[Jan Satcitananda]

E9L99

Hi folks, I'm excited to announce another vanilla Duke level, named simply E9L99. This is my first solo map release since 2009. Before I find the time to revive my Duke4 site, I'll just attach the map to this post. I'll also link to the ModDB page when it's authorized.

Despite no custom code or assets, E9L99 turned out to be quite lengthy and convention-breaking, so don't expect a cakewalk. This is for real connoisseurs. You'll never be sure what's actually going on. The environment seems to be hostile to any sentient life form, so you're advised to save often. Don't hesitate to consult this topic in case you get stuck or face other problems with the map.

This map is not designed to be fun or entertaining for everyone. It's eerie, disturbing, unnerving, ill-formed and just wacky. Inspired by my childhood nightmares and everyday struggles.

After me spending sleepless nights fighting various strange bugs, abusing effects and optimizing them to use fewer walls, the map seemingly started to live on its own. It learned to crash LEBuild's 3D mode, tile browser and stats screen in some occasions. I guess the number and complexity of effects might do weird things to the game as well. At some point it just felt like the map went out of control and kept mutating, as if it's resisting you and trying to take over your mind. Random sprites seemed to appear out of nowhere. My sense of reality was also altering. I was working hard, then suddenly some stupid effect didn't work as intended and I couldn't even touch the map file for several months straight. As the level grew bigger, it began to consume me and my life. I was trying to polish every bit of it, but eventually I gave up and decided to leave some places in intentionally unfinished or "corrupt" state. I'm done with it. The level will continue to evolve as you play it. Please report any strange feelings you get.



I can only show the starting location and the ending in very bad quality, because the map is really wicked. Sorry for the vague introduction. There may be other, more obscure endings, so keep exploring. It's also debatable which ending is the actual "good" one. I'm a bit confused about what this map is really about.

As this map pushes everything to the limit and takes advantage of some game bugs, it has certain compatibility problems with EDuke32 versions other than late 2021 builds, so I bundled one that works with the map (Polymost only): r9793

The map with the compatible EDuke32 executable bundled:
 E9L99.ZIP (2.71MB)
Number of downloads: 258

Map-only archive for those who already have the required version:
 E9L99DSK.zip (343.1K)
Number of downloads: 238

Some other info:

Spoiler

======================================================================
THIS LEVEL IS NEITHER MADE BY OR SUPPORTED BY 3D REALMS.

Title                  : E9L99
Release date           : May 27, 2025
Filename               : E9L99.MAP (CRC32 = 87CC728B)
Author                 : Maxim Chinyakin aka Lezing
Misc. Author Info      : An evil guy from Russia with a mental disability.

Other Levels           : The CROSSROADS Series
                         SkyTown (unfinished prototype)
                         Russian Community Build Project (among other authors)
                         The Last Pissed Time
                         Duke Nukem 2013 (among other authors)
                         20-Sector Challenge CBP (among other authors)

Other Stuff            : LEBuild map editor
                         Lezing's New Generation Art (a prototype)
                         ExtCLUT palette pack
                         UGHUD / KILCOUNT mod
                         NIPSYS64 framework and Brahma Engine (WIP)

Description            : This map is not designed to be fun or entertaining for
    everyone. It's eerie, disturbing, unnerving, ill-formed and just wacky.
    Inspired by my childhood nightmares and everyday struggles.

    Play in the dark. There's a batch file to get you past the menu shit right
    into action. No mods or HRP please. I can only recommend UGHUD to reduce
    visual clutter. Sorry for some places looking crappy, I didn't feel very
    well at times. But I had a lot of fun making the map. Also, no TROR was
    used in this level, because I don't give a shit. If you don't like it, go
    fuck yourself.

