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About Brutal Doom and the hate

brutaldoomI actually never ever wanted to write an article about Brutal Doom here on the Realm667 and though I feel like having to make things clear now after people have asking me a million times "why I dislike about the project". Next to that I had a short discussion with SGtMarkIV himself on Youtube a few days ago and that was the straw that broke the camel's back.

First of all it's not that I hate the mod at all. In fact there is a lot of effort put into and regarding the way Doom 4 ended up, I think it had a huge impact to the gaming community far beyond the borders. It brought a lot of attention to this damn old game that we love. It's not my personal taste of a mod, yes, but still I honor the project as a whole.

What really makes me boycott the mod is the author's attitude towards other people's work and behaviour when it comes to criticism (I mean, you have to be seriously anti-social to get banned on almost every community messageboard here) - and to be honest, it makes me totally sick. For the latest example of impudence, simply take a look at the trailer for Brutal Doom v19 - watch it to the end and as someone from the modding scene you will notice a lot of prominent releases being showcased in the trailer, for instance Scythe 2, Recurring Nightmares and Knee-Deep in ZDoom to name a few. But where was the credits? Seargent Mark IV most propably forgot them, so I pointed him towards these in the comments of the video. After a discussion of 4-5 comments (you can only see mine as he deleted his own ones already, where he was insulting me and justifying without even considering that placing credits would be a question of modesty) he obviously added the credits, so I guess my suggestion wasn't all that bad.

"Dude, why are you so crazy? Maybe he simply forgot to post add the credits to the video? What's the problem anyway? Other maps get attention as well!"

Yes, maybe he forgot to add the credits to the description of the video (it seems to be an inveterate pattern of behaviour in his case, but hey, let's look over that), and yes, why do I care? People from the Doom community recognise what map is being showcased with Brutal Doom's trailer... people from the Doom community... it suddenly might dawn to you. Maybe I am leaning out of the window, but SGtMarkIV doesn't seem to me stupid despite many of his public statements. So taking that for granted, I am pretty sure that adding credits for maps being showcased in his trailer isn't an impossible task to do, nor in terms of technique, neither in terms of care. Therefore someone like me could come to the conclusion, that SGtMarkIV simply doesn't care about other people's work, the principal thing is just to make his mod shine - and it definitely shines better on Scythe then it does on the original Doom. People outside the community could even consider that he is an amazing mapper - but that's another story.

Point is that this will be definitely the last news item about Brutal Doom here on the Realm667 forever and all eternity for the reasons said. I do support good new ideas, exciting mods and diligent efforts but I do not support people like Seargent Mark IV behind them, who base their personal stolen glory on the backs of other people's hard work. And if you have a spark of decency, I'd really suggest you do the same.

About Pirates and Corsairs

##### About Pirates and Corsairs It keeps growing and growing: The infamous Corsair Doom (formerly known as Pirate Doom) has gotten another update with several new monsters, some new maps - now a total of 13 - and other nice gimmicks, making up more and more for a Total Conversion. The mapper Arch has uploaded a new version and a new gameplay video in his development thread over at ZDoom.org. Take a look, it's definitely worth it. Beware: This is not a joke wad! Expect something more quality!

Abysm 2 Expansion: Spirit Falcon

Abysm 2: Spirit Falcon is an Expansion for the GZDoom mod Abysm 2: Infernal Contract. It includes a new singleplayer Campaign with new Weapons, Monsters and Quests. The Prized possession of the leader of the Satsuma Clan, The Spirit Falcon, has been stolen by the Rival Yanagi Clan. Nadia, Mercenary of Iron and Demon Slayer of Hadria, travels to the Kingdom of Kiyoshi and is tasked to recover the stolen heirloom so it may be returned to its rightful owner. What dangers does the Yanagi territory hide?

Action? Arcade? Skulldash!

SkullDashAfter a development time of over 7 years (Mordeth award, anyone?) the mapper Joshua 'Dragonfly' O'Sullivan has finally released his Zandronum project Skulldash. So what is it all about? The objective in Skulldash is to collect the Skulltokens scattered around each level to unlock the exit. While collecting the Skulltokens you have to race against the clock, as there is a time limit to beat – all while defending yourself from the hordes of monsters from hell. Sounds simple but it's fun and hard as well. To keep you on your toes, there is a large variety of levels with many bosses, secrets and bonuses, mixed up with fast-paced gameplay. In my eyes, the mod is fresh with its idea and something totally new that is a lot of fun to play. You can find the download and further information at the official project homepage or the ZDoom thread. Make sure to get the latest development version of Zandronum if you want to give it a try, as it doesn't run with ZDoom or GZDoom.

