Here are our comments if you care to read them.
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Jumps. Not easy ones. So constant save-loading. Absolutely not fun.
The map isn't helpful much because you cannot move where you want. You move where the windows lead.
The player cannot return where he wants, he forced just to aimlessly jumping until he founds himself in the desired location. Absolutely not fun.
Story? What story?
Architecture and overall accurateness of buildings, textures, etc are really good.
No subtitles, so it is hard to understand what is going on for non-native-speakers. Bad.
++++
True masterpiece. Monker head took me definitely too long to find, which makes the gameplay score lower. There was no clue on how to find it. I didn't really enjoyed the appearance of Trickster in the story. He just doesn't fit to the picture there. Of course, the idea of a satanic priest among the hammers is fine, but visually there is a conflict of seeing a Trickster related magic in heart of the Builder's House. Aspecially if you are unable to explore the entire house. The sermon is a work of true passion, very inspiring, and of course clever. I only regret I cannot see the inside of the church itself, and be a part of the feast ;) I loved the richest mansions, they remind me of real interiors of european tenement houses.
++++
This feels like a very nearly perfect mission. Atmosphere that captures the spirit of the original game while also feeling new, a functional but effective story with a number of interesting subplots, and gameplay that feels like Life of the Party but bigger and better. I'm docking a single point because some of the jumps felt a bit awkward and the cathedral felt slightly underwhelming based on the buildup it had. Not that it's bad by any means, but the focus was clearly on the journey rather than the destination. I also appreciate the fact that there were actually things going on at street level; the original LOTP has some but not quite enough to make it fully believable.
++++
Very solid mission, the flow was amazing and the story was unique and captivating.
Brushwork in areas was a bit simplistic, and some of the texture combinations were questionable.
without considering crashes
++++
Amazing Life of the Party tribute with some small areas reminding me of other missions. Great mission overall.
++++
Atmosphere, it was good, but, on larger maps, and having a difference for city, houses,open spaces. and so on, the background music needs to be more spreaded on common areas. You enter a house, and the music change, and blend with other house less than in a 50 meters.
Overall, fantastic FM
++++
Best rooftop mission ever
++++
Gotta love the Thieves' Highway. Not getting enough of those. Job well done on a great map.
++++
The all time masterpiece of thieves' highway missions. The rooftop/garden party with the mages was a section very well built and a really nice atmosphere. Something very Thiefy, something to remember.
++++
The construction looked so solid and real. Lighting was great, use of stock textures imaginative and beautiful. Loved the pet frog. Clever how interiors used very few objects, but because of the color, textures and architecture, the spaces remained interesting and full-looking. The "room within a room" concept of architecture was well executed. And hints of lives being played out all around you in sounds, visuals and readables was fantastic. The only negative point was because of a gas mine that killed me in a very dark doorway where it couldn't be seen, and there was no hint that something might be there. It just felt like dirty pool, unless I missed something?
++++
With so many grand buildings to explore, so many different routes to travel, and so many hidden secrets to discover, this is the mission that all rooftop FMs, and perhaps even all large-scale city missions, will inevitably be compared to.
++++
This is always the kind of T1/T2 gameplay I enjoy the most, a rats next of a city, with lots of nooks and crannies and a nice main story to dip in and out of as I explore. I even managed to get all the way down to street level and back up again with some out of the box thinking.
++++
"Best of Show" for me: Best (city) design, best gameplay (generally a bit similar to "Life of the Party", a very well implemented plot & "micro stories".
++++
I'm still not done playing through all of the missions, but I can't imagine any of them will be capable of topping Feast of Pilgrims. This is Life of the Party on steroids. The layout of the map is expertly-crafted and extremely varied, exploration is rewarding and full of surprises and the atmosphere of a bustling city at night is perfectly captured. The main character is well-written and well-acted and the same goes to the rest of the cast. Probably one of the best FMs ever made and I'm not saying that lightly.
++++
Now, that's what I call some good action! My favourite type of Thief mission, the theves' highway one. Multiple entry points, good hiding spots and adrenaline pumping when you cut a corner, with a guard nearly spotting you. Thank you for this mission guys!
++++
Absolutely superb. Perfect balance of thieves' highway gameplay, incredible level design, fun story with interesting side quests and lashings of humour. Can't fault it.
++++
Classic rooftop fm, good architecture and visuals, excellent gameplay, I miss a bit of "strange" astmosphere like you can have in Into the odd or Builder's paradise
++++
Very nice rooftops mission ! Nice main and sides quests, very good work on the ambiant sounds to give streets life.
