This level was unoriginal in design, yet the architecture and texturing were good. The enemies were quite abundant, let me tell you. Read on...

The architecture of Dark Ties was quite good. Though there were not a whole lot of sloped surfaces, many other details helped make the level look great. These included many pillars, shelves, consoles and even a garage to help liven up the level, and they did their job well. The ground outside was also detailed. It varied in height, and you had to step up or down every once in a while, making the level more realistic. The texturing of the level was also good. The texture choices were generally good, and for the most part were varied from section to section. There were occasional of misalignments, but they did not severely harm this aspect of the level. Overall, an admirable job in level design.

The enemy placement for Dark Ties was decent as well. Unfortunately, I found that there were way too many enemies. The level was packed full of stormtroopers, commandos, officers and turrets, and believe me, it didn't improve my day. I was aggravated while playing this level, and that is not good. Compounded with the overabundant foes, there was a lack of power ups. I felt that for the difficulty of this level, there were definitely not enough shields. Running around with 39 shields and 67 health is no fun, especially if one barrage from your enemies can really get you. The enhancements for Dark Ties were certainly good, on the other hand. There were numerous cutscenes that added a lot to the level, as well as the water pie and usual button doors, elevators, etc.

The atmosphere was a little disappointing. It was pretty much a copy of Secret Base from Dark Forces, except it was slightly different from the DF level in a few respects, particularly after you got outside the main area of the base. The lighting had only two levels – bright inside and dark outside. The gameplay also suffered ill effects. The frame rate was downright horrid in certain areas, and one tap of a key jumped the viewpoint far across the screen. This, combined with the abundance of enemies, made gameplay less than entertaining.

I hope the author makes a more original level next time, because he has great skill and potential. Download this level and see what you think.