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Old News Archive

9/18/08 - "Let's fly away through the rain; Fly high to ease the burning pain; Oh, the colors fading out; The light is shining in the night; It's up to you, it's worth the fight; Search before the colors fade; Here we stand, bound forevermore; We're out of this world, until the end; Here we are, mighty, glorious; At the end of the rainbow; With gold in our hands", Hammerfall, At The End Of The Rainbow.

• Another Long Overdue Addition
  Greetings, all. A few hours ago I was browsing the DooMWorld forums and came across one of the occasional requests for the MegaWAD Perdition's Gate. Now, I've been looking for this(along with its companion piece Hell2Pay) for awhile. I thought I had them at one point, but it turns out the D!ZONE Gold disc doesn't really contain the full versions, as I thought it did. After all my searching, I've found the full version of Perdition's Gate for sale exactly once, while Hell2Pay is nowhere to be found. The distributor, Wraith, has been bought out, and Tom Mustaine(an author involved with both productions) hasn't had any luck getting them released into the public domain. With all that in mind, here comes the point of this post.
  
  My long search has finally yielded some fruit. Hidden in a back corner of the internet were both MegaWADs. So without further ado, download the full, unabridged versions of Hell2Pay and Perdition's Gate!

2/23/04 - "Yeah, if I make it I'd be amazed just to find tomorrow; One more day and I'd be amazed just to see it waiting; If I make it I'm still alone, no more hope for better days; If I could change then I'd really be amazed.", The Offspring, Amazed.

• A Quick Update
  The demopack for HR2 has just been released, but some people seem to be having problems downloading it. This should tide you over until DSDA is updated...

1/4/03 - "You thought you could find yourself, in someone else's soul; But time has the final take and finally takes its toll; And you can't turn the water into stone, you're only flesh and bone; Your wishing well is well enough alone; And love has a mind all of it's own, builder of a broken home.", Seventh Key, Broken Home.

• A Quick Release
  Still felt like doing some TASing after Insertion, so I sat down and created another set of demos. This time, for the Ultimate DooM set(three levels, all very short and very violent) known as Flash Of Death. Like Insertion, these are the first demos for these levels. Grab the levels here and the demos here...

12/26/02 - "And what have started long ago; Is heading towards the end; There's no easy way out; There's blood on my hands; But I am sure in the end; I will prove I was right; Runes of a long forgotten time; Ancient spells in endless rhymes; soon the other world appears; Roam to the ghostly river Rhine; Leave the misty shades behind; I can feel I'm getting near.", Demons & Wizards, Blood On My Hands.

• One More Update
  ...for this year, that is. Before we leave another year behind, I've a new TAS collection for your viewing pleasure. Please welcome the first demopack for Insertion, a largely forgotten DooM2 episode released back in 1998. There are some quality levels in here, so be sure to take a look. One comment, though: whoever created the series of lifts found in Hanford Disaster deserves a swift kick in the balls. It's the only(albeit rather large) downside in what, in all other respects, is the best level in the set. Anyway, there's also some of my best work in this collection. Grab the levels here and the demos here. So, Merry Christmas(late, I know) and have a happy new year...

3/27/02 - "Will I rise, out of shadow; Staying calm, feeling hollow; I'm here to give me one more chance; That choice is resting in my hands; Let it be, slow down; Watch the pressure fall; Bring me peace, slow down; I can't have it, I can't have it all.", Rob Halford, Slow Down.

• Review
  At long last the review and demos for The Twilight Zone have been posted. The demos were actually finished by the end of last year, but I was very slow in my reviewing. As a matter of fact, this may be my last review. I think after so many levels one runs out of ways to describe them. I won't be abandoning the community yet, though; there's still a couple TAS collections left in me...

• Site Changes
  I've finally updated the download links for all the WADs. The Links section is gone, as is the Demos section. I've checked to make sure all the demos I had on my page are available at DSDA, which is where the old Demos link now takes you...

9/19/01 - "There's a thin line between love and hate; Wider divide that you can see between good and bad; There's a grey place between black and white; But everyone does have the right to choose the path that he takes; I will hope, my soul will fly; So I will live forever; Heart will die, my soul will fly; And I will live forever.", Iron Maiden, The Thin Line Between Love And Hate.

• Review
  Okay, here's the new Requiem review(don't act too thrilled). As I said, there's no TAS collection this time, so you'll have to settle for the real demos from COMPET-N. On a side note, everyone knows about the demo bug in MAP21 and that it has been fixed. In the original Requiem demo collection, the demo for this map was recorded using a completely fixed version(100% Kills possible), but in the subsequent collection, a slightly different WAD was used(the same that is now at COMPET-N) that doesn't permit 100% Kills(some teleporting monsters don't wake up). Therefore, I submit that Kai's 11:21 run is still the record, and not Rudy's 8:10. Anyway, that's all for this update. The next update may be up to two months away, as I've decided to create new demos for Twilight Zone. I just can't resist the temptation, since the levels are relatively small and easy to plot a route through. Until then, enjoy the many demos at COMPET-N and DSDA...

8/17/01 - "Dying swans twisted wings, beauty not needed here; Lost my love, lost my life, in this garden of fear; I have seen many things in a lifetime alone; Mother love is no more, bring this savage back home.", Iron Maiden, Brave New World.

