Level reviews

"Apparently I missed this one when I went through Create a Classic a while ago. This is essentially a remake of the first Antartica level, including the ending section being identical (presumably for cutscene purposes). It's a larger scale and more complex take on it's chosen level, as well as replacing the large boat with a submarine. There's even a little extra story, although it's conveyed by AI voices and doesn't add much, but it doesn't get in the way either. The snow theme is executed well, and there are some nice extra features like underwater walkways, and objects are used well to convey gameplay information as well as being for visuals.
While a single level this is quite long and complex, with multiple things to do at points, as well as callbacks to ideas from the original level like a switch puzzle, freezing water and a boat ride. You actually start without weapons, but it's not too long before you get guns back. The main focus is exploration, with a semi-open main area to explore like the original had, but even larger. It generally works out, but I found one path split a bit deceptive, as there's a much more obvious route to take, and little to suggest you can go another way, especially as you've likely forgot by the time you might need to go back there. I've seen complaints about the water requiring forced damage, but I think I managed every swim without that, although it's certainly close at times (and objects are well used to provide hints at where to swim). Secrets are a bit different, as they only provide TR3 health crystals, but they are helpful for minimising the need for medi-kits if you find them. Unfortunately there's one major issue as you can quite easily get into the last part of the level early without the boat (it's not even an especially hard swim to safe ground), and then you're completely stuck with no way out, and don't realise until after finishing some tasks. Outside that problem, it's a good level that builds on the original concept well, and pulls off the same atmosphere." - Mman

"I enjoyed this level so much. The author managed to create a very good atmosphere. The map is pretty big and complex. We explore snowy foothills, research buildings and even submarine. There is a lot to do but tasks are interesting and engaging. I love how everything is connected with one another in the level. There is a lot of foreshadowing but also spots where you can see areas where you have been previously. We have even a chance to swim on an inflatable boat. The level is sometimes pretty difficuly because of the cold water and its complex map. There is lack of more engaging puzzles though. Design is strong. Level is nicely textured but there are a lot of places with squished and missing textures. Lighting is almost flawless despite few cracks. Unfortunately because of the limits of TR3 renderer there is a lot of flickering and disappearing objects. Sometime it gets pretty annoying but I can't blame the author since it's not his fault. All in all it's very enjoyable yet quite difficult level in some moments. It has great atmosphere and some really nice ideas. I can definitely recommend it :)" - BlackWolfTR

"I found these level very challenging only because there is forced damage either cold water or enemies that shoot you and you can't shoot like climbing a ladder or on the boat, with the lack of medpacks made it so hard, even there is heal crystals but they are secrets and secrets should be bonus and doesn't effect the gameplay. there is lack of flares as well because there is some dark areas, you can't go wrong with pickups. with that being said, the rest of level is really well designed, I love how the areas of the level are well connected which made progress on this level so easy to keep track on." - p1kaa

"This is a surprisingly tough game to beat - well it was for me at least. You get numerous occasions where you have to master swims in the ice cold water while your health depletes if you are not fast enough and medipacks are few and far between in this adventure so I often progressed for quite some time with minimal health left and hence ended up retrying many passages many times until I got them right. All in all, I ended up spending almost 2 hours in here and that does not count the many repeat actions. But there is a lot to like: The whole design with many small rooms that connect tightly and let you see places early that you get to later on. The TNT explosion that melts part of the lake and later allows you to drive around in a boat. The submarine that you explore around and also inside. The cool cutscene at the end and much more. I did indeed have quite a few clipping errors along the way and that does hurt atmosphere and immersion of course, but it was not too bad to endure. So overall, a really clever and long Antarctica adventure, but probably more targeted for the patient seasoned raiders out there." - MichaelP

"This was a fun level to play overall. There was plenty of opportunity to explore throughout the level; it was definitely non-linear. I really was impressed with the atmosphere, especially the frozen water, and loved that it formed a "hub" in a way of accessing different parts of the level. The storyline was represented well in the game and actually gave me some TRLA vibes. I felt bad for poor Lara who had to keep diving in the frigid water to get to certain areas. Poor girl must have hypothermia by the end! There were only two major issues I faced, both of which were prevalent throughout the game. First, there were a lot of awkward and frustrating places, like the beds in the ship or the boxes, that were frustrating to navigate because Lara would so often not want to climb up properly. I think this was an issue with the geometry and low ceilings. The second issue was that many of the textures, objects, and enemies flickered, glitched, disappeared, or a combination. I had a lot of issues with enemies, the yellow boat, and the platforms glitching or disappearing altogether. I also noticed a few missing textures. Despite these issues, this game was challenging and a treat to explore." - dragooncroft

"This level has quite a lot going on and as it stands would have been a decent raid but it is marred with issues. The freezing water for one. Never a pleasant experience but the time period between initial exposure and death is simply too narrow. Considering the amount of times our poor Lara goes for a swim in these icy waters the whole thing became tedious. Many of the enemies became stuck in corners and therefore would not engage Lara, making gun fights one sided. The boat was a nightmare as you had to position it just right to get Lara to exit the damn thing and it was pure trial and error. The boat would fade out constantly so Lara was motoring along in mid air. The secrets were hardly worth the effort as all you got was a health crystal and you lost and equal amount of that health just getting into the water to retrieve the damn thing. Overall not much fun to be had here I'm afraid." - Torry

