
Levels listed...
TR5 - 33
TR4 - 3194
TR3 - 183
TR2 - 140
TR1 - 67
74083 reviews (20.4/level)
3611 (99.8%) walkthroughs
458 Hall of Fame levels
1266 levels rated >= 8


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release date: |
05-Nov-2001 |
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# of downloads: |
278 |
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average rating: |
4.44 |
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review count: |
13 |
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review this level |
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file size: |
24.20 MB |
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file type: |
TR3 |
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class: |
Desert |
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author profile(s): |
email(s): |
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n@a |
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Reviewer's comments |
"One of the most frustrating levels I've ever played. I started this thinking I was going to
get into a peaceful, classic TR3 level, but what I got here was a bunch of hard and
confusing stuff. The bike that you must ride up some steep rocks until "flying" past a hole
in the wall was just the tip of the iceberg. Because then it comes this extremely tight
timed run that you must complete PERFECTLY; one slight delay in your jumps and you won't
make it through. Then Lara starts teleporting and spawning in random locations and you're
never sure what the heck is going on. A big mess. Forget about [insert name of most
difficult level on TRLE ever here], this one is the most difficult level you'll ever play...
Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating a bit." - alan (25-Mar-2023) |
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"I don't know if this level is a step up or an step back from the author previous level (Not counting the test levels) as this one comes to fail on almost the same points as the previous one. Backtracking here is less heavier than in Subterranean Base, mostly because this level is way shorter, but this one is a miles far in terms of difficulty. There is a pretty fun and challenging bike section and two hard timed runs. The first timed run was, directly copied and pasted on CIL for whatever reason, the two levels even share the exact same skip which makes the timed run a bit easier. After this timed run is when the level started going downhill since the author decided to add a bunch of invisible walls and senseless flipmaps. The fact that there are no camera hints make this even worse. Aside from the bad points, the level had a nice desert atmosphere and some interesting ideas. Lightning and textures, once again are bad. Lightning is very flat and there are many wallpapered and stretched textures. Even if you are someone who likes challenges, I don't recommend this level." - Neltharion (23-Sep-2021) |
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"Another of those notorious difficult custom levels, but having just played the bundle of Vinci's test levels, which included Portal Tricks and Shallow Jumps - apparently the starting point for this level - , it wasn't so bad. I did get extremely frustrated with the quadbike though, not only landing the jumps was difficult but also keeping it on top of the tight 1-block wide path was pointlessly difficult. The last timed run also is a lot tighter than it was in the test level but took me a lot less tries than the quad section. There is also a secret to be found in the level which makes you backtrack all the way to the beginning of the level - and then you realize just how small it actually is, when you remove all the tricky platforming from the way - , discovering the way to reach it was a puzzle on its own but now it's properly documented in the walkthrough. 40 minutes, 1 secret. 11/19" - Treeble (17-Nov-2019) |
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"Now this level of this author is not that complex as his
previous release, but it's still hard to solve. Not only
that there are two timed runs and a quadbike route that
are extremely difficult that only Tomb Raider pros would
be able to solve them or the player would need much
patience and practice and maybe 60 attempts for each of
those... But the way to progress through the level is also
too unclear at some points. I wouldn't find out about the
solid walls that turn into pushblocks by myself if I
hadn't checked out the walkthrough. And I definitely
wouldn't even know about the extra areas that appear near
the beginning of the level, when you reach the corridor
where the level ends. So how did the man who wrote the
walkthrough even find out about that. You can only get to
this extra environment if you park the quadbike at a
certain point, which enables you to get back to the start
area. So maybe this was supposed to be a secret. But it
seems unfinished. There is also a keyhole in this area,
but no key is located. Never mind! It was interesting to
play a level with such difficulty.
To be continued!..." - Nuri (04-Jun-2019) |
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"You have to give credit to the builder for
putting this insanely difficult level
together, while still making it just
possible to make it through by yourself.
Unfortunately, it doesn't mean that this
was in any way enjoyable. Quite the
opposite in fact. First up, the painful
and close to impossible quad bike jump.
This had to have taken me close to 50
attempts to make successfully (and no, I'm
not exaggerating) and I was about to jack
it in until, by pure luck on my part, I
happened across a surprisingly reliable
method. I stopped on the penultimate
square on the last ramp, and the bike went
into turbo mode, launching the quad bike
into the opening. Sounds crazy, but for me
it worked. The shallow water timed run was
actually quite doable by comparison, but
the end puzzle with flipmaps is a
nightmare. I didn't realise until after
multiple reloads and a glance at the
reviews that there was a slightly simpler
way of doing it. Still, making things
extremely difficult for us casual players
to accomplish will not endear you to your
players, and in this case the visuals
aren't exciting either, although solid
enough. Not worth bothering with unless
you have masochistic tendencies." - Ryan (14-Dec-2018) |
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"It seems that this author decided to build unofficial levels only for very expert players. The impossible jump with the quad, the way to hide the first keycard, the impossible timed runs, the baffling flipmaps, the impossible to see movable blocks... Fortunately I still could download the savegames (thanks dmdibl) so I could finish, but even so this level is a torture for many players. Not worth to play." - Jose (05-Jan-2018) |
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"Sorry, but this level was very frustrating and pointless.
