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The Eggs by Marcos

AaronD 10 10 10 10
Casual Raider 10 10 10 10
Christian 9 10 10 9
DJ Full 10 10 10 8
dmdibl 9 10 10 9
eTux 9 9 9 8
Jay 9 10 10 10
JesseG 9 8 7 10
Jorge22 9 10 9 9
Jose 9 10 10 10
manarch2 9 10 10 9
MichaelP 8 10 10 8
mugs 9 10 10 9
Nephilim 9 8 6 8
Phil 8 10 10 9
Ryan 9 10 10 9
Sarikman 9 10 9 8
sonnyd83 10 10 10 10
 
release date: 23-Jul-2012
# of downloads: 85

average rating: 9.33
review count: 18
 
review this level

file size: 101.35 MB
file type: TR4
class: Mystery/Horror
 


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

Reviewer's comments
"Aaaahahahah this was amazing! So different and creative. The only bad part is getting to the crawlspace above the monkey swing, you shouldn't place crucial interactions in a passage. But it still didn't put me off, I was motivated till the end. The most underrated builder confirmed :D" - DJ Full (24-Jul-2019)
"Another amazing and spooky level from Marcos! He definitely has his own trle signatures at this point , which is what makes his levels so great , and original . This level has great design and atmosphere , there's loads of cool little touches that you would only see in a Marcos level . There is a backstory to this level from previous trle's by Marcos but it isn't too necessary to go back and play them before this one , you will still understand and enjoy the story ! It wouldn't be a Marcos level either without some really cool music . There really is no faulting this level at all , everything is on point, from the intro , to the design , the music , and the ending , credits etc . I always love how much work Marcos puts into his levels , you can tell he really enjoys doing it . If like me , you love spooky levels , or fancy playing as Kurtis , or you're just looking for a really good level with a bit of a challenge and a great story , then I highly recommend this one . The Eggs has become a new favourite of mine , from one of my favourite trle authors !" - AaronD (01-May-2017)
"You absolutely cannot go wrong with a Marcos level and this is undoubtedly one of his best. We are playing as Kurtis Trent this time, with a small bonus level as Lara if we find both eggs. But, to the level itself. This is brilliant. The cutscenes are brilliantly done and often humorous, the gameplay is sufficiently challenging and the atmosphere is well caught. I am not fond of fixed cameras and there are quite a few in this level, but that's minor. Highly recommended for unique raid." - Ryan (15-Sep-2016)
"Actually I consider this more as a Fantasy level rather than a Mystery one. It's the atmosphere which IMO are just too bright, although the lighting alone is absolutely fine and well done. Skeletons' voice and those laughs are more cute instead of creepy. Music scores are enjoyable but for a Mystery themed, those just don't really feel right. What I appreciate as horror are enemies and objects, such as skeletons, undead warriors, seahacks, corpses and bridges. Textures are nice and well placed, although that bold cyan sky is a meh. As for the gameplay, creative! the way we get rid of those small skeletons is clever, most travels here are annoying but fun, those jumps while being chased by shimming skels though, and I always like the idea of getting all secrets for a reward when the reward is really worth it, and this game offers it well. Conclusion: While the gameplay and places are great, I really can't give the atmosphere a high score." - Nephilim (06-Feb-2015)
"Seriously one of the best TR levels I have ever played! Gameplay is amazing especially parts with that skeleton tutorial with awesome sounds. Liked the fact that for once can play someone else than Lara. The ideas in level, objects and story are unique and really, really amazing. Textures are well done, whole level is built marvelously. I was impressed with this level, definitely recommending!" - Casual Raider (24-Jul-2013)
"Even though an overall score of 8.75 should not be considered a low one by any standards, when confronted with Marcos's levels, every once in a while I feel like I'm depriving them in light of the immense creativity and unique feel about the gaming experience they present. I felt the same with his level built for Kurtis - the atmosphere delivers as in any level of the author thus far, there are numerous delightful moments, whether in tasks - such as in the clever in-game tutorials showing you strategies how to fight enemies or use particular items, finger-twisting jumps, and many more - or in the use of cutscenes and fly- bys, as in the dramatic slow-mo falling moment, intro to the cyclops battle, the skeleton guide from "The Black Harpy Returns" either helping you against opponents you cannot tackle yourself or warning you not to perform certain actions - the list could go on. I'm a bit ambivalent about mixing secrets (i.e. - optional gameplay) and mandatory gameplay - especially when they're set up as the raison d'être of the whole game (the level is even