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The Caves (Remake) by Ma.ximo

Blue43 6 6 7 7
Ceamonks890 5 6 6 8
eTux 2 3 4 6
Gerty 5 5 8 8
Jay 3 5 7 8
Jose 5 6 6 8
Kristina 3 3 6 6
Lara_Fox_Croft 6 9 7 6
MichaelP 5 5 9 9
Mulf 1 1 5 4
Orbit Dream 2 4 7 8
Phil 6 7 7 6
Ryan 3 4 7 8
Scottie 2 3 4 5
Spike 3 4 7 7
TheStig 3 7 8 8
TimJ 9 9 9 7
Torry 2 5 6 6
Treeble 6 7 7 8
Xela 4 6 8 7
 
release date: 31-Aug-2006
# of downloads: 64

average rating: 5.76
review count: 20
 
review this level

file size: 12.42 MB
file type: TR4
class: Remake
 


author profile(s):
email(s):
ma_ximo@hotmail.com

Reviewer's comments
"Faithful rendition of the original from Tomb Raider 1 that covers the exact same layout and apart from some very minor differences plays out the same. Ten minutes is all you will need in this familiar territory." - Torry (29-Oct-2019)
"This remake plays pretty much exactly like the original “Caves”, except the bear, while present, appears to be sedated; and the medipack in secret #3 is well-camouflaged—presumably by intention, as it’s placed a tile or two away from where it would have been in an even more ‘faithful’ remake (1 point for gameplay). It is designed along the same lines as the builder’s follow-up, Vilcabamba: the structure of the level is the same as in the original, and so are the textures (though intrusions from Qualopec occur near the end); the architecture is ‘enhanced’, everything is a bit bigger, and Vilcabamba’s slanted floors can be found here as well in one spot. The approach is quite effective at times; it’s just a shame that half of this builder’s œuvre consists of inconsequential bagatelles like this. If I never hear variations of the phrase ‘nice trip down memory lane’ or the word ‘nostalgia’ and its cognates again, it’ll be too soon." - Mulf (28-Oct-2019)
"This is a decent re-imagining of the first level from TR1. It's a bit short at 20 minutes but provides a healthy dose of nostalgia. There are three easy secrets but no advanced weaponry or flare pickups to deal with the darkness. On the other hand, the enemies (bats, wolves and a bear) are fairly easy to kill. There's a timed run near the end that requires a little planning to accomplish without stumbling along the way. A nice in-between level to play when you have some time to kill." - Phil (21-Jan-2019)
"Yet another remake of the Caves level and while this does indeed look good, it doesn't really do anything new in the long run to distinguish it from other remakes. Other than a couple of extra medipacks, the format has only been very slightly altered from the original. Might be OK for nostalgics, but that's about it." - Ryan (14-Dec-2016)
"This, as most have commented, is a absolutely faithful recreation of the first Tomb Raider level, down to pretty much every nook and cranny. There are a few adjustments to the environment, but nothing that is worth noting. Updated graphics make the caves look more real, but it can't recapture the wonder brought by the original level. And, sorry to say, if you've played the original, you've played this one. Thus it is a piece that looks like it had some time put into it, but lacks any real purpose or entertainment. A shame, considering a lot of the author's other magnificent work. Go for this only if you want a better looking TR1 level." - Xela (07-Nov-2014)
"Another TR1 Caves remake that does a few creative liberties with the original level design for a change, involving different ways to maneuver around in the environment, some more atmospheric lighting and texturing that's done in such a way, as to make the areas you're exploring, look slightly more forgotten by time in comparison to the original TR1 version of the level. Nevertheless though, you're still going through the exact same actions as you would in the original level and you'll encounter all the enemies you'd expect to see in their usual positions. With the lack of any actual TR1 music, this remake loses some of it's possible charm in the process, relaying instead on tried-and-true tracks from TR4 that(while still fitting), don't work nearly as well. Overall, a nice attempt. But nothing too groundbreaking in the grand scheme of things. Only really worth downloading out of curiosity and nothing more." - Ceamonks890 (18-Apr-2014)
"I've to say, I don't like remakes with original textures, but in this case it's ok, a bit stretched sometime. Enemies were wolf and bats, like in the original, we can't judge it as something wrong, 'cause we all loved the original, didn't we? So I put a 9, secrets were the same too. really easy but respectful of the original. Sounds? My own level editor files are different from the original TR4 ones, so I played without sounds. I liked the atmosphere, really close to the original. Lighting and texture, not really original, but not so bad. I think the builder should create longer remake levels, maybe with adding it's own touch, like I do in my remakes. One more thing; he got to improve with texture placing and level architecture, with trng there is an interesting button "crackmode" really usefull :D" - Lara_Fox_Croft (07-Jul-2012)
"A quick short level for in between. Definitely enjoyable, specially for TR1 fans like me. It is basically a remake with a few extra rooms and a darker spookier atmosphere than the original. Solid textures. Everything worked together nicely in this level, except the bear refused to attack and after I reloaded a savegame the screen became distorted and the game crashed. It went perfectly fine in the second attempt. If you like Tomb Raider 1, you can't avoid playing this one." - Blue43 (17-Apr-2010)
"Where from do I know these caves? If I could only remember. Oh yes, now it occurs to me again. These are the same caves like in TR 1. A few wolves, a few bats and a lonesome bear are also present. The level is built quite reasonable, there is an easy time run and one can find some Medipacks. And after less than 15 minutes the level end is reached. It is enough just thus for the small level hunger occasionally. But not more." - Scottie (21-Mar-2010)
"Despite being completely overhauled with areas designed from scratch, the gameplay in this level is essentially the same we first experienced over 10 years ago. A nice homage to the original game, but nothing more. I did, however, experience an issue with the ceiling hanging plants, the collision seems to be wrong so it might actually cause you to fall to your death into the bear pit. 10 minutes, 3 secrets. 04/09" - Treeble (04-Apr-2009)
