| Reviewer's comments |
"Few bad enemies, apart from the fight against the 3 SAS. The tasks are not very difficult but I enjoyed the 25 mins
of this level" - grizzly (30-Aug-2022) |
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"Here’s one of those unassuming releases the kind of which Orbit Dream likes to champion, and about the merits of which we seem to agree as often as we disagree. This early one-off is of the former category, an overall enjoyable romp of about 45 minutes in TR1 Egypt style, using the Goldcat textures with a custom wad. It is well constructed (despite some of the water rooms being dodgy in one way or another) and plays out in small or medium-sized rooms, many of which are interconnected, although gameplay is linear throughout.
I was a little annoyed that when I replayed the level for the purposes of this review, the pushable had me stumped again, and presumably for the same reasons as before. The room geometry in the area with the pushable, the two levers there (the purpose of which remains unclear), and the two cat textures which seemed significant (though only one of them actually is, serving as a marker for the pushable)—all this made me expect a rather more complex challenge than merely shoving a pushable block on its designated tile, and as a consequence my disappointment was not inconsiderable. Towards the end, the level began to drag a bit; the search for the Portal Guardian felt rather like padding.
Mostly, however, it’s fine; there may not be much in the way of actual puzzles, but there’s some platforming to do, some traps to avoid, and a few unexpected enemies to battle. A couple of tasks should have been timed perhaps, to give them a bit of extra edge (in fact I was surprised when it turned out that none of them were). I found two secrets; one difficult to miss, the other also not difficult, but nevertheless satisfying (it requires a detour that leads away from the door you just opened). Both are described in the walkthrough, but the readme seems to imply that there are more than just two, and Orbit Dream appears to have, if not acquired, then at least spotted another one.
The sample for the underwater lever is missing, no texture sounds were used, and the Title track is triggered early into the level. Cameras are useful; texturing is good in that TR1 sort of way, lighting rather on the bright side and bland; parts of the level look a bit sterile. I used to remember this as more substantial than it turned out to be on replay, but even so it’s worth giving it a shot." - Mulf (05-Jun-2021) |
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| "This is a pretty basic level, every room has a clear objective and path to pursue so it's as linear as it gets. The lack of thrills might bore more advanced players, but personally I thought it was kinda cute. Everything is small and modest while also functional. The use of TR1 Khamoon textures is a plus. 20 minutes, 2 secrets. 11/20" - Treeble (22-Nov-2020) |
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| "Level quite easy and linear in this Egyptian atmosphere. The enemies consist only of bats and scorpions. The lighting is not very good. A few pushables and flipmaps beautify the set before joining the jeep." - Drakan (10-Nov-2018) |
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| "Here's another 30 minute pleasant trip to old
haunts, TR1 style. Pleasing settings and I had
my share of fun here fending off SAS guards,
scorpions, a crocodile, giant insects and bats.
Sometimes simple, short and sweet can be all
that's needed." - Ryan (19-May-2017) |
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| "Even when there are not great puzzles and the gameplay is only based about pull switches and place objects, the game is entertaining remembering the TR1 levels. Good and solid design with no bugs, nice texturization, easy tasks without problems, it's difficult to get stucked. Enough ammo for the extra guns, the secrets are easy to find. Enjoyable." - Jose (17-Oct-2016) |
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| "Here's another short level at 35 minutes, but it's well lighted and provides an entertaining raid. The always dependable Harry Laudie has given us a walkthrough that clearly documents all necessary actions as well as the two secrets. The only human enemies are three SAS that show up halfway through the level, the others are the usual bats, scorpions, giant bugs and skeletons, together with a dimetrodon thrown in for good measure. The overall effect is very much like TR1, which brought back some fond memories. I had a good time here." - Phil (04-Oct-2016) |
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| "Level very easy, just to collect items or manipulate some levers to move forward. Just last poussable which was well hidden. I found 2 secrets." - Minox (25-Jan-2014) |
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| "An easy level , pleasant to play , with various enemies , some are well used like the skeleton , but no great threat overall , the lighting has not been worked a lot. Different things to appreciate here , a couple of pushable blocks , flip maps , rolling balls to avoid , ... and the progression is quite entertaining. [ 28 minutes ]" - eRIC (13-May-2010) |
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| "This is a nice little Egyptian adventure, straightforward with a few tasks like pushing blocks, collecting some puzzle items and avoiding the one or other boulder, all of them easy to handle. Despite the sometimes not so careful texturing and rather bland lighting I liked the overall architecture and atmosphere. I just found those three guards a bit out of place, though." - Jerry (30-Oct-2009) |
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| "This was a great level to play after a hard day at work - a nice bright pyramid to explore that is fun whether this is your first level to play or your thousandth. There are some boulder and spike traps but nothing very hard and there are few enemies though if you want that extra little challenge you could use pistols only or even complete the level with no kills. I only found two secrets and feel like I probably missed the third. I hope to see lots of levels by this author - great work!" - RaiderGirl (30-Oct-2003) |
