trle.net
Level: Japanese Temple by Night back home search
Author(s): Chronicles5
total rating:4.62 Gameplay &
Puzzles		 Enemies,
Objects &
Secrets		 Atmosphere,
Sound &
Cameras		 Lighting &
Textures
Bex 3 4 6 6
CC 3 3 8 8
Celli 5 0 5 4
Dimpfelmoser 3 2 8 8
eTux 2 1 2 3
Gerty 3 3 8 6
Kristina 2 3 2 2
Magnus 2 4 4 4
MichaelP 3 3 8 6
Miguel 4 4 6 5
Orbit Dream 4 7 6 6
RaiderGirl 3 3 7 7
Sash 3 1 7 7
Scottie 6 6 8 7
Sheevah 6 6 9 8
Staticon 2 3 8 7
Torry 3 3 7 4
Treeble 4 7 6 6
Xxenofex 2 2 2 2
category averages
(19 reviews)		 3.32 3.42 6.16 5.58

Reviewer's comments

"Lara creeps at night through a temple and looks for a valuable artefact. And because it is in the middle of the night and Lara is quite quiet, no opponents appear of course, because they sleep everybody. It is pity, that the level is so short. I would have seen with pleasure still a little bit more of the temple. Though there were for the switches hardly camera hints, but this was no problem, because the area is relatively small and this is why one did not have to look long for open doors. The rooms have a nice equipment and the garden is nicely formed. All together I must say that the level is quite short though, but for it is built very nicely. It is absolutely worthwhile , to take a look here." - Scottie (22-Feb-2010)

“Maybe it was because I had just come off of playing Monika's Hanami in Kyoto but I was expecting more from this Japanese styled level. My number one concern for the level is that looks are placed over content. There isn't a single enemy in the entire level! Where was the challenge? The level was more like an overexpanded game of seek and find. You spend the entire time trying to find the next button to push. There was maybe one pick up the entire time which you almost miss if you don't look carefully enough. Lighting where to begin. Yes the level is called Temple by Night but even temples have candles to illuminate them. There were lanterns hanging around the level but they were few and far between. Except for one corridor where there were too many hanging too low which made movement very difficult. Aside from that there weren't even more flares to find in the level. The lighting really killed the atmosphere because once you ran out of flares you'd have to stumble through poorly lit areas and try to find switches that were almost too dark to be seen against their respective walls. One camera panning is okay but you don't need it on both sides of the cage area in the beginning. It's nice to look across but you don't need to see it every time you run back and forth. During the level and afterwards one phrase from the Read Me stuck out in my mind; ‘professional placement of objects’. So would that be the lanterns that got in your way? Or the helicopter that you could see floating out in the middle of nowhere? Or the landing pad that you could see through? When the level designer says in the Read Me please excuse one of my last levels that really can't be a good sign for the level you're about to play. I hate to sound so negative on this level but it really wasn't all that enjoyable.” – Celli (21-Jun-2004)

“This really isn't too bad at all as short levels go. It has a good oriental atmosphere; an interesting texture set and fairly interesting pacifistic gameplay. But there is no denying that it is far too dark in a self-defeating kind of way; the player can't properly see all of the imported objects. Speaking of which a custom level designer really oughtn't to use such expressions as ‘this level is awesome’ and that it has ‘professional placement of objects and textures’ in his Read-Me as it only raises false expectations. This little adventure might well have scored better without such mighty assurances.” – Orbit Dream (07-Nov-2003)

