Tomb Raider

[eldargal]

So, the new Tomb raider game is out soon and is getting rapturous reviews (http://www.metacritic.com/game/xbox-360/tomb-raider). I'm glad, giving one of the iconic video game heroines some personality and a successful game to go with her immense devils dumplings (themselves toned down) would be a good step for the games industry.

I just hope the archaeology is handled with some semblance of maturity as well.

[Mr Mystery]

Meh.

Never really been attracted to those games.

[eldargal]

The new one is radically different to the old ones. It has been likened to Nolans reboot of Batman.

I played the first two Tomb Raiders for the novelty but they weren't that great, I tried some of the later ones and they were fairly tedious. Looking forward to this one as it seems to actually have a story and a strong, female archaeologist character is worth supporting.

[Mr Mystery]

The Nolan Sisters were in Batman?

[Wolfshade]

Not played Tomb Raider since that incident with the Dinosaur....

[eldargal]

Yeah, they were stupid games. That's why I'm quite excited about this one, it is taking a very realistic approach to her and making her into a real heroine not just a barbie doll with guns.

[Deadlift]

I really enjoyed the 1st one when it came out on the PS1. Even the Dinos, it was something new in a gaming world dominated by repetitive sonic, Mario and platform games at the time.

[Wolfshade]

Is this the same one that caused some big ruckus for a certain "noncon" scene?

[eldargal]

Is this the same one that caused some big ruckus for a certain "noncon" scene?
Yep, there was a ridiculous fuss over an attempted rape scene in one of the trailers. It was completely non-gratuitous and fit in perfectly well with what we know about the story.

[Deadlift]

Just checked and the 1st tomb raider game came out 17 years ago, I was 21.

[eldargal]

I was nine.:p

[Psychosplodge]

I was more interested in the N64...

I never got on with tomb raider, it ddn't know whether it wanted to be a puzzle game, a platformer, or a shooter, and just did a half arsed attempt at all three, The puzzles weren't so much difficult as frustrating. It had camera issues.

just no...

This new one looks like that drake series, with Lara Croft instead...

[DrLove42]

17 years ago would make me.....7.

I enjoy the TR games and will be getitng this one.

But don't hold out much hope for "archaeology" being correct. This is the women who blows up 10,000 year old tombs to get a single treasure out

[Wolfshade]

25 October 1996 scary.

[eldargal]

But don't hold out much hope for "archaeology" being correct. This is the women who blows up 10,000 year old tombs to get a single treasure out

Not anymore, if the reviews are accurate. It always amused me that in the previous games it was the villains who were the better archaeologists.

[Godless Zealot]

May well pick this up now due to the positive reviews. It will be the first Tomb Raider game I've ever bought. Interesting to note the story was written by Rhianna Pratchett nice short interview here: http://connecteddigitalworld.com/2013/02/25/writing-tomb-raider-an-interview-with-rhianna-pratchett/

[DrLove42]

Thats kinda cool

I look forward to the mission where you spend 6 hours with a toothbrush and trowel slowly digging the handle of a broken pot

[eldargal]

May well pick this up now due to the positive reviews. It will be the first Tomb Raider game I've ever bought. Interesting to note the story was written by Rhianna Pratchett nice short interview here: http://connecteddigitalworld.com/2013/02/25/writing-tomb-raider-an-interview-with-rhianna-pratchett/

I'm pre-ordering on the strength of that interview lol.

[Godless Zealot]

That's what I thought, shame the Jaffa Cakes didn't get in....:(

[eldargal]

RP: I think Crystal were occasionally a bit worried about it but Lara is British and so you have to kind of roll with it in a certain degree and movies and TV don’t worry about that sort of thing and they make their characters authentic for the region they come from and so I had one eye on it but I wanted her to feel authentic and so there were arguments in performance about whether she was much too prim and proper to say things like that but I said no the British aristocracy swear like troopers and she’s not a cut glass girl that never swears and you still get that Northern Southern divide and its interesting because she doesn’t mean it in a nasty way and it’s in the way that British people joke. It was important to me to have those little bits in, and I wish that I could have kept Jaffa Cakes but…
So Lara is still an aristocrat, yay!

[Psychosplodge]

She always has been hasn't she? She's got a butler, mansion and silly accent in at least one game.

[Wolfshade]

Thats kinda cool

I look forward to the mission where you spend 6 hours with a toothbrush and trowel slowly digging the handle of a broken pot

That reminds me of an edutainment game I played at primary school, it was on teh acron, you had a dig site and had to dig to find artefacts, then once found you were transported back in time to find out about them. Now that was an acheology game

[eldargal]

Like I said, 'still an aristocrat'.:p I did worry that the new gritty realism might entail making her middle class or some such ghastliness.

Always nice to see Rhianna Pratchett praised up from a narrative sense, given that she is co-writing the Discworld Watch tv series and will be tkaing over the Discworld books when, god forbid, Terry Pratchett dies.

[Psychosplodge]

Miss read it.
:p

[DrLove42]

release date is 5th March. Which is wierd cos the UK release date is Friday for 99.9% of games.

