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Even if you completely exclude all the fuss about MyHouse, 2023 has been the best year in custom wad history -- even beyond 2021, which already had redefined what was possible. Sometimes the small group of wads seemingly everyone has heard of, the Sunlusts and MyHouses
and Ode2ImpSlayers, are not the best way to determine that. There can be so much more going on, and the dozens of good releases flying more under the radar have just as much to say about trends in community activity. We could sum it up by saying most wads here would be Cacowards in the 2000s (if Past Steve disagrees, ignore him, and then find a much better use for your time machine), but in my book it's even higher praise that they are HMs in 2023.- @rd.
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Flesharmonic - Various
Doom 2, limit-removing, 20 maps
How do you like your meat prepared, human? Well-done, like a murder of cacodemons charbroiled in a stream of superheated plasma fire? Medium, like a mancubus flash-fried in its own juices via liberal application of high-explosive rockets? Or maybe you like it extra-rare, quarters of an imp still twitching and hissing, freshly dismantled by hand in the throes of a berserk rage. Whatever your taste in gratuitous demon-slaying violence, the cadre of butchers and pit-bosses behind Flesharmonic have you covered. Belly up to 20 maps served in a lurid flesh-shrouded Hellscape, stuffed with a kingly helping of unrelenting action infused with time-tested flavor, expertly seasoned with an unholy dose of blood-drenched daemonic imagery, fit to satiate even the most carnivorous appetite.* Dig in!
* -- Salad extra. Exorcism not included.
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Quoth the Raven - Various
Heretic, limit-removing, 27 maps
For the Pineapple Under the Sea Speedmapping Series’ 28th entry, Death Bear and Egregor lead an expedition far from familiar Doom waters and into places more fantastical. In addition to three episodes of Heretic’s requisite castles and dungeons, Quoth the Raven leans heavily and unapologetically into Heretic’s unique gameplay twists and awesome array of inventory items. I challenge you not to smirk all the way through Hunt of the Chickenmancer, a map that stocks enough morph ovums to turn half its monster count into feathered friends ripe for exploding. But maybe the most thrilling chapter comes in Upon Grim Wings of Sorrow, which has you soaring on the wings of wrath for its entire runtime, battling enemies high above a grim keep and flying at high speed in and out of erupting magma tunnels. We all need a little more heresy in our lives, and Quoth the Raven delivers.
- @scwiba
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ABSCISSION - Snaxalotl
Doom 2, vanilla-compatible, 32 maps
The latest and greatest megawad release from rising star Snaxalotl, Abscission is a work both alien and familiar, an idiosyncratic reimagining of the Doom 2 iwad, a melange of new ideas and fragments of the familiar drenched in a moody, downbeat atmosphere. Beginning as a series of riffs on the iconic McGee levels, the set gradually escalates into something far more ambitious and sinister, as the faint comfort of familiar elements is gradually stripped away, replaced with ever more of the author’s particular vision of Hell on Earth. Underpinning this high concept is a rock-solid foundation of ingenious progression schema, well-tuned combat, devious secrets and phenomenal pacing, making Abscission a breeze to play despite its considerable length and relative tonal uniformity. Truly, a must-play for any fan of Hell on Earth.
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Doomed: By the Hour - finnks13 and Yumheart
Doom 2, Boom-compatible, 33 maps
I imagine some people might write off 1-3 hour speedmaps on principle, but don't be silly. This team has put on a great show, with a slaughter-heavy style that draws from a blend of influences, and the result is some of the most fun I've had all year. Maybe spurred by having so little time at risk, the authors were encouraged towards wild tonal extremes and caution-to-the-wind experimentation. One of my favorite maps of the year was the vicious, violent map20 "Gotcha..."; it pulses with a current of sinister gloom that would make the later parts of No End in Sight blush, but unfolds as a demented mix of gauntlet slaughter and snare-laden dungeon crawl, packed with venomous traps, while managing the rare feat of making the light amp goggles work very well. Yet relative to the quality of the other maps, this is no extreme outlier.
- @rd.