• Another Review And Demos
  Here's one more review to scratch off my list: The Raven Levels. Of course, I also sat down and created a new demo collection. I hope you enjoy them, as they were a trial to record. I'm now so sick of these levels that I'll never play them again(seems fitting, as this is my third collection). This leaves me with only two more reviews to replace before I can move on to other levels. Don't expect TAS collections for Requiem or Twilight Zone, though: the former is getting plenty of attention at COMPET-N and the latter just doesn't hold enough interest(maybe if I ever get bored). Until later...

6/21/01 - "Let me tell you something: you get me killed I'ma kick your ass.", Sherman Augustus, Virus.

• I Have Returned
  ...for the moment, anyway.:-) Over the last six months I've been almost completely withdrawn from the DooM Community. Not due to lack of interest(though I have to admit I was getting a bit bored), but for lack of time. Instead, all my DooMing time has been spent working on various levels. So, after months of not visiting any DooM pages, I got the urge one day to check out the DSDA. Well, seems in my absence the demo portion of the community has been thriving, and not just COMPET-N, either. The DSDA now has its own contingent of dedicated DooMers creating demos for various levels. It's finally happened: a working competition for WADs has been created! No more are WAD authors dependent on people like me to create demos for their levels. Finally, speedrunners everywhere have a forum in which to compete for best times on those little known WADs, and viewers everywhere are no longer subjected to my slow(though brilliantly executed:-)), tactical demos; they're now being replaced by speedruns! Speaking of COMPET-N, I also found they'd started using MegaWADs(I've only been suggesting that for, what, four years?). Man, it's a great time to be an LMP nut...

• ...And The Point Is
  Anyway, while visiting DSDA I found Opulent's demo collection for Mordeth which finally gave me the means to go about writing a proper review. Check out the narrow escape between a Baron and an Imp at the beginning of MAP05 to see some nice footwork. So, the review is up and ready to be read. With any luck I'll be updating again before next year...

11/11/00 - "Democrats piss me off!", Eric Cartman, South Park: Volcano.

• The Promised Update
  What a surprise, eh? I actually got something done on time. Anyway, I managed to get around the problems I was having with YAOTZIN and finished the demo. Go pick it up from the review page. It only plays back with DosDooM .47, though. Despite the fact that this demo works, there is something weird about this level when it comes to demos and I have no idea what. That's all for now...

• Day Of The Demos
  For the first time in a long while I've added a new link: Opulent's DooMed Speed Demos Archive, which shall be referred to as DSDA. It's COMPET-N for WADs, and it already has a fair amount of demos. So, after you're done watching all those cool Evilution UV100s from COMPET-N(you have watched them, right?) check out the large inventory at DSDA. Keep in mind, most of these are older demos and aren't optimized(a few of them are mine, if that's any indication), but that's the reason we all play DooM: to optimize demos! Now get over there and start getting some records as I have no time to TAS all of those levels on my own...:-)

11/9/00 - "When you thought you were free; You did not need a reason; No reason to survive; As the big door closes; And you're waiting for the mail; Somebody tell the world; You're buried alive.", Black Sabbath, Buried Alive.

• Reviewing Bugs
  Well, here's my semi-monthly update, this time containing a review for YAOTZIN.WAD. No demo, though. Why? I was about two minutes into a TAS demo when my computer froze and I had to reboot. Then, while fast-forwarding, the demo went out of sync. A bit of backstory: Adam's 7:50 UV100 desyncs at the library. Despite my best efforts(and I don't mean small, work on it for five minutes efforts) I couldn't get his demo to play. I tried it on three different ports and it dies at the same place every time. Now my TAS demo is desyncing at exactly the same spot(the library). Coincidence? I think not. That's when I began the aforementioned efforts. So, I know, approximately, the point at which the problem occurs(narrowed down to about twenty seconds of the demo). First, the player enters the library, kills two monsters, misses the third, then kills the fourth(at the foot of the stairway). Here's where the biggest discrepency occurs: the Former Human, who should be on the staircase, is wandering. However, I don't believe this is the cause of the problem, as I missed a monster earlier. So, now I know that it occurred before the stairway. Most likely, it happened upon entering the room. While looking over the northwestern corner(where the player passes) I noticed a HOM effect on the ceiling, above the bookcases. I moved a bit and it disappeared. Well, a missing texture couldn't desync a demo nor would a HOM caused by such vanish, so it had to be something else. Loaded in DeeP, I noticed no unusual sector references. I did find a lamp nearby, outside the playing area. This turned out to be useless, as I moved it into the playing area and the problem didn't change(I was running out of ideas by this point). The only conclusion I can come to is that there's a bug in the Nodes. I tried rebuilding the Nodes/Blockmap/Reject Map(one at a time, then all together). The HOM was gone, but both demos still desynced at the same point, in exactly the same way. I even tried downloading the level again, in case I got a bad copy. No luck there, either. Well guys, I've only got one idea left to try, but it might actually work. If it does you can expect a new demo within the next day or two(and I mean that). If it doesn't I'll see you next month...:-)

10/11/00 - "Bam, I'd like to bash you in the head; Damn, I can't make sense of what you said; Man, that's just the way it's always been; Yeah, I guess I'm better off dead; F*** tomorrow", Dope, Spine For You.

