Temple of Sin (TMPLOSIN.WAD)

TEMPLE OF SIN

by Mike "Use3D" Alfredson

On the subject of Use3D's rainy day classically-styled megAWAD, we don't appear to be any closer to seeing a full release than we were when I posted my review for Chaotic Grounds. However, Alfredson DID see fit to grace us with a stealth-release of Nilla Doom's second episode (MAP08-MAP11)! That's awesome! I don't think that this, Temple of Sin, was cut from that project, but rather a megaWAD that was originally, nominally based on the story of the Doom II: Hell on Earth novelization. It's a MAP21 replacement for Doom II that should theoretically work in any source port given that Use3D tested it in doom2.exe.

This is a Hell level, which is an important distinction for story reasons because the characters never visited Hell. It doesn't exist within the context of the entire novelization's cosmology. The "demons" are all aliens, the world's governments sold out humanity to save themselves, and the Mormon faith constitutes one of the major forces of the resistance. I am guessing that Alfredson was more interested in some of the scenery that the characters would visit, like the underground bunkers that humanity was holding out in (Deep Core 1), the train trip to California, and the battle in Los Angeles, reaching a head at the Disney Building. With Temple of Sin, we appear to rejoin the original plot of Doom II, plunging into Hell to...do whatever you have to do.

Alfredson warns the player that this is going to be a tough one. He's not kidding! The opening is basically a hot start in a large, awkwardly-shaped courtyard with arachnotron and revenant snipers, Hell nobles on the ground, and bunkers full of beasties. The only weapon that is visually and readily available is a rocket launcher and I'm sorry to say that you aren't exactly swimming in rockets. Here's a tip: in the northeast corner of the yard is a door that will open and which has some imps in a bunker. The bunker has a plasma gun, perfectly aligned with the two large cells seen at the level's opening. This is a huge get and amusingly fits into the stereotype in my head of Use3D being an author who encourages the player to cut loose with the plasma rifle.

You may have to die a few times before you figure this out on your own because this is a big ol' hornet's nest of a map. The opposite side, for instance, has a sort of blood outfall that houses a squadron of lost souls who are floating above a strong damage floor. Your reward for clearing them out is... a berserk pack. The two other potential progression points are switches located in bunkers staffed by pairs of revenants. Without divulging too much of what would happen were you to use your scant rockets to blast the skeletons and beeline to the yellow key, you'll wish that you had the plasma gun in hand if you make it that far.

I like Alfredson's punchy combat in this map, but it has an extra edge to it because--as far as I can tell--there is no super shotgun or even a plain ol' shotty that you can use to blow off the surplus of shells. You have enough ammo to get the job done though you may need to, I dunno, foment some infighting a la "The Courtyard" in order to conserve what you can. There's a fairly obvious (to me, at least) secret early on off the path to the yellow key that has a massive haul of three large cells and two boxes of rockets, but I feel that this is pretty much essential to completing the level, let alone maxxing it. What I'm saying is, this is one of those maps that you have to learn, and if you can't enjoy trial by fire then you may not have a great time.

Once I got past the initial shock and got some appreciable ammo stores I was able to relax, shifting from survival strategy to tactical clearing. All of this changed in the red key wing because of a few pain elementals that arrive as part of a teleporter wave. This was a tense but fun moment, pumping rockets through the windows and hoping that I popped those lost soul blisters as soon as possible. I didn't even know that the threatening room layout (mostly damaging blood on the ground floor) had locked me in, or that the only way out was via a blind teleport. The wing also has a classically cool arch-vile showdown room, itself another fun lock-in moment.

This is a great-looking classically-styled Hell level. I like the green marble and bloody pool look and the courtyard's architecture, with the overhang that you step out from under and little irregularities like the rocket launcher nook, is awesome. I also love the look of the dark demon room off the yard's southwestern corner. The bloody entrance hallway makes for a great antechamber, and while I was expecting a bigger fight I won't argue with light combat and a megasphere secret. The one thing that felt underwhelming was the northernmost chamber. It has a bunch of free-roaming demons--no problem with that, since they can sneak around whichever side you aren't paying attention to--but it has two caged cells that sport one arch-vile and one revenant. They are both being kept from each other and, in their cages, are somewhat ineffectual. What exactly am I to infer, here, in the Temple of Sin?

In previous levels I've mentioned some sort of meta-theme across Alfredson's maps that deal with rising and descending. TMPLOSIN is a largely flat map, instead theming itself around sawtooths. The two revenant bunker switches activate timed lifts that you can't just step back on to leave. The red key wing has two different lock-in doors, one of which separate the main chamber from the rest of the map but for a previously-inaccessible teleport pad. To echo the flavor text of the original Doom, the only way out is through. This is in keeping with some of the more memorable ambushes of Chaotic Grounds. The key development in Temple of Sin is that, in Hell, it's not a question whether or not you're willing. Early on, at least, you have to commit to the unknown in order to survive.

Temple of Sin is a pretty cool classically-textured Doom II Hell level, though I wonder what Use3D's now-excised textures would have added to its visuals or for that matter any of these cut levels. For that matter, I'd still like to see Doom Beyond, as I'm sure Alfredson would if he got it to a point where he was comfortable publishing it. If these are the levels that are getting cut then I can only assume that there's a lot of awesome, classic material just lying in wait.

WAR/SHIPPING