Chaos Punch (CPUNCH.WAD)

CHAOS PUNCH

by Karthik Abhiram Krishna

I'm on K.A.'s third map, the second released in 2001, and the gap between his level design and Doomworld's standards for their Top 10 WADs of 2002 seems vast. He never meant for anyone to see his first proper level, of course. KARTHIK2 was only made available after the fact due to nostalgia on his part. Ick was a big step but still showed someone coming to grips with what they were able to make in idtech1. Chaos Punch is an E2M1 replacement and shows a lot of the same design decisions, just turned outward instead of within. It does have a pretty strong gimmick that ties it together, though, and which sets it apart from a lot of PWADs. Excluding the stuff in the MAP21 slots of megaWADs like Scythe II, anyway.

CPUNCH doesn't have a story. What it has is a ton of Berserk-fueled fisting. Well, I say a ton, but the level only has a scant 55 monsters. Everything behind the blue key door - which includes the map's cacodemons and roughly half of its Barons - can be killed by using the rocket launcher. The other portion of the goat men are slain via a death-by-barrels arrangement that makes them mostly harmless. You still have to punch out a decent number of imps, demons, and lost souls, though. This could range from super annoying if you absolutely suck at melee in Doom to a snooze-fest if your idea of fun involves Berserk-fisting Cyberdemons.

The level is in the E2M1 slot but it uses the Phobos sky. I'm not sure what the motivator was unless Karthik was trying to keep the registered content out of the shareware episode. It's a design decision that I almost never think about but was important in the early days. The textures are for the most part E1 too but it would be incredibly generous to call this a Knee Deep in the Dead-style entry. All of the action occurs on the same, flat plane. Most of the map consists of an outdoor area which is sectioned off by an irregularly-shaped wall structure in its center. The floor is poison but Abhiram's catwalks cover enough of the space that you shouldn't take too much damage. He's distributed a couple of enviro suits, too, which are mostly needed for the beginning; a few of powerups; and the yellow key.

The two indoor spaces consists of more weirdness. The central compound is a nukage barrel storage depot. At least, the barrels are its only major features apart from another one of those weird sectional walls that splits the space up into loose chambers. The easternmost room is where you get the rocket launcher. It has computer consoles and a big ol' "acid is eating into the floor" pattern. It's also enormous so the heavy monsters who appear inside aren't much of a threat with or without the RL. I'd be more worried about the Barons in the exit hallway. Except, you know, you have both a rocket launcher and plenty of room to lure them out into if you'd rather just skip fighting entirely.

It's a pretty fun and fast play since I was punching stuff that I'm well-practiced at. I dunno how less-versed players react to having to Berserk fist enemies, though they're not the toughest. It's interesting to see Karthik's odd method of building walls carry over into the outdoor setting. I couldn't help but peek ahead and saw none of his strangest idiosyncrasies in his next release, Out of Phase. I'm that much more stoked to see how his craft develops between now and Congestion Control.

FLOAT LIKE A FLUTTERBY
STING LIKE ANARCHY