HALLOWEEN SPECIAL 2022 - DEAN OF DOOM - S3E8

[@_antares031]

The last secret entry was a perfect one for this episode. Something that you rarely see in Doom, but it will be embedded into your memory. Happy halloween! 🎃

[@gincwut]

Hope everyone enjoyed Skeleton Appreciation Month! I'm glad that Comatose got showcased - its awesome when Doom mappers try something super ambitious like "I'm going to make S.T.A.L.K.E.R. in Doom" and while that's pretty much impossible, they totally captured that late-00s slav shooter mood. If you're looking for more sawed-off WADs (or mid-sized WADs for a double/triple feature) and you don't mind GZDoom-only stuff, I just released Infested E2, bringing the WAD up to 7 maps.

[@DinnerForkTongue]

Playing Comatose with the Ashes weapons pack is as close as you'll ever get to Metro 2033 in Doom. God help the computer of those who try this, though.

[@DoomKid]

Excellent video, you went above and beyond with this one! All of these wads look great in their own ways. Those drunken Arachnotrons look so god damn frustrating, and Comatose has to be one of the craziest and best maps I've ever seen.. Well done man!

[@doomdoomerson6524]

DOOMKID YOU ROCK, BRO!

[@markbloom7434]

(A picture of three orangutans) Where Jamal Jones trilogy?

[@DinnerForkTongue]

Arachnotrons are already prime time suppressors, and when you turn their linear fire stream into an AoE that covers a whole zone... It's an excellent concept, but monsters like this have to be used with care by the mapper.

[@hrnekbezucha]

Comatose has my favourite brand of horror. The feeling of unease that stays with you long, long after you're done playing.

[@DinnerForkTongue]

STALKER. Darkwood. SOMA. Metro. Ashes. Comatose. All children of the same father: the viscous tarry ooze of dread and uncertainty. It's not like jumpscares that release all the tension at once and can become irritating or funny when repeated or overused; no, these games, their stories and settings, they stick with you, cloud your mind and etch an indelible mark on your memory. It says something that they're all but impossible to meme.

[@MrDoomGrey]

I can't freaking believe DBP made a comeback! I honestly thought Augur;Zenith would be the only time DBP will ever show up or get mentioned.

[@doomdoomerson6524]

DBP ROCKS!!!!

[@green_tomato4652]

Uniqueness of each DBP would make a good episode like sawed off wad episode

[@DinnerForkTongue]

Since the Dean of Doom episode on AUGER;ZENITH, I've played four more DBP wads: - 26 (City of the Damned Children, vintage French film) - 28 (Fear and Loathing, sort of a Doom 3 demake) - 50 (Emerald City, post-apocalyptic with lots of urbex and scavenging but some very spicy fights) - 59 (Zeppelin Armada, Jules Verne victorian adventure) Every single one of them was totally worth my time. The only one I didn't gel with was the film noir one, Rainy Days at Casablanca, I don't remember the number.

[@TristanClarkMusic]

The note at 2:27 is correct, projectiles will be affected by conveyor belts if the sector is also tagged as a fake floor - I found this myself while making MAP29 of Eviternity since the launchpads use the same combination of effects. If I remember correctly you can also see this happen in Ancient Aliens MAP24, I'm sure I've seen videos of that map with BFG balls spinning rapidly in circles :D btw, that last review was incredible, fantastic stuff!

[@Legatron17]

Thank you very much for making me aware of Comatose. I have not ignored your spoiler warning and have played all the way through it by myself, and it has probably become my favorite Doom map ever. The atmosphere is beyond anything I would've imagined to be possible inside a Doom map, with detailing so intricate and beautiful, yet somehow not overdone. Even though it's usually very difficult for a horror game to scare me, with most horror games actually boring me to death, I got genuinely jumpscared at least a dozen times by only one 2.5 hour playthrough of Comatose, with the worst jumpscare being the one inside the secret basement that you show off at 28:03... not gonna spoil it just in case you haven't found it, but I think you alluded to the same one I'm thinking of. That map is truly something else. If you ever do actually plan to replay the map, I highly recommend you to 1.) play on DSDA-Doom instead of PrBoom+ (if you haven't done so already), because the performance is simply better there, and 2) use OpenGL with "Sector Light Mode" set to "Shaders". Trust me, it looks infinitely better than the "GLBoom" option, since "Shaders" emulates Software Rendering a lot more closely while also not being ridiculously dark. That way, it ran at a solid 120fps for me, without any framedrops, with the extra benefit of also looking even more beautiful. Thank you very much for everything you do, MtPain27. You have introduced me to countless breathtaking WADs, and I'm sure that you will keep doing so in the future! ❤

