Level reviews

"I see why this was restricted - those single TR1 maps appeared in better versions in the author's flagship project. Still, it's good to see and play the history. It's short, simple and working, so why not?" - DJ Full

"I'm not sure "revised" is the proper moniker here. It seems as though as the author built parts of it from memory but it's definitely downscaled by a lot. You still get a T-Rex and a couple of dinos, yes, but the quest for the four stones (instead of cogs) is rather dull and uninspired. At least it doesn't outstay it's welcome, so it's good for a quick casual run in an average day of our lives. 10 minutes. 01/24" - Treeble

"Not a complete remake of the official level , as here the gameplay and areas are more simply built. With some exploration 4 waterfall gems are to be found and this is done easily. The water flipmap is here , the T-Rex and raptors also. The audios are fitting and flybys are correct. 12 minutes" - eRIC

"Reviewers have proven themselves to be inventive when it comes to adjectives describing the character of this remake, and rather than reach for the thesaurus, I'll just say that this failed attempt at a remake earns its one point in gameplay because of the fact that it's not a click-by-click remake; although it might arguably have been an altogether more beneficial experience for the builder had he set out to make one instead of going for a - revision'. As it stands, the aim here seems to have been the utter destruction of everything that made the original memorable. Everything's boxy and ugly, and the valley is far too large; the horizon keeps disappearing wherever you look, and there's not nearly enough gameplay to fill the void. There is no interesting platforming, there aren't any caves to explore, there are even barely any dinosaurs (you get to shoot two raptors from a safe spot, while the T. rex runs off to become stuck in the temple and later vanishes from the map without a trace). Surprisingly, sounds are present and correct, except those of the T. rex. The level sports two flybys, which are technically okay, and the flipmap at the end works, odd floating blocks (substituting for the door of the original) notwithstanding. But that's not good enough for a builder's seventh level. The basic structure of the original remains intact; but (to quote Roger Ebert once more) it's not what a level is about - it's how it is about it." - Mulf

"Back to the roots yet again, and in a scenario that's certainly well worn. It's not an actual straightforward remake, in fact the gameplay has been rather watered down and simplified a lot, and you'll be through in just under 15 minutes. I also found the texturing a bit repetitively applied in the valley area and again it ends at an arbitrary point. You do get a couple of nice dinosaur battles in the main valley though, so if you want something simple then give it a go." - Ryan

"This is an abridged version of the original from TR1 with gems replacing the wheel cogs and not as difficult to find. If you are used to the original you will find this too easy. The dino battles were nice and I never really found out if I killed the TRex as he wandered off and never came back. Still, a fun romp that brings back the memories of the glory days and you will be done in 15 minutes or so." - Torry

"The minecraft version of the Lost Valley.. Everything is square. Even the original version of the level is a bit better. But this was a big improvement from the creator since i played some older levels from him. The water detail at the end to go up to the last switch is a nice touch and.. well that's it. But was not that bad.. It was fast and direct.. except if you try to kill the T-Rex in a normal way, if you do that you will stay there for eternity! Will recommend this level just to pass time or play something really fast but that's it" - Leeth

"Well this level was an improvement from townsieboy! At least a big improvement compared to the previous levels that i played from this creator. However, as it managed to get the hang of the engine tool, it's not at all near of mastering it. The recreating of the level Lost Valley from TR1 was bad and pretty much blank overall. The areas seems just literally made out of squares, there's little work on the environment, it's very dull and the lighting is bad.The T-REX was broken, as you can only kill him with the shotgun and at the right angle and moment. I did like the last water puzzle tho! Nice touch. But ultimately it's a mediocre level, you can easily finish it up on 20 minutes or less." - Zhyttya