named " The Eggs," and arguably not as a double entendre for... ehm... something else), but I suppose just because you have an objective, doesn't mean you can't fail to achieve it as long as it doesn't break the game (I didn't try - but I suspect there might be an alternative ending for neglecting to destroy either of them), and it isn't the greatest offense committed here. The moments where this failed to work for me - were in some rather obscure or frustrating gameplay moments. One has to commend the author for attempting to ease in the players with new or not- immediately-intuitive mechanics he introduces, but at this point he may be so in-tune with his typical building style, that he might not appreciate what will seem obscure and what not for those playing the levels. Had I not played "The Black Harpy Returns" before this one - I feel I would've failed to identify the snake switch as such, pushing one of the head statues didn't feel like the obvious thing to do (and for some reason I managed to push it in even deeper within a room you can't get out of - but, the fact that this is unintentional is almost immediately apparent, so I cut the builder some slack), I'm unsure whether I would've figured out how the wheels have to be turned in the bonus level without the aid of the walkthrough, and while the new strategy to tackle the dwarf-skeletons is creative - taking on 5 at a time immediately after learning of the technique makes for a steeper learning curve than a casual player might be ready to take on. If I had to rate the atmosphere and fly-bys in their own right, this would make for a full score hands down, but there were far too many fixed camera angles at inopportune moments (the monkey-swing room and the swamp areas come to mind) and that got in the way despite the brilliance of the rest of this category. Despite the shortcomings - this still is an excellent level to play, that shines in originality and various humorous moments (the skeleton guide shaking his head in disbelief after you disobey him and walk into a trap, the snake and harpy moment in the end, and probably a great deal more I fail to recall right now), and arguably the best level featuring Kurtis I've played out there. Don't miss it." - eTux (18-Mar-2013)
"Wow - another great example of the boundless creativity of this very unique level builder. There are just too many very special and unique moments in this game to list them all in this review, but the way Marcos always intersects a little scene in support of the game is just fabulous. You get a helpful skeleton guide that gives you crucial hints, you will encounter quite a few 'shock' moments almost of cinematic quality (like the dragon appearance, the slow motion moment or the boss fight intro) and the mini skeletons or the monkey swinging zombies are great renditions of the worn out enemy theme. I am a bit in two minds about the gameplay as such. It is very cleverly set in scene and when logical you can really get it, but some of the tasks are really a bit on the obscure side (also because you have to expect the unexpected here), hence a walkthrough close at hand my significantly increase your entertainment with this adventure. Some of the jumps are actually a bit on the tricky side too, but nothing too frustrating to accomplish in the end. To top it all up you get a nice credit roll, a chuckle out of the final scene and a little bonus level if you destroy the two eggs, so if you have not actually played this one yet - what are you waiting for?" - MichaelP (21-Jan-2013)
"I have to say that I am a big fan of Kurtis Trend and I was always searching for a level with him. When I saw this and its score, I thought that I would really love it. Well, I didn't so much. The levels are good, but I don't think they are as good as was the previous level from this builder. I expected something greater. What we can find in these levels are few easy puzzles (not something really new), few tricky jumps (like the ones from tree to tree or above the poisonous water), few easy to skip traps and some tiny enemies. Although the way to kill them is new and funny, sometimes they are very annoying. Anyway, they were a good add. Another good add were the animations the builder added and another one is the skeleton who tells what to do and what not. I believe that many tasks were great, but I don't really know why I didn't enjoy them so much. I believe that if the places and the rooms were constructed differently and in other region, I would enjoy them more. The lighting is good and the textures are well combined, but I think they are monotonous. All over the level you find the same colours. I know that the author is talented and can build better levels. This one is pretty good, but always I felt that something was missing. It didn't create me the feeling I usually have when I play customs.Anyway, I recomend this level and I am sure you will have good time with it, but I hope we will see something better from this author in the future and I hope it will have again Kurtis in it. I almost forgot to write about the cameras. Some of them are well placed, but there are few which doesn't help at all, like the one when you jump from tree to tree. You can't aim well where Kurtis will jump and you will probably loose few times. I expect the next level of this builder and I am sure he will deliver another good adventure." - Sarikman (29-Aug-2012)
