Level reviews

"A pretty difficult level that leaves me with some rather mixed feeling. Sometimes this level has some 10/10 moments such as the beginning timed run, the colored pushables puzzle and many of the other platforming areas. But outside from those moments there are some really frustrating moments, my major complains are regarding the pickups being extremely hidden and having to do enormous amounts of backtracking if you missed anything, considering you can pretty much go back to the very beginning of the level even by the end makes this much more difficult. Camera hints were really lacking too and most of the time I was left with the question of what had the switch done. The atmosphere is really good, and I really like the asiatic thematic this level has even if the texturing isn't really the best and there being a lot of boxy rooms. All in all, this level is really difficult but for the wrong reasons, recommended for those looking for challenges but keep a walkthrough by hand as you might need it." - Neltharion

"A mixed bag of feelings towards this level. On the one hand, I absolutely loved the atmosphere and setting, the pagoda and temple rooftops were definitely a vista to behold, plus the selected audio tracks were quite unique as well. On the flip side, gameplay is heavily dependent of a walkthrough as there are some quite cryptic bits and unusual jumps, and even following G&D's instructions I still found myself deadlocked as some enemies and a flame emitter didn't trigger, locking me out of the Layer 4 Key. I loaded up the file on trview and none of those items had any triggers whatsoever, even redownloaded the level in case I had an old bogus version but no such case. To press on, I used the BITS cheat (but still went on to gather the other keys the intended way). Not a bad level whatsoever, but perhaps making it a bit more player-friendly would go a long way. 80 minutes, 4 secrets. 11/24" - Treeble

"Has nice ideas but also hardly visible pickups which will either take too much time to spot, or a walkthrough to backseat, or both. In any case you may need to go back for kilometers which should never happen. All within scenery built without enough effort to produce good atmosphere, as we are mostly in primitive rooms and texturing is insufficient when we aren't. Music is the best of all elements but also notoriously long and tiring. I'd say this had unutilized potential and I hope the sequel is better." - DJ Full

"Phew, this was quite the adventure. It's definitely one of the longest single levels I can remember, taking me close to 90 minutes net time to complete (although it was more than that in reality). For a debut, this is really well done and has many things going for it: well thought out puzzles, challenging jumps, traps and swims, well placed enemies and secrets and a few spectacular setpieces in terms of scenery (particularly the main pagoda area). But then, it also has quite a few downsides which unfortunately prevent higher scores: the unfairly timed sequence at the start that was too frustrating, the bad choice of a swim-through wall to access a lever and a really unfair unmarked ladder that hides a lever that ignites a burner for the torch. I'm surprised that no one else has hit upon this latter point, but it really had me going round in circles until I finally resorted to the video walkthrough. I also found the lighting, texturing and sound usage a bit patchy and underdone, despite there also being some great moments in all these categories. Luckily I didn't have so much trouble with the dragon this time around, contrary to other levels. But overall, this is definitely a great effort, and worth having a go at. I'd like to see more from this builder." - Ryan

"I don't think I have to or could add anything to eTux's review that superbly explains exactly what I think about this level, too. Considering this is a debut level, one should rather be impressed by the builder's capabilities. But the level's problem is that the level is presented like a masterpiece - texture set, technical abilities - and thus the expectations are too high versus the actual experience; every aspect in this level cries for more and with more care especially for a more player-friendly progression and also the visuals (as they are, they are really badly applied - there are rooms where not a single pair of textures fits together well) it could have been quite the hit. The best thing about this level that took me 80 minutes were several original and challenging tasks and the special way to deal with the dragon with the help of all secrets." - manarch2