======================================================================

* Play Information *

Episode and Level #    : MAP
Single Player          : Yes
DukeMatch 2-8 Player   : No
Cooperative 2-8 Player : No
Difficulty Settings    : It won't help you
Plutonium Pak Required : Absolutely
New Art                : Shove it up your ass
New Music              : Brown note
New Sound Effects      : You will make them
New .CON Files         : Do you see any?
Duke3D Enhancement     : EDuke32 in Polymost mode
                         Compatible with late 2021 EDuke32 versions only!
                         Tested on r9793 (bundled with the map):
  https://dukeworld.com/eduke32/synthesis/20211112-9793-d90812371/

=====================================================================

* Construction *

Base                   : New level from scratch
Level Editor(s) Used   : LEBuild (don't even try to edit in Mapster32!)
Other Programs Used    : None
Construction Time      : A sad year or two
Known Bugs/Problems    : You may feel unsettled or lose your mind.
                         Causes progress-stopping bugs with other EDuke32
                         versions due to compatibility issues!

=====================================================================

*Important Information*

    Incompatible with third-party art/sound/gameplay mods.
    Make sure there are no loose .ART or .CON files in your game directory!
    I was harmed in the making.

    All similarity is coincidental. This level is to be a timeless classic, not
    subject to the copyright law. You just DO WHAT THE FUCK YOU WANT TO.
    The author is not responsible for any consequences of using, modifying or
    distributing this map file.

[Dr.Panico]

Huh. You weren't kidding. This is a weird and creepy one!
Certainly excited to try it, but I can't even get out of the first area. I did kick that wall and got in the room with the faces; but I don't know what to do after that.

Is this one of those maps you need to know how to use certain exploits (like warping or squeezing through a hole) in order to properly play it?

[Polunka]

I dig it so far. I don't know why but I've always liked the maps where creepiness, weirdness and surrealism play the integral part in building the atmosphere. The puzzles are also quite unique in terms of approach to their solution. I guess you would have to understand them in a metaphorical way since you say this map is supposed to convey your childhood fears and complexes and everyday problems, though I'm not really the kinda guy who understands such things well. And yet I've managed to get through some puzzles already.

Still, I have got stuck on one puzzle (well, I'd say it's impossible not to get stuck on this level), hopefully you can help me (though you also don't have to since you're the author and you decide):

Spoiler

In the "Pressing Room" I don't know why but the pride switch just won't do it for me. I've already tried to destroy everything in the room and go to the secret "checkout" room and break the barrel, but to no avail. The rest of the buttons are pressed but the pride one just keeps beeping at me. I'm also not sure about the mirror growling at you like an overlord and the messy writing sheet before the mirror. Maybe you're supposed to do something with them but I, for the love of me, can't figure it out.

[Jan Satcitananda]

Polunka, on 26 May 2025 - 08:14 PM, said:

Spoiler

In the "Pressing Room" I don't know why but the pride switch just won't do it for me. I've already tried to destroy everything in the room and go to the secret "checkout" room and break the barrel, but to no avail. The rest of the buttons are pressed but the pride one just keeps beeping at me. I'm also not sure about the mirror growling at you like an overlord and the messy writing sheet before the mirror. Maybe you're supposed to do something with them but I, for the love of me, can't figure it out.

Spoiler

Great progress so far! Did you notice that the "pride" switch itself is mirrored?

Dr.Panico, on 26 May 2025 - 07:00 PM, said:

Is this one of those maps you need to know how to use certain exploits (like warping or squeezing through a hole) in order to properly play it?

You don't have to use any special exploits. In fact, I put a lot of effort to troubleshoot the clipping bugs that could screw up the progression. Certain places may require some skill though, as they rely on precise aiming or quick movement. Coupled with the unforgiving nature of the map, it would be extremely challenging to complete without saves. Generally you need to be curious and watchful to make your way through the level.

[Jan Satcitananda]

E9L99 on ModDB: https://www.moddb.co...3d/addons/e9l99

[quakis]

A unique level for sure, there's a lot I do like about it but having made it to the

Spoiler

Cycloid Drummer area, it's honestly gotten a little too cryptic even for my patience. Managed to find a blue key, used the crystal ball, made my way to the red button wall room and at this point I'm absolutely clueless what to do or where to go next. There were some other buttons that got smaller and smaller, but couldn't activate the final tiny frakenstein lever if at all possible. Otherwise it feels like everything has been exhausted, been very thorough in the area but I guess the constant noise isn't helping retain any focus and giving me a headache. I'll need some pointers before continuing onward.

