Jurak Tree Maps
E1M1.5 by Crab Hermit
A pretty cool idea, and a neat theme; I like the idea of the Doom guy running through these big canyons. But at least on Hurt Me Plenty you can get halfway into the map and never find a single shotgun - plenty of shells but no gun. I was almost to the end fight and was still using a pistol. I assume that on higher difficulties there's some shotgunners in the flats that you can swipe the gear from. Not on HMP tho. A big problem. 3.5 stars.
When Anger Shows by Merrick18818
A really nice, unique map with a big, expansive hub. It's sort of my favorite Doom dynamic - plenty of ammo, weapons that aren't quite perfect for the situation, and monsters staged in new and exciting ways and places. The one issue is that the door that opens at the ending is kinda hard to find. (Nor is there any indication that I should expect that button to open that door.) I think re-thinking how that section becomes accessible would be useful. 4 stars.
Quintillion by Jamatri
A simple map that embraces stark geometry to give an alien, yet plausible style. A bit more work on the lighting and scale could make it an absolute banger. As it is, it's a pleasant enough level. 4 stars.
Ig-Night by Doktordeath
A lot of "themed" maps don't really follow through fully, which is often just fine. That's how the original Doom levels approached theme, after all. Yet those that do go the extra mile, with new enemies and unusual layout styles that supplement the theme, are a real treat. This is one of those. It has some of the most well thought out new monsters, fully themed to the "fire and lava" elements of the level. I also like that you don't have to go back to grab all the supplies if you don't want to - I almost finished before I remembered that I hadn't yet grabbed the blue key! It was a nice boost for the last fight which is exceptionally well staged. 5 stars.
Yippee Garden by Chariot Rider
A frustrating opening sequence and an annoying musical cue are the only serious flaws in a pleasant and unique outdoor map, with fights that are staged in unusual ways and which can be approached very creatively. A bit more polish and it would be a classic. 4 stars.
Endangered Habitat 2 by Razza
The pacing and mood of this map are exquisite - long, rambling vistas with scattered minor resources and scattered minor monsters build and build, cycling through a second unbelievable setpiece before a massive, incredible finale. Honestly it takes the usual Doom pacing and gives it an entirely new feel, an entirely new way to get through and around these monsters and weapons one more time. One of my favorites this year. 5 stars.
Bunny Zone by Aaron Russell Botwell
An interesting concept, an attempt to separate killing from ammo provision in the lower tiers of Doom monsters, in a linear canyon level that ends with a unique boss fight. I'm not sure it fully works - the platforming in particular feels pointless in part because the only real challenge is the ammo/weapon progression. Nevertheless I did enjoy it, especially the end fight. 3.5 stars.
Haima Jungle by GreyBeret
A fun exploration map with an excellent pacing of ammo and monsters, keeping everything challenging without making it too hard or easy. The fight in the temple is terrific, with the archvile's staging being particularly impressive. The only thing that doesn't work there is that the portals sometimes don't block the archvile's line of sight and sometimes they do; a determination that's critical in fighting them. Finally, the level drops off a bit after the temple showdown. It would be better, I think, to just end the level right after that. Overall an excellent job. 4 stars.
Purification Plant Levels
Beginner Base by soggysponge49
Just what it says on the tin, but it does show understanding of key Doom concepts like the monster closet or elevator deployment, placing monsters on platforms, and a final mini-boss. There's even a working light switch! Nice job and welcome to mapping. My suggestion for polishing this level is to either embrace the oddness of this base (the platforms don't actually serve any function) or try to spruce it up with more base-like rooms and functionality. 2.5 stars.
Filtro's Sewage Economy by Jsoupthefirst
Here I am really hyped to rip on "a sewer level", and then there's a sewer level, complete with grey walls, low ceilings, and that brown water animated texture for a floor that actually has an intriguing layout, uses monster closet traps in a unique way, thinks about the path of the player through the level to a significant degree, and requires some out of the box thinking to succeed. As I head back to the exit switch (visible from the beginning moment) I have to admit - this really worked. I do think one jump that the player has to make across a 90 degree ledge could have been done better (perhaps by making it clear with a walkway in that spot) but it's maddeningly great. I wonder if this means that people who intentionally pick to make sewer levels in The Year Of Our Lord 2024 actually have ideas they want to pursue instead of being out of ideas like 20 years ago. And the music rules so it's 5 stars.
Roulette by Artinum
Attempts a really ambitious thing - to completely revise the pacing of a Doom level, by making several micro levels which are completed in a random order. This means some run-throughs will be quite difficult (the health/armor station coming up early is hard, if it comes up late, it's much easier!) The fact that each of the mini-levels are comprehensible and finishable in any order as far as I can tell makes it a stunning success. The rarity in a forty year old game - something entirely new. 5 stars.
