| Reviewer's comments |
"Although I'd tried and failed recently, I gave scripting another go with this one due to the ever annoying crash to desktop issue and actually managed to succeed! That brought a glimmer of hope to my life. However, the level itself was pretty dull despite the obvious ambition in creating such a large scale city. The author just forgot to focus on what makes us play Tomb Raider in the first place: fun. From the get go you are dropped in a room with a pitch black fog, then you have that walkthrough wall that leads to not just a secret, but also to a crucial key pickup, the levers never open doors next to them and since there are absolutely no camera clues, you wander on and on in search of the next open door. Not going to lie, I played this with a trview window open so I'd know what each trigger did, because otherwise I suspect all the pointless padding would have broken me. On the flipside, you only ever really have to kill the dogs, as the armies of zombies will make the giant scorpions stand still for some reason. Funny how these enemy interactions work. 40 minutes, 3 secrets. 11/20" - Treeble (08-Nov-2020) |
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| "I regret to say that I became bored rather
easily with this level. It begins with a rather
unfair walkthrough wall, and proceeds by using
the "switch to open a door to pull another
switch that leads to another door" type of
gameplay, with rather tedious backtracking
across crude and repetitive environments. Only
the hectic Seth boss sequence and the use of
music stopped it from being awful, but this
still remained a level that I was glad to get
over with. Sorry." - Ryan (19-Jun-2017) |
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| "One of the most tedious and boring level I've ever played. Evenmore I was running around and around wasting a lot of time in the first huge area with buildings and still could continue there right now if there are not a walkthrough to know that there's a hidden secret key behind a... phantom wall! After this I decided to read often the walkthrough to check the very bad gameplay until you place the gem in the second huge area with buildings: pull a lot of switches/jumpswitches to open very distant doors and never, never, never a camera to show you where to go. Simply pathetic. At least the big scorpions were entertained with the zombies and they didn't attack, so I was lucky to play all the entire game shooting only a few dogs. Of course, not recommended for anybody." - Jose (15-Sep-2016) |
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| "A very dull and empty post-apocalyptic city with badly-done texturing, bland lighting effects, uninspired boxy level design, flat atmosphere and barely any objects present, with nothing but a whole lot of zombies(and for some illogical reason, jackals and giant scorpions), to keep you from completing the game.
And while the overall experience is just as boring as ever, the gameplay has at the very least, been improved upon from the builder's other levels(although that's not saying a whole lot.)
So unless you so dearly want to be bored to tears, I'd highly recommend giving this release a pass." - Ceamonks890 (01-Jun-2015) |
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| "I can quite sucessfully state that this is second only to 'England Prison' for the title of 'most boring Custom Level'.If this were a first effort I could charitably overlook that,but it isn't. The whole level exhibits all the usual basic errors(too many to list,but you know what they are)compounded by pronounced tedium. If the absolutely unfair 'walkthrough wall' near the beginning weren't bad enough the builder trumps that by going for the 'pull switch that opens door that leads to another switch that opens another door that leads to another switch' style of Gameplay,all of which takes place in vast,monotonously and poorly textured environments.The occasional imaginative moment and plethora of unkillable enemies are unfortunately no compensation,and I left this 'adventure' in a pronounced state of torpor.