"At some point into the level you will reach an enchanting garden area with temples and a bridge, accompanied with an audio track of Buddhist chanting for the Bodhisattva Avelokiteshvara (or 'Guanyin' in Chinese) - an embodiment of compassion in Buddhist lore. I feel the author could've taken a page out of Avelokiteshvara's book and had more compassion for the player when building the game, as I can't say I quite feel the same love for it as other reviewers after my 1 h 45 min spent here. Everything about it reeks of high ambition and determination (not a bad thing, but then again - they don't give Nobel prizes for chemistry experiments), but not the skill or planning to match them. But let's break it down to explain why I believe that is so. The gameplay has a few shining moments - in interesting use of traps - either to harm Lara or her opponents, a number of fun jump-sequences, there is a neat physics puzzles to lower the water level, and, though I think it was ill-placed at the very beginning of the game, I actually rather enjoyed the tight timed run. On the flipside - the rest of the game is an utter mess in terms of logic and planning. You need 7 keys to access the various levels of the pagoda, and they're scattered pretty much randomly throughout the entire level thus ensuring that missing a key, say for the 5th level, and realizing it only when you've reached that point in the game where you need it, is commonplace, not just consequences of a mindless playing style - this isn't non-linear gameplay, it's just poor planning, I'm sorry to say. The pushable box puzzles in the pagoda actually have a logic to them - but you'd be forgiven to not have noticed - unless you know Chinese and what the "Heavenly Stems, Earthly Branches" system is, you will be none the wiser why that is so (would an 'examine' item with some instructions have been much to ask?). You can easily miss out on one or two of the 'season' pickups and find out you need them at a hardly more inopportune moment - whilst being on the receiving end of a fire-breathing dragon's power displays - though it goes to the author's credit that you can backtrack for them if you missed them. But it doesn't end there - there's still an underwater maze, the unmarked monkey-swing tiles, and the fact that the rest of the gameplay consists of either hidden or oddly placed jumpswitches and crawlspaces doesn't speak in favour of the level too. You might not necessarily tell from the screenshots on the level info page, but the looks are equally uneven. No doubt - there are a handful of stunning areas, with the garden I started my review with immediately coming to mind, while the final courtyard and the pagoda area hold their own too. Even if they are very commendable on their own merits, they also make it all the more perplexing when you actually observe how amateurish and featureless the settings are in the rest of the level. I'm not just going for colourful expressions when I say that a lot of rooms have a beginner's touch to them with all the usual suspects - rough (squashed, sometimes even stretched) texturing; wallpaper effect; dull, uneven lighting; spacious, needlessly tall, boxy and empty rooms. Not that this would be unexpected in debut level, but mixed with it's better parts - an odd combination indeed - hence the comparatively low score. The use of music and camerawork is well done where present - but apart from the highlight moments, you're left without as much as an ambient background (which didn't bother me that much, as it could have been a design choice), but worse so - no gameplay-relevant camera hints, so far as I can remember. I don't think I would've found all of the secrets without the aid of the walkthrough, and though I've never been renowned for my secret-hunting finesse - I'm not sure how anyone who's not a telepath could intuitively figure out how to get the revolver? But I did like the idea of using secrets to make the end-game more bearable.
In a nutshell - there are a few genuine highlights - both in terms of gameplay and settings - and numerous flaws to counteract the best of them, but I dare say they don't necessarily make this a bad level - just one that is very user-unfriendly. Best played with the walkthrough within hand's reach." - eTux