Week today though! Now do i buy deamons or Lara...Kind of also want Sim City with is 3 days later.

And Gears of War and Bioshock later in the month....

Why does everything come out at once!

[Wolfshade]

Get SimCity, simples

[Psychosplodge]

Get SimCity, simples

It's not it's always on internet origin simcity. Go to GoG and proper classic simcity...

[Wolfshade]

I know, I know.

But it looks pretty and has curvy roads and isn't just based on density stats.

Though I will only ever be playing it on a closed region

[DrLove42]

Oh yeah, won't play with someone else

Told you i'm an antisocial gamer


Have read 2 reviews for TR now, one nothing but glowing (and i trust it more) and one just good (complains a lot that "TR shouldn't be about a one woman army")

[Wildeybeast]

I'm waiting until someone I knows actually buys and plays the game. I was quite excited, when I saw the vids, but a mate of mine who worked on one of the previous games says it's looking like a boring sequence of cut scenes and plodding adventuring (see this video (http://www.outsidexbox.com/articles/2013-02-25-tomb-raider-lara-croft-falling-for-one-minute) for an example of this). So I'm going to wait and see on this one.

I'd also be very wary of trusting game reviews. A significant section of the industry is massive system of sycophantic back scratching. 'I'll give you a good review in exchange for exclusives/interviews/free stuff/etc.' Play the game for yourself or talk to someone who has played it.

[Deadlift]

I am pre-ordering it, finished xcom tonight and need a change of pace.

[eldargal]

I'd also be very wary of trusting game reviews. A significant section of the industry is massive system of sycophantic back scratching. 'I'll give you a good review in exchange for exclusives/interviews/free stuff/etc.' Play the game for yourself or talk to someone who has played it.
Fair enough. I'm not pre-ordering it based on the reviews though, I'm pre-ordering it based on my opinion of Rhianna Pratchett.

[Wildeybeast]

Heir to Discworld right? Can't say I've read any of her stuff. Has she scripted video games before?

[eldargal]

Yep and yep. Mirror's Edge, Heavenly Sword, the Overlord series and a few others.

[Wildeybeast]

That's a good pedigree in both regards. Here's hoping the gameplay does her scripting justice then.

[eldargal]

Also it isn't just commercial sites giving it good reviews, Ben Kuchera at Penny Arcade Report (http://www.penny-arcade.com/report/editorial-article/not-that-kind-of-croft-par-reviews-tomb-raider) did too.

Edit: The first PC review of it gives it 90/100 apparently (http://www.lazygamer.net/general-news/tomb-raider-gets-its-first-review-pc-specs-revealed/).

[Wildeybeast]

Not saying it won't be good or that all games reviews are dodgy, just putting out a cautionary warning about taking all the 5 star and 9/10 reviews at face value. I've finally started Dishonoured and I am hooked on getting that finished before Bioshock comes out, so I'll be saving my pennies for the moment.

[lobster-overlord]

Thats kinda cool

I look forward to the mission where you spend 6 hours with a toothbrush and trowel slowly digging the handle of a broken pot

That's new world archaeology. On a dig in Israel back in 97, my first day on site, they brought in an excavator/front loader to take out a 4 meter deep pottery sherd pile. Now that's old world archaeology at its finest.

John M>she's called a "raider" for a reason.

[eldargal]

I started playing Tomb Raider last night, really enjoying it. Very intuitive controls, fun gameplay, reasonably realistic archaeology and such. Very interesting story, with Laras own experiences being framed by journals and other documents she finds as she progresses.

[Psychosplodge]

Yes, but did they get the jiggle physics right? This is the essence of a tomb raider game isn't it?

[eldargal]

I don't think there are any jiggle physics.:p

[Psychosplodge]

Then what's the point?

Also

http://25.media.tumblr.com/31acf3719ec79ae7924be9d89d7d078c/tumblr_mj75jyE3DJ1qz864mo1_500.jpg

[eldargal]

Really good interview with Rihanna Pratchett here (http://metro.co.uk/2013/03/04/rhianna-pratchett-on-reclaiming-lara-croft-and-having-discworld-creator-terry-as-a-dad-3522630/).

[Godless Zealot]

Started my playthrough today, very good so far. A nice change of pace from the usual type of games I play.

[DrLove42]

PIcked up a copy this morning. Will begin playing later

[DrLove42]

OK so i've played for about 4 hours. And I am loving it.

I feel the puzzle element is a bit scaled down, even in the tombs i've found they aren't that hard.

But whats incredible is the immersion. Those who've played it know the bits i'm talking about. Crossing that log after getting out the cave at the beginning, i found myself holding my breath for. Climbing the radio tower was a nerve wracking experience. I'm jsut really, really enjoying it. I'm just worried about finishing it too soon now

[eldargal]

Yep the puzzles aren't too hard, but the immersion makes up for it as you say. It gets even better than the radio tower, trust me.:p I'm taking a break from it to play ME3: Citadel so I don't finish it too soon myself. I hope it sells well enough to warrant a sequel.