[@generalroasterock8114]

My faith in the holiday is rewarded yet again. You have no idea how glad I am that you took notice of the remaining Wormwoods, as they are truly the pinnacle of Ribbiks and Grain of Salt celebrating the mood of the season. I will always have faith in the DBP bros, and I will now have to play Comatose at a later point to avoid being spoiled, but I have such a connection with the prefaced duo's Halloween work. A couple notes on the Wormwoods: -The special glow of the greens is only possible in software lighting, something I wasn't sure ZDoom was going to handle, but I'm very glad it did as it signified not only the corpses of the marines and eyes of the Cacodemons, but also the wonderful light show fight in Stabbed, with a Sword (loved the sweeping shots btw). -Map 31's pit is technically not a death pit on anything that isn't UV, as there's a lift by the Cyberdemon platform that pulls you out of the drink, one that disappears for the thrill seekers. -Ribbiks's midi subtlety seems to have been damaged by the converter you have, as the bells in The Horror's track are working double time (though I can't thank you enough for using the upload version of ait) I feel that the music is really what propels those WADs into legend status. It's impossible to touch on Ribbiks's compositional skill in any form that hasn't already been delved into, but Grain of Salt's picks, especially for Vampire Killer, are ideal for the settings. They are masters of every element at their disposal. I wish I had more to say, but both the club, and this video have covered all of it. Thanks for another fantastic video, and a great Halloween.

[@generalroasterock8114]

Now that I've taken a chunk out of Comatose, I feel it's worth saying that your summation is entirely appropriate, and I can completely understand how people felt discovering The Mucus Flow in 2004. It is a beautiful piece, one filled to the brim with ominous oppression, and constantly demanding that the player is fully engaged with it. Software lighting, though laggy at points where you have view of the skyline, makes it to where the shadow monsters seem to be fading into existence, forming around you as you progress. Every significant piece of progression, every key, and every heavy duty weapon acquired was a "fuck yes" moment, flexible for infinitely many players with how many routes are possible. The fact that it goes in so hard on its strengths is staggering, and it will stick with me forever. So yeah, it's a pretty good map.

[@DinnerForkTongue]

This only motivates me further to re-build up my own PC. I am extremely eager to play Comatose in GZDoom.

[@manniacc2681]

I'm convinced myhouse will be the wad for the end of next halloween's episode, it feels very much in line with lillith and comatose

[@rosfell00]

If memory serves correctly, Comatose is part of a series that includes Sacrament, Doxylamine Moon: Overdose and 5till L1 Complex, in Sacrament, you´re the last human on earth after the Rapture and the ones left behind where turned into demons, and every map after it is just you trying to make your way in the now abandoned earth...

[@DinnerForkTongue]

Are those maps listed in order?

[@deathbassist475]

This is a huge improvement on last years halloween episode. Congratulations, you've outdone yourself!

[@PeccatumMihzamiz]

Too bad the Archies destroyed the computers with Trick and Tear I, Trick and Tear II and Trick and Tear II on them. I can only hope you get to those Halloween wads in a future episode ;). Thanks for the lovely video MP27, wishing you a nice, spoopy Halloween!

[@tonyd6665]

You need to check out some of the other work Lainos has been involved in. Some of the levels rival Comatose, easily. Sacrament and A.L.T are both amazing. I tell anyone who will listen about these WADs. They are both listed under “The Top 25 Missed Cacowards.” They both deserve to be recognized. Hill I’m willing to die on for sure!