• New Review
  Just a minor update to keep the site from dying. I wrote a quick review for Cyb's Running Scared with accompanying demo. Despite the lack of updates I haven't withdrawn from DooM, but it seems like I never have much time in recent months. Got too many levels to edit, demos to create, reviews to write; and that's just the DooM portion. I also have a job which takes a good thirty hours of each week. Add to that all these new LDs and DVDs I've been buying and you'll see I've got more than enough to keep me busy. Get the idea? Did I mention eating, sleeping, and watching the occasional TV series(read: Star Trek)? How I miss the days of unemployment...

7/4/00 - "Kickstart and turn me over; Punchdrunk, but I'm still sober; Fourteen years and a whole lot bolder; And I don't flinch; Hungry and I'll take the best; 'Cause I never wanted anything less; What doesn't kill me makes me stronger.", Anthrax, Fueled.

• More Of The Same
  I meant to update over a week ago, but never sat down to do it. I've been neglecting all my DooMing over the last few weeks. It's high time I get back to my reviewing. Not only that, but I've got some levels to work on, too. Anyway, there's one more review and demo added to the list in the form of RED...

• ...And Something New
  The past few weeks haven't been completely boring, though. To start with, I finally bought Quake's two mission packs, both of which rule. Been wanting to watch Scourge Done Slick for a long time. Let's just say I was thoroughly impressed. Oh, and a copy of Quake came with the package, too, replacing the version I downloaded off the 'Net 3½ years ago. Back in the world of DooM, Anders got bored and decided to try ASD2 MAP06, which I've long thought to be impossible. Well, he did it! It doesn't end there, as he beat my cheated demo(on his first attempt) by exactly four minutes. Now, I don't mind being proven wrong, especially when it comes to demos, but he just had to improve my time. I think he did it just to force me to make another demo... :-)

5/21/00 - "Grind time for old misconceptions; Role out new scenery as per suggestion; Won't salute you, won't desert you; Won't be a prisoner to assumption anymore.", Queensrÿche, spOOL.

• News And Review
  Sorry this took so long. I was dreading the process of making a TAS collection for Obituary. When I finally began I came to the very simple conclusion that MBF is way too much trouble. So, unless someone creates a DeHackEd capable engine with a better splicing method(like Aurikan's), I won't be recording any levels that use DeHackEd patches. I might eventually create a UV100 run through Obituary(without cheating, but recorded one level at a time), but not right now. What I plan to do is finish the few single level reviews that are left, then concentrate on the MegaWADs. To begin, there's a review and demo up for The Punisher...

4/14/00 - "Somewhere there's a reason why things go like they do; Somewhere there's a reason why somethings just fall through; We don't always see them for what they really are; But I know there's a reason, just can't see it from this far.", Megadeth, I Thought I Knew It All.

• News And Reviews
  I know it's been almost a month, but I didn't even think I'd get it done this quickly. Writing up 64 levels is no quick task. Two more reviews up: Memento Mori and its sequel Memento Mori 2. In the overviews I attempt to explain why the original is better than the sequel. I don't believe anyone's done this before, so read carefully. You may just see my point...

3/16/00 - "Every town has an Elm Street.", Robert Englund, Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare.

• Corrections
  Jason Henry found a few errors which have been fixed. One of them was the time for Eternal MAP30. The fastest time is in fact 24:58, but that demo wasn't included in the official pack. It's posted in the demo area...

• In Other News
  UV100's for the first three levels of D2 have been posted over at The Darkening. All are by Adam Hegyi, containing his usual fluid movements and unbelievable accuracy. If you like Quake demos, head on over to SDA and pick up the two new Prodigy: Special Edition NM100's. I think that's about all. Oh, and it's my twentieth birthday today...

3/13/00 - "Why? Why are the innocent punished? Why the sacrifice? Why the pain? There aren't any promises. Nothing's certain; only that some get called, some get saved. She won't ever know the hardship and grief for those of us left behind. We commit these bodies to the void with a glad heart, for within each seed there is a promise of a flower and within each death, no matter how small, there's always a new life; a new beginning. Amen!", Charles Dutton, Alien³.

• The New Site
  Okay, friends, I've finally done it. The old site is no more. In it's place is what you are reading now; the first update of Visions Of DooM. As I'm sure you'll see, it's not nearly finished. However, all the content from the old site is here. With the exception of the reviews it looks rather similar, but that will change, eventually. I just threw the extra sections(Demos, Links) together by pasting them in directly from the old page, in order to lose as little information as possible. Both sections will get an overhaul after the reviews are completed. I'm sure you'll notice the lack of a dedicated WAD Master's Competition page. I won't be restoring that particular area, but I have archived all the past entries into a single file available for download in the Demos section...

• Fellow Site Runners
  Webmasters take note: if you've linked to my site, or to any files directly, you'll need to update those links, as I've rearranged the files a bit. All demos are in the ./lmps/ subdirectory. Also, the main page is no longer doom.html. Instead, I've changed it so my new address is: http://www.geocities.com/andy_olivera/. Of course, the old street address(/Hollywood/4736/) still works...

• On To The Show
  Now that all the technical crap is out of the way, we can get to the heart of my site: the reviews and demos. Specifically, the current reviews are posted and the others will be added as they are finished. And what review would be complete without a DemoPak to accompany it? To that end, from the individual reviews you can download the best demos that are available. Several have new TAS collections, such as: Icarus; Dawn Of The Dead; The Darkening; Cleimos 2; ASD2. For now, enjoy all the awesome demo action and read the in-depth reviews. The demos alone should keep you busy for a good week...

