Level reviews

"This evokes the original VCI level quite well, but the gameplay is rather limited, consisting mainly of shooting guards, throwing switches and, yes you guessed it, crawling through air ducts. The colours all look a bit washed out for some reason and why oh why are the pistols firing replicas of Lara's bum? I can't really recommend playing this unless you are such a rabid fan of the genre that you just cannot bring yourself to pass one by. It's also rather buggy so I'd give it a miss if I were you." - Jay

"This didn't really work for me, despite the rather pleasing environment. Too much duct crawling, too much darkness in places, too much backtracking and a few bugs, although I only encountered one serious one (an invisible wall preventing me from dropping into a room). If you're a base or lab level fan, there are better and less buggier options out there." - Ryan

"The classic VCI level with no puzzles. Open offices to get pickups, shoot soldiers and dogs, crawl through ducts, etc. I found nothing interesting here; many rooms are too dark, but usually have a good look. The best was the use of the flybys and musics to create the atmosphere. I suffered several bugs, and the gameplay is sometimes confused: what to do after pick up the pyramid key (I didn't find a use for it); why in the pit near the end Lara can grab only one of the grates (both are identical)? Why not a finish trigger? Definitively, not a level to replay." - Jose

"This is a rather typical Pedros level: i.e.interesting gameplay here and there;not bad to look at;almost unplayably buggy. If you keep the Walkthrough to hand;follow it closely AND HEED ALL ITS ADVICE,you should reach the end (or rather,the bit where the Finish Trigger should have been had the Author remembered to place it)in around 25 minutes. There are entertaining and occasionally spectacular moments:the use of the Elevator at the start;the battles with guards;an impressive plunge down a huge metal shaft - but having to frequently reload to get through buggy sections is simply too irritating;and despite a generally sound attempt at lighting and texturing (and a few pleasant graphical flourishes) the lack of an Alpha Test (let alone a Beta)means that this should ONLY be attempted by uncomplaining reviewing completists (and there can't be too many of those around)." - Orbit Dream

"Well built, but little bit short VCI level. Lara must find here a pyramid artefact. In addition she must open various doors, find an access map and a CD and creep by narrow shafts. Some rooms are a normal average, other rooms look great. Indeed, there are some places which are too dark. At least two heavy bugs are also present: A problem is a lift door, which not always opens. Another problem is a ceiling hole, which also is not always there. After 30 minutes one is at the level end. There is no endtrigger there. Opponents are dogs and SAS soldiers. Result: With a little bit more care it could have become a very good level. As well as he is now, he is recommendable only partly." - Scottie

"Now I don't mind a challenge backtracking or a bit of hard work but this is ridiculous. I had to read other reviews to see how other players got on and some got to what appears to be the end. I didn't. The level is beset with bugs right from the start. That first elevator was a headache I only got out again because I let the game alone for a minute or two and the other door just opened by itself. I got through offices and vents and picked up keys and other stuff. Then I was totally stuck in-between two glass doors. Reloading and dozying around didn't help. I have now abandoned the level it really isn't worth it which is a great pity because the architecture of the level is very good enemies well placed and lighting and textures are well done. But I can't score a level properly that I couldn't play. If at some stage in the future the author would like to try again I will certainly have another go." - CC

"This level should be called Bug Mission. There were quite some bug in here and at a certain point I couldn't go any further so I looked up the reviews and was glad that I wasn't the only one. So I also used the fly cheat to see what I missed (or not). I cracked up in my chair seeing butt bullets that was the only fun thing in this level. 22-01-2003" - Gerty

"This is actually one of the very first custom Levels I played as back then I was very fond of the Base adventure. Unfortunately I was never able to finish it cause the screen froze at a certain point. Now this time I was able to make it a little further and judging from the other reviews I've seen most of it. Mind you everyone seems to have run into some serious problems here. It starts out as a typical lab adventure with keys access cards and disks to find and place guards to shoot and long crawls through air ducts. However once you leave the well lit corridors and make it into the heart of the Base the atmosphere is really great and I particularly liked the big room from where you drop into the water tunnel. The more irritating it is that the gameplay seems to be seriously hindered by bugs. With proper beta testing this could have been a decent adventure sadly enough the author couldn't be bothered." - Dimpfelmoser

"What a great level this could have been! Unfortunately the bugs were too many to ignore. Elevators did not work properly floor tiles disappeared the vent maze was a confusing miasma of dead ends Lara's guns ejected 'butts' instead of cartridge casings (I must admit to laughing myself silly over that one) and there was no end trigger which confused me even more. The good points were the fantastic modern textures the lighting which was tangible for a change and the differing keys cards and doorways. The real trouble is that there are areas you simply cannot access without using the DOZY cheat and whilst I finally submitted this really did not help the level at all." - Torry