[@protostar5946]

Loved that opening skit LMFAO! Also, next time you feature the Doom Arcade, I suggest adding chairs for the terminals. You need somewhere comfy to sit, after all.

[@Jinx_Skeel]

I had a nightmare once that i was sent to a place which is eerily similar to the landscape in the comatose, i could never forget that and when I saw the wad on your video I felt some very chilling goosebumps

[@Fulc]

I can't wait for your review of ALT - Lainos had a hand in that one too, and the story is equally as opaque and compelling as Comatose's. Also, awesome transition to work Willie The Shakes into the script!

[@andrewmaher9867]

I second this!

[@wallyhackenslacker]

I would also recommend Doxylamine Moon, also by Lainos, and in a sense a sort of prototype or thematic prequel to Comatose.

[@DinnerForkTongue]

​@@wallyhackenslacker Doxylamine Moon is now in my planned lineup. I can't wait to get my PC parts to play it.

[@jinxie1080]

2 mins in and I already thought this was the best Dean of Doom episode, watching the rest only brought me confirmation to this :D You did an absolutely amazing job presentation-wise and with your choice of wads, culminating in a very thematically strong and consistent episode imo. Wouldn't be surprised if this becomes a favourite for the viewers of this channel!

[@Shepardus]

Comatose is one of my very favorite Doom maps, but I never noticed that the fist attack in it is swapped to the right hand until you pointed it out. It's even in some of Lainos' other works (which I would very much recommend, especially 5till L1 Complex and Doxylamine Moon).

[@xxsugarsparkxx]

"Wormwood 3's arachnotrons spray plasma like Barney Gumble taking a leak" might be my favorite Dean of Doom like thus far

[@BigMacDavis]

Comatose looks amazing! Great compilation of WADs video, MtPain. You put so much effort into this and it shows. :D

[@MtPain27]

Thanks so much! It’s always a pleasure to see you in the comments. Happy belated Halloween :)

[@BigMacDavis]

@@MtPain27 Happy belated Halloween to you too, sir. :)

[@TheShut1]

14:57 wow didn't expect to hear midi version of song from one of band I like. Король и Шут- Проклятый старый дом (King and Jester- Cursed old house). Pleasantly surprised :D also good video, I've been binge watching them a lot after decino's Ancient Aliens stream, nice content.

[@stupidgoop]

"What is a drunk arachnotron you ask?" *Is immediately flash banged* Gonna have to pull out my white cane after that one. Really loving how comfortable youve gotten in your narrations and adding more humor into these. Always nice to see more of the guy behind the screen.

[@_tourniquet5429]

I'm more than glad that Halloween gives you a reason to play more Rbk/GoS maps. Good show

[@mrlucas9072]

Just... what a fantastic episode. *THAT* review at the end gave me chills. The writing in this show is utterly amazing.

[@Ennello]

Not sure you were going to find enough Halloween themed wads, but once again you managed to surprise me with some wads I had never heard of and will have to try out now!

[@vali6717]

That review at the end taps into something that keeps making return to the Stalker series of games. Whatever it is reminds me of an overnight post I used to hold at a downtown parking garrage where I live. There's something about being enough stories up that you can see for blocks in all directions without seeing a soul or a lit up window that has always stuck with me. It's an unnatural solitude that makes it seem like you are wholly alone in the universe even if you know that is impossible.

[@DinnerForkTongue]

In this case I recommend to you Ashes 2063 and its second episode/sequel, Afterglow. At several moments it strikes the same notes as STALKER.

[@kinetic03]

Great episode, I like the effort put into making both the video/intro and your lil sawed off wads gamer room map halloween themed. As someone who is biased asf towards Ribbiks maps and gameplay (and music), I enjoyed seeing your coverage of Wormwood EU and Wormwood 3. Ribbiks pretty much excels to perfection at what his maps aim to do, you can't help but be fully immersed in his maps and the atmosphere they create, and the melancholy/lonely feeling his magnum opus maps bring out really hits home with me, it's like you're in his fucking maps and you feel like you're literally doomguy trying to escape a harrowing world. GrainOfSalt also has very nice work in the wormwood series, great compliments to the maps containing 100% pure, unadulterated Ribbiks concentrate. I think what Ribbiks and others who make maps in a similar aesthetic style do well, is economy of detail; the maps look as good as anything you've seen without hyperdetailing; a lot of this may be attributed to lighting and contrast. Hyper detailing looks great, but can also get a little too visually busy for my taste at times. And of course, the music is great too. Had not head of Comatose before, neat little map you introduced to me!