12/31/99 - "The lies ten feet tall; Have broken my fall; Welcome you all new millennium; It's well overdue; And I can't wait to; Welcome in a new millennium; I've got this feeling; The tide is turning now baby; Funny feeling; Everything's gonna be alright now.", Dream Theater, New Millennium.

• Remember Me?
  No, I'm not dead. Just a little vacation from this, the only life I really have. Thought I'd update with my plans for the next millennium before this one ends. I'm not going to give you a summary of what 1999 has brought to DooM, because, honestly, I don't remember. I'm still eagerly awaiting the release of the second episode of The Darkening and all of Hell Revealed 2. My progress this year was fairly minimal. That is, until I decided to redesign this page...

• New Page Specs
  Assuming anyone is still interested in DooM when I get this new page up it's going to be great. It'll still have the same content, but with a better layout(many pages, instead of one). Well, almost the same content. There will actually be much more information. Here's what to expect. The review section is being completely rewritten. The new style will contain an overview just as it does now, but added, for each individual level(for multi-level WADs), will be a capsule review containing the level's title and author, a difficulty rating, the fastest known UV100 demo time(available for download), and a screenshot. That's just the reviews, though. A larger, more comprehensive demo section will be the highlight of the page(for demo people, at least). I'm not sure how it's going to look(haven't started that part, yet), but that's not really important. What is important is the number of new demos I'm creating for release with the page. I'm sure you've all heard of Tool-Assisted Speedruns by now. I'll have new TAS collections for many of the levels. So far I've got complete collections for the following: ALOHA999(I know it's bad, but there weren't any demos for it); ASD2(the impossible MAP06 included); DARKEN(the longest demo runs 5:23!); CHORD1(already released on TAS); CLEIM20; DODEAD; ICARUS(the first eight levels). That's just what I've currently finished. Before the page is up you'll see these: ICARUS(the other 24 levels); OBTIC; RAVEN(that'll be my third collection for this set!); RED; RUNAWAY. My goal is to have a demo for almost every level here! There are currently two exceptions: ALLHELL(not worth the trouble); MORDETH(new episodes with special engine pending; would require MBF which takes longer; ETERNAL is easier to plot a route through!). Don't have a plan for the links section, but it's not going to be too elaborate. I don't even want to give an approximate release date, but the first quarter of 2000 is my goal. For now, I need to get back to my ICARUS demos. See you next millennium!!!

2/09/99 - "Beginnings get complicated the farther we progress; Opinions are calculated; Immune to openness; Beyond the circle's edge; We're driven by her blessings; Forever hesitating; Caught beneath the wheel.", Dream Theater, Innocence Faded.

• New Review and Demos
  Yes, I know. I said I'd be back in a few days almost a month ago. At least I made it before the one month mark. However, I wasn't just being lazy. I actually got something done. Check out the new review of the Paul Corfiatis WAD Twilight Zone. On top of that, I've got a 32-level UV DemoPack, recorded by me, to go with it. Now is that cool, or what? All demos were recorded with MBF and the mouse! It was good practice...

• MegaWAD Update
  It's true. I'm still thinking about MAP07. I got a new job that offers me the chance to stand at a podium all day. Not much to do there, either. What do I do? I sketch levels. Already got MAP08 down on paper. Of course, working on MAP07 has taken priority, so I've sketched two new sections. Don't worry, I'm not making it larger than I originally planned. So you actually know what to expect, MAP08 will be very small; simmilar to Hell Revealed. Outdoor, so it won't be as dark as MAP07. I've even got an idea for MAP09!!!

1/09/99 - "I like people, it's just hard to weed through the stupid ones.", Ted Danson, Becker.

• Christmas And The New Year
  Well, another year has passed and it's been a good one as far as DooM is concerned. I haven't been doing much besides surfing the sites to see what's up, thus the lack of updates. However, slacker time is over. I'm back, again...

• New Reviews
  Yes, you read the title correctly! I have not one, but two reviews for everyone to read. The first is for Yonatan's HRB.WAD. The other is Mike "Cyberdemon" Watson's RUNAWAY.WAD. I also have a demo to go with Mike's WAD. You can get it here. It's a Fist-Only LMP. Not too tough since it's built for Tyson play. I recorded it with MBF. What? You don't have MBF? Get it here, now!!!

11/15/98 - "Here I come, motherf***ers!", Richard T. Jones, Event Horizon.

• Who Goes There?
  Almost two months since I last looked at this page. I haven't been browsing the sites too much, either. I'm slacking in my E-Mails and reviews, but that's pretty much the norm. From what I've just read it seems the Community has been pretty quiet, lately. No new MegaWAD's released, but several more have been started. I'm still waiting for HR2, Darkening Episode Two, and Mordeth E2. Can we please get those current projects finished before we start more?

• DooM2200
  Well, my MegaWAD has gotten a favorable review from Steve Noonan, of DooM Nation. Go check it out...

• Page
  Added DooM Nation to the roster below and fixed some outdated links. Everything should work fine. Also added Sir Robin's page and Opulent's DooM Page...

9/24/98 - "Ernest Hemmingway once wrote: 'The world is a fine place, and worth fighting for'. I agree with the second part...", Morgan Freeman, Seven.

• New Demo Collection
  Anyone heard of Requiem? If not, it's an awesome MegaWAD. Rudy Jurjako, Adam Hegyi, Chrozoron, Mike "prower" Reid, and Adam Williamson have teamed up to create a new UV collection for the above MegaWAD. If you're still interested in DooM you can pick it up here...

