Level reviews

"The idea of an additional chapter to TR5 would often get thrown around and I suspect everyone was on board. There have been levels inspired by this and here's a bit of an odd one. It takes rooms from the original TR4 game and has you working them in reverse order to find another way out, but it's obviously an unfinished effort. I don't know why the level skip doesn't work, but you can use the 'HELP' cheat to carry on your progress. Not that it matters, because the following two levels are just a handful of rooms you jump across. Then you discover this is a bloated download because of the unnecessary levels bundled in, one of which is Lara's Home complete with audio tutorials from TR5. Then you have a random one-minute automated sequence of Lara presumably walking to a plane; and lastly a couple of rooms from TR2 Offshore Rig because why not. 15 minutes, 3 secrets. 03/25" - Treeble

"Almost a levelset , as the first levels do not link together , and the rest do not seem to relate to the storyline. The idea was excellent, Lara retracing her steps backwards after surviving the fall at the end of TRLR. Many details are worthy to be noticed for example one the beasts associated to the scales puzzle was now trapped behind a block. The execution is not very well done though , as we can notice many bugs , visually or audibly , and even if the levels were linked with proper functionning leveljumps that would still be a short game. Playing this (that is the first 3 levels) brought back some memories of the official game , and i asked myself at times : 'and now what was before this point and will i recognize it?'" - eRIC

"The first level in this set is really the only one that is worthy of any scoring. The remaining "sections" are mainly recreations of classic TR sceneries and there's no gameplay to speak of in any of those latter ones. In the order they appear they are: a boulder trapped passage within the Great Pyramid, a slide down the Great Pyramid, a slight variation of Lara's Home, a short cutscene, the original TR4 Catacombs level and a practice TR2 Offshore Rig environment. The first level is actually quite OK while it lasts, the environments aren't too bad and secrets are hidden well, but again no real meat to it." - Ryan

"And what if that catacomb isn't a ripoff but a remnant of default data? The script and file names also indicate so... Guys please don't blame people without evidence. I just don't think that part should be rated at all, in such case this game would be much more appreciated, the actual original part being utterly enjoyable. I love strong endings, the entire concept here is to provide one missing from the beginning, and it's done with admirable sense of humor. How do you get out of the pyramid? Simple, the way you got in, mystery solved. Our return is familiar yet new as we're forced to traverse around now collapsed segments, what also fixes the most annoying part of the original game - we enter the Ahmet cage, btw the poor guy is still here so we can end his misery. Details are noticed like overturned scales, spikes disabled because the trigger was on the other side, and the secret hole empty because the pickups have been taken in 1999. We end by sliding into the sunlight, chased down by pyramid pieces which remained to fall, and get some test levels as a bonus. SUMMARY: A little piece of big fun, seriously underrated!" - DJ Full

"Most of what you see here are copies and hardly any gameplay apart from the first level and the Catacomb one which is a rip off. The other levels use the prj from several other levels but there is not much to do in them. Oh well I've seen worse." - Gerty

"I don't know how this author couldn't properly link the levels. The player can revisit some TR4 levels but nothing to do or very few tasks, enemies, traps or dangers. The last levels were very short, and I found no sense to add them to the pacakge; evenmore when the game sometimes crashed and you need to launch the TR file again and select the proper level. The lights and textures were the best, but I can't recommend this levelset. Sorry." - Jose

"When I first heard about this set, the concept intrigued me a lot. It looked quite promising as a first level, but I approached it apprehensively anyway. The idea is a simple yet good one: the story takes place after The Last Revelation and follows Lara as she escapes the Temple of Horus, which has collapsed, and makes her way home. The level isn't one of the best, let's be honest here. But neither is it the worst. Some of the execution was very interesting and well-thought-out. Unfortunately, it's let down by its shortness, glitches and the last two levels: the first of which is literally a slide down the pyramid and the second of which is unfinished (as evidenced by the mistexturing in the maze area). The construction is pretty good in the first two levels, but given that it's pretty much copying and adapting on the material from Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation, that's to be expected. I remember there being an unfortunate lack of enemies and we are barred from a few places we could get to in the originals. There is a glitch present in the level jump of the first level which was a bit off-putting. Some of the sounds also needed work. The builder has admitted that the inclusion of the flycheat was an accident. The level could have used a beta test to ensure that it came out as DCW123 intended it to. For the most part it's not actually bad for a first level set, though, and I think we can expect that DCW123 will definitely improve. After all, we all started somewhere, right? Perhaps when the builder is confident enough with the editor, he can revisit the idea." - ggctuk

