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The Templar Archives by Wasp

Adriel 9 10 10 10
Aneres 10 10 10 10
Bene 9 9 10 10
Bruno-Oyaji 8 8 10 8
CC 8 9 8 9
dantheraider 10 10 10 10
DJ Full 7 9 10 8
dmdibl 10 10 9 10
eRIC 10 9 10 9
ersatz 10 10 10 10
eTux 8 9 9 9
Gerty 9 9 9 9
Janny 9 9 9 10
Jay 8 9 10 10
JoeTheCrazyGamer 10 9 10 8
Jorge22 10 10 10 10
Jose 9 10 10 9
Juno Jim 10 10 10 10
Kiva 6 10 8 10
Kristina 10 9 9 9
MichaelP 9 8 9 9
Phil 9 10 10 10
QRS 10 10 10 10
Ravenwen 9 8 10 10
Renius 8 8 9 9
Roli 9 9 9 9
Ruben 10 10 10 10
Ryan 10 10 10 10
Samu 9 9 9 9
Sethian 8 10 8 7
Shandroid 9 9 8 10
Skyler 10 9 8 9
Spike 8 9 9 8
TheStig 9 9 10 9
Treeble 8 9 9 9
 
release date: 16-Sep-2007
# of downloads: 131

average rating: 9.25
review count: 35
 
review this level

file size: 141.65 MB
file type: TR4
class: Venice
 


author profile(s):
email(s):
wasp_hh@o2.pl

Reviewer's comments
"The author was kind enough to credit me for beta-testing but I don't recall doing so, might have done it only just partially (crazy to think how long it's been since Lara's Home was almost a thing). At any rate, what you get here is a pretty solid adventure which packs quite a lot, all things considered, but at some points it felt like it packed too much. Namely, the pushblock sequences. There's a very lenghty one early on in the game, perhaps too soon to the effect that every other pushblock sequence (and there were quite a few) felt more like a drag than anything else. The author ingeniously incorporates part of TR2 Venice in one of the levels and I feel this is something we should see much more often than we actually do. The atmosphere is absolutely brilliant, both in the overworld Venice town and in the underground temples (the gregorian chants were particularly soothing), and generally speaking this was a good and enthralling raid that took me the best part of two nights to get through, thanks to José's detailed walkthrough. 2h30min, 9 secrets. 12/23" - Treeble (10-Dec-2023)
"I remember when I first played this one, back in 2007. God, I love this saga! Templar Archives is still the best Medieval Europe TRLE game I know. First stage starts at a very familiar place, changing its path to unexpectedly isolated, scary places. The traps are challenging enough and don't require pressing the button in less than a second. The enemies are creepy and although there are no cutscenes or subtitles the story is self-explanatory just by playing it (and reading the author's description, of course). I hope people still play it despite its age." - Bruno-Oyaji (04-Apr-2022)
"The Level altogether was fun but some traps are really mean, and the box pushing thing in the second Level was boring and not necessary." - Kiva (27-Aug-2016)
"Wow, this was excellent. In here someone has clearly taken the effort to produce a wonderful creation. Just the right gameplay, nothing to frustrate or annoy you. Lighting and atmosphere all great. Don't miss it!" - Ryan (12-Jan-2016)
"This game took me ages to complete, Downtown Channels (Level 3) was an Excellent Non Linear Level. And i loved how it changed to France. Really cool Level." - JoeTheCrazyGamer (14-Jul-2015)
"I've been really tempted to play this Venetian mammoth, but, as for a game belonging to this group, I hesitated for long (read "two days"), because as a Venice lover I was aware it possibly won't let me out until the ending that will come after a sleepless night. Those suspicions grew even stronger after reading the fantastic storyline. Were they right? Read below to know.
Back to the Roots
Can I treat this as a separate level? It was over sooo soon... anyway produced a briliant reminiscence prologue, with the TR4 moves utilized in places that have been "broken" since 1997. I think the opera soundtrack is way too quiet, I had to set sfx volume to 2/3 of music volume to enjoy it properly. The traps were used to not literally hurt Lara, but to scare the player a bit instead, and I like it.