"My scores don't really reflect my feelings for this level accurately. There are some parts that I loved thoroughly, and others that I hated almost equally, so my scores are merely an average of the two extremes. Yet, this level itself is anything but average, in both good ways and bad. The gameplay consists of a huge amount of exploration; a few puzzles that range from very clever (the push block one with the colour clues) to the completely obscure (the push blocks in the pagoda); some nicely challenging platforming and traps; and an extremely tough timed run. That painful (literally - my fingers still ache at the thought of it) timed run at the beginning is a terrible idea, as it must have put off many players who would otherwise have loved to try out this level. I played most of it with the walkthrough at hand, because I was tired of missing pickups (which blend into the scenery) and not knowing where to go or what to do (no camera hints; unfair tricks like having to swim through a wall; bugs like a burner that isn't lit, rendering the torch useless).
The idea of using the secrets as a way of getting an easier boss fight at the end is great in itself - but the problem is that two of the secrets are so hard to find that it would be a wonder if anyone found them without help from the walkthrough.
While there are plenty of beautiful spots in this level, overall the visuals are patchy. Lighting and textures are good in some of the main rooms, but very bland in the not-so-important areas and small corridors. Geometry and architecture are similarly uneven: some rooms are nothing but huge empty squares or ultra-long featureless corridors, while in other parts of the level, there are breathtakingly beautiful pagodas and temples. The music - when it plays - is excellent and fits the level well. But there are no ambient sounds, so most of the time, there's complete silence.
Overall: I enjoyed this level on the whole, in spite of its glaring flaws. It is a unique experience and a great debut. Let's hope we see something more from this talented builder soon." - Mytly

"Wow! What an adventure! Defintely one of the largest single levels out there and it has a lot going for it, but then it also has a couple of things that are a bit of a let down and prevent the higher scoring that it would otherwise very much deserve. And even though I think that Jose and Scottie are rather harsh in their gameplay scoring, I can fully understand where they are coming from. The biggest problem with this 2.5 hour long adventure is that it is fully open. Even at the very end you can still go back to the first (and every other) room. And indeed I had to do just that - because near the very end I realized that two of the four season items were still missing in my inventory. One of them being 'Spring' which is a tiny little plant that is just sitting there on the floor near the beginning with no indication whatsoever that it could be an important pickup. In a similar fashion it is very easy to miss vital keys along the way and then have no idea where to go look for them - because they could be anywhere in the vast overall environment of the level. I am also not sure whether I liked the design that you can indeed make the final battles with the guards/tigers and the dragon much easier, if you find the right secrets and the right switches, because you can indeed manage that without these 'helpers' - but is hard to do, frustrating and no fun at all and spoils the level experience greatly. So, to finish with my complaints: The level simply does not have enough guidance for the player, too few camera hints in general and the author should consider locking players in in a certain area until all necessary pickups have been collected. This way, a return much later to search the whole place again can be avoided. Now - to the good news... The overall construction, setting, textures and lighting are really, really well done and take you in. There are a few challenging jumps to manage and the killer timed run is tough but if you do it the right way, it is really manageable within about 10 tries. I liked a lot of the puzzle ideas, like the push puzzle with the colour hint, the rolling snakes that drop and then need to be pushed to lower a water level, the 4 lever puzzle, the jump slope room etc etc. The 7 level pagoda is very impressive and nicely introduced with a great flyby and the choice and use of audio works very well throughout the level. So, all in all, a very memorable adventure with a few unfortunate flaws, but play it with a walkthrough nearby and you will enjoy it greatly!" - MichaelP

"And once again I have played a first work from which I would not have thought which is it really a first work. The level is built really well. The best example is the gigantic cave with the big pagoda. Of course there are still much more wonderful rooms, but I have particularly liked the cave. If it is the bridge quite high on top, it is the pagoda, or the glass windows in the walls. All together this level is built very diverse. There are mirror rooms, several Snakeballs and a very good made time run. One must adjust the water level of a river, hears great music and the textures are applied, up to a few exceptions, cleanly. And one finds the shotgun including enough ammunition and Medipacks, thus one can fight against the mercenaries and against the tigers without problems. In other words, it is the purest joy to play this level. Really? NO!!! The Gameplay is a disaster. Very well hidden Jumpswitches and levers, thus one can walk forever and a day around without knowing how one gets open this or that door. Very good disguised passageways which one finds only when one is pushed with the nose on it. Missing camera hints. Missing hints on which fields moveable blocks belong. But I have mostly hated the dragon in the final space which spitted out constantly fire and moths. Either Lara burns, or was attacked by the moths. Then there still comes which I did not have one of the four seasons in the luggage. And this season was the spring. And one could find that at the level beginning. So I had to go back once straight through the level to the beginning and back to the dragon. Such a thing is the absolute play fun killer. What does use a good packaging if the contents are not good? I have played net 3 hours and I have been angry so often at this miserable Gameplay that I would have my money back if I had spent money. Hopefully it becomes better in the next level from moon, because otherwise this next level disappears according to short playing time in the data nirvana." - Scottie

