Super HD Minecraft texture packs be darned to heck, 32x is where it's at with Minecraft texture packs. Just enough resolution to squeeze in some real style and definition, not so much resolution that the world looks like it's made out of static grain at a distance.

The reason I decided to try the Lost Valley Minecraft texture pack out was the leopard skin cloth. Something that blatantly gauche had to be a winner. Several other surprises awaited me when I loaded this pack however. Birch, for instance, is the best birch I've ever seen, mostly because it abandons the harsh black / white color scheme and goes with a softer cream / brown décor. It's an ancient themed texture pack, that's how I think it is best described anyway. The creator describes it as a Jungle / Aztec pack and that also works. Ancient Jungle. There we go. Compromise. That's how it's done, kids.

So what's special about it? Well there's the leather and croc skin of course, they go without saying. But that's not where the special ends. Bookshelves don't have books, they have scrolls, which makes a whole lot more sense. Instead of growing wheat, you grow maize. Beds are crisp and white from top to toe, inscribed with interlocking designs on their bases. Sugar cane has seen a nice overhaul and now actually looks like sugar cane. Pretty!

Glowstone is my only real peeve with this pack and that's because its made to look rather like an ore, which is very well and good in the Nether, but most people don't spend much time in the Nether and would rather use glowstone for refined lighting, which it ain't in this texture pack.

The terrain is quite nice in this texture pack, especially in lush grassy areas where trees are plentiful. This is a jungle themed texture pack and so plains of flat grass are fairly lack luster, but the forests are particularly inspiring. Ores are pretty in your face obvious, which is nice for people who like to mine ores by hand.

All in all Lost Valley has a lot to recommend it. The only problem with it really is the fact that it is still a WIP and though you can certainly download and play with it already, there are a substantial amount of textures that haven't been touched yet, like water and mob textures. The GUI has been attended to however, and most favorably, may I add.