Level reviews

"Marvelous. There are quite a few things here that not only I don't recall ever seeing before, but I don't know how they were achieved in the first place so I was definitely mind blown. The planetary, for one, where you have to "collide" with the orbiting planets to get transported to mystical and great-looking places (loved the constellation objects and enemies, by the way), and later on the crystals which you charge with different colors, even combining them, to eventually power up the more tombraidery atlantean machine you come across. There's a whole lot of underwater exploration through ruins scattered on seabed (with unlimited air supply, fortunately) but you also get some majestic dry underground places as well. You'll definitely need a walkthrough for some of these sequences, but in a life where time is our rarest supply you should be taking the guided experience regardless — G&D gracefully paved the way for us, as usual. 120 minutes, 8 secrets. 10/25" - Treeble

"This game officially marks my first ever 10 on gameplay & puzzles. This is brilliantly well done, worthy of being neck to neck to the official classic TR4. There were no tedious gameplay, no over the top backtracking and everything makes sense. Every puzzle in this game, makes sense, and that's something that I loved about it. I think this game also marks my ever first real enjoyment of a full underwater level, it was an absolute joy to traverse, explore and puzzle solve underwater (whilst having infinite breath bar! - I'm sure Lara was using an invisible scuba mask). It also marks the first time that I see the different save system! And oh wow, how I'm so glad that I picked that up. It spices up the game so much because you need to be extra careful, even though the author was extremely friendly with the numbers of crystal saves you find. A big of a negative impact that I had was the repetitive traps, they could be annoying at some points and it was just a matter of a bit of a trial and error, nonetheless, I'm not going to lower my 10 score to a 9 because of small annoyances. Everything else shines through and completely negates the repetitive traps. Planetarium was probably my favourite level in all aspects. Scenery, music, enemies and fantastic innovating puzzles. My 9 on the second parameter, was simply because sometimes the enemies were over used and I didn't find anything of special from the secrets. Found two by myself, but the author is generous with the pickups throughout the game (generous but not too much! Still got to keep track of how many medi-packs you can use) To summarize: The puzzles are innovating and very sense driven. The sceneries are breathtaking and has a nostalgia feeling into it (uses a lot of enemies/mechanics from classic Tomb Raider games). Lightening and textures are really perfect and the music it's superb. Absolutely a masterpiece. Old but gold." - Zhyttya

"It was all just dandy until the trapdoor in the lightbeam cave. That thing got me stuck for almost two hours until I checked the walkthrough and found out it's one of 64 possible combinations, no clue given. What was the point in including this in an otherwise genious levelset is beyond my mind. But so is all the prodigious complexity and coherence I could admire instead, so I'm not rating this any lower than 10. BUILD MORE!!!" - DJ Full

"A very well made custom level . Gameplay may be challenging at times but not overly difficult and there are a few puzzles that are very well put together and fun to solve ! There are some cool little things in this level, that I have seen in one or two other trle's , but I especially loved how they were used here ! My only issue with this level is the lighting , there are a few areas were it's not too bad , but for a lot of the game it's a bit flat and can take away from the atmosphere , which is largely good . This is a really well made and original trle , with a classic , almost TR1 feel . Highly recommended !" - AaronD

"At the beginning you have the option to use the regular saving method or choose to use the save crystals. Naturally, I chose to stick with the normal method. What a brilliant game this was. Gorgeously crafted surroundings, great gameplay and nice secrets. The main focus here is puzzle solving as enemies rarely make an appearance. The best puzzles were the symbol puzzle and the obelisk sequences. I was sad when it ended as I was enjoying it so much. Definitely recommended." - Ryan

"It is quite a rare occurence that a custom adventure manages to convey and immerse you into a great storyline. This works wonderfully here not only as the overall scheme, but also through several highly original and creative ideas around the task you have to accomplish as a player throughout, like the caving in and flooding of the temple, the change from day to night and of course the complex crystal-color-symbol puzzle that it all comes down to in the end. The 2.5 hours spent here also grow nicely on you, with a bit of a slower, more exploration oriented start that was not entirely my cup of tea and then more action with a few tougher battles that require tactics and higher complexity jumping and puzzle solving, such as the re-assembling of the pillar. The Planetarium part had a certain reminiscence for me to the Astrodelica series and was a nice excursion between the Greek temples and the Atlantean machine. There are also 8 secrets to be had and if you do not feel a great sense of accomplishment when you grab that Scion at the end then I do not know which game you have been playing. Wonderful stuff and a clear highlight in custom level history!" - MichaelP