"Lara is wearing a nice little top in this Asian themed level. It is quite an adventure that will take some hours to get through. In the beginning is a very nasty timed run where the roll-out-of-crawlspace doesn't work so I got a saved game for that, as I just came up short every time I tried. There are however some points to make so the builder can improve his/her skills. Texture wise this is a bit overrated by some fellow reviewers as textures were stretched, squashed or in dire need of rotation and not around a corner where you couldn't see them but right in your face. Found some invisible doors and a nasty flare bug at the end of the level. Overall the puzzles and the pick up were pretty neat and do look good as some of the goodies you have to pick up, are very hard to spot. Got all the secrets so the dragon was calmed down after a bit. Some of the places Lara had to visit were a bit farfetched as well using a key and pushing a block to get up the pagoda. There is a bit of a lack of cameras so running back and fro is a must, a pity though. It still was quite an adventure, not to be missed" - Gerty

"I almost binned this level when I came to the ridiculously difficult and unfair timed run at the beginning. I mean, 30 seconds is all you get to get lined up correctly for a bounce sequence, that requires near perfection, then a crawl, yes CRAWL through a pitch black hole, then you have to do a turn around...fun! Oh, that's not all, nope! Once you get down, you have to turn a corner and dive into a pool with at least a couple seconds to spare or you will be stuck in the ceiling! Now, I am not one of those picky people who calls for no timed runs, but I do expect there to be adequate time. I still have no idea how anyone accomplished this feat (thank you Smartarse!). From the looks of that savegame download, the run was too hard, as 140 people downloaded it! Ok, rant over, moving on. The author redeemed himself/herself thoughout the level, as gameplay became much more fun and interesting. This level looked pretty darn good, with such a beautiful pagoda, however, I was underwhelmed by what was actually done inside. I couldn't figure out the significance of the Chinese letters, although I thought it would have been cool if Lara needed to push the block on the level number written in Chinese. I couldn't tell if that was what I was doing though. There were some confusing areas of the level, and I didn't understand why Lara could somersault roll in some areas and not in others (geez, that would have been helpful in the timed run, coupled with the flip-out move...but nooooo). I couldn't help but be impressed with the puzzles, but the inconsistencies lowered the score in this section for me. I kept burning in the final battle before I could take advantage of the final secret's advantages, so I placed all the seasons with an angry dragon at my back! My last final criticism is the author's lack of letting me earn the dragon's death. I was hoping that placing all the seasons would in fact, kill the dragon, but it just opens the door to escape. That would have been better, in my opinion. Lastly, I am glad I didn't pitch this level in my frustration, as it was very enjoyable and I highly recommend it." - Shandroid

"I didn't experience the frustration evidenced in at least one review (and nowhere near the frustration I endured with Harbor of Ocean Level3), probably because I waited for the walkthrough before trying to tackle this one. That, together with use of a savegame graciously provided by Dutchy to get me past an early vicious timed jump sequence, enabled me to spend a relatively stress-free two hours enjoying this action-packed single level. The gameplay was reminiscent of the Oriental BtB competion, and it brought back some pleasant memories. Much of the later action is centered around a multi-tiered pagoda where you have to keep finding keys so you can continue progressing upward. I had a good time here and can recommend this level heartily." - Phil

