Level reviews

"Sorry but this is a really poor level with no puzzles, no raiding, no enemies and no combat although you find a truck load of shotgun shells. All this comprises is needless running about in a nightie and I see no point to this at all." - Torry

"Funny enough I was sort of glad that I didn't had to kill any enemy, probably because I've been playing some other TR2 levels where they came in droves. So I had a nice run around and found the well hidden relic." - Gerty

"I guess this is a good example why combat, as a whole, is important to the Tomb Raider experience. Despite generally good looking areas and a fully functional level, with plenty of doors and buttons to open them, something is clearly lacking here. There is a grand total of zero enemies, but even so you get quite a few shotgun ammo pickups along the way, so my guess is that it got released ahead of schedule for some reason. I had a silly game in my head that the title was a nice reference to just how well hidden said relic is, but ultimately I'm going to say the baddies got to it first and then simply upped and left. 25 minutes, 2 secrets. 05/17" - Treeble

"This is a simple and rather underwhelming run through a vaguely Venice-like setting. I love Venice levels, but this left me rather disappointed. The rooms are large and gapingly empty and the enemies seemed to have taken a day off as there were none in the level whatsoever. The gameplay is simplistic and merely has you opening doors, pressing buttons and doing some jumping." - Ryan

"I'll be honest here and say that for me the biggest issue with Hidden Relic is the lack of progress from previous levels produced by the author. Lighting is pretty much non-existent, pickups are numerous but there's nothing lurking in the corners to battle. Architecturally it doesn't make much sense either. Not terrible by any means but I can't help but feel this is perhaps a good idea that's been rushed into creation. I do hope Forger is still out there working on levels but there's definitely promise here. Completed in just over 35 minutes. Stiggy" - TheStig

"A level without action. No enemy, no music, lots of ammunition for nothing then." - SlyRaider

"Before I start getting this review into full gear, I'd like to bring up a few basic logic-based criticisms towards the builder in question. First off, why on earth is Lara running around in a dressing gown in the middle of the day? As I'm pretty sure no self-respecting human being would want to humiliate themselves in front of others like that(which I suppose is a stroke of luck in Lara's favour, considering that there aren't any enemies to encounter in this game at all.) And secondly, what was the point of all the shotgun shells and medipacks you find, if there aren't any opposing threats to use them for? And yes, I'm well aware that Lara can still drown or get impaled on spikes in this level, but if you're pretty good at playing Tomb Raider(which is practically 99% of people who visit this site on occasion), that still doesn't necessarily negate the issue by a whole lot. *phew* OK, now that all of my minor criticisms are out of the way, let's get right to the meat of the review, shall we? To start off, much like I said earlier, there aren't any enemies or serious threats at all to worry about here(making the inclusion of the shotgun rather pointless), traps are essentially negligible at best in terms of actual danger and the objects I noticed throughout my playthrough, just felt randomly placed in order to feel like there's at least some semblance of life to the hugely spacious rooms you traverse through, while looking for keys to pick up and switches/buttons to activate. That just leaves the texturing, lighting and overall exploration factor to talk about and in all honesty, the texturing and lighting get the job done decently enough and the exploration isn't too shabby either(although with a tremendous lack of anything truly surprising or shocking to encounter, it turns the act of simply exploring the level into more of a dull chore if nothing else.) In conclusion, I finished this level feeling very unsatisfied after 26 minutes of play and wouldn't really recommend this to anyone, except those who are looking for a mere relaxation romp and nothing more. For those who are craving something with a lot more action and variety to their games however, you're better off looking elsewhere to satisfy your needs." - Ceamonks890

"While this is certainly not the worse Venice level out there, it's not at the top either. The atmosphere is nice enough, some kind of big house-mansion-fortress-vault kind of place. It's really interesting to see how big this level is, taking up around 25 minutes of constant progression through a variety of different rooms. Unfortunately those same rooms are too capacious for their own good. Combine this with the lack of enemies, and the level becomes a desolate and quiet stroll. Which is not necessarily a bad thing; I like the occasional level without enemies. So I'm hit and miss on this one. If you're looking for a relaxing level with okay scenery and not much tension, then this is a fairly appropriate level for you. But this is not typical tomb raiding by any means." - Xela

"So i decided to play this level even if the ratings are low. I like Venice-style levels but this one wasn't one of the better looking Venice-style levels i've played, the rooms are too big. The only thing you do gameplay wise is to run around opening doors. There were no enemies at all even if i was expecting one to jump at me around every corner, i found a lot of ammo in one room but as there are no enemies what is the point of that. Textures and lighting are average. There is a pushable block puzzle that did spice things up a bit and a trap where you have to run across a room full of breaktiles. The level ended too abruptly. The level isn't that bad if you are one of those who want a peaceful level to play." - totizedger

"Correct this TR2 Venice-stlyle level but out of interest. Gameplay consists only about run through big rooms pressing buttons to open doors with the only exception of a push-block puzzle. Secrets are not hidden; I've picked up many items but no use for them 'cause there are no enemies. Rooms are empty, with few furniture and architecture was simple. At least, cameras were well implemented but often textures make itself monotonous applied in big surfaces. Lights don't exist. I coudn't see a real progress in the work from this author." - Jose

"A fairly basic Venice setting here, which allows for an easy run through of about 20 to 30 minutes that can actually be enjoyable if you do not want to be taxed that much as a player. Unfortunately the setting is all a bit too bare and square and many rooms are oversized, but there is some variety in the texturing along the way. The breaktiles provide a brief moment of fun and the three secrets are a nice addition." - MichaelP