[Jan Satcitananda]

quakis, on 27 May 2025 - 05:51 AM, said:

Spoiler

Cycloid Drummer area, it's honestly gotten a little too cryptic even for my patience. Managed to find a blue key, used the crystal ball, made my way to the red button wall room and at this point I'm absolutely clueless what to do or where to go next. There were some other buttons that got smaller and smaller, but couldn't activate the final tiny frakenstein lever if at all possible. Otherwise it feels like everything has been exhausted, been very thorough in the area but I guess the constant noise isn't helping retain any focus and giving me a headache. I'll need some pointers before continuing onward.

Spoiler

The feeling you described is part of the experience. Note that if you can grab the night vision goggles and activate them BEFORE entering the red button room (i.e. before it gets lit), you'll be able to see the button you need to press, freeing yourself from doing the (possibly tedious) search. Otherwise, my advice is not to overthink the puzzles, they are more straightforward than they might seem.

The buttons that get progressively smaller are linked to a secret (use mighty foot to kick the final switch).

[Bruno]

Hi! It seems to be a very good map! But I don't know what to do when I'm facind the faces wall. There's a soda machine that hurt you and a stop sign on the floor.

[Dr.Panico]

Bruno, on 27 May 2025 - 10:28 AM, said:

Hi! It seems to be a very good map! But I don't know what to do when I'm facind the faces wall. There's a soda machine that hurt you and a stop sign on the floor.

For this part, you have to kick all the faces. If you do them all, you should hear a thunder sound. Then you must go to the previous area for the next puzzle.

Which I'm stuck currently. No matter what I try, I get stuck in the middle while a Overlord roar sound plays endlessly. Sometimes I manage to squeeze in only to die. I tried "feeding" a Holoduke to the Radioactive hole. Nada.

I have no idea what to do. Which sucks because I really want to play through this map, but it's so confusing.

EDIT: I finally figured out what to do, though there wasn't any clue for it (or atleast I didn't find anything). I think what this level does is put you into a desperate situation where you gotta try EVERYTHING in order to progress. I'm currently at the 7 Sins switch puzzle, but I think I'm starting to understand what logic this level is operating at.

[Jan Satcitananda]

Dr.Panico, on 27 May 2025 - 10:42 AM, said:

For this part, you have to kick all the faces. If you do them all, you should hear a thunder sound. Then you must go to the previous area for the next puzzle.

Which I'm stuck currently. No matter what I try, I get stuck in the middle while a Overlord roar sound plays endlessly. Sometimes I manage to squeeze in only to die. I tried "feeding" a Holoduke to the Radioactive hole. Nada.

I have no idea what to do. Which sucks because I really want to play through this map, but it's so confusing.

Try to "bury" yourself kicking the floor. It's dumb, but that's how the story goes.

Bruno, on 27 May 2025 - 10:28 AM, said:

Hi! It seems to be a very good map! But I don't know what to do when I'm facind the faces wall. There's a soda machine that hurt you and a stop sign on the floor.

Thou shalt disturb the peace of the dead.

[quakis]

Stuck again, probably missing something obvious (again);

Spoiler

At the area with Duke's grave and a message "Don't you dare duck" - doing so warps and kills you. There's also a free pipebomb which I assumed is used to blow something up but I'm not finding it. I assumed there's a trick to going into the grave for a safe warp, but because you 'swim' I don't think this is the right call. 'Spoke' to the three critters too and nothing to note afaik.

[Jan Satcitananda]

quakis, on 27 May 2025 - 11:55 AM, said:

Stuck again, probably missing something obvious (again);

Spoiler

At the area with Duke's grave and a message "Don't you dare duck" - doing so warps and kills you. There's also a free pipebomb which I assumed is used to blow something up but I'm not finding it. I assumed there's a trick to going into the grave for a safe warp, but because you 'swim' I don't think this is the right call. 'Spoke' to the three critters too and nothing to note afaik.

Spoiler

Blow yourself up in the grave to ascend to the ending. Ducking breaks the mechanics, so I had to put a "safeguard" against it.

Also, if you find the secret freezer, jetpack and scuba, you can unlock the extra endings.

[zykov eddy]

This map feels like afterlife.

[quakis]

Jan Satcitananda, on 27 May 2025 - 12:01 PM, said:

Spoiler

Blow yourself up in the grave to ascend to the ending. Ducking breaks the mechanics, so I had to put a "safeguard" against it.

