Announcement

Collapse
No announcement yet.

Retro|Spective 124: Tomb Raider

Collapse
X
 
  • Filter
  • Time
  • Show
Clear All
new posts

    Retro|Spective 124: Tomb Raider



    History in Games:

    1996 - Tomb Raider
    1997 - Tomb Raider II
    1998 - Tomb Raider III
    1999 - Tomb Raider IV: The Last Revelation
    2000 - Tomb Raider (GBC)
    2000 - Tomb Raider V: Chronicles
    2001 - Tomb Raider: Curse of the Sword
    2002 - Tomb Raider: The Prophecy
    2003 - Tomb Raider VI: Angel of Darkness
    2006 - Tomb Raider: Legend
    2007 - Tomb Raider: Anniversary
    2008 - Tomb Raider: Underworld
    2010 - Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light
    2013 - Tomb Raider
    2014 - Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris
    2015 - Lara Croft: Relic Run
    2015 - Lara Croft: Go
    2015 - Rise of the Tomb Raider
    2018 - Shadow of the Tomb Raider

    Overview:
    Three full main line canons of games, two for the film incarnations too, and yet Tomb Raider still broadly exists in an easily recognisable form today as it did when it debuted 24 years ago. Lara Croft has remained the key figurehead of the franchise which has enjoyed far more success in the gaming arena than Indiana Jones, the franchise that inspired it. From grid based exploration in the early days of 3D, all the way through rougher years into the cinematic bombast of the modern era, the franchise continues to try and navigate fan expectations both in terms of balancing action with exploration and... tombs.





    Share your thoughts and memories of Tomb Raider

    #2
    My first experience with Tomb Raider was the Saturn version which I rented with a friend for a weekend along with the system. It was mind blowing frankly. They nailed the atmosphere, I loved exploring and pulling off perfectly timed moves and jumps. I still enjoy the controls in these earlier games, they work perfectly on a digital controller and keyboard.

    I bought the sequel on PSX but they just amplified all of the worst aspects of the first game. It felt like a bait and switch to be honest. The first level is great! Then you reach Venice and its all garbage combat. That level in particicular can get stuffed.

    Still, I'll always have a soft spot for Lara and those first few games, Core really hit on something special with Tomb Raider.


    Plus it has that amazing title screen music

    Comment


      #3
      It's been a real up and down franchise for me. The original game still sticks strongly in my mind thanks to it being there right at the dawn of 3D adventure games, for a brief moment it felt like the 32 bit machines had gazumped Nintendo by pulling TR off until I got my hands on Mario 64 which was just another level entirely but despite the often frustrating gameplay the original Tomb Raider had a real sense of identity and I can see why nostalgia has so many crying out for a return to the slow paced puzzle days of old.

      Tomb Raider II felt like a reasonable follow up, not a game I'm as fond of compared to the original but it really was more of the same but slightly refined. The third game felt scrappy to me, just more work than fun whilst the fourth and fifth pretty much lost me with how bland and cookie cutter they felt.

      The hype for Angel of Darkness brought my eye back to the franchise and then the game landed and everyone kicked off about it. The laugh is, when I played through the game I was fortunate enough to go through the whole thing without encountering any bugs or glitches and so the complaints fell on death ears for me. I found it to be a perfectly enjoyable game and the first time in years I'd found the series fun again.

      But, we got Legends/Anniversary then. I enjoyed these two and Underworld but I don't hold them as fondly as some do. I can see the appeal, they're the closest to updated versions of the older games there is but they felt a bit bland, they were fun enough to go through but didn't leave much of an impact on me.

      Tomb Raider 2013 was a real surprise though, the game may have jettisoned the old approach but the idea of a somewhat metroidvania Uncharted knock off worked really well for me. Whilst it's a linear action title it was just outright fun and I really enjoyed Rise as well for the same reasons. Shadow... it was okay but the lesser of the new trilogy and I think that was due to the slowing of pace in an effort to please vocal older fans when really the current era games aren't the same type of title so it only harmed the series to try and please both camps. I hope the next game continues the current era approach but gets Lara's character right, she was way-way off base in Shadow.