"The newest level by the "master of horror" Marcos won't disappoint anyone with its perfect atmosphere (despite the musical choices). We travel along strange places peopled by snakes, interesting midget skellies and underwater hags, undying monkey swinging warriors and a final devilish statue turned into a monster, sometimes helped by a skeleton guide, in a rather tough and sometimes disorienting journey where puzzles, traps and few hard jumps never go amiss even for the toughest raiders. Kurtis is the main character and he's rather well done, may I add. Our aim is to destroy two evil eggs, hence keeping the underworld from taking over. If we manage to destroy both eggs, we're offered a short shooting bonus level where Lara goes searching for her friend but must face an entire army of those midget skeletons and solve a small puzzle before the reunion. Luckily, she finds loads of ammo plus mushroom medipacks (snake eggs in the main levels) - what else? Recommended, naturally." - Jorge22 (19-Aug-2012)
"Marcos is a proven master of the spooky and the macabre, and this release falls in the same mold. The lighting, while somber and gloomy, allows the player to see what's going on around him, which is always a plus in my book. There are some neat touches such as shooting eggs and watching the embryos die, a necrophiliac munching on rotting remains, and an embryo coming back to life only to be eaten by a snake creature darting out of a wall hole. On the other hand, there are annoying fixed cameras at crucial points where you have to line up rather exactly in order to make a jump, so I've deducted a point from gameplay for this. And near the end I experienced a strange phenomenon where I pulled a crystal and became locked in a slow motion scene where I floated slowly down to my death without being able to do a blessed thing about it. This may be a bug that's unique to me, as other players reported no problem with the floating descent. However, bug or no bug, it's a game stopper requiring the use of a savegame to proceed, so I've deducted another point from gameplay as a result. In sum, this is a polished tour de force that should make the Hall of Fame in short order." - Phil (13-Aug-2012)
"What a creative adventure with Kurtis. The looks in this game were well done, especially the lighting, which was beautiful in its sombre kind of way. Some of the cutscenes were pretty epic, as were the different beasts you encounter, and I loved seeing the skeleton friend face-palming when you decide to take a certain prize too soon...certain things did bug me during these levels. Those immortals swinging on the ceiling were very annoying in terms of collision. I guess that was the point, but it was hard to progress - especially with the fixed cameras not allowing you to see what was in front of you. There were plenty of other points were fixed cameras were unnecessary and painful to the gameplay, such as the outdoor swamp area - when you're trying to jump from pole to pole, of all things. Some of the objects were aggravating, like the headless skeleton that keeps pushing you into the stomper traps, or the pushable smoke-breathing head that you get trapped with if you push it "too far" (an invisible wall forms behind you), or the puzzle hole that attacks you as an award. If the objects and cameras were ironed out a bit, this would've been a near-perfect raid. However it was still pretty fun and very interesting. Recommended. Finished in 1 hour 14 minutes." - SSJ6Wolf (10-Aug-2012)
"I was amazed when I first started up this game. The first flyby is very well worked and customised, this is repeated throughout the game. The surroundings initially remind me of a castle with the windows and doorways. I love how everything is so well placed such as the snakes eggs, and crowbar, and keys, the snake didn't seem too happy to have it's eggs (well medipacks) stolen. I do like the switches in this level, the one which Kurtis turns to open a door is impressive. Main tasks include releasing a skeleton which has got itself stuck and collecting it's ring - you even get a clue for this one, traps include snakes, steam, flames and stompers. Avoiding some little skeletons whilst trying to open some doors, there's a bug with shooting one particular crystal - you have to be a certain distance away. The vortexes in the water look really impressive. I also like the fire off/wall switch/collect mortal smoke task - good gameplay in such a small space. Further on, there's an area with a bouncing skeleton - you have to see it to believe it! Really unusual, then I didn't realise it was a safe path! Like