Level reviews

"This level tries to establish a Venice atmosphere but without succeeding thought. There are a lot of enemies to fight with and you are given some weapons for help, however I couldn't find any uzis, besides the fact that uzi ammo is scattered within the level. Puzzles were not very intriguing, since most of them required you to move boxes, and one of those was really frustrating (in the room with two large medipacks). Sadly, there are no secrets to find, even thought the rooms were pretty big and it would be easy to hide a secret or two. Finally, some rooms were not textured appropriately and the creator provides the player with flares, but does not include any dark areas or different lightning tones at all. Conclusion: Venices Gatehouse by levyhgb gives the chance of killing some enemies inside a somehow-related Venice building. However, the level lacks some principle aspects such as secrets, lightning creativity and interesting puzzles to solve." - TRTheoP

"Short TR2 level that will have you occupied for around 20 minutes with not all that much to challenge the seasoned raider. Push blocks are easy to discern and the jumping sequences quite simple. Enemies are numerous so you need to be on your toes. Textures fade in and out in this but other than that a pleasant easy raid." - Torry

"A rather short level done with the Venice textures and enemies. Quite a lot of enemies I may add. Pushing blocks and getting a key, shooting numerous of bad boys and their dogs is what you do in here. Although using an underwater lever to open up a trapdoor way up, is a bit farfetched in my opinion." - Gerty

"A short and rather fast-paced incursion in a rather standard Venice level, a couple of blocks to pull around, some easy platforming to reach levers, etc. Perhaps a bit too combat heavy, but then again, that's not too off considering this is a TR2 custom level. Generally speaking it's a good looking level though, despite the very simplistic approach. 20 minutes. 05/17" - Treeble

"I'm not a TR2 setup expert but take audio and exe from Manuscript of the Andes to enjoy proper ambience in this one - however only that, because there are no local tracks, and for such a heavily guarded place at least that low string danger track is obligatory - you know, you enter a room with two stick-wielding guys and... ominous bass: dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun-dun -> repeat -> repeat once more, overlain with synth oboe. Also, despite of very short duration the author managed to force repassaging up and down the hall - never make it artificially long, the time invested in that setup could be spent on making another epic room, or at least fixing that weird ceiling in the last corridor. Also, always make sure you know how the collision goes because we need to push the block around the table instead along a straight line - I hope it's an oversight because if it's intended it's just textbook mean. One unique place of the level is chandeliers - I don't really know what happened to them, are they buggy or intended like that, but I've never seen such thing so far. SUMMARY: This little corner of of the TRLE world feels quite comfy and definitely solid as for the first try. Take a look." - DJ Full

"Judging by the title, I was expecting a relaxing walk along the canals. Instead I ended up exploring a villa, pushing blocks around and avoiding strategically placed wall blades. I did have fun blasting windows and admittedly it was a brief slice of nostalgia." - Ryan

"This is a beta level. Game is ending to error message (error to load level 2). This is still nice and short level at Venice. There is nothing to see so play only if you want to see authors first level." - vienna

"While not too bad for a debut, it's not exactly a particularly invigorating Venice-themed level to go through either, with rather bland gameplay, cheap enemy placement at certain points, repetitive and at times stretched texturing, flat lighting and empty rooms which can contain objects that only really feel added in to give the player something to look at, rather than feeling like a more natural part of the environment you're traversing through. At the end of the day, I would only recommend this towards those who are curious to see how levyhgb started out as a builder and nothing more, as his latter releases under the TR1 engine are worth far more of your hard-earned time, than this one can ever hope to match up to." - Ceamonks890

"Entirely derivative and predictable sub-Venetian shooter. Better spend the 20 or so minutes that this level lasts on something more rewarding. How long has it been since you visited your auntie Enid? There you go, hop along. Nothing to see here." - Mulf

"A positive and strong beginning here from levyhgb. It's quite a simple but fun Venice themed level here. There's the usual TRII venice baddies combat and simple pushblock puzzles to deal with. Lighting and texturing are pretty good for a starting level and I'd describe the over all experience has quite fast and fun. All I all I netted 23 minutes from Venices Gatehouse. It's a good start for the author and I look forward to playing their future releases. Stiggy :)" - TheStig

"I took a little break from the btb 2011 levels and thought I'll try some little levels that were released and I didn't play them. I tried this level because I like venice levels. Even if they are not very professional! This level was pretty fun for me. The places were good, the gameplay was easy and the textures weren't too bad. I never needed the walkthrough except for the part when I finished it! I didn't know if I finished the level because this... thing appeared on my screen and the game crashed! It actually reminded me of TR2 a bit. I thought that the builder put the enemies in annoying places. For example, when you climb to a high area then an enemy would appear on the bottom and shoot you and then you would have to come back down and kill him which would take quite some health! Overall it was a good level and recommended for a short and easy raid." - afzalmiah

