Thread:Deathstalker666/@comment-1915529-20140221183807/@comment-3547390-20140423220838

Oh, I forgot that. Heh, let's see how far you make it.

You got it all wrong! You just said how great that level was when looking at the big picture (not that I see it that way, the big picture is the final six hours and not the first). The people learned the editor, I never said that. They have done some things that weren't even possible in the original game like in-game cutscenes. On the other hand, most have forgotten what made the game good and that is what the flaw is. The difficulty and challenge of the game is from stealth; not from TRB hunts, keyhunts, or continous falling off rope arrows. When it takes me several hours to find an object while I am able to sneak around the entire map without a problem, it gets frustrating and I view the map as flawed as the challenge is gone and all is left is boredom. I am no longer having to worry about sneaking around, I have to worry about finding buttons hidden around a mansion.

I guess you could say most of the FMs don't match the original level's quality. I have 5 FMs that I deem rare gems. The Library is basically Undercover done right, though when I mean that I mean a very small Hammerite temple, but for what exists it is quite enjoyable. The Death of Garrett has some cool particle effects and is overall a good effort, but it is definately is lower than regular Thief 1/2 missions. Shunned is another very small level but has the best horror element (it doesn't just throw Hammer Haunts into a map, which apparently is good enough to be considered horrific ambience based on people's opinions of Bloodstone Prison), I would even go so far to say that this level is better small than large as the compactness aids the element. Lord Edmund Entertains is iffy for me, it has its high and low points, but is overall quite good; the city looks great and the level is quite fun even though there is a hidden object.

In fact, even in the levels I like, there are hidden objects. I guess the big difference is that the levels I liked didn't anger me whilst looking for them due to a better ambience. I was originally interested with Calendra's Cistern, but a big flaw of most city maps is that they quickly lose their focus. I wasn't even able to pay attention to the later half of the story due to that stupid talking head. Books at the beginning held my attention, by the end I was just reading them and not really remembering what I read.

Oh, I almost forgot Hammerhead. This is the best of all FMs and I would say it is on par with an average Thief 1 mission at least. The level design looks very impressive, it looks better than the docks in Thief 2. I don't even remember any hidden objects. It is a city map, yet it doesn't go overboard with rope arrows. The only problem has to be the beginning, you start in an ambush and thus it isn't slow paced stealth but fast moving. Still, the game quickly turns stealthy after you escape and the rest is quite interesting. It does have some challenging portions, but that is the point. So, yeah, Hammerhead is probably the only thing I could consider on par with a Thief 1 mission. To be on par with an average Thief 2 mission it would need to be nearly flawless as missions 1-12 as well as 15 are amazing.

I guess the reason I was so angered with Calendra's Cistern was because this wasn't just one person designing a FM to show what they could do, this was a large team. As said before, Hammerhead is a much better mission and yet it is made by one person. Hammerhead doesn't have all the pretty stuff such as conversations with your character, in-game shops, and a starting cutscene (Actually, this could be the thing that makes it not on par with the original missions if you are THAT picky) and yet I would rather play that level as the basics are much better so the level feels more refined.

I would consider Hammerhead to be a medium sized mission, it is definately longer than most others on this list. Plus, I love Life of the Party which is one of the largest missions around.

Edit: I'm doomed. I got a note saying "What am I writing this?..." which should get me the answer for the combination. Apparently I am quite thick as I don't see any way you could get numbers in that sentence besides counting the number of words or letters. Well, I will think more on it tomorrow. I killed a pagan god and am having trouble unlocking this door...