Level reviews

"An interesting map with varied activities. A minor flaw, it prompts you to repeat a chunk while you can avoid it if you know. Also unlikely but possible is to miss a plaque and clog the return for it with pushblocks, so don't do that. We could get more in the end as the plot begins and ends on a cliffhanger, but there's a remake so I hope it has what's missing here." - DJ Full

"A short Floating Islands styled level. The changed title to 'Freezing' caused a bit of confusion as I thought there was a part one made before this, but it turns out the title is just a dated movie reference. The focus on this one is mostly on semi difficult platforming with a few late game enemies sprinkled within. There are stretched and sloppily applied textures along with tearing and visual bugs, but nothing gamebreaking. There is a mandatory hidden pathway that is a bit unfair on the player as the game offers up no clues that it's there. Along with that there is a lengthy pitch black pushblock maze and only one box of flares to tide you over, so make them count unless you want to stumble in the dark. Aside from that, I liked the level structure and the obstacle courses were very fun to traverse, forcing you to use the full brunt of Lara's moveset. Not very visually appealing level, but somewhat fun to play. Recommended for completionists." - LuxQSD

"As creepy and hellish as the original Floating Islands, not near as brilliant but still has its moments. The gameplay is okayish, it has good platforming and some brutal moments like a jump to a tile you can never see before you jump (if a pickup did not bug out and become visible I would not jump there), and a box puzzle in the dark with limited flares. Worthy enough to try." - Nomad

"Except for two aspects this is exactly the same as the "advanced" version which I played some months before but here you have a push block puzzle that in reality appears more of a "filler" than a serious challenge. Graphics are as good as you can expect with this engine but remember, at the time this was released it was a marvel. I think we have become somewhat jaded these days with the next Gen TR4 levels we are being offered so it's nice to go back to the roots, where it all began pre the Level Editor." - Torry

"Very glad to see another enjoyable TR2 adventure after a long period of time! It was such a cool experience to play the floating islands level inside this game. I got a little frustrated at first when I realized I couldn't use the Mist Plaque at the very beginning of the game. I was confused for a while until I found my way, thanks to the straightforward gameplay of this game. Thanks!" - Mehrbod

"Floating Islands, so expect a lot of jumping and then some. I'm quite well disposed towards this sort of setting, so I probably gleaned a bit more enjoyment out of this than others. There's a couple of neat gameplay ideas here (nifty jumping sequence and a short but brilliant zip line sequence) that succeed in keeping the entertainment level reasonable, but I did find the textures somewhat dull and repetitive, the block puzzle, although well thought out, was a bit tedious and the lighting is a bit too dark in some areas. Not bad at all for an early attempt, but really only for fans of the genre." - Ryan

"This level started in the surreal Floating Islands, and extra weapons like the uzis and grenade launcher. You have to find 2 mystic plaques, to open 2 doors and enter to a narrow passage with ziplines and lava. There is a dark maze, and to make things worse, there are movable blocks; but it isn't that hard as the maze is quite straightforward, you only have to find out how and where to move the blocks. Enemies are tough guys that throw knives, and statues that come to life. I found this level entertaining." - alan

"Although I've barely played a portion of the available custom levels, I believe that levels styled after the Floating Islands are few and far inbetween, which is what made this a fun raid. It's a lot simpler than the original level, yes, but not without it's own share of cunning - including one sneaky "invisible" passage near the beginning. Not overly taxing over all, and a good throwback to one of the most unique and otherworldly environments in TR history. The inside joke is that the acronym for this level is F:I-2, style in the same way as the then new Mission: Impossible 2 movie. 25 minutes. 05/17" - Treeble

"A short 15-20 minutes level with some puzzles. You have to collect two mystic plates, like those of tomb raider 2, and place them next to two gates to pass them. Some other puzzles are following... An entertaining level with a high difficulty." - Nuri

"A TR2 level along the lines of Floating Islands. On the plus side, it's got a bit of a challenge to it in places, the textures aren't bad (in an eyewateringly lurid green sort of way), and the Xian warriors and knife throwing chaps make for interesting enemies we don't see all that often. On the minus side, the block puzzle went on a bit and without flares would have been a complete chore. Not bad, but probably only for real fans of the genre." - Jay

"There is an interesting push-block puzzle here, but you can advance without the plate and when you cross the lava room and arrive to the closed door you notice that you've missed something and you have to go back (or reload) to the moveable blocks area to look for the missing item. That area is too dark, and I missed some more flares 'cause later, in the area with many buttons I have to light the way with pistol bullets. Even so the level is entertaining and there are interesting situations to solve. Textures are sometimes repetitive and the last rooms are excessively dark; I missed some more cameras. Only playable." - Jose

"A rather bland retread to a Floating Islands-style setting, with unappealing visuals(due to repetitive/stretched texturing), unconvincing level design, flat lighting(beyond one or two areas where it can be too dark to see without flares) and an atmosphere that just doesn't feel authentic. While I do admit that the gameplay wasn't too bad(with some rather fun agility tests) and the enemies of course fit the locale as well as you'd expect, having to encounter Bartolli's corpse rising from the dead and foreshadowing a fight with the dragon, only to have the game end right there, felt like nothing more than a massive tease and essentially rendered the entire experience pointless. So, unless you wanting to challenge yourself in the gameplay department here, it's only really worth playing through once out of sheer curiosity." - Ceamonks890