9/03/98 - "It's another form of suicide; No one knows the reason why she's runnin'; Far Away; And all the fools think they're wise; And the angels they cry; And the people they all gathered round; It was nine twenty-five; When her body arrived; And by noon she was down in the ground; And we all fall down.", Blue Murder, We All Fall Down.

• Anybody Listening?
  Somebody tell me if I should keep this LMP competition going or just drop it. Nobody's competing, so what's the point?

• Dead Links Revived
  Appearantly my little rant the other night did some good. Of course, after posting that I don't update for more than a week. I'm great at following my own advice. :-) Also, Eric's complaining about the news sites not mentioning his latest exclusive Wad Pick, so I'm mentioning it here. Go check it out. It's another Kurt Kesler BooM level...

8/23/98 - "Insanity is just a state of mind.", Alan Alda, M*A*S*H.

• Lack of Competition Update
  I still don't have any entries for Dark Eden. Why? I know people out there are still playing because Team Insanity's contest is drawing crowds. I've extended Dark Eden for another week...

• Odd Demo Challenge
  Over at the NeXuS(added a link below) Andy Kempling is daring all of you DooMer's out there to watch three LMP's and find out how many of them are cheated. It could be all, or it could be none...

8/10/98 - "Well, the truth is usually just an excuse for lack of imagination.", Andrew Robinson, Star Trek: DS9 - Improbable Cause.

• Delayed Information
  I didn't get a chance to update the page until now. I've been busy with work so I haven't had any free time since Friday. At least, not enough time to visit all the news sites to see if there was anything I needed to update about. The last two months news has been archived...

• Competition Update
  No entries, again. Anders is busy updating all the COMPET-N demos. I don't know what happened to the others. Probably busy...

• MegaWAD Demos
  Peo and Henning have completed a UV demo collection for all six levels. It even contains a "-fast" demo for Core(MAP04). Download it here...

7/31/98 - "It's time for me to deal; Becoming all too real; Living in fear; Why did you lie and pretend; This has to come to an end; I'll never trust you again; It's time you made your amends; Look in the mirror my friend.", Dream Theater, The Mirror.

• Competition Update
  I did get one entry for The Barracks, but it doesn't have 100% Kills because it appears to be impossible. A Trooper is stuck in the ceiling at one point, which somehow prevents a wall from lowering(it works fine in BooM), and three Cacodemons aren't able to teleport to the play area. Go figure. A new level is posted and this time I know it's possible... :-)

• Links Updated
  I've added one new site today: The Best of DooM. Updated several old links...

7/24/98 - "Hey, teacher! Leave those kids alone.", William Sadler, Disturbing Behavior.

• Competition Update
  I still haven't received any entries for The Barracks. I'll leave it up for another week, but if there aren't any demos by next Friday I'm going to take it down. There has to be someone who can complete this level...

• Links Added
  Added two new links: Prower's(sorry, I mean prower) Page of DooM and the The DooM2 Special Effects Shoppe...

7/21/98 - "Hell has its commandments, too, you know.", Doug Bradley, Hellraiser 3: Hell On Earth.

• Reviews Updated and Added
  It seems like every other review site is talking about Malcolm Sailor's CHORDG.WAD, so why shouldn't I? I figured it was about time for another review anyway. I also changed the backgrounds to all of the old reviews. I got a comment that the blue background was too bright. I have to agree with this. The only reason I put it there in the first place is because it made the screenshots easier to see...

7/19/98 - "What if this is as good as it gets?", Jack Nicholson, As Good As It Gets.

• DooM2200 Released
  Well, after about one year of work and another year of waiting I've finally finished the first Episode of my MegaWAD: DooM2200!!! You can all download it here until it's moved from incoming. I've done my best to make sure these six levels are as good as, if not better, than ID's original creations. Send all comments, demos, and constructive critisicm to me, so I'll know what, and what not, to include in future MAP's...

• Competition Update
  I haven't received any demos for The Barracks, yet. I can't say this suprises me, though. I still haven't been able to complete it with 100% Kills...

7/11/98 - "No, Peg. If this were Hell you'd be on the throne and the devil would be packing.", Ed O'Niel, Married...With Children.

• Competition Update
  Well, I've put The Barracks back up again, but this time it's the modified version I was talking about. You must use this modified version, and not the original release...

• MegaWAD Update
  Only one level left to prepare for release. Just to warn you all, there's going to be tons of extra graphics that aren't used. I'm leaving them in the WAD file for use with later levels...

7/04/98 - "Cause I heard it in the wind; And I saw it in the sky; And I thought it was the end; And I thought it was the 4th of July.", Soundgarden, 4th of July.

• Competition Update
  I did get one entry for ASD2 MAP08, but I'm going to run it another week. Why? Because I'm waiting to see if Justin makes his modifications to BARRACKS.WAD. If he hasn't finished by next Friday I'll put up a modified version of my own. I only made one modification: I added a Reject Map. The level runs remarkably faster now. Other than the Reject Map, it's the same as the current release of the level...

• Links Modified
  I've added a new link to the list: Team Insanity. They've got reviews and tons of other stuff, too, including what they call a Mystery WAD. Each week they put a screenshot up and it's your job to identify the WAD. This weeks is extremely easy...

