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BtB2011 - Punk Heart by mugs

afzalmiah 8 9 9 9
Akcy 6 7 7 7
Bigfoot 9 9 10 9
Blue43 9 8 8 8
Diz 8 9 8 9
DJ Full 7 9 8 7
dmdibl 8 9 8 9
EssGee 7 8 8 7
eTux 7 7 7 6
Jay 8 8 8 9
Jerrod 8 8 8 8
JesseG 7 8 8 7
Jorge22 8 8 8 8
Jose 7 8 7 8
Josey 9 8 10 8
Magnus 4 5 6 5
manarch2 8 8 7 6
MichaelP 7 7 7 7
Mman 7 8 7 5
Mytly 8 8 8 7
Nina Croft 8 8 7 6
Phil 8 8 8 9
requiemsoul 8 8 9 8
Ryan 7 7 8 8
Scottie 6 8 7 7
Sethian 6 6 6 5
Shandroid 8 7 8 7
 
release date: 24-Aug-2011
# of downloads: 109

average rating: 7.60
review count: 27
 
review this level

file size: 51.45 MB
file type: TR4
class: Steampunk
 


author profile(s):
email(s):
pchancey@tampabay.rr.com

Reviewer's comments
"I decided to play this as my last BtB2011 entry and it nicely ended the series for me. It seemed like the shortest level of the bunch but fun while it lasted, the undoubted highlight being the boulder puzzle, taking place in an environment similar to what you might see in a Richard Lawther game. Nice level and thanks everyone!" - Ryan (24-Mar-2016)
"I played few productions of mugs and I'm almost sure industrial environments is what she's the best at if she only polishes them. Here great places with awesome texturing are interlaced with flat average rooms, and the heart riddle cage in addition has lots of opacity problems. I wonder why these happened. Was it lack of time, care or inability to drop a vision not matching the well-executed rest? Unknown. But it's sure as those inbetween WIP-like sections could be as seriously deleted as the major areas are worth to see. Steampunk flowerpots, unlocking chains, underwater mixers and a raisingblock blockade of collapsed railway show object usage originating from unique point of view. A monstrous vehicle model, a baloon and a parked train bring museal touch to the final zone. Yes, objects are definitely the strongest point of the game. For things to do, we have some linearly planned puzzles that don't require much running or thinking - just find all keys, press all easily located switches and don't be troubled. Extinguish several wraiths inbetween and kill several baddies, the latter fought much easier with a handy secret shotgun. SUMMARY: Punk is not dead, its heart is still alive - come and get it. This will be too easy, but still unusual and quite rewarding." - DJ Full (13-Nov-2013)
"I also really like this little steampunk level fo many reasons. I like the Lara's ballon when the game start and the many rooms around. I also really enjoying the steampunk museum with a ballon, a train, and a strange vehicle ... nice job. The gameplay is not very hard exept maybe for the rollingball chalenge. The water labyrinthe is also very well, I imagine the nombers of rooms to create him, another very good job. The level is not too dark, not to difficult and playble for everybody. Very recommended. Great job" - BigFoot (27-Nov-2011)
"Gameplay: The underwater maze provided a nice swimming challenge. The boulder run, however, was a bit messy as you can simply jump to trigger the boulder and jump back to the start to avoid it. Of course, doing this gets Lara stuck forever. Once you figure it out though, it was a neat and unique kind of timed run. The level ends abruptly and left me feeling like it could have been more substantial than it did. It made for a fun little adventure though. Texturing: The harshest place for texturing is the room with the boulder run, which uses only a few textures that get very distorted due to the way the environment was made. The walls you could and could not climb were not distinguished in any way. The lighting did not seem to exist in this area either. On the plus side, The first large room had beautiful lighting, and the station looked great too.
Objects: The first large room is nicely ornamented with gizmos, and so are the broken train station areas with their debris and collapsing ceilings.
Atmosphere: Again the train station had a nice look to it. The camera cues were helpful (finally!) had the right feeling to them.
