The Siege at Alderaan

Initial Comments

This is a level I've tried before, and I never beat it. I couldn't remember why, however. It wasn't that hard of a level, so why hadn't I completed it? And then I played it for this review and I found my answer... I simply couldn't STAND this level. The first thing that comes to mind when one thinks about The Siege at Alderaan is a lack of planning. The second is a single word... mediocre. And the third, you ask? A question that has bewildered men since time began. A question that is used in so many cases they cannot be counted. A question so dark, so strange, and shrouded in so much mystery that only the bravest dare to ask it... “WHY?”

Level Design

Many people believe that first impressions are the most important. Obviously, the author of The Siege at Alderaan was not among them. I was going to quit the level as soon as I saw the first room, but a sense of duty prevailed and I continued onward in order to compile this review. The first room in this level is a box. It has two shield packs, two energy packs, and a mousebot. You'll say to yourself, "Uh-huh. So THIS is how this level is going to be," or maybe, "Well, I may as well quit now, this is going to be really bad".

The level gets better from here on out, but not much. It has some pillars, railings, and an awning or two, but that's about it. It's not too bad, but it ain't that good, either. There were some doors that I had to crouch to get through, which is, needless to say, a big downfall. Rooms felt cramped, with enemies, tables, and powerups crammed into teeny tiny rooms. They weren't too boxy, but they weren't good rooms either. They looked like a nuclear explosion went off and melted the metal, making is sag and bend into weird shapes. You'll just have to ask yourself (here comes that question I was talking about), "WHY did they put this wall here?"

There are closets with no shelving of any kind. The textures in them aren't different, and the items are simply dumped on the floor. They look like a teenager's room, not an Imperial facility. You'll spend a lot of time asking (here comes that question again) "WHY is this room here?"

The outsides are no better. They have no randomness to them. They look like a master artisan carved them. They are perfectly smooth and lovely. Basically, what I'm trying to say here is that the interiors look like exteriors, with their winds and turns, and the exteriors look like boxes. What's wrong with this picture? Anyone? And this isn't the extent of the calamity that this level is.

Texturing is abhorrent. Mostly it's too uniform. One texture may be used over and over in a large area. There's one plus here, though, the panels. They seem to be just right. They're in random places, but they at least make some of the rooms appear to have SOME purpose, whatever that may be. One other texturing error that makes itself known: elevators that don't look like elevators. There is no texture change. You'll be walking along, and WHOOSH! Suddenly you're on another floor!

Level Dynamics

Before we get started, you'll need this:

• LAMAXOUT - All weapons, full health, shields, and ammo, and all items.
• LANTFH - Teleports you to position of red dot on overlaid map.
• LAPOGO - Disables height checking. If you walk up to a wall with a ledge above it, you will move up to that ledge.

There. Those are some common Dark Forces Cheat Codes. Just type them in during game play. Believe me, you'll need them. Why? Because the dynamics here were terrible. I can't even bring myself to tell you about them. But I'll try. Officers run around with stormtrooper logic. They shouldn't take two shots to kill. They have no armor. And they drop big, ugly stormtrooper rifles. That's just too weird.

The author's lack of planning caused me a great deal of grief. Indeed, I had to cheat to get the red key, because the author put the officer carrying it near water. This would be fine, but when he got shot, he dropped it into the water, making it unobtainable. There were also many effects that were implemented into the level, but they were not followed through with.

For example, the splash that is often seen at the bottom of a Dark Forces waterfall was there, but only on half of the waterfall. Is only half of it splashing? I also went over the edge a waterfall once (don't look at me like you don't do that now and again). Unfortunately, the author wasn't kind enough to make it a long enough fall to kill me. I had to cheat, yet again, to get onto dry land.

Level Experience

This level just lacked the feeling of reality present in many other levels. Nowhere did I feel like I was really on the planet Alderaan. I'm not saying this is a bad level, however. It's not the best, but it's far from the worst. I found myself asking, "Who builds a base like this?" constantly.

Other problems plague this level, the biggest of which is a river that flows only in one way, without the flow of water twisting and turning with the banks. Seeing the same texture applied over and over and over also took away from the reality of the level. All in all, you'll like the level, but if you miss out, don't lose any sleep over it.

Score

Design Score: 6
Dynamics Score: 5
Experience Score: 7

Total Score: 60%