Cargo Bay 5

Author(s): Jason Muhs


Plot
Apparently a while ago Kyle and Jan discovered a Cargo Bay in the Barra Galaxy, and some X-Wing scouts found it to be an Imperial center for weapons and Dark Trooper shipping. Crix Madine was sent in to gather information, but was captured. Your job is to get him out before his scheduled execution. The cargo is already gone, so you can forget about it. You'll have to be careful because the bounty hunters hired to help with the cargo are still around, awaiting their compensation.

Review
As soon as I read the description for the level I was mentally setting this review down a couple notches. Not only does the idea of another "rescue Madine from a detention center" make my stomach turn, but the word bounty hunter immediately sent visions of Boba Fett flying through my head. In these two regards, I wasn't wrong with my original impressions. Boba Fett is here, locked up in an Imperial cell for some reason. And while this level isn't just a detention center, that's the main focus, and it's unimaginative.

A Mos Eisley stormtrooper complete with larger rifle and a new "dark" trooper are nice touches to this level.
My biggest gripe is that I can't quite understand why the author would settle for something so unoriginal. The architecture isn't that bad, and there are several interesting puzzles, lots of switches to figure out what they do, and bad guys to mow down by the dozens. There's even a couple new WAXs that are pretty nice. But by giving the player all the weapons at the beginning, he eliminates the chance that this level will provide much of a challenge, and the plot just doesn't let the level go anywhere. A little more would be appreciated; perhaps a little extra to complete some of the description. The author writes that Vader will be coming in to inspect the area shortly, but never develops this idea. Why not have Madine and Katarn have to find a back way out, trying to escape before Vader arrives? Having to watch as a shuttle lands on a platform as I'm trying to avoid stormtrooper fire, knowing who it's carrying, would take this plot to a whole different level. As it is, the place feels hollow, and uninspired.

Overall
It's really too bad that this level fails. If the author had taken just a little more time to think about what he was doing, this could really come off well. But right now the plot is full of holes, and the level suffers for it. He makes mention of another level he's written, Invasion, and calls it his "good" level. Hopefully it will accomplish what this one fails to.


Tech Specs
Level(s) replaced: SECBASE
Difficulty Settings: No
New BMs: No
New FMEs: No
New WAXs: Yes
New 3DOs: No
New VOCs: No
New GMDs: No
New LFDs: No
New VUEs: No
New Logics: Yes
Base: New level from scratch
Editor(s) used: FMECAD64 .FME editor, CYRA .WAX editor, Dark Logic Pro, DFuse
Known Bugs: Supposdely some clipping in one room. I didn't notice it.
Download Cargo Bay 5 (cargobay.zip, 99k)


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These pages originally created and maintained by Geoffrey Elliott, c. 1997.
Last Updated February 13, 2004