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 (Size: 1.50 meg. No Alternative downloads.) Speedrun demo: 1:25 
 Unusually, Mike Woodham, the author, has cobbled this level together out of unused sections of levels other mappers have donated to him. The result is quite successful, despite the disparate origins, most sections of the map fit well together, and the gameplay is good. It's an arcane metal map, with a small base section in one area, and this strong theme and consistent metal textures hold the map together. Although the base section looks fine, it would have been cooler if it had been retextured in the metal style but kept the hi-tech details.The architecture starts off quite plain, but gets better as the room designs get more complex. The usual metal features of grey stone walls, metal trim, gothic details and such like are present throughout. Also common are arched doors and narrow arched windows - consistent use of these features makes the map more stylish and provides continuity. There's a lot of variety in room designs, some are rather simple and undetailed, some are more impressive and look quite cool with good use of angles, pillars, buttresses, and runic details. Overall it's quite attractive, and there aren't any really bad areas to let it down. However there are some careless textures and brushes, and an area of HOM - probably inevitable from using someone else's work. Also, given that some areas are much more interesting than others, the weaker areas should have been spiced up with more complex details and designs. Progression is pretty linear but with lots of backtracking - the map makes good use of it's layout with many areas being revisited for different reasons. There are often enemy reinforcements to keep you busy, though more would have been better. The secrets are notable, as well as the usual "hole in the wall" types, one secret is a sizable Egyptian temple in a cave, with cool architecture and a dozen or so enemy. Most impressive!! Gameplay is pretty good throughout, with a mixture of base enemy and miscellaneous monsters that work well togther. Enforcers and Ogres are out in force, and used in sufficient numbers to present a good challenge in some places. Other monsters lurk as well, these sometimes provide the more interesting combats, with some clever monster positions and the odd nasty surprise. Contributing to the challenge is the low level weapons you receive, nothing above a grenade launcher. This ensures that as the map progresses, you can't rely on heavier weaponry, and still have to think about what you are doing. On the downside, there are some areas that seem to have sparse monsters, where just a few more to keep the combat continuous would be nice. Unfortunately one of these areas is the end, which despite a surprise attack is easy to escape, I think a few more ambushes as you progress to the end would be better. Also, the water pool next to the double shotgun is inescapable in GLQuake. Overall this is a decent map, well worth a look. (Did an Easy speedrun in 1:25.) - - - - - -  |