"I think I was very lucky with this level. The unique bug I've encountered on the level was the used ammunition that showed up as Lara's butts but I didn't find any of the bugs mentioned by other reviewers. I couldn't get to the key behind the glasses so I believe I missed something but I got to the part where the level is supposed to end. I kinda enjoyed it but I believe it could have been loads better if it had a better lighting. Also the download is very big due to sound stuff - most of them are from TRC (specially the Roman levels) my suggestion would be to write a readme specifying which files should be copied. And where did I see this catsuit before...?" - Treeble

"I am making an exception with this level. Usually I do not value a level that I didn't finish. But here everybody should know that a download of 15 MB is completely unnecessary. I have got stuck permanently in bugs. I would not like to say more. Too bad that such level is offered that one cannot finish with normal means. The whole mark results from the impossibility to finish the level." - Xxenofex

"This level is full of bugs there are too much to name them so I wont even bother. Even the title fly-by is not bugfree! I think the bugs just shout in your face that they are present and my only guesses why they were not fixed are that the author didn't even bother to test the level or a level full of bugs is fine in his opinion. The most annoying bug is that if you didn't do something in the right order or didn't get something (in my case the disk after which I dozied later) you are hopelessly stuck. If you like VCI type levels you can give this a try but I don't think it is really worth it." - eTux

"With a little more work this could be a great VCI style level. It takes place in a large office building with the usual offices to search for disks cards and keys plus quite a few vents to crawl through as you make your way through the building. I ran into a few problems like the elevator door not opening at first and then after about 25 minutes I found a Guardian's Key and then couldn't find any way to progress any further. I finally dozy'd up and found some vents that took me into some new areas including an elevator shaft some cool red and blue lighted rooms and the key that can be seen behind some glass near the beginning of the level. I had no problems with the crawl spaces and I didn't get body parts instead of bullets. The lighting used especially in the second part added a lot to the level as did the extra music that came with the download. I enjoyed the 45 minutes I spent playing this but never actually found an ending - I just got to another area where I couldn't progress any further. I was starting to get tired of it by the end anyway - pretty much all you do is run through the building killing soldiers (and finding at least three shotguns) and using keys but there's enough to do that it stays fairly interesting - up to a point that is." - RaiderGirl

"I'm reviewing this level even though I am totally confused over its progression. After 20 minutes I had ended the level at the 3 open elevators as the creator had told me but I had not actually played the whole level and the confusing part was that I couldn't find where the rest of the level was or how it joined to the part I had played so I went flycheating and found in some airducts high off the floor the other half of the game but no matter how I checked from it I still couldn't work out how they joined or where so I just decided to play it and see where it took me and after another 20 minutes I ended up coming to another elevator where there was nowhere to go so I just exited the whole level. The two disconnected halves of this level contained fairly normal VCI stuff with men to be shot (with butt bullets of all things!) ducts to be crawled through and offices to be ransacked of keys cards or discs so I wouldn't have missed a whole lot had I not found the second half. Take a look for yourself and if you can work out where one part meets the other then please tell me as I would be very grateful to put this question mark I have over it to bed." - Sash

"I am not fully sure I played the full level as the author mentions he has not put a finish trigger and I did still have many unopened doors but had reached a lift area which supposedly could be the end and I doubt my rating would change a lot even if there would be more to explore. The unfortunate thing is that the level does have quite a few bugs which can hinder gameplay and progression. A minor one is the fact that Lara does not drop empty bullets when shooting but 'body parts'. Not sure what finally triggered the elevator door to open so I may just have been lucky. On the positive side I think the music and sound is placed and used well and justifies the big download. Also the title flyby is quite nice even though it has two minor glitches and does not loop. I found one secret crawled through many vents and killed about a dozen SAS and a dog." - Michael

"I regret to say that this level could have been very good but with that many bugs there is no way you can play it. Let's begin by saying that the flyby predisposes the player for an adventure in an environment like the title says: VCI. As usual the enemies are guards. The textures and the sounds are well placed you can hear music in almost every step. Going through it you are beginning to find the first minor problem compared to what's going to follow. First the elevator isn't an elevator I think the author could give some movement one way or another instead Lara just stands there and when you attempt to step out the first bug strikes you. The same one as in TRC the doors don't open. Somehow you step back and forth and they magically let you out. You can see some pick-ups and a key behind a glass that if you manage to get them please let me know. As you proceed more and more bugs occur. A hole in a room isn't visible until it feels like it you can't go into a crawlspace Lara keeps falling I had to use DOZY to get into the ducts. Let's not present all the bugs now but I have to say that it could really be worth the time if the author had bothered to test his level. There is no way not to see such mistakes. Finally if you are patient and curious and want to torture yourself by playing it keep in mind that there is no finishing trigger yes that too." - Kristina