7/01/98 - "Carry me to the shoreline; Bury me in the sand; Walk me across the water; And maybe you'll understand.", Dream Theater, Hollow Years.

• Bugs in The Barracks
  Appearantly, I was mistaken about The Barracks. Other than the transparent ceiling at the beginning and the numerous Slime Trails(Nodes resource problem) the level is fine. For a while I thought it was uncompletable, but I was wrong. No big deal. I'll put it up for the competition within the next week or two...

• MegaWAD Update
  I've finished preparing one more MAP for release. Only two left. I have a few free days so I'll get to spend some time on them. For now you can still view a few screenshots here...

6/27/98 - "Would you like a closer look?", David Warner, Waxwork.

• Competition Update
  I've been informed that there are a few bugs in BARRACKS.WAD, so I've taken it down until they are fixed. In the meantime a new WAD has been posted. Enjoy...

6/20/98 - "It's funny. When you give blood the most you can expect is a cup of orange juice, but when you take blood you get headlines.", Miguel Ferrer, The Night Flier.

• Competition Update
  I got entries from two people this week. Kind of odd, though; they're both members of the Level Lords. The new level is posted. I'm running this one for at least two weeks. It'll take that long just to figure it out, let alone record it...

• MM2 Demo Collection Released
  From the creators of the recent HR collection comes this set of lightning fast demos for all 34 levels in MM2. Finally! I've been waiting for this ever since Migru insulted our original collection. These are true speed demos, Migru; take note. It's only available from Peo's site until it's moved out of the incoming directory. To lessen the demand on his site I've temporarily uploaded it to my site. You can pick it up from Peo(added to links list) or from me.

• MegaWAD Update
  Haven't had much extra time lately, so it's taking a bit longer than expected. My employer finally gave me the extra hours I asked for. Good for money, bad for DooM...

• Demos List
  I neglected to add the new HR collection during my last update; added. Changed the Strain collection link from Nostromo's site to Walnut Creek. I'll add the new MM2 collection when it's been moved to a perminent location...

6/12/98 - "Dead or alive you are coming with me.", Peter Weller, Robocop.

• Competition Update
  I did get one entry for the contest, but I'm going to let the current level run another week. I'm doing this mostly because I don't have much time to spare...

• Hell Revealed Collection Released
  A new demo collection for HR has been released. It contains a number of improvements. First, and most importantly, is the fact that the total running time for all 32 UV demos is 3:57:31(my math is probably a bit off) faster than the previous collection. Second, they've included GM demos for 21 of the levels. One thing I missed, however, is the lack of the players comments on the individual MAP's. I had this same problem with the Strain and Eternal collections, as well. Hopefully the upcoming MM2 demos will have comments to go along with them...

6/06/98 - "Stanley, gay people... Well, gay people are evil. Evil right down to thier cold, black hearts which pump not blood like yours and mine, but rather a thick vomitous oil that oozes through thier rotten veins and clots in thier pea-size brains which becomes the cause of thier Nazi-esque patterns of violent behaviour. Do you understand?", Mr. Garrison, South Park: Big Gay Al's Big Gay Boat Ride.

• Competition Update
  Not much of an update this time. No entries, so I guess CHORD_NG runs another week...

• MegaWAD Update
  Three of the six levels are ready for release, so it shouldn't be too much longer. I'm still looking for someone to do the title cards for my levels...

• Page Update
  I've added a link to the Hell Revealed 2 news page. Don't know how often it'll get updated, but it's nice to have some information. Also archived the past two months news...

• BooM
  TeamTNT has released the final Phase I engine of BooM and the source code to go along with it. It's nice to look at the code and see a comment here and there, but it still isn't as commented as I would like. It makes great reading, though. Check out Lee's 180K log file...

5/30/98 - "Are you driving with your eyes open, or are you, like, using the Force?", Eddie Murphy, Beverly Hills Cop 2.

• Competition Update
  Only one LMP received this week, but it's a good one. The new WAD is posted. I may let it run for two weeks because it's so tough...

• RicRobNet Returns
  Okay, this is really beginning to piss me off. I'm getting tired of updating the Links section with the same link. Appearantly Eric doesn't have much free time, so updates will be few and far between...

• MegaWAD Update and Request
  I'm spending as much time as I can on touching up my levels. The level that required the most work is out of the way, so the rest shouldn't be that difficult.

5/23/98 - "If you don't put down your malt liquor and chicken wings and get behind someone other than a Running Back who stabs his wife you'll never get rid of somebody like me.", Warren Beatty, Bulworth.

• Competition Update
  Check out the page for the only LMP and this weeks WAD...

• RicRobNet Gone?
  RicRobNet appears to have disappeared. Anybody know why? Whenever I try to reach his page all I get is an empty directory listing. I've removed the link...

• MegaWAD Update
  I'm still hard at work on shrinking the levels. In case you're wondering what I mean by "shrinking" I'll explain. Basically, I'm just eliminating repetative Sectors. It's similar to the way the BlockMap is packed: only one entry for all of the empty blocks. In the case of Sectors: only one entry for every like Sector. It's a bit more complicated than that since you need to take into account the way sound travels and tags. It's done great, so far. The MAP I'm currently shrinking was originally almost 500 Sectors. Now it's down to below 200. That particular level has shrunk approx. 30K...

5/21/98 - "Are you aiming for these people?", Samuel L. Jackson, Die Hard With A Vengence.

