DEX

Doom Editor Extended (DEX)
Viewing the startup screen of DEX, or Doom Editor Extended.
Developer(s)	Aaron Seeler
Initial release	Version 1 (1995, 31 years ago)
Development status	Discontinued
Written in	C
Target platform	DOS
License	Proprietary (internal tool)

DEX, shorthand for Doom Editor Extended, was a DOS based level editor developed internally at Midway Games by programmer Aaron Seeler, replacing DoomEd for work on the Doom 64 project. According to mappers Randy Estrella and Tim Heydelaar, its development was necessitated by the drastic alterations made to the map format in order to support colored lighting and macros. It utilizes a custom node builder, DoomBSP 2.0.

It was also used for Final Doom (PlayStation).

Map format

DEX interprets files differently, using the .DEX format. Sprite and texture WADs can be bundled in a .DEX file. A file called DEX.INI holds configuration details, allowing DEX to deploy for PC, Nintendo 64 or PlayStation. Through DoomBSP 2.0, it outputs WAD files. When these files are processed, several internal tools are used:

• MAPORDER.EXE orders the separate map entries.
• A modified version of id Software's LUMPY.EXE inserts graphics.
• MAPINFO.EXE generates mobj usages from a WAD file.
• HOTSPOT.EXE adds sprite origins to the final ROM file.
• MAPPACK.EXE: In the case of the Nintendo 64, it packs the map data structures. To do this, it needs WADFILE.ROM, a file with final texture and sprites, and MAPFILE.WAD, which contains the map. The resultant file is MAPFILE.ROM.

Finally, a modified version of WADLINK.EXE compiles the final WAD. MAPCONV.EXE allows for conversion of the IWAD into a format suitable for either PlayStation or Nintendo 64.

History

DEX's interface was heavily inspired by the Doom Editing Utilities (or DEU). Its first release was in 1995. The scope of features needed for later Doom ports necessitated the creation of a new level editor. Previously, for Doom (Sony PlayStation) and Hexen (Sony PlayStation), a modified DoomEd with a custom node builder, PSXBSP was used, which introduced the concept of LEAFS.

Features

• Can output to PC, Nintendo 64 and PlayStation platforms
• Colored lighting supports using separate floor and ceiling values for sectors