Also, if you find the secret freezer, jetpack and scuba, you can unlock the extra endings.

Spoiler

Oh, well that covers it then, reached the normal ending. Maybe after a few thousand headache pills I might attempt to seek out those extra endings.

That was a frustrating experience, for all the intended reasons, literal hell with some awful ear bleeding insanity (Cycloid drummer bit was super neat though, all the little effects going along with the rhythm) Kinda reminds me of a DOOM release for ZDOOM specifically, called lilith.pk3, which has a similar type of madness going for it. The most fascinating aspect of course was the effects, how they were utilised for presentation, visuals and puzzles. The homages to Doom and Sonic were engaging sections, love how you even emulated the lack of jumping in the former. Gotta organise my thoughts more, there was a lot going on. Loved to hate the whole experience, unpleasant to play yet mesmerising. I've deleted Duke3D off my system and threw every copy into the fire. If you need me, I'll be sitting in this corner and staring at the wall for the next decade.

[Jan Satcitananda]

quakis, on 27 May 2025 - 12:39 PM, said:

Spoiler

Oh, well that covers it then, reached the normal ending. Maybe after a few thousand headache pills I might attempt to seek out those extra endings.

That was a frustrating experience, for all the intended reasons, literal hell with some awful ear bleeding insanity (Cycloid drummer bit was super neat though, all the little effects going along with the rhythm) Kinda reminds me of a DOOM release for ZDOOM specifically, called lilith.pk3, which has a similar type of madness going for it. The most fascinating aspect of course was the effects, how they were utilised for presentation, visuals and puzzles. The homages to Doom and Sonic were engaging sections, love how you even emulated the lack of jumping in the former. Gotta organise my thoughts more, there was a lot going on. Loved to hate the whole experience, unpleasant to play yet mesmerising. I've deleted Duke3D off my system and threw every copy into the fire. If you need me, I'll be sitting in this corner and staring at the wall for the next decade.

Congrats on completing the level Yes it's full of pain, yet can be rewarding if one plays thoughtfully and grasps the ideas behind it.

I heard of that wad, certainly carries some similarity, although E9L99 has a well-defined storyline and is done purely with map effects, so it's a tiny fraction the size of lilith.

zykov eddy, on 27 May 2025 - 12:22 PM, said:

This map feels like afterlife.

Yes, it's kind of about Duke's "afterlife" where his soul can't find peace. But it might have various interpretations. You may even find that the main character isn't Duke himself.

[Dr.Panico]

I'm very sorry, but I had to throw the towel now.
Don't get me wrong: this is one of the most unique and cleverly designed levels ever made not just for Duke3D, but for any game. I took the liberty to check out the most I could with cheats (yeah I know, shame on me ) and I can attest that this is one for the history books. At the same time, however, it is also one of the most confusing maps I've played so far. There were times when, even when I understood what had to be done, it seemed like I missed something essential; to the point my mind just short-circuited out of frustration trying to figure it out.

I love weird maps. I love creepy maps. And this level delivered both in spades, with some geniuinely freaky and mind-melting setpieces. But I can't get through it, atleast not now. It's sorta like the Trout Mask Replica of Duke maps - you either get it or don't; and those who get it will have a unique and unforgettable experience.

I hope this map gets the attention it deserves. It truly is a diamond-in-the-rough. (Besides, I could use a video walkthrough...)

Now, if you excuse me, I have to lie down. May this level invade my dreams tonight!

[Jan Satcitananda]

Dr.Panico, on 27 May 2025 - 04:26 PM, said:

I'm very sorry, but I had to throw the towel now.
Don't get me wrong: this is one of the most unique and cleverly designed levels ever made not just for Duke3D, but for any game. I took the liberty to check out the most I could with cheats (yeah I know, shame on me ) and I can attest that this is one for the history books. At the same time, however, it is also one of the most confusing maps I've played so far. There were times when, even when I understood what had to be done, it seemed like I missed something essential; to the point my mind just short-circuited out of frustration trying to figure it out.

