Video Game / Sigil (2019)

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Sigil is a Doom PWAD developed by former series designer John Romero, with a high quality soundtrack composed by Buckethead and an oldschool MIDI soundtrack by James Paddock. It serves as the unofficial fifth episode for the original Doom. It was announced on December 10th 2018, the same date as Doom's 25th anniversary, with a release date on May 31 2019 for free users. Those who ordered the limited edition got the mod on May 22 2019.

After killing the Spider Mastermind in "Thy Flesh Consumed", Doomguy prepares himself to go back to Earth and save the planet from the forces of Hell, but Baphomet (the Icon of Sin) drags him to the deeper depths of Hell after sabotaging the final teleporter with his powers. Now Doomguy must slaughter every demon that stands in his way in order to return to Earth.

A sequel, simply called Sigil II, was released on Doom's 30th anniversary on December 10th, 2023. It has both a dedicated soundtrack by THORR and an alternative MIDI soundtrack by James Paddock.

The mod and its sequel can both be downloaded here, and are available officially as free DLC's for the 2019 console, smartphone, and PC releases of Doom. The first Sigil is also included in the base game of the 2024 Compilation Re-release Doom + Doom II, with the sequel being added in 2025.

Tropes that apply to both games, or individually to either of them:

• Boss Room: The first game's last map doesn't feature a proper boss room (the Spider Mastermind, Cyberdemon and Barons of Hell are all fought across a Boss Corridor instead, and at the end of it you have the exit). However, Sigil II does have one for its own final map, being a big canyon where a buffed Spider Mastermind (whose HP is now tripled) and two Cyberdemons await. There's one Baron of Hell awaiting in the map's final leg, but it's not too difficult to dispatch.
• Boss Rush:
  • Near the end of the final level in the mod's Ver. 1.21 and onward, Doomguy goes through a dark corridor where he has to face the three bosses of the original Doom back-to-back in reverse order: Spider Mastermind (from Episode 3), Cyberdemon (from Episode 2) and a small assortment of mooks that include two Barons of Hell (these being originally the Dual Boss of Episode 1).^note In version 1.0, only the former two bosses appear.
  • In Sigil II, the climax of the final level begins with a gauntlet against two Cyberdemons plus an HP-buffed Spider Mastermind,^note normally, the latter one has only 3000 HP, but here it's increased to 9000; a recommended tactic is to have her infight with the Cyberdemons then concluding with a Baron of Hell guarding the exit.
• Damage-Sponge Boss: In Sigil II, the Spider Mastermind has 9000 HP, making up for a very durable opponent even if you attack with the BFG or make her infight with the two nearby Cyberdemons.
• Dragged Off to Hell: The episode starts with Doomguy being dragged back to Hell by Baphomet, and your mission is to get out of there and back to Earth.
• Drought Level of Doom: The entire episode is notorious for having a low amount of available health pickups, and non-shell ammo being scarce outside of secrets. It's also stingy with weapon pickups, so those pistol-starting each map will be stuck with just the shotgun for large chunks of most maps. While it never gets as unfair in this regard as Hell Beneath was in Ultimate Doom and you'll always have enough ammo to kill everything without having to resort to melee, there isn't a lot of room for error on Ultra-Violence, and unless you sniff out several secrets, you're sometimes going to need to kill Barons with just the shotgun or Berserk fist and little room to maneuver. SIGIL was even more dry of resources in versions pre-v1.2, where most maps completely lacked a chaingun, forcing pistol starters to have to use their pistol deep into maps.
• Early-Bird Cameo: Baphomet, the one who pulls you back to Hell, is the Icon of Sin, final boss of Doom 2. You don't actually get to fight him in this one.
• Eye Motifs: A recurring motif in this WAD is the eponymous Sigil, an Evil Eye that was already present as a cosmetic element in certain maps in the original Doom and its sequels and expansions; here, however, it gains an extra importance as it marks the player's progression. Shooting it opens new pathways. According to the story, Baphomet used one of these Sigils to drag Doomguy to the deepest reaches of Hell right before he managed to teleport back to Earth.
• Joke Item: Each level in SIGIL II has a Fireblu secret: find and shoot the disgustingly garish red-and-blue texture to reveal a hidden room with one zombieman and a scant few items as a reward. Probably not your highest-priority to pick up, but if you want 100% Completion, you'll need to locate the pithy rewards from the Fireblu caves and kill the weak monster inside.
• Interquel: Takes place between the original game and Doom II.