"Playing half an hour it's obvious that this author knows how to build a level and drives the editor very well. In this long game there are very good ideas, marvellous scenes, beautiful musics... but few more. I have to rate only "2" in the gameplay (and I'm generous) 'cause it's one of the worsts that I have seen. Here we have another author (another one more!) which didn't read the page 70 of the manual. Very difficult tasks as the first timed run or the ridiculous position of the jumpswitches before the final room; bad marked climbable walls, solid walls you must trespass (toogle opacity 2 with opaque texture); ilegal slopes where you have to reload if you fail; no cameras to show what you're triggering and, over all, necessary items throwed anywhere which you can easily miss and after a long time, turn yourself fool to figure out where to go when you really need them. A complete disaster. Please read: "http://www.skribblerz.com/tuts/tuts2/Gameplaytutorial.htm" and perhaps you can be a very good builder in the future. It's your choice, of course. A great effort anyway. A level only to play with the walkthrough in hands." - Jose

"“Go East young man or woman," and be rewarded by this impressive debut level immersed in the orient. Gorgeous asian settings, beautifully haunting soundtracks, uniquely lovely textures and original objects, always intriguing and enigmatic challenges with intellectual game play, and you'll find you are turning Chinese. (The seemingly infinite ways in which the LE allows builders from all over the globe to create their uniquely original themes and ideas, and thereby capture our imagination, never ceases to amaze and delight me in this raiding addiction.) On the downside, as noted by earlier reviewers, there are a ginormous number of rough edges in this author's first offering, with the most serious defect being the absence of cameras which leads to a lot of unpleasant frustration. And lower the scores. (Many thanks to the tips from those genius raiders in the stuck forum on trle.net, otherwise I would have never been able to finish.) Even still, I missed some of the secrets required to quiet the Dragon, leaving no alternative to finish the level except through hours of frantic, almost deranged induced frenzy getting my ass kicked, roasted, soaked, and chewed up before finally escaping with the Cimelia. (Had to turn off that final chase soundtrack, as it is just a lame, ugly annoyance.) I hope this builder understands how impressed the community has been in response to this debut level. The uniquely creative originality and intellectual talent on display here is just awesome. This has all the makings of truly promising journey that I hope we get an opportunity to see more of. Powerful work, keep it coming please." - Mezcal

"A clever and original level with an Asian theme, with Lara to climb a seven layer pagoda. This doesn't seem like a debut level, but rather an accomplished effort with some nice scenery, and devious puzzles. In the main this is enjoyable, but it can have frustrating moments, when it becomes too clever. Right from the start the author's read-me file said that Lara can roll forward from a crouch, and then the level opens with a timed run involving a crawlspace, when a crawlspace roll would surely help. I tried every possible key combination to try to get Lara to roll (normally the dash key, pressed by itself). No luck. So I tried to get Lara to roll out of the crawlspace, and couldn't do that either, thus ending with a negative first impression. There is a good colored-push-block puzzle, and a clever bit for the revolver secret, but then this was somewhat spoiled by a bug that seemed to block Lara from an open doorway. Then there was the hour spent trying to figure out what to do with the torch, after finally lighting it. I finished this entire game with all four secrets found, and pacified the dragon (perhaps he only awakens in a foul mood, but then settles down) and yet not once was the torch used in game, even though Lara carried it to the top of the pagoda, and carried the torch into the final courtyard and tried to light lion statues. Then there were keys that were well nigh impossible to see, even when Lara was standing over them (the key near the end of the rocky mirrored tunnel is an example). Some people had trouble finding the first of the four seasons, "spring," but I couldn't spot "winter" even though Lara walked right over it, because it was in a dark alcove and by then the flare bug had kicked in, so there was no light. Should we have a flare bug in modern levels? There was a clever bit about pushing two serpent balls into water channels, to stop a water flow. Strangely, this works even if Lara pushes the balls right into the deep pool of water; with Lara swimming below she can then look up and see two visible water levels superimposed on top one another. In the last dragon room if Lara jumps to central rock slopes she lands on an invisible spot (not an invisible ledge) that holds her; if she gets free she falls into the rocks, into a blackness out of the level itself. For the sixth layer key Lara can spring to a ledge and walk on it, but she is supposed to do a monkeyswing under this ledge, even though there are no markings to indicate a monkeyswing, only rock texture. Details do matter; I seldom felt immersed in this adventure because of such flaws. The hidden swim-through textures are another example of the author being too clever. I expect and hope that this author will settle down and produce further levels of exceptional quality. For players who barely notice such details this is an involving puzzle level." - dmdibl