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Fallen Leaves - Bri
Doom 2, MBF21-compatible, 7 maps
Out of Bri's pair of works released in the past year, Fallen Leaves manages to stand out thanks to its vibrant fall colors, and its later Autumn-going-on-Winter closers. Taking some notes from classical architecture, Bri sets adrift colosseums, towers, great libraries, and even a snow-covered ski lodge, into oceans of dying leaves, crimson blood, and an odd orange mixture of both. Within and around these loose buildings, he dresses them up with plenty of candles and torches and hangs autumnal foliage as he pleases -- making for a pleasing seasonal mixture of browns, purples, and reds, with a dash of powdered white snow where applicable. These maps come adorned with snappy yet smooth-flowing shootouts, that later give way to slaughter-lite brawls beneath those beautiful columns. It is an essential play for anyone who hasn't yet found their fill for the season.
- @Maribo
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Protoslayer E2 - VolasaurusDoom 2, GZDoom, 19 maps
Back in 2020, Volasaurus released the first episode of Protoslayer, a GZDoom set that made an impression with its furious pacing, all-new arsenal and enemies, and a NuDoom-tinted storyline. And now Volasaurus is back with Episode 2: Judecca, a much more refined work that takes place deep in Purgatory, as the eponymous Protoslayer finds himself in the so-called Engine of Eternity. This sinister hub world leads to multiple levels, each more otherworldy and surreal than the last. Expect vast suspended corridors with gravity-inverted imps, swathes of a cityscape floating in the void, a toxic forests that folds in on itself, and of course, plenty of Hellish fiends, new and old, to put down with your fast-firing, explosive arsenal. Volasaurus toys with ambient music and colorful sector lighting to make each location feel suspenseful and attractive, which all helps in making the improvements in his mapping craft over the past three years become that much more apparent. Even if E1 wasn't your thing, give Judecca a spin and you might be surprised at just where it can take you.
- @Dynamo
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Nostalgia 2 - Myolden
Doom 2, limit-removing, 32 maps
2023 was a great year for Myolden, who led Pina Colada, released the bite-sized (and spicier) Plutonia tribute OBZEN, and cemented his status as one of the best active team project glue mappers. Nostalgia 2, while sticking to the original's script of smoothly flowing levels with high-octane gameplay, shifts its era of focus, being more of a love letter to the 2000-2015 period. A few parts I especially loved were a mid-megawad stretch built around lava basins and ample radsuits, which shows how theme clusters can extend to recurring gameplay concepts, not just settings; a "monsters are all aliens" UFO map that has unusually fun combat for this archetype, which has traditionally been more for show; and the early third-episode hell city and all of its crafty Doomcute, including cafeterias, vehicles, and all sorts of charmingly depicted living quarters.
- @rd.
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The Cognition Engine - Snowy44
Doom 2, limit-removing, 1 map
It is abundantly clear that Doom mapping is now the domain of creative types of all stripes. Some are content to build entertaining combat encounters or interwoven exploratory spaces. Others have taken it a step further, using Doom as an engine to explore questions about ourselves and our reality. Rare, though, is the map that combines all of the above as elegantly as The Cognition Engine. Snowy44’s sprawling technological flesh-ruin is an instantly unsettling place, but somehow the worst horrors lurk even deeper. Eldritch corridors unfold as if they’re making sense of themselves in real time, and the map seems to want to understand itself just as badly as the player does. The machine births its sinister legions as you delve deeper, and if you uncover its secrets you may come out with more questions than answers. Whose reality is this exactly, and where do you fit into it?
- @scwiba
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Junkfood 1 and 2 - Various
Doom 2, Boom-compatible, 150+ maps
Complex progression and finely tuned ammo allocation is all well and good, but what if you dispense with the slow-boil suspense, indulge your sweet tooth toot sweet and blast through massive mobs of monsters with all of the heavy ordinance you could possibly want? The one-two punch of Junkfood 1 & 2 provides just that -- uncomplicated rocket/BFG slaughter in a satisfying speed mapping package. With a hyperpalatable bounty of contributions, clocking in at over 150 maps collectively, you'll get more than your fill of (un)refined sugary slaughter action. These wads also put unique spins on the difficulty settings to make them easier to digest, but if you stick with the standard experience, be prepared -- the challenge ranges from taffy soft, jawbreaker hard... to Wonka "experimental", putting it lightly. However, there's something for everyone here if you don't mind the mindless.