• Last Lousy Point: Invoked in SIGIL II with there being at least one secret in every level marked by the infamous Fireblu texture that is usually just one zombieman and an item pickup which will certainly irritate those seeking 100% Completion in each level.
• Lethal Lava Land: "Twilight Descension" in SIGIL II features a similar design to that of Mt Erebus from the third episode of Doom, having a large island (along with several smaller ones) surrounded by lava. The exit to the Secret Level is also reached with the same method (a self-inflicted knockback with a rocket shot).
• Level Goal: A level is cleared by approaching a monochrome wall showing the face of Baphomet (the Icon of Sin from Doom II) with a pentagram behind.
• Meaningful Name: The name Sigil references the demonic eye that is prevalent in the pathways of Hell where Doomguy is forcefully kept captive by Baphomet so the demons can invade Earth without interruption. Fittingly, the word "sigil" comes from the Latin term sigillum, which means "seal"; when Doomguy shoots an ocular sigil, he unlocks a previously-hidden path.
• Mission-Pack Sequel: Sigil II retains the same ideas, gimmicks and design style as its predecessor, but intended to be even more challenging.
• Mythology Gag: Baphomet is the villain who drags Doomguy to Hell in the beginning. Baphomet is also an avatar of John Romero, as evidenced by his head being the demon's weak point in Doom II, and John Romero is the one who makes the game and thus drags the player to the stages he's made, and in a way rules over.
• Nostalgia Level: The secret level for SIGIL II, "Shattered Homecoming", is a Remixed Level of the entirety of "Knee-Deep in the Dead", mashing several setpieces together. Fitting for what is an anniversary title.
• Number of the Beast: The megawad, with the Buckethead soundtrack, is listed for €6.66 (about US$8) on Romero’s website. Additionally, the "G" in the WAD's logo is a stylized 6.
• Planet Heck: Sigil shows a noticeably eerier side of Hell than even the original episodes of Doom. Baphomet (the Big Bad of the second game) forcefully dragged Doomguy to the deepest corners of his dominion in order to help the demon forces buy time for the invasion of Earth in the second game, and now the protagonist has to make his way back by traversing dark caverns infested by demons and lava. Several satanic symbols are present as well. A recurring element is the eponymous Sigil, a luminous demonic eye that was present in the original games as a cosmetic feature, but is now a shootable target to open new paths and cross chasms. This also applies to the sequel.
• Secret Level:
  • The sixth map features a hidden exit to a secret level, Realm of Iblis. It plays like a traditional level, albeit with some challenging set pieces (like a small square hall with a Cyberdemon and several pools of lava) added to the mix.
  • In Sigil II, the secret level can be reached from the third map, and is titled "Shattered Homecoming". It's an amalgamation of areas from the maps featured in the first episode of the original Doom. Another unique trait is that it has a secret access to the map's deathmatch/multiplayer version.
• Speedrun Reward: Each level in SIGIL II has a secret that closes permanently 30 seconds after the level starts. You'll need to know where it is ahead of time and be able to rush to it if you want to reap the goodies within.
• To Hell and Back: During his way to Earth after having defeated the forces of Hell in Doom, Doomguy is dragged to even deeper parts of Hell by Baphomet so demons can begin the invasion of Earth prior to Doom II without opposition.
• Trick Shot Puzzle:
  • A recurring feature of the levels in the first wad is the Evil Eye, a switch you need to shoot to activate mechanisms in the levels. Due to being found through small hidden-away holes in the wall, alongside Doom disallowing vertical aim adjustment in its original form, part of the challenge is typically lining yourself up to properly shoot it.
  • The sequel wad brings back the Evil Eye puzzles, and also uses Fireblu textures to the same effect: if you see that garish bright-red-and-blue graphic in the level, shoot it to open a secret. E6M2 has an especially evil instance of this where the Fireblu is in a tiny crack way outside the level's normal play area and cordoned off by damaging floors; knowing it's there at all is a challenge in of itself, let alone making the shot.
• Unintentionally Unwinnable: In earlier versions with the shootable eye switches, it was possible for your shot to activate the linedef trigger behind the eye that closed off the eye switch but miss activating the switch itself, preventing you from accessing the area the switch was supposed to open up, leaving you in a softlock if it was the only path forward to progress in the map without resorting to noclip. Version 1.2 fixed this problem.
• Underestimating Badassery: Baphomet apparently thought that trapping Doomguy in his domain, the deepest part of Hell, would seal his fate. Needless to say, Doomguy proves to be too tough to contain.