many things in this game, it's not very clear. There's a lot of jumping about in this swamp area and it does get easier as you go along, the exploding worm is nice, as I wouldn't want to fight it surrounded by swamp. If you forget the red gem, you'll have to negotiate this area all over again. There's an area with monkey swinging zombies, which although hard, isn't impossible, I think the camera angle doesn't help, and you should get a camera showing you where to go. It isn't that clear if the egg should be collected or destroyed, tried both, decided it was the latter! You'll learn a valuable lesson next, the next time a skeleton tells you not to pull a lever, it's best to listen! Also, don't take keys off strange skeletons, never ends well. It gets creepier and the atmosphere and weather changes. There's a bearded midget eating dead skeletons, how ghoulish can it get? Fantastic ending video and credits, also got to play the bonus level, won't spoil that here though! Objects really make this game stand out. Many of the objects are completely custom made. I particularly like the snakes heads which appear every so often, griffins, some of the old doors and giant flame holders, they make this level what it is. The animations on some objects is truly breathtaking, e.g. when skeleton is warning you of something, and you don't listen... Sound is in some places influenced by TR3 and TR Underworld, including the wind sound and moments when bad or good things happen, the music is of excellent quality and well chosen, most of them sound very up to date, and used very often, which gives it the feel of a professionally produced release. A little more work could go into Kurtis' sound fx. Also, the harpy sound is a great source of amusement. Camera's aren't used much but there's the odd camera angle to spice things up a little e.g. in room with deadly mud - I found the angle next to slopes useful. The camera angles on the climbable trees was not required though. The author has breathed new life into old and worn out ideas and created a very distinct set of tasks to complete, all set perfectly in a very creepy and beautifully crafted level set, some of the objects used are a little obscure so eyes are best kept open. What a pleasure to play! Net gameplay 2 hours 15 minutes. Definitely recommend for the hall of fame." - sonnyd83 (07-Aug-2012)
"Well, finally I succeeed to destroy the eggs. As expected we find unique work from this author, who is able to create such great spooky atmospheres. Many new obiects are created, enenmies have new design, the player is led through this straight forward level by a lot of nice hints and animations, gameplay is quite creative. I had a lot of fun in this great level. Some wide areas (swamps) are a bit too vast in my opinion. Marcos created another high-quality level as we could expect from him!" - Christian (05-Aug-2012)
"This is another Marcos level that simply cannot be compared to anything else, as he is able to create worlds different to everything else we have encountered before. The amount of time put in creative object usage, new animations, enemy design and all those instructions to guide the player through this level must have been enormous, and if possible I would reward the second category with more than 10 points because this time Marcos has even surpassed himself; only for a few examples the start, the multi-usage of the skeleton, the boulder room or the end cutscenes... this is indeed stuff worth an Oscar. The atmosphere in this level is again fantastic with all those cameras works, the perfectly fitting sound usage and the great lighting. At parts I felt texturing doesn't quite reach the aforementioned categories as some parts seemed a bit wallpapered for me and at one place (before using the demon head) I had the end-of-world feeling and gameplay wasn't as overly great as in his latest offerings because it's easy to miss certain items (even if possible I never thought sideflipping over fences is the intended route) but all in all the ideas and puzzles are nothing but fantastic - just download and enjoy. When shooting both eggs you have access to a bonus level that at parts kept up with the novel ideas of the two levels before (the skeleton shootout), at parts felt rather confusing as I found the players could need a more clear hint for the wheel puzzle, but hey, it's a bonus level, and thus I accept the builder's choice. About the whole game - it's simply another must-play of Marcos. Spent 70 minutes in this levelset." - manarch2 (30-Jul-2012)