"Another touch of originality in this adventure. Not in Peru this time in this sequel of "Remains of the Empire" but in a sunken city in Greece. And what a sunken city. The design of the sunken ruins is exellent and I can just imagine the nombers of rooms to create this sunken world. Like the previous episode the gameplay and the verious news NG features are awsome with sometimes some things we are never imaginated in a TR episode (the puzzle of the planets is so GREAT). So you you search an adventure whis totally news gameplay don't forget this game. We have a real Greece atmosphere whis a mix of tr4, tr5 and sometimes alanteans levels. Great mix. Like Remains of the Empire, the levels are not very dark and I have very enjoying to do something whis the Scion discovered in the previous episode. So to conclude another originale adventure by Francesco. Very recommended." - Bigfoot

"this is a good level although i had a hard time diving in the first level and i had a nerve-wracking moment at the end but i enjoyed every bit of it recommended." - janachorider

"This is one of the most exciting levels with really nice gameplay and good puzzles. The atmosphere is great, the lighting is nice too, few compacts and few easy traps. I didn't like something at the start. You found yourself in a big area and sometimes it is hard to remember where to go or where you came from. Something else which was annoying, is that many switches didn't have camera shots of what was triggered. The best thing about this level are the puzzles. They are well hinted and smart, but sometimes you couldn't find the clues easily. Also, I didn't understand the crysal puzzle in the end. Anyway, the point is that the game is fantastic and it reminds a lot of a classic TR game. Sure the advandages are more than the drawbacks. I strongly suggest it. One of my favourite so far." - Rainmaker

"Apart from having to back and fro that did prolonged the gameplay and didn't add anything extra to the gameplay, this is quite an adventure. I did got lost quite a few times as not everything was clear for me what to do, but exploring is indeed high on the list here. Nice puzzles and well placed enemies, then of course, the atmosphere, very good indeed. Glad one could choose to make saves the regular way, as I just hate the save crystals. A big part of the first level is underwater but don't worry you will be dry later. Take your time (as I did) it is worthwhile to have a good look at everything." - Gerty

"This opens with a giant infinite air underwater section ala Tomb Raider Underworld. It's pulled off well and creates an impressively giant space, and there's some nice use of fixed cameras at the edges to communicate boundaries and make impressive views. The land segments are also well-done, although the low-resolution of the old Tomb Raider 4 textures did stick out in the context of such huge rooms here, however, the use of music suggested there was an intentionally nostalgic atmosphere being attempted here. The later segments are more land-based and there's some especially interesting texture, lighting and object use in the Planetarium section. The lighting did seem a bit flat in some parts of Prometheus Palace, sometimes this was because an impressive lighting effect is activated later, but other times that's not the case. That's the closest thing to a visual flaw though.
There's an interesting decision to make save crystals an optional feature here, they can be used infinitely and are only ever a couple of minutes apart at most so it's actually not really that different to going with normal saves; it didn't really add anything, but it didn't take away from the pack either. In the first half with the giant underwater area it can be quite easy to overlook things but if you're careful it's intuitive and varied. There was one Hydra fight I found maddening at first, but it was easy after I changed tactics, and, given the ammo provided at that part I'll give the benefit of the doubt that this was intentional. There was also a trapdoor where the tactic suggested in the walkthrough didn't work whatever I tried, but I thankfully found an alternative way; I'm not sure if this was a bug or if I was just really unlucky. The second half after you leave the underwater area is also full of interesting tasks, and the Planetarium has some especially cool ideas. I thought the clue for the last task was a bit oblique though. Another excellent level set from this author with a sense of scale that sets it apart from others." - Mman

"I loved this level. I was so sad when it finished. I enjoyed every bit. I think the best part was the originality the fact the first part is all under water was so fun and very well made. the only reason i gave the gameplay and puzzles a 8 is because i found it to be a little too easy. that can be a great thing though because most custom levels are so difficult it is not even fun. I sooo wish it was longer. THIS IS A MUST PLAY" - AKlara

"How nice it was to not have to worry about having to breathe when swimming! I did enjoy much of this level, however, I am so glad I did not attempt it prior to the walkie being written. There are many head scratching puzzles and a few "what do I do now?" moments. Francesco has devised some very clever and unique puzzles to figure out, although the pillar puzzles defied explanation as to which pillar goes where. I was totally perplexed during the last puzzle with the light beams and color crystals. I do have to say that if I had gone with the save crystals in the beginning, I probably would have been frustrated in some parts. The four fire hydras were way too hard! The walkie gave me a tip that helped tremendously. The atmosphere was great underwater, but I didn't care for the Prometheus Palace textures. I was hoping to see more beautiful Greek architecture, but there were only a few areas like this. Most areas were plain. The traps were great, and honestly, the entire level was quite challenging, but never impossible. Very good job!!" - Shandroid