"A quite amazingly well worked out level for a beginner ! The builder proudly announced in his readme that you would have to use the "roll out of a crawlspace" option now and then to do a very tough timed sequence . More than a hundred (!)downloads from either Raymond or Smartarse in the forums clearly show it didn`t work . This is very annoying ! Secrets are normally used to ease the players comfort and not designed as the adventurers only option to keep Lara alive in the final contest ! Some of the mysterios keys were only to be found by chance. Complete absence of camera work makes my rating complete ,sorry , but compared to Nadines NG or even Richards UB4 this issue will have to suffer even an 7 or 8 at some stage." - Ruben

"A very good debut level, but with a few hallmarks of a more inexperienced builder, and maybe some hints at a lack of testing too. After a bit of a lead in (namely a pretty brutal timed run) you reach a very impressively scaled Pagoda area that is the centerpiece of the level and follow a path, that, in the tradition of many of the best levels around, seems very complex at first but is actually quite straightforward.
The biggest flaw is the items you must find lying around; they seem added almost randomly, and cheaply blend into the scenery in many instances making finding them even tougher, really, I think the level would have flowed much better if all the keys were removed outside of the one for the bottom floor of the tower. There are some quite creative puzzles, and I liked some twists on old ones, like getting a torch to the bottom of the Pagoda area from the top, however, there was one puzzle based around pushing boulders that seemed very unintuitive (wouldn't that raise the water level?) as well as involving fiddly trigger areas (I had to reposition a lot before it worked). I also found the layered approach to some puzzles overdone to the point it's slightly off- putting; you solve one thing and feel accomplished, then hit a brick wall of a door you missed the trigger or key for right after; to be fair though said triggers were never very far away. There was also one area where you were forced to jump over illegal slopes. Finally there's also a complete lack of camera hints, that could have gone a long way to fixing most of these issues. How good the rest is mostly makes up for this though.
There are some very impressive areas architecturally, however, there are also areas are very empty and feel very cubic. Texturing is also good outside of the top areas of the Pagoda (that felt a bit random). There's some weirdness with the sound; when the music does play it's very cool, but there seems to be no ambient music, and the title screen music is missing too. I tried copying the LE music folder into the folder for this mod but that only fixed the title screen; the ambiance was still missing. I also noticed some missing sounds too.
Lighting is easily the weakest area of this map, there are some interesting uses of it, but a lot of the level is either lit with white or bathed in grayish ambient light; with a little more work this level could have been much more atmospheric with even some subtle changes, as well a potentially helping with the progression by providing some clues.
Despite the flaws there's a lot of potential shown in the level, and the overall layout is very interesting. Later levels by this author could potentially be amazing with a little refinement, and I still say this one is a must play despite the issues I've mentioned (although you might want to hold out for a walkthrough first)." - Mman

"ok i just finished this one ....... well i was impresed with this first work off a talented player ...this game is very nice builded with very good visuals and interesting gameplay with some very tuff time runs.... especialy the sloped jumps up one for the outside underwater tunnel wich was very short ..some items like '' spring '' for ex . was unsusual looking so u may miss it very easy to pick up and u need it at final stage ....... also wich need some work from the builder is the camera shots implementation cos cameras are inexistent so u never know what open or doo after a lever pullmusic is very ell fitt in this one oriental chinesse songs ....also u need hawk eyes cos this builder is a master in hidding openings or levers or JS also some jumps for a JS was at first glance impossible cos obstacle in the way like ceiling in front too low or a sculpture was put in the way .....all in all a very nice crafted game off course with that up mentionated flaws ..... a builder wich will have big succes in the future i am sure .... cos is very talented one ... Gameplay & puzles 10/ enemyes &secrets 10 /atmosphere 7 sound 9 cameras 3 = 6 / lightning textures 10 ..... recomanded ." - Jack&