- @Vile
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Alcázar - General Roasterock, Ravendesk, and Jizzwardo
Doom 2, Boom-compatible, 8 maps
Crafted as a loving tribute to the Wormwood series, Alcázar takes the core tenets of that principal inspiration -- a spooky seasonal theme, playfully mysterious atmosphere, and intense, mechanically inventive gameplay -- and weaves them together with a pronounced narrative sensibility and strong sense of setting into an experience equal parts swashbuckling, autumnal adventure and macabre cautionary tale. Set on a forbidden subtropical island, the setting's lush colors, jungle foliage, and distinctly Moorish architecture offer a unique spin on the more traditional approach to Doomy Halloween pageantry. Framed as a climb from the shoreline towards an ominously looming magisterial "House on the Hill", the action along the way is inventive and ever-changing, including carefully calculating survivalism, a decidedly deadly game of 4-square, and plenty of craftily vicious showcase fights, particularly in and around the shadowed manor. With all said and done and the night coming to an end, the story is seemingly fated for an elegiac finish no matter how cunning a thief you might fancy yourself, striking a disarmingly poignant contrast with the otherwise festive tone of the caper up to that point, and solidifying Alcázar as an enchanting yarn quite worthy of becoming its own Halloween tradition.
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Deep Breath - EduardoAndFriends
Doom 2, Boom-compatible, 7 maps
I love this genre of Doom maps; using the advanced features of Boom to create a thematic episode based around a unique gimmick. In this case, you find yourself in an underwater UAC facility which requires the use of “oxygen tanks” to traverse the harsh conditions of the exposed ocean. Despite the simple concept of using radiation suits to prevent damage from “ocean floors”, Deep Breath does a wonderful job selling the experience to the player through custom textures -- both static and animated -- and detailed geometry simulating an “underwater” environment. The levels have a charming, early 2010s style with catchy midis and some truly bastardly traps. At seven maps, it never overstays its welcome and the difficulty progression is reasonable for a filthy casual such as myself.
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Mudman - eater29
Doom 2, MBF21-compatible, 1 map
Somewhere out there lies a massive, murky swamp, housing a mysterious temple for those brave enough to trek through the muck. eater29's Mudman is an exploration of Boom's friction effect, dressed up in brown and green sludge as color-coded courtesies to the player, communicating how severe of a penalty their mobility will receive while moving through each kind. The utilization of this effect ends up feeling something like a theoretical damaging floor -- the more one moves through it, the more likely they are to take indirect damage from monsters, while the floor itself is merely a facilitator. The aesthetic theme works in tandem with the functionality of the floors, giving off the feeling of sloshing through mud while bruisers slowly advance in their attempts to corner you, or madly hopping across rocks and architecture of the ruins buried underneath. A treat, for those willing to get down and dirty.
- @Maribo
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PSX Doom: The Forgotten Chapter - Dantosking
Doom 2, GZDoom, 13 maps
By now, we surely are all familiar with PSX Doom, Williams Entertainment's colorful and dreary take on Doom, and its many excellent ports. What's most remarkable about The Forgotten Chapter is that it is specifically influenced by PS1 Final Doom, which, for the uninitiated, contains parts of both halves of the PC original but also most of the Master Levels. Thus, the main inspiration here is the works of Klie, Dr. Sleep and Cranium, but in their much lesser known, sector color-amped up console equivalent. Most of the maps do a good job of reinterpreting these past ideas and feel decidedly oldschool, whereas others, most notably Eternal Twilight, dare to tread beyond and offer dazzling takes on the old maps in a much grander scale and with beefy combat to boot. If you find the premise appealing, chances are The Forgotten Chapter is just the slice of oldschool Console Doom you've been itching for.
