A well-made but small mission, worth the download. If you like puzzles, this is something for you.
Final Score: 6.5 Hammers
Garrett has a group of Hammerites on his tail; in an attempt to escape, he enters a hedgerow maze owned by Lord Rickshaw. He must now find a way out of the maze, and at the same time both avoid his pursuers and grab all the loot he can find. The mission starts out with Garrett hiding in a corner of the maze, while the Hammerites patrol the area searching for him.
I must admit I was a bit worried after reading the word "maze" in the mission description. I have never had any good experiences with mazes; most of them have been unnecessarily complex and I have usually ended up completely lost, feeling more than a little annoyed. However, there is no need to worry about that in Hedgerows & Hammerites. As I soon found out while venturing further into Lord Rickshaw's maze garden, the maze is fairly simple and easy to navigate in. It contains some unusual elements though, mainly for the puzzles. The oddities are explained by the eccentricity of Lord Rickshaw, of whom we know nothing except that he owns a maze garden and is supposedly rich.
The mission relies heavily on puzzles, which are compulsory for finishing the mission. These puzzles are varied, original, and not overly difficult to solve. They're not easy either, and in many cases the solution is not obvious. Fortunately there are hints that guide you in the right direction, and usually this is enough to figure out the rest. Still, if the hints don't help, it is easy to get stuck and this is potentially frustrating for the player. This is especially true if the player is not too keen on puzzles. There are also a few secrets the player must find with no hints at all. This is not as irritating as it may sound though, because the secrets are not too hard to find if you're observant and the mission's small size leaves little space to hide them in.
Garrett lost most of his equipment during his attempts to get rid of the Hammerites, so at the start of the mission he has only his blackjack (and sword on normal) and a couple of scouting orbs. This is not much of a problem as there are plenty of shadowy areas to hide in, balanced by well-lit spots where good timing is needed to get past unnoticed. One thing that may annoy quite a few players is that it is impossible to advance at certain points without alerting the AI, and may mean having to wait for a bit to let them calm down.
One minor gripe is with the amount of loot. The 4000 that is needed on Expert would be a high amount for any ordinary mansion; in a small mission like this it is unbelievable. The high loot requirement on Expert also means that on that difficulty gameplay risks turning into an irritating loot hunt. Another complaint is that story-wise the mission has little to offer. However, this didn't lessen my enjoyment of this particular mission, as story was never intended to be one of its strong points. Overall, Hedgerows & Hammerites is a well-made mission that provides about 20 minutes of fun. Note that it is a contest mission and therefore had both a size limit and a restricted amount of time for building. Bearing this in mind, the result is even more impressive.
The visuals won't make your jaw drop, but considering that a large part of the mission is a maze, the surroundings are quite well done. The mission has no weak points in this category; though not fantastic, architecture and terrain is pleasing to the eye all the way through. Consistency in design is the main reason for the high score. Also, even though this is a contest mission with restricted size, none of the areas make this fact obvious.
The visuals combined with fog and well-chosen ambient sounds give the mission a nice feel; it is even spooky in places. There is not any tension to be found in the story, but regular thieving has its charm when it is done well. For example, having to sneak past the undead on higher difficulties made my heart beat faster. The texts are few and mainly serve as hints for the puzzles, but are written in a style that is appropriate for the setting.
There is not much of a story in this mission. The Hammerites looking for Garrett are there, which is consistent with the info given in the mission description, but you don't know exactly why they are after him. You don't learn anything about the story behind the maze garden Garrett has stumbled into either. However, the score is a bit higher than might be expected from only the rudiments of a plot. Since story is not what the level is about, the lack of details and background is not a big issue as you play. What is there is sufficient for the setting.
Gameplay is fairly smooth and has no real flaws. I guess this score mainly depends on whether you like puzzles or not. Personally I didn't have much trouble with them and liked what they had to offer, but to be honest I solved one mainly by accident. I can imagine some players getting frustrated.
Preliminary Score: 6.25
Reviewer's Bias: +0.25 -- This is given as a bonus for overall atmosphere and design. To me, playing this mission felt good in a way that is hard to describe. Maybe it was a combination of it feeling complete and polished (especially for a contest mission), and something as subjective as seeing my favourite types of AI. Whatever it was, it is worth a little extra.
Final Score: 6.5 Hammers
