Null Space (NULSPACE.WAD)

NULL SPACE
by Russell Pearson

Russell Pearson started making maps back in the early days of the community but then took a break until 2000 where he started looking over his unreleased works originally created as part of a TC entitled DoomTown3. The author ended up putting his past behind him while working on a level to better reflect his changed sensibilities as of the year 2000. He even went so far as to axe a section of level that he liked but felt did not fit the spirit of what he was trying to do, leading to 2001's Deleted Scene. The final product is the much beloved Null Space, a MAP01 replacement for Doom II, also released in 2001.

DoomTown (DOOMTOWN.WAD)

Russell Pearson didn't start publishing Doom maps until the year 2000 but he was working on his token ambitious TC back during the early days of Doom modding; 1995 by his estimation. DoomTown3 was probably planned to be a megaWAD but Pearson released several select levels from it - Blastem2 and Tunnel Run - as well as a small deathmatch level (Close Kill) before publishing the remainder in a micro-sized map pack called DoomTown. I imagine that the author felt compelled to put his history firmly behind him. Released in 2001, this is a three-map minisode for Doom II to be played in any port owing to its pre-source origins.

Deleted Scene (DELETED.WAD)

DELETED SCENE

by Russell Pearson

Russell Pearson released his seminal Null Space at the tail end of 2001 but not before nixing a portion of the material. Where some authors would be content to just slash and burn, though, Russell took the extract and released it on its own as a sort of extra. Deleted Scene is thus just that, plus a few small sections from the originating work in order to make it a fully functional level. The end result is a MAP01 replacement for Doom II, released in 2001 for any vanilla-compatible port. Its origin as an outtake is the closest thing you're going to get to a story but it's interesting to read Pearson's author notes. They detail why he cut it but also posture it as a sort of teaser for the impending Null Space.

Tunnel Run (TUN-RUN.WAD)

TUNNEL RUN

by Russell Pearson

Russell Pearson was one of several authors to come to the forefront during the advent of Doom's silver age resulting from the release of source such as Boom and ZDoom. Where guys like Kurt Kesler and Ed Cripps were playing around with The New Technology, though, Russell remained to hack it out in plain vanilla. At least, until he released Crypt of the Vile. His first big project was supposed to be a TC called DoomTown3 but he doled out two of its planned levels - Tunnel Run and Blastem 2 - as single level releases before publishing the other three as Doom Town proper. This review covers the second release, Tunnel Run; released in late 2000, it's a MAP01 replacement for Doom II.

Blastem2 (BLASTEM2.WAD)

BLASTEM2

by Russell Pearson

If Russell is to be believed, he started making his initial crop of maps back in 1995. The goal: a TC called DoomTown3. In 2000, he published two select entries from the TC; the language in his releases leaves room to interpret DoomTown3 as something ambitious ("presented here as a straight forward Doom2 level") but I am more inclined to believe that TC was to Russell what megaWAD is to me. DoomTown3 was never completed as the author envisioned it, but we have its finished bits and pieces. Blastem2 was the first of Pearson's levels to ever see publication, a MAP01 replacement for Doom II.

Congestion 1024 (1024.WAD)

Congestion 1024 is a Doom II megaWAD released in 2005, born from the Exquisite Corpse project, in which a collection of mappers created twelve 1024 x 1024 maps and bound them together as a single, contiguous level. I assume either those involved or those observing found the individual puzzle pieces so intriguing that they made an entire WAD out of similarly sized bits, creating 32 levels of intense action. The rules: the player is bound to a 1024 x 1024 area. They are allowed egress as long as they die upon leaving the 1024 confinement. Monsters, of course, are allowed to be outside the area's bounds and frequently are.