Catacombs of the Guardian By George Maciver Release Date:    August 2004 Size:                 63.7 Mb File Type:          TR4 No of Levels       5 Platform            PC and Mac

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Story

Lara is having fun exploring the City of Fountains on a motorbike. But there is something about those gold symbols on the wall in the library...

There are four secrets, one in each level. If you collect all four secret skulls and use them when you return to the library, you will gain access to the bonus level.

Catacombs of the Guardian

Out of all the levels I've played by this author, these have to be among my all time favourites. From the moment the introductory fly-by cut scene kicked in, I was immediately captivated and enthralled. Knowing that I was going to be entertained for a whole afternoon of excellent gameplay made the whole thing very special. And I was truly not disappointed and enjoyed every minute of it.

All in all, this was an outstanding adventure to be in. The gameplay was solid, fluent and consistent with an engaging story line to match, which left me with some memorable moments. Textures, layouts and lighting was brilliantly done and nicely applied which enhanced the gameplay. In my opinion, these levels are well worth playing and are not to be missed. So download it now and see for yourself. I am sure you will love them, as much as I did.

Level 1 - City of Fountains

After the initial cut scene, the adventure began in a little deserted courtyard with an enchanting fountain. At first glance it seemed as if there wasn't much to be done, but then everything began to open up and I became totally submerged in a great adventure.

Going down sewers and along passages, exploring every nook and cranny for important items  was required to get through the level. The atmosphere was perfect and the gameplay smooth, and it wasn't long before I got my hands on the motorbike and enjoyed a thrilling timed ride across the city to enter the library where I retrieved my first guardian gem.

Not many enemies crossed my path and there were just a few traps, so the level was more exploration than anything else with a pace which was very well set.

Level 2 - The Beast Chamber

After the City of Fountains came the Beast Chamber. Even the title put a chill down my spine. Creeping through gloomy caves, conquering heart thumping timed runs, shimmying around deep lava pits and solving enchanting puzzles required all my attention as I adventured through a level which was so totally different from the first level. The whole time I kept wondering what was around the next corner.

The atmosphere and mood throughout the level is full of suspense, which in turn gave me some really good thrills. The main objective is to search for a star, a golden key and the second guardian gem. Enemies were a few bats and, of course, the beasts in their underground chamber who didn’t appreciate being disturbed. It’s a fairly easy and straightforward level to complete with many memorable moments and some enjoyable areas to explore.

Level 3 - The Fortress of Crows

This level is another little gem and even though I was doing a fair amount of backtracking, that certainly didn’t dampen the gameplay in any way. It soon becomes clear that the main task here is to reach the very top of the fortress and to achieve this requires crossing bridges, climbing ladders, activating switches to open gates and doors, doing a few rope swings and making your way across breakable tile traps. Riveting and engaging stuff which had me in awe on several occasions.

Keep in mind that some of the switches need to be activated twice, but with all the added camera shots in place everything soon fell into place and I soon reached the top of the fortress to collect a few important items.

Enemies were tigers, crows and a few more beasts, which were all fairly easily disposed off. After all this has been taken care of, I was soon falling into the fourth level for a well-earned and refreshing swim.

Level 4 - Catacombs of the Guardian

This level starts in a large water area and as you explore it soon becomes apparent that your task here is in search of keys to access all the other rooms that lead off from the main water area.

The one room that did have me stumped for a bit, was the fountain room, as at that point I thought I needed the revolver and laser-sight. However, I soon realized that it was possible to shoot the high up vases with my shot-gun and later discovered you could shoot the vases even with pistols! After some engaging exploration, retrieving all the necessary keys and solving a few puzzles, I made my way up to the very top of a tower to retrieve my well earned star.

My next port of call was to visit the large flooded cavern home of the water hag. Dodging and outswimming the hag as you hunt for underwater levers with her hot on your tail made for a tense and exciting time as I fought to get the exit gate opened so that I could finally blast her to smithereens. Once I'd collected my last gem and had all four golden skulls tucked in my pack-pack, I returned to the City of Fountains to access the bonus level.

Bonus Level

The first task in the bonus level is to do a timed bike run again, which will lead you into an area where you need to find a torch and light all the floor lamps which are scattered around.

Then it's down into the sewers to do battle with more of those grunting beasts, hunt around for a key, make your way outdoors and be confronted by our beloved friend, the T-Rex. Once he's out of the way, retrieve your final prize, the Thistle Stone, and your mission here is sadly at an end and it's time to leave this wonderful adventure.

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