Overall: While it feels underbuilt, it is still a nicely put together journey. Recommended. Finished in 37 minutes." - SSJ6Wolf (14-Nov-2011)
"Well, I did like the title better than the game itself. That is not to say I didn't like it, especially the very last part,namely the boulder run, despite the ever present female ninjas in the final room. The thing I liked less about it was the settings didn't feel quite thrilling - better than a few in this competition but clearly not as good as a few others. Apart from that, it seems to be a cleverly built level, with just a weird thing among all, when you go below the train and it is as if there were no train at all. One very good thing about it, I must say, is the author seems to have tried to respect the one hour limit while so many simply didn't care. I don't know what the moving boxes near the end were for and I must have missed a secret, I guess, since a door was left locked right in front of the one where one finds the fuse that will lead you to the sudden ending. Hmm, being 48, almost 49, my heart is a bit of a punk heart too as it is of many other bits and pieces time has left. Hence, I guess I'm glad I managed to grab it in the game's hardest and most thrilling part. I'm glad I played it too." - Jorge22 (08-Nov-2011)
"It shows that it's not the first time that this author builds a level. Architecture is very good, as so textures, lights and another features. Except the first task at the very beginning, rest of the level is very playable and enjoyable, with a lot of 'Toogle Opacity' textures. Only the tasks in the big room with the rolling ball could take problems to the players, with unmarked climbable walls and no cameras to give hints. No much problems with the enemies, except when two special ninjas appeared. It seems that this autor could make a most interesting and long level if the time limit was longer. Good work!" - Jose (16-Oct-2011)
"In a perfect world, level builders wouldn't place switches/buttons on similarly-colored walls without marking them out in any way. Seriously, you're all going to be banished to the moon when I take over the world. That complaint aside, this is an okay level. The best moment is a short and easily-messed-up-forever puzzle involving a rolling ball. The rest of the level isn't as interesting, but it's passable. The architecture is mostly unimpressive and sometimes a bit haphazard, but the texturing is okay (the lighting... eh). There are some good ideas here, but more time spent on making the level look good and some more complex gameplay would go a long way. The level ends very abruptly after only twenty-five minutes, almost as if the author ran out of time to finish it. The story - "Lara has to find the Punk Heart and, um, I guess she has to find the Zephyr key too" - seems to support this, especially since there was a place to use the Zephyr Key earlier in the level. It's disappointing when things end prematurely, but sometimes" - Magnus (15-Oct-2011)
"This level is very much a level of two halves. In the first half of the level, the rooms are unnecessarily bright, and thus lacking any atmosphere. Later in the level lighting improves with some more contrast in the room lighting. I'm not sure why there is such a stark difference. Nonetheless it is unconvincing as it is. There are some good ideas here. The rolling ball timed challenge is fun and cleverly constructed in making the path for the rolling ball, but it suffers from a major design flaw, in that if the player saves at all during the sequence, it is highly likely to be game over, but in a not dead/not alive situation, as there is no way to re-set the rolling ball. The broken rail line area is well put together, and makes for some interesting exploration. The museum-type area makes good use of the object wad, creating some good-looking steampunk equipment. Timed runs were creative and very fairly setup. Overall, this is a level for players of any skill level, and fulfills the recommended 1-hour format of the level competition." - EssGee (14-Oct-2011)
"This seems to be the work of a new builder, in the early areas gameplay is simplistic, textures are too wallpaperlike, lighting is almost nonexistent, I enjoyed seeing my way around on a well lit level though. As we progress the level gradually improves in every aspect, showing the builder gaining experience. The underwater section with glass walls was okay, and by the time we arrive to the big cavern area everything is fine. We even have a nice timed task with that boulder, then a timed run. Sounds and music well applied. Probably the deadline interfered with finishing the level because it is short and ended abruptly, I had the feeling that that tunnel was about to lead to the areas I saw through windows earlier. If it is indeed from a new builder then it's promising, all I can say continue with the quality where this level left off." - Akcy (13-Oct-2011)