The Ancient Experiment by Bruno Levi Constancio
I must be some kind of dummy because I can't get the last door to open up in the "AI" area. I turned on invincibility and ran everywhere, gave myself ammo and killed a bunch of monsters, nothing I could find actually changed anything. This actually was a bit of an issue earlier as well - there's things that happen when you flip a switch that are very hard to figure out. A tighter connection between action and consequence would make this much better. DNF
The Dimensional Gateway by BenderWaffles
A really tightly designed map that goes in and out and up and down and around - a little on the easy side perhaps, but you always feel like you're surrounded, like the rest of the level, including the monsters, are always pressing in on you. An excellent atmosphere and terrific use of custom textures carries it to the finish line. 5 stars.
Doomed Station by Bennington2024
The layout's a bit simplistic, the escalation is a bit predictable, and the massive fight with 5 boss characters is fairly uninteresting. I actually think the most interesting part of this is early on when I'm using doorways to make the chainsaw viable. Maybe expand on that? Anyway it plays. 2 stars.
UAC-Processing-Center by Slayer
Nice-looking, with a great layouit of low ranking monsters. Using these monsters is an unsung skill of pistol start Doom maps like the RAMP project, it's really excellent here. Unfortunately, the map is a little too mazelike - you sort of stumble your way to and fro in it without any real idea of what progress you are or aren't making. I got to the exit and I guess I must have gone through a red key door at some point but if you asked me where I couldn't tell. I think some differentiation of regions of the map or functions of doors opening would be really helpful to make this work. 3 stars.
Acacia Avenue Maps
Tchspon Tunnel, a total conversion preview by GreyBeret
A little on the cartooney side - for one thing it's hard to beat the absolute whipcrack of Doom's weapon sound design - and so it has a hard time getting moving, and ends a little too quickly. I'm not sure this is a great way to evaluate a possible total conversion so I'm not going to rate it. DNR.
IMP City MBF by Amiga Angel and CBM
The "big sprawling city" map has been a dream of the Doom map-maker for decades, this one adds in some Grand Theft Auto-esque humor and tries to get across a "demonic invasion" (though I'm not sure if the castle is supposed to be ground zero?) with some exceptional detail work. In fact, taken independently I think each building is charming, interesting and fun to kill monsters in. But they don't really hang together - I'm never quite sure what the purpose of finding the keys are, nor what my objective is. The heavy enemies at the beginning are challenging enough, to be sure, but they're manageable. I think perhaps I just had a really fun time with this map and that's what's driving my rating. 3.5 stars.
Fist of the Doomed Star by Chockum
Between banger music, an absolutely hilarious core weapon and, in the end, some really ripping challenges that nevertheless felt fair, this is a complete triumph of a "not quite total" conversion. 5 stars.
Icon of Secrets by Makros the Black
I have to give some points for an icon fight that actually felt like a real icon fight, but I actually don't think there's enough room to make it feel right, especially since you have to do a series of three switches and THEN get through the monsters to attack. The lead up to the icon fight is a blast, though, with the many overlapping arenas eventually completely opening up to each other. 4 stars.
Sewer of Doom by Captain Neko
A quick tip for the oldheads like me, if you're having trouble with the fight that's past the marked exit door, stay in the sewer area and see if you can find the "announced" secret. Other than the target in the giant poop chamber they're all very findable once you know what you're looking for. (The poop chamber one is very annoying to even see.) The only thing I ran into was a momentary glitch passing from the sewers to the "city" fight - when I ran back into the sewers after, not noticing the elevator had lowered, I got stuck in a wall. Other than that a very nicely done level with lots of variety - who says a sewer level can't be good?! 4 stars.
The Guillotine by Obake
Some very odd decisions paired with some very skimpy ammo make this a difficult experience to truly love. I think the guillotine should be bigger, faster, or perhaps there should even be multiple guillotines - as it was, I was completely out of ammo and completely swarmed and hardly could get any monsters to walk into it. Other than that, the layout, with returning back to the hub several times, is very nicely done. I think with some polish it could be truly excellent. 3 stars.
Overpass by erkyp3rky
As I mentioned on some earlier maps it's a bit of a trap to make highly detailed levels that pursue a theme - there's a reason Doom2's cities weren't really styled, and it's only partly because of the limitations of the game. Doom's speed and monster actions (their movement and attacks) means that they (and we) struggle in the kind of cramped spaces that high detail creates. That said, every once in a while you get a gem like this map where the theme is relentlessly pursued, even to the point of environmental storytelling. (The UAC is shippiing all kinds of military gear around; demons attacked this warehouse/cargo facility and so you find piles of shotguns dumped out the back of a truck next to a corpse, for example.) Yet the map still moves us through the level with panache, and gives us freedom to clear areas that we can then use to traverse more quickly or lure monsters into for more standard Doom fighting. There's a store/depot that we enter through the back and it's a masterpiece - you start by fighting monsters that are elevated above the maze, then you go into the maze, then you go up to where the elevated monsters were, then descend back into the maze, and finish up in a detailed checkout area. I'm rambling, but this map is frankly great. 5 stars.
