach the top, though, and Tim instills fear through a couple of aerial enemy spawns. The first one is only half pain elementals but the other is all in and just a little bit terrifying. Especially since your main weapon is, again, the rocket launcher. It seems like the way to go is to let them get absorbed in witless infighting, lay down explosive suppression fire, and then cross your fingers. At least it's short!

MAP20	Breakdown
by Randy Estrella
	Randy makes some pretty good use of 3D space in this stone ruin. Each of the main areas has a great look. My highlight is the network of outdoor passages that rounds out the final leg. The opening structure is pretty cool too, though. The whole thing has an almost Mesoamerican temple vibe. My first standout encounter is the start, mainly because it's really easy to be hitscanned to death in the opening moments. The second is the demon rush trap. It's a neat cinematic moment and I'm actually scared of these guys since they can pin you against walls. Very cool level.

Pitfalls	MAP21
by Tim Heydelaar
This started out looking like a really lazy setup but my jaw dropped when one of the alcoves gave way to the "Living End"-ish underground cavern. The scripting used to change up the floor heights is a great way to portray the chaotic environment of Hell. The labyrinth of corridors that makes up the other half of the map, not so thrilling. The scattered zombies / occasional Hell knight gameplay wears a bit thin. The key shrine at its end looks frickin' awesome, though. It's easy to miss the rocket launcher since it requires you to explore the molten chasm. You'll manage to scrape along through most of the map but you'll need it upon returning for the yellow key. Great stuff.

MAP22	Burnt Offerings
by Randy Estrella
	Talk about your hot starts! You can go two ways with this one. If you rush into the yard then you'll spawn a bunch of arachnotrons and wake up all the demons. There's a chainsaw, though, so you can slice your way toward the megasphere fountain and then hunker down until the demons and specters are all dead. The other way involves navigating around the nearby water pit so you can snag the super shotgun before the real fun begins. It's a very arachnotron-heavy level, actually. The only other memorable fight is due to the scripting in the eight-way corridor chamber. It's an awesome visual, even if the Hell knight follow-up is luke-warm at best. The yellow key altar looks pretty cool, too.

Unholy Temple	MAP23
by Tim Heydelaar
Tim's final normal level echoes "Altar of Pain" but only your initial goal is to move inward. Once you access the interior of the central structure you can radiate outward and try to solve the temple's mystery. I got a little lost at first because two of the sides are trapped by homing rocket shooters. The player pressure tripped me up a little since I was more concerned with not dying than building a mental map. The combat isn't too challenging but the running of the bulls behind the red key door is daunting for the sheer number. The code-locked room off the watery exterior ring has the most memorable sequence, though. Cool stuff with the catwalks and the outer ledge. The laser gun is showcased in an obvious secret.

MAP24	No Escape
by Randy Estrella
	This reminds me of a Casali level, maybe something like "Showdown" or "Cyberden". The first phase is an open run-or-die bit with mancubus turrets and a Cyberdemon roaming on the ground. If you used the invul to kill the big guys in "Watch Your Step" then this will be a bit of a shocker. The closeout involves TWO of them. There are a few side-areas for you to explore, one of which features lost souls while the other sports pain elementals, but they're sideshows for the rocket launcher showdown. A fun slobberknocker once you get the vagaries of the D64 Cyb down.

The Absolution	MAP28
by Randy Estrella
The big boss. The arena, wreathed in flames, has a pretty neat look. I checked out both ways to fight the Mother. All demon keys with the fully-powered laser gun almost feels unfair. The hard way is more about letting infighting run its course while picking off lost souls and sniping pain elementals. The Mother Demon is a nightmare, though. You can aggressively BFG zerg her down since the explosive fire paths predictably and the painstun will keep her from shooting the homing fireballs. I wouldn't want to do a bullet Hell endurance run against her.

FUN LEVELS

These three maps are accessed through the Features menu, unlocked in the original game by completing "Hectic".

MAP25	Cat and Mouse
by Randy Estrella
	This is the sort of fight you end up seeing as a setpiece encounter in PWADs. In fact, it appears to be the source of the psychedelic finish from Impossible: A New Reality. There are some cages where imps work as spoilers but the meat of the fight is in locating the caches of rocket ammo are and a sweet spot to engage it from. One of the corners has two long hallways, one of which has a secret corridor in parallel. I think that the real danger in this fight is being impatient and trying to squeeze out more rockets than is safe to. You also don't want to waste many if at all.

Hardcore	MAP26
by Danny Lewis
Teleporter shenanigans are the order of the day in these bonus levels. This is less maze-like, though, and uses three-dimensional space to complicate a simple but blocky lemniscape. The basic idea is to kill the mancubi using the rocket launcher, then the arachnotrons with the plasma gun, and finally the Cyberdemon versus the combat shotgun. I think that the last one is the easiest of the waves. You have a ton of shells whereas you can't afford to mess up too much on the rockets and cells if you want to make it to the final round. It's very easy for the "Dead Simple" monsters to sneak up on you while there's only one Cyb.

MAP27	Playground
by Tim Heydelaar
	A simple but fun demonstration. You have to best three successive waves of monsters - like "Hardcore" - but only using the rocket launcher. The first is a crazy fun lightshow since all of the health and ammo is stacked underneath blur spheres. It sounds more dangerous than it is in practice; I think I only got knicked by stray fire a few times. I like how the arena unpacks itself with each successive wave; the promise of Doom 64's scripting is on full display.