      Comment


        #4
        Clue for 125 - Sent into a spin by the white stuff

        And then I think another break before anymore R/S again

        Comment


          #5
          Whats missing from most current tomb raiders is that sense of exploration and discovery, the wild animals and monsters of the first few games made it feel like you where exploring areas that had been hidden for thousands of years, combat being confined to wildlife and supernatural entities really helped build this feeling of discovery and exploration for me..

          The recent reboots have failed to capture that feeling of exploration the first rebboot didn't even have tombs as part of the core game, the tombs where optional extras! The second game in the reboot added more tombs but really struggled to make it feel like you where exploring the undiscovered by adding in far to many enemy's. nothing makes you feel like the traps you worked your way past the puzzles you solved where all completely pointless when some dickheads on ropes smash through the ceiling of the treasure room and start shooting the crap out of you.

          Comment


            #6
            Wrong thread?

            Comment


              #7
              I feel like the first Tomb Raider is a masterpiece. And it hasn't been all that long since I replayed the first three so it's not just nostalgia talking. The first Tomb Raider has such an epic sense of scale and, through its blocky, messy graphics, somehow manages to imply such majesty and beauty. The platforming is sublime. Like, it's perfect. Each area is like a puzzle as you try to figure out how to navigate it. Much has been made of the tank controls, of course, but they work perfectly for the platforming and the only place they really let the game down is when you have to run around a corner (it's easier taking corners in Wipeout). The control and grid design allows for pixel-perfect platforming. The sense of isolation is beautiful in the first game.

              For me, my only criticism of that first game would be that you have to pump 100 bullets into humans for them to die. But there aren't many humans in the game and I like that.

              The second game loses a lot of that majesty just due to the location changes. From a level design and gameplay point of view, it's pretty great still although humans become a regular enemy. So it's not quite as special as the first and loses some of the atmosphere but I think it holds up really well. And the main thing is that, again, the platforming is incredible. It gets really hard towards the end but is always rewarding - the challenge is in figuring it out and nailing it. It never feels like the game's fault if you fail.

              The third game is unfinished. The obvious sign there was a jump between levels (I think in London) where it really felt like something was missing and, later, you could unlock an unfinished 'bonus' level that, sure enough, is an incomplete version of what would have bridged that gap. And it feels like other parts are missing too. The game is messier. It's harder to see the routes. But it's still a really enjoyable game and it brings a blend of some of the best of the first two games while also bringing some new mechanics (like the run) which mixes up how you approach levels. Back in the day, the one thing I remember was that the game felt too easy. On a replay years later, I have no idea what I was thinking - the latter parts of this game are rock hard. My younger self must have been way better at these games. But 3 is a really enjoyable game. It's just scrappy.

              I have started the fourth game about three times but never finished it. It seems good but the single Egyptian location doesn't completely hold my interest and there are parts I just get lost in. So I never finished that one. And I don't even know if I've played Chronicles.

              But I have played Legend and Anniversary. Tomb Raider Legend I think is really good. It's a strong game. My main criticism is just that there is talking all the way through it and that bugs me. The other thing is the side effect of losing the tank controls and we see this even more in Anniversary because we have a direct comparison to the original. I get why you wouldn't use tank controls for these games. It's an archaic control method. But the problem with a more Super Mario 64 style is that your movements are dependent on the camera and, as soon as the camera shifts, what you intended to do is not what will happen. So unlike the original controls, it's very easy to fall off places and very easy to jump down a chasm and it doesn't feel like your fault - the game sabotaged you. And that sucks. You can see they knew this because, in Anniversary, much of the platforming is removed and replaced by ledge-clinging which is a far simpler mechanic and one that's easier to control... but much less rewarding.

