Level reviews

"A rare fusion of classic model with Anniversary texturing plus extras. It actually feels quite good albeit short and missing the outside. I see room for improvement, also with puzzles which are a single line of keys and switches. But it's a nice one to relax you." - DJ Full

"Always my favorite setting in a level, and hearing those background coastal waves reminded me of one of my own home levels but this level is all indoors and was just too short and just too generic with nothing original about it in terms of gameplay, and apart from an optional swim to the aquarium for some flares its literally running and finding keys and switches to open doors, some of these doors are on a timer which i always welcome so good there and i did like seeing winston frozen in the freezer although this time there was no way to defrost him! textures and objects were good but it was just too boring and simple to be enjoyable unfortunately" - John

"Another run-of-the-mill Croft Manor level which may look decent enough in the visual department, but is so lacking on the gameplay side of things, that there's ultimately no point to playing this level(unless you're a reviewer). So unless you fall within this category, best to just skip this one." - Ceamonks890

"Lara has moved to a more upscale neighborhood, but her new digs have the same floor plan as her first house. This is a pleasant enough raid for the 12 minutes or so that it lasts, but it ends much too early for it to be considered as anything other than a demo. The timed runs were so generous that a beginner could conquer them with little effort. No enemies, even Winston isn't a nuisance here. Play it to boost your review count." - Phil

"This is indeed one of the best looking mansion layouts I've ever seen. It seems to be based upon the Crystal Dynamics layout rather than the boring Core Design one, which is a welcome change. I liked the use of some of the custom objects (the armchairs, the freezer and good old Winston) and the lighting, texturing and music is nicely done (for once, the loop isn't annoying). The gameplay doesn't quite match up though as it's incredibly simple, linear and the duration was far too short at only around 15 minutes, tops. A promising début, though." - Ryan

"Typically i'm fine with Home levels when it's not in Lara's home so to speak. Gameplay consists only of key hunting and button pushing which is too simple to be enjoyable. I got a special feeling when i played this one because even though the gameplay is simple the looks of the mansion makes up for most of it. I really liked the textures used here as it was very pleasing to look at. The moment when i opened the door to the freezer was hilarious and definetly one of the highlights of this level. There are two easy timed runs in this level and they spiced things up a bit. Objects were used with care to decorate the environment really making it look authentic. It's a short raid in Lara's mansion but it has enough unique touches to it that i recommend you to at least take a look at this one." - totizedger

"A home level that offers nothing special. It's short , concise and probably a test level, too bad it ends with a crash." - young Lara Croft

"I'm not quite sure why exactly this level received some really exaggerated marks, since what you get here is a solid, yet not really outstanding mansion which is a mix between the classic and the modern manor. The gameplay is fairly unexiting, with two timed runs being the only diversion from the everlasting key hunt, but even those are rather easy. The textures are cleanly placed, but look somewhat boring and the atmosphere wasn't really impressive, not because of the colours but mostly because of rather simple room geometry, too greyish-dark lighting and several missing sounds. There are two secrets of which one doesn't register, but the freezer one at least gives a small chuckle, most likely if you haven't seen this before in other levels. So all in all 10 fairly boring minutes but the overall design is decent enough for a debut level." - manarch2

"A nice combination between the old mansion and the new. Nice atmosfere. Winston forgoten in the freezer, was a great idea, a nice joke if i can say. Overall, it was good." - Jeffrey

"I quite like what you did with this mansion and overall i think you did quite well. I would like you to think that you should add more puzzles because it does become a bit tedious looking for switches and keys only. I like how the manor looked and i liked the objects you had etc... I thought the atmosphere was very tender and calm and i would like to see more mansions based on that. Overall 8/10" - herothing

"This is the Croft Manor, ever heard of it? This iteration seems to be designed after the TR3 mansion, but it's not a 1:1 remake as there are several things different. The textures are much better than the original, IMO. You actually need to find a few keys before you can access the entire place and eventually you find the main door key to finish the level. I laughed when I opened the freezer, though. Also, the railings seem to clash, because you have the really nice HQ ones in the stairs and then you have the old ones on the flat areas. All in all, it's a manor level, and you know what to expect. 10 minutes, 1 secret. 11/08" - Treeble

"I had a roller coaster exprience. There were somethings, I loved, simply, the textures I found icredible. Other things I didn't really like were the sounds and the atmosphere." - Vaughnage