[@andrewmaher9867]

Damn, I’ve only watched the intro so far and I gotta say, your doomcute skills have increased dramatically!

[@joeilya]

Looks like I passed this episode's test! Next Halloween episode you can cover DBPs 4, 17, 25, 28, and 40; each of these have unique Halloween themes you can experience. DBP 4 is H.R Geiger themed 17 is Aliens movie themed 25 is a Lovecraft themed wad designed for the "Nightmare!" difficulty. 28 is Doom 3 themed 40 is Clown, & carnival themed

[@kakhome1]

DBP26 is another one of the best DBP's IMO that would also be appropriate. Just to add to that list above. It's based on the film The City of Lost Children. A surprising number potentially Halloween appropriate!

[@DinnerForkTongue]

@@kakhome1 Oh golly, DBP26. Aside from the trite use of the Mother Demon sounds, I love that wad. I've seen worse but it still messed with me, viscerally.

[@GoldenDragonLord.]

Awesome halloween special mate. Comatose is an amazing map, feels like something straight out of S.T.A.L.K.E.R. I've never played a doom level that makes me feel such emptiness and loneliness, as well as paranoia. Maybe one day I'll get round to beating it entirely. Happy Halloween to ya!

[@Klaesick]

I've been binge watching all of my favorite Halloween videos and special through the years. This video is the perfect accompaniment! Have a very Happy Hell-oween everyone!

[@wallyhackenslacker]

Aww yiss!! Comatose is one of those masterpieces one has to experience at least once in our lives. It's an entirely different and imho more effective approach to the sort of religious horror experience that Doom was ostensible supposed to be on it's earliest days, and it's certainly unforgettable. To me this one map is firmly set in my top 3 of all time forever, alongside Lost Civ's River Valley and Jade Earth. I cannot even imagine the amount of work that must have gone into it's creation. In a certain sense, it's the only Doom map I can think of that can induce in me that subtle skin-crawling liminal dread you get in empty Half-Life 2 maps.

[@ChrisJEPlace]

Really fun episode! Your Comatose review was extraordinary!

[@aldiboronti]

Wow, great Halloween episode, Mt Pain, that last wad was as creepy as hell. And may I say that I just love your channel, you've rapidly become one of my essential Doomers shoulder by shoulder with decino, Dwars, coincident, etc.

[@AdamM3377]

"Current Objective: Survive" Sums up my feelings about most slaughter wads. The spectacle of high difficulty encounters and general map architecture in most of these instances is stunning, they can crush your will to continue, as intended. They evolve into an excersise of economy and patience. Encounters like that are often worth seeing, but sometimes time is of the essence, and you just wanna kill demons.

[@metaljay842]

Man, Comatose was a truly unnerving map to play. That's a great example of how to do a horror-style mapset for Doom.

[@Sestze]

I truly adore your content. Thank you so much for what you do.

[@Poodlestroop]

Great episode. Makes me wonder about the Dean’s thoughts on the relationship between Doom and offering a scary vs empowering gaming experience. Doom is obviously drenched in horror tropes, but it’s also the epitome of the ‘you and your shotgun are the scariest thing in the room’ power fantasy. I’ve seen levels that offer both moods, sometimes at the same time.

[@francescoperi7810]

Production values off the charts! And that Shakespeare guy will be famous one day if he keeps working hard

[@eduardodiaz9942]

Ah, good ol' bag of treats (and some tricks) A wad I like to play in this spooky time is Stranger Aeons, which as its name implies is Lovecraft inspired. It has 5 episodes (Ultimate Doom style), so you'd have to dedicate a whole video to it, but it'd make a great Halloween episode.

