It's been a while since I've seen a level of this caliber. On one hand, there's nothing in this level that is truly below par, nothing that stands out in a negative way. There's nothing truly lousy in this level that I can latch on to with my sarcastic-like pincers, chew it up, and spit it out. However, on the other hand, there's nothing in this level that is of exceptional quality either. There's nothing here that makes you stop and go, "wow." Yeah, it's been a long time since I've had to review a level that is perfectly average, a clean cut right down the middle. The plot itself is a perfect example. Nothing too exciting about it, we've all blown up Imperial bases a hundred times over, not to mention stolen items from them too. However, the idea of smugglers getting involved, and the prospect of illicit trading, is something that hasn't been done to death. So, the end result is a sound yet basic plot. The rest of the level follows similar suite.

On a whole, the level's architecture came out to be average. Some parts were well detailed. The cargo room had a nice design. The new textures for the cargo boxes were noticeable as well as appreciated. Other areas contained guardrails, computer terminals, chains hanging from the ceiling, and a subtle yet well designed hallway at the very end (i.e. it wasn't a perfect rectangle). However, there were just as many areas that were considerably lacking in detail and overall design. For starters, other then the one hallway at the end that was done well, I'd say about half the level is made up of narrow hallways that are cubic in design and contain almost no detail. Some of the other rooms needed work too. The hangar for instance is nothing more than a box with TIE's and a recreation table thrown in for some reason. The room with the power coupling was equally disappointing in appearance. Texturing, like the architecture, came out to be average overall. Most of the Imperial base was textured well, with no one texture dominating an entire area usually. As stated above, the new textures looked good, and blended in well with the standard ones. However, this level suffers from several stitching and misalignment errors. The most notable is in the power coupling room. Also, there are times when the blending of indoor and outdoor textures just doesn't work. I don't understand why the TIE hangar has a grassy floor and stone walls, especially, when I'm led to believe that I'm inside an Imperial base. The same thing happens again towards the end of the level. Once more, you have a few good spots and a few bad spots that balance each other out.

Enemy placement was good for the most part, but I couldn't help but wish there were a few more soldiers. Other then the very beginning of the level I never felt challenged, even on the "hard" difficulty. However, the actual placement was exceptional. The author, at times, placed stormtroopers right on the other side of the door. Therefore, anyone who tries to brazenly enter a room will end up getting ambushed from behind. It's a simple idea that some authors tend to forget about. I'm not saying that you have to do it for every room, but every once in a while is good. It keeps you on your toes. Also, this is one of the few cases where mixing Imperials with aliens is ok. After all, this is a weapons trading facility, so I would expect to run into a few smugglers. Fortunately, the author was also smart enough to keep them confined to one room. Anything more would have strained credibility. Item placement, however, is not quite as good as the enemy placement. Although shields and health packs were well dispersed, I felt that there was too much in the way of ammunition. Don't kid yourself, in the first minute or two you're going to feel the pinch, but after that you can just let loose. Also, this level isn't very big, yet the author gives you an auto gun, IM mines, and an assault cannon. Now, I understand that this is a weapons facility, but they were all easily accessible. I didn't know security was normally so lax. As far as enhancements go, there wasn't much, but was used really added to the level. In addition to the new textures, you also get new 3DO's, and some new WAX's. Again, nothing spectacular, but it certainly helped the level. There's even a nice briefing thrown in for good measure.

Lighting, for the most part was average. There were a few spots where I got to see a good mix of shading (like in the room with the prototype gun), but mostly the level was uniformly lit. The few spots that did show variation helped bring it to an average setting, as a whole. The atmosphere also had some good parts and some bad parts throughout the level. Although the base was done realistically (control rooms overlooking cargo rooms, generators with other generators, etc.) I felt that the layout was far too linear. There was, literally, only way to move through the base. It seemed to simplistic. The idea of Kyle starting out with just his fists does add for a little extra challenge in the beginning, but realistically it begs the question: Why would Kyle assault an Imperial base without a weapon? Did he take one too many blaster bolts to the head and finally snap? Another question: When I enter the power coupling room, why is the charge already set? Lastly, I find it hard to develop a proper mood when the entire level lasts no more then ten minutes. I was just starting to get into it, when I captured the prototype gun and the mission ended. It was too abrupt an ending for an already short level. It would have been nice to have Kyle try and escape from the base, anything to have it last longer. Bringing up the atmosphere of the level though, is the gameplay, which was pretty good throughout the level. The level is bug free (you won't have to worry about it locking up on you at some random point) aside from a few texture errors. Also, the framerate was consistently high.

I leave the decision of playing this entirely up to you. In the end, this is your average, run-of-the-mill, DF level that will offer you about ten minutes of playing time. It's really a toss-up since playing this isn't a no-brainer like "Discovery at Ironfort." Nor is avoiding it a no-brainer like "Alert Red." The final decision will have to be yours. Therefore, I recommend that if you have some free time, and nothing better to do, then you may want to give this a whirl.