Piazza La Fontana
It all started with fast-paced action and the torch was utilized faster than I could dream about it, but when I reached THAT pushblock, I simply couldn't believe. How dares one to slow down the gameplay that much after developing it so good? It seems to me the author wanted to apply a cruel joke in this place, and he succeeded indeed. Same with the jumpswitch - what's the point to fall down? Wouldn't it be better to provide a bell switch so the player is busy for a while but he doesn't have to backtrack? Several more nice ambushes and a polerope (unusual to Venice) leading to a remarkable roof shimmy concluded the level in neat way.
Downtown Channels
Those underwater switches were quite buggy for me and the directly following fish was inevitable without redoing the swim, so I considered this place the weakest spot of the game... until the cistern puzzle followed directly after, filled with painful shimmying around the all-green structure. If I was the builder, I would cut this whole section out, because it only artificially prolongs gaming time without bringing anything creative. Fortunately, when I got out, the whole non-linear city opened before me, setting me off to three separately unlocked quests for remaining manor keys - classic and brilliantly done terrace/awning platforming around the walls that surround narrow channels, a clever usage of railings splitting the neighbouring rooms into parts of completely different events, a switch here and there, an occasional enemy ambush, an attic sequence, and this time two quite to very creative pushables made it up for the tedious beginning. Satisfied enough, I moved on.
Tempar Archives
This is the real core the game is constructed around, with timed challenges, fast and clear hint cameras and spiritual items filling a huge underground setting, one You can neither name a temple (though it's templar), nor a crypt (though lots of skellies roam in). Embedded in solid rock, it's one of those locations that explain why there's a slash in Cave/Cat class. Along with progression with organicness and realism of graphics, there's another decline in gameplay. Definitely too many switches are placed everywhere, and right after one rather creative pushable over a trapdoor ends, another similar one begins, only concerning several trapdoors, so this place soon replaced the cistern as my top disliked location. Once again: one can build such thing, but the ultimate question remains "why" - and here I simply wished the game was over soon, what is a pity, because the rest of the level is quite amazing. Puzzle quests are again arranged with nice free choice of order, spikes and collapsing blocks are never too demanding yet still entertaining, and I particularly liked the training before the actual torch challenge - really unique!
Inner Tomb
Now this is massive and stunning. The builder has noticed blue bricks do better than blue lighting the others mostly use - and constructed a leading motif of them to base the whole pattern of shapes and colors upon. As an effect, we got a majestic pseudo-gothic crypt with celtic crosses, angel statues and a whole bunch of horseman knights this place is home to. All is properly supported with mysterious audio tracks and the author deserves applause for total immersion. Unfortunately enough, the final wave of switches, also aided with raisingblocks this time, is to be dealt with, and the only creative part is the rollingball sequence it was really worth to wait for.