[@ARCHVILE_DRS]

16:36 music from Sonic 3D Blast (Sega Genesis) - Volcano Valley Act 2

[@nathanbeets8229]

See, you always run the risk of Archvile nests when you have pig pools of grape soda lying around. Ribbiks should know better. Also, my man Joe-Ilya got a good grade! Glow up, brother. :,) Great video, and many wads added to my list.

[@Emperor_SPOON]

I'd love to see something like this for the Christmas special. There's (probably) too many Christmas wads out there to cover in one video, but I'm certain plenty of them are absolutely worth covering. If you ask me, though, more than half of them probably use Doomkid's XMAS resources so they might look a little too similar to one-another, but still it could be fun.

[@mrlucas9072]

this ^ a Christmas Dean of Doom Special would be amazing

[@nemtudom5074]

Actually, Chernobyl is in Ukraine, not Russia. You probably remember it as Russia because it happened during the USSR times, which Ukraine was part of too. Fun fact, when the USSR fell most of their nukes were located in Ukraine, which made them the second biggest superpower in terms of nuclear weaponry, and they agreed to dismantle them in exchange for being left alone by Russia. Something something orcs, mordor, Sauron

[@KamiJoJo]

21:38 The slow paced Tower of Dolls from Akumajou Dracula X68000 (aka Castlevania Chronicles) sure adds a lot to this map's pacing and aesthetic. Not to mention it's own map name being another reference to the series, certified miserable pile of secrets.

[@kylegrefe4399]

Wish you had shown that one jump scare you were talking about. I can't play the wad on my laptop. Oh well. Time to look into the DBP wads, as that looked very interesting, and that's apparently the 29th one.

[@whatsacowify]

Amazing video. I'm speechless, you've outdone yourself.

[@MtPain27]

Thank you bmo!

[@Rayziik]

Oh hell yes, DBP29 is one of my most favorite of the whole lot.

[@zephytime8196]

Your halloween episodes are always on point. Thank you. Comatose seems right up my alley, and it made me wonder if you'd enjoy dead.wire.

[@kakhome1]

Excellent wads choices, really happy to see rest of the Wormwood Trilogy covered (IMO it's collectively just about there with Tangerine Nightmare as peak seasonal content, though obviously more demanding). Norwitch Lane (a name incidentally used again by LunchLunch is Ad Mortem) and Comatose (the true Ghost Town of DooM, sorry Milo and UltimateLorenzo) also surprise gems to see. They almost make me think of seasonally appropriate Lost Civilization maps. Happy Halloween, of course! 😀

[@augustuscarson]

11:48 Same here! Scythe II got me into the genre of gothic rock as a whole. Also, after watching your and Doomkid's playthrough of Plutonia, I saw that you liked MAP 13: The Crypt's track ("Tomb of the Unknown Soldier") in the Plutonia MIDI pack. And I thought you'd like to know that it's in fact a midification of Soundgarden's "Fell on Black Days" which is much beefier than the MIDI :)

[@tjg121389]

I haven't played any of these, but they all look quality. I have Wormwood EU downloaded on my laptop, just never got around to it. I'm surprised I didn't play that DBP since I had started playing them around that time. And I had heard of Comatose, but never realized exactly what it was. It looks super disconcerting. Another high quality episode!

[@DinnerForkTongue]

So I took a peek in the Doomwiki page for Wormwood ]I[ and wow, Ribbiks pulled some S-grade DeHackEd trickery (actor replacements, effect triggers, and barrels... so many barrels) to get those effects for the damaging red floor, the meteor shooters and so on. It's the jankiest Rube Goldberg machine and will never ever EVER play nicely with even the simplest actor replacement mod, but it works and is super impressive for a setup made up of no dedicated scripting. 💀👍🏻 Bonus points for making the void floor instakill instead of the same old 20-damage trap. Respects the player's time.

[@gunpsycho]

Morbid Autumn's Map08 had Sonic 3D Blast (Genesis Version) Volcano Valley's Act 2 theme.