"I just finished and I liked it a lot. Apart from some fixed cameras that sometimes hinder the development of the gameplay, as the case may be jumping from tree to tree and the hidden and few medipacks in the first areas, I found this level the best work from Marcos, with a good atmosphere and all the animations that give body to the story and a very professional touch to the adventure. Chapeau! I found a few bugs, one while shooting the 1st egg, the camera changed its position and never left the nape of Curtis, I had to quit the game and reload an old savegame. The other was that when crossing the final wooden bridge, after the credits the bonus level was not charged and I got to the title screen despite having broken two eggs. It's a pain that this could be the last job from this author, but I understand that Marcos was building many, many years ago, even from the time of DxTRE3D and he is tired. Thanks for all hours of entertainment that we have got with your levels. Best regards." - Jose (29-Jul-2012)
"I played this through twice to get a better impression of what is a must-play level set. If the review were about Marcos the Director then this would be straight 10's across; the design and use of innovative objects is superb right from the opening shot of a helpful skeleton. He even ends up dispatching a dragon on your behalf, or gives warnings with a shake of his head. Other novel touches are the use of a skeleton's arm, the mortal smoke, and helpful pop-up information about shooting tiny skeletons in the back. This can be one impressive eye-candy moment after another. On the other hand, because this is innovative and original it can be hard to get started, and there can be easy-to-miss pickups or play. At one point Kurtis has to push a decorative head which is great from a design standpoint, but hard to figure out when one is a player. There are all sorts of places with camera angles, so in the swamp the only time you can tell the direction for your jump is when the left or right arrow key is pressed. Let up on these keys and the view immediately reverts to a side camera shot. I didn't care for this the first play, and liked it less the second. A standard camera would have made it easier to line up a jump. There are high concealed jump switches, and Kurtis jumps over several fences when it isn't always clear that he's supposed to be jumping over a particular fence. The plot is that Kurtis is out to destroy two eggs laid by the Black Harpy. There is a bonus level for accomplishing this mission, and its beginning scenes which show the fate of the harpy eggs make this well worth it, even if this introductory part is very brief. Then it turns out we play as Lara once again, with a warning that gameplay is hard. Apparently this is all about destroying a mob of tiny skeletons, so at that point I quit. I didn't even deal with them during the regular level. Instead of shooting them, I sprinted down walkways to the end, luring the little skeletons to cross connecting bridges (which have straight sides)--they crowded in my direction and pushed their comrades into the swamp. When there were two or three skeletons left it was easy to shoot them. So I had no real interest in playing a bonus level with a feature I'd already successfully avoided. The difficulty of the main level isn't at all bad once players know what to do, such as with a walkthrough in hand. My second play took about an hour and a half. This is highly recommended, and fans of Marcos are in for a special treat." - dmdibl (28-Jul-2012)
"Another darkly inventive level from this talented builder, with a excellent, scene setting introduction. Playing this time as Kurtis, the game has the usual trademark quirkiness and delightfully different animations/objects. From the initial finding and using of the crowbar, it is apparent that nothing can be taken for granted and the player will have to try and match the builder's ingenuity. There are no pistols, so treasure all the shotgun and revolver ammo you find as there are small but extremely vicious skellies, sea hags and other, less easily identifiable (and occasionally unkillable) enemies about. If you manage to destroy both harpy eggs, you will get to play a bonus level that involves Lara having to be extremely agile to avoid massed skellies, whilst trying to get the revolver, laser sight and enough ammo to dispose of them. Even if you aren't going to play the bonus level, do please watch right to the end of the closing credits as there's a hilarious ending sequence that you really must not miss. Wonderful stuff." - Jay (27-Jul-2012)
"What a cool game this is! And a bit frustrating in places: the dual use of objects as jump switches and shootable objects - hate that! iron gates that can mysteriously be passed through trapping Curtis and especially shootable objects that have to be targeted in just the right spot in order to accomplish the goal - very tedious! That being said, this is still an outstanding game. Curtis is on a quest to destroy two demon eggs. He must pass many tests of agility and stealth in order to find them. There are wonderful new objects in play here. The music is "spot-on". The gameplay is borderline hard-difficult, but do-able. There could have been a few more flares available - I grew tired of trying to get the binoculars. The ending is priceless and there's a bonus round that follows for the really agile players! Marcos, you did yourself proud again - well done!" - Mugs (26-Jul-2012)