THE GOOD:
Fun and engaging platformer, solid and easy-to-use control system, many cinematic moments make you feel like you're playing an Indiana Jones movie.THE BAD:
Camera is usually good but can cause platforming to be a hassle, more thought should have been put into combat, too short and not much of a challenge. SUMMARY:
After some past disappointment and failures, Lara Croft returns with a bang in Tomb Raider: Legend. Forget what you know about her previous adventures, as Crystal Dynamics (Legacy of Kain) has created an entirely new game starring the cult icon. While hardcore fans of the older games may not enjoy the linear path this game takes, new fans will be welcomed with a fun and engaging platformer.
The game begins with a nine year old Lara and her mother on a plane. After a small discussion about yetis, one of the engines explode and the plane starts to go down. You are then shown present day Lara rock climbing in Bolivia. All that is known is that a friend gave Lara a lead on an ancient stone dais that she is looking for, and that she is there to find it. After reaching the top, you take control of Lara and a basic tutorial begins as you traverse through the level.
 Unloadin' lead
In the upper left corner are your health bar and ammo count. Lara’s main choice of weapons are dual pistols, both of which have infinite ammo and will throughout the entire game regardless of what difficulty you choose. Besides the pistols, Lara will be able to carry only one other weapon plus grenades. The only reason one would want to use another weapon that has a limited ammo count is solely for the increased range advantage.
In the bottom left hand corner is a display of all your items, with each item assigned to a direction on your D-Pad. Up is for Health Packs (3 maximum), Left is for your PLS (flashlight, which depletes and has to be turned off to re-charge), Right is for your binoculars, and Down is to switch between your two weapons. You also have a grappling hook which is assigned to the X button. Once you are familiar with all of your items, it is time to move forward.
 A bit of climbing...
It is obvious from the very beginning that platforming is the main focus of this game. Within the first ten minutes of playing, you would have already shimmied across ledges, swung on ropes, climbed vines, climbed rocks, and used a boulder to raise a log into the air, so that you can then swing on a protruding branch to reach the top of a waterfall. In that little bit of time, you are shown a good chunk of what traveling through the rest of the game will be like. Not everything will be so simple though, as the game also has a plethora of puzzles to solve, much of which involves platforming itself. A good example of this, and also a good example of how the new physics engine has been used to create some fun and unique puzzles follows:
I walked into a giant room with gigantic gears on each side, with three switches placed in front of me. After stepping on one of the switches and seeing the exit raised about 1/3 of the way, it was obvious I had to have something pushing in all three switches at the same time. I then noticed there were two cages at the lower level of the room, but how was I to get them to the upper level to move them on top of the switches? After searching for stairs or a ramp and having no luck, I saw what looked like a seesaw. Being the incredibly intelligent person that I am, I knew right away that I needed to put the crates on the lower end of the seesaw. After doing so, I climbed a ledge to the right of the seesaw, and jumped off landing on the raised end. The crate went flying into the air to the upper level. After taking these same steps with the other crate and placing them on top of the switches, I stood on the third and last one and the door opened itself completely.
There are plenty of other puzzles in the game which use the physics engine in interesting and creative ways. Some puzzles require a bit of platforming, while others are solved just by using nearby objects in the environment. Such as one time I had to get to the other side of this room, but the fact that there were two walls in front of me that continuously closed in on each other made it difficult. So I took a nearby metal crate and pushed it in front of me, causing the walls to close in and stop at the crate, instead of crushing me. It was fairly simple to solve, but figuring out things won’t always be so easy. This is where two items I mentioned earlier become extremely valuable: The grappling hook and binoculars. Not only is your grappling hook used for swinging across electric currents, enormous gaps, or other dangers, but it can also be used for many other things such as pulling objects across places you cannot venture, or rotating mechanics to reveal secret locations. One instance I was stuck on the other side of a long hallway, with fire rising through the holes in the ground, impeding my progress. There was a cage on the other side, so by pulling the cage towards myself, I was able to climb onto it to hop to a safe point between the flames. By continuing this process, I was able to make it to the other side of the room burn-free.
 Solving one of the many puzzles...
When solving your problems aren’t as clear though, your binoculars come with what is called RAD mode, which locates and identifies objects in your environment that can assist you. RAD mode is able to identify four types of objects: Chemically unstable (explosive), Technical (part of machinery), Moveable, and Physically unstable (the object can be made to topple or break). RAD mode can be used to scan any highlighted object in your environment to assist you, so never forget to use them if you are stuck.