SUMMARY:
Begins like a decent Venice trip, ends like a younger brother of the Sanctuary - and yes, I mean THIS sanctuary You now have in mind. Wasp took the same resources and even matched Piega in certain aspects of architecture, though not in terms of integrity and task variety. This eventually leaves me with impression of having encountered both a genious and a typical builder's work. But the mood of prologue and final sequences prevails over the averageness of some inbetween setups and renders this levelset truly worth a try. I'll certainly play the other release of this author and I hope he comes back to building one day. Recommended!" - DJ Full (18-Sep-2014)
"I had spent quite some time looking for the perfect level set to play during the summer heat, and I knew I had found just the one as soon as the first level loaded up. The game plays and looks good, has amazing atmosphere, but what I was impressed by the most was the use of music. The atmosphere is dialed up all the way the moment you hear the opera music in Venice, the moody AoD themes in the underground levels and the choirs in the inner tomb. I ended up being rather stuck at one point in the last level, but I found myself really not caring or getting frustrated because of the beautiful ambiance. I also want to give a big thumbs up to the builder for making a game that's actually fun all round. I didn't encounter one puzzle or solution that seemed too obscure or difficult, so mad props to Wasp for achieving this." - Janny (11-Aug-2012)
"I played this game several years ago, and I can't believe I didn't write a review then as it was simply the most polished and entertaining Tomb Raider experience I had ever had. I recently replayed it, and I swear it was better than I even remembered. This game has everything you'd ever expect from Tomb Raider. Excellent and polished map design, plausible map structuring, realistic progression (pacing and flow from the streets of Venice, into the House of Medici and then into the temple below) - nothing felt disjointed our out-of-place. Enemy placement was never frustrating nor excessive - the Knights deep in the temple were creepy, awesome, and quite challenging! Item placement is as perfect as it gets - I absolutely cheer the author for her sense of gameplay balance, the likes of which I rarely see even in professional productions. Puzzle difficulty was perfect for me, however I would caution a non-seasoned Raider that there are some advanced sequences that may cause many restarts - Save Often! I admit to abusing the corner bug in one room; not for lack of difficulty in taking the intended route but simply because it was faster. GAMEPLAY = 11 Music was perfect too. Audio triggers were well placed, and the soundtrack was a mix of original tomb raider themes and some operatic scores - occasionally having me giggle 'ta-ra-ra-boom-de-ay!' along with the opera singer xD Once arriving in the temple area, the music often switches to a Gregorian Chant style track, which was all in all pleasant, atmospheric, and well-fitting. Fly-bys, camera angles, cutscenes and visual hints were all perfectly executed, well-timed and error-free. Lighting was sometimes dark, but everything was appropriately placed, no blank or black areas, no broken textures. I absolutely loved the custom Templar textures - everything from start to finish, looked visually lovely. MUSIC, ATMOSPHERE, SOUND, CAMERA, LIGHTING, TEXTURES = 11 I give this custom game a perfect score, because it is a perfect Tomb Raider game. I believe it to be an essential part of any true Raider's collection." - Aneres (15-Mar-2012)
"This is one of the most exciting games I have ever played. It makes me remember a lot tomb raider 2 with those remake areas but it goes even further in different ways to the player discover a totally different Venice. I like very much the gameplay I think it's very creative. On the other hand the the game would be better without the long way to move pushables .I think this is the only bad point in this game. The areas are very well builded, the puzzles are funny, enemies and objects well placed. About the lightning, it really fits on the the scenarios with the old gen textures of Venice. This level have to be played for the ones who like classics tomb raiders because it has a lot of things that makes reference on the old gen games." - Adriel (29-Dec-2010)
"Excellent game !!! Lots of things to look at and do with a quest in mind. Also very interesting in that it had some historical accuracy. Some new jumps & puzzles to learn, changing environments, good sound & music. Lara keeps improving with every new custom game, although I see a lot of the same credits from some of our masters. It was good to see psiko as a tester - nothing could get bye him !!!" - Juno Jim (09-Jul-2009)
"I really liked playing this game. It got me busy with it for houres. There isn't much I can say about it. Actually, all I have critics on is the fact that there isn't much of a story throughout the game. She doesn't find new information to use, or at least we don't hear it from her. Like, she starts with knowing only the little bits, but as the game continues, she finds more and more clues. I missed that a bit. Overall, it was an incredibly gameplay. Really beautiful scenery and something that just makes you 'have' to play it." - Skyler (18-Jun-2009)