"So what an amazing adventure. I must congratulate you for your creative work, this level was really original and entertaining. First level made the difference, an almost only underwater travel. It was big enough for you to get lost, specially when you begin and everything is unexplored. The decoration was beautiful, and the riddles interenting. The enemies in this level were the less annoying of it all to my surprise. Next levels are also enjoyable, the structure of the buildings and the different areas make them pretty much complete. I loved the Planetarium part were you are sent to different starry parts of the universe, everything was very shiny. However there were some part that made me get on my nerves (although this is not a bad thing). For once the enemies were more challenging than the estandart, and the boobie traps were veried. The last puzzles were cool, besides they made me really go to the walkthrough to check what I was doing. Specially the one of the pillars. The only thing that got me a little bit "dissapointed" (if it can be called that) was the end. I was kind of expecting something special, but nothing happened. Nevertheless, this has been a remarkable journey and I hope this level gets to de Hall of Fame. Thanks for such great work!" - Minaru

"In the very beginning we can choose if we want to do it the easier way; the decision only to be able to save the game at given points as we know it from TR3 isn't that hard, there save-crystals enough. So we found ourselves in a large underwater-area with several sunken buildings. It's great atmosphere, there is no need to hurry, Lara has supernatural powers and can't run out of air while diving. This 1st sequence is a bit unclear. If you eventually have found your way in this quite confusing environment gameplay will become straight forward. The tasks in this area are chracterisized by some very funny draining and flooding based on absolutly excellent, innovative and creatice gameplay, spiced up with timed challenges over some poles (with loading-bars known from the last adventure by Taras), some well done swinging over timed burners and spike-traps. Lara is alos haunted by frogmen, the good old harpun-gun plays a role again. Task in this 1st sequence is to gather several keys that will create crystals; all in all a conventional concept, that always will succeed concept wwhen supported byexcellent gameplay, embedded into great environment. The author developped an individual style in this context I liked very much. The planetarium-level is more demaning. In the center of it we find a tricky combination of timed platforms, finally we have to touch planets to be teleported to several spheres - this part is the creative highlight of the adventure. The elevator platforms known by Taras' "she" are appearing in this sequence again and are pushing gameplay. Eventually when proceeding through 'Prometheus palace' it becomes obvious, that the builder was growing while building this one. Gameplay and puzzles are becoming more and more complex (e.g.: column-puzzles and the light-beam). I really missed some more hints in this section, the player is no more kept in mind in the end. A real grat one!!" - Christian

"Well, I'm astonished in different ways: both by how well done this level is and by the over-excessive complexity of the final part. I did like the settings and the lighting, most of the underwater parts, most of the puzzles and the diversity, namely the Planetarium part. On the other hand I have a pet peeve against knightsmen on horses because they take so long and so many medipacks to defeat and feel like just an obstacle in every TR game that chooses to use them (especially when there's a sadistic menace that instead of two they could have been six!). I simultaneously admired the creativeness of the final part with the characters, the crystals and the light beams and hated it because it was so complex I could compare it to some chess championship where the players are in even worse shape because they aren't used to playing this kind of chess. All in all, I'd recommend it but say: keep it a little lower, please, for we like to enjoy ourselves whilst playing..." - Jorge22

"This is an ambitious project using the latest building tools and providing a number of different looks for the player. The opening segment takes place almost entirely underwater, but Lara is provided gills as well as lungs. The most enjoyable part for me was the planetarium, with several challenging timed runs and revolving globes that transported you elsewhere whenever you got in a position to let them hit you. I started becoming quite weary, however, during that totally confusing finale where you have to turn all these obelisks to divert light beams and create colored crystals. My eyes were glazing over by this time, so I mechanically followed the instructions in Dutchy's walkthrough without trying to make any sense of it all, so I could just get through and move on to something else. There are some truly innovative touches here, however, so this release is highly deserving of its stellar numbers. Get ready for several hours of mind-bending entertainment." - Phil

"Now, here's a level, congratulations and thank you! I loved in special the Planetarium part; so different, beautiful and engaging! But all about this game was very good and well imagined. From me, a whole round of 10s and a hearty recommendation." - Josey

