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MyHouse.wad

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MyHouse.wad
Title screen of the map
Developer(s)Steve Nelson[note 1] ("Veddge")
Composer(s)
  • Sarah Mancuso ("esselfortium")
  • James Paddock
EngineGZDoom
Platform(s)
ReleaseMarch 3, 2023
Genre(s)Psychological thriller, puzzle, subversive horror[2]
Mode(s)Single-player

MyHouse.wad (known also as MyHouse.pk3, or simply MyHouse) is a map for Doom II created by Steve Nelson. It is a subversive horror-thriller that revolves around a house that continues to change in shape, sometimes drastically and in a non-euclidean manner. Placed throughout the map are various artifacts to collect, which unlock different areas and reveal information about the house. MyHouse is non-linear and follows no particular plot sequence; its areas may be explored and completed at will in order to achieve any of four available endings.

The map poses as a small tribute made in honor of the creator's deceased friend, claiming that the house is a recreation of a real suburban house. It draws inspiration from House of Leaves and later reveals itself to be a liminal horror game as the player discovers more areas of the house. As the house is explored, its shape changes, and new areas are able to be accessed. It makes extensive use of modern Doom modding features, such as portals, seamless teleportation, and scripting.

It has received critical acclaim for its technical advancement, story, literary themes, and plot. It has been cited as an example of video games as literary adaptations and has been awarded a Cacoward. It was released to the Doom forums website, Doomworld, on March 3, 2023. Prior to its release, the author had made sporadic and small posts on the forum, detailing their progress with the development of the map; these posts act to strengthen MyHouse's backstory.

It is licensed under CC BY 4.0.[3]

Plot

The map is intended to appear as a tribute to the creator's deceased childhood friend; it is a continuation of a recreation of their friend's house. Attached to the map's download is a link to an online folder containing a myriad of information about MyHouse. Alongside the file itself, there are screenshots of the map, photos of the supposedly actual house, sketches of various elements of MyHouse, and a journal.

The journal contains 31 entries. In it, the author tells of a Doom map that they found belonging to their friend. They then decide to finish the map in honor of their friend. As the author continues to work on the house, they experience nightmares and strange events (such as new material appearing in the map, despite no recollection of doing such work). The author continues to experience insomnia and progressively more surreal and impossible dreams as they work on the map.[2] In one, they recall being able to pass through a mirror and seeing their reflection wink at them. They grow paranoid, and the map consumes the author's life, causing them to work on the project for days on end. In one of the final entries, they write about a final dream they have of a fake beach. At the end of the journal, the author believes that the map has become a sentient entity and that it is too dangerous to be shared. They intend to upload the standalone house without any of the mysterious new content but mistakenly post the "sentient" version. In the online folder, both the standalone WAD and PK3 files are available, although only the PK3 file contains the vast majority of the map.

In the journal, the word "house" is highlighted in blue, a reference to the odd formatting in House of Leaves. Other abnormal formatting is present in the diary as well.[4]

Gameplay

Screenshot of two 'versions' of the house, looking towards the main interior area

The map starts in the front yard of a suburban house, surrounded by a wooden fence with a boundless plane of grass beyond it. Inside the house are a collection of standard Doom enemies. From the basement of the house, a blue "soulsphere", a standard Doom power-up, can be seen through a window to the outside. Exiting the house to attempt to obtain it will cause it to vanish, in addition to the environment changing to a new version of the house. In this alteration, the house is visually upgraded, and new enemies will appear again in the house. Exploring this house will remove the exterior doors, preventing the player from leaving.[5] Non-Euclidean spaces appear around the house, with one leading to a lounge area and a monochromatic modernist area.

