R.A.V.E. (RAVE.WAD)

R.A.V.E.

by Andy Leaver

In spite of using another Rise of the Triad track (Lee Jackson's "Chant"), R.A.V.E. shows a break in Andy's modus operandi. Up until this point he had exclusively published single-player levels for the original Doom. Specifically, bitebwad, NHFL, Indifference, and Timelessness were all shareware episode excursions. This and the two-map demo for No Hope For Life Episode II constitute the entirety of his non-multiplayer solo Doom II releases with the rest of them appearing in the Community Chest series. RAVE is a MAP01 replacement, originally made available in 2003. It was originally intended to be the demo for NHFL's E2 but Leaver apparently changed his mind somewhere between now and 2005, I assume because he wanted to take the set in a different direction.

Andy's style up to this point used the shareware bestiary exclusively and even stayed away from using the Baron. This level isn't much different in spirit as it shuns all of the Doom II monsters with complex attack patterns. Only the chaingun and Hell knight appear here. The one new toy that Leaver pulls out of the original kit is the cacodemon. Both goatmen and big-mouth floaty thingies appear in large numbers, however, making for a very HP-dense level in spite of its small monster count. These 54 beasties are crammed into something like a small green-plated warehouse, which may be part of the reason why the author gave it the name R.A.V.E..

The start involves a dance of sorts as you fight a combination of demons and cacos in the main storage area. The provided combat shotgun only feels somewhat adequate given how awkward it is to move in the playing area, occupied both by crates and space-hogging monsters. Part of this appears to be to drive you deeper into the level in order to find some more firepower. In this case, your faith rewards you with a small trail of shells leading to a regular shotgun as well as a chaingun in the hands of a commando. Andy also mentions two secrets in the .TXT to look out for that will considerably increase your margin for victory. It's definitely doable without the soul sphere but if you skip the backpack / ammo cache then you may have to be a little more resourceful and a lot more accurate.

Once you have the SSG and have cleared out the starting area you have two major segments left. The west wing is awkward to clear due to the monster placement and its prevalence of Hell knights. Monster blocking lines ensure that the player must take an approach that is both tactical and adventurous. The eastern leg is just a monster-dense combat shotgun slog that should be engaging enough to draw you through to the exit. It's not the finale that one might be expecting after the hot start and tricky blue key room but it completes a sort of trifecta of encounter styles. It feels vaguely familiar to the beefy base brawls that make up so much of the first episode of Hell Revealed II, Alien Vendetta, or Kama Sutra.

R.A.V.E. is not the prettiest PWAD that Andy has released but it takes combat to more hard-hitting depths than any of his shareware-oriented material. It will be interesting to see what exactly changed between here and his FATEDEMO or if this dense, punchy style carries over to his contemporary CCHEST levels. If all you're looking for is a short, tight, and action-packed blitz, then you could do a lot worse than this.

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R.A.V.E.