Tomb Raider 3
Developer - Eidos
Publisher - Core Design
Players - 1
Extras - Memory card, Analog, Dual Shock
The bit on the box
"Lara Croft returns in her most
daring adventure to date - Tomb Raider III. In a search to find four mysterious
artifacts fashioned from the heart of an ancient meteorite, Lara journeys
through 5 challenging adventures packed with new puzzles, hidden traps
and ruthless enemies! From the jungles of India to the icy wastes of Antarctica,
across the rooftops of London and into the depths of Nevada's mysterious
Area 51, Lara has new vehicles, weapons and moves to outwit her foes. Be
ready for anything and prepare to be amazed! New graphics enhancements
include multi-coloured lighting, rippling water, reflections, fog and changing
weather effects. Select the order in which you undertake Lara's adventures
and also choose the path you take within the levels. New vehicles including
Kayak, Quad Bike and Underwater Propulsion Unit. New weapons such as Grenade
Launcher, Desert Eagle, and Rocket Launcher. New moves including dash,
crawl, and monkey swing."
Graphics
Well there is certainly nothing to complain about with
the new graphics engine of Tomb Raider 3. Everything looks more
organic and rounded this time around, there are very nice smoking effects
with mist and Lara's guns, and it's all portrayed in glorious high-resolution
(although I will admit on some levels there is so much detail in the ground
and wall textures you can't really tell the difference, but in the early
Nevada and Antarctica levels everything looks beautifully sharp). There
is still a fair amount of clipping here and there, but nothing too overwhelming.
Where Tomb Raider 3 falls down in the cosmetics department is the
camera. Gone is the mostly stable floating camera of the first two games,
and enter the insane "flying about but can't decide in which direction
to go" visuals used in Deathtrap Dungeon. This is especially ugly
when Lara enters smaller claustrophobic passageways, and is very annoying
in combat if you are required to keep moving. Camera aside, this is the
best looking game of the Tomb Raider series.
Sounds
Nothing much has been changed in the way of sound effects
for the third installment of the series, which thankfully is no bad thing.
Lara's weapons still sound as they always have, as does Lara herself, but
noticeable add-ons are the way her footsteps change on virtually every
surface she walks on (the snow in antarctica is especially impressive),
and there is more usage of the background soundtracks used in Tomb Raider
2 (eg. ongoing industrial sounds in the subway, and chirping crickets
in the jungle). Eidos have kept the great incidental music that accompanies
being attacked, or when entering a particularly large cavern or room. Overall
the atmosphere is as good as it always had been.
Gameplay
The control system for the most part has remained unchanged,
but the player can now make Lara crawl, monkey swing and sprint as well
as her existing vast repertoire of moves. Both abilities become essential
to survive some of the levels (sprinting is good for out-running boulders
for instance) though the game hasn't really benefited that much for having
them included. The game's difficult is now extremely high from the outset,
which shows Eidos have obviously designed Tomb Raider 3 for those
who have played and finished the two prequels. So the game is hard, but
who cares with the unlimited save system right? Wrong. The biggest mistake
Eidos made with the production of this game is the reintroduction of the
save crystals from the first game. Now you can pick up a crystal and use
it whenever you like, but all this does is cause the player to backtrack
constantly over well-trod ground when they (inevitably) get killed. The
save system from the second game would have sufficed and would have made
the game far less frustrating than it is.
I feel a verdict coming on
Even with the ill-thought out save system and terribly
wayward camera, Tomb Raider 3 is still an excellent game of exploration
and adventure. It's a grave pity that it has the above flaws, as well as
a few reported bugs (there are places where you can get stuck and can't
backtrack without a save, and on one Antarctic level Lara suddenly started
reciting all her gym exercises!), because otherwise I would have labeled
this the definitive Tomb Raider game. As it stands however, it is
just a good combination of the game styles from the first two games, with
the difficulty level bumped up a (quite large) notch. Fans will love it,
critics will hate it, and youthful adolescents who don't know any better
will drool over it. I personally love the series, and hope to see more
in the future.
Review by D.R.T.Barrett
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