I love weird maps. I love creepy maps. And this level delivered both in spades, with some geniuinely freaky and mind-melting setpieces. But I can't get through it, atleast not now. It's sorta like the Trout Mask Replica of Duke maps - you either get it or don't; and those who get it will have a unique and unforgettable experience.

I hope this map gets the attention it deserves. It truly is a diamond-in-the-rough. (Besides, I could use a video walkthrough...)

Now, if you excuse me, I have to lie down. May this level invade my dreams tonight!

No problem, the gameplay is supposed to be confusing and frustrate the player at times. Maybe a video playthrough could help you out. I wonder how far did you manage to get without cheats at the moment?

By the way, thanks for mentioning that album, didn't hear about it before, since I don't know much about avant-garde music in general.

[quakis]

Out of all the effects/tricks going on here, there's one I just can't quite figure out how it's achieved:

Spoiler

There's some inverse mirror trickery going on here, my guess by reflecting the (out of sight) under/inner parts of the desk/cabinet in place to achieve this three dimensional sector work without using a lick of TROR. How? I have no idea. There are some extra sectors between the output/source which probably serves as the actual mirror (with a joined sector near the source) but again I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around what's actually going on. There was similar mirror shenanigans from 20CBP too. Haven't had success reproducing either effect out of curiosity, just HOMs, its beyond my current understanding of the engine but would be fun to mess around with.

[Jan Satcitananda]

quakis, on 28 May 2025 - 05:56 AM, said:

Out of all the effects/tricks going on here, there's one I just can't quite figure out how it's achieved:

Spoiler

mirror_sects.jpg
There's some inverse mirror trickery going on here, my guess by reflecting the (out of sight) under/inner parts of the desk/cabinet in place to achieve this three dimensional sector work without using a lick of TROR. How? I have no idea. There are some extra sectors between the output/source which probably serves as the actual mirror (with a joined sector near the source) but again I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around what's actually going on. There was similar mirror shenanigans from 20CBP too. Haven't had success reproducing either effect out of curiosity, just HOMs, its beyond my current understanding of the engine but would be fun to mess around with.

That's a tricky one that is a huge step forward even from the mirror seen in 20SCCBP. You got the core idea right, the trick is to force a hidden mirror to render the inner parts (so those must be modeled as reflected to cancel the mirror reflection and effectively turn it into a SE40-like effect). Normally a mirror places the entire reflection behind its surface (as seen from viewer's perspective), but that doesn't mean that you can't put extra sectors in front of it and make them visible (e.g. by joining the sector containing the mirror with another sector). This is usually considered a bug that leads to undesirable artifacts that appear like random walls popping out in front of the mirror, but here I took advantage from it, hiding the mirror itself but intentionally leaving a HoM texture on parts that the "reflection" should be seen through. Fortunately, Build gets pretty loose on rendering mirrors and will draw any reflection that is closest to the player, even if the mirror isn't currently visible per se.

Spoiler

You can see this when peeking through the HoM in the "Duke Nukem" billboard on the wall near the "lazy bar": there looms an artifact reflection that reads "ear polyps". This is linked to the mirror inside the clinic elevator that is pretty far away but is still rendered by the engine. As you can see, you can draw pretty much anything anywhere using mirrors, as long as the mirror surface is large enough to cover the entire thing (this may limit viewing large structures at extreme angles).

The effect is hard to examine in place because it contains some zero-thickness sectors and is also overlapped by other rooms. Maybe a step-by-step guide with some sample maps could explain it better. The effect should be doable in Mapster32.

[High Treason]

Oho, I was just playing with this very concept the other day. Initially it was an accident about a year ago where I'd used an invalid texture to get a reflective look in a room, only to discover a nearby mirror was still drawing on the page, later read the source code and figured out why. It did strike me that as it is an entirely separate rendering pass, that it could probably be used strategically to render things that the player can't otherwise see or fake geometry that wouldn't be possible in one pass.


Haven't had much time to experiment with it and haven't gotten it to do anything useful yet, so very nice to see a working example is already out there. Excellent stuff.