[@SinCity2100]

"This Rebbiks Level reminds me of A Delinquent Map I played once!" Oooff , If you're a great mapper and somehow managed to unintentionally reach the same level of a Joke Wad, must be hard to process😆

[@DinnerForkTongue]

The problem of being at the top of the ladder is the loooong way down when you misstep.

[@alperalyanak9627]

"As you can see, this fight is clinically insane" that delivery is top notch

[@RikouHogashi]

Morbid Autumn: Map 08 i hear that Sonic 3D Blast Volcano Valley Act 2 (Genesis) Music nice touch

[@tusharmahendrakar2387]

Ribbiks and GoS sacrificed Arachnotrons plasma and Cacodemon's lightning ball for comets and gave Arachnos disguised mancubi flamethrower(notice how it shoots 2 at a time) and Cacos hell noble snot. This makes both HKs and Mancubi redundant since whatever these 2 can do Toxic Cacos and Drunk Arachnos can do better

[@SuperDragonite2172]

What a video. The WADs and the presentation were in top form. Definitely grabbing some of these WADs for future playthroughs.

[@AB0BA_69]

I like how the Dean has a little cozy home

[@markbloom7434]

Production value increases with every episode 👍 Ribbiks is a dehacked wizard at this point with bouncing rockets. I was hoping that you’ll do a quick review of “The thing you can’t defeat” but the last entry is a good spooky stuff. Nonetheless, atmosphere of real ghost town is superb but hitting half-transparent monsters for more than an hour looks tiring for eyes. What’s its monster count?

[@MtPain27]

Comatose has ~350 monsters I think. I don't think any fight has more than thirty foes coming at you simultaneously though.

[@markbloom7434]

Not too much for map with such playtime. Either way I’ll check it out at least for this jump-scare you’ve spoken of. And the amount of work that was put into the map is colossal.

[@nemtudom5074]

19:42 Wait, is that.... Hocus Pocus' music?! Yes! Its the Night theme, from the levels with the bugbears and green flying spitters! E1L3 and E1L4 specifically! COOL! The music of that game should be used more often, its outstanding!

[@mulliganwizard9068]

(Haven't finished the episode yet... Gonna play the last map for myself first, but wanted to say) Imagine my surprise to discover that those switches in "Nevermind, there was a backdoor" helped with the fight! I've always struggled through it without it and paid dearly. I'd be mad but the one fight in "Stabbed, with a sword" still killed me way more. I will be back after I play the last map!

[@MadStorkFear]

Love the use of Hamlet. Great video as always!

[@n11n12]

Gave up on Comatose a couple times, but I recently forced myself to complete it just to see the jumpscares you talked about, and yeah...shouldn't have shot that eye

[@MtPain27]

Found it!

[@alperalyanak9627]

Doom and halloween is such a good mix, i mean damn, halloween maps are predestined to be fun.

[@theshep]

I love Supercupcaketactics' tight gameplay on all their maps! Most DBP's have at least one to try, and they all have great traps :)

[@Thatonecyborg]

the ghost city wad's soundtrack seems to make the perfect Sounding of something went wrong and what happened is an unknown cause

[@ASLB247]

I’ve been a bit nervous to try out wormwood, but after seeing this, I might give all the entries a shot. Putting it on my bucket list. Not sure about morbid autumn though…the final wad, though….yeah, it’s high on the bucket list now. Brilliant review as always. Also, time for the 2nd edition of “Pointless facts for DOD”: We can add Stabbed with a sword as the 5th map to get valedictorian status and class president status alongside halls of the damned, vinculum gate, gutter grave, and of course, the mucus flow, with it being the 3rd A+ Valedictorian to get class president alongside the last 2. And for those keeping tallies, we have 2 map 4’s get an A+ and Valedictorian in just this video.

[@MtnSmithy]

Vampire Killer's chill Tower of Dolls remix is just 👌🏻 Maybe a good candidate for another Sawed Off Wads episode be Phocas Island 2 - good atmosphere WAD was interesting adventure gameplay.

