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Tomb Raider: Anniversary (PC DVD)
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| Description:
It may have sold 30 million copies worldwide, but before the release of Tomb Raider: Legend last year it looked like Lara Croft was ending her video game career in disgrace. Thankfully the new game was exactly the reboot that the series needed, instantly reminding everyone why they loved it (and Lara) so much in the first place. So to mark the tenth anniversary of the first game (actually 2007 is the eleventh anniversary, but who's counting?) Eidos are releasing this special remake of the first game in the series, using an enhanced version of the graphics engine from Tomb Raider: Legend. Although the game does feature the same basic settings and levels as the original, this isn't just the same game with better graphics. Most of the levels are larger, with many new paths and areas to explore. They're also much more interactive, with Lara using many of the same moves and gadgets she demonstrated in Tomb Raider: Legend, including a grappling hook and a greater variety of weapons. The story has been expanded too, but it does keep the same basic structure with more animal enemies than the later games, including the infamous encounter with a tyrannosaurs rex. Instead of just running straight at you mindlessly, the enemies have also been given much better artificial intelligence than previously. The new graphics are still the most obvious change but the new fluid movement of Lara is a world away from the awkward grid based system used in the old games. Indeed this should be the first video game remake to actually prove itself as something more than just a cheap cash-in.
HARRISON DENT
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1/5 |
Unplayable
(August 05, 2008) |
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I loved the original Tomb Raider but it no longer works on my newest PC so this sounded perfect with updated FX but along with it they have changed how it works, I like to play these game through my key board but it seem you can only play Tomb Raider: Anniversary via a mouse or external controler. They have made this game unplayable by me as I have never played mose controled games annd I don't own an external controler. OK I am not a typical game player but I had high hope for this. |
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5/5 |
Tomb Raider: Anniversary - Best since the original!!
(March 24, 2008) |
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I played the original Tomb Raider when it came out on the Sega Saturn - what a beast of a console!! I thought the game was quite spectacular when i played it then, the Anniversary Edition is so much better it's quite unbelievable - and i'm not just talking about graphics and visual effects! I mean the storyline and how things happen, when things happen in game it relates to the story, the story flows from one area to another and certain people's roles in it make more sense.
The new team who have worked on this - Crystal Dynamics have made an absolutely fantastic job of this, movement, abilities and visual effects are second to none!! This is a game I have played over and over again and I am still trying to beat my time trial scores on it at the moment It also doesn't require a groundbreaking computer to run it, with the specs requiring a Pentium 3 CPU with 1.4GHz clock speed and a 64MB Graphics card!
For anybody who played the original, this is a must have game - I wish i could give it 6 stars out of 5 for everything!
Also, for anybody like me who loves Tomb Raider, a new one is scheduled for release in November this year - Tomb Raider: Underworld :D
Now my speech is over, it's over to you to try it!! |
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3/5 |
A fresh coat of paint is not enough
(March 06, 2008) |
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Re-making a classic game like Tomb Raider is an inspired move and sure to bring back some memories for older gamers. Using the Legend engine, Tomb Raider Anniversary is a good looking game and runs at a very quick pace even on a modestly powered PC.
It doesn't seem quite as polished as Legend, Lara seems to have less animations & costumes and the enemies you come across are often very bland. The environments are generally OK and the lighting & effects are good. Music is sparse and sound overall is minimal, with the odd grunt from Lara as she jumps about the level and that's about it.
So to look at and listen to, Anniversary is OK but it's not going to give Gears of War anything to worry about. But how is it to play? The combat mechanic is virtually identical to that used in Legend but doesn't seem to be quite so good. It maybe mimics the dodgy combat from the old Tomb Raider a little too much.
There is not the same level of variety as in Legend, the levels are much longer and there is more repeated running backwards and forwards. This is a fair representation of the original game, but it does show that games have moved on. They may not be so long nowadays, but the experience is better and less laborious.
TRA is a decent game, but overall it's not as polished or as much fun to play as Tomb Raider Legend. It's a good trip down memory lane and perfectly playable, but even with a fresh coat of paint it's easy to tell that the Tomb Raider series has moved on in recent years.
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3/5 |
How to ruin a great game
(February 27, 2008) |
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Anniversary is a terrific-looking game, with great reimaginings of levels from the original Tomb Raider.
However... it is somewhat spoiled by the inane controls which change depending on the camera's POV and will have you endlessly repeating certain jumps. Speaking of which, the game has a checkpoint system instead of Quicksave, so get used to repeating lengthy sections just to return to those certain jumps again and again and... well, you get the idea. |
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3/5 |
Initially great...but then it's so frustratingly hard
(January 02, 2008) |
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I guess it's more 3 and a half stars, but certainly not 4. I loved the first 2 games on the original playstation, and completed them just about without any help or walkthrough. Then the series went a bit 'Pete Tong', so it was interesting to give this a try.
I've got a near ancient PC, and apart from a few stuttering moments, the game plays remarkably well. The controls aren't too bad, and using a mouse and keyboard is preferable in some ways to a PS pad.
The first half of the game was great fun - some interesting puzzles, a few frustrating jumps, but overall an enjoyable few days of play for what I would call a medium-skilled gamer like me.
Then I hit the Centaurs. What in the (think of any combination of swear words you can) was that about. After several hours of swearing, watching the youtube video and studying the walkthrough, I somehow through sheer luck got through it, having pressed the right buttons in the right order but without actually knowing it.
I've now hit the penultimate level, the Great Pyramid and I'm reluctantly about to finally give up. I simply can't do the grapple thing, and then quickly jump off a ledge, do another grapple wall run, and then jump at the right time (and using the right key as the camera angle is different) in the 18 measly seconds available. And unlike the original PS version, that's after having watched the youtube video several times to try and copy what they're doing. And I'm playing on the supposedly 'easy' setting.
To the game designers...this is tooooooooo hard and frustrating! Games are supposed to be fun. I even managed to complete the annoying last Volcano level on Far Cry, but this game has just about used up all my patience.
In short, great first half (like so many of the previous TR games, such as the 3rd and 4th in the series), but then stupidly frustrating in the second half.
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