[DrLove42]

I bought the Hitman HD collection at same time. So will be splicing between the 2 games.

I've just got the Shotgun and escaped the Monastery.

[Mr Mystery]

Bought a new PS3 today.

I enjoy games like Arkham, Prototype 2, and mindless button bashes.

Will I enjoy this one?

[bfmusashi]

That's new world archaeology. On a dig in Israel back in 97, my first day on site, they brought in an excavator/front loader to take out a 4 meter deep pottery sherd pile. Now that's old world archaeology at its finest.

John M>she's called a "raider" for a reason.

You only get to dig with the trowel at field school. Nothing like watching kids fresh out of college see the back hoe show up on site.

[DrLove42]

So I'm into the end game now, i think.

I feel I can give some kind of review.

Brilliant game. Entertaining from start to near finish. However.

The beginning is far better than the end. Lara is a much better character when shes learning and overcoming her difficulties. Once you've cut your way through 200 dudes and have a full Olympic Competition Bow with arrows that can explode or drop pools of Napalm theres a much bigger disconnect between you and Lara. The Immersion as i've said previously is incredible at the beginning. By the end its just another 3rd person explore and shoot. Considering how shaken she was on her first kill or skinning the deer, within a day or 2 on the island shes shoving her climbing axes through guys necks and bathing in the blood as they fly over her shoulder.

A lot of the Tombs and puzzles are really easy. Last night I literally walked into a tomb, worked out how to solve it in less than 5 seconds and walked out with the treasure in less than a minute. Dissapoint

So yeah. Brilliant game, great writing. But it loses a lot of the "Fish out of water, in a frying pan, full of murderous pirates" inexperienced girl that the game was supposed to be about

[eldargal]

Penny Arcade interviewed Rhianna Pratchett and she talks about that herself. Basically the narrative team would have liked a slow build up from innocent student to hardened badass but gameplay had to trump it.

Interview Part 1 (http://penny-arcade.com/report/editorial-article/tomb-raiders-writer-discusses-the-press-gender-and-lara-crofts-body-count) and Part 2 (http://penny-arcade.com/report/editorial-article/tomb-writers-writer-talks-impalement-downtown-abbey-and-whether-were-revisi).

I do agree there is a disconnect, one moment she is apologising to the corpse of a deer and retching after popping a cap in some guy and then soon she is shooting arrows into peoples faces like nobodies business.

[Brakkart]

Nothing to do with the game, but the original Tomb Raider movie is currently on the BBC's iPlayer. Watched it last night, cheesy as anything but was a fun enough way to kill 90 minutes.

[Psychosplodge]

http://24.media.tumblr.com/ec12310379e0e8c28b990e0ec296c49f/tumblr_mg0t5hDgFS1ql99t0o1_r1_1280.jpg

[eldargal]

It's funny 'cos it's true.

[DrLove42]

Finished the game this weekend. Just got 5 or 6 of the Challenge things to find and I'll have 100% the game

I've written out my final thoughts in my blogs review;

http://drlove42.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/tomb-raider-videogame-review.html


EDIT - Something else that might interest folks.

Some of the prerelease footage and prototype gameplay has surfaced today. It featured horse riding, a whip, escorting a child, giant Yeti and Werewolves, a VATS targeting system like in FallOut and a spooky Carrot.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=AbJjcBC2rnc#!

Very glad we got the game we got not that....

[DrLove42]

Double Post but Oh Well.

Crystal Dynamics today announced they had no plans on doing any new single player DLC, only focusing on the piss poor multiplayer with new maps.

[eldargal]

Well that's disappointing. Still, it sold very well and was well received so hopefully a sequel is a certainty.

[Psychosplodge]

multiplayer?

in a tomb raider game?


why?

[eldargal]

'cos multiplayer sells apparently. I've not touched it myself, it hasn't been that well received. I'm not averse to adding multiplayer to games, it worked brilliantly with ME3 for example, but it doesn't seem to work so well with Tomb Raider.

[DrLove42]

See I'd describe the ME3 multiplayer as coop arenas. Whereas TR is a deathmatch.

Also ME3' strength and core mechanic is the shooting, its not in TR

[eldargal]

Well there were a lot of hysterical reactions to the ME3 MP announcement from people who didn't think it would work, it just has to be done well. The previous Crystal Dynamics TR game had co-op play for example which apparently worked well. Death match is really kind of a bizarre choice.

[Psychosplodge]

Not everygame needs a deathmatch mode.

[DrLove42]

But deathmatch allows you to sell some DLC map packs. And it keeps people playing a bit longer AND you can do a online passcode thing. Its just a way of making money, cruelly crowbarred in

[Godless Zealot]

Finished this game last night, thoroughly enjoyed it considering it's not the kind of game I usually play. Would recommend it for anyone to give it a shot.

[Psychosplodge]

http://25.media.tumblr.com/e919e397d70e317ae3e27ba9ee4fc390/tumblr_mk6x2wnJJG1rbyr12o1_500.jpg

[Godless Zealot]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbudKzjYSbM

[eldargal]

That is both amusing and disturbing.