"Not bad this debut; always it's good to know that new builders appear in the world trying to give us some fun. This venice/shooter level is short, but very playable; perhaps excessive enemies and no much effort in the lights and the textures, but playable anyway. Are there the uzis in the game? I couldn't find it. Many enemies but also enough guns, ammo and medipacks. Simple puzzles with pushables, correct cameras and objects; no much more to say; only give encouragement to build better and longer levels in the future. Welcome to the builders world!" - Jose

"I have always had fond memories of the Venetian levels from TR2 and was actually quite eager to resurrect my raiding career with a stroll down memory lane. The result was somewhat mixed. It's simple, straight forward raid of about half an hour or so and the only thing that should pose as a hassle would be the(at times) copious amounts of enemies. In terms of puzzles we are presented with the locating of one single key, a generous amount of pushable blocks and plenty of switches/levers. A bit variety on this part would have done the level a world of good as there is little gameplay to speak of otherwise. The enemies are those you would expect to see in a level of this kind, mainly thugs with clubs and guns, dobermans and a couple of rats. Unfortunately most of these came en masse and some of them even appeared as Lara was making her way through a trap gauntlet. Personally I would say that it is an unfair disadvantage to have someone fire at her while she's trying to navigate through a trap(especially one that requires perfect timing and precision). There is also a small selection of traps that are generally easy to avoid. The textures are those of a Venice level, although like some other reviewers have pointed out I too miss the canals. Some typical beginners' mistakes can be seen in the application of textures and the use of light is rather flat. The atmosphere suffers greatly under this and presents itself as dull and uninspired. I couldn't find any secrets or the uzis, despite the abundance of ammo for the latter. It's a fair attempt and a pretty ok level, but there's still plenty of room for improvement on part of the builder." - Selene

"TR 2 levels get more and more today, but this one - I think - wasn't very good. First of all the texturing, while more or less ambient in most of the rooms, is sometimes badly executed (streched and non-streched textures on the same wall, e.g.), the rooms are too big and there were simply too many enemies. Gameplay was mostly trap-solving and block pushing, quite nice but the block that has to be pushed all around the room because a chair blocked the way which was very unnecessary and the tedious up-and-down in the same room prevented from a higher score in this category - simply too many switches had to be pulled." - manarch2

"Well, I am indeed a fan of TR2-Levels and Venice is always an interesting location, but this level is a little anemic. No canals, no water, empty rooms, monotonous lighting and the short playing time let arise no big play fun to me. Though the inclined player finds enough ammunition and Medipacks and sees some well textured rooms, but anyhow this level is neither fish nor fowl. However, it is a debut level and as such he is not so bad at all." - Scottie

"This short level uses the TR2 Venice textures to decorate a couple of oversized and rather boxy rooms. Lara has climb some rafters, pull some wall levers and shoot plenty of Bartoli baddies and their dogs. There are also two blade traps and several push blocks and that's about it when it comes to game play. The lightning is bright and flat for the most part. The atmosphere is on the dull side. I didn't find any secrets and finished in about 20 minutes." - Blue43

"Despite being entitled 'Great Wall' in the save slots, this is another trip to TR2 Venice, complete with the obligatory henchmen, thugs and dogs round every corner and some swinging from chandeliers and shooting out windows. It's short and very basic, but does manage to avoid most of the glaring errors of a debut level." - Jay

"And yet another TR2 Venice level! This one is straight-forward, almost simplistic in its gameplay, lots of enemies but they shouldn't cause too many problems as there are plenty of medi-packs about. No timed runs and little in the way of agility. It has a bit of the feel of the original but the areas are too large for the 'back-alley' cosiness that was one of the best parts of the Venice level. I don't know about other players but my statistics were blanked out at the end so I can't say how long the level is, I would estimate about 30 minutes or so. This is one to go for if you like TR2, Venice and shooters." - Diz

"A disappointing tr2 style that's supposed to be Venice. First annoying thing are the enemies ! Every room offers a bunch of old tr2 enemies and they are hard to kill. Every pulled switch, opened door, pushed block activates new VERY annoying enemies ! I barely made it till the end of the level because I didn't had enough med packs. I had to load previous save stats and try to kill the enemies without being hurt. I would say that the main gameplay element is shooting enemies! Better class this level as a shooter! The puzzles are very simple. Find a key --> open door --> find a switch --> open door. Generally a basic puzzle element connecting doors and creating gameplay. The block pushing in the big room was boring...Its always a game killer if I have to push a movable block too long :S The design of the rooms was also, like the gameplay, very simple and with not much imagination. Big rooms that are supposed to be something like a Italian manor ? I guess that the author hoped that players wouldn't notice the ˝hidden˝ pushable blocks placed in the walls that had the same textures... Some of the blocks had wrong lighting. But since this is the authors first level, we should not even expect more." - MpGrill