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| "A perfectly sound first try which only suffers from being too scenically familiar and rather straightforward. The choice of enemies and their placement is good; and the final secret was brilliant as I could see it tantalizingly close yet was never able to locate the correct access for it. I look forward to more from this builder." - Orbit Dream (22-Sep-2003) |
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| "Another romp through the Egypt of TR1. Linear and undemanding just straightforward basic TR1 style raiding. Not many enemies a guard or two a croc and the inevitable scorpions. It could have been boring but somehow it wasn't perhaps because of the fast pace of the gameplay and of course those lovely TR1 textures are always a pleasure to run through. Short and sweet. 21.09.2003" - Jay (22-Sep-2003) |
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| "In this level you return to Egypt from old TR1 levels." - Yoav (16-Sep-2003) |
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| "This level is an easy pastime. There are no challenges or special difficulties involved but it's good for relaxing among the harder levels. You are wandering inside a pyramid seeking for the exit. Finding it Lara observes her jeep burst into flames. :-) The level has an atmosphere like the 'Return to Egypt' level. The enemies are Soldiers flying Beetles Bats and Scorpions. The level is quite linear you can't miss your way. You should take care only of the rolling stones and spikes. I found 2 secrets: the Uzi and the Shotgun. The sounds from the original game fit well to the level as well as the textures." - Obig (15-Sep-2003) |
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| "It looks Egyptian and it is but not the classic one. There are gems to collect and switches to pull. You have to kill crocodiles bats and skeletons but unfortunately I didn't find a shotgun so it was annoying trying to avoid them. I found one secret though and maybe the shotgun was a secret too. One room has to be flooded a nice moving block puzzle with the floor lowering but that's about it. It's a nice level nothing too difficult though." - Kristina (11-Sep-2003) |
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| "Another Egyptian level and rather fast paced. Very brightly lit with a few dark corners. Finding levers and a couple of gems and towards the end the Portal Guardian. Enemy wise there are some scorpions a mutant croc and even some SAS guards. There is some swimming involved but not hard. The game is rather straight forward with no puzzles to speak of apart from one pushing block. Look for levers and you are all right. Found 2 secrets. 06-09-2003" - Gerty (10-Sep-2003) |
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| "I don't know about you but it seems a bit of a waste to download a level of this size just to find out that you get a title wad as well but it is just the original one we already have. This wouldn't be such a gripe if the actual level had been a bit longer but as it only goes for 25 minutes the download size for some of us is a little excessive. The game itself with Lara hiding out in a pyramid from Von Croy only to find herself trapped inside and needing to find a way out was quite nice flowed quickly and smoothly and kept you always busy though it was a little on the easy side. I found 2 secrets the first a blind man wouldn't miss and the second with a little more work to get but still a bit obvious I did find a lever that I didn't really find out what it triggered so maybe there's a third I missed but I don't think so famous last words. With the lovely muted textures from TR1 though I class them now as 'Sanus 1'-textures and brightly lit this is a good one for those sick of claustrophobically dark levels and for those that don't want to burn too many brain cells but still want some enjoyment." - Sash (08-Sep-2003) |
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| "Now that was fun - almost 30 minutes running through a rather obvious but nonetheless entertaining and diverse course very solid camera work that never let's you in doubt as to where to go next a few quite harmless boulder and spike traps two secrets (Uzi and shotgun) and a few scorpions a crocodile and SAS to battle. Two gems and a portal guardian and two movable blocks help you get to the end of this quickly and the double water flipmap was quite convincingly done. Try this after a really hard and frustrating level it's just what you need then." - Michael (08-Sep-2003) |
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| "A short 'n crisp adventure in a fine TR1 Egypt setting with simple but fun tasks - none of them are real brain-teasers but the course is really nice and I enjoyed the 20 minutes I spent here especially the rolling-ball traps are great. The looks are fine but the lighting could use some detail (lights shadows suns). The enemies don't threaten you much but the fight with the 3 SAS soldiers was a small challenge. Found 2 secrets. Worth to play if the download size doesn't frighten you." - eTux (08-Sep-2003) |
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| "Oh to avoid the cliches (another Egypt level!) and sounding like a wannabee jaded TR veteran (seen this all before!) I should say that I enjoyed this piece. It's quick simple and direct. Having seen work that was ugly and/or malicious I found this quite pleasant. The layout and texturing of the room shows a real eye for detail. The bit with the raising the floor/moving the block was clever. Kudos to the author for a lovely and enjoyable excursion. (Next time do something different!)" - Duncan (07-Sep-2003) |
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