Your top 10 WADs

Damn I haven't tried any of those WADs outside of Requiem, looks like I'll have to update my WADs to try list.

I tend to pick up relatively oldschool stuff out of nostalgia. Or I like old maps with simplicity, and some newschool elements (more detail, realife environments, shadows) but not too excessive or modernized.

1: Alien Vendetta (Some of the big levels are so atmospheric and epic, I come to this MegaWAD often)
2: Dystopia 3 (I like short WADs sometimes, in this one every level has a unique theme, many of them doom cute to create broken car/spaceship/etc,. you blow Microsoft at the end and so on,. it's small (12 levels) and unique and oldschool)
3: Revolution! (Discovered it later as an old hidden gem I haven't played. I liked the thematic (cinema, beach, hotel, etc), every level has them, in every level there are things I like unlike other megaWADs that have some fillers).
4: Galaxia (This is just classic single level I remember from the past. The menu screen, the really atmospheric music, the room of spiders, the train networks and then atmospheric sewers, the oldschoolness of some design. This just hit the nostalgic nerves for me)
5: Eternal Doom (I recently played it again, more than 3 times, it's one of these old hidden gems I didn't know or bypassed because it was hard to get in for new players. And the first 2-3 maps weren't very appealing. Some of the levels would take 2 hours of confusion, but some of the environments (among other fillers and ugly) are really unique and clever ideas with riddles and using the Doom sectors for natural stuff, the time machine theme, a lot of brilliant epic maps, this was coming with a special loader, a minesweeper generator wad and other crazy stuff for it's time. Brilliant but hard to get in, so I missed it back in the days)
6: The Talosian Incident (This is having iirc some pretty minimalist empty rooms accompanied by ambient/noise sound, that create unique atmosphere somehow. Another one I missed, didn't know but blew my mind. Some of them I found from a Doomworld thread "What PWADs invoke the most nostalgia for you?")
7: Requiem (This was higher in my list before, when I replay now there are few maps I like and a lot I don't. Some maps had brilliant thematics for then, also cities with bridges under bridges. Think,. I enjoy more the Dystopia 3 mini wad, with two of the similar authors in Requiem)
8-9: Phobos & Earth by Roger Ritenour (These are weird for a list. Phobos is not,. it's brilliant remake like natural world of the first four levels of Doom, but if the level is called Nuclear Plant, he had to create an actual Nuclear Plant, first level is an airport on mars because it's Hangar, with tricks to make an airplane go high, then the Central Control and Refinery, it's like you took the old Doom 1 level names and try to make something actually resembling them, now I imagine if he did this for all the Doom maps (maybe a community project with that idea would be neat?)). (Earth is more weird, not a good WAD in some aspects. It just has this theme of open earth spaces,. the beginning with the tricks to create sea waves and thematic ancient columns and so on, but later has some ugly and confusing map, but also some epic seemingly lame, but I like them like big cannyons and valleys and islands,. they are silly by today's standard especially in gameplay, the dark confusing caves, the tower, the two opposing Skyscrappers, but there was something about them that I liked. Nostalgic I say. Phobos is better quality, Earth not so but I put them both here)
10: NeoDoom by Daniel (That's another hidden gem I really wanted to put here and not many people know or talk. I don't know if it is because I remember the story, the author putting so much work to make some insane real life locations (cities, stadiums, shopping centers, canyons, epic castles, national park using textures to create valley backdrops with trees like I haven't seen before, lego secret level, way more) but then because some people didn't give a high vote and were critical, he went into a fit and then he said sorry he was autistic. There was some kind of ugly story behind the whole think and I am not sure if this is a reason why this WAD is not mentioned anywhere, not on some cacowards, not on anyone's favorite list, it's quite unknown and a hidden gem, one of the less known maps that are in one way masterpieces in my opinion. But I am always liking the map layout/visuals/realistic environments, etc. I omit the gameplay, and this one even if I found fun it had some problems. The problem that most criticized, Daniel went too much overboard and he added a lot of additional monsters and weapons (taken from other resources I guess), so much that it's overwhelming, and you end up carrying 3-4 shotguns and when I switch I get the wrong one depending,. too much of that stuff, a kinky girl taken from Redneck Rampage that is made into a giant and way way more health than Cyberdemon (I would IDDQD and hit her with the 3-4 different types of BFG directly and wouldn't die), some sexualized secret level that would make modern Doom community think of objectification (but makes me laugh, I don't care),. also an inventory like Duke3D with a lot of added stuff like explosives and bottles that release flies and rats (pretty fun actually opening a door and throwing bottles and closing the door). There Are Just So Many Stuff,. that might make this WAD hard to like for some although it's still fun to play, but besides that some of the environments (I remember more, mansions, big roads, fortress, pyramid, commercial centers, hover dam,.. but know the first 3-4-5 or more levels are typical but ok to play military base fillers, the fun comes later maybe from 8-9-10 I don't remember). NeoDoom by Daniel (he also made a new one), you could try it if you don't want it, and unfortunately another blocker is that it needs a very specific version of ZDoom to work 0.96x I think, but see the info file.

There are lot's of more recent WADs that I like (To name some: Pirate Doom, Ashes 2063: Episode 1, A.L.T., Kuchitsu, Deus Vult II, Lost Civilization, Ancient Aliens) but somehow I felt that for my top 10 I mostly stick to classic nostalgia ones that will remain for ever in my mind.

here is my shout out to iwads and stuff:

1. udoom.wad
Romero, Hall, and Sandy (et al) put together the greatest FPS game of all time. I played through these half a decade ago and imo this set the standard for all video games as well as art in video games. Just great level design.

2. plutonia.wad
the difficult iwad. The Brothers Casali took the monsters of D**M ][ and stretched their logical use to the extreme. There is a chaingunner sniping you from 1000 yards away on the first level spawn. The sinking well intros, labrynthine Hunted, and great final level make this the only other iwad worth my time imo.

3. UAC Ultra
I am not a Doom historian but I think this was the first major release in almost a decade of Dooming. While Vail was 'just experiementing', others had driven the format to stagnation. Needing a chainsaw to kill Lost Souls in map01 was my 1st experience with a 'combat puzzle'. something something confederacy against him.

4. Suspended in Dusk
Extremely high quality doom architecture with environmental storytelling. The encounters are not all bad imo. Archviles are used interestingly and fodder is placed rather well. I find the zombie placement inspiring. It is the mid tiers that fall flat- royals and arachnotrons are used to little fan fare.

5. Scythe X
I know its the worst Scythe, but its also the best. I dont much care for the Boom bridges but map 10 is an amazing boss fight. The moster closets are rather top notch in this episode as well. I dont much care for wads whith highways full of monsters at every turn- and Erik does a good job or making sure the combat doesnt become too noisey while still remaining brilliantly difficult.

6. Moredeth
This is what I am talking about! I cant believe there hasnt been a Moredeth 3 already tbh. Great gameplay concepts and execution. Definitely not of the room-corridor-room variety. I really have not seen anyone do platforming in a FPS as good as this. Where are the imitators?

7. My Maps
Shameless self promotion. But quite honestly I like playing my maps and do so for fun from time to time. I should have a 4 map demo ready for 4th of July.