[@Portponky]

Well I can't say I understand all the spooky cabbage stuff but I'm glad you quashed the beef with SoBad. Glad to resubscribe.

[@MtPain27]

I have no idea what you mean. I've never spoken to SoBad in my life.

[@Portponky]

@@MtPain27 I'm so glad crying face emoji 🐈

[@sobaddoom]

@@MtPain27 Sorry, Ponky gets loose from his cage sometimes. Anyway, glad we could put things behind us.

[@MtPain27]

@@sobaddoom Well, now at least I can say we've spoken

[@Portponky]

@@MtPain27 it's like that time my parents got divorced but backwards

[@aabattery4092]

21:39 This map gets points from me just for the Castlevania references, as the map name is based on the theme Vampire Killer, from the first Castlevania, and the background music is a remix of Tower of Dolls from Castlevania Chronicles (there’s also the whole castle theme and the metroidvania-like approach of having different paths to beating the level).

[@alexrexaros9837]

Great episode as always! I wish I completed it this year, but I was preparing a full-on cheesy Vanilla Megawad for Halloween. 32 Maps inside a spooky house and what not. I wish I wasn't such a perfectionist, but I promise next year, it will be out for October. I yearn to see one of my maps featured on this channel one day!

[@an0nn]

Getting a lower score than joe, making one map per year really pays out.

[@joeilya]

I see you

[@ahereticsdoomvideos3216]

"I never took care of that Archvile Nest, did I?" *CUE THE WRYYYYING OF THE ARCHVILES*

[@birdbern]

***SPOILER WARNING*** Comatose is.. a WAD, that's for sure. I played it today after heeding the spoiler warning, and that atmosphere was very much a thing that existed in droves. Like you said, all Lainos did was take away some monster sounds, but that adds something to what he was trying to tell with this. Towns are supposed to be lively. This town is gray. Its monsters are grayer. I don't even know what you spawn in, but I could be a monolith. I think this is the most successful Horror Wad at achieving what it was going for. it was going for dread and unease, and it accomplished that very well. I never felt like there was a big payoff to my feeling of unease during my playthrough, like a big fight in a key area. a moment that really got me was when I got the rocket launcher on the roof, because absolutely nothing happened. Something's supposed to happen when that happens. There was also the Eye, which made me jump a bit. Lainos also spaced away encounters far enough so that enemies feel distant, even in some situations when they're not. All in all, a very successful recipe. There's also a lot of questions I had during this WAD, and I don't think any of them got answered. There's obviously the big question of "what happened to the town?", but there's also smaller questions like "Why is there an Illuminati Pyramid on the Outskirts of Town?", "Why is there an Illuminati Railroad under a building?", "Why is there Latin on the roof of one of the buildings?", and "why, if something happened here, is there next to nothing telling such a story?" The lack of a clear explanation added to the experience of unease. Still, though, the scariest thing there was that doomguy punched with the wrong hand, and it was a bit smoother.

[@sirbill_greebi3811]

That last review. Solemn and beautiful; a man who has far matured from the one from episode one.

[@NirvanaYoutube]

I'm just here for the Mean Girls reference at 18:17

[@kaledmarrero1011]

There is also Fall of Tai Tenga, whose shareware version is out yesterday, so I think you can give it a shot!

[@archcynic404]

Just popping in to place a gentle request for a Dean of Doom episode of the 1997 DoS wad: Strain. Comes with a 32-mapset that I would love to see your thoughts on, as it is considered a historically signifcant wad! Love the show, been watching from the start!

[@WulvenWanderer]

Wish there was a Sawed Off wads joining Wad for real. The best content as always.

[@aanproduction1516]

Deathwhistle's MIDI is actually song by russian punk rock group Korol' i Shoot (King and Jester) Proklyatiy Stariy Dom (Damned Old House). I was really surprised hearing it

[@johnmendon18]

Wormwood EU is one of my favorites just because the gimmicks are so neat

[@forgettablePyromaniac]

did you get a bigger budget, or what? those quiet panning shots are so good, dude. and the other stuff on top... hot damn!