"Translation of the review that I made for TRO-Online : A long time ago, Kingspyder offered us an exact copy of Caves from Tomb Raider I. Now Ma.ximo offers us a completely remade level which is very pleasant. The main gameplay scheme is consistent in the level and we must make the same actions at the same places. There is just one or two medipacks more. The gameplay hasn't changed but the scenery has been well renovated. The textures used by ma.ximo are the original from the peruvian levels of Tomb Raider, but the modeling of the rooms has been made better with superb lighting. The level is quite darker but this isn't bad (Have you ever seen caves lit like a beach in July?) All the scenery has been remodeled and complexified. Thus we visit a level we know by heart and we discover a lot of new things in each room. Ma.ximo has added a lot of decorations like plants or furnitures that make the level more real and living. It's regrettable that a lot of textures are stretched or flat and that the majority of the static objects appear too luminous because their luminosity hasn't been adjusted. For an adaptation whose intention is to make more beautiful an old level it could be better with more care in the scenery even with a very good job is already made. The level is quite short (like its 10-years-old big brother) given that it was a discovery level, the first one of all the Tomb Raider games. There are three secrets easy to find for a TRI fan." - TimJ (20-Jul-2007)
"The gameplay here remains basically unchanged from the original 'Caves' level, although the placement of textures has been. It actually looks quite nice, and some of the geometry has also been changed for the better. However, it doesn't change the fact that the gameplay has been left without much of an improvement at all, leading to the low score that I gave it." - Spike (19-Jul-2007)
"There's really not much more I can add to this. It's yet another fairly faithful remake of the TR1 caves level with a couple of improvements in the room geometry, lighting and the looks of the objects (like the a more updated sans-Madonna's bra Lara, the wolves, the greenery). Nice while it lasts, but I pretty much prefer the author's original work to his remakes, so will be looking forward when more of those start coming along." - eTux (16-Jul-2007)
"It's a very short remake of the caves, about ten minutes long, with nothing more than we have already played many times. There are dogs, bats and the same rooms we are so familiar with but only a bit darker. I found the three easy secrets and since there are many levels like this one out there you better choose a level that has new puzzles and ideas, to play." - Kristina (23-Mar-2007)
"One thing can be said; it is nice to play TR1 on the PC without having to use numerous patches and other stuff to get it up and running. But although it looks like"The Caves", it isn't. I just couldn't play it on the PC, as I never could get my screen bright enough and walking around with only three flares that didn't work. The Mac however gave me another problem, lost the sight of my saved games and with that timed lever, reloading my screen went all very funny. This was gone when I quit the game and restarted from a load. Strange.. to say the least. If you're quite familiar with TR1 it is over and done before you know it. So in that respect I would like to have seen the whole first level with the original sounds. As for Maxime, he show us he can build, so how about a level that you really can call your own." - Gerty (13-Oct-2006)
"Alright if you feel nostalgic then this gives you a 15 minute trip down memory lane and as always with this builder the looks are stunning, but that is really all that can be said about this short adventure. If you really want to dive back into TR1, maybe the full remake that was just released by Daoine Sidhe is your cup of tea - I, for one, certainly hope that Maxime will also work on another level of his own rather than copying the old originals." - MichaelP (08-Oct-2006)
"Another remake for the first level of TR1 with very few modifications. All the people who had played TR1 can pass this level in very few minutes. Easy secrets, no human enemies, very easy tasks,... what more can I say? A very classic level rebuilded by many authors till this date. It's not bad level but most of the players are bored to play it so many times (too much authors have a version of this level). The best for me were lights and textures." - Jose (27-Sep-2006)
"It's always heart-warming to see those dear old TR1 textures again, although I'm definitely ambivalent on the subject of remakes. On the one hand it's interesting to see how the original TR1 level would have looked with less grainy graphics, but on the other hand why not use said graphics to make a completely new level? OK, this isn't an exact copy of the original level, but it's near enough. It's short and simple and, although it certainly does look good, I couldn't honestly recommend it for anything other than a brief nostalgia trip." - Jay (25-Sep-2006)
"It's difficult to know how to review this one. It is indeed faithful to the original, while including some nice individual touches. However having gone to this extent it would have been nice to have included the original TR audio and music. It's a nice effort to bring the original caves level up to the capabilities of the 4th generation of the game engine, with subtle atmospherics, which heavily reminded me of shots I've seen of the leaked TR anniversary edition developed by Core that was axed by Eidos. I completed the level in 17 minutes, and this was primary due to taking some time to inspect the hard work put into crafting the environments. As a celebration of 10 years of tomb raider it's a good effort, but as a level in it's own right I'm afraid it's unremarkable. Ma.ximo's previous release"Prise au Piege (Trapped)", offers much more original game-play and fun." - TheStig (17-Sep-2006)
"As a levelbuilder,you have to ask yourself,"what is the appeal in remaking someone else's level?" You're spending a lot of time patiently putting together a load of ideas that aren't you're own;and then you sit back and (presumably) wait for people to comment. In this instance,my comments are 'very nice'. But that's it. What more can I say? Perhaps I ought to feel obliged to point out that this is not an absolute 'click for click' remake,but rather a 'very close re-interpretation'.You will recognise each and every area(including the secrets) but you will at least appreciate that the author has done his best to give it all a slightly new visual twist. Not enough to warrent particular praise,though;only a grudging respect for his patience,competance and fastidiousness." - Orbit Dream (16-Sep-2006)