"So, how does this remake of the Lost Valley hold up, in comparison to the builder's other two attempts that I've reviewed prior, at time of writing? Well, one thing's for certain. This is probably the closest the builder's gotten to recapturing the spirit of a classic TR level up to this point. The overall goal is the same(except instead of cogs, we're picking up horseman gems renamed 'Waterfall Stones', in order to increase the water level on one side of the dam and pull a lever to access the Tomb of Qualopec) and enemies include a few bats, velociraptors and the infamous T-Rex(which cannot be killed here, so watch out!). Heck, the builder even went out of his way to include some more actual music from TR1 this time around and works all the more for it. However, not everything is done well. For all the bells and whistles that the builder manages to get right, other aspects of the game design weren't implemented nearly as effectively. The level design itself is rather blocky, objects are still rather few and far between(leading to a rather empty feeling in many of the rooms), texturing is still rather repetitive(I don't understand why the builder can't learn to diversify similar-looking textures more and not come across as lazy in this field) and the lighting itself could have used some more work. In conclusion though, this remake does have it's fun moments, but with it being much more 'dumbed down' in terms of design compared to the original TR1 version of the level, great moments(such as encountering the dinosaurs for the first time in the aforementioned Lost Valley section), are ruined when the flyby shows them all off at once and simply spoils the moment. Fun while it lasts however, but you're better off playing TR1 again, in order to experience this level in the way it's supposed to be shown." - Ceamonks890

"A recreation here of the lost valley with a little artisic licence thrown in here and there. Visusally there's a few problems, with repetitive texturing, overly dark areas and improper draw distance causing the wider section of the valley to dissapear to horizon. I noted an area by the pool where the grass was behaving like the surface of water too, indicating the builder is perhaps still having a few issues with the editor. Lighting over-all is a tad on the dark side in place. A little more subtley is needed in this area as it's not natural to create such dark areas in an outdoor environment. It's fine as a quick re-creation but the whole purpose of the original level in TR1 as the vast-ness of the space, with the shock of the t-rex attack. Here the the valley is considerably smaller, and with the raptor and t-rex released on you immediately which takes away some of the fun. All in all I netted 18 minites from The Lost Valley Revised. I'd encourage the author to continue their work with the editor but perhaps to focus on original titles rather than trying to recreate previous TR games. Stiggy." - TheStig

"11.09.11 Well, someone's on the menu and it looks like it's Lara! The levelbuilder has not just remade the level but made it his own. As this is an original TR level, it is particularly close to my heart - it's always good to hear that theme tune once again! I enjoyed the dinos as they were challenging and there weren't many places to hide like there were on the original TR. The waterwheel was a nice addition. Saying all that, the water texture animations need to be slowed down a little, there was an issue with the bottom of the waterfall at the start, and one or two waterfalls need to land in water rather than just texture - this could be fixed by just adding a small room under the waterfall and putting a toggle opacity so it looks like she's standing on wood or something." - sonnyd83

"Aaah the memories, but to be honest nothing can tip the original. Had some funny bug in here that when I tried at the beginning to approach the underwater door Lara got transported every time to the surface of the water and my screen went all black and white. There are even raptors and of course the T-rex to battle." - Gerty

"Another remake of "Lost Valley"? Well; Lost Valley always was one of my favourite levels from TR1, so I'll never be tired of playing new remakes. This time the level is quite simple, only pull some switches and make some jumps to find the four gems to dry the river, but entertaining anyway. It notices efforts with the lights, cameras and atmosphere, but no much work in architecture, gameplay and puzzles. Also the level is quite short to enjoy it, but a good attemp anyway." - Jose

"Hmm, I don't know. It's good if a TR4-Level looks like a TR4- Level. And it's good if a TR2/TR3-Level looks like a TR2/TR3- Level. But a TR4-level that looks like a TR2-level (or TR1- level)? That somehow does not fit together. A TR4-Level should also have the quality and the appearance of a TR4- Level. If it is only about the trip into the past, the unoffical editor would have been the better choice. Well, the level is in principle quite neatly built, though the lighting could have been better. And the playing time was too short a little bit. Nostalgic players will have here fun maybe, but only the unoffical editor can offer, actually, the right atmosphere." - Scottie

"Although enjoyably playable,this level is not so much a revision as a stripped down version of the original,with only the basic elements remaining.You know what they are: find the gems (a swap for the original cog wheels);dry up the waterfall;shoot the T-Rex and friends.Although there is excitement on offer,there is little surprise (the builder doesn't attempt to emulate the classic sequence of the Dinosaur coming out of the dark)and hence very little tension and atmosphere.Cameras are in abundance,but the fly-bys are a little wild;textures are often wallpaper'd;and the valley isn't physically comparable to the original.It's a playable reminder of things past,but a little more originality and lengthier duration in the builders next offering wouldn't go amiss." - Orbit Dream

