DF-21 Forums Forum Index DF-21 Forums
The Dark Forces Community
 
DF-21.net Home | FAQ | Search | Memberlist  | Register 
Profile | Log in to check your private messages | Log in

Prelude to Harkov's Defection (* * * * *)

 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    DF-21 Forums Forum Index -> Level Reviews
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
Burning Gundam
Kell Dragon

Joined: 28 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Jul 11, 2008 05:58    Post subject: Prelude to Harkov's Defection (* * * * *) View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Prelude to Harkov's Defection by Mattias Von Herrmann (* * * * *)

DF-21 Hall of Fame

TACC 95%

Download
Required Cutscenes

_________________
I don't think outside the box... I customize it.

Burning Gundam
Kell Dragon

Joined: 28 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Jul 26, 2008 18:29    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Send e-mail Reply with quote

Before there was Assassination on Nar Shaddaa, there was this level... A perfect example of how to make a busy city in Dark Forces.

I loved everything about this level, especially the detail that went into building a massive city. There are other places to explore and the level didn't seem too straight-forward like most. New features make this level truly shine, like the city train and the flight in the Crow at the very beginning, evidence that the author really thought this through instead of slapping a ton of sectors together and calling it a level. There were many times that I lost myself in the level and completely forgot what I was supposed to do.

A tiny nit-pik though is that for a level based in Nar Shaddaa, a normally dark and bleak city, it seemed a bit too bright and colorful in some places. It felt more like it should have been set on some other city on another world (which would have been perfectly acceptable). But with the incredible amount of detail that went into it, it's hard to dock off any points for this tiny error. Besides, what's not to say other parts of Nar Shaddaa aren't like this? Anyway, moving on...

The plot itself was pretty basic, but there were surprises along the way. And it was these surprises that kept me interested the whole way through. No issue here.

Enemy placement here was unique, because there were enemy waxes made to look like civilians and those that were enemies were integrated into the crowds. So when you shot at something and it dropped, you kinda feel like saying "...oops", but then from behind where you thought was just a civilian pops a real enemy to do a number on you. Oddly enough this did not frustrate me one bit. Item placement also played an important role here because it made all the other rooms that would normally be unnecessary and add to the overall volume of the file size important in one way or another, whether it be weapons or powerups.

One thing that amazed me most was with all the detail there were hardly any HOMs... until you got to the end. When I played this on my mac, there were a couple of spots that would crash the game near the end and an even stranger bug was walking out to the main courtyard in the imperial base and seeing my map dissappear and never return Shocked . All stuff that happened at the end though. And getting to the final objective was somewhat anticlimactic.

This level is fantastic, if just for the detail alone. Assassination on Nar Shaddaa very much overwhelms this level in terms of actually looking like Nar Shaddaa, but this level was a perfect example of how a city in the Star Wars universe should look. And this level does more than it needed to to be great.

9.5/10

_________________
I don't think outside the box... I customize it.

Fish
Gamorrean

Joined: 29 Sep 2003

PostPosted: Jul 26, 2008 20:39    Post subject: View user's profile Send private message Reply with quote

I liked the pub a lot - it is possible to repetitively drink at the empty place at the bar, actually lose a tiny bit of health each time, and clearly see the glass having less and less drink.

Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    DF-21 Forums Forum Index -> Level Reviews All times are GMT
Page 1 of 1

 
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group