Levels listed...
TR5 - 31
TR4 - 3141
TR3 - 177
TR2 - 133
TR1 - 61
72353 reviews (20.4/level)
3532 (99.7%) walkthroughs
445 Hall of Fame levels
1221 levels rated >= 8
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release date: |
13-Aug-2007 |
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# of downloads: |
64 |
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average rating: |
8.32 |
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review count: |
17 |
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review this level |
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file size: |
23.30 MB |
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file type: |
TR4 |
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class: |
Remake |
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| Reviewer's comments |
"This is a fantastic remake of a beloved TR1 level with sufficient twists, turns and new areas to explore to keep it interesting albeit confusing. For he seasoned raider relying on memory of the original, you will not find things where you expect them to be. The block puzzle took a while to figure out and I had huge amounts of backtracking trying to locate tunnels and crawlspaces I had missed on the first path. One area on a dome with a breakable tile was bad design in my opinion. If the tile breaks and you do not make the jump to the ledge there is NO WAY you can get it afterwards. As my previous save was some 27 minutes before this I was NOT a happy raider. Would have known if I had checked the walk through but if you rely on a walk through for every damn move what is the point of the raid at all? Textures were great, dark areas countered with sufficient flares. Bears were too easy yet the wolves moved like greased lightning." - Torry (02-Apr-2018) |
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| "Another remake of Vilcabamba, but this one can
easily transform into a fully-fledged different
level, if you choose to take a large sidetrack
to collect the Vilcabamba Idol shown in the
flyby. I did and ended up enjoying it quite a
bit as well as increasing my net game time to
45 minutes. Give it a go if you want a
nostalgic experience." - Ryan (15-Dec-2016) |
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| "This is not just the Vilcabamba level we all know, the added parts are well made and it is much fun to explore what's hidden behind the walls of the old and pretty boring level. The atmosphere is definetly there with the classic creepy sound effect in the background. The highlight of this game is without any doubt the platforimng part in the lava room which took some time to do but gives a great feeling of accomplishment when you get past it. I think that the level would have been even better if they had the extra parts not being a secret but a part of the level. It took quite some time to get the secret as i ran around the place looking for something suspicious but i couldn't find anything, i had to take a quick look at the walkthrough and now found a secret crawlspace that i had completely missed. Now why am i not giving it a higher rating, it is as we all know much the same Vilcabamba level which for me is not one of the best levels of TR1. I do recommend this one but be sure to find that secret because the way there is an enjoyable one." - totizedger (14-Jan-2015) |
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| "Starting up this release, I instantly felt a strong sense of deja vu. Yes, it's another remake of TR1's City of Vilcabamba level but that's not necessarily the point, as I could have sworn that I had played this remade attempt once before, for reviewing purposes.
Upon rummaging through my reviews from the last few days, I then realized that this was mainly a copy/paste of someone else's remade attempt at City of Vilcabamba(which turned out to be Ma.ximo's Majestic City of Vilcabamba.) Meaning a lot of the level design has been left unaltered from that release, with a lot of the lighting, objects, enemy choices and texturing being relatively the same for the most part(although there are thankfully more use of classic TR1 tunes here, compared to Ma.ximo's version)... Heck, even the actual level title is still called, 'Majestic City of Vilcabamba' at the main menu. So excuse me for feeling like Stitch had simply copy/pasted Ma.ximo's previous work without coming up with his own ideas at first.
Oh, how hopelessly naive of me! Turns out you can easily miss a secret(and some entirely new areas to explore), if you simply stick to the nostalgic route that we all usually associate with City of Vilcabamba. And let me tell you all that attempting to retrieve this secret, requires some serious determination and willpower, turning a level that normally takes me 10 minutes to finish, into one that takes up to a whole hour to complete(if you ever end up bothering to want to go through all the trouble to begin with.)