- @Dynamo
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Deadliest Dem(o(li)ti)on - Scypek2
Doom 2, vanilla-compatible, 11 maps
I love this wad. To give you a picture of the silliness you're in for, your starting fist is replaced with a rocket launcher that you swing like a baseball bat -- the story suggests you're a demoted cyberdemon -- and later on you dual-wield plasma rifles. The enemies are oddballs, like SSG-wielding zombies and plasma barons and vanilla latte pain elementals (my description), and are used in smart, dickish-but-beatable ways. The level design feels very '90s (in a good way), taking after the layouts of authors like Cranium, with an emphasis on complexity, clever progression, and imbuing spaces with a sense of functionality that goes beyond abstract game logic, creating the sense that you're interacting with gizmos and machinery that had some underlying purpose in the world itself. Deadliest Dem(o(li)ti)on is packed with ingenuity of the sort you come to expect from the creator of Three is a Crowd.
- @rd.
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BREAK//POINT// - Major Arlene et al.
Doom 2, GZDoom, 9 maps
While Major Arlene (and co.)’s other project we'd recommend released this year, Heelbain, is more of a dreary and ambient experience, BREAK//POINT// was made with an entirely different goal -- to fully showcase just how vivid and colorful Doom can be. Major Arlene and the Hellforge crew bring forth a wondrous mapset with stunning visuals, each map's design being based on a primary color. The project is backed by the powerful combo of OTEX and Supercharge, the new peanut butter & jelly of Doom mapping, and it sure does wonders in here as well. Being no strangers to these resources, the crew lays all their cards on the table, setting the player on a journey through both natural and surrealistic landscapes, all while fighting a familiar-yet-new plethora of enemies with the fast-paced arsenal that Supercharge provides. The mapset also comes with a custom boss, which is no slouch either. If you can’t get enough of Supercharge and OTEX, I highly recommend you check BREAK//POINT// out.
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The Lost Magic - Vortale
Doom 2, Boom-compatible, 32 maps
Vortale doesn't have an enormous mapping back catalog, but in a "blink and you'll miss it" development cycle that belies said experience, this author cranked out the entirety of The Lost Magic during 2022's NaNoWADMo month-long mapping event. The result is impressive -- a solidly built megawad sporting that solo-developed cohesiveness combined with a refined professionalism beyond what you'd expect for such a hastily built set. Prospective players should expect a fairly midrange challenge and, as the name implies, a dash of fantasy flavor in the form of sinister sorcerers to vaporize with magical mana weapons that replace your typical cell slots. It riffs on Scythe 2's gothic episode to a considerable extent and also ties into a larger "Vortale-verse" in ways you'll have to discover for yourself. You could be forgiven for missing this wad, considering the blistering speed with which it was constructed, but it's an experience you shouldn't pass on.
- @Vile
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Venturous - PixelFox
Doom II, GZDoom, 7 maps
Pack your satchel, load your revolver, and prepare to embark on a race against time in Venturous, a partial conversion inspired by classic pulp action films ala The Mummy and the Indiana Jones series. Donning the leather jacket and rumpled fedora of an unnamed tomb raider, you'll scour forbidden temples hidden in the lush jungles of Mesoamerica and plumb cursed tombs buried beneath the scorching sands of Egypt in search of clues, in a daring gambit to stop agents of the Third Reich from uncovering a terrible secret of the ancient world. A hefty array of powerful, period-appropriate firearms and equipment including torches, dynamite, leverguns, LMGs and more will aid you in beating back the forces of the Ahnenerbe and undead legions alike, supplemented by more arcane implements of war, provided you're clever enough to find them. With more chapters to come in future, Venturous is just the start of what's sure to be a great adventure.
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Final Carnage - Onox
Doom 2, GZDoom, 9 maps
For all the whimsical, creative sets that have come out this year, it can be refreshing to get back to basics with a PWAD that eschews the bizarre and embraces the realistic. Final Carnage, surely not a traditional Doom set due to its multiple custom resources and fancy GZDoom effects, is one that is very much grounded in reality, partly owing to its instantly recognizable influences: the bright techbase designs and incidental combat call to mind, and even reference, Half-Life; its darker moments show clear inspirations from Doom 3, and there are also dashes of NuDoom sprinkled throughout, be it the music or intermittent arenas. The maps feature all sorts of kitchens, office rooms and laboratories, and are mostly constrained within the confines of the UAC facility with occasional ventures outdoors in the ruined, thick Mars atmosphere. For the adventurous I say: grab your copy of Hideous Destructor and see if you can reach the UAC General waiting for you at the end!
