/vr/ - Retro Games

How can I learn to make maps like John Romero?

Am I the only one who has a bunch of trouble with E4M6 on UV pistol start? I think a lot of people mention E4M1 and E4M2 as the hardest maps, but Against Thee Wickedly just feels like such a fucking slog compared to them.

So much of the map forces the player to run on lava, and the lava combined with the tight corridors make unlucky enemy placement that much more fucking terrible to deal with. At least Perfect Hatred only requires the player to run around in lava once right at the beginning, and you're dropped right near a hazard suit.

The verticalness is also super fuckin annoying, as Cacodemons, fireballs, and the cybie's rockets can fly down from outside the player's view. Multiple times I was hit or killed from a fireball I couldn't see or a rocket coming in at an awkward angle.

There's other nitpicks that end up making it feel like such a drawn out, stilted chore of a map, especially compared with the tighter challenges of Hell Beneath and Perfect Hatred or the really fun flow of E4M9. What do you guys think?