As a cure for insomnia,however,I can vouchsafe that this is just the thing." - Orbit Dream (02-Mar-2007) |
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| "The gameplay got rather boring and samee as you progressed through the level - find a switch find the door it opens and find a switch etc always running around a lot. One huge twist is the walk through wall in the office which is impossible to spot. One huge pest is the fact that reload doesn't work. Enemies include a few dogs loads of zombies and a monster you can't kill. The lighting to start with is impossible as it is pitch black and nothing will illuminate -gun flashes bins or flares. As the level progresses then it does get workable. Textures also lack a variety as though the author wanted to continue but ran out of ideas so produced the same kind of area at the end. Streets are rather wide with massive white lines down the middle." - Whistle (16-Jun-2004) |
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| "I know what you want to know about this level... Is it or is it not better than the author's previous levels? Well if you look at the gameplay - yes. Even though it mainly revolves around finding levers and opening doors it's still more fun than in any of the author's previous levels. The texturing is however not better. Inside buildings it looks okay even though it's a little repetitive. Outside you get the usual stretched textures. The lighting is okay even though it's too dark in some places. At least there isn't a dark area like the swamp in the author's previous level. The enemies were disappointing. The zombies are as usual easily avoidable and the large scorpions are more interested in attacking the zombies than Lara. Even Seth was easy to get past. There are also some dogs and two robots but they are easy to get rid of. There are a lot of objects from other Tomb Raider games and unfortunately the collision doesn't always work. It's also possible to get helplessly stuck at least once - or at least that was my experience. Also at one point there is a secret which Lara has to run through a wall to get to. I found that secret by accident. Later Lara has to get into the secret room to find a key. Overall I didn't like this level that much. Then again it is an improvement from the author's other levels - not that that says much. The level takes less than thirty minutes to finish and it crashes every time you try to load. I hate when that happens." - Magnus (29-Jan-2004) |
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| "The author did a good job of creating a spooky atmosphere with the dark alleys cool mummies and well used music. Some people will enjoy this level just for that reason but I personally found the gameplay a bit lacking in puzzles. There are a few keys to collect but most of the hour long level was spent looking for a switch looking for the door that switch opened and then looking for the next switch. Now if the level looks really cool I can enjoy that but most of the areas were a bit bland and I got tired of looking at the same streets as I ran around looking for the next switch. The walkthrough wall was also a drag I never would have finished if I hadn't read about that at the forum. I wish the switches had been left out and more had been done with Seth. The four secrets were fun to search for though and some people will really enjoy exploring this spooky environment." - RaiderGirl (04-Jul-2003) |
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| "I think the author tried something different with this and didn't succeed. The setting is so weird from graveyards to very long streets that will take you minutes to run imagine walking on them. The player will have to search offices one of them had a nasty walkthrough wall unmarked that I would have never found without help and find many levers-switches to open many doors and climb ladders. Nothing here to see I didn't enjoy this. The only nice thing was the gas station. Some rooms were too dark especially the one behind the gas station. Big scorpions skeletons guards for enemies. The textures remain bad and we see paperthin walls all over the place. It's a pity not to see any improvement but continue building in the same amateurish style." - Kristina (01-Jul-2003) |
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| "Lots of pick ups and for me that's always a joy. All around fun level - not too challenging and not too easy. Seth was a great enemy and a nice touch. Imaginative and tricky invisible wall can (and will) have you going in circles. Spooky and well done!" - Bene (29-May-2003) |
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| "This is an interesting level but has not become my favorite. It has a Resident Evil atmosphere. Apart from the much runs and the boring textures in the abandoned part of the city it was a great game. There are plenty of enemies: zombies jackals scorpions and even a Seth welcomes us. There are enough weapons ammo and medipacks. In the first control room it was a bit difficult to find the wall which can be getting through. It was hided the multiple useable key and the place of the fuse. I founded 4 secrets but they weren't too difficult to discover. The added sounds are also great. The textures are not various they seemed to be uncompleted. You have to run very much across the huge part of the city and unfortunately the camera doesn't show the doors opened by pulling the levers." - Obig (22-May-2003) |
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| "An hour spent running around a couple of large city streets pulling levers without any real aim to the game. Even the enemies a whole lot of zombie guards some large scorpions and a handful of dogs weren't much trouble with all the ammo though Seth in one room where you need to use a key 5 times was a bit of a pain in the rump. The only time you will be stumped is with finding a walkthrough wall that is so unobvious and thus very unfair otherwise it's a doodle. Not my kind of level but for some I'm sure this will be a treat." - Sash (18-May-2003) |