"There are recently a lot of short lost valley levels but I liked this one. It reminded me a lot of the original tomb raider game. It was very easy so anyone can play it. Just remember to get the shotgun before you fight the t-rex! You first got to find 4 jems which are very easy to find (thanks to a flyby) and after you just got to pull switches and go through doors. That's basically the whole gameplay. Enemies were raptors, bats and a t-rex. Recommended for beginners and for a short raid." - afzalmiah

"Almost, but not quite, entirely unlike Lost Valley. Players have to find four gems. They can sort of correlate to known areas, and find gems in places where discoveries were made in the original TR1 level: this must be the stream going up, so where was the original secret? This must be meant as the temple, so wasn't a cogwheel found here? With these hints players find the gems and finish in fifteen minutes or so. Not a Lost Valley remake, because everything is boxy and rearranged, with texturing to suit. Lighting is nothing like the original. T-rex goes down with one shotgun blast. As you can see, the five screenshots for this level look interesting." - dmdibl

"This is a short TR1 homage, not an exact copy of the Lost Valley, more a 'selected highlights' scenario. It manages to evoke the feel of the original quite well and the nostalgia factor carries it along to a degree. The actual gameplay is easy and involves finding four gems with a little exploration, shooting some raptors and bats, easy swimming and climbing. If you are a new raider looking for something you can readily accomplish, this would be a good place to start and would also give you a flavour of where raiding all began." - Jay

"As has been said before about this authors levels, they're short 'coffee-break' levels and this one's about 10 - 12 minutes. A condensed 'Lost Valley' scenario with little of anything really, bar fighting a few weak raptors, a T-Rex that's allergic to shotguns and a couple of bats. Run around, find four gems and escape the valley. That's it! No puzzles, little fighting, no timed runs, no agility. The lighting seemed flat and lifeless and far too dark in places. A little nostalgia trip for some but not to my liking. Sorry." - Diz

"Another quick and simple TR1 inspired level and it is kept in the builder's usual style. Luckily the rooms are smaller than before but still quite boxy and simple. Gameplay is even simpler. Instead of chasing cogwheels like in the original, we are looking for four gems and all are easily found. In between Lara encounters a T Rex and several raptors. The texturing and lighting is ok for the most part, but showed a couple of flaws here and there. Some areas still have the repetitive wallpaper look. All in all it is a quick trip down memory lane and a nice distraction when looking for something simple while taking a break from some of the longer and harder levels. (15min, 0 secrets found)" - Blue43

"Yet another trip down memory lane here in a rather scaled down version of the TR1 Lost valley. Still, this quick raid of just over 10 minutes for four gems is not without charm, with a quick battle against a TRex and a few raptors and a nice flyby that introduces the valley." - MichaelP

"This is a very little version from the game Lost Valley. You can find the 4 gems in a short time. Only the last door I need a little bit longer to find the switch. Enemies - bats, little dinos and the TRex. It's not hard to kill all the enemies. The atmosphere was good, but the lighting not. I miss the sun to give Lara a better look. Some areals was to dark. Texturing was ok, but we can find stretched or squeezed textures. The flyby was nice." - Eelkemama

"Already the seventh level of townsieboy within one year and one day (nearly a strange coincidence). Time for a little recapitulation. The builder did improve, but not so excessively fast, and he still only creates low to mediocre levels - just like this one. One can see the builder took his time to create a less or well good architecture of the outside area and the pond area (the upper inside area with the strange block that falls at the end however fails to impress me much), but the gameplay still is very low and the only task apart of a bit shooting (T-Rex fights are always nice with the Shotgun) is to find four gems and place them, then escape. Texturing was OK but often one could see wallpaper or strech effects. The valley is maybe a bit too squaric at the edges, but the natural bridge is well done. The two flybies are also good. All in all a classic townsieboy level, a bit worse than "Desert Secrets", lasting ten minutes." - manarch2