"I really enjoyed this level! I was going to play madness is not a shame but I wanted to play a shorter level and this looked like the shortest level in btb2011. I have to say it was a lot better than I thought it was! The lighting and texturing was actually amazing. The only place that wasn't very good for me texture-wise was the boulder puzzle area. I thought the gameplay was good and it was a bit linear. There were a lot of doors that doesn't open through the level. I didn't understand why. This level surprised me a lot in many ways it was very fun. Gameplay was to mostly find objects and switches to open doors. In the boulder room you find the punk heart but after you go to the last room which is the museum and I think that is the best place in the whole level. I was so shocked and excited about this level and hope that the builder (whoever he/she is) makes more levels. Recommended." - afzalmiah (11-Oct-2011)
"For the most part, the gameplay is quite fluid and enjoyable, even though it's off to a rough start. To begin with we are confronted with the ultimate Tomb Raider mystery: why would anyone include a confusing underwater maze at the beginning of their level? However, it's not as bad as it could have been, just make sure you don't miss the crowbar since it blends in with the textures. The other major flaw that the level has is that the author seems to do what lots of people have done this time round with the BtB wad: forcing us to jump and flip over object meshes in order to get to certain areas and sometimes Lara gets stuck in those meshes. Is this really necessary? This problem aside, the author's use of objects and their placement is actually quite creative at times, creating some really cool rooms - especially the one at the end with the 'balloon'. The rolling boulder room is a great and clever idea, however it seems that if you fail with the puzzle your only choice is to reload a save... there is no way to reset the boulder... this is a bug that the author really should have fixed. It's also possible to leave the level without even picking up the"Punk Heart" - our quest item - and since this also happens to be the name of the entire piece, this is a big shame. There is sadly very little atmosphere, and lighting itself is almost entirely lacking, and sometimes some rooms definitely don't even have any lighting at all. Textures are a bit of a wallpapered overdose, so that could have been improved on as well. All in all it's not a bad level especially if this is a first attempt. It was fun in its own way. And here endeth BtB Steampunk 2011..." - Sethian (11-Oct-2011)
"Finally, at last, a Steampunk level that manages to stay within the one-hour constraint while providing an entertaining raid. And once again, we have a shorter level in the BtB competition that seems to have gotten short shrift in the scoring. Despite an earlier reviewer's observation, I've seen that yes indeed, the longer levels do seem invariably to receive the higher scores, regardless of their merits or lack thereof. I'm not touting Punk Heart as one of the elite levels in this competition, but I am arguing that it's a well above average release. The lighting is just fine, as I had few occasions to use a flare, and there's a nifty timed run where you have to beat a boulder by stepping first on a couple of trigger tiles in alcoves. Good stuff. Now, onward to Madness and Moonlight." - Phil (10-Oct-2011)
"A very sneaky level this one. You need to keep your eyes wide open to spot the openings hidden in plain sight and to figure out a few jumps you will have to make. Not necesaarily my most favourite gameplay, but pulled of rather well in this instance. Ninja ladies often show up in pairs to keep you busy and there is a small underwater maze area, but it can be passed quickly and is not too confusing. I thought audio was used quite well in this adventure to accentuate the progress in the game. The wasps and wraiths are as pesky as they can get and the boulder chase was in principle well conceived but you do need to read the readme or you will likely be stuck without a possibility to progress. I also did not like so much the use of the falling debris, as it tended to get in the way then in a number of places and even cause illegal slopes to get stuck in. Textures and lighting at times felt as if it was applied in a bit of a rush and the ending is oddly premature, as I was expecting to still go and use the item I had just gathered in a receptacle seen earlier in the level. Ah well, maybe a part 2 coming out at one point in time, I certainly would not mind playing one. [55:00, 2/2 secrets]" - MichaelP (09-Oct-2011)
