===========================================================================
Archive Maintainer      : (special instructions if any)
Update to               : The Box.wad
Advanced engine needed  : GZDoom
Primary purpose         : Single play
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Title                   : The Box
Filename                : The Box.wad
Release date            : Feb 25 2024
Author                  : Peter Moro
Email Address           : [redacted]
Other Files By Author   : Deimos abandoned base #79, Phobos abandoned outpost pt.1 & pt. 2, Deimos forgotten storage pit, Beneath phobos lab #5.
Misc. Author Info       : 

Description             : Puzzles, action, mystery, secrets, surprises, and an intense final showdown. This is a puzzle-wad with twelve secrets in total. Finding these secrets is not necessary but encouraged as you'll be rewarded with the best items and ammo. All secrets are behind certain doors and every secret door's trigger is in the same room IF you are clever enough to figure out it's activation. You can absolutely complete this map without finding a single secret, if that's how you roll.
Actually, there's way more action than secrets / puzzles but I like secrets in maps and I wanted to make a wad with many secrets. 
Difficulty is above average but it's totally possible to finish this map on the first attempt without saving if you are badass. Veteran Doomers might die once or twice. Secrets get progressively harder but none are ridiculously impossible because I hate gameplay like that. It's totally possible to find all secrets in a single playthrough if you have a keen eye. Look for switches, alternate textures, and other out-of-place visual abnormalities.
The final and most difficult secret rewards a ComputerAreaMap which gives secret locations away and it's possible to backtrack and find them all. This is a box / square themed puzzle-wad inspired by the movie Cube.

Don't be discouraged by the starting dark puzzle room - it's easy to solve if you search around a little and then the fun begins :P

Story                   : “Just like many other marines in the UAC, you signed up for the 'special program', code named Project Survival. Believing it to be about exploring the surface of Mars, coming out of cryo-sleep you are surprised to find yourself not on a UAC transport ship, but alone in a very dark room with no windows or doors and carrying only a pistol. What is this place? Why am I here? More importantly, how do I get out?”



Additional Credits to   :  Thanks to the awesome devs who made Ultimate Doom Builder. Thanks to all the cool dudes at Doomworld.com who helped me with technical issues.
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* What is included *

New levels              : 1 
Sounds                  : No
Music                   : Yes - “Dark ambient” by Stereocode
Graphics                : This wad uses Doom and Doom II textures only: d1gfxd2.wad ( SargeBaldy) and DoomII.wad.
Dehacked/BEX Patch      : No
Demos                   : No
Other                   : No 
Other files required    : Doom II




* Play Information *

Game                    : DOOM2 
Map #                   : MAP01
Single Player           : Designed for
Cooperative 2-4 Player  : No
Deathmatch 2-4 Player   : No
Other game styles       : No
Difficulty Settings     : Not implemented
Playtime                : 60 – 90 mins, depending on your ability to find secrets.
Requirements            : Jumping and crouching are disabled. Free look is permitted.


* Construction *

Base                    : New from scratch 
Build Time              : About 9 months, mostly around 30 mins a day during my lunch break.
Editor(s) used          : UltimateDoomBuilder, Slade
Known Bugs              : None
May Not Run With        : non-GZDoom
Tested With             : GZdoom

Controller players: Please ensure that your Left Thumb Y-Axis (moving forward) sensitivity is higher than normal so that you move faster and it's possible to complete certain timed puzzles. Default controller speed is crazy slow compared with a mouse, even when Autorun is toggled on. So it needs to be adjusted.

My Left Thumb Y-Axis (moving forward) settings are:

Overall sensitivity: 2.000

Dead zone: 0.200

IMPORTANT: This map uses Dynamic Lighting and so be sure to enable Dynamic Lighting for the optimal experience. (This map would look pretty crap without it enabled). Also, be sure to enable Light Shadowmaps = Yes (in Dynamic Lighting settings).
Having the correct brightness levels ensure that some areas are not too dark or bright.
My (recommended) GZDoom display settings are:

Screen size: 10

Gamma Correction: 1.00

Brightness: 0.00

Contrast: 1.0

Saturation:1.00
 
Please experiment with the Brightness / Contrast levels in the first room to find a balance that works for you. Ideally you should be on the verge of full darkness in the first room, but still able to see the walls when you are next to them.



* Copyright / Permissions *

Authors may NOT use the contents of this file as a base for
modification or reuse.  

You MAY distribute this file, provided you include this text
file, with no modifications.  You may distribute this file in any
electronic format (BBS, Diskette, CD, etc) as long as you include
this file intact.  I have received permission from the original
authors of any modified or included content in this file to allow
further distribution.


* Where to get the file that this text file describes *

The Usual: ftp://archives.gamers.org/pub/idgames/ and mirrors
Web sites:
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