One of the best jailbreak missions, offering challenging stealth, tense atmosphere and decent architecture.
Final Score: 8 Hammers
Garrett has been caught by the hammerites and is kept at Guilesatpeak Prison. In a few days' time he will be executed. It's time to escape: find a way out of the cell, find your gear and leave this place.
This mission has been updated and re-released several times. I played both the version released in 2001 and the one included in the Shadow of Doubt campaign for this review. The 2001 version has a very evocative introduction in the readme, giving a good start for immersion and atmosphere. I know some people don't want to read these kinds of introductions (I'm one of those people at times), but in this case it's worth the extra time spent before getting to business. The version included in the campaign has a cut down introduction, which is a shame. On the other hand, this version has a few minor fixes and improvements on the mission itself.
The first thing you'll notice as you start playing is that the prison is dark. Really dark. There is no ambient light set, which means shadows are pitch black even if you turn gamma up to maximum. Fortunately this doesn't cause any problems as you play, since the author has made sure there's always enough light for the player to find their way around. As an added bonus, the darkness makes the prison seem more threatening: it's a place you really want to get out from, making a big difference for atmosphere.
There's another matter that stands out. At the end of the mission I had a whopping 14 types of keys and more than one of most types, which has to be the highest number of keys I have ever seen in a FM. On the bright side, the mission never turns into a key hunt, for the keys are easy enough to find when you need them. There are also several pickable locks and these are very well-timed for just the right amount of tension, knowing that a guard might come back any second. Long lockpicking times are often a nuisance, but in this mission they are used properly in combination with guards' patrols to create suspense. The new lockpicks are a cool detail: Garrett's lockpicks were taken away, so he has to find suitable substitutes.
Guilesatpeak isn't an ordinary prison. Keeping prisoners is not the building's primary function, although what exactly the main function is remains unclear. The levels below ground are used for storage and the upper floors have barracks, a kitchen and a library with rather important tomes. There is also a sort of sewer system control connected to the facility. In other words, there are several different areas to explore, making it more interesting than most other jailbreak missions.
Tears of Blood offers challenging sneaking, many tense moments and good visuals. This mission is fun to play and does a great job with the jailbreak theme; a theme which is more difficult to make interesting and fun than one might think. All in all, it's a very satisfying mission.
Architecture is solid throughout the mission. There is enough detail to please the eye, yet not so much that it would seem inappropriate considering the room's function. There was one spot I managed to get myself permanently stuck in, so be a bit careful when exploring.
Atmosphere is one of the mission's greatest assets. The darkness, the feeling of vulnerability, the tense moments during the escape... This is how an escape mission should feel. Many texts shed light on the lives of the hammerites living at Guilesatpeak, which is always a nice touch.
The detailed background presented in the readme (2001 re-release) gives an excellent start for the mission. The intrigues among the hammerites at Guilesatpeak make the compound more interesting than just a place to escape from. However, during the mission you encounter an objective-triggering readable that raises some questions about Xavier, the janitor mentioned in the introduction: who exactly is this Xavier (would a mere janitor know what he knows?) and why is he willing to help Garrett? The character is problematic to begin with and the letter he writes Garrett makes him even less credible. The letter is quite confusing in the 2001 version, but has been rewritten for the 2002 re-release, making it easier to understand Garrett's motivation. Still, Xavier isn't a believable character and that pulls the score down.
The guards' patrols and use of locked doors are well-planned to make sneaking out of the prison challenging and tense. At times the guards' pauses feel too long though, slowing down the pacing. Garrett's equipment is found about halfway through, which on the lower difficulty levels give you more options for how to get past the guards. On Expert however there is little use for it, due to the extra objective of not alerting anyone to your presence.
Oh, remember to check all nooks and crannies for loot as you proceed, otherwise there is a risk for the mission to turn into an annoying loot hunt in the end.
The lack of a compass is a minor annoyance, but the mission's layout isn't so complex that you really need one.
Final Score: 8 Hammers
