Articles - Brutal Doom: Kickass Edition mod for Doom II

As the summary states, the Final addendum for Kickass Edition has Been released, It is so hard to believe that the mod's development has finally come to an end, but I'm happy and thankful for everyone who has shown their love and support for what was quite literally my first ever mod, I'm so glad that I stuck around with this mod, rather than leaving it on v3 (As I intended to do originally), As keeping myself working on this mod has been a stressful, but rewarding experience.

At this point, I think I've added so much shit, that I don't think I could add anything else to the mod, and if that doesn't tell you something about how much I've added in, then I don't know what will...

As you Might have guessed, This is about the Eternal Update's Release. It originally Planned to be Released on February, But due to a ton of Content being unfinished and still Pretty Janky, I pushed the Release date back a bit to Aril of 2022, However, this is where some of the Complications come in, As I had Taken A brief break from Developing due to Burnout, along with the fact that I'm working on like 7 other Projects that Haven't been Listed yet, After coming back to development, I had started reworking on the mod after letting My friend Take over partial Development, But when I had come back to developing it, A ton of Glitches and Odd design choices were very Present, so I had to basically re-do EVERYTHING pretty much, And due to the Fact that there is So much content that'll be Added into the Eternal Update, the Release Date keeps getting pushed Back and Pushed back, The Earliest I can imagine it Being Released is possibly Mid-to Late July, but I'll probably be taking a Break from modding to Spend some time With friends and family (Since My birthday is in July), I cannot Confirm when the Mod will be Finished, All I can promise is that it should be Worth the Wait...

So, A While ago I posted some very unfortunate news Regarding why the V4.0 "Eternal" Update was still being worked on, In summary, it was an Update Stating that it's release date was delayed a fuckton due to A load of stuff needing to be added in and Finished, but, due to the fact that so much stuff Has been added in Lately, there Is a Huge Chance that the Eternal Update could be released within 2-3 Weeks, If not, then Possibly in about a Month or 2. It will no longer be So long that Basically everyone Forgets about this mod's Existence...

Good Day, Doomers!

After several months of work, we're finally ready to release Dragon Sector (The Remake) version 0.40. With @BarefootMapMaker's hectic work schedule, this update has taken longer than we'd expected. He's been getting a bit done whenever he wasn't too wiped out from driving all day or night to concentrate on it.

For my part, I've been going back and forth with him over the phone, bouncing ideas between us, and implementing what I can. This is a work-in-progress for both of us, and we're both learning new things as we're making this mod. So, while not everything we want to do is possible now, as we learn more, it will be.

Okay, enough with the preamble. Let's get to the update itself.

First and foremost is the release of Map 04, the “Fuel Refinery”. It's an engineering level that draws inspiration from “The Focus” from Doom II. The most obvious of these nods are the shutters at the beginning of the map. These are decidedly more violent than those in the original, setting the tone that something Very Bad has happened here.

The map's key progression is also similar to The Focus, where only the Blue and Red keys are required to progress through the map. However, the Yellow key will let you gain access to supplies that will make things much easier for you.

Dealing with fuels and other toxic materials is not a clean job. The map starts to take on a darker and more dirty aesthetic in the deeper sections.

We've also got a tweak to the friendly drone and turrets. Both of them are more reliable allies, now, since we were able to dial in their behavior. However, you don't want to shoot them. You are not cleared to be on this base. Shooting the drones and turrets will cause them to see you as an intruder, and you'll be forced to destroy them if that happens. There is a threshold, so it shouldn't happen accidentally. It's another fun little wildcard element that you'll need to pay attention to.

Finally, we'd like to say this is our most intricate and detailed and technically advanced map yet. We added in some special lighting effects to enhance the atmosphere, and unique fixtures like the toggleable doors and cyclable airlock. There is also a ton of complex layering of 3D Floors happening here. I tried to look at how it's done, but my brain wanted to explode when I looked at the map in UDB. Still, @BarefootMapMaker can understand it, and boy, has he done something impressive.

All of this stuff is added to meticulous monster placement, to create some fun, challenging encounters. If you haven't picked up on it by now, setting up monster infighting is a key strategy to our maps. There are numerous opportunities in this map to do exactly that.

Okay, we know you want to go play the maps now, so we'll leave you with one more thing. We hope you enjoy these maps. They're a ton of fun to make, but they also take a ton of time to do so. So please, watch this mod, share it, talk about it to your friends, make YouTube videos about it. Help us get the word out. We'd really appreciate it.

Above everything else, though. Have fun, and stay safe!

And here's a video I just recorded of this awesome map!

@BarefootMapMaker & @DarynS

Hello again, Doomers!

It's been a good while since our last update, but things haven't been sitting still. We've been hard at work on a bunch of improvements to the existing maps while getting ready to start on Map 5.

@BarefootMapMaker wanted to dedicate some good, uninterrupted time to working on Map 5. Now that's he's on vacation, that time is available, so the ideas that he's been itching to put down on the grid can finally come out.

We've also added a new Security Bot to the Dragon Sector base's roster of helpful assets. While it's still a work-in-progress, it's working more-or-less the way we want it to. There will be some visual tweaks and damage adjustments that will probably happen after this release, but for the most part, it's ready to help you fend off the host of intruders that have taken over the base. Just don't get in its way while it's firing. Just even a second or two in its line of fire, will cost you a lot of health and armor! And, as with all of Dragon Sector's security assets, shooting them too many times will cause them to see you as a threat, and act accordingly. In which case, you're likely to die just as fast as the baddies.

With this release, we'll also be putting out a full package which will contain everything needed (aside from the Doom II wad) to get up and running on Windows. The regular pk3 file isn't going anywhere, though. We're just adding this option for those who want everything they need to play our maps without having to go to a lot of bother.

We would like to thank Agent Ash, Barry Burton, Cherno, Marisa, and the rest of the fine folks on the Zdoom discord for sharing their knowledge and time. You guys have been super helpful and we appreciate it enormously!

A special Thank You also goes out to the content creators who have played our maps and made videos of them. So thank you AndroidFerret, Doom EX, Doomslayer117, DraugraK, Martinoz, and RatteKing, to name the most recent. Check out their channels! They make cool videos!

That's all for now. We hope that you enjoy the many changes and improvements to the current maps, and we're looking forward to bringing you Map 5!

Featured Changes:

• A new Security Bot has been added to Dragon Sector's assets.
• Updated Liquid Texture Pack to v6.7.
• MAP01
  • There is now a blue carded door that will let you return to the landing area if you need to get back there.
  • Replaced the Captured Marines with Security Bot placements.
  • Adjusted some item and monster placements.
  • A number of visual fine-tuning and fixes.
• MAP02
  • Overhauled the reservoir area, making it much better looking.
  • Added a lift to the tower. You can still make the swim from below, but logically it made sense that the base personnel would have a way to get up there.
  • Added a Bot in place of the Captured Marine.
• MAP03
  • This map has seen the most changes of the four. There have been a number of visual changes made that make the map feel more cohesive with the rest of the set.
  • Monster and Item placement have also had a lot of adjustments.
  • Some Security Bots were being unloaded, hmmmm....
• MAP04
  • The walkway area to the control room has received a face-lift. It looks a lot better, now.
  • Added a bot to that area.
  • Sped the doors up so that you don't have to wait to close them anymore.
  • Fixed an issue where you couldn't open one set of doors while the others were in operation.