[@connerthecat4758]

Special holiday episode? Spook-tacular.

[@THEGRUMPTRUCK]

Comatose was a great playthrough, but I had to (and others may as well) do it in chunks. The gray atmosphere, the lack of visible monsters, everything being so quiet. It feels depressing, and I would reach low points when playing. That said, it is a terrific map, anything that can evoke emotion is a work of art, I recommend at least giving it an attempt.

[@TreuloseTomate]

Comatose gives me Pathologic vibes with the town setting, colors, and trash cans

[@DinnerForkTongue]

Pahologic and STALKER both.

[@sozhran]

Great production and great wad choices, I don't know if I have the guts to beat the Wormwoods, but I'll definitely try Comatose. Did you play "The Thing You Can't Defeat"? Not the Halloween kind of scary, but still pretty scary in its own way.

[@lordbiscuitthetossable5352]

Totally awesome! I should download those to boot up next horror season. Or perhaps during Christmas. Ahaha! Currently been blowing through March of the Speed Demons atm, mainly to take a little break from the more standard wad. I'm not particularly good at Doom, but it's really giving me a hard time at the moment.

[@chooseyouhandle]

Watching this after the redlettermedia halloween best of the worst

[@michaelbuehler3897]

*checks said video out*

[@keganmemestar4465]

Since you enjoyed comatose so much, you should check out Lainos' other work, as well as the projects he was a part of. Sacrament and A.L.T. are good on their own, but their atmospheres give them a truly unique identity even all these years later.

[@DoomPlayerD0M0]

Comatose reminds me of a post holocaust type of map. You covered some very interesting wads I hope to play in the future! Happy Halloween!

[@andrewmaher9867]

Sorry for commenting twice, but the plague doctor graffiti sprites from comatose are from a Russian game name Pathologic, and without typing out paragraphs upon paragraphs of text about the game, I can just say this: I think its your kind of game.

[@MtPain27]

I'm curious now

[@thrdai]

Holy shit, Comatose looks amazing.

[@hebonky]

I feel like in order to understand what Comatose is pointing towards you have to play S.T.A.L.K.E.R because that game's ending provides a potential answer to what went on in that map. All I'll say is sometimes science goes too far.

[@andrewmaher9867]

Too bad the final level makes the reveal feel like nothing because you can only feel pain after completing it.

[@DuckAlertBeats]

That's what I was thinking actually, and the enemies are almost like the anomalies possibly (anomalies..... I think that's what they were called right?) 🤔

[@bradenatkinson4784]

well this would make seems since stalker is just one of many adaption of a book called 'a road side picnic' which is really influential in east European countries.

[@MajdFreiji]

Every A+ that was ever given on the show before this episode (except for arguably Grove) gets automatically downgraded to a plain A. It's borderline unfair that something relatively simple-ish like Engineering disaster shares the same grade as that one map. Thanks for showcasing it, it'll make my night.

[@MajdFreiji]

Now as I'm playing it, I must say that your interpretation as this place being a purgatory is incorrect, as I found out that the author is Russian, and came across a Russian-style icon of Christ in one the buildings. The notion of a purgatory comes from the Catholic dogma, not from Orthodoxy. The Orthodox believe that there is nothing a person can do to earn their salvation, even less so after they repose. All that can be done is prayer for the Lord's mercy. Damn, that's a good map.

[@roofisdoomplaythroughsondo5801]

I'm here for the spoopyness

[@m39413]

Hey Doc. I was wondering: When the third graduation happens, are you going to make a special counter for the number of times you did the headshake of disapproving (like the one you gave for _Dusk Ache_ today), not only in the third but also the previous seasons (I would like to call it"The Vomitorium of Dissaprrovement" due to how nauseating it feels)? I noticed that you are doing this mostly once per episode by this point (like that one time you've done it twice in a row on one of the maps from "No Rest for the Living").

[@DinnerForkTongue]

If Comatose is an A+ for you, Professor, you may want to give the STALKER games a try on your own time. It hits about the same notes of eldritch terror (terror, not horror) and existential dread.