"As with his previous level, the builder has given the player the option of normal savegames or savegame crystals to add an extra frisson to the whole proceedings. I did my blood pressure a favour and chose the easier option - I find I get sufficient stress just raiding as usual. Lara starts the main game underwater, but miraculously she can breathe as though on land. I still found myself holding my breath a lot though - just habit. It's a long game, with the action underwater/ on land about 50/50. It's also a brilliant game, with some truly excellent and innovative puzzles and a good mix of traps, agility tests, timed runs and enemies, mostly readily achievable for players with a reasonable amount of experience. Even for those less experienced raiders, I would strongly recommend giving this a go, even if you have to wait for the walkthrough and beg the occasional save game in the stuck threads. It's such a good game altogether that I would hate to think of anyone missing it. Hard to single out any particular section in the overall excellence, but I would perhaps have to plump for the Planetarium level - it really is something rather different. Outstanding." - Jay

"There's been a while since I played such a good level and I really enjoyed this one. What I think is needed for these levels, are more clues for the way and the puzzles and surely more helpful cameras. Let's take it from the start. The underwater atmosphere was perfect, with great lighting. Of course you will feel lost in that huge area, but you will find your way. Maybe the author could give more clues on where to go first, because many times I ended up somewhere where I would need some items which I didn't have. Very annoying. Anyway, it is nice going around these rooms. I liked the hyndra bosses. They are one of my favourite. Also, I din't like that there were so many levers. I think they were pointless. As you are making progress the gameplay becomes more interesting with a mixure of nice traps. They seem very hard, but they are not. It is easy to make it through them without getting any damage. In the last levels you will find some very nice puzzles, like the one with the four columns and the greek letters on them and after that a high room with parts of a column with letters. I think the author should give more clues about the solution of this one. I didn't think it immediately to look at the right column in the previous room to find the right order. Maybe a flyby or few words would make it more clear. I got angry when I managed to place the parts and I realised that what I did was wrong. Also, another puzzle that I couldn't find any clues was the placing of the colourful crystals. I couldn't understand which crystal to place on which pedestal. Anyway, I think that the puzzles of these levels are some of the best. They are not like use a switch find the door, use another switch, take the key, open the door and use another switch for another door. There were some easy combats too, in order to make a greater gameplay. The lighting was very good and normal at the most parts. Some of the textures were not very goodlooking. I think that some of them could be replaced. they were not bad, but they could be better. i don't have problem about them because they were reminding me of classic TR games. The music was well chosen, but I think that sometimes the tracks were not the best fit. Most of them are from TR1. I love TR1 music, but I think the author could use few better tracks for some parts. All in all, it is a level which will drag your interest, with very nice puzzles and surely a not at all boring gameplay." - Sarikman

"Start, Lost City of Eos, Flooded Caves (8-9-9-9) - 60 minutes: This level starts with a fantastic view on a large underwater setting with lots of ruins and caves to explore (luckily no airholes are needed) and one might feel lost directly when getting into this level. I still had the feeling that the map felt a little blocky especially as the flyby went out of the sea. With only a little amount of exploration one finds a start and can actually have a lot of fun here. The builder has left the player the option of two different save systems - the "normal" one and a crystal save system - I choose the latter and at some places I really regretted it, as for a gameplay without worries the builder should have placed some more of them and it really was annoying sometimes to do the same tasks again and again. The gameplay itself is not overly impressive but is challenging and varied and thus enough decent to make this an entertaining game. I didn't really like the hydra fights with a very limited space to navigate, but I found a working way to finally kill them and was quite satisfied when they are all finished off. There were some interesting small block puzzles and I really liked the pillars that crashed down when pulling the block under them away. The timed run in the drained room also was interesting. Here and there I wished the cameras would have been a little more clear in showing which door opened as showing only a screen of the door doesn't really help in such a huge area.
Prometheus Palace, Planetarium (9-10-10-9) - 90 minutes: The start of these levels is rather dull with a few underwater caverns and not much to do but shooting a few sea hags, but eventually you reach the scion room and then the fun really begins in this game! After a short time you'll reach the planetarium level and the gameplay in this part really makes up for the not overly gripping first levels. The central idea is to jump into four different planets to find a gem each in there - especially liked the room where you had to free four boulders in order to lower one of the gems - there was a bug in it preventing me to go on and forcing me to play the level again, but then everything worked and I really enjoyed this level fully. The space atmosphere is really well worked out here and I liked the platforms coming out of the wall and the up-and-down moving ones. After returning to Prometheus Palace the Atlantean theme that showed already in the Scion room picks up now and merges extremely well with the overall Greecian theme. The placing of classic enemies as the horsemen really fitted well. While the first half of this game was about exploration this second half is strictly puzzle based with a whole lot of imaginative usages of pillars (the five-pillar puzzle was hard but I was very happy when I finished it) and the usage of the rays and the prisms was really ingenious. I also loved the room where you change the colors of the crystals - this was a welcome twist to classic gameplay. The only critism here is that some puzzles could have been a little more clear in terms of what the actually goal is, as I could imagine other solutions of them.
All in all I found the 2:30 hours spent in this game worth playing - the quality of the levels pick up nicely in the 2nd half with a lot of unique puzzles and a realistic setting. Highly recommended - but rather use the normal save system than the new one." - manarch2