[Jan Satcitananda]

High Treason, on 28 May 2025 - 08:48 AM, said:

Oho, I was just playing with this very concept the other day. Initially it was an accident about a year ago where I'd used an invalid texture to get a reflective look in a room, only to discover a nearby mirror was still drawing on the page, later read the source code and figured out why. It did strike me that as it is an entirely separate rendering pass, that it could probably be used strategically to render things that the player can't otherwise see or fake geometry that wouldn't be possible in one pass.


Haven't had much time to experiment with it and haven't gotten it to do anything useful yet, so very nice to see a working example is already out there. Excellent stuff.

Great to know! I suppose that there might exist other ways to do the trick, so maybe you find a better or simpler way to do that.

Did you have success getting to that place in the map?

[quakis]

Thanks for the explanation, made a lot more sense what's going on and even managed to get something going albeit a few rendering quirks still to iron out. It is indeed a fascinating effect and neat to have learnt something new from Build thanks to this release. I want to continue experimenting around with this some more. Cheers again!

Results:

Spoiler

[High Treason]

Jan Satcitananda, on 28 May 2025 - 09:58 AM, said:

Great to know! I suppose that there might exist other ways to do the trick, so maybe you find a better or simpler way to do that.

Did you have success getting to that place in the map?

Haven't played it. I generally avoid anything that uses certain ports. May make an exception if I have the time, but I don't generally have a lot of that spare these days.

Anyway, turned out I was over-complicating things. Previously I was doing some weird things with sticking walls together, but all I had to do was overlap a sector with a mirror in it and use an invalid tile where I want the thing to display - in this case I used "MIRROR" because that tile gets blanked (set to a 0x0 tile) at run time and the mirror display code only runs on walls where it's an overpicnum so it won't interfere. This would be bad practice as it still adds to the mirror count in the map, so another 0x0 tile should be used instead.

Worth noting that setting an invalid tile on the top of the shelving unit would let you look through the top into the fake space below, but it would require very specific tweaking of things to prevent it from going HOM once you move past the front of it.

[Jan Satcitananda]

High Treason, on 29 May 2025 - 09:52 PM, said:

Haven't played it. I generally avoid anything that uses certain ports. May make an exception if I have the time, but I don't generally have a lot of that spare these days.

Anyway, turned out I was over-complicating things. Previously I was doing some weird things with sticking walls together, but all I had to do was overlap a sector with a mirror in it and use an invalid tile where I want the thing to display - in this case I used "MIRROR" because that tile gets blanked (set to a 0x0 tile) at run time and the mirror display code only runs on walls where it's an overpicnum so it won't interfere. This would be bad practice as it still adds to the mirror count in the map, so another 0x0 tile should be used instead.

Worth noting that setting an invalid tile on the top of the shelving unit would let you look through the top into the fake space below, but it would require very specific tweaking of things to prevent it from going HOM once you move past the front of it.

Yup, turns out that I was also over-complicating the setup, although that helped to render two non-coplanar portals at once using the same mirror. The drawback of my inverse mirror design is that the maximum depth is limited and some HoM is visible at certain angles. On the other hand, it might facilitate through-the-top rendering you described (because the mirror is actually behind the wall).

By the way, I was considering making a map for the original DOS game, but it wouldn't be very ambitious anyway because of the limits on switches and other effects being so low.

Spoiler

However, this map contains a replica of the DOS Duke3D main menu and ANSI screen.

[brullov]

When asked "If you were stuck on a deserted island, what 3 things would you bring?", you can safely answer "Lezing's E9L99". An endless stream of crazy ideas, both technical and game-design, that cheekily, audaciously demonstrate a high level of the author's knowledge of how the engine works. Well done!

[ck3D]

Dr.Panico, on 27 May 2025 - 04:26 PM, said:

(Besides, I could use a video walkthrough...)

There is Nacho/TLOD's stream now. I want to say don't spoil yourself too much, but I was glued to it the entire time because the level is fascinating and to be fair feels like my own experience of it still will be unique anyway when I finally play it. The last maps in Duke 3D history to have impressed me this much must have been Red 4 and Blown Fuses. Technically, it is way ahead of a lot, essentially Build Porn: The Map but at the service of a consistent direction, just ethereal. There is a lot to comment about it but I should reserve that for whenever I've personally played it or I would be going off impressions.