• New Review Posted
  That's right! I finally got off my lazy butt and wrote a review. This one is for The Darkening. Since I recorded every level I'll probably never forget them(my memory is weird), so I decided to write it up. Now if I could only update my Movie Review page...

5/16/98 - "Beware. The toes you step on today may be connected to the ass you'll be kissing tomorrow.", Ving Rhames, Body Count.

• Competition Update
  Only one competitor this week. There would have been more if it weren't for the upcoming MM2 collection(mentioned below). The new level is posted...

• Links Modified
  I found another link to add: DooMster. It's a review site and appears to be growing at a fairly quick pace. They're looking for WAD suggestions and LMP's for the WAD's they've already reviewed. RicRobNet appears to be gone. I haven't heard any news about this so I'm leaving the link right where it's at. Maybe it'll pop up again in a few days...

• Upcoming LMP Collections
  If you haven't heard about it, yet, there are two very cool LMP projects in the works. One is for HR, the other is for MM2. The HR collection is nearly finished, with only one or two MAP's to go. Yonatan promises that these times will blow the old ones away. I'm not sure how far along the MM2 collection is, though...

• MegaWAD Update
  I've finally decided to release the first mini-episode of my MegaWAD. Right now I'm just doing a little clean up work on some of the MAP's. I'm shrinking them as much as I possably can before they're released. I will release future installments to the series one level at a time, because I'm so slow at building them...

5/01/98 - "I'm a marine. We don't plan, we improvise", Keanen Ivory Wayans, Most Wanted.

• Competition Update
  I must've picked a better WAD this time, because I have more than one LMP to post. So along with the LMP's I've posted this weeks WAD. I've decided to let this one go for two weeks because of its size and relative difficulty. It's one of my favorite levels from MM2. There's only one LMP for it in existence, but it leaves much room for improvement. Go take a look...

• UV Demos For The Darkening Released
  That unnamed demo collection I spoke about a few days ago is for The Darkening and it has been completed. There are only eleven levels so it didn't require a huge amount of time. With the exception of MAP04, they're generally easy or medium in difficulty. You can download them here...

4/25/98 - "What did you arrest me for, getting beat up without a license?", Jean-Claude Van Damme, Hard Target.

• Competition Update
  Well, I finally replaced Unconditional Elimination with an easier WAD. However, Jason Henry sent in an LMP before the deadline. So, again, I only got one, but this level was much harder than usual. I also created a page for the WAD's and demos of previous weeks...

4/22/98 - "You know nothing. Hell is only a word. The reality is much, much worse.", Sam Neill, Event Horizon.

• RicRobNet Revived and Revised
  Appearantly Eric wasn't retiring, but moving his site. It's back up with a few modifications. One of them being no more demo contest. That sucks, since I'm in the mood for recording, lately. On the other hand I can always record his WAD Pick's and post the demo's here. The new link has been posted...

• New Demos
  A demo for Eric's most recent WAD Pick, KBRICK.WAD, can be downloaded here. I also created a pair of LMP's for ALTIER6.WAD, which you can pick up here. I think I'll start a collection for a MegaWAD, but I won't say which one until it's finished...

• Demos List Updated
  Did a bit of work on the demos section. Added some demos of mine, and a special one(not mine) that I found on my HD: ASD2-LV5.ZIP. ASD2.WAD MAP05 done Master style. Until I saw this I thought it was impossible. Also sorted them alphabetically...

4/18/98 - "You mean we're all going to die because you screwed up on the math!", Kevin J. O'Conner, Deep Rising.

• RicRobNet Dies
  It would appear that RicRobNet has been laid to rest, forever. Another valued member of the DooM Community lost to the void that is known as life. We'll miss you, Eric...

• WAD Master's Competition Update
  Yet again I haven't had any entries in the contest. Either nobody knows about it, or Unconditional Elimination is too hard. Well, I'll leave the same level up for another week and if I still don't receive any entries I'll assume it's too hard and pick out another level. In the meantime I'd appreciate some mail from those of you who have, or are, trying to record this WAD...

• Links List Modified
  Has anyone heard of Covaro's DooM Page? If not, drop by and have a look at it. There's not much there now, other than news, but it has potential. Also, be sure to check out Jason Henry's LMPS'R'US. Tons of good demos, including a collection for the supposedly Co-Op only MegaWAD Squadron 417. It's short three demos(actually, only two, he died inches before the exit on one of them), but the remaining 22 demos are definate must-see material. Peo has a demo in there, too. Sadly, I've removed the link to RicRobNet... :-(

• Demo For RicRobNet's Weekly WAD Pick
  On the subject of demos and links, a few days ago I created a 100% Kills demo for KMETL_10.WAD, which was entered into Eric's contest. Since RicRobNet is now resting in peace I've decided to post it here. Enjoy...

• News Gets Remodeled
  In case you haven't noticed, yet, I've remodeled the news section of my page. It's a bit more organized than the previous one-paragraph style and it looks a bit cooler. What do you think? Also, archived all the old news here...

4/12/98 - Happy Easter everyone!!! Nothing huge to update about, but I just joined the DooM Ring. This should help in getting a few more players for my competition. I've started reviewing The Darkening, so I should have another review pretty soon. Head on over to RicRobNet. He's posted a new Rant for all to see. This one seems to be a bit more serious than the old one about Functional Entropy's site so it's not nearly as hilarious...