"What a nice and lovely level set. I really and truly enjoyed this. It really felt like playing one of the old classic TR games again which is something I have missed. Gameplay is wonderful and deserves to be a 10... it reminds me a lot of the TR1 Cistern which is one of my favorite levels. So why then Mr. Hard-Core-Mean-Sethian did you give an 8 instead of a 10? Well, it is a 10, but it loses one point for the countless unnecessary moments of backtracking... seriously, this game must have some of the worst and most prolonged backtracking I have ever encountered. So that puts it at a 9. The last point gets dropped because of the excess of elongated pushable puzzles. That long one in Venice was a joke, and as they continued on and on it got even more problematic. The idea of using the switch to raise and lower platforms to get a block across a catwalk was great... however it simply lasted too long and it would have sufficed to use this effect once or twice only... not the entire stretch of the catwalk having to pull the switch about five times. So, Gameplay and Puzzles is an 8. Enemies, Objects & Secrets gets a perfect 10 from me, because this was truly perfect. Enemies were great, creative, and well placed. I loved the continuous placement of skeletons that I got to shoot into the water with my shotgun, and the Templar Knights in the Horseman slot were great... a nice change the usual boring slow moving Templars. Secrets were fun to find, and architecture was placed beautifully, especially in the final level"The Inner Tomb" which was simply stunning. The atmosphere in that level, and all the levels was great. It felt very ominous and mysterious. Venice at night was beautiful! Music was great as well... the music in Venice started getting very funny especially after continually reloading to the level, and put me in the mood for some Spaghetti. The chanting monks in the Inner Tomb were also great and enhanced that levels atmosphere even more. When it comes to cameras however I thought this level was terrible. There is nothing I dislike more than fixed cameras... in my opinion they never help you see a situation in an area better, they only make it worse. So due to the frustration I had a lot of times with the cameras, I only gave 8 for this category. Lighting and texturing was okay I thought... it certainly got better towards the end, although sometimes there were certain rooms that really could have been lit better. And personally, I really did not like the Templar Tomb stones with a Microsoft Word Times New Roman (or whichever) font spelling out the names for us. However, this was still an amazing game that also had a very nice story, and I would recommend it to anyone who really wants a good old skool and classic tomb raider experience!" - Sethian (26-Oct-2008)
"We start this level in Venice, but in night :-) The old relics are back from the Tomb Raider II... The first levels are easy, training levels, we need find keys and pushable objects, and open doors, but the last levels are hardcore levels! So many trap like teeth spikes, underwater traps, etc. Enemies are human enemies, dogs, Sceletons, fire soul, etc. The underground levels looks like the Walhalla by Miss Kroft, and the England level from Legend. The gregorian music is nice. Atmospheric, nice, all in one medium levelset. I recommend. :-)" - Roli (14-Jul-2008)
"Boy oh boy, I should really get my gear together and review a level right after I play it as this one I had a go at it when it came out and I completely forgot to even write down notes. But in this case I didn't mind at all to do it all over again. You start of in a Venice type level and even there are some original features from the Venice game in it. There is more to come so better reserve some time to play this epic. This is a great debut from this builder and I sure hope there will be more to come in the future. This game has a nice built-up, from easy going to being more complex. There is a fair amount of back and fro and again, this prolongs the gameplay unnecessary, especially in the latter levels. There are nice puzzles throughout, some traps and of course the hunt is on for that Excalibur sword. A level for everyone to enjoy." - Gerty (26-May-2008)
"Back to the Roots (7/7/8/8, 30 min., 1 secret): A slow start in very familiar Venice that we all still remember from TR2. Not all that much to do with a bit of back and forth tracking and you quickly move on to the next level.
Piazza La Fontana (8/8/8/8, 30 min., 2 secrets): Gameplay taking up a little swing hear with some torch action and a few keys to find. Again, you get to revisit places as some backtracking is needed. The fountain area is nicely done and more of the classic Venice enemies appear (dogs and baddies).
Downtown Channels (9/8/9/9, 60 min., 2 secrets): Now we're talking. This is a fun level if you keep your orientation, as it is quite non-linear in your quest for the four keys to enter the Manor (and some more keys in order to get to these). Activities are plenty and diverse and always nicely built into a fairly small overall setting. There is swimming, jumping, block pushing to do and almost every corner seems somehow utilized.
Templar Archives (9/9/9/9, 60 min., 2 secrets): Leaving Venice and we drop into a cave of sorts, very AOD style. Just the right point in time for a change of setting and a change of ambient music as the classical piece began to wear thin. You soon find yourself managing a huge room with ledges on the one hand, including a nice torch puzzle, and a fun trap course on the other hand for two artefacts that open the door to the next and final level. Great fun, this part!