"Well that was great (not really) again floating islands and because I played the other version this was a tad easier to negotiate as I already knew what to do, but still... floating islands. This level is almost a duplicate of the previous one, a bit of a waist of time, in my book." - Gerty

"The first part of this level was essentially the same as this authors other Freezing Islands adventure;but it then morphed from a fun jumping level into a dark push-block labyrinth which,with flares being pretty thin on the ground,I found somewhat sadistic (and not a little tedious,if you should happen to exit the area without first picking up the all important disc).Two good uses of a zip line and some really smart acrobatic sequences succeeded in lifting this toward the end;but,this being from the earliest days of the level Editor,don't expect much in the way of atmosphere or lighting. An interesting early experiment." - Orbit Dream

"A Floating Islands level (nothing snowy about it at all). Lighting is non-present outside of one dark block-maze. Texturing is mostly okay, but there are various errors and lots of issues with wallpaper textures. The architecture does have some interesting structures, but a lot is set in maze- like areas.
After some exploration in the open start room you find the semi-hidden entrance to an interior area where most of the action takes place, unfortunately a lot of that is taken up by a block-puzzle, although it is at least a semi-creative one. Then it loops back to the start (which shows some good thought to minimise backtracking) and has some zip-lines and combat for the end. Nothing special, but it's solid enough and doesn't have any glaring issues in the gameplay." - Mman

"One has to admit there are at least two things wrong in the title of the level, especially when comparing it to the other Freezing Islands adventure. For one thing, the islands are of the same substance as its TR2 inspiration instead of ice (maybe it's still autumn here?), I fail to see the movie reference (an insider joke?) and come to think of it, I'm not sure why it's Freezing Islands 2 as well - was there a prequel no one told me about? That aside, this is a nice snack for a Floating Islands fan like me, especially on its native engine! As said by the other reviewers - both versions are best played back to back to best appreciate the similarities and differences. Essentially it is the same level as far as the map goes, with the more obvious difference between the two being the looks. The texturing here is nothing exemplary really, but the mistakes stood out less with original texture set. As later games (February Freeze, et al.) prove - the floating islands *can* freeze over rather successfully, but I must admit, I preferred the traditional version looks-wise among these two. The differences in gameplay and difficulty are not that huge really - a timed run in the Advanced version is replaced with a block puzzle, that surprisingly wasn't too intimidating and actually rather clever (though I imagine for some players it could be quite easy to miss out on that mystique plaque hidden beneath one of the blocks). You meet more of the knife-throwers here, and more Xi'an guardians in the Advanced version, and maybe a few more subtle differences are present, but that's about it. It is enjoyable enough to played through twice though, so deserves to be given a chance, especially if you're a fan of the setting, the engine or just want to give something mildly challenging a shot." - eTux

"I didn't think there are TR 2 levels out there I haven't played yet, but a closer look on the site told me there are indeed seven or so, including this and the advanced version of this level. This level was in general quite fun to play, as the climbing parts were really tricky but always doable. But there are several things I found pretty odd on this level, as there was a pushblock that had the same black texturing as background and horizon, then there were several badly applied (mostly because of wallpaper effect) textures, the dark room with the pushblock puzzle was both confusing and too long, I was glad when I got through after some time with pure luck. Trial and error puzzles aren't really what people like, so future builders (or the builder himself), make rather logic puzzles than ones like this one. Elseway a solid and a little above-average TR 2 level that last around 30 minutes, 20 without the block puzzle." - manarch2

"My kind of level - crisp and quick at about 30 minutes and with a few fun agility tests and some clever push block puzzling - all set in green floating island style and sort of Oriental texturing. The architecture does not look very nice and is not realistic at all, but in this case it is all about function and not about form. I guess the push block area could have been less dark, but the flares were enough for me to find my way around. And to see those good old enemies again was great fun!" - MichaelP

"Somehow I played this level later, than the "Advanced" level. I mean it's the forbear of that level, because of this is the same like that just with weaker gameplay and lower textures. Many block pushing in the darkness I think. I prefer the other one level." - Obig

"A good introduction to this author that can be played in a half hour. The opening setting is somewhat confusing, and it is hard to figure out how to begin because of a sleight of hand that blocks players from seeing what is there. But soon one gets into clever traps and jump sequences, and the game becomes fun. This is the point of the author's work, as architecture tends to be crude. In "Freezing Islands 2: Advanced," there is a timed run to a door, and then another one through a dark maze. "Freezing Islands 2: The Movie" is an earlier version, from when the unofficial editor displayed transparent slopes. Its textures are taken from the "Floating Islands" level in TR2. Instead of the timed run, there is a push block puzzle that takes place in total dark, so that Lara must conserve flares. The "Advanced" version has more Xian warrior statues that come to life; "The Movie" version has knife throwers. The differences are interesting, but except for texturing and a few enemies, the two versions have almost parallel game play. The more recent "Advanced" version looks better, so I would recommend it, though "The Movie" version is maybe slightly easier. This approach is a bit like writing one review, and passing it off for two levels." - dmdibl