Throughout the map, the player can collect up to 16 "artifacts".[note 2] These are items ranging from a milkshake to a Christmas ornament. As artifacts are collected, small icons of their respective items appear in a picture frame in the living room of the house. All 16 artifacts are required to obtain the last and apparently "best" ending.[2]

In the bathroom of the house, a mirror becomes permeable if certain conditions are met. This allows the player to enter a mirror world of the house. The mirror reality can be traversed freely and is required to obtain all artifacts.[6]

As artifacts are collected, passages in the house open, unlocking different areas. These areas include:[note 3]

  • The Daycare, containing a boss fight with Shrek[1]
  • The Bathhouse, consisting of tile, flooded flooring, a locker room, and a pool
  • The Brutalist House, a brutalist rendition surrounded by concrete
  • The Airport, with a plane
  • The Gas Station, a Shell gas station with an encompassing forest trail and campsite. A car plays Subways of Your Mind on loop[7]
  • The Burnt House, a version of the house after a fire with three "decoy" artifacts

These areas reference and draw connections to the sketches and journal that accompany the map's download. In one instance, the sketch drawing of many dog heads resembling Cerberus is found in the Brutalist House. Inside this area are two entities: a domesticated dog, and a hellhound, separated by different scales of the area. The two dogs are invariably linked together; if either dog is killed, the other also dies.[8]

Many areas contain features and styles found in liminal spaces. For example, the Bathhouse is modeled after liminal spaces that commonly feature water, white tiles, and a large, featureless expanse of space. These areas are also known as "pool rooms".[9] Other areas contain the house's architectural features and reflect parts of its layout; the Bathhouse, Brutalist House, Airport, and Gas Station have layouts similar to the house's upper floor, and the Daycare has a layout similar to the basement.

Optional areas

  • If cheats are enabled and noclip mode is turned on, going outside of the playable area of the map will teleport the player to an adaptation of The Backrooms, an internet fiction concept.[10] While being pursued by a hostile invincible and dark figure, it is possible to escape this area and return to the normal map.
  • At any point in the game, one can die and wait. After a short while, they will end up in a hospital. There, through obtaining a special key, they may continue playing at the place where they were killed. This can only be done once every play through. Afterwards, the player will stay dead.

Endings

The map contains five endings, each possible depending on either how many artifacts are collected or what areas are visited.[note 4]

Ending zero is achieved by opening the gate requiring a blue key near the beginning of the map.[11] It is the easiest ending, as it does not require any artifacts and needs only one key item to use. Going through the subsequent level, Underhalls, will send the player back to the My House level.

Ending one is achieved by leaving the airport with less than 14 artifacts. Exiting the house will cause it to disappear instantly, and a for-sale sign will appear in its place. The for-sale sign reads "Navidson Realty", a House of Leaves reference.[12] This ending also leads to ending zero, as the blue gate is still functional.

Ending two is achieved by going through a secret door in the mirrored version of the Gas Station. It features a fake beach placed on a movie set; the foliage and bushes are made of cardboard, and the beach view is a projected image on a sheet. The game ends on a black screen when the clapperboard at the rear of the area is used.[13]

Ending three is achieved by collecting all 16 artifacts and going through the secret door in the non-mirrored Gas Station. It is the opposite of ending two, as it is a real beach. Because of this, it is also referred to as the "real beach". This is considered to be the only "good" ending, as it is the only secret defined in the map's data. If neither dog in the Brutalist House was killed, the small dog is present, resting on the sand.

Ending four is achieved by moving the bookshelf in the basement and interacting with the breaker. Doing this results in the house being blacked out with screams being heard from the upstairs. When the player goes to check, the entire house is filled with enemies, the walls are torn, and if the player goes back into the basement, the house becomes hollow and monotone again. If the player had not filled out 14 items on the frame, then the same ending as ending one plays. However, if the player has the item frame filled out, opening to the fence will show a gravestone with a QR code showing Steve Nelson's obituary.


