Some doom wads to play

Today marks the glorious 20th anniversary of Doom as we know it, and if you’re not a habitual Doom player it’s time you dusted the game off and tried a few wads. I’ve already went on about Doom’s misunderstood intelligence - here’s a random selection of wads that help highlight this intelligence. No gimmicks to be found here, just some excellent maps.

Foreword

If you don’t know how to play Doom in the modern era, here’s a whistle-stop tour. Get GZDoom from somewhere (there are alternatives, but gzdoom is a good all-rounder) and an installation of Doom 2 (Steam is probably the most convenient place). Go into the doom 2 installation, copy DOOM2.WAD into the GZDoom directory. After you’ve decided on a wad here, download it and extract the zip file to some directory. Drag the .wad file onto gzdoom.exe.

It’s not a good idea to play any of these with Brutal Doom or similar gameplay modifications. You are going to be playing some of the most smartly-designed, tightly-honed maps you’ve ever seen in a single player FPS. Smart maps deserve the smart game they were designed for.

Most of these wads are hard. Really quite hard. You’re staring down the barrel of 20 years of custom maps, and as level designers went on and on the demand for harder and harder maps came. You will likely need to bring your A-game and a healthy dose of luck to make a dent in most of these, but don’t be afraid to turn the difficulty down if you have to.

Scythe

Scythe is a good place to start out for beginners. It’s a 32-map megawad designed to be short and punchy. The last 10 maps or so of the wad can get nuts, but it’s hard to beat this as a good replacement for the rather poor levels seen in vanilla Doom 2. While there are no stand-out incredible maps (though the seven-deadly-sin-themed maps 20-27 are completely devilish) every map flows well and it’s the right length for about an afternoon or two of demon murder.

http://www.doomworld.com/idgames/?id=11944

Alien Vendetta

Alien Vendetta, and its big brother Hell Revealed, is commonly credited with codifying the modern style of doom wads - placing emphasis on using lots of monsters to choreograph interesting, difficult fights. There’s no shortage of traps either, a particular metallic corridor in map04 sticking in the mind pretty well for just about everyone who’s played it.

AV is commonly named as the best Doom wad of all time. No map is extraneous, and you can’t go for 10 minutes without falling over a classic map - from the resource-starved flow of Hillside Siege to the grand architecture of Beast Island and Nemesis, to the furious slaughterfests of Suicidal Tendencies and Bulls on Parade, to Misri Halek’s miserable maze and every map after that. If you don’t know Alien Vendetta, you don’t know Doom.

http://www.doomworld.com/idgames/?id=11790

Vanguard

Not all wads are of the 32-map deluxe variety. Vanguard weighs in at 12 or 13 maps, but punches above its light weight with variety. You probably get a bit too much ammo, but for a wad with such a complete lack of dead air, who’s complaining? Every map looks and feels different, yet every single one is furnished with loving detail, gorgeous architecture and smart fights. Slightly easier than most, another good one for beginners.

http://www.doomworld.com/idgames/?id=16463

If you like Vanguard, try Lunatic. It’s by the same guy, and offers the same amount of punch - but this time on the moon, to Tyrian music.

http://www.doomworld.com/idgames/?id=16551

Claustrophobia 1024

I said no gimmicks, and I stay faithful to my word. Every map in Claustrophobia constrains the player within a fairly small 1024x1024 area - background scenery excluded. If, after playing Vanguard and AV, you’re after some of that punchiness that Scythe delivered - 1024 is a good bet. It’s a community collection, so quality is all over the place - don’t worry about some maps being real outliers.

http://www.doomworld.com/idgames/?id=15748

Deus Vult 2

Deus Vult 2 is something like 14 maps in length, and like Vanguard, it uses this length to show off a lot of visual diversity, as well as diversity in gameplay. DV2 really shows off how clever Doom can get, and I could write pages about individual high-concept fights here - revenants on giant chessboards, breakneck afrit chases through hell, bullet-hell cleric corridor fights, everything’s here to see. If you play no other wad, it must be Deus Vult 2. Though it’s certainly not for beginners.

http://www.doomworld.com/idgames/?id=15238

Reverie

After DV2, you need a change of pace. I find going back to the completely classic style usually ends up rather stilted and boring, but Reverie is a recent release that captures the early days of wads rather well. A calmer Doom, a more meandering Doom. The last map has such an odd, dream-like quality to it that seems ripped straight from some obscure 90s FTP server.

http://www.doomworld.com/idgames/?id=16630

Scythe 2

Scythe 2 is a sequel in name only. Its maps are larger, more grandiose, more complex - sacrificing little in flow and offering some pretty architecture as well as some new enemies (evil doom marines who move just as fast as you and fight just as hard!). Divided into 6 episodes of 5 maps each, each with their unique visual styles and again - no shortage of maps that stick out in the mind. Scythe 2 is, to my mind, the best wad to pose as a more modern substitute for Alien Vendetta. Though AV has a better soundtrack - unless you like Symphony X MIDIs, in which case step right on up.

http://www.doomworld.com/idgames/?id=13600

Back to Saturn X

BTSX (or technically, its first episode) is a 25 map all-rounder. It’s a community compilation, but unlike other projects BTSX stays remarkably consistent from beginning to end - offering no standout maps and no big stinkers, just a well-paced romp through some lovely-looking maps and great music.

http://www.doomworld.com/vb/thread/62529

Etc

If the above wads are too easy :

• Sunder - Legendary difficulty, insane architecture. You will likely not get past map02.
• Stardate 20X6 - A 8-map russian roulette of bastard hard purple levels. Kicks your ass with about a quarter of the monster count its peers require.
• Slaughterfest 2012 - Does what it says on the tin. A community collaboration of slaughter maps. Pistol starts advised, and don’t worry about skipping maps.

There are a lot of good wads I didn’t have the time to mention here. Sorry.