Spoiler

I do have one rather egotistical question: the good ending (which is incredible) is very similar to the ending of Blast Radius (where Duke wins by dying and ascending; amusingly, the end-of-level trigger also happens to be a ROBOTMOUSE). Of course your version of it is a lot better. The Zero Zone demo also ends inside of Duke's grave although that's less remarkable since probably done long before in user maps. And so I was wondering if you knew that or it just so happens that we both came to a similar conclusion, which would indicate that maybe it's the only possible logical one in works that explore the concept of Duke Nukem as a first person avatar.

[Jan Satcitananda]

brullov, on 31 May 2025 - 01:29 PM, said:

When asked "If you were stuck on a deserted island, what 3 things would you bring?", you can safely answer "Lezing's E9L99". An endless stream of crazy ideas, both technical and game-design, that cheekily, audaciously demonstrate a high level of the author's knowledge of how the engine works. Well done!

Thank you buddy, I knew you're gonna like the level

ck3D, on 01 June 2025 - 01:49 AM, said:

There is Nacho/TLOD's stream now. I want to say don't spoil yourself too much, but I was glued to it the entire time because the level is fascinating and to be fair feels like my own experience of it still will be unique anyway when I finally play it. The last maps in Duke 3D history to have impressed me this much must have been Red 4 and Blown Fuses. Technically, it is way ahead of a lot, essentially Build Porn: The Map but at the service of a consistent direction, just ethereal. There is a lot to comment about it but I should reserve that for whenever I've personally played it or I would be going off impressions.

Yes, I see that most time was spent there figuring out the puzzles and trying literally every possible option.

Spoiler

What kinda puzzled me in TLOD's stream is that sometimes he seemed to be very close to the solution but somehow kept missing it, like checking every window in the building for any hidden space except one that you actually have to shoot, and after some use of cheats shooting the shrinker target with RPG.

I agree with his point that this is a rather niche map. It targets skilled players who like to be challenged in various novel ways, and are also seeking for weird and creepy experiences. Some players couldn't hit that "pride" switch or won't get through other seemingly impossible places unless they know how the game works (e.g. you need to aim higher while kicking and also disable the auto aiming to hit some targets). The ultimate challenge would be a 100 % playthrough (all secrets and all 175 kills as reported by KILCOUNT).

ck3D, on 01 June 2025 - 01:49 AM, said:

Spoiler

I do have one rather egotistical question: the good ending (which is incredible) is very similar to the ending of Blast Radius (where Duke wins by dying and ascending; amusingly, the end-of-level trigger also happens to be a ROBOTMOUSE). Of course your version of it is a lot better. The Zero Zone demo also ends inside of Duke's grave although that's less remarkable since probably done long before in user maps. And so I was wondering if you knew that or it just so happens that we both came to a similar conclusion, which would indicate that maybe it's the only possible logical one in works that explore the concept of Duke Nukem as a first person avatar.

I didn't finish Blast Radius yet, but the idea appears pretty suggestive and tempting; it's mostly a matter of technical skill and finesse to do it right. There was so much talk about Duke being dead in the recent years that somebody with enough dedication had to make E9L99 that would symbolize the very end of everything.

[Polunka]

Holy shit, what a monstrous level! Finally beat it. So much nonsensical stuff thrown together yet it feels so coherent. One of the most interesting and captivating Duke3D maps I've played. Why captivating? Well, for me, it was the fact that each puzzle's completion felt especially rewarding since most of the puzzles were extraordinary and actually took some time and brainstorming, and with each new puzzle it felt more intriguing, just what else the author could have come up with.

As for the Build Porn stuff, I'm not a mapper myself but even I could appreciate the things you did on the technical side that I hadn't witnessed before in a Duke3D map.

Well, I did still cheat but only a couple times and I also admit to have looked up some of the moments in The Legend Of Devon's video:

Spoiler

The first time was that one Pressing Room puzzle I asked you about before. I couldn't figure out how to press the mirrored pride switch in the end - there wasn't enough distance to press it through the mirror - so I just noclipped into the mirror and pressed it.

The second time was the We Get Signal room. I couldn't figure out how to squeeze through that goddamn door that opened piece by piece. Well, even TLOD did cheat back there. Maybe it had something to do with the weird camera view that oversaw the door (I didn't even figure out how it works in the first place) or that wacky trapezoid platform with atomic symbols on it.