Literary themes

The map takes direct inspiration from the novel House of Leaves in its design and references.[14] The novel's main theme is a mysterious house that is "bigger on the inside than on the outside".[15] The central setting for the map, the house itself, gradually changes and shifts in both appearance and function as the game progresses. Many other areas of MyHouse bear similar architectural features to the original house, and some areas directly make reference to the novel.[4] For example, in an ending where the house is sold, the for-sale sign reads "Navidson Realty", a reference to a main character in the novel.[12] The map's supplementary information and journals also make extensive reference to the novel.[16]

Composition

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Entryway at the End of Time"James Paddock11:43
2."memory=entryrrrr/////"Sarah Mancuso7:49
Total length:19:32

The map features two original tracks. The first is "Entryway at the End of Time" and is a remix of "Running From Evil", a Doom II track.[17] It was composed by James Paddock. It features loops, discordant notes, and out-of-rhythm instruments as the song goes on. The second track is "memory=entryrrrr/////", [sic] composed by Sarah Mancuso ("esselfortium").[18] It contains many sudden cuts, noise, and splices from "Running From Evil", drawing inspiration from Everywhere at the End of Time by the Caretaker.[19]

The map plays the unmodified "Running From Evil" in the beginning stages, as well as a version with reversed midi sequencing upon entering the map from the mirrored "Underhalls" level.

Reception

John Romero, a cofounder of id Software and designer for Doom II, played the map over a livestream on Twitch.[20] He praised its playtime and design, calling it "very cool" throughout his playthrough.[11][2]

The map has been featured in YouTube playthroughs, documentaries, and livestreams. It has been showcased by Jacksepticeye, Vinesauce Vinny, and others.

Mark Z. Danielewski, the author of the book that the map is modeled after, acknowledged the map's existence and impact by linking to a YouTube video explaining the connections between the game and the book.[2][21]

On May 11 2023, a Youtuber called Power Pak made a one hour and forty-two minute video essay about recapping MyHouse. The video now has over 13 million views.[22][23]

Critical reception

In a review for Rock Paper Shotgun, Saleh Karaman said that "if MyHouse isn’t already an icon of horror gaming, it soon will be" and that "there are endless layers of subtext and meta-textual connections in House of Leaves, and MyHouse mimics these, but with the copypasta horror of the internet."[1]

Cal Jeffrey of TechSpot said: "If you play it, remember that MyHouse is like an onion. It has many layers, each revealing more lore while raising questions about the next layer." Jeffrey made reference to the accompanying story of MyHouse. He also focused on its technical advancements for a Doom map, such as areas with two floors, which is not normally possible.[24]

PC Gamer's Wes Fenlon praised the map's creativity and design, despite the age of its underlying engine. He wrote that "Doom is 30 years old, and yet someone still used it as the vessel to build one of the smartest, most intricate games of the year. What a legacy! Play it once without looking up where to go or what to do—just explore. When you think you've seen what there is to see, look up a guide and figure out just how much more this house is hiding."[13]

Awards

It was awarded a 2023 Cacoward, an annual award given by the Doom community for "honoring the year's top releases".[25][26] The theme for the 2023 Cacowards was "Doom at 30", celebrating the release of Doom I 30 years earlier.[27]

The track "memory=entryrrrr/////" won an "Odyssey of Noises" award for Best Original Soundtrack.[25]

See also

  • House of Leaves – 2000 novel by Mark Z. Danielewski
  • Doom modding – Modding in the Doom video game series
  • The Backrooms – Fictional location
  • Liminal space – Quality of ambiguity, disorientation, or state of transition

Notes

  1. ^ Real name unknown.[1]
  2. ^ Four additional items can be collected, but they do not count as artifacts.
  3. ^ Excluding Easter eggs, sub-areas, non-critical content, and mirror worlds.
  4. ^ The endings are not named, so they are commonly referred to by the order in which they are defined in the map's data.