Inner Tomb (9/8/10/8, 60 min., 2 secrets): The final level is awesome in terms of the atmosphere, mainly because of great use of audio troughout and flows very nicely as you make your way through caves and cathedrals, battling a few knights and lizards, avoiding a few boulders, doing a bit of swimming, all in search for some keys that lead to the treasured Excalibur sword and then end of the adventure with a short credits sequence.
Overall, an impressive debut which offers four hours of not too hard but never boring gameplay. Not to be missed." - MichaelP (15-Feb-2008)
"My review count is down this month because I've been playing a couple of epic releases: this one and Imprisoned Spirits Next Generation (and I'm only halfway finished with that one). It's been well worth it, and I hope we see something from Wasp again very soon. There are five well-lit and varied levels that will take most players an average of nearly an hour apiece to complete. The difficulty level is moderate, so almost everyone will be able to enjoy it. There's a continuing story line that's significantly clarified at the very end, and my only criticism is that it got a little tedious in the fourth and fifth levels. That, together with the flare bug that kicked in near the end of the fifth level, are the only things that keep me from awarding it top marks. A refreshing change from the spate of dark levels that I seem to keep running into. Highly recommended." - Phil (13-Dec-2007)
"A very impressive debut level and the fact that it's set in Venice will delight many players. Wasp has faithfully recreated the starting area of the original Venice level, and then extends it to whole new areas of canals, buildings, bridges, streets, fountain squares, and much more. We now know what's behind those doors, up there on the balcony at the very start of the originalVenice level, lol. So, even though we are looking at what might seem very familiar stuff, we soon find out there is a lot more going on. And all accompanied by lovely music. There are the usual thugs and dogs to deal with, the canal swims, the jumping across the top of buildings, and the searching for what we need, but also some non-Venice type scenarios like the moving spike wall. The areas are quite large and we cover a lot of ground. There's an equally large underwater setup with an extremely long shimmy where we need to drain and flood an enormous pit. Lara is searching for four keys to open Lorenzo de Medici's villa, below which we venture into a totally different world. This section is beautifully designed, and gameplay jumps up a few notches. The streets and canals overground are an easy-going introduction to the high-jinks down here. Basically making our way through water and lava caves around interesting architecture, i.e. medieval, and opening up the whole place so we can run back and forth if needed. The Templar Halls themselves, with wooden bridge, stained glass, balconys and support structures are stunning. It's occupied by green lizard type creatures, skeletons, knights (obvously) and a lone dog. Many block pushing exercises, torch and target puzzles, interesting non-encounters with boulders, switches, jumps, climbs, many traps (that look worse than they actually are), and all sorts of fast paced manoeuvres. Overall, the player will be left with a great sense of fun and achievement. Excellent work Wasp. Looking forward to your next adventure." - CC (12-Nov-2007)
"An excellent work from a new builder who promise us satisfactions in the future. The first three venecian levels are nice to play, but the third level is a bit complex 'cause you have to find four keys in any order and it's easy that you lose something and get stucked searching through very huge areas (the entire level). Last two levels are a kind of "medieval" levels and were the best for me; there is a fantastic ambience and tasks are more difficult but not too much; here you'll notice the progress of the author with the architecture, lights and textures and better puzzles. A good and complete adventure with a great history you must play. Wasp, please don't stop building." - Jose (10-Nov-2007)
"Genuinely entertaining. You start off in Venice in a series of familiar locations but it expands out into a great set of unique designs. However I'd say it's in the last level that this builder has really hit their stride. The texturing, lighting and atmosphere is absolutely superb. The enemy and boulder placement was predictable at times, and I like the fact that this wasn't just some random-shoot fest. I also appreciate the use of colour, which reminded me allot of the rich tones we had in Tomb Raider III's levels. The best thing about it though was its consistency and the way the whole game flows. I also didn't find any of those 'argh 20 re-loads to perform a jump' challenges and that other builders seem to be including of late. They stuck firmly to what the game engine is capable of...rather than streching lara's movements to the absolute limit. You always felt like you were making progress. All in all I got 4 hours and 40 minutes gameplay. An amazing debut game. Definitely recommended!" - TheStig (05-Nov-2007)