I also gotta admit that I figured out the red button room (with a mutilated Duke inside a lava pillar) only because I had the voxel pack turned on

I found only 9 secrets out of 20 but I think it's enough for me. This level pretty much exhausted me so I'll call it a win

And the last but not the least, the wackiest ending to a Duke3D level I've ever experienced! I was pretty much mind-blown at how someone could ever think about something like this in a Duke map.

All in all, had a lot of fun. Thank you for bringing this masterpiece to life, and I hope you will bless us with more levels in the future

[Jan Satcitananda]

Polunka, on 01 June 2025 - 07:16 AM, said:

Holy shit, what a monstrous level! Finally beat it. So much nonsensical stuff thrown together yet it feels so coherent. One of the most interesting and captivating Duke3D maps I've played. Why captivating? Well, for me, it was the fact that each puzzle's completion felt especially rewarding since most of the puzzles were extraordinary and actually took some time and brainstorming, and with each new puzzle it felt more intriguing, just what else the author could have come up with.

As for the Build Porn stuff, I'm not a mapper myself but even I could appreciate the things you did on the technical side that I hadn't witnessed before in a Duke3D map.

Well, I did still cheat but only a couple times and I also admit to have looked up some of the moments in The Legend Of Devon's video:

Spoiler

The first time was that one Pressing Room puzzle I asked you about before. I couldn't figure out how to press the mirrored pride switch in the end - there wasn't enough distance to press it through the mirror - so I just noclipped into the mirror and pressed it.

The second time was the We Get Signal room. I couldn't figure out how to squeeze through that goddamn door that opened piece by piece. Well, even TLOD did cheat back there. Maybe it had something to do with the weird camera view that oversaw the door (I didn't even figure out how it works in the first place) or that wacky trapezoid platform with atomic symbols on it.

I also gotta admit that I figured out the red button room (with a mutilated Duke inside a lava pillar) only because I had the voxel pack turned on

I found only 9 secrets out of 20 but I think it's enough for me. This level pretty much exhausted me so I'll call it a win

And the last but not the least, the wackiest ending to a Duke3D level I've ever experienced! I was pretty much mind-blown at how someone could ever think about something like this in a Duke map.

All in all, had a lot of fun. Thank you for bringing this masterpiece to life, and I hope you will bless us with more levels in the future

Thanks for your feedback, great to know that you found the map interesting. Maybe once you can beat the level without cheating

Feels like it's a good idea to write a short guide on how to pass through certain places in the map, because some players face difficulties there:

The "pride" switch:

Spoiler

Pride is the deadliest of all sins. Duck next to the mirror so you can kick through it, then aim close to its left edge. When you're at the right distance, the switch may not even be visible in the reflection, but it will be kickable. It may take some practice to do that, perhaps you can use the 35-face wall in the starting area to learn how the kicking works.

The "really ready room":

Spoiler

Use steroids (if you have any) or straferunning to pass through the glitchy passage. When straferunning, you can lean against a nearby wall to "gain" speed first, then slide into the passage, and you should get there without dying. But sometimes you can simply straferun if you're lucky enough.

The segmented door:

Spoiler

This door is the entrance for the disabled. The way to get through the closing door pieces is to lean against the left side of that door and open six sections at once in a quick succession, starting from the leftmost one, while also holding the forward and strafe-left keys like in straferunning. I couldn't do the same thing when starting from the right side, as game clipping seems to work differently there. If you're quick enough, you should be able to enter the next room in a few attempts. To practice, you can use "inittimer" console command to slowdown the game time (e.g. inittimer 60 is half the speed, and inittimer 120 restores the normal speed).
The "signal" next to the door has nothing to do with it and is a reference to a popular meme, also showing a funky effect one can do with viewscreens.

The clyster:

Spoiler

"Clyster" basically means enema. You have already seen one earlier in the map, so you need to backtrack a little bit. It's a dated word that is not widely used nowadays (you might notice that the map tends to occasionally use archaic vocabulary like "thou", "urchin" or here "clyster").

[NNC]

Is this map Duke's answer to Doom's MyHouse?