References

  1. ^ a b c Karaman, Saleh (2023-12-15). "Doom At 30: MyHouse.wad is an extraordinary mod that asks, "What if Doom was an ultra creepy horror game?"". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  2. ^ a b c d e Bardhan, Ashley (2023-07-07). "The Horror Game Of The Year Is A Doom II Mod". Kotaku. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  3. ^ Nelson, Steve. "myhouse.txt". Google Docs. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  4. ^ a b Dunn, Thom (2023-05-25). "Someone just created a House of Leaves-style DOOM mod". Boing Boing. Archived from the original on June 6, 2023. Retrieved 2024-01-22.
  5. ^ Plante, Chris (2023-12-26). "10 great indie games you might have missed in 2023". Polygon. Archived from the original on 2024-01-19. Retrieved 2024-01-31.
  6. ^ King, Jade (2023-05-28). "My House Is A Doom Mod Better Than Most Horror Games". TheGamer. Archived from the original on 2023-06-22. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  7. ^ Randall, Harvey (5 November 2024). "After 17 years, 'the most mysterious song on the internet', used in esoteric and rad Doom mod MyHouse.wad, has been found". PC Gamer. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  8. ^ Bezdar, Boris (2023-05-10). "MyHouse.wad is not another gimmicky Doom map with ingenious level design". Bedzarbor. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-22.
  9. ^ Mensah, Marcel (2022-09-04). "Jared Pike: A Descent into the Dream Pools". LONER Magazine. Archived from the original on 2024-01-17. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
  10. ^ Acosta, Francisco Alberto Serrano (2023-05-23). "MyHouse.wad, el mapa de Doom que está aterrorizando al mundo". Meristation (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  11. ^ a b Randall, Harvey (2023-06-16). "Doom creator John Romero finally plays its most mind-blowing mod". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  12. ^ a b Tarason, Dominic (2023-03-20). "The Doom mod of the year just dropped in a mysterious forum post, and goes so hard we don't even want to spoil what comes next". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 2023-06-01. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  13. ^ a b Fenlon, Wes (2023-12-27). "In the year Doom turned 30, nothing better captured the endless imagination and creativity of its mod scene than Myhouse.wad". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  14. ^ Manuel, Tiago (2023-06-23). "Doom's Myhouse.WAD is one of gaming's greatest literary adaptations". Destructoid. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  15. ^ Lloyd, Andrew (2020-04-02). "'House of Leaves changed my life': the cult novel at 20". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  16. ^ Brown, Andy (2023-03-13). "Check out this haunted 'Doom' map inspired by 'House Of Leaves'". NME. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  17. ^ Craddock, David (2023-12-23). "Shacknews Best Mod of 2023 - MyHouse.wad". Shacknews. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  18. ^ Mancuso, Sarah. "memory=entryrrrr/////, by Esselfortium". Esselfortium. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-23.
  19. ^ Mancuso, Sarah (2023-04-12). memory=entryrrrr///// (Video game). Retrieved 2024-08-17.
  20. ^ Smith, Ed (2023-06-16). "Doom creator John Romero plays the infamous MyHouse WAD". PCGamesN. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  21. ^ Danielewski, Mark (May 19, 2023). "Mark Z. Danielewski on X". Twitter. Archived from the original on January 23, 2024. Retrieved January 21, 2024.
  22. ^ Power Pak (2023-05-11). MyHouse.WAD - Inside Doom's Most Terrifying Mod. Retrieved 2024-11-29 – via YouTube.
  23. ^ "The best video essays of 2023". BFI. 2023-12-19. Retrieved 2024-11-29.
  24. ^ Jeffrey, Cal (2023-07-10). "The MyHouse Doom 2 mod is a masterpiece of creepy map editing". TechSpot. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  25. ^ a b "MyHouse". Doomworld. Archived from the original on 2024-01-23. Retrieved 2024-01-22.
  26. ^ "Doomworld -- The Cacowards". Doomworld. Archived from the original on 2020-07-26. Retrieved 2024-01-22.
  27. ^ "2023 Cacowards". Doomworld. Archived from the original on 2024-01-20. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
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