              And with that, Anniversary simplifies levels, condenses some, loses a sense of connectivity by adding loading corridors and also moves what was in-game action into cut scenes. And that strips some moments of their power. The moment with the T-Rex in the original was such a surprise and still packs a punch due to it happening in game in real time when you might not be ready for it. When it's in a cut scene, it loses all punch. You're just an observer at that point. So I feel like, with all those changes, Anniversary is a far weaker game than the game it's based on. After playing it, I replayed the original and it's a much more meaty experience. Yes, the tank controls take ages to get used to again and the graphics make my eyes bleed but it's just a better game.

              I have not played any other Tomb Raider game. I still think of the original fondly. That atmosphere and isolation and music and the platforming. It's a really great mix.

              Comment


                #8
                The first game was the first game I saw on a PS1 and it blew my head off. It looked amazing and I was big into dinosaurs as a kid. The first level I saw was the lost valley with the T Rex and the raptors. I'll never forget it.

                Fast forward 10 years and my first industry job was as a QA tester on the god awful Angel of Darkness. A hell project. I didn't go home for days at a time and slept under my desk. The game was so broken. The delays got so bad and marketing deals were about to fall through so without telling us Eidos took a random build and convinced Sony to pass submission just so they could have a copy on shelves in the US. That first print crashes every half an hour and is full of game breakers. The second printing and the PAL version was from a build a week later that passed Sony's testing legitimately. Just.

                I love the sense of isolation and exploring places that haven't been seen in hundreds of years in Tomb Raider 1. None of the others really captured that again. I'm not a fan of the current reboots. Pseudo gritty and weirdly fetishistically violent towards Lara. The stealth is laughably easy and the upgrade trees are so dense it looks like a parody of modern design.

                I quite enjoyed Anniversary as a little romp but definitely agree with Dogg Thang's criticisms of it. The original was brilliant for it's purity and bleakness. really magical.

                Comment


                  #9
                  Great original game, truly mind blowing stuff on release, that never quite got the sequel it deserved.

                  Early ones were little more than expansion packs and the later ones seemed to forget the series was about Tombs. Most recent games are a horror series with the name and Lara Croft shoe horned in.

                  Eidos really did mess up big time with this series and poor Core Design, it said something about the UK industry when iconic characters like this are now owned by Japanese firms.

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Agree whats said above, the original was just brilliant, i had seen nothing like it before, played the demo from the ps mag, and immediately went to the shop and bought it, loved the exploitation aspects and the when you first came across the t-rex,, the music was perfect for the game. i replayed it when the Anniversary came out but hated that they messed with the underwater controls. would love a PS4 4k update (with controls restored)

                    Didn't play any of the sequels as i had moved to the N64, but did play Legend on the Xbox when that came out and really liked that game, i think its the last tomb raider game i really sank any time into and finishing it.

                    I started late last year playing through the original game on the PlayStation, but xmas got in the way and i've yet to pick it up again.

                    Comment


                      #11
                      All I can add to this is that I too loved the original on Saturn, but have never really engaged with the follow-ups.

                      I'm particularly nonplussed by the recent ones. They look perfectly fine, but just not what I think of when I think Tomb Raider.

                      Plus, the original, whilst wonderful at the time, is one of the last remnants of the bonkers side of the British gaming industry that pretty much died on the PS1. Remember how you end up fighting mutants, and an evil clone of Lara?

                      Comment


                        #12
                        I feel like I massively lucked out not ahving any issues with Angel of Darkness, no-one ever has anything positive to say about the game

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Originally posted by S3M View Post
                          Eidos really did mess up big time with this series and poor Core Design, it said something about the UK industry when iconic characters like this are now owned by Japanese firms.
                          Well to be fair Crystal Dynamics is now also owned by a Japanese firm. Maybe its a cruse from a Tomb LOL. Mind you at the time given their work on the Mega CD, I wanted SEGA to buy CORE in 1995

                          Back on topic. I loved the 1st two games and also all the ones by Crystal Dynamics. I really thought Rise and Shadow were brilliant games, looking forward to another one

                          Comment

                          Working...
                          X