++++
There's not much to comment, this mission was simply awesome.
I had the feeling that at least some parts were based on The Life of the Party? Was I right or just coincidence? :)
Also really loved the atmospheric sounds. Those made the city really alive and fun. (except poor Benny who was heard to be killed from time to time)
++++
In the top tier of greatest fan missions of all time. Hands down the best in this contest.
++++
Awesome! Things to do and more things to do and even more things to do! Lots of plot lines and hooks for future missions (for example, the map). Very well done use of the Thieves Highway! Nice side plot involving the trapped demon!
++++
While the story as mood isn't its best part, the mission is hard, requires great orientation in digital space, a lot of hidden secrets, going to areas that are jumping puzzles. I love how a good objective with freeing the demon is optional, and you can mess it with not exorcising the demon. I am glad this mission has different thief to play, who is not Not_a_GarretTM DO NOT STEAL! guy. But still brings the personality traits we love about Garrett. I am absolute fan of so many spaces with random scenes or sounds, that doesn't bring anything new to mission, but makes a city alive.
++++
Another strong entry. This one's a bit odd - it's a homage to Life of the Party, with a fun rooftop experience. Like LotP you are encouraged to stay on the rooftops and there's little reason to go to the streets. Unlike LotP though, you aren't prevented from doing so, which is a nice touch.
Also bonus for non-Garrett protagonist, a decision that requires a little extra effort to re-voice the player. Odd protagonist though, an older thief who sounds like Sean Connery for some reason. Still, it makes for a refreshing change.
Atmosphere is strong - lots of scenes playing out, lots of custom voices etc. Particularly like all the strange scenes you can hear on the streets below - still a bit confused by the storyline to those and think you can easily hear them in the wrong order which may not help.
Story is strong, especially when you have so many fun secrets as in this map. Bonus again for briefing videos and protagonist, just wish I could follow the story on the streets a bit better! Maybe on a re-play I might figure it out.
Gameplay is solid thief - plenty of variety and challenge without too much frustration. Love the scale of the mission and all the secrets.
Definitely one of the best entries.
++++
the best one, reminds me of life of the party and very well made
++++
Hands down my favourite of the TMA 20th year - a solid thieves highway level with a great story with opportunity to get to ground level and to see a fun out-of-bounds easter egg.
++++
RT and Marble really nailed the contests theme. They created a mission that is an hommage to an OM and they (for the first time in an fm in my opinion) nailed everything. The architecture (sizes, distances, heights etc.) to the atmosphere that they brought back the T2 feeling in a form I didn't even know I missed it that much and how few authors created it. the story for me seems a bit squeezed in just to suit Godbreaker, could have been a garret mission as well, but graphics, atmosphere and gameplay are totally on point as they never were since T2 :)
++++
I loved this mission. It has a gigantic and really nice to explore map (although I was a little disappointed by the fact that there is a lot of "fake doors" too) and a lot of side objectives that I found really fun. There is a lot of detail and it is really well done (even every voice was recorded again since the character is not Garrett, which I find really really nice). Unfortunately it doesn't have much of a story (although I think it has potential to make a campaign out of this) but the little bit it has is really well done and it has some fun details that make reference to the original story, which I really liked.
++++
This mission is as good as a city mission can be! It's big and every place is very detailed. The landscapes are so nice from the top of the city that I really had to stop and admire! Map was surely needed with this mission. Ambient sounds work perfectly and those conversations and shouts made the city more lively. First I thought it was strange that the protagonist were this Conall (not Garrett) but it didn't take long to start liking this protagonist. Great voice actors and accents! For me, this fan mission is among the highest quality city missions that I've ever played! Feast of Pilgrims is a masterpiece!
I think, Feast of Pilgrims was probably the most solid/whole mission in this contest (out of the three most ambitious missions) - the gameplay worked so well and there wasn't that much struggling to get something done or to find a certain place (gameplay was very well balanced). Only one thing came to mind that could have been improved slightly: at least on Expert difficulty - there might have been more AIs/enemies to make it harder to move around in the mission.
++++
This was a really good mission - loved the rooftop exploration and side objectives. Even the stereotypical Sean Connery accent mostly worked.
Requiring 'processing' for some of the items for one of the side objectives was maybe a bit much, given you had to go all over town to do it.
++++
Arguably the best Thieves Highway mission ever. The city is massive, well designed and confusing and as there is no direct route between locations it's really easy to miss buildings, even complete areas meaning you have to trawl through the map 3 or 4 times to find everything. I loved every minute of this mission.