"This is a wonderful set of levels, and a great debut to the community. From the great choices of the music to the design of the levels and puzzles, and even though there are no timed runs it made for a great couple of weeks raid. (It took me that long due to other things I have going on.) Anyway great job on this and looking forward to the next. This is another must play level set." - dantheraider (02-Nov-2007)
"An amusing level. Game in a lineal way, without technical complications and complicated searches. A well developed history, with atmospheres that they remind us good moments." - Renius (30-Oct-2007)
"Wasp gave me credits for some help , while I did not did anything really, as I was sorry not to have enough time to beta-testing his game. So I just discovered this game, and I must say I really enjoyed it from start to finish. This game is so fluent that I did not had to search for help even once, this is quite a rare thing for a 5 levels game. This is a complete adventure that does not require a lot of skills from the player , but it was so entertaining that I wanted to play it in one go. My net gaming time is 4 hours and found 8 secrets. The storyline and the game play are excellent , and many things have been set up or were retextured to fit the scenery. There are some atmospheric moments , especially in the last level, and all levels look good. Well no game is perfect, I could reach the"top of the world" in Downtown channels (you can just pull up on the roof when you are about to pick up manor key #1) , the flares bug occurs at the end of the game, and there are a few texture glitches , but this is a game that I enjoyed so much that these little faults do not matter. I really liked how the areas are connected and how you can see the objects that you will grab only later, also the torches puzzles were excellent. One of the most enjoyable game I've ever played, without a frustrating moment." - eRIC (28-Oct-2007)
"All I can say is great work. This game might not belong to my favorite levels but it's surely one of the best dubut levels I've ever played. This game starts in Venice and later you have to explore some underground areas. Environment looks rather good and I liked especially underground castles in final level. Gameplay is quite non linear and you have to explore a lot and solve various kind of puzzles. Audios, cameras and textures are used very well too. This is definitely a great game so make sure you don't miss playing it." - Samu (27-Oct-2007)
"Now this is what I call a debut level! WOW! From the cool and renewed Venice levels to the tombs and finally the inner sanctuary level I was strucked by the architecture and the atmosphere. I got the recommendation to play this adventure and as it was more or less compared to Max's "Ancient Artefact" levels it became main priority :)What can I say? It is different from Max's levels but equally stunning! Later on it is a Hybrid of Piegas Sanctuary of water level and hmm something else hehe. The music was atmospheric and lighting and textures done to perfection. I also loved the gameplay. Maybe it is just me but I actually like using switches a lot hehe. What I find most amazing about these levels are the architecture and the map layout. I also got a lot of inspiration for my own building from this levelset. Especially some of the puzzles. Way to go. I can't wait for more levels from Wasp! All tens from me." - QRS (16-Oct-2007)
"WOW ! Venice one of my favourite places :-) almost like in TR2 but with new ideas and solutions . The game looks very innocent by the few first few levels but step by step it became harder and more interesting . Great music , interesting story and those original TR atmospere. I haven't any problems with sound but i had other problem , i couldn't use flares or any other light to make my way a little easier in the last part of the game but maybe it was a pc problem . Great job Wasp i am waiting for the next one !" - ersatz (06-Oct-2007)
"Lovely level! Starts off with a trip down memory lane, in the alleys and channels of Venice that we know from TR2, but with a very creative and clever exploitation of the familiar environments. The first two levels are breezy, straightforward and simple, but things become more complex in the third section, where you have to explore a whole lot of channels, sidestreets and rooms so as to find four main keys that open the way for the next level. In the last two sections however is where things become really serious, as the action is transported to beautiful underground caves, manors and tombs, where there are lots of traps to pass and several puzzles to solve. The gameplay is very solid, well-organized and enjoying; although it could be a bit harder in some sections. The puzzles are clever (especially a couple of pushblock ones), although easy to figure out most of the times. Also the enemies could be a bit more threatening. The atmosphere is fantastic; excellent choice of textures, colours, objects and decoration, as well as music and sounds. All the environments are tastefully and artfully built and there are fine details that add up as well, creating a wonderful whole. A level that shouldn't be missed! I'm surely looking forward to the next work by this very talented new builder." - Ravenwen (05-Oct-2007)
