Outbreak of Evil (OUTBREAK.WAD)

The original version of Outbreak of Evil was released in early 2013 as Opening, not to /idgames but the Russian Community. Serious_MOod went on to craft a bunch of additional content for the original Doom - Dark Side of Deimos, Beta Labs, The Day of Chains, and BLABS2 - sometimes with partners in crime. 2017-2019 had S_M reworking their premiere debut, releasing the finished remake / remodel in early 2019. Outbreak of Evil is a full Knee Deep in the Dead replacement. The author specifies PrBoom-Plus as the port to use but my outdated copy of ZDoom worked just fine. I dunno of any reason why it would be required over another limit-removing executable but you might keep it to Boom-compatible just to be on the safe side.

While many things changed between 2013 and 2019 the story or lack thereof has not. OoE is could be a re-imagining of the shareware episode, a simultaneous instance of a "last marine" scenario during the Phobos incursion, or an independent invasion at another UAC outpost. Or, uh, Crisis of Infinite Doomguys applies and this is the moment of birth of a parallel Doomslayer. It doesn't really matter which one but if you're paying attention then you'll see that the levels tend to contain subtle homages to the id originals. Some less so than others, e.g. E1M8. Your imagination determines the canon for this particular scenario since the author declined to define it themself.

It was interesting to perform a side-by-side comparison of the two versions. Both WADs in hand, I alternately played through one level at a time to get the full before and after experience. The core of each map - the layout and encounters - is roughly the same. The character of the final product, though, is considerably changed from the original. 2013 saw an author who was making simple but clean levels in a familiar aesthetic. The stylistic tendencies of Dark Side of Deimos manifest themselves here in levels who actually trade in suspense to the extent that you aren't tensed up for an ambush every ten feet. Its deserted portions feel weird when the broader Doom Community preaches by example a conveyor belt constantly distributing combat content to the player.

The remake better reflects modern trends, then. S_M is more diligent in ensuring that there is something to shoot at every step of the way. One of the largest dead spaces - a crate warehouse - was cut entirely while the rest has been thoughtfully populated with enemy opposition. The author didn't stop there, though. Some of the most memorable but mechanically boring encounters of the original set have been redesigned to be wicked fun. I love the organic staging in E1M6's outdoor slaughter, for instance, and E1M7's painful midtexture baffle was greatly transformed for the better. E1M5 already had a solid survival hook but giving the player a weapon up front affords some agency in a compelling last stand scenario.

Outbreak also has an aesthetic of its own. There are moments of brightness but this episode has a grimy, moody feel. The exterior shots of Knee Deep in the Dead are brightly lit if completely confined to the base walls and the green-tinged mountains almost look hospitable. Serious_MOod's scenery is full of barren, rugged landscapes under a dark sky that fades to distant, beige mountains. The alien wilderness doesn't look any more hospitable with its twisted trees. The theme is furthered in the gloomy base interior through tech guts textures and the similarly-styled columns for detailing.

The remodeling gently expanded some of the levels and even filled out the secret map slot with what I assume is a brand new work but they remain small and generally fast plays. Pistol starting will be more challenging for a skilled player but the action ought to be within a newbie's wheelhouse. The major exception is E1M8. The boss encounter has undergone a vast increase in difficulty by engineering myriad obstacles to maneuverability into the playing area. There are pillars made from geometry, objects to get hung up on, exploding barrels, and even incumbent lost souls. All this and a razor-thin ammo margin that might see you bare-knuckle boxing a Baron. You'll have more flexibility with carryovers, of course. Difficulty settings are not implemented per se but you can always play on ITYTD for half the damage / twice the munitions.

OUTBREAK is a great episode to play if you're looking for a short but sweet adventure. It has a distinct and attractive look, tons of action for its limited square footage, and avoids feeling like an E1 clone while elevating its subtle references to serve its own take on gameplay. I think the main disappointment would come from expecting larger levels on the scale of Romero's or Tom Hall's pen and paper dungeon layouts. It's an otherwise easy recommendation.

OUTBREAK OF EVIL

by "Serious_MOod"

E1M1

Greatly expanded upon from its original incarnation which was (and here still is) a "Hangar" retread. I think that I preferred having a lift to the armor; they weren't as architecturally interesting but they helped to distinguish the map from being a carbon copy. The careful lightcasting and contrast maintains the moodiness level seen in the opening room. Most of the new stuff consists of large naturalistic outdoor areas, the same sort of worldbuilding S_M did so well in Beta Labs 2. They give the map a great sense of place and make the process of acquiring the shotgun much more involved.  I like that the iconic secret annex consists of a hallway overlooking the exit area and only leads outside because of a hole blasted into the wall. The pace of the level is a bit slower due to the early appearance of lost souls. If you don't figure out how to get the shotgun then it will be an even worse pistol grind.