"Visually, this level has least to offer to players, compared with other BtB levels this year. Geometry is simple, lighting is not so good, while the sounds are perfect, for instance. But the strongest link of this rather short level, is its simplicity and fluent gameplay. I don't think it is very possible for a player to get stuck here, although there are some tricky parts in it. Maybe the rooms are not built by a master of TRLE, but it is obvious that the builder has some brand new and fresh ideas when it comes to gameplay. I was simply astonished by the room with the boulder and two trapdoors, and yet even more astonished when I realized that this rather hard timed run could also be solved in the other, much easier way. The downsides of this level are definitely the geometry of rooms (especially the boulder room, which is full of "blank" walls), then lighting which is flat, unrealistic and almost non existent from time to time, and simple, square rooms when there are so many nice objects to be used, but they're not. Other aspects of the level are nice and well imagined, with gameplay which involves minimal backtracking, ballanced supplies, nicely placed enemies, and jumps and timed runs which are moderately hard. The builder is obviously a beginner, but shows a lot of potential, and I hope he (or she) will give us many great levels in the future. A very nice way to spend one hour, and a perfect level for a beginner player (I don't think anybody needed a walkthrough here, which is always a good thing). Sometimes it makes sense to say: the less is more, and this level absolutely proves that saying." - Nina Croft (26-Sep-2011)
"It was fun to play this nice game, a level not very difficult or easy. It textures are simple and not perfect, nevertheless the transparent mazes were quite amusing and the train station, with that beautiful train, commands respect. I loved the timed run with the ball and the good use of the music, and hated, as always, the slippery slopes of the derelict part of the station. But the simple truth is that to know this game is to love it. Thanks!" - Josey (26-Sep-2011)
"At about 35 minutes of net gaming, I would imagine Punk Heart to be one of the shortest entries in this year's competition, but with this only being the third level I've played so far, I might be proven wrong eventually. But I'll say what I always say - I am seldom interested in the duration of a level, but more so in the quality of that play time and this level managed to impress and perplex me simultaneously. On one hand - it certainly incorporates a number of fun tasks and settings, that show off the builder's creative approach. I particularly enjoyed the starting area's makeshift balloon, the train station and especially its desolate area were absolutely wonderful and moody, the timed-run for the final quest item was just right (i.e. not too easy and not too hard), the tube-hallway right before the finish trigger gave a great view of the area you just mastered, and the ingenious rollingball-trapdoor puzzle felt like it had come out straight from a Richard Lawther or Michael Prager level (pity about it being a one-shot thing though, an unsuspecting player might end up messing this up for good before he/she realizes what's going on). The level perplexed me in as much that - as said - some areas are nicely textured and lit, yet others seem flat (i.e. - no sun-bulbs placed in the rooms or lighting not used to showcase contrasts very well) and almost untouched lighting wise, which makes for a very uneven visual experience. If the rollingball puzzle felt like a faithful tribute gameplaywise to Richard Lawther's style, it might be that the visuals, which seemed like they had come out of one of his earlier works, were intended that way too, but I don't think it fit particularly well with the rest of the level here. And while the tasks fill out the level nicely, and you *do* accomplish the goals set out by the storyline, the level seems to end abruptly with no closure, and I would've welcomed the builder to extend it at least a little bit longer to show some creative way how Lara gets away, or reconnect it with earlier areas, since I had a feeling (an inaccurate one, I can concur) that they would warrant a revisit. If I'd want to nitpick about the story - I could accept that if either one of the 2 items had been the main objective - I could just accept it at face value that it's important for some unknown reason, but 2 unconnected items seemed rather arbitrary and unjustified. Maybe that's something a potential sequel would explain, making me eat my words, but as it is, it didn't make that much sense. Not that it's an issue that will seriously detract from anyone's enjoyment, but if played well from the builder's side of the front, it certainly can add to it. But all that put behind - this is a rather fun venture worth going for for some creative settings and tasks alike." - eTux (25-Sep-2011)