Of course, the game is not all about jumping around and solving puzzles, as there is a fair bit of gunplay too. Thanks to the easy controls, it is a cinch to dodge bullets and switch between locked-on targets. The problem is, is that this is as strategic as you can really get with this game. The A.I. is incredibly simple, causing combat to also be very basic especially as there are only a couple of different enemies in the game, these pretty much being either humans or animals. Having to fight animals is more annoying than anything, and probably should not even have been included in the game, as all you do is move around in circles and shoot the beast until it is dead. This is almost the same with the human characters, but at least they move around more and can actually attack you effectively. In fact, I see no reason why you should ever die from combat unless you get caught off guard by a grenade, and even those are not an issue to avoid. It really just seems as filler in between all of the platforming and puzzle-solving. Sure, combat can be a nice break from all that, but I wish more thought would have been put into it. It is not all just your guns though, you can also use grenades and initiate melee combat. You are able to kick enemies, slide into them, use your grappling hook to bring them closer to you, and you can do an aerial attack, in which you bounce off of their heads and go into a sort of “bullet-time”, where everything slows down and you can quickly eliminate the enemies around you. Besides the last mentioned move though, I consider melee combat to be pointless overall.
Explosives and the environment can be used to eliminate your foes even quicker. There are often barrels set up, so instead of pressing the usual R-Trigger to fire your weapon, you can press Y and Lara will automatically shoot whichever explosive is nearest, blowing everything up around it. This can also cause some pieces of the environment to collapse, squashing your opponents. There are other instances of using your surroundings to your advantage, such as one time I was at the top of a hill, with boulders lined up in front of me. I caused them to tumble down the hill, rolling over all of the baddies at the bottom.
In between everything else, some motorcycle sequences have been thrown in to spice things up. During these sequences, you will also have plenty of enemies in vehicles too, being either motorcycles or jeeps with turrets mounted upon them. Your main objective will be to reach your destination as quickly as possible without getting killed. To assist you, explosives, health kits, and the ability to take multiple paths have been given to you along the way. A well-executed shot at a barrel could easily eliminate groups of pesky enemies, while taking a route with a long ramp could give you a nice jump ahead. Be weary though, as a ton of obstacles have also been placed about to hinder you. Being able to control your speed or braking is something no one should forget. Luckily checkpoints are frequent, so if you crash you will not have to restart too far back.
 Hmmm....
Always keep your hand on the controller also, as much like Shenmue or Resident Evil 4, there will be certain cinematics in which you get to control the outcome (life/death basically). Buttons will flash on screen which is when you push the coordinating buttons. Go too slow, and you will be restarted a little before the sequence point.
Now, because of all the different modes of play, it was essential for Crystal Dynamics to make a Tomb Raider game that had controls and a camera more smooth and better than ever before. Thankfully, they accomplished this. The tutorials at the beginning of the game teach you just about everything you need to know, and because of its simplicity, the control system will be easy to grasp.
The left analog stick moves Lara, while the right moves the camera with 360° freedom of movement. You use the A button to jump, and if you constantly press it, Lara will perform a series of flips, which can be useful for dodging bullets or other enemy attacks. The A button is also used to ascend while swimming, or to connect your grappling hook with an object in the air for swinging across gaps. The B button is used to crouch (although it is rarely used) or to descend if you are swimming. If you are running when you press B, Lara will do a roll, which again is useful for dodging, especially harmful objects in the environment. The Y button is used for context sensitive actions, like kicking around small objects, or when timed right, increasing your speed when climbing or swimming. Sometimes when you grab onto a ledge, the Y button will appear over Lara’s head and you will see her quickly losing her grip. If you do not press the Y button quick enough, you will fall. As mentioned before, the X button accesses your grappling hook, which is used for platforming, manipulating objects in your environment, or to bring enemies within range of your attacks. The Left Bumper will center the camera behind Lara, and the Right Bumper is used for grenades. Pressing the Back button will bring up your PDA, where you are able to access your current stats, Objectives, Data, or Gear. Pressing the Start button will bring up the in-game menu to access options such as saving, or when you are watching a cinematic, the ability to skip it. The L-Trigger is used for locking onto targets, and based on the color of the reticule, identifies the difference between enemies and objects that the grappling hook can be used on. Red is for enemies, blue is for the grappling hook, and gray informs you that the target is out of range. Tapping the right analog stick while locked on will change targets.