“A luscious Japanese temple at night (obviously) lighted by beautiful lanterns and dragon heads breathing fire. Only problem is all the objects are squashed into this very small level. If the idea was to hide the switches it didn’t work they were very easy to find but running around among the clutter was annoying. The level would have been a lot more ‘awesome’ if the rooms were much larger and higher bumping into lanterns is not funny. And those dragonheads looked really great but it was hard to see them (one had its fire breathing mouth stuck in a tree!). They would also have been ‘awesome’ against the night sky if they had ahem breathing space. Is this Shin Tsao the Emperor whose clay army of thousands of soldiers and horses etc were found buried? Or am I mixing the name up with someone else? I thought this because the level has statues of oriental soldiers. You look for switches to open doors and trapdoors. Loved the dragon pedestal (like the one in original game) and the encased gem (which is your target). Loved the way the helicopter can be seen ‘off at sea’ until you get this gem then you get a great view of it coming in to land. Didn’t come across any enemies and there’s no puzzles no challenges at all. A old boulder or spike trap wouldn’t go astray or even a decent shootout with a boss or at the very least a old bat. At the beginning I thought Lara had a new hairdo but soon realised that she had two heads one on top of the other. This must be a bug. Sigh! What a shame awesome not.” – CC (15-Apr-2003)

“Another ‘shortie’ but nicely built. There is some tension in the hope of what is coming....But after 15 minutes everything is done. The finish-scene with the helicopter was really nice.” – Miguel (04-Feb-2003)

“Excited by the author's statement that ‘This level is awesome’ in the readme file I couldn't wait to get stuck into this one. Oh my! I could hardly see a thing. I appreciate that my monitor is probably on the dark side but even so I would have preferred this Japanese Temple to have been bathed in sunlight rather than this omnipresent blackness. It's also very short and has too much button-pushing in it for my taste. Anyway criticism aside I have played later works by this author and it is clear that aesthetics play a great part in his level-building process and I appreciate that. For some people his work may be too ornate and 'cluttered' but I like that kind of detail. It's just a shame that so much of it is hidden in shadows this time. Don't let this put you off trying the level though and CERTAINLY don't let it put you off playing his subsequent ones because the improvement in gameplay is very noticeable there.” – Bex (13-Dec-2002)

“To be honest I rather had a Japanese Temple by daylight as this was a bit too dark also because the author used a lot of dark green stuff on the floor. I was glad I could use the game editor for more flares as the 3 you have are definitely not enough. There is only buttons to push to get in the end an artifact and taking that with you you leave by helicopter. The level starts with a nice flyby and I had to smile seeing the trees dotted with cherry blossom. No enemies no goodies apart from a big medpack. 03-12-2002” – Gerty (07-Dec-2002)

“Ok the gameplay is not very exciting with no enemies and traps; you basically run from button to button that open nearby doors until you eventually can pick up the artifact. However as the setting is really unique I enjoyed this 13 minute quest and somehow it seemed appropriate that the whole place was deserted. I particularly cared for the little orchard where the cherry trees were in full bloom and the helicopter scene at the end was pretty impressive. When you first come to the landing area you can't help but feel that the crates and the metal floor look distinctively out of place in the historic surroundings but then it all makes sense when Lara sprints to the chopper. Still basically a level where you just marvel at the wonderful atmosphere but that's worth the trip I think.” – Dimpfelmoser (04-Dec-2002)

“Indeed it's a dark level and I believe if it would be a little brighter it would be very better. It was quite short and had no enemies at all but there were some buttons to push in order to open doors. Lara's quest was The Eye Of Isis and after getting it she should go outside where a helicopter with no collision waits her. Give it a try if you're looking for a quick adventure.” – Treeble (07-Nov-2002)

“A truly weak level. The textures more reminded me of a Tibetan/Chinese temple rather than a Japanese one. As in all of the author’s levels I have played so far the objects are way too many and the author just doesn't feel the limit when there's too much. The green artefact near the end was named load and the worst bug of all when Lara shot (even if there was no need for that since there are no enemies) here head turns into the head of the TR4 lara and has a hole in the head. Author says in the readme that this level is awesome believe me IT'S NOT.” – eTux (01-Sep-2002)

“A beautiful level! 15 minutes playing time no opponents no death. Is that the Japanese form of the junior level? There is not much Gameplay. Puzzle: press switch open door. Atmosphere: Dark. Opponent: None Sound: Existing. The Level is suitable for children assuming they are not a night blind.” – Xxenofex (20-Aug-2002)