"The Templar Archives was such a fun set of levels. I loved every minute. Venice was a bit rough around the edges, but each level got better-looking and ended with an extremely beautiful "Templar Archives" and "Inner Tomb" levels. Gameplay was fun and challenging in parts, but definitely not frustratingly so. Atmosphere was almost perfect, but I was a bit disappointed that there wasn't any music, at least I don't recall any. I even played the Venice levels with "Venice Violins" playing in the background to make up for it. Cameras were wonky more than a few times, which really drove me crazy, but it didn't happen all that often. All in all, this was a very fun set of levels, and I would recommend it to just about anyone." - Shandroid (03-Oct-2007)
"An exceptional new level set from a promising new builder. From the Venice start which quickly turned from a ho-hum we're back to Venice to an engaging exploration of Venetian villas and a hectic search for four important keys to the very last, where we are in the Templar's inner tombs, it's a good, almost perfect balance between exploration and action. I managed to get on top of the roofs in Venice and was so enthralled that I stayed there for a bit, just looking. Lots to see, lots of good puzzles throughout(and one devilish spike run) and many places to explore make this a debut to notice and a builder to keep an eye on - I am sure we will all be looking forward to his next level and hoping there will be many more. Congratulations, Wasp. Very well done." - Bene (30-Sep-2007)
"Well, this definitely is one of the more promising debut levels I've seen in a while! I have a weakness for good Venice levels and this one clicked with me almost immediately. The first 2 levels are rather brief, but set the tone well for level 3 where the real action and puzzling starts. It's all done in a manner that's faithful to the original Venice scenarios, even rebuilding a part of the first official level, but also having similar enemies and other elements to enforce the nostalgia. Afterwards the Venice setting is abandoned for a spookier adventure underground what I can best describe as Miss Kroft's Walhalla meets Piega's Sanctuary of Water as far as the looks go. If the gameplay before essentially was a key and switch hunt, then this is where it starts to shine with exciting trap sequences, lasersight and torch puzzles which are somewhat challenging but never too hard, so fitting for every player out there. On the downside - by the end of the adventure it started to feel like the game dragged a bit, mainly because of the backtracking or need to go through some routes over again, so I felt it could've benefited from being a bit shorter, but it's great fun as it is, and that's what counts - so don't let this hold you down from downloading this great Venice game! Highly recommended." - eTux (27-Sep-2007)
"Excellent game! I don't have words to describe this full adventure of endless puzzles that captured me from a little after the start. I say after the start because seeing the Venice level I got a bit discouraged, I do not like the old levels and I really get bored with replicas. This though was the same but different at the same time. There are a lot of areas to explore, many keys to get and of course not a minute to spare. So, I did not get bored at any time and in every level I had something new and challenging to solve. The areas are many and isn't so easy to mention here but among others you will be visiting caves, castle areas, lava rooms, underwater tunnels and flood or drain other areas. Let's not forget the Venice areas of course, mentioned already above. I was pleased to see that the enemies were just right but not too many to abstract us from the puzzles. The textures had one or two small problems in a place or two but nothing major. I don't know how much time was spent for this game but I can certainly say that it was all worth it. I found seven secrets and it took me three hours and forty five minutes to finish it. Actually I have to complain about the secrets. The readme did not say how many there were in each level. I feel that information should always be available to the players. Do not miss this one out; you will lose one of the best games we have." - Kristina (27-Sep-2007)
"Venice, Verdi and a beautiful starry night. What could be more civilised? Admittedly, shooting out windows and breaking into houses is less so, but always good fun. The beginning of this level is partly a recreation of the TR2 Venice setting so it definitely wins points for nostalgia and subsequent areas are extremely attractive and a pleasure to run round. Being a Venice level, there are plenty of thugs, gunmen and dogs around but medipacks and weapons are generously supplied. The gameplay during the Venice sections is very straightforward, almost relaxing, but once the action shifts to the Templar Archives parts, some really interesting and fun challenges appear. This really is a very enjoyable and beautifully made debut level, with a well conceived story line, and I look forward to seeing more from this builder in the future." - Jay (27-Sep-2007)
