PadHome is ENTE's 2nd map and the last he would do in the Gothic style, before opting for a more colourful and cartoonish approach to promote his comic strip character, PadMan, in subsequent custom maps. You would be forgiven for thinking that PadHome bears more than a passing resemblance to ENTE's first map for Quake III as it is partly composed of unused sections left over from PadCastle and is the primary source of inspiration. This is reflected in the similarities in structure, aesthetics, and gameplay shared between the two.

Like its predecessor, gameplay is pretty average, consisting in straightforward runs through corridors between rooms and punctuated with the incessant sound of doors opening and closing. Mostly flat and horizontal; there is some opportunity for z-axis fighting between the lower and upper floors that are connected by a series of staircases and jump pads. Several teleporters are available to transport players into, and away from, the action that will occur mainly in the throne room where both the Quad and a Regen reside and open courtyard where an Invisibility power-up and the MegaHealth spawns. Some items in the throne room are accessible only by activating buttons scattered around the room, giving us a preview into the use of novel elements that would become one of ENTE's trademarks. We also see, for the first time, a gallery entirely devoted to the art of ENTE's beloved PadMan; demonstrating a marked improvement on the part of the author in terms of showcasing his creation. But, Beware! A nasty trap lurks inside revealing PadMan's sadistic streak. So, tread carefully!

The early PadMaps are of a passing historical interest for game and mod developers because we can see the evolution of ENTE's branding from the conventional and popular Gothic style of Quake III, from this period, into his more fully realised and personal vision for the world of PadMan. ENTE does an admirable job of incorporating the PadMan logo, into the otherwise anachronistic Gothic aesthetic, with tiled walls, shimmering red banners, and inlaid floors. It is already apparent by this stage that PadMan is destined for bigger things. In PadHome, the seeds have clearly been sewn for future projects such as PadGallery and PadGarden, and the aesthetic that was to become synonymous with the name PadMan.

Reviewed by HelterSkeleton