E1M2

A small slice of the complex rendered as a handful of corridors and rooms. The energy is the same as the previous level plus double the monsters. Well, it's a bit better lit than the original and feels more linear because you bump into the broken door right off the main "hub". The threat level is upped through changing the demons to specters. It's a nice compromise after pulling the map out of the original's pitch black. They figure into all of the cool fights, my favorite taking place in the westernmost room with the imp cage. What a great, multi-front setup. I wasn't expecting Serious_MOod to step up the pressure so strongly but it's just shy of being completely overwhelming. I wouldn't miss the secret chaingun, though.

E1M3

S_M doesn't change a whole lot. The opening is still a "Toxin Refinery" dig but I like that it's a bit roomier. There are even more monsters for you to have to pistol to death, though. The lock puzzle loses virtually all of its charm because three rooms in a row are 1) open door 2) shotgun two lost souls 3) press the only button inside. The secret exit sequence almost makes up for it, but not quite. The toxic waste holding pen to the west works a lot better, though, since you have to go inside for the blue key. This makes the demon and imps who guard it far more threatening.

E1M9

This secret level appears to be brand new. There's a little tribute to "Military Base" with the not-quite-caged imps in the exterior portion but it's a subtle nod. It extends the same sort of theme seen in E1M1 insofar as you get a breath of fresh air and can see more of S_M's scenery. The open-air installation features additional evidence of the demon-fueled massacre. It also wastes no time pushing the shotgun and chaingun into your hand, making this an action-packed outing. You get to mow down plenty of zombies and it even has a great miniboss encounter for the red key. I mean, it's as simple as three cacodemons, but that's quite a bit of meat. The midtexture grating and windows give the map a highly interconnected feeling. The architecture is great; I especially enjoyed the northern outdoor area.

E1M4

Indoor techbase level with a skylit cargo bay. The ammo is a little tight if you don't manage to unlock the extensive secret area to the west. The monster density is upped which trades the original's relatively calm feel for more raw action. This sort of ruins the atmosphere but it didn't really gel with "Kitchen Ace" anyway. I like the monster closet that portrays monsters tearing their way out of tech guts. Exposed infrastructure also grits up the previously plain nukage chamber. S_M manages to throw a pretty good ambush at you halfway through the corridor crawl.

E1M5

A small toxic annex and a lonely corner of the UAC base. It's a very different experience than the original. S_M puts the chaingun on your lap and then sends you scrambling after the first shots fire and a horde of monsters crawls out of the woodwork. It's a great dynamic and makes for a good stand your ground moment when you locate the other boxes of bullets. The ammo is still pretty tight after the massacre; you'll want to investigate fully before passing the crusher. The centerpiece of the finale is the same, potentially resulting in cacodemon fisticuffs. A diligent explorer should have enough to best them, though. The architecture of the starting area makes for a nice opening shot.

E1M6

Another quasi-outdoor adventure. Serious_MOod fills out the originally expansive layout with a hefty monster count, making this the first medium-length level. The action is basically breakneck pacing the whole way through. The main exception is - oddly enough - a banal midtexture baffle where there used to be a decent tech guts ambush. I was definitely surprised by the start; it's a great kickoff when all Hell breaks loose and the imps begin to teleport in behind you. I panicked and ran and still managed to survive. It's about as good as the finale. The author turns the relatively banal slaughter into a multi-faceted encounter whose elements slowly reveal themselves. It'll sneak up on you if you're not careful. A very cool map.

E1M7

More bowels of the base. The action feels faster-paced. It's nice getting to start with the shotgun and then have a straightforward chaingun pickup. Most of the fights are fairly direct. My favorite - an exception - is the midtexture baffle because of its unassuming start and dangerous second stage. The cacodemon / lost soul brawl is pretty good, too. The author removed the not-so-subtle hint for the exit puzzle, more or less relying on you to trigger some of it on accident. Not quite as epic as E1M6 but it's a solid, smooth outing.

E1M8

I think that I like this better than the original. It's still a remake of "Phobos Anomaly" but the imps on the upper tier of the demon kill pit are welcome addition. More importantly, the boss fight underwent a substantial redesign. It's very annoying to move around in but it's hard to make a fight against five Barons challenging without leveraging some sort of claustrophobia. It also includes lost souls as a confounding factor. I'm not as fond of the spartan ammo balance; I had to finish the last Baron off with the regular fist. You can't easily gauge what supplies are available, though, and I didn't really utilize the barrels or the skulls as well as I could have. The scenery leading to the exit is very cool.

INNOCULATE CONCEPTION