“The creator of this made such a beautiful and wondrous Japanese temple with new objects and textures but sadly he forgot to add gameplay. I spent 10 minutes running around pushing a couple of buttons and collecting one medipack useless as there are no enemies and a crystal pick up then going to the helipad which was very out of place in the environment to end. I can only urge the creator to realise that players want something to actually do in these levels so next time think more than just aesthetically.” – Sash (21-Jun-2002)

“This is really a pity. From an initial very nicely done flyby camera which brings you into this beautiful setting this level has two major problems: 1. Gameplay equals the finding and pushing of eight buttons (if I counted right) and 2. Why would you hide such a nice setting in so much darkness? Maybe a third problem is the fact that the helipad where you end the level seemed a little out of place but let's not get too picky. I recommend to take a quick look at this one if only to smile at the samurai statues the fire-spitting dragons on the walls the spider webs and the nice cherry blossom trees.” – Michael (21-Jun-2002)

“First off this level is WAY too dark. The textures ripped from Tomb Raider 2 and the helicopter from the Lost Artifact were nice touches though. The level is a simple ‘find the switch’ exercise but being so damn dark this is not the easiest of things to do. I liked the spider webs in one of the chambers. The object here is to steal a "blue" artifact and high tail it to the waiting helicopter. You should accomplish your mission in under 15 minutes.” – Torry (21-Jun-2002)

“With a lot of textures and objects borrowed from Tomb Raider Two plus some newly created ones this was a great looking level with an oriental theme. However it needs some puzzles added as all you have to do is run around pushing buttons and then going to the next one. There are absolutely no enemies so the only thing that makes the level difficult is the fact that everything is so dark and there are no pickups except for a large health pack which you don't even need. I finally ended up using the game editor to give me some more flares. Your only objective is to steal an artifact from the Japanese Temple and then make your escape in the awaiting helicopter. Worth a look for the great new objects but not much actual gameplay.” – RaiderGirl (21-Jun-2002)

“One of the problems is something you understand by reading the name of the level: it’s set during the night! That of course means that the level is very dark. I don’t agree with the author about the ‘professional placement of objects’. Yes the objects are nice but there are too many! The author should really try to place enough objects in a level without placing too many. They’re just in the way when they are too many. The level is very linear and it ends after only ten minutes. Some strange things are that there are a lot of skeletons in one place (there are no enemies what did they die of?) that the spider webs need one more wall to make them look real (you’ll know what I mean if you play the level) and that you can walk straight through the helicopter. If the level had been longer harder and brighter it could have been much better. As it is now it just don’t reach the all the way.” – Magnus (21-Jun-2002)

“A rather short level with a nice Japanese atmosphere. You only have to find some switches to open some doors in order to finally get to the object you are looking for grab it and run back to the heli. Unfortunately the texturing of Lara herself was badly done what made her quite ugly.” – Sheevah (21-Jun-2002)

“I am forced to say that this level is bad. The only thing worth mentioning is that Lara is from the previous Tomb Raider games. The enemies are none and so are the puzzles. Now about the objects! Apart from some lamps barrels with pipes snakes with fire and some trees floating in the area plus Japanese I presume guards or something static of course nothing impressive. Unless you count spider web as original. The player has to find and push some buttons in the dark that open a few doors and pushing the last button you get hold of something bluish. The next scene is just a helicopter landing and the game is over.” – Kristina (21-Jun-2002)

“What a pity. The last level I played was only marred by a lack of thoughtful lighting and objects to look at while playing. This level though is beautiful to look at (if somewhat dark) and is packed with decorative objects - but very little gameplay and no enemies. It was all over for me in thirty minutes which is quick by my standards. The initial flyby camera is good and the helicopter ending is original. I had to use the dozy cheat to get more flares to see the full beauty of this level. Worth downloading just to admire but if you want serious gaming then probably not.” – Staticon (21-Jun-2002)
Tag Cloud from Reviews:
back home search