CALDERA is a single level demonstration WAD exclusive to the author’s own PsyDoom port that brings over the PlayStation version of DOOM to PC. It was built to showcase various modding features from a backported and extended PSX DOOM engine, a hellish themed level blending together open and tight quarter environments utilising new textures pulled from OTEX and an extensive use of coloured sector lighting.
It’s been 10 years since the events of Duke Nukem Forever and things have changed, Duke is no longer seen as the heroic figure he once was, his name has been dragged through the mud because of fans digging too deeply and is now forced to lay low from the public eye. Turns out the whole ordeal was an elaborate smear campaign by the aliens no longer satisfied with just his death. Having tracked down a warehouse containing the beta materials for Duke3D and DNF, this becomes a city wide journey to reclaim those files and clear his name.
Over the years I’ve always typically associated ck3d’s levels to have similarities to Roch in style, going for these richly decorated urban playgrounds like Poison Heart, otherwise leaning more toward dark moodier pieces like Rural Nightmare and End of the World. Then to my surprise a speedmap made in three days is suddenly pushed out the door that shared nothing in common with prior bodies of work up until that point, perhaps one of those occasional experimental excursions before returning to familiar ground, but this mapping style eventually sticks around going forward as development on his Blast Radius episode went into full swing.
Duke has been invited to the EDF Research & Development, a laboratory focused on mining and examining green Terratin crystals serving as ammunition for an alien tech weapon, the Shrinker. Just before descending deeper underground to the main labs, an explosion sends a raging fire into the room behind him as familiar roars invade the halls. Duke must continue underground to find an alternate exit, all while cleaning house and solving a few problems along the way.
Special Forces officer Captain Percy Freeman has been partnered up with Barney to track down and assassinate the renegade Colonel Kurtz. The situation soon takes a turn for the worst when higher ups in the chain of command decide they want Freeman dead. To make matters worse, someone out there has been breeding an undead army of mutants who are rampaging across the jungle causing problems for everyone. Whether completing the mission may lead to answers, it will be a struggle for survival to discover an end to this madness.
Faces of Death was a mean spirited level that stacked the odds against players using Battlelords from start to finish. I remember playing that gauntlet without much fondness, no thanks to its counterpart from the Playstation port of Duke3D, having been included as a secret level during its fourth episode. BATTLEDUKE is an episode inspired by this particular scenario, dedicating several maps to follow in its style, one which that hasn’t been explored much within the mapping scene.
After wrapping up business, an enormous explosion sends shock waves across the district as an alien spacecraft crashes down, destroying the very streets Duke had not long ventured. Now they’re violating local parking laws and it’s about time he delivers a ticket to them personally. Take one last lap around an urban landscape in this closing entry for the ROCH series, discover how to gain access onboard that vessel and bring the fight back to them.
After breaking free and taking a much needed dip in the local swimming pool, Duke finds open traversal while completing this leg of the journey, which appears to be the heart of ROCH’s metropolis adventure. Taking place within a densely packed shopping district, Pascal continues edging his aesthetic and style ever closer toward realism, creating another authentic looking urban playground that etches a special place in the mapping scene for those who have imitated, adapted and learned from in the years beyond its initial release.
With all this rushing around town working up a sweat, perhaps it’s time for a dip at the local swimming centre to cool off. Duke stumbles into an EDF laboratory under siege and test subjects released from incubation. Now every exit leading outside is under lockdown, escape is denied and the aliens definitely have something to do with it. The only option is to push forward until an opportunity reveals itself.