++++
The gameplay is the primary draw of this FM. The flow is exceptional, and exploration is always rewarded. There are no irritating choices. The soundscape is unique and immersive, adding an extra dimension that many FMs lack.
The story is good, but not astonishing. It was an interesting choice to use the contest as a vehicle for an unrelated FM campaign, with its unrelated protagonist. But adherence to theme is achieved in the style and brushwork anyway, and other submissions ought to be penalised if this were an issue.
Interior design is almost all fantastic, barring the odd spartan room and parts of St. Ives. In most other FMs, these wouldn't stand out. But the incredible detail elsewhere can make these spots jarring. There is a smattering of single air cube rooms without trim, but these are in the minority.
The key criticism I have is that it buckles a bit under its own weight. Given its scope, it might be expected that the attention to detail has to suffer in places -- and yet, other submissions of similar or greater scope didn't appear to make these compromises. This is partially excusable for out-of-bounds and 'inaccessible' locations, but the inconsistent quality extends even to some parts of the gamespace.
Lots of the brushwork is based around rigid 90 degree angles: while it was likely intentional, the cubic facades with their endless windows felt like a throwback to a feature in Life of The Party that always seemed like a compromise. If these buildings had been adorned with intricate brush sculpture, as with real buildings, the look would have worked. But the trims and details are often flush, and enforce the basic look rather than help to escape it. Despite great talent and polish, it often appears dated.
Overall, the gameplay is excellent, and the Random_Taffer authorship is worn proudly and successfully. For those with a penchant for its style, there's little to complain about.
++++
I was VERY torn rating this. I absolutely loved the atmosphere, Conall's quips, extra bonus objectives, and much more, but my own personal failings made this an incredibly aggravating mission. The map was lovely, with so much marked on it, but I was completely unable to use it to figure out where I was or where I was going >80% of the time. Random example: I finally find X location, and I need to get to Y location which is close by, let's say: North on the map. But I can't go North. I can go NE or W. I pick NE, because that's somewhat the direction I need to be, but from there, my options continue to lead me astray. I'm quickly to the point of having no idea where I am or where I can go to get to where my goal is.
I did technically complete the mission. I was determined, and it took me far too long, but I managed to return home after completing the primary objective. I left the Hellfire Ruby mini-quest incomplete despite having all the parts (I'd even ground up the monkey head, but I hadn't drilled the cray egg, because I never found the drill). I got the smuggler's shipment, but I don't think I ever made it to the warehouse (that was one location where I kept running into the 'trying to head there using the map and failing' example I gave above). It saddens me greatly not to have completed those, and it saddens me greatly to leave only 6 out of 10 on the Gameplay scale, but I just became far, far too frustrated with this. (I might have frustrated myself into a lower score trying to get 'home' to complete the mission, so I tried to put myself into the mindset of what I would have given before that, as well as accounting for the fact that my issue with the map is not ALL of the gameplay this lovely FM has to offer.) Again, it's probably my own shortcoming at not being able to get my brain to map it out in the 3D space. I truly enjoyed the rooftop work, and it was very well crafted, I just think for a FM like this, I really really REALLY need the auto-map to work for me to function in it.
++++
For me not just the best FM in the contest, but one of the best of all time! Everything was perfectly made & very enjoyable.
++++
Talk about a rooftop mission! Wow! Nice mix of mini-stories and optional objectives and well-hidden secrets. I appreciated a full story told without an abundance of readables.
++++
The background story with the travelling band was great, as were the secrets and sidequests.
My only complaint is that the drill was really not obvious and I probable spent an hour hopping around just looking for it. Might have been a good idea to have some readables in the mages courtyard complaining about the drill noise or something.
All in all, a very cool and fun mission!
++++
Really, really fun mission! It has a complicated story line with optional side quests and a huge area to explore as well as beautiful architecture. Top marks!
++++
One of my most memorable Thief experiences, on par with original Thief and T2X, simply stands out above the rest for me.
++++
Feast of Pilgrims is one of the best Life of the Party-like rooftop missions (where you can't get off the streets). In that sense it pulls off several thieves' highway trails quite masterfully, with a great mix of locations to visit: several posh mansions — including one styled after Rumford's with opulent marble and yellow wood paneling and another with dark brown wood, drapes, glass domes and soothing music —, rooftop greenhouses, warehouses, shops, a party of foreign Mages in a high garden and finally the huge cathedral.