"I completely liked the concept of being able to interact with Lara as she finds her way out the temple that collapsed on her in Tomb Raider: Revelation. But despite that, I have some discrepancies. To begin, most of this was unoriginal and most areas were copied from the TR4 game. There wasn't much to do other than adventure around until you found the next area. I can't recall if there were any puzzles at all, but I'm sure gameplay points would've been added if the author incorporated more, if any. There just wasn't enough net game time. I finished this in one sitting (not saying that is bad). The objects were well done, might I add. I've never seen the crushed waterskin puzzle thingy before so that definitely gave off the weak and crumbling places of the tomb. I enjoyed the occasional trap that I had to avoid, but they became old very quickly, and soon; I was yawning at them. If you're going to add secrets, you'll have to incorporate a coherent level-jump because I collected all secrets in the beginning level, but I realized that the readme noted that I had to select the levels from the main menu and I totally lost all interest in finding the rest. The enemy placement was alright, though, and added to the rest of the level. Atmosphere was alright for the most part, probably a little bit more tweaking here and there. Sounds were missing; you could have fixed that and I didn't remember there being any special cameras except for the cut- scene where Lara is seen walking around an airport (was a nice tough). Lighting was well executed and I especially enjoyed the Lara's home (albeit a little too original) level but I wished the author had added something else to have been accomplished instead of the usual and dull let's-learn- moves tutorial (ripped from TR5). Overall, this was an okay debut level set and the author does seem to have potential especially noted in the first level and in the cut-scene at the end of the game. I can't wait for the next one to come. Secrets - Don't bother..., they're not saved,they're just health and ammo if you really want them, Time - 20-30mins, recommended if you're curious." - Larabiker301

"Hmmm, well yes. It's not the worst debut level I've seen by a long shot, but it's mainly just a brief glimpse at some of Lara's old haunts. The only real innovation is the first section, which has a modicum of gameplay, mainly entailing avoiding falling debris and rocks, and the 'Cleopatra's Palaces' section which involves a short cut scene of Lara walking through an airport. Hard to know just what was in the builder's mind really, as it's all very disjointed and incoherent. Still, everybody has to start somewhere and he has obviously come to terms with the basics of the level editor." - Jay

"So, I am actually re-reviewing this level (thanks to Michael for allowing it). The thing is - When I originally played it, it was before I completed TR4, so I was totally confused and had no idea what this was all about. After I finished TR4, it instantly made sense and explained all the things that seemed weird. This level represents the events just after Lara's supposed death at the end of "The Last Revelation" and it guides you through the ruins of the great pyramid (even that monster from scales puzzle area is still alive). It still isn't top quality level, but it's surely much better than you would think before understanding its point. You even get to see the outside of the pyramid (no, Von Croy isn't there unfortunately), but it's not dark anymore so you can finally see the happy ending of TR4 and find some piece. Very misunderstood level(by me too, for a long time)." - Tolle87

"Patience is a virtue ... - this release seems like one from a (probably rather young?) wannabe builder who was desperate to get something out there, without taking care of even the most basic elements of putting a coherent game together. Do not be fooled by the huge download and the seemingly many levels in the pack. There is really only one short level (the first) to play and it will end after 10-15 minutes of evading a few traps. I found two secrets there and maybe there are even a few more and had a chuckle at the locked in ahmet, but that is about as much fun as you get. There rest is half baked level copies, not correctly scripted, so that the level jumps do not work and bare of any relevant content. There is definitely some promise in this builder (judging from the first level), but he needs to spend the time to get it right and probably some guidance from the more experienced builders out there." - MichaelP