"This wonderful set of levels has found the perfect balance between action and exploration and it's never dull. From the streets of Venice - probably my favorite part, at last a well developed Venice game - to the Templars lair, the settings are always very nice, there are always cut scenes for every important moment, the music is great and suits the atmosphere, you don't have to go to the stuck forum every five minutes and there aren't any silly jumps, places you can't get out of, shortage of medipacks (or medipacks that only give you half the mormal health as in a few games - yuk!) or excessive traps throughout the entire game even though there are some rather interesting "trap moments" as, for example, in a corridor with spikes where you must time your run perfectly to get out alive. From all this and from my ratings, you can see that in my viewpoint Wasp knows the difference between fun and frustration and chooses the first. Great for Wasp and great for us!" - Jorge22 (26-Sep-2007)
"A fantastic set of levels. By the time we get to the Templar archives and to the inner tomb, we are seeing a degree of professionalism to rival the best: might even be compared to some of the remarkable work done in "Neon God." Things start out rather tamely, with Lara returning to a familiar Venice. The first two levels are enjoyable and competent, but it is really in the third Venice level that the adventure becomes engrossing. Then things go to a whole new, ah, level, both with design and challenges. Wonderful attention to detail, so that the player is immersed in the game. The author clearly knows that anticipation greatly enhances the tomb raiding experience (though by the time Lara got the Lorenzo key, I had almost forgotten what the search was about). No real criticisms here. In the Templar archives a jump switch raised a block, but the block wasn't useful when Lara carried the torch, so I never did use it. Some of the camera shots of Lara were distracting since they couldn't be broken. I found eight or nine secrets, but the author's Readme file doesn't indicate how many secrets are in the game. These levels don't require an expert player: no timed runs, or having to consult the forum to figure out what to do next. I did use the short-takeoff jump a few times, like when Lara was on a platform with a railing at her back, so there wasn't room for a standard running jump, but that's as tricky as things get. I hope the author produces many more levels of this caliber." - dmdibl (26-Sep-2007)
"Now this I call a real adeventure ! Far away from the usual frustrating timed runs and silly japanese jumping sequences that nowadays seem to be standard in every top TRLE issue this marvelleous game has something else to offer : beautifully designed landscapes , excellent cut-scenes and top-class cameras to keep you on right track . Wonderful nusic to accompany Lara on her quest , an athmosphere that I have only known from Richards masterpieces ! You must play this ,it is simply fantastic !" - Ruben (22-Sep-2007)
"Ah, Venice. I always liked being here, and this visit was no exception. Shortly after we begin the first level, we arrive at a familiar location from TR2, except this time around it's at night time, although it still looks as lovely as ever. While the majority of the places here I have seen before, there were a few nice new areas to explore too, with their own traps and enemies to deal with. The next two levels are also set in Venice, but with entirely new areas. They looked great, and the night-time atmosphere accompanied with the environment itself and the melodies of the background audio was really nice. The texturing was in the traditional TR2 style, although there were also a number of wrongly rotated and squashed textures at times. While the gameplay here mainly involved shooting goons, jumping around balconies and pulling some levers (as well as some swimming...this is Venice after all), it remained relatively fun. The only real complaint I had with these levels with the occasionally long block-pushing tasks, large shimmy cracks and a lot of backtracking in the 3rd level. The last two levels are where this adventure really shines, however. The number of traps and difficult jumps were upped considerably, adding a much-needed sense of pace that was lacking in the previous levels. The texturing and lighting was also good here, and the room layouts were complex and fun to work around. The atmosphere was still excellent, especially in the last level with the choral singing in the background. The objects within the game were well chosen, and fitted in well with their environment, and the secrets were also particularly well-hidden. This was a great levelset that I thoroughly enjoyed, and I hope to see more from Wasp in the future." - Spike (17-Sep-2007)