The visual style of Thief 2 is executed to perfection here, with a cleaner vision of The City that is 100% in line with what the base game depicts. Some of the buildings, while blocky, are very nice to look at and one section in particular that is all white stone is a highlight. The cathedral looks absolutely fantastic and has a weird mix of textures that works very well. Its structure is very imposing and is a clear landmark throughout the mission.
Traversal is usually not frustrating since great care was taken to ensure climbing into windowsill doesn't result in a painful death, though there are times where one or two little hanging flowers could've facilitated moving around. Enemies are well positioned and bowmen can be quite deadly if you aren't careful. The church itself is quite nice if a bit simple, but that can be attributed to the limits of the engine being almost smashed. The cemetery and catacombs are overall a very nice addition and the sheer amount of secrets encourages multiple playthroughs, in addition to the circular design of the layout.
Story is the weakest aspect of the mission but it is still filled with good background plots and absolutely hilarious readables. What is really great however is that The City feels like a breathing, living world thanks to the various sounds of guards doing their rounds and complaining, and of couse the crazy guy yelling and breaking things around the quarter.
It is hard not to recommend Feast of Pilgrims. It is a highly polished and tight experience that represents everything Thief 2 is about. If you like rooftops missions, you owe it yourself to play this one ASAP.
Rating: 28/30
++++
Great mission with lots to explore. Large and well-designed, great architecture. Would break glass and yell CARALHO again.
++++
A nice and stylish rooftop mission.
The city was built brilliantly with grandeur and charm. The buildings looked impressive both inside and outside. Little bits and pieces give the mission individual character and I loved them. The range of used sounds and textures was really impressive. One reservation I have is the very low quality of some audio files. They were sometimes difficult to understand.
The issue with rooftop missions in structurally “chaotic” cities is that you find it really difficult to keep track of where you are and where you’ve already been, even with a map, and that was certainly the point here. There was also a huge load of running around necessary to complete all the objective, but many were optional to compensate that. Other than that, a nice, smooth gameplay. Fair difficulty. Perhaps a bit too many tiled floors around.
As in many of this year’s missions, I found the main story too convoluted and unimpressive overall. Side stories were much better, really deeply developed and attached to the game world. Some nods towards the original game and pieces of humor were also appreciated.
++++
Here is what a proper homage to a Metal Age mission looks, with all the bells and whistles LGS could not add to Life of the Party due to engine limitations. This is LotP squared: the same general premise and structure, but bigger, exquisitely detailed, and polished to perfection. Like the better kind of city missions, it has a lot of variety wihin its confines – multiple small mansions, tenements, a factory, a massive Hammerite complex, and even a set of catacombs. Interwoven through it all are connecting plotlines, from mini-episodes to level-spanning mysteries. You can head for the main objective or try your hand at the optional side-quests, which take you all around the level. There is a lot of excellent visual storytelling scattered around the level, but I must draw particular attention to the sound work: by using creative combinations of stock lines and new material, Feast of Pilgrims features several conversations you can eavesdrop on, including a hilarious running joke featuring a wandering maniac, and a full fire-and-brimstones Hammerite sermon that is a thing of beauty.
++++
A good mission to add some more adventure in Conall's story.
The atmosphere is excellent as the city is filled with life everywhere as the quarter really shows how decaying it is. The atmosphere is then a complete success! It only weak part is its deceptive effect which makes you think you've alerted some guard but actually don't.
For the gameplay, this one is a classic decent rooftop mission but it unfortunately suffers from enemies placed in a cruelous way making progress hard (like the place with the mages) as some goal are not simple to fulfill if you dared to miss a spot or switch (the hammerite library).
Mixed with some moment where roofs are noisy or a bit too steep/sliddy to make it harder time to time. The mission bring at the end some frustration by punishing the player who ghosts.
About story, well, this is the part where the rating will be the lowest. The main objective is fine and the harder ones are all optionnal. But in matter of plot, it sadly don't really match with the contest theme.
Ok, it's a good TMA mission but everything about the universe makes it feel and look too much like a Thief Gold mission despite having a few mechanists and using T2 resources.
Having something that shows the Dawn of the Metal Age, like having more elements to underline the transition from the TG to T2 would have been very welcoming.
Unfortunately, this transition is not there so this promising mission is reduced to a Conall's adventure in a TG mission made with T2 resources.
So 25/30 which is still a good rating!
++++
Great thieves highway mission - a la Life of the Party - with excellent exploring and puzzles.
Bit confusing at first but really liked the new louder ambient sounds from events in the city a way off. Was one of the players who found the map sometimes difficult to follow but that's always the an issue for me :) .