"Here's a level that has some really nifty things to do coupled with some areas that need some work. Although there are a couple places I loved, ie. the beautiful arch and garden area and the museum, Lara spends about 0.03 seconds in each one. Ok, a bit of an exaggeration, but the cooler places were left rather quickly, while the areas that didn't exactly trip my trigger, Lara had to stay in awhile. The arch area seemed unfinished, as she doesn't use all the doors, which would have been better, but the builder was trying to stick to the hour time limit, and I have much respect for someone trying to follow the rules. The water maze was interesting and lovely, but not to my taste and the track area that appeared to be crumbling, drove me nuts, because I wasn't sure what to do, go all the way down, try to go left or right, get crushed or drop and lose health. This decision was decided for me when Lara barely stumbles and suddenly grabs the monkeyswing. Can't say a game has actually helped me before. I did like the boulder timed run, as that was pretty fun. I think a better ending was needed, like Lara actually escaping from Punk Land instead of the abruptness. There is a pretty darn good level here and with some additions and texturing and lighting improvements, plus a better ending, this could get much better scores." - Shandroid (24-Sep-2011)
"Although this was one of the shortest levels of this BTB series, it was definitely one of the pleasant experiences. The game play here is very fluent and there is literally no back tracking or getting lost. It is only moderately challenging without any really difficult jumping sequences and the two timed sequences could easily be done after a few attempts. I really enjoyed that timed boulder run as I hadn't played a sequence like this in a while and was instantly reminded of one of the UUB series levels. The underwater glass maze presented some nice eye candy and also the museum part, while the some of the other areas looked a bit unrefined and the lighting was a little bit too bright and uniform for my taste. Overall this was a fun level to play and it is one that could also be recommended to a beginning raider, which cannot be said for many level released in this Steampunk series. (50 minutes, 1 secret found)." - Blue43 (18-Sep-2011)
"This level surely was quite original in terms of gameplay, as you had to find your way through some very strange underwater mazes with glass walls first, furthermore solve a timed run against and with (you'll see while playing) a boulder. Navigation through the courtyards always was clever and a lot of fun exploration had to be done in the courtyards. The areas are mostly well builded, I think the texturing could be improved in the outdoor areas a bit (wallpaper effects at some places) and lighting also was (with the exception of the station maybe) not used often. The two secrets you find in this level are generally easy to find, even if I had missed one in the first runthrough. Enemies maybe were a bit annoying at times, they often come across in groups of two or three, pleasantly the shotgun helped a bit there, but only if you found the secrets. The final area (the museum) did a good job in exhibiting nice object constructions. All in all a good but quite short level, with some lacks in the visuals." - manarch2 (17-Sep-2011)
"Ignore we the abrupt end. And ignore we the texture errors. And ignore we the short game time. What is left then? The usual battles against ninjas. And two nice little timeruns. And a few well-built rooms. And ... And what? Nothing and, that's all. There is nothing more to say to this level. Well ok, that little underwater maze was good. Actually, I basically hate mazes, but this is relatively short and the maze walls are made of glass. Perfect conditions for a maze- hater like me. And what is left? A few easy tasks, a couple of easy puzzles and the realization that this level is probably a debut. And probably the time was too short to thoroughly test this level. And surely the time was too short to build a decent end. And what does all this mean? The level builder should thoroughly revise and expand his level. And then he should let him be thoroughly tested. And then he should publish it as version 2.0 again. I am sure that it'll be a really good level and not a halfway good level." - Scottie (13-Sep-2011)
"The visual style in this level is much grittier than the other BtB2011 levels I have played so far, which makes a nice change. Lighting is unfortunately rather flat in most places - the beginning and the rolling ball areas, for example. The rolling ball area could have been textured better, so as to distinguish between the climbable and non-climbable surfaces, for one thing. And the builder should have built empty rooms beyond the transparent walls in order to prevent certain areas blinking in and out of visibility.
Other than its looks, the rolling ball area is a definite highlight of this level. I love the entire task, including the choice of music. The whole thing has an almost Richard Lawtheresque feel to it. The timed run over the chandeliers in the final area is good too. On the negative front, I do not like the underwater maze with the transparent walls, since it's very difficult to see where the openings are.