4/11/98 - Not even one entry for the competition. Why? I've decided to let the same level go another week to see if anyone is paying attention. No new reviews, but I did some work on the links portion of the page. Finally resumed work on MAP07. This thing is taking forever. I'd quit where I am since it's already large enough to be a modest size level, but then I wouldn't be using the full potential of the base design. I planned it to have four different parts: one for each of the three keys, all connected by a single large room; the fourth being the finale, which will take place above ground. All of it will contain my usual abundant monster population. Although I don't populate until the level is completely built I can safely say that this one is pretty much nonstop violence, one trap after another, but before you start worrying, I'll tell you now: you can see most of them coming...

4/04/98 - Posted the level for this week's challenge. I only received one LMP for last week! A good LMP, but what's up? I know there are more demo recording players out there. On another subject TeamTNT's updated DooM engine has been released. Almost all limits are gone and new features have been added. Conveyor belts, true deep water(swimming), thousands of generalized Linedef types. I could list hundreds of improvments, but I'll let the finished product speak for itself. Download it from their page now!!! While thinking about the competition I realized that some of you may want to use updated engines for your demo recording. Before you think about it any further don't waste your time. I've added to the rules section that DooM2 v1.9 must be used. I know BooM is a much better engine for recording, and such, but v1.9 is still the most widely used...

3/30/98 - Minor update to the rules section of the competition page. It states that 100% Secrets is encouraged, but not required. Also posted the best time so far: 10:34. Keep sending me your LMP's...

3/28/98 - The WAD Master's Competition is underway. LMP makers take note...

3/22/98 - Well, two months since I promised the Eternal DooM 3 review, it has arrived! Maybe now I can get back into a semi-regular habit of updating and reviewing. TeamTNT's modified DooM engine will be released in a week or two. It's going to be awesome! Also, EJR's page has moved so I've updated the link. He's also added a weekly demo contest. The challenge is to complete the WAD Pick of the week with 100% Kills on UV. I think I'll try the same thing here, but rather than using WAD's I've recently reviewed I'll just pick one randomly. For example, I might just choose, say, CHORD_NG. Or I might select a level that already has a demo for it, in order for all you players to improve on it, like HR11(improve on the demo in HRUVLMPS, about 38 min.). That's another thing, I might just pull a level from a MegaWAD. Fastest 100% Kills UV demo wins. I'll list all the entries I receive on a new page. Anybody interested?

1/23/98 - This is pathetic! No new reviews in two months. I've played through Strain and Eternal, so these will probably be next. An episode replacement has been released - The Darkening. Done by some very reputable authors, so I'm sure it'll be good. No progress on MAP07. TeamTNT is working on the source code, trying to get rid of those stupid limits. Go to their page to see what's going on. As far as I know, most of the limits have been taken care of. That means no more Savegame Buffer Overflow or HOM on MAP05. On a non-DooM note: I just got Riven. I don't know how much time this'll take, but I'll try to keep updating...

12/25/97 - Merry Christmas to all of you in the DooM Community!!! I've got the best news. First, Eternal DooM 3 demos have been released. Now, the greatest news ever heard: John Carmack has released the DooM Source Code!!! Unfortunately, it only compiles under Linux. No great loss, though, because Lee(finally added his page) has informed me that there is already a DOS Port(no sound or network support, though). Finally, the subject of playing DooM in Slow-Motion came up in the NG's, recently. I found the address of the bytes that can be changed, thanks to Greg Lewis(DeHackEd). Once I figure out how to slow it down to a playable rate for demo recording(please note: this is cheating, and, if used, must be noted in the TXT file) I'll post it here. That's all for now, but it should be enough to last for another few months...

12/07/97 - No significant news, but I thought I should explain why I haven't updated in three weeks. First, I've been busy working(an actual low-paying job). Second, I figured that I'd wait until the Eternal DooM 3 demos are released, but, as you can see, I'm still waiting. Third, and finally, I've been doing some work on MAP07. Almost finished with the first Key hunt, which is quite long, but don't worry, the other two Key hunts will be slightly shorter. File size has reached 370K, and it's still growing. Here's a little quote I found: "...there's about five, to my knowledge, that are bigger, and one is in Requiem.", Adam Williamson about his level, Downer(MAP29 of Requiem). I think once I'm finished with MAP07 it will be one of those five levels...

11/16/97 - Great news!!! Eternal DooM 3 has been released. Pick it up at the TeamTNT site. No demo collection, yet, but I'll post a link here as soon as it's released. Fixed a link error with the CHORD1.WAD review. Did a bit more work on MAP07. Now it's up to 250K...

11/14/97 - Awesome! Two updates in a row! Added a review for the very recently defeated CHORD1.WAD. Time to get back to MAP07...

11/13/97 - Another month without any updates. Responding to yet another challenge, I've created a UV demo for CHORD1.WAD. It lasts 22:41, and is done Master style(the only way to play). Download it here. The cool thing is, it's probably my best demo since last year's P32GMARO. CHORD1 is incredibly hard, yet it's not frustrating, unless you record a perfect demo only to find out that it doesn't play back correctly(I did, but this demo is faster). I'll give you a more in-depth description in the upcoming review. Now that my most recent challenge has been completed, I can resume work on MAP07. I just passed the 200K mark and I haven't even finished the journey to the first Key, yet. :-) DS9 starts in about 20 minutes, which doesn't give me enough time to do anything with MAP07, so that's all for now...