I've been thinking about posting a bounty for quite some time now, and since I'd rather have Kornel work for my money than simply make another donation, here's what I'm toying with:
{I} New FeaturesIn the past, there has already been
some discussion in regard to cosmetic changes in the level design. Some of the features discussed might warrant special attention in regard to side effects they might have, but that's not what I'm currently interested in. I think a little more visual variation might do the game a lot of good. This might range from simply swapping tiles - I seem to remember dark blue floors in some of the UAC bases in the original game, to be used in vaults or similar rooms for example - to more complex features that have different effects on visibility, movement and weaponry, depending on the type of feature.
Windows for examply would allow sight and shots to pass through, but would restrict movement (possible exceptions for Souls and Arachnotrons, which I remember being tiny); force fields/barriers would only allow sight to pass; other contraptions could only allow movement - think of the rotating fireplace/bookshelf in ScoobyDooesque detective tales.
We'd have to take stock of the possibilities, determine what would be deemed a good addition and what wouldn't be, and see what's feasible to add. Entering phase 1: fire off your ideas! Think of the effects listed above, and possibly more (I'm not a programmer, so I have no idea how vast the sea of flags is), but bear the features or at least the idea of the original Doom in mind.
{II} Prefab Levels - What, In A Roguelike? - Yes, Hear Me Out, Will You?Except for the special levels such as the Entry, the Arena, the Court, etc, I assume every level is generated randomly at some point during the game. The second part of my suggestion is to create an additional pool of prefab levels that have a small chance of appearing instead of a normal level, decided when determining the level type (cave/maze/arena/etc). These levels could be references to the original Doom, other shoot-em-ups, movies, books, comics, whatever. Content such as monsters and items could still be generated randomly, so in the best case the player only knows what layout to expect. I'm willing to bet a few digits on my left hand that I'm not the only player who's been toying with ideas in this regard, and who knows what talents there may be among us?
You could even run competitions to increase the numbers of these levels while maintaining the quality of the design. Again, it'd all start with getting some ideas going. Somebody'd need to list the basic demands level design would have to meet, and people'd have to get drawing.
So... who's up for it? Post your thoughts, custom features, design ideas or complete designs and whatnot and let's see if we can broaden the content a little. Additionally, since I take it this would also take up a lot of time on the developers' side, who's willing to help me carry this bounty?
Cheers,
Dee