"This is a very looong and complex level. Not very hard tasks, but only the dangerous swims in icy waters and fight with the enemies always without medipacks in your backpack. Where are the medipacks? The ammo for the extra guns was very scarce. Not enough cameras when pulling switches, a lot of objects and enemies appearing and disappearing everywhere depending the camera angle, many normal ledges inexplicably Lara refuses to climb... Really not a pleasant level. The only fun was the ride with the boat, and even so it was difficult to Lara dismount in certain positions. What you'll find here is a lot of exploration and hundreds of buttons and switches to pull; nothing more. The only "puzzle" I found was the room with 5 wall switches, but I couldn't find a hint to know what switches to pull (walkthrough). Nothing really interesting in this Arctic level except the great architecture, correct texturization and the well placed old TR musics. If you want to take a try, remember don't waste medipacks!" - Jose

"Very good TR3 Antarctica level, no doubt about that. Quite great-looking and well conceived, except for the fact that I don't really like having to resort to walkthroughs too often - something that seems to point in the wrong direction, as in it being too confusing. I'm going to point out the no-nos here and that will make it seem as if the level isn't good, but the fact, for me, is the level is pretty good and rather annoying, if that even makes sense to anybody who hasn't played it. If you add up all the icy waters (with passages that are often misterious and vague), the dramatic lack of guns and ammo, and mostly medipacks, you'll get a glimpse of what I'm saying. The commands for getting out of the rubber boat not responding at all times was also an issue. Regarding the fact that objects just disappear at times, we're warned about it in the readme,but I find it less acceptable when you're in the boat and we're talking of the boat itself. And getting back from the submarine to the surface was an utter nightmare. I don't know, I would at least have added plenty more medipacks... Quite enjoyable. But quite annoying simultaneously. I'll grant it, it's very interesting and worth playing. Just know that it has its quirks and it doesn't become easy. I believe maybe there's a continuation, in which case I'll be looking forward to it." - Jorge22

"Very good and very often BETTER than the original Antarctica, also with nods to it but not so direct and not more than I'd like to encounter. Secrets are weird - despite of freezing to death and reloading countless times, I never found that button or key needed to access two of them. As a result I was back to default pistols much too often, because the main ammo is short, as well as flares and medikits. I see some beginners might a trouble with this level but it's beatiful, immersive and well organized so try it when you advance as a player." - DJ Full

"This is an ambitious and fairly lengthy (the glitch-free video consumes more than an hour) adventure that for the most part is quite fun to play. However, four major annoyances stood out in my mind as I was gathering my thoughts for this review. First, it would have been nice if some of those numerous enemies with the red parkas had been carrying some valuable pickups to increase Lara's incentive for killing them. Second, the ice-cold swims were too frequent, and the health bar while negotiating them went down too fast, for me to resist the temptation to play in god mode so I could take my sweet time doing whatever was required to be done underwater. Third, the alarm that went off midway through the level stuck around for entirely too long, and since the sound files are all bundled into one huge wad file, there's nothing to be done but grin and bear it. Turning down the sound to zero didn't help a bit, either. Fourth, and closely related to the third, is that looping action music that starts when you first get into the motorboat and never goes away except for one brief period that I can recall. The combined effect of these four observations prevents me from assigning the marks of excellence to this level than might otherwise have been the case. It's obvious that much planning has gone into this Arctic raid, a setting that we see too little of these days, but care could have been taken to make it a bit more player-friendly. Still, it's well worth the download and I hope we see more of these belated Create a Classic releases." - Phil

"This is certainly excellently made, but possibly not for the fainthearted. It certainly equalises the original Antarctica levels in terms of atmosphere and construction, and even surpasses it in some cases (a few minor object glitches in no way spoil it). The gameplay should ideally be accessible to all groups of raiders, but what pushes it towards the more difficult end of the spectrum are the numerous freezing water sequences. I for one found them a bit too convoluted at times and a bit too long for their own good, but it's really not too bad with a bit of practice. Also, the secrets, despite having health crystals strategically placed at the end of the aforementioned swims, were a bit underwhelming reward-wise, although the enemies certainly keep you on your toes nicely. Overall, great fun, but does require a bit of patience." - Ryan

"This is nicely made and very atmospheric, albeit in a - perhaps I should have worn a thicker jumper' kind of way and I certainly don't want to think too hard about swimming in those icy waters. The feel of the original Antarctic levels is well created and there's a good balance of gameplay. A definite must play for TR3 lovers." - Jay

"A very entertaining couple of hours set in TR3 style. I have always liked this kind of levels as they bring back good memories. I think the author has done a good level if we take into account that it was built with a program that has not been updated for years ..I recommend this level for being a good job, thanks Dario !!" - McRaider