"I don't believe I've ever played such a huge single-level adventure in all my years of raiding! Usually,I get the feel for the overall shape of a level within ten minutes or so;but in this case,the aim and purpose of the quest didn't really become apparent until about an hour in.I spent almost half the level wandering around,performing tricky jumps and keeping my eyes peeled for (sometimes outrageously) well-hidden objects - and not once was I given any camera assistance at all.The sheer technical virtuousity that this (first-time?) builder displays is utterly breathtaking;but it seems that learning how to place fixed and/or fly-by camera's has so far eluded him! Nonetheless,this is a truly magnificent debut adventure (the best I've so far experienced) which reaches heights of perfection on so many levels:Atmosphere (sublime architecture and level-design);puzzles (ingenious and daring);lighting (imaginative and also quite subtle) and brilliant and evocative texturing. Despite the 2 1/2 hours of net playing time (the gross would be at least 5 hours more than that) there was actually very little that was technically demanding for the average player,with the exception of a quite vicious timed challenge near the start.All the other jumps and acrobatics were well within most players capabilities (taking into account the usual trial and error);and it's a measure of how magnificent the environments are that,despite having to backtrack through much of the level on numerous occasions,I never once became bored with the repeated journeys as there was so much rich detail to observe. Enemies were well placed;secrets were fiendish (I found one,but could see the others as they were ingeniously located in plain sight);progression was complex (those missing camera clues) but ingenious and involving;and it all built to a big Finale. A hearty round of applause to this truly magnificent builder - but please be more gentle with the player for your next Custom Level endeavour!" - Orbit Dream

"What a wonderful game. It's more than a great adventure, I was addicted to it. 7 keys and 4 items symbolizing the seasons have to be found on your way through this complex level. They are very well hidden, some items could only be found by accident, there are no camera-hints, what reduces my rating for puzzles a bit. But you always have the possibility to track back - and that isn't boring in that stunning environment and atmosphere. Just in the beginning, on the way over a few sloped tiles through two valleys to the entrance of the main-area was clear, it would be exciting. A timed sequence in the beginning was the only real challenge, I had no second left after the gate closed behind me. Average skills should be enough to manage the rest. Searching for well hidden items and levers is the main task here, if there was a price for the best hidden jumpswitch ever, there would be no doubt who earned it. Enemies are well placed, in a tricky sequence at the end of the game you can make boulders to your best weapon. The secret-structure is unique: By finding the way to a few items you can make the final showdown easier. As I missed the laser-sight I had to deal with dragon chasing you while placing the 4 seasons in the hard mode. But it's fun to do so. The atmosphere is absolutely stunning, supported by great sound to the right time; some camera-hints would have made some tasks easier - so what. Everything fits together, it's a brilliant ensemble...." - Christian

"What a superb debut level this is. Well, I say debut level as it is the first release from this particular builder, but he (or possibly she) has obviously had a great deal of experience with level building to have produced something this sophisticated and clever. The oriental settings are ravishing - imposing pagodas, furnished with lovely textures and objects - so that merely running around is a great pleasure. The puzzles are intriguing, the enemies few, but appropriate and the lovely music well chosen. The gameplay is frequently challenging, not least because this builder is quite an expert at hiding switches and crawlspaces, but the only spot at which you may experience real difficulties is a tight timed run close to the start (for timed run, read timed sliding, bouncing and trying to get very quickly through a crawlspace and then an underwater gate - not any easy manoeuvre). The four secrets are ingeniously devised and the boss ending can be made easier if you do find them all. It's a beautifully balanced and harmonious level, as properly befits its oriental nature and I can't wait for more adventures from this talented builder." - Jay