"A very well designed game, I loved every minute of it. A wide variety of tasks, from sea to temples and universe. What I did miss were camera's here and there as it wasn't always too clear what happened after completing a puzzle or throwing a switch and many times the door you opened was many rooms back. This could get annoying when you have to go through those traps every time looking. I hoped for more horsemen on horses, but I got only 2 ;( The light beam puzzle was a bit obscure as one of the beams wasn't working/visible, so the clue where to turn the next obelisk was unclear. Texturing, overall pretty descent, but I also noticed a lot of misrotated triangles. Hope to see more of this builder and I'm certainly going to have a look at his previous work. I was glad to have some help from the stuck forum, because the puzzles certainly weren't easy." - Dutchy

"I have the pleasure to review first this piece off art game .....this is a multileveled game .... with many tasks on it .... have some tricky jumps....... some fire trapps.. some tight time runs ...... all this at variated locations indoor and outdoor too .... i would ge give 10 in the line .... just i cannot. cause enemyes at this game come in big numbers .... not very fair placed ...the 4 hidras fight was very hard and tendious they was placed at 4 margins off the battle zone .... all throw at u fire balls . and iff hit u one - is game over -reload ...... dificult to pay atention wich trow at u the fire ball u look at the front one and in mean time ur hit from behind ... u need to run in circle .... shot them and avoid the fire blasts .... this was very difficult part . also alot off slicers combined with spike trapps wich lower ur healt fast ....... also 2 horseman . ok u get some medipacks .but need to pay atention cause is manny trapps and fights in the game wich require many medipacks .... and u get only UZI wich is a bit better gun no shotgun and no revolver ...iff the builder would provide some powerfull weapons this game would be a 10 in the line ......... for these reasons i cannot give more than 8 for gameplay .... also a bit more cameras would be wellcome ...... but all in all this is a excelent game with stunning visuals and a possible Hall off Famer...... thx Francesco" - Jack&

"I thought that this was a really fun adventure. Just like the last levelset Francesco made, I fell in love with it. The atmosphere of the ocean was very interesting and wide and the lighting fit perfectly. The thing I loved most about this level is that you can stay under water for as long as you want without going up for air. I LOVED the puzzle with the boss from TRC and the raising blocks, I thought that was so amazing. The traps on this game are not to be toyed with, I got surprised so many times. The music was very well put and fit the game and its story very well. Another thing that I loved was the saving system. Like Francesco's last level, you could choose to save TR1 style or choose regular saving. But I can honestly say I've had my swim for the summer. Half the game is swimming, which didn't bother me, but hit a nerve after a while when I couldn't find anything to use in this wide enviroment and when I finally hit land I was relieved. Another thing that bothered me was Lara's hair and head animation. The hair didn't match Lara's body or the outfit and if you shot a weapon Lara's head would change to Legend Lara. The enemies were put out pretty well and the same with the secrets and objects. I found half the secrets so maybe I'll go back and play it again. Over all, I thought this level was very fun with a great atmosphere, puzzles, and adventure. I highly recommend." - LadyCroft

"When I began to play I was thinking about a no-lineal gameplay with a lot of backtracking, but soon I realized that would not be so. Perhaps in the first water levels there are excessive switches to pull, but the game itself is fantastic, with a lot of great puzzles which will make you play and play continuosly until you finish the game. The only "mole" I found was the confused situation when you open the doors with the white rays, lower the block and there's not a camera to show you the open door in the far room. All remaining features are very well worked and the final puzzle with the crystals was simply extraordinary. Highly recommended. Thank you very much Franchesco!" - Jose