The puzzles did not make any sense, the whole map design
was perfectly made to make your gameplay annoyingly hard,
like jutting corners sneaky ramps etc. at every point you
need to maintain your speed. Near the beginning there is a
near impossible quad bike jump which I managed to do in
about 100 tries. I persevered through the next timed run
(at least that one made you think and was a fair run). But
then there is this very obscure and out of place puzzle in
a magical cave which teleports you all around and you have
no idea what is going on, also thanks to the tile trigger
which has no indication what it does. Even with the
brilliant tactic reviewer eTux told below I couldn't even
see the gate closing. I guess after that the level is
nearly over but I couldn't finish. This level was probably
made only for experts of the game but even so there should
be some hints in the cave room. Still I have to
congratulate the author to make impossible bike and
running tracks which are still somehow possible." - Nomad (25-Sep-2016) |
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"This level appeared at the end of the wishlist so I tried it. Gameplay & Puzzles: The best part of this game, I found the quad bike jumps and the insane timed runs to be quite fun, there are some good ideas here. Sadly the end comes quick but it's quite filled with good tasks. Enemies, Objects & Secrets: A few enemies, almost no objects (a few filling the scenery) and no secrets, not really much to say about. Atmosphere, Sound & Cameras: The architecture is good, sounds and cameras are minimal. Atmosphere is okay but nothing special. Lighting & Textures: The textures are a bit wallpapered all over, yet more okay than the lighting which is absent at all. Total: 3,5/10, some good ideas but overall not very good." - Rambo (07-Jan-2015) |
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"Inspired by Jay's recent review, I finally took this one on and as eTux is already describing, sometimes it is assumptions that scare you away. This is actually a fairly basic and compact Level of about 30 mins. The snake and baddy enemies die quickly and easily and drop a few key cards for progression in this Nevada desert setting. But then there are of course the three really tricky things that take patience and practice to accomplish: A jump with the Quad bike through a whole (about 30 attempts), a timed run with a running jump through shallow water (about 10 attempts) and a timed run around a series of corners (about 50 attempts for me). So at the end of the day, this one is only worth a look if you want to try your skills on these expert type of challenges, but frankly, there is probably better things to do with your time..." - MichaelP (24-Oct-2013) |
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"This TR3 Nevada level really should come with a difficulty warning - it's not easy. I'm sure I'm not the only person who's had to rely on some of the savegames so kindly posted with the walkthrough. If you like quad bike riding and have some expertise with it then you might really enjoy the challenge of getting it parked just right in an alcove. Regrettably, I've never been very good with vehicles (either in TR levels or in real life) so I made a complete hash of it." - Jay (23-Oct-2013) |
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"Very recently I discussed with another builder that difficulty really is a non-issue when you have the right strategy to master a task at hand, and that players usually get frustrated only if it's not the one they expect or don't employ frequently in other games (consequently not being as flexible as the task demands). Despite what this level having only 2 other reviews to date might indicate, there isn't anything remotely impossible or masochistic when you know what has to be done and some cause-and-effect relationships between certain elements within the game. That said - I would've ultimately had a higher opinion of the level if the author had made clear what those relationships are at least in the latter part of the game. While you can kind of figure out that you somehow have to land the quadbike in the high alcove, and it was obvious which door opened for the shallow-water timed run (and once it was - I actually thought the timed run itself was very creative and figuring out the best possible course rather fun), the flipmap room where you have to open a number of doors, the last one - timed, it became a bit too 'clever' for it's own good. There are no clues as to what switch or trigger-tile did and you will find out a door is timed only when it closes right before your nose. The flipmap would've been a highlight in a more specific type of level (a temple, magic castle, etc.), but it felt quite out of place in a desert setting. And I was not sure why it was necessary to have two ways of activating it other than to deliberately mislead the players (to anyone playing - in the obstacle free room there is differently coloured ceiling tile - if you touch that after triggering the timed door, it will take you on an alternative route to the necessary room that spares some of the running around the other route requires). The looks are solid, but don't really stand out for anything and could've ultimately used some polishing in the lighting department as well as texturing - but you will probably be distracted from them by the tasks anyway through the 20-30 minute net gaming course. I enjoyed it quite a deal when I knew what had to be done despite the difficulty involved, but the obscure elements near the end managed to spoil it a bit for me." - eTux (03-Oct-2011) |
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"Played this. Made the quad bike jump and the timed run. Didn't
manage the last run. Forgot this level. Replayed the last run
now, six months later, with the help of dmdibl's savegames
(thanks much to him). This level is not a good level, I think.
When falling through a floor you get to another area, on its
end you fall again through a floor and get to the area where
you fell through the floor in this room? M.C. Escher would be
happy to see this, but not the inclined player. Textures were
desert ones, not that bad. But I don't think this level is
recommendable, just because of the headaches it gives to you." - manarch2 (18-Dec-2010) |
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"Only memorable because of its painful quad bike jump and excruciating timed runs. Most players would be better served by the author's "The Grand Obelisk," where their efforts are rewarded by a topnotch level. This level can be summed up in a few sentences. Lara rides the quad bike and eventually makes a jump, followed by a difficult timed run requiring her to run through shallow water. Then there are a couple flip room effects to confuse players. There is a nasty timed run, and the level ends. The scenery and design are basic, and the enemies are fodder for Lara's guns. Vinci seems to have been experimenting with flip rooms, with flip tiles to stand on, and flip tiles to fall through, and flip tiles to jump through, and flip rooms to destroy any illusion of reality. Maybe this should be rated as a Test Level. Suitable for experts and masochists." - dmdibl (23-Nov-2009) |
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