Now, you'd probably ask me: Is it worth going through all the tedium, in order to track down this 'Vilcabamban Idol?' In my opinion, NO! It's really only there for bragging rights, plain and simple. So, unless you're an avid secret hunter, this remake probably won't end up being worth your time at all. It certainly felt that way for me in the end anyway." - Ceamonks890 (20-Apr-2014) |
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| "This is a wonderful level with an optional excursion for the secret revealed in the opening flyby. This excursion took well over half my total net gaming time, and it's well worth the trip. There was nothing recognizable to me about the gameplay except the surroundings, and if this is a simple remake of a TR1 level, you sure could have fooled me. No, it's all fresh and exhilerating, even if the enemies are few and far between (and almost nonexistent near the end except for some bats). I spent a total of about 75 minutes here, and it's high adventure all the way. My only complaint is that it's a bit too dark for my liking. Harry Laudie has provided his usual "just the facts m'am" walkthrough, and I relied upon it heavily. There's an elaborate pushblock puzzle that I could never have figured out without his help. Don't waste another minute if you haven't already played it." - Phil (29-Jul-2011) |
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| "I'll admit that this is difficult to rate, because over half the gameplay is an optional, tricky, and very elaborate secret route, which seems to be where the author focused on most. I decided to keep the secret route to the secrets category, and I think the level would have been much better if this optional route became part of the main level itself. The secret route has a few difficult curved jumps and ladder jumps with timed flames around them, and also requires close observation. The normal level, however, doesn't bring much to the table and only lasted me 20 minutes. The strongest part is the scenery, although staircases lead to textures that don't connect together well on the walls. Pretty good adventure overall, but next time the author should make the main level more substantial before working on extras." - SSJ6Wolf (19-Jan-2009) |
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| "I rather like the concept of the level, finding an extra artefact in a well known raiding place ; although it is still a remake for the most part, many well known rooms have some different details. As for the new areas , it would have been much more enjoyable without some of the sneaky and tricky bits. Very good atmosphere and very well made level, nonetheless my pleasure was rather limited by the annoying bats and by the fact I had to have more than one look at the walkthrough." - eRIC (25-May-2008) |
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| "Well don't let this level fool you. It seems to be a 20 minute remake, running around familiar, albeit nicely looking environment with levers and ledges and plenty of wolf, bat and a few bears to kill and that's it. But if it was that for you then you missed on the extra 30 minutes of side quest for the Idol that you see in the initial flyby. And it is quite a fun trip to get it with a few trickier jumps, a nice lava room and a clever little push block puzzle involved. Good fun and combined with another trip down memory lane." - MichaelP (06-Mar-2008) |
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| "Generally this one is a remake of the old and boring (for me) Vilcabamba level but only if you don't go for the big secret. If you find all the switches and areas you need to, access the lava room which is a good challenge, the bridge area with the moving blocks and others then you can access another big area of the game and get the secret mask. That will give a different sense of the level and more gameplay minutes. There are the usual enemies for you, wolves and bats, some timed runs of course and I can say it can be a little confusing. Usually I really get tired of these levels but this one I liked. I liked the approach and the builder's ideas. I would recommend this level but try to get the secret and tell the builder to create a non remake game. I am sure with his kind of thought it will be a good and challenging level." - Kristina (21-Sep-2007) |
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| "Everything that you'd wanted from a Vilcabamba remake, is here: the nice mayan textures, the caves, the wolves and bats, the bear, the artifacts, the quest for the secrets. Although this is a rather faithful reproduction of the original, it contains some quite creative details that make the difference. And that's pretty much all? Well not quite! A cleverly placed crawlspace at a spot that you may easily miss if you are not observative enough, is only the beginning of a series of actions that you can make so as to enter a wholly new lava-filled area that you have to cross with some tricky jumps, so as to open up the way for the special artifact secret. If you have played the original, you will just breeze through the 'official' part, but the secret one is more challenging and, since it's all new stuff, will offer you a nice bit of fun and a good degree of exploration." - Ravenwen (11-Sep-2007) |
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| "This remake is similar with the original level but with some more rooms and puzzles to get an extra secret. A well builded level you can finish without problems but I couldn't get the secret although I opened the treasure room door I think 'cause there is an high crawlspace over a small pool and, after doing over 40 or 50 tries to get it I decided to abandone and go to the finish trigger." - Jose (03-Sep-2007) |
