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Level: Highland Ruins back home search
Author(s): Mr.TombRaider
total rating:5.42 Gameplay &
Puzzles		 Enemies,
Objects &
Secrets		 Atmosphere,
Sound &
Cameras		 Lighting &
Textures
Blue43 5 5 4 5
Catherin 4 5 6 5
eRIC 4 6 5 5
Gerty 5 6 7 5
Jay 5 6 7 7
Jerry 4 6 4 5
Jose 6 7 6 7
Kristina 3 5 5 5
Loupar 5 5 7 6
Magnus 4 5 4 5
MichaelP 6 6 7 5
Orbit Dream 5 6 7 7
category averages
(12 reviews)		 4.67 5.67 5.75 5.58

Reviewer's comments

"Right from the start while still sliding into the level Lara is under fire from a completely silent shooter and that pretty much is how the rest of this level goes. There were so many sounds missing, that it is easier to count the working ones, which were Lara’s footsteps, Lara’s pistols and the background music. I think I didn’t hear anything else. The game play was fairly easy with a few levers, keys and buttons, a rope jump and several boulders, spike trapped Medipacks/levers until I came to a tile puzzle that made absolutely no sense whatsoever - even after reading the walkthrough. I did like the cameras used in this level but the flybys were unnecessary long. The enemies consisted of skeletons (which could actually be killed) and several gunmen looking like aged Mafia hit men. The layout of the map and the room architecture looked pretty good, but the texturing was not so well done in some areas, as some textures were missing, squished or stretched and at times blinking in and out. Lara’s pants were left as a curious artifact on top of a hedge. Lighting wasn’t bad, but some areas were pitch black – luckily there was no shortage of flares. Conclusion: It’s a playable level with many little flaws and it could have been a good one, but the missing sounds really ruin the ratings and the fun here. (26 min, 1 secret found)" - Blue43 (03-Mar-2011)

"This could have been a nice adventure within a nice setting. But texturing is rather carelessly done, also lighting is to dark with Lara vanishing in pitchblack shadows and most of the sounds are missing. Some objects like crowbar and trees are strangely placed, so they are floating in the air, and I also found a floating Lara hip. The cross I had picked up was invisible in the menu. A closed door was open suddenly, but no camera showed me, and I have no idea what action opened it. Some traps like spikes, blades and boulders are thrown in, but strangely enough the latter did Lara no harm. Regarding the strange jumping puzzle I have to admit that although I am German I still don't get the solution by the help of the scroll. Altogether the level seems to be tested insufficiently, as there are too many flaws in there. As mentioned above atmosphere could have been good, but the missing sounds ruined it for me." - Jerry (07-Nov-2009)

"A 30 minutes which has the merit to come with a different kind of setting and the author has well ornate some of the rooms. Texturing and lighting are quite average though and there are lots of missing sounds. On the opposite the fly-bys are well done and there is new objects. Now the gameplay is not extraordinary , a bit of exploration , a very simple movable object puzzle, a rope swing , a few traps not difficult, and a pad puzzle that was enigmatic as I could not understand what is written in German on the scroll so i had to look at the walkthrough for the solution. The only challenging aspect of the level is the enemies , guards and skeletons , and the pickups are not many" - eRIC (19-Jan-2009)

"We have a short level here, about twenty five minutes, with enemies from TR5 and skeletons that perform miracles since most of the time they were walking underwater. There is a cross, two keys, a scroll and an artifact to get. The scroll is supposed to help the player solve the puzzle with the tiles near the end but unfortunately it’s in German so you can’t figure out how to proceed unless you speak that language. Fortunately someone posted a picture with the correct tiles to step on, on the forum so I was able to finish it. The gameplay in general is not good with nothing to keep you interested, there was only a room with a rope, a slide and rolling balls for some challenge. You better choose another level to play." - Kristina (09-Apr-2007)

"Another I could play without the added TR4 file. Now tell me why there is need of the new patch in here? I so do wish that people learned how to walk before they start to run (metaphorical speaking), as this could have been a great level. I don’t have to mention again all the mistakes he made as all the previous reviewers already did that. Glad there was a solution about the jumping on tiles as that eluded me completely." - Gerty (11-Sep-2006)

"Some beginner faults like wafer thing walls, wrong ocb for the push buttons and stuff like that but that's already been mentioned in the other reviews. The level and gameplay were pretty promising at the beginning but very soon it got at tad boring and then annyoing because of the skellies that were getting on my nerves, especially when trying to solve the 'puzzle'. The logic of the only puzzle is still beyond me and I still wonder why Lara had to jump onto these special tiles. I had to use a screen that was posted on site. Is that the idea of a puzzle? On a happier note, the atmosphere is nice but the author has to work on the lighting in my opinion. Pretty nice cathedral because of the well chosen textures." - Catherin (02-Aug-2006)