- @Dynamo
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I CANT GIVE YOU ANY THING - Maribo et al.
Doom 2, MBF21-compatible, 29 maps
Depending on your perspective, it may or may not be surprising that it took this long for lesbian macroslaughter to emerge as a genre. Doom as a medium can tackle some pretty heavy themes, but what's really impressive about ICGYA is that Maribo (and guest mappers) manage to do it so poignantly with so little -- the suggestiveness of a map title here, the choice of a MIDI track there, a wink and a nod, layered over the bewildering fog of the disorienting visuals and the hostility of the murderous demonic swarms. What emerges is a heart-breaking narrative about the rise and fall of a romantic relationship, with a distinctly queer edge. The maps are as brutal a gambit as their subject matter, but whether you choose to reach the ending through your own blood and tears or approach them as invincible tourist is up to you; if the latter, you'll find that the maps fly by, but hit just as hard.
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Terminal Stages of Nostalgia - AD_79
Doom 2, vanilla-compatible, 1 map
AD_79, who also released Voidspawn this year, is very open about the authors who influence them: many of their works take cues from Tarnsman's BTSX odysseys and skillsaw's smooth combat feel but pull down the intensity and pace to a slow, mellow burn -- a blend no one else quite has, despite its apparent familiarity. One of its best showcases yet is Terminal Stages of Nostalgia (an outtake from their WIP episode Paralysis, which, yes, please finish). With the gentle drift of a sailboat, it's an elegiac journey through two remote worlds intricately bound by portals: an ink blue megacomplex in a placeless void, and a wood-marble citadel under a ruby sky. Pretty, graceful, and steeped in the sadness of something left behind.
- @rd.
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Oubliette Fatalis - RDETalus
Doom 2, Boom-compatible, 1 map
You awaken in a subterranean prison cell, the only light a campfire roaring on the opposite side of the iron bars which imprison you. A wooden bench with a single folded blanket taunts you into thinking you’ll find any comfort attempting to sleep. Besides the rats, your only other companion is a bucket to piss in. The stone masonry is blackened by centuries of soot which has been smeared by the sweaty hands of previous inmates frantically searching for a means of escape. Tugging on the bars proves hopeless, however a loose stone beside your “bed” catches your attention. Dislodging the stone reveals a rusted lever -- the counterweight for the immovable bars. Despite the appearance of fragility, a firm tug on the handle activates the mechanism controlling the gate and the bars retract into the ceiling providing you with something that, just minutes ago, seemed impossible -- a means of escape!
Roll for initiative.
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Uroboros - Ravendesk
Doom 2, Boom-compatible, 11 maps
A twisted journey, indeed -- Uroboros, by rising star Ravendesk, is a delightful experiment in non-linear progression that evokes a rare sense of story-telling wonder and discovery, particularly for a Boom-compatible wad. Each player will likely have a different experience traversing the first round through the maps due to its randomization of exits, but the game changes further once the Scroll of Karnak is acquired. With this mysterious item in hand, newly empowered space marines can revisit old areas to unlock new secrets and conquer previously unseen challenges. Divulging any more information upfront would be doing this wad a disservice, but its clever implementation of UMAPINFO adds a heightened sense of adventure and serves as a lens through which future wads could defy convention and deliver a unique experience. Ride the snake and see where it takes you but be forewarned -- it's going to get bumpy!
- @Vile
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Crusader - Cheesewheel
Doom 2, DSDHacked-compatible, 10 maps
I was late in boarding the Cheesewheel train, offering such thrilling adventures as Uprising and Malevolence. The author's ability to create excellent environmental storytelling set his PWADs apart from the mold, but Crusader presents an interesting shift. The maps are disconnected thematically but in turn display great variation, taking the player to icy fortresses, deep caves and floating citadels. The focus however is decidedly on the combat, with an all-new arsenal and many more custom enemies -- from plasma-toting zombies to cybernetically enhanced barons and fire-spitting cacodemons -- making for furious, challenging firefights. While certainly an experimental release for the author, there's enough fuel in the tank to keep this train rolling for miles ahead.
- @Dynamo