"Another Home level that really nobody needs other than the author to prove to himself or herself that it can be built and look ok. Which this one does indeed. It has very nice use of objects and clean texturing and as such provides for a quick 10 minute adventure in generally familiar surroundings with two timed rounds that are both not too tight and two secrets of which only the first one you collect will count and register. The long crawl is a bit annoying for one of the secrets but you can always choose to skip it. Good potential with this author - let's hope she/he dares to work an a 'real' level soon." - MichaelP

"I can already hear the whole TRLE community sigh - yet another Lara's home level - just what the world needs! This one looks a bit different than the rest out there, and that definitely works in its favor - yet essentially it's the well known setting coated in new textures, resulting in a kind of blend of the original Lara's home we all know and hate and a touch of the new games - in form of the remodeled pool area and the textures. The only new thing the gameplay introduces is a particularly long crawlspace in the pool area I could've done without, so while the good old key and switch hunt, plus the 2 timed runs don't score many originality points in the first place, it's kind of sad that the author couldn't find some room for his own gameplay ideas, thus the low scores. There are 2 secrets of which only one registers for some odd reason, yet what annoyed me the most in the whole game was that there was absolutely no clue as to what and when opened the door to the library area upstairs, thus I ended up drowning Lara whilst trying to find some underwater switches I could have possibly missed. It all kind of fittingly ends with a crash as you use the last key, but while I can't recommend this level if you want to see something new - it shows that the builder possibly has mastered the more basic skills of level building, and shows promise that the games that follow will be something to look forward to!" - eTux

"To be a debut is not bad, but there are some aspects to get better. Running from place to place pushing buttons and using keys is a poor gameplay, but at least the keys had descriptive names to directly go to the correct place. The frozen Winston was a good detail. There is a strange bug with the binoculars, I only could move the image left-right but not up-down. In two ocasions there are not cameras to show the doors opening and this can create confusion 'cause the triggered doors were too much far. There are not enemies and very few musics and pickups and this always subtract emotion. The best for me were lights, textures and ornamentation. At the end my game crashed." - Jose

"Another home level that like many others, suffers from a lack of gameplay. The level is easily completed in 10 minutes or less, and involves running from room to room while pushing the odd switch and crawling through a particularly long hole. We finally find a key that Lara can use to open her front door and that's the end of it. On the bright side, the level was nicely presented with generally good texturing, and the objects used were suitable (bar the mis-matching banisters). The secrets were all too easy to find though, and the fact that only one of them registers in the statistics is a small problem. If you're looking for a few minutes of gentle-paced activities then look no further, but if you're wanting a more enjoyable and tricky raid, there are many other levels out there to try." - Spike

"A house level is still a house level and this is, apart from a different lay out and Legend textures, no different. There isn't much more to do than running around and finding keys in the weirdest places. Then at the end there is a crash. Don't know what went wrong with my game, as I had no sound. Also it isn't clear if the builder made the objects in this place, although I did like the small touches like a towel hanging on a rail near the pool." - Gerty

"A nice effort for a 15 minutes mansion level that reminds somehow for some aspects the TR3 mansion. With textures from TRLegend , the level looks good and some of the objects used in the decor are beautiful. There is not much to do here , except finding the next switch or key, and beat the occasional timed door which is not difficult. It seems there are 2 secret areas , one where Lara can bump into a freezed butler in the fridge (not really bump as Lara can go through him which looks funny) and the other one with the underground pool. Relaxing if you like roaming in a mansion." - eRIC

"This home level has a nice, impressive front hall with handicap accessible slopes instead of stairs! I wasn't too keen on the use of what looked like cement block texture all over the place--not too homey. However, the rooms are nicely done and gameplay was pretty smooth. Secrets were just really easy, but that's forgivable. This was a very good first level, and with more practice, Aurelien52 should further impress us in the future." - Shandroid

"This is a 'new' style mansion level rather than the old version we've all become so heartily sick of, which is a mark in its favour right from the start. I was also really amused to find Winston (already shut in the freezer) as a secret. This is a very short, not at all taxing level, with basic exploring and a couple of timed runs. A very nice, well made little debut." - Jay

"This is one of the best looking 'Home Levels' I've yet played,with beautifull hi-res textures and effective lighting.The atmosphere is well engendered (the Mansion has a far more medieval look than we're used to,and that's good),the musical excerpt is tasteful and the whole thing is pretty much without fault,especially commendable for the beginners effort that it is.Except,of course,for the Gameplay (the eternal bugbear of all Lara's Mansion levels); it's completely undemanding (the timed runs are easy)and the whole thing passes by without once making you raise a sweat. Still,as a sign of things to come from this author,it's promising indeed." - Orbit Dream