"Promising title for a not so good adventure. This level is full of errors and graphic and sound faults (Lara's floating bottom and some sound effects totally missed) but it also has few good ideas. I hope the author's next level will improve his style." - Loupar (30-Jul-2006)

"A decent debut. At the beginning, if you fall into the water there's no way to go back. There are many missed sounds. You can kill the skeletons with your shotgun (?). If you miss the crowbar at the very beginning you can't go back to pick it up and you'll never finish the game. Where is the camera to show us the underwater door in the pond opening? Near the church there is a part of the Lara's body floating in midair. In my game, the brown rolling balls didn't hurt Lara (?) I don't understand german language, so I couldn't read the scroll and I had to look in the forum to solve this puzzle. Best of the level were objects and textures." - José (26-Jul-2006)

"Yet another debut level. It’s good to know there are new builders coming along all the time. This isn’t by any means the best first time build you’ll ever play, but nor is it the worst. The atmosphere is effective and there’s an obvious potential lurking under all the usual novice errors, plus I found the crowbar almost immediately which always puts me in benevolent reviewer mode. There are lots of baddies and skeletons to shoot and not a lot of pickups so that might provide a measure of challenge, but otherwise the gameplay is straightforward, apart from one room where I couldn’t read the words round some roman numerals on a scroll so pretty much had to try different combinations until I got it right. Possibly a builder to watch in the future." - Jay (17-Jul-2006)

"This level shows great promise. Unfortunately, the builder has made the usual beginners' mistakes, the worst one being the sub-par gameplay. Most of it revolves around pushing buttons and killing enemies, something that quickly grows tiresome. I fail to see the logic to the one puzzle in the level (and the German text certainly didn't help), and the only way I could solve it was through a screenshot someone had posted. The few traps in the level are disappointing, with the boulders missing you if you don't run towards them, trying to get killed. The level looks alright in places, often making me think, "this area is kind of nice - it's a shame the level isn't all that great". Unfortunately, the lack of lighting and sounds completely spoils the atmosphere, and the fact that reaching the end of the world is easier than solving that one puzzle doesn't help. The animations are also incorrect, meaning you will pull buttons and overreach when you try to pick up stuff. Cameras are also used in completely the wrong places, and only the last one felt necessary. The rest of them happily panned around a simple room, showing nothing you wouldn't be able to see yourself after seconds of looking around. Still, there's a definite promise in this level. The main thing I want is better gameplay. What I demand is the author fixing all the small bugs (missing sounds, reaching the end of the world - that kind of thing) for his next level. If he does those two things and spends a little more time on adding finishing touches to his rooms, I think he could build a really good level." - Magnus (17-Jul-2006)

"Apparently a level which the author had worked on longer ago and then now decided to release as his debut - and it shows. With a little more work this could be a much better level. In the 30 minutes you spend here you are faced the 'end of the world' all over the place, many textures are missing and I had quite a few sound issues, but maybe that was just my installation. Lighting is also a bit too bright for a more sinister atmosphere that would suit the level better and in fact often is totally absent, ie just the default editor lighting used. There is one secret which I could get but then did not manage to get out of again. Enemies are skeletons which you can kill with the shotgun and a dozen of those black clad TR5 guys which really did not fit the scenery well. On the good side though this short adventure flows well, the cathedral looks impressive and the jump room puzzle - while a bit enigmatic - shows creativity, so we should look forward to seeing more work from the author." - MichaelP (16-Jul-2006)

"Oh dear! That could have been one smart little adventure,but once again we see a builder over-reaching themselves on their very first level.In this case there are a mulititude of glaring errors which get in the way of the enjoyment. Missing textures,end-of-the-world,wafer-thin walls,poorly-placed doors and,particularly,a bizarre prematurely flipped room with a distracting camera-angle which achieved little except inducing nausea. The atmosphere of a mouldering old castle wasn't badly captured thanks to some well-chosen textures and decent lighting,and the interior design was rather nicely done,but the aforementioned errors coupled with Gameplay which was either too elusive (the floor-jumping sequence;the statue-pushing excercise)or too simple (the rolling balls posing very little threat)ensured that I left the adventure feeling rather deflated;a situation not helped by a woefully brief jeep-driving Finale. Give it a go by all means,but look upon this level as a definite learning experience for the builder." - Orbit Dream (15-Jul-2006)
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