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Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner Box
Posted By: MartinDate: 11/20/17 12:33 p.m.

In Response To: Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner Box (PerseusSpartacus)

I've actually always enjoyed the level. The advance and retreat to shields and pattern buffer gameplay is very reminiscent of Marathon 1, and is very old school these days, definitely not helping to move a story on, but making the small level size they were beholden to take longer to get through. The older games took longer to play through than the likes of what we have now, that's for sure. And I really dislike the modern way of using cinematics as story drivers.

A. it cuts down on actual gameplay.
B. it takes a lot of development and reduces the number of levels we get.
C. it is actually bugger all story compared to what we got in Marathon.
D. because I got a shotgun and you ain't got one.

And that's why we're still discussing Marathon now. The balance between reading story information and actually playing was just so, with a lot of optional story background thrown in. I guess you could say Destiny's grimoire was that also, but it was nowhere near as deep or well rounded.

Okay on this level and this write-up. It's a level you have to work out again every time you play it, the tricks are not ones that stick in the brain, funnily enough. The ending with platforms A and B is a right pain, especially as you lose health while trying to figure it out.

I didn't even realise the strobing corridor secret was a secret that opened at the end, just thought I had missed it the first time on my most recent playthrough! I think in the Left Ventricle the idea is to just run away - we still have scant ammo in the scenario for those big bads. That makes it a gradual discovery process potentially over a number of lives, which is okay for variety.

One of my favourite Marathon features vs most other FPSes is the automap, and especially on this level I do quite a bit of navigating, especially backtracking, with it, often easier in the very dark corridors. But they put so many bloody obstacles in that south corridor! It's quite annoying having to weave the way among them; I'd have been happy to lose -that- variety :).

That first door is a fun one, especially as one probably sees the pattern buffer before one dies to it :). And especially if you hit all of the switches the first time in Click! The last part of that level is a pain, with very little ammo to one's name.

Funny as I was just looking back through our emails about this ToD, and early on you included this as one of the levels you liked. How times have changed I guess :). I look forward to Let the lava lead you, a level with some very interesting secrets and odd passageways. Then I believe I'm back on for With a Little Help, which I should get onto writing for! It's a good one. Cheers.

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Pre-2004 Posts

Replies:

Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/19/17 6:38 p.m.
     Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxGeneral-RADIX 11/19/17 10:13 p.m.
           Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/20/17 6:09 a.m.
                 Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxMartin 11/20/17 12:33 p.m.
                       Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/20/17 1:04 p.m.
                             Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxMartin 11/20/17 11:43 p.m.
                                   Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/21/17 8:27 a.m.
                                         Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/21/17 4:06 p.m.
                                               Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/21/17 7:45 p.m.
                                                     Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/22/17 2:07 a.m.
                                                           Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/22/17 10:17 a.m.
                                                     Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxYossarian 11/23/17 5:10 p.m.
                                                           Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/23/17 5:17 p.m.
                                   Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/21/17 3:58 p.m.
                             Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/21/17 3:50 p.m.
                                   Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/21/17 7:53 p.m.
                                         Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner Boxnevets01 11/22/17 7:41 a.m.
                                               Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/22/17 1:05 p.m.
                                                     Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/22/17 1:37 p.m.
                                                           Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/22/17 2:09 p.m.
                                                                 Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/23/17 7:42 a.m.
                                                     Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxYossarian 11/23/17 4:54 p.m.
                                                     Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner Boxnevets01 11/25/17 4:52 a.m.
                                         Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/22/17 1:59 p.m.
                                               Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxGeneral-RADIX 11/22/17 3:50 p.m.
                                                     Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/23/17 3:02 a.m.
                                                           Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner Boxnevets01 11/25/17 4:44 a.m.
                       Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxYossarian 11/23/17 4:58 p.m.
           Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/21/17 4:11 p.m.
     Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxVikingBoyBilly 11/21/17 2:56 p.m.
           Re: Tour of Duty - Skinner BoxPerseusSpartacus 11/21/17 7:49 p.m.

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