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| "First thought I had that this was a spooky level and for a big part it was. There are a few minor points and one major one. NO loading screen so you get thrown to your desktop when you die and die you will. Then there are the far distances you have to travel. Afterwards Lara was very weary and she needed a good soak to relax again. For the rest..... find a lever pull a lever. Find loads of ammo and medipacks so much that even I didn't need them all and I did die a couple of time and it wasn't of lack of medipacks. Enemies are re-textured mummies big scorpions and even Seth is having an appearance. Found 4 secrets. 12-05-2003" - Gerty (18-May-2003) |
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| "I originally thought that this level was a reference to the professional American wrestler! Ha ha ha! I was wrong but ended up have some fun with this interesting level. Loads of pickups to get and baddies (zombies HUGE scorpions never-say-die doggies etc) to obliterate. Pulling levers and switches then going to find out which new door they opened is what this level is mainly about. Also it has more than enough dark and foreboding areas but plenty of flares to help guide the way. The riddle area was my favorite. I loved the way the graves were marked. My playtime was over an hour but that's because I missed the walkthrough wall....many many many MANY times." - Wendee (15-May-2003) |
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| "From a graveyard with open graves and skeletons everywhere to what looks like a prison with zombies and out to the town with more zombies. There are a lot of army trucks around one parked at a great petrol station. The whole level looks really spooky. The architecture of the level is fine but the textures are badly done. If they had been applied with more care and that black street was textured I'm sure it would have been much more impressive. Picking up medpacks after killing zombies trigger spikes that come down from nowhere but didn't kill Lara. I was completely stuck 'til I read that there was a walkthrough wall in one of the offices. I'm not sure if I liked this level or not. It looked like it's not finished. The readme says Lara has crashed her jeep and fallen into this city. Is the idea here that Lara has died and is now in the company of the walking dead? Then the zombies and the red-eyed dogs are appropriate but not the giant scorpions. Gameplay is finding things and when you do the music is good. I also had a major problem that my game wouldn't let me save so if I 'died' it crashed my computer and I had to start from scratch each time. This was a right royal pain in the butt. All the same it is a unique level and worth playing." - CC (15-May-2003) |
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| "I don't know about stone cold - more lukewarm really. Whilst I can at least say I found this level much better than his previous offering The Swamp there was still a complete lack of cohesion about the whole thing. It looks very much thrown together on the spur of the moment the assembled elements seem very random and the textures are a strange mishmash. However there are interesting moments and if the rather simple gameplay does start to bore you a bit you can always play 'how many mummies can I blow up with one crossbow bolt?' - that's always a favourite. The mummies were good the dogs totally expected but what the hell were the giant scorpions doing in the city? Oh well don't expect logic and don't expect too much in the way of excitement but I'm glad to say I did detect signs of improvement so - go Jamie go. You'll get there yet." - Jay (15-May-2003) |
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| "The only thing that really kept my interest here was the zombies a bit of a Res fan so liked them popping up and scaring me half to death especially the one in the confined area of the movable block room. A few textures I hadn't seen before like the garage areas metal cladding the streets were a bit drab though with very little atmosphere except for the zombie and scorpion moments. I got a bit bored when I came to the second street as I felt like I was just repeating the level the meeting with the Seth enemy in between streets was fun though. I don't like having to keep lighting flares however and so the dark sewer was a tad frustrating but I was glad to be out coz it was rather spooky down there which was the whole point. I got lost once and that was down to an invisible wall back at the beginning very sneaky! Near the end there's another grave yard where zombies lurk unseen amongst the tomb stones which was great as you just don't see them until you get down there wonderful moment if not for Lara at least for me. Not much to the gameplay as it was really find a switch and open a door to which you get no clue to where it had opened simply run around and find that door there's plenty of ammo and medipacks to keep you topped up if you hang around long enough to get caught! At the end there's a nice set of traps and you have to guess who's the innocent victim or get spiked nice touch to a bit of an ordinary level as I say it was the zombies that did it for me. If you like zombies and a quick uncomplicated level then this is one of them." - Moonpooka (15-May-2003) |
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| "Yet another trip into Jamie's worlds. Still a few thin walls badly placed textured and multitude of pick-up areas but all in all this one is not too bad and for me managed to conjure up quite a spooky atmosphere at times. Skeletons lying around graveyards dark sewers all quite well done. Also the filling station in the first City streets area was fun. Gameplay is rather tedious mostly with many many levers and jump switches to find and a lot of to and fro in the two City streets areas. You need a few keys a fuse and a gem to open the exit. I liked the idea with the little riddle and maybe the level should have ended there rather than offer yet another tedious series of levers. Plenty of enemies around and the reworked mummy works very well. You also meet Seth for a brief encounter and can collect four secrets (Uzi Grenade Gun Crossbow and revolver). And should you be stuck then most likely you missed the one walkthrough wall early in the game." - Michael (13-May-2003) |
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