Geryon (GERYON.WAD)

GERYON
by John "Dr. Sleep" Anderson

Dante and Virgil appear to be moving at a more human pace. Where exactly this takes place isn't quite documented as Anderson has ditched the little asides of the travelers at this point. The eponymous character is Geryon, the embodiment of fraud, on whose back Dante and Virgil descend toward the eighth circle of Hell (Fraud). As such, this could be a journey to meet Geryon, or Dante's sojourn through the circle of Fraud after arriving. It's not altogether clear, though given that Anderson wanted to spend each of his "cantos" highlighting a specific portion of Hell leads me to believe that this is indeed the eighth.

Nessus (NESSUS.WAD)

NESSUS
by John "Dr. Sleep" Anderson

Having spent the past two cantos in the outer area of Dante's Inferno (the first and second circles of Limbo and Lust, respectively), Anderson fast-forwards to the seventh circle, Violence (passing Gluttony, Greed, Anger and Heresey). It's just as well, or the project would never have finished within the nine cantos Anderson restricted himself to (not that he actually ever finished!). The only hint as to where this takes place is its title and inclusion of Nessus, a centaur from mythology who in Alighieri's work guides Virgil and Dante down and across the Phlegethon (Dante's own Canto XII). Anderson's brief rendition of the event is rather humorous.

Minos' Judgement (MINOS.WAD)

MINOS' JUDGEMENT
by John "Dr. Sleep" Anderson

Minos' Judgement is the fourth canto in John Anderson's Inferno series, five maps of which were released as part of id's Master Levels for Doom II. Somewhat based on the first book of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, it follows Dante's journey through Hell in search of his love, Beatrice, with color commentary by Dante's friend, the poet, Virgil. It's merely a framework for the action of the maps, which don't really lend themselves to that kind of storytelling. It's appreciated, though, as it helps to firmly establish a sense of place for the activity of the levels.

Virgil's Lead (VIRGIL.WAD)

VIRGIL'S LEAD
by John "Dr. Sleep" Anderson

Prior to being contracted as a designer for id's Master Levels for Doom II, Anderson had two publicly released maps for Doom, Dante's Gate and Crossing Acheron. They are parts one and two of his Inferno series; cantos one and two, if you will. Thankfully, Anderson released cantos three through seven as part of the Master Levels. The series is loosely based on Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, if Dante were a space marine whose girlfriend disappeared during an attack by the forces of Hell, and Virgil was his Moorcock-esque drugged out space hippy sidekick. None of this really shows itself through the maps, but it's a cute concept.

Poll - review scores?

Ten days ago I added a poll which you can see in the site's upper-right hand corner. In essence, I'm asking whether actual review scores are important to people, and if they'd like to see them. If so, I would be rating WADs on a scale of 0-6 stars (though in practicality it would be on a scale of 1-5), with 3-6 star ratings being general gradations of "I would recommend this!" and 0-2 being gradations of "I wouldn't recommend this!". If I get enough interest I'll retrofit the current index to include the relevant information. 

The Complete Raven Series (RAVEN.WAD)

Before id contracted Tim Willits to contribute to the Master Levels, he and his sister, Theresa Chasar, released the Raven series for Doom II. According to an interview conducted for the 5 Years of Doom celebration on Doomworld, the series was originally a collection of maps he’d made for Doom that he hastily converted to Doom II upon its release, figuring that the series would get more exposure if it was for Doom’s sequel (a spot-on assumption, I think).

Canyon (CANYON.WAD)

CANYON
by Tim Willits and Theresa Chasar

While Tim Willits’s sister, Theresa Chasar, helped out in design for ATTACK and CANYON for id’s Master Levels for Doom II, CANYON.WAD is the only Master Level where she gets that specific credit (considering she also helped design E4M5 of Ultimate Doom, I suppose this is her one official id credit). Canyon has no official story, but anyone can guess from its title that it involves a crevasse biting into a planet’s crust.

Attack (ATTACK.WAD)

ATTACK
by Tim Willits and Theresa Chasar

Tim Willits got id’s attention with the release of the Raven series, an episode for Doom II consisting of Doom maps that had been converted over as well as some created in tandem with his sister, Theresa Chasar. id contracted him to create some maps for their Master Levels for Doom II project, which he designed in tandem with his sibling. I don’t know if Willits has any Master Levels rejects floating around his hard drive; if some existed at any point, only Attack and Canyon remain. Attack is a small MAP01 replacement, a mixture of techbase and urbane brick themes to create a small fortress.