The Process (TPROCESS.WAD)

THE PROCESS

by Mike Alfredson aka "Use3D"

Use3D has been making maps for a long time. So much of his creative energy has been tied up in his two one-man megaWADs, Doom Beyond and Nilla Doom, so much so that he actually jettisoned a number of his oldest maps from Doom Beyond and released them as singular outtakes. I've been covering all of these levels in my run-up to the original Community Chest and will take a gander at Doom Beyond whenever it releases because, well, Mike makes damn good classic-feeling maps. The last batch of Alfredson's outtakes was published in 2019. The Process is the most recent of these, by which I mean it was crafted in 2001 instead of 1997. It's a MAP05 replacement for Doom II, to be played in any port.

Computer Station (CMPSTATN.WAD)

COMPUTER STATION

by Mike Alfredson aka "Use3D"

Doom Beyond started out as a replacement for the Hell levels of Doom II, which Alfredson thought were lacking in Hellishness when compared to "The Catacombs" and "The Spirit World". He seems to have had a sympathetic soul in Chris Lutz, who executed a project similar in sentiment with 2017's Hellscape. Doom Beyond eventually ventured beyond its original scope, however, becoming a limit-removing megaWAD with more or less classic-style gameplay. Along the way he removed some of his older levels from the running and published them independently. So far I've taken a look at Hell Pit, Deep Core 1, Chaotic Grounds, and Temple of Sin. This review is for Computer Station, a MAP04 replacement for Doom II, originally crafted in 1997, that was stationed earlier in the megaWAD along with Deep Core 1. 

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.

Chaotic Grounds (CHAOSGRD.WAD)

CHAOTIC GROUNDS

by Mike "Use3D" Alfredson

Use is probably best known by word of mouth from his fantastic Nilla Doom episode, not to mention his fantastic contributions to community projects like the Community Chest series. To my total confusion, Alfredson has had two different megaWADs in the works. One of these is his rough and tough vanilla megaWAD, of which Nilla Doom was an excerpt, while the other is for limit-removing ports and a little easier ("classically-styled") and goes by Doom Beyond. The cut maps that he has released to the archives are all from Doom Beyond as they were all crafted before 2004, when Nilla Doom started production. This includes both Deep Core 1 but probably not Hell Pit as it predates Doom Beyond's genesis in 1997. 

Deep Core 1 (DEEPCORE.WAD)

DEEP CORE 1

by Mike Alfredson aka "Use3D"

I have long-assumed that Nilla Doom was Mike's in-progress megaWAD and that most of his solo-outtakes are rejects from the running order as development progressed. I was incorrect, to say the least. Beyond Doom was - and remains - Use3D's rainy-day megaWAD. It initially began life as a more difficult replacement for Doom II's Hell episode (MAP21-MAP30) before Mike rebooted the whole thing. Deep Core 1 is the original iteration of this level as it appeared in what I assume the first reboot of Beyond Doom; Use3D subsequently remade the level in 2005, hence the numeric designator on this release. DEEPCORE was originally crafted in 1997 and is a MAP02 replacement for Doom II in keeping with its original slot in the Beyond Doom project.

Hell Pit (HELL_PIT.WAD)

HELL PIT

by Mike Alfredson aka "Use3D"

Mike's most recent release was as part of Ultimate Doom the Way id Did but he's been a low key contributor to big names like the Community Chest series and Back to Saturn X. Not to forget the original DtWiD, of course. All of his solo single-level publications are effectively archival releases and generally old ones at that, either from the category of "Nilla Doom reject" or "old level that predates Nilla Doom". I assume, anyway, as the former levels go out of their way to say that they were made for and then cut from the running order of his in-development megaWAD. Like Soulcage, Hell Pit is a map from the latter category, a Doom II MAP26 replacement that was handcrafted back in 1996 only to be uploaded much later in early 2004.

Soulcage (SOULCAGE.WAD)

SOULCAGE

by Mike Alfredson aka "Use3D"

Use3D has been a supporting player in the Doom community for ages. He is recognizable in the honor rolls for the first three levels of the Community Chest series, Doom the Way id Did and its Ultimate expansion, and even Back to Saturn X's Episode 2. The first episode release of his Nilla Doom is a perennial contender for underrated WAD lists. He started building his solo megaWAD as early as 1997 and has released various rejects from the whole, most recently a spate in 2019. I don't think that Soulcage is one of these, though. As Mike's very first level, this MAP13 replacement was crafted in 1995. It looks as though Alfredson had independently released it, perhaps on a personal website, around the same time as his Hell Pit and Deep Core 1 back in 2004. It finally made its way to /idgames about fifteen years later.

Back to Saturn X E2: Tower in the Fountain of Sparks (BTSX_E2X.WAD)

It's been a little more than a year and a half, so it's about time that we saw the Back to Saturn X Episode II beta. BTSX started out as a single megaWAD, but an abundance of contributors caused an internal split into what eventually became three "episode" megaWADs. Get Out of My Stations, the "shareware" episode, made its public debut at the tail end of 2012. It got a lot of flak for its techbase stylings, but it's one of my favorite releases of the 2013 season for its impeccable visuals and light speed gameplay. Tower in the Fountain of Sparks looks to be one of the top releases of 2014, and for good reason.

Doom the Way id Did (DTWID.WAD)

In the latter half of 2010, Jason "Hellbent" Root more or less kicked off Doom the Way id Did, a project that aimed to recreate the feel of Doom's original three episodes by mimicking the design traits of the authors. Mappers flocked to the project, with a total of 95 submitted levels. That's enough for three brand new OG Doom megaWADs! (Still waiting on the official releases of the "rejects".) DTWID represents the cream of the crop, as selected by the project leads. The original aim was that each map could be seamlessly inserted into the running with no one the wiser. Of course, to better flesh out the episodes, beginning and boss maps were created. I feel comfortable in saying that even these well-trodden concepts had some new life breathed into them.

Nilla Doom (NILLA.WAD)

Nilla Doom is a seven-map episode for vanilla Doom II (duh), courtesy of Doomworld forum superstar Use3D (Mike Alfredson). The plot is simple and winking, following the adventure of a post-retirement marine as he attempts to warn his neighbors of another incursion of Hellspawn. It's a mixture of outdoor / indoor techbases and underground maps before finally settling into Hell itself, mostly to the familiar soundtrack of Rise of the Triad. This of course invites comparison to Hell Revealed, which isn't far off the mark. Nilla Doom is challenging, as though the first episode of HR got together with The Plutonia Experiment and had a baby. Those who fear Doom II's bestiary should avoid; Use3D puts the expanded roster to good work.