"Of the seven levels presented here,only one (the very first) is actually genuine.The others are (in order of appearance)a slanting uphill passage;a big slide to a Finish Trigger;a ripped Laras Home prj;a copy of Core Design's Catacomb Level,as provided with the original Level Editor;a ten second cut scene;a non-playable 4 room Offshore Rig environment. None but the first level really warrant any scoring (although the second and third are decently lit and textured;while the cut scene is definitely quirky);so my following comments and scores relate only to the first level. Although you'll be through it in absolutely no more than fifteen minutes,it's a pretty entertaining little adventure.The texturing and lighting is entirely competent;atmosphere does its job;enemy placement (although rather minimal) is done well;and the secrets are neatly placed.Gameplay is a lot more straightforward than appearances initially suggest - early on,you encounter a crowbar lever;but the crowbar already resides in your inventory,thus doing without the need for a lengthy search.A short time later,you happen upon a set of scales and two nearby water troughs;so you run around in anticipation of a waterskin puzzle.Alas,the Scales are merely objects,and the water troughs no more than room decoration;and the level ends moments after you pass by them.Nonetheless,enough exists to be able to discern that this builder knows his stuff.It's just a pity that he elected to release what amounts to a series of elementary Test levels as his debut." - Orbit Dream

"Serving as a debut for a new builder, and as a release that claims to fill in the infamous gaps between the Last Revelation and the Angel of Darkness, this series of levels in the end just feel haphazardly thrown together and do a completely unfulfilling job at what they're supposed to be setting out to do. Gameplay is ultimately the weakest aspect to this levelset unfortunately, involving you either traversing down an empty corridor dodging the occasional trap that needs to be avoided or diverging down an alternative dead-end path that leads to a secret or two along the way, while music and sound effects have a tendency to either stop working properly in certain areas or feel completely out of place in the level they do play in. The amount of bugs on offer here(such as a buggy transition from one level to another), just makes the overall experience feel unfinished and finally, some of the levels feel rather unnecessary for inclusion(What exactly is the point of the 'city of the dead' test level that resembles the Offshore Rig levels from TR2, if there's nothing for you to do in-game? Or the Croft Manor level as a whole, if the only real intriguing feature to this interpretation is having Lara go over moves and actions that we've done a million times before?). However, I did find the use of texturing and lighting for the most part in this levelset to be quite good, creating a rather effective atmosphere at times. And the enemy/object choices used, contribute to their surrounding environments nicely. In conclusion though, this levelset felt like a wasted opportunity, preferring not to do much with the source material that it has available and instead leaves the player with a nagging feeling of what this release could have been, had the builder spent a bit more time on it. Where are the exciting new areas with puzzles? Why does Lara never comment on her current situation within the pyramid itself? Why isn't Lara more injured than she should be, struggling to fire her weapons at opposing threats as she attempts to escape and therefore create some interesting gameplay? There's so many possibilities on offer here that dcw123 could have used to help make his debut release stand out from the rest and it's just a shame that he didn't utilize that very well. Hoping that the builder learns from the mistakes of this debut and continues to create levels in future, as there is a lot of potential shown off here. But for now, I would only recommend downloading this, if you're really curious and in the mood for a quick raid." - Ceamonks890

"What we see here is a random compilation of basic Level Editor projects , poorly or not at all interlinked, full of meaningless level jumps until you come to the soon and bitter end. If there is any sense behind this it is well hidden puzzle by this builder , so it might even deserve a 1 for gameplay. The rest is just TRLE spam and definetely not worth pressing the download button." - Ruben

"Actually the idea standing behind this levelset is fairly nice, serving as a sequel to TR 4, but in terms of execution this level is highly unoriginal. The builder largely copied existing rooms from the official games and combined the levels in a fairly buggy manner, thankfully he leaves players the option to play all levels from the main menu but the whole thing still has a very unelaborate feel to it. The usage of textures and lights is appropriate (also in the places where the builder's changes are visible), and I somewhat liked the (very) short epilogue with Lara in an airport, but gameplaywise there isn't much to speak of. The only level with a bit of gameplay lets you run through several corridors with a few mildly challenging traps and a few secrets along the way, but it's completely linear and without any real challenge or depth. All levels together don't take more than 10 minutes to play, if you tactfully ignore the completely unchanged and probably non-related catacomb level. It's not much more than a decent experiment with the editor, but not really something to be released to the public." - manarch2