Finally, the R-Trigger is used for firing your weapons, and with them, you have three different styles of shooting:
Just pressing the R-trigger normally will have Lara shoot in whichever direction you face her, so regardless if you can see the direction that Lara is facing, that is where she will be firing. You also have complete freedom of movement, so you can move or flip her anywhere you wish.
Holding the L-trigger allows Lara to strafe, so Lara will always shoot directly in front of her. Moving the right analog stick will only turn her upper-body instead of actually moving her around.
Clicking the right analog stick zooms in behind Lara’s shoulder, assisting you with a reticule for more precise aiming. Moving the right analog stick will only move the spot Lara is aiming at.
The controls are fine most of the time, although there have been areas where I felt Lara should have grabbed onto an object when she didn’t, but decided to fall and die instead. This is more of an issue with the collision detection than anything though.
The camera usually is trouble free, especially since you pretty much have full reign over it. When platforming, the game will give you the most cinematic view possible unless you move the camera yourself. It can be a hassle though, as periodically it will decide to zoom in extremely close on Lara, causing you blind to your surroundings, which is a major problem as there are many instances where a wrong move means your life. This problem is more common indoors since you have less freedom to move the camera, but I have had it happen outdoors a few times too.
The graphics do a good job of bringing Lara and the lush environments she visits to life. One of the first things you will notice is how much more natural this Lara Croft looks. She is no longer as exaggerated, and looks more human (and hot  ) than ever before. She is much more rounded out, instead of having a ridiculously small waist and abnormally large breasts that would guarantee most women a lifetime of back pain.
 A more natural looking Lara...
There are a variety of different environments, ranging from lush jungles, scorching deserts, ice covered mountains, and large thriving cities, each one consisting of their own unique style and design. Some environments are bright and colorful, with large pools of sparkling water surrounded by plant life, while others are dark and slimy, full of creepy architecture and strange traps. The game uses various texture work and lighting techniques to bring everything to life, and little details like water running down Lara’s face when she steps out of water, and (now standard) real-time reflections only help.
 One of the many outdoor environments...
But while most of the game may be pretty, there are other aspects of the graphics that aren’t so nice. Like the fact that there is almost no variety whatsoever in the NPC character models, or the fact that their bodies will disappear after a few seconds of death. I was highly surprised when it first occurred, as these are issues that should not occur with next-generation games. While they do not deter from the gameplay itself as much, they do deter from the realism. I personally have lots of fun playing around with corpses (get your head out of the gutter plz), especially when rag-doll physics are included. Also, the character models on the animals could have used some work, as they have a sort of plastic look to them.
The sound, music, and voice-acting are all great. The flowing of rivers, the swooshing sound a gigantic pendulum of doom makes, or the roar of a jaguar all help bring this world to life. The dynamic music also helps, and can vary between levels based on their location, giving you a better feel of the current mood. Sometimes (like during action sequences) it will be a faster-paced techno beat, while other times it will be a much slower, creepier tune like when you are exploring a dark cavern. Either way, the music does its job well and helps immerse you even more into the game.
Keeley Hawes does a superb job as Lara Croft, making the character more life-like than ever before, especially since Lara displays a wide range of emotions in this game too. Throughout the game, you also have two companions who will be speaking to you via headset named Zip and Alister, who both will be providing the majority of humor that this game has, along with tips to access the next area, and they along with everyone else also voice their parts well.
Even though there are three difficulties: Explorer (Easy), Adventurer (Medium), and Tomb Raider (Hard), the game is not much of a challenge. Sure, you may get stuck at a puzzle here and there, but with a little exploring and common sense, they can be quickly solved. The combat is always easy, even when it comes to bosses, and checkpoints are extremely frequent, so even if you do die it does not take long to recover, other than the annoying ten second load time that occurs. If you do have trouble (or wish for more) though, the difficulty setting can be altered in between missions at the ending stat screen. For more challenges and some replay value, whenever you complete a level you unlock a time trial mode for it. You can also do more exploring to find rewards which unlock extras, such as outfits, pistol upgrades, concept art, character profiles, cheat codes, and more, such as an “Unfortunate Mishaps” video that shows different ways Lara can die throughout the game. There are bronze, silver, and gold rewards, each unlocking different types of content and becoming increasingly harder to obtain. If you really love to explore, you can also visit Croft Manor from the main menu any time you wish, unlocking secrets and obtaining even more rewards. The game is extremely short, with average play time running about 7 or 8 hours, but it can be a lot of fun. With many instances feeling like an Indiana Jones movie or another action-packed flick, overall Tomb Raider: Legend is a success. |
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