A small group of gamers including legendary Yonatan Donner decided that normal Doom maps weren't hard enough. So they built this, a megawad aimed at being unbeatable.
Although there are many players now capable of defeating the horrors of Hell Revealed on Ultra Violence, most people will struggle after the first couple of levels, and there's almost no way they'll be able to defeat the later maps. Many of the levels are very basic in design so the mappers could cram as many Imps and Cyberdemons in as they could.
I should say at this point that I'm not a fan of uber-hard levels. I prefer a strong challenge mixed with atmospheric level design. It doesn't have to be perfect. Unfortunately Hell Revealed tends to push the wrong buttons for me at times and I would be a liar if I gave the megawad any higher than 6 or 7 out of 10.
---
Difficulty: Extreme (UV)
Although I find Hell Revealed 2 to be a lot harder, this megawad is still tougher than Alien Vendetta (its nearest rival) on Ultra Violence. A sometimes forgettable experience awaits players on the lower difficulty levels although several maps brand themselves on your soul after playing.
---
Gameplay: Good
The maps are intended for single-player mode at the highest difficulty so players looking for anything else will find the wad isn't optimised for them. A lot of the maps are scary due to their sheer toughness, and a prevalance of bigger demons means you're usually on the run. It's definitely worth a go, especially for a no-clipping run through of the later levels so you can goggle at the nearly impossible odds you're supposed to overcome.
This megawad is more about wading through the blood and guts screaming your defiance as the next wave of monsters closes for the kill. All other considerations are secondary.
Highlights: When playing on Hurt Me Plenty there are some interesting maps which are hard, but still do-able, so the average gamer should give it a run through to see how far they can get. Hell Revealed is excellent practice for finding out how good you really are. The first map is pretty cool on any difficulty.
Lowlights: Endless waves of Revenants, Arch-Viles and Cyberdemons get extremely repetitive. It's ideally aimed at Doom Gods only. (Doom Gods are the brave few who can beat any level on any difficulty.)
---
Aesthetics: Average
I feel that Average is slightly generous for a wad that is mostly comprised of brown brick structures. There are a couple of nice maps though and there's a city style map with buildings made from black glass that is about as pretty as Hell Revealed gets. You won't really notice the appearance thanks to being constantly under attack.
---
Overall Score: 7/10
Pros:
- Very hard challenge for gamers who feel they have seen it all.
Cons:
- Too hard for many gamers.
- Levels tend to look bland and unimpressive.