Adventures of Square

Adventures of SquareLately new games based on pixel graphics with a typical retro-look seem to be a fashion. People outside the Electronic Arts univers seem to understand that a good game doesn't need to kill your GPU but simply have a good setting and an interesting gameplay. This is exactly what jimmy91 and his team thought when they started working on The Adventures of Square and they did it well. The project is under construction for a long while now but it has already made it into several gaming magazines and online portals which shows off what great achievement this standalone mod is (IWAD). Next to a total of 13 maps (incl. 4 deathmatch maps) you can expect numerous original content making up for a perfect total conversion. Be there and be square!

Advertisement the "wrong" way?

Final NeoDoomIf my name was Daniel (well it actually is, but not my nickname to be precise), I'd simply post a link now without any further information and let the rest happen due to your curiosity. Well, fortunately I am a bit more polite. Some people might already know the author from various other projects in the past which have been well received by the community. Today, Daniel has released his latest masterpiece called Final NeoDoom. It's a set with 17 maps, a lot of unique and custom new content and obviously with very well built visuals. My suggestion: Get it and play it!

Akeldama - Episode 1 Released

Akeldama is set to be a 32-level megawad for vanilla doom2.exe. This is an answer to the throwback days of Memento Mori and Alien Vendetta of classic megawads featuring various authors, new textures and music, and staying true to the original Doom 2 formula of gameplay. So far it features the works of waverider, The Mysterious Moustachio, Paul977 and valkiriforce. Currently there are 8 completed maps, and the authors are hoping to aim for strong replayability with emphasis on fast, fun gameplay and shorter-length levels roughly the size of maps from Memento Mori and regular Doom 2. There will be bigger maps as well, but they will likely be featured towards the end of each respective episode. Maps were tested in Chocolate Doom and chocorenderlimits with a bit of PrBoom+/ZDoom testing as well, although they should be friendly towards any port of choice. More information and the download link to the first episode can be found here.

Alien Breed 3D

alienbreed3dSpeaking of remakes the other day, I just stumbled upon a project that caught more than only my interest. Marty2Life, a newcomer to the community has started with his personal project Alien Breed 3D - Killing Grounds already half a year ago and I ask myself "How could I have missed this?". It's actually a remake of the old dos classic in high resolution and based on ZDoom/GZDoom, totally recreating the atmosphere and game-mechaniques in a modern engine. You can already find a lot of comparison-screenshots that look more than awesome. Check it out.

ALIENS: Eradication

ALIENS: Eradication

I am excited to announce the release of Aliens: Eradication (RC1), an 8 map action/survival game, designed for use with Kontra Kommando's Aliens Trilogy (Payload edition). The Aliens have risen again on planetoid LV426 at Weyland/Yutani corporation's best kept secret: a second colony! They still want the creature for research. The mod features

  • Four unique player classes with there own stories, enemy encounters, item placement, side/bonus missions, and even some maps exclusive to the class you have chosen to play.
  • Weapons and enemies from the Aliens Trilogy PS1 game, the Aliens films and more.
  • Play the single player, 8 map campaign or load up the mod with your favorite iwad or pwad to give them the "Alien treatment". Works with most Doom and Doom2 wads (not tested with other mods).
  • Deploy auto turrets and drones (class specific) to set traps or create defensive choke points.
  • Take advantage of environmental hazards (fire and electricity) to help even the odds.

 

Aliens: Legacy

alienslegacyOh yes, a new Aliens mod, how long I have been waiting for that... Aliens Legacy by Kontra Kommando is actually a combined effort. Deimos Anomaly of Aliens: Colonial Marines has merged with Aliens: The Ultimate Doom. Thus, Aliens: Legacy is born - sounds complicated, but it isn't. Instead, it makes sense to combine forces and skills. The screenshots are looking very promising currently and I can't wait to see where this is leading to. Check the development thread for more of that.