"FINALLY some more tidied up gameplay from this builder, however again at cost of something that has already been working good in the previous projects - and this time, I mean secrets. While main gameplay thread flows, I needed 2 different slots for playing two parallel paths in order to find all dragons. Texturing rather good, lighting average - large spots of changed ambience without any local shading diversity. Zero is a surprisingly little number of enemies, knowing how much Forger likes them. As long as it's a TR2 game, they should be present, for the opportunity to use other filling objects is littler compared to official trle levels - and btw, those statics we can see here are absolute minimum for the level not to feel completely empty. This negative impression is yet strenghtened by a bit too long corridors. Recommended rather for Venice fans, nonetheless SUMMARIZING all levels by Forger I played for the last few days, I think if she gathers her all little successes from previous projects, plus bounces off a trampoline above beginner's mistakes that hold her on the ground (what she can easily achieve by focusing a little bit), we might see a brilliant unofficial level from her in the near future." - DJ Full

"It's Venice so it gets a certain amount of leeway from me as I'm a pushover for Venice levels. I have to say however that this must be one of the least attractive parts of Venice, composed as it is of large empty spaces with not very exciting textures. I kept expecting henchmen round every corner, but apparently they must have been on holiday, possibly somewhere exotic like Manchester, where there often tends to be more water. As for the gameplay, what can I say? When you find yourself getting excited by finding a pushblock you know you really are going to struggle to find positive comments. It's a shame really, because I think some of this builder's earlier levels showed definite promise, but thus far it hasn't been fulfilled." - Jay

"This level is more beautiful than the other levels of this author, but still not so good. At least, ti is more colourful and has more objects. Again many of the rooms are huge and boxy and sometimes the architecture is a bit strange. I mean, I couldn't understand why there should be slopes in a house? Most of the time you are running in big rooms and you don't have to do nothing more. Near the end you will face few levers and a key hole. I believe the level needed enemies. I couldn't find any, even though you will find a room full of shotgun ammo. Then I thought I will face a great fight, but I no. Again the absence of lighting spots is annoying. The level would look much better. Also, even the texturing is more interesting, the author used some of the textures with wrong way. She used smaller textures for big surfaces and sometimes it looked bad. There are so many things to use in TR2 (like the Dragon, the boat, the snowmobile, the Talion) and the author never uses them. I believe the use of them could make her levels bette" - Sarikman

"It seems I was wrong when I said I finished all TR 2 games save for the upcoming ones, as we are treated to seven older releases in one go! Unfortunately, this particular level has me wanting so much more. The visuals are actually not bad at all but there is not much to speak of gameplaywise in this level else than progressing in a linear fashion that still leaves possibilities for heavy backtracking, e.g. eventually you come to a crossing - one leads further and one back to the start although there is no need to return in any case. Also, it completely lacks combat, and in elseway boring levels those can be the only chance to add at least a bit of fun, but the builder decided to leave this game barren in that regard. After some time the level got so pedestrian I never looked for any secrets, still found one that was nearly impossible to miss, and was hoping that it ends soon so that I can send in the review and download the other releases. 20 minutes." - manarch2

"I always have hope for TR2 levels as they can have different enemies and vehicles than more common TR4 custom levels, but this level doesn't have much of anything except sparsely decorated boxy rooms. I don't even remember an underwater lever, but did finally find a push block, and there are three secret dragons (but the TR2 reward for picking up the third dragon seems to be missing). Lara finds two keys, and there is sort of a branching level map that shows the author has potential to develop. Searching through the map takes almost half an hour. I hope the author plays a lot of TR2, as well as the best TR3 custom levels, to get ideas and inspiration." - dmdibl

"In Hidden Relic , Lara is exploring a part of city with a Venitian setting. Courtyards, undergrounds , some interior of homes too. The Setting is solid but not quite convincing , the rooms are often big with no lighting , and sometimes the decor is a bit strange . You will spend much of your time running , with a bit of climbing , sliding , swimming , jumping , or shimmying , as there is no puzzle except an easy movable block , and a few traps where likely noone will die. So when I collected all that ammo in one small room , I expected a big showdown , or when I ran up those big ramps some rolling balls , but they never came. No enemies , no rolling balls. A bit disappointing and uneventful level where it is hard to get stuck. [ 25 minutes ]" - eRIC

"This games most interesting feature: it's actually retro an manages to take you back to TR2; well, maybe not a very smart TR2 settingswise, but still actually TR2. I liked it for what it is and enjoyed the short time I spent playing it. Not too hard, not really too easy. I missed some baddies and dogs along the way, but well, who am I to say when I'm the one who generally praise levels that manage to reach the highest tops without having to resort to all that plus loads of traps? Still, I felt like something was missing here, like some kind of story or something... The ending couldn't have been more abrupt either. It's like "what, is this it?". Nice try and I'm sure Forger will be able to improve next time." - Jorge22

"This is one of those levels without anything even remotely resembling a real-life location.Venice textures are plastered listlessly over huge expanses of bare wall;room geometry consists of large rectangular areas with a few climbable pillars here and there;enemies are absent;lighting is non- existent;and the puzzles consist of one pushable block and a hidden in plain sight key-hole.A completely uninvolving 28 minutes." - Orbit Dream