Some objects are used quite well - for example, the untriggered swinging chain objects holding up a platform at the beginning. On the other hand, the positioning of a barrel that involved jumping into it in order to get to the other side is a no-no. The train in the museum has no collision. The balloons at the beginning and in the museum area quite nicely evoke a Steampunk feel.
Overall: A pretty good level, in spite of certain flaws, and I was quite sad to see it end somewhat abruptly after barely 40 minutes." - Mytly (12-Sep-2011)
"This is another level that's obviously by a new author. The first part in particular gives a bad impression visually with flat and monotone rooms. It gets a bit more impressive later, and the later large outdoor area and museum type place look quite good (although the lighting is still lacking at times), but the other parts let it down. The museum had some quite interesting object use though (as well as a cool looking balloon)
Gameplay is relatively straightforward and easy outside of one slightly tricky wraith. One puzzle with a boulder is also odd in that it forces you to reload if you fail; while the readme warns of it if you don't know you could get completely stuck. This is the shortest level in the contest, and took me less than half an hour to finish; it's obvious that some more content was intended but not finished. What is there is enjoyable though." - Mman (11-Sep-2011)
"Although this level came very close to the competition guideline of one hour of gameplay (one hour and three minutes - how close can you get?) I felt that it should have been longer, mainly because I enjoyed it so much. There were a few faults, the separate areas seemed a little disjointed from each other, almost as though they'd been made by separate builders, and there were few baddies or puzzles. The underwater maze was beautifully made and very well timed and without the usual 'hang-ups' that seem to be common in underwater mazes these days. There's a nice but not too difficult boulder run/puzzle and an interesting timed run across the chandeliers near the end. Not many enemies, just a couple of steampunk beetles and a few of those female ninjas with very deep voices (when they die!). The level is generally well lit and well 'furnished' although there are a few areas that seem a tad bland. The finishing trigger was a bit abrupt, so much so that I reloaded just to check it wasn't me messing up! But, these few niggles aside, a very pleasant level that I thoroughly enjoyed playing." - Diz (07-Sep-2011)
"Boy was I glad to get out of the underwater maze - I'm really useless at underwater mazes. This is quite a short level compared to some of the blockbusters in this year's competition, but there's plenty to enjoy, in particular a couple of rather enjoyable timed runs - I really liked the 'beat the boulder' run. For the main part, it's also quite a well lit level, which I do tend to appreciate. Not too much enemy action in this one, although you do get three ninjas at once in the final area, and outrunning a wraith should keep you fit. The ending felt just a bit abrupt though." - Jay (06-Sep-2011)
"Short but very cute!. The end seemed somewhat abrupt. Good level!" - requiemsoul (05-Sep-2011)
"What is here is quite good, although this level feels like it is abbreviated, ending after only an hour and ten minutes when Lara holds two objects. Once Lara gets past starting trials, she enters a professionally designed city. Next is a small mine area that is again notable in visual details, and soon she enters a large area where most of the action will take place. I liked the lighting here, a welcome change from overly dim levels. Lara has to work her way up and down rough terrain and multistory building, dealing with a wraith, and this is all well-done and highly realistic. There are a couple of timed runs, including an elaborate rolling ball construction. After Lara gets the Punk Heart and a "key," it seems she will continue to another area, but the level abruptly ends. I thought the level might have been hurried by the contest deadline because Lara can easily get through falling debris, which apparently was meant as a barrier, and this means she encounters a wraith too soon, before having found water. And the clever rolling ball timed run, which is probably intended as a highlight, does have alternate play. These things do jar in what is otherwise a realistic and carefully detailed level. Recommended as a short treat, and I am sure that most will wish it had been longer." - dmdibl (04-Sep-2011)
"I must admit I was surprised when the level has finished !?!.. It's a good level but perhaps a little too short (when it's good, it's always too short). Nothing really hard here, several timed-tasks, one of which is original (rolling ball & traps). I encountered a small problem with a wraith (1st secret), not easy to kill it with only 10 cm of water. About the graphics, the light is too bright in the first area, but the result is better in next places." - Jerrod (03-Sep-2011)