My current guess is that the 'Z' in 'ZDoom' stands for 'Zombie,' at least when it comes to this project's title. After nearly a decade of failing to get off the ground, Torm resurrected (or, more accurately, rebooted) the 2nd ZDoom Community Map Project (what a mouthful) with a new set of goals and a whole new list of mappers. Miraculously, it actually got done this time. Gadzooks!
For those new to the "series," the ZDCMP premise is simple: It's one bigass map for (G)ZDoom that's passed from author to author (in a preset order), each person adding a little until the map's done. Simple in theory, but tricky in practice, with some missed mapping slots, iffy map direction (at times), and a few gaps in the action. My role involved co-wrangling the map back on track when things got wacky (as well as masterminding the weapon and log/objective additions), but between that and an overtime mapping push from a lot of fine folks (see the credits textfile -- it's huge!) we managed to get it Done Right. Whew. :P
The end result is an ambitious romp through high-tech territory featuring new weapons, monsters, textures, a snazzy log/objective system, an epic boss, and a helluva lot of adventure. It ended up snagging a Cacoward, for what it's worth, and the final result is not too shabby considering its chaotic heritage, at least from my own ultra-biased perspective. If nothing else, it's a nice showcase of what ZDoom is capable of in 2012, so if newfangled scriptiness is up your alley (and the screenshots below tickle your fancy), then give it a try.
Just watch out for stray helicopter blades. They're jerks.