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| "This isn't really the City of Vilcabamba; none of the rooms have the right proportions or shape. The pickups aren't right--not only don't you get the pickup hidden in the bush, but the bush isn't even there. The general layout is the same, and the secrets are sort of in the same locations as in the original TR1. The point here is to go for the golden idol (looks more like a Halloween mask), and the path to it requires finding all the new additions to the level. Thus each of the original secrets opens up a new, more difficult path. Three secrets, three levers, and an earthquake reveals a new area. I liked that part. I really started to enjoy myself in the lava room that follows, with its neat little puzzle and design. Then going for the golden idol was fun: a block puzzle to find and solve, and then the climb up to the idol. So the remake part of this level wasn't so much, but the additions made the game, in particular the clever and deceptive lava room. Based on the earthquake area, the lava room, and the entire golden idol sequence--all of the new additions--I think the author could have done an entire original level in this style and simply said that it was "inspired" by the first Tomb Raider game. Anyone who is feeling a bit of nostalgia should try this out." - dmdibl (25-Aug-2007) |
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| "Ah, Vilcabamba! Why do I never get bored roaming through your snowy caverns? At first glace this level appears to offer nothing new and it is possible to run through the now very familiar rooms and finish the level without seeing the extra areas. But I urge you to take your time and really explore, even if you think you know Vilcabamba very well, try looking at it with new eyes because there is a lot to see. I thought this was a very clever idea for a re-make: levers are hidden near the original secrets that open up a door to a completely new, never before raided area and the Idol of Vilcabamba - which Lara missed the first time round because she was so dazzled by the first piece of the Scion! ;) The original textures don't look 'old' and are applied well and the level s decorated with some fitting custom objects. All-in-all a great walk down memory lane with a new twist!" - Kitkat (21-Aug-2007) |
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| "My initial thought was 'do we really need yet another remake of this level?' However, not only is this a superb replica of the original, but it's also been much augmented. Stitch has added a search for a secret idol, which has expanded the game considerably and given it a new lease of life. So, if you're not sure you want to visit Vilcabamba one more time, all I can say is I've been there umpteen times and I thoroughly enjoyed this particular trip." - Jay (20-Aug-2007) |
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| "OK another remake and first time around I never saw the Vilcabamba idol. This does mean that you can leave the place and miss a big part of this adventure, what is a pity though. Word has it that this"shortcut" is intentional, well don't believe everything you read, at least I don't. Although texture wise this does look impressive (haven't played maximo's remake) I do wonder why there are so many places climbable and are not going anywhere. But nevertheless I had a great time going through this one. I still love the"old" textures. Your goal is to get all the secrets and find levers nearby to open up the door to the secret room where the Idol is. Normally when in doubt shoot, here there is a different approach, when in doubt, light a flare." - Gerty (17-Aug-2007) |
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| "Revised review after receiving a message from the level designer himself: I haven't played Maximo's version of the remake yet, but apparently this level builds upon that one (something similar as my Tomb of Qualopec remake and Leandro's). I really enjoyed this one. it's not a true 1:1 remake, most of the city has been expanded to twice its original size and any true connoisseur of the original will get through with it no problem in under 20 minutes. However, here's the catch. Collecting the three secrets from the original and finding the secret levers will grant you access to a brand new area, filled with lava and lots of backflips (some involving precise timing) and some ingenious block pushing puzzle in a confined space (it took me ages to realize the lever I was looking for was right there!) and eventually you get to the Idol of Vilcabamba. Then you just make your way to the Lost Valley. This was a fun revision on the original and is well worth your time -- even twice, as was my case. 60 minutes, 1 secret. 08/07" - Treeble (16-Aug-2007) |
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| "This is another remake of the City of Vilcabamba. Don't search any improvement of the main gameplay because there isn't any. You can really play this level like the original level or the good version of ma.ximo. The real goal of this level is to find the well hidden secret : the Idol of Vilcabamba. The first adds are where the original TR1 secrets were. The discovery of the new secret will involve to do a lot of things : pushable puzzles, jumps over Lava and a lot of search. There are some backtrackings but travelling across the level doesn't require a lot of time. The fire trials was a bit annoying and it's why I lower the score in Gameplay. Stitch added some new objects to decorate very well the level. Some textures are still stretched but we really need to search them if we want to spot them. Some rooms are a bit dark but it isn't a problem. The whole level is really beautiful and it was a pleasure to revisit Vilcabamba." - TimJ (14-Aug-2007) |
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