"Small and short TR2 level with a setting similar to Venice, where Lara has essentially the task of shooting all the enemies she meets. The gameplay is linear and smooth, made slightly more dynamic by the presence of various enemies (however there are no hard parts where they attack in many, as had happened with the level Florianopolis); for the rest besidess a few traps (such as knives and swords like in Bartoli's Cove) there are no hard jumps or any time trials. The puzzles are basic: in the level we have to find some levers, move some block and find a key, but none of the objectives will be difficult and none of them will be hidden. I found no secrets. A strong point are the enemies: gangsters with baseball bats, dogs and armed men, while we have as weapons the 2 pistols, the shotgun, the automatic pistols (ammo in large quantities; although there are various uzi ammo I have not found the Uzi, perhaps I didn't look very well or maybe there aren't really). Soundtracks from TR2, nice atmosphere, good use of flyby and nearly sufficient light-textures. In conclusion, a small simple level, funny just for the good number of enemies that makes the gameplay more dynamic even if the rest is rather static, otherwise for the rest there are puzzles with some blocks and levers that anyone would be able to solve. Surely the author should produce something more consistent in roder to appreciate a level, but as beginning is not so bad, it's on the right way; let's hope the best for the future!" - Steven Svorticher

"I finished it easily, is not a very hard level, I played it only once and I did not found any secrets, enemies are good because there are many but you don't get exhastued of them, very well done in that way, meanwhile the objects, I do not understand why you've put uzi ammo und the uzis weren't placed anywhere! The automatic pistols are not very hidden but you have to be fast to not be hurted by the blades. On the other hand, the cameras you used to show doors openings are not bad at all, they're simple, but very well placed and used. Compared with another disastrous custom level, in my opinion the textures were very cute and good, and there was not a monotony of lighting during the level in the final part there is a transition of lighting that I personally loved Average: 6 Not bad but could be even better with imagination." - Daniel

"Aside from a notable absence of canals,you get everything you would expect from an old-school TR2 Venice adventure in this short level. Pushable blocks;climbable chandeliers;an underwater swim;dogs;statues with moving swords;thugs;and lots and lots of gunmen. Actually,it's really only a Shooter,as the puzzles are very straightforward (and the camera clues,although kind,are quite superfluous);and progression is only temporarily slowed by the numerous bullet-ridden encounters. Textures are used competently,construction is rather simplistic,while lighting is basically applied.It takes around 20 minutes,and has an anti-climactic ending;but it's still a fun and nostalgic little blast,all the same." - Orbit Dream

"A fairly brief level of less than 20 minutes using Venice textures and (rather many) Venice enemies - baddies. dogs and rats and on average you get to kill one every minute of net gaming time. Besides that it is all fairly straightforward, but not badly designed with a bit of push block action to get up and down and around the few rooms." - MichaelP

"I've rated this fairly averagely because without the canals and gondolas it resembled the more tedious Venetian parts of Bartoli's Hideout (my least favourite parts), with a few climbs onto the chandeliers and the thugs and gun-touting henchmen. Also some of the rooms were too large and lacking in detail. I would have preferred more shotgun ammo and never found the Uzis. But I didn't require any more medipacks than those I collected, even though I occasionally had to reload to get into a better position for the baddies to reserve health. Not bad if you like a shoot 'em up game with little opportunity for exploration. The end, assuming that was the end, left me a little perplexed - pull a ceiling block and run over some grates beyond a door you just opened before the screen went black and some white blocks/thick lines (presumably corrupt text meant to be the stats?) appeared." - High Priestess

"A simple TR2 outing that takes a stab at gameplay, with gun battles, pull switch, gun battle, move block, gun battle, open door, gun battle. Unavoidably, Lara loses a lot of health, but the author provides sufficient medipacks among the fallen so that Lara isn't really at risk, and some good levels have succeeded doing the same thing. Lara gets magnums and shotgun. But what irked me was the design. Lara encounters a lot of surreal environments, but this one rubbed me the wrong way. Why are there spikes across one side of a living area? Lara pulls out a block, but can't move it to the side because of a wide collision with a chair, so she has to pull the block around three sides of a "table." Everything felt artificial. But okay for being a first attempt." - dmdibl