Tom Nook Sawyer
Member
Lots more at the article: http://www.polygon.com/2015/11/11/9712168/tomb-raider-lara-croft-sex-symbol-icon
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Polygon: From sex symbol to icon: How Crystal Dynamics saved Lara Croft
- Thread starter Tom Nook Sawyer
- Start date
Lots more at the article: http://www.polygon.com/2015/11/11/9712168/tomb-raider-lara-croft-sex-symbol-icon
Prophet Steve
Member
Oh right, that aspect that so many people complained about because it did not fit at all with the gameplay.
UnemployedVillain
Member
I'm reading the article right now, but just based on the title, the only thing making Lara a sex symbol was her appearance (which was somewhat mandated on the dev for having the game star a female character). As a character/personality wise, the classic Lara is still amount one of the best female main characters in gaming. She was always iconic for reasons other than JUST her boobs
toastyToast
Member
wat
yeah....wat
Mithos
Member
Better start running, or the mob will come after you for keeping her "sexy".
I agree, Lara is even sexier now then before
I do find the evolution of Lara pretty interesting. The fact that she was one of the first empowered female protagonists in games is probably as significant as the fact that she is archtypical example of sexual objectification.
It's almost like she needed to be sexually objectified to be given a shot at having her own game, but now that her gender is less of a question, they're peeling away the unnecessary layers.
I wish she was better written in the games (I haven't played RotTR yet), but she's gotten famous enough that her importance transcends the games she's in.
It's almost like she needed to be sexually objectified to be given a shot at having her own game, but now that her gender is less of a question, they're peeling away the unnecessary layers.
I wish she was better written in the games (I haven't played RotTR yet), but she's gotten famous enough that her importance transcends the games she's in.
Must be some alternate weirdo history.
Norwegian_Imposter
Member
It's Polygon.. What do you expect?
x10 for me
Had a chuckle reading that line.
Polygon.com
What the!?
Lara Croft was behind Mario and maybe Sonic the most iconic video game character of the mid to late 90s, she was on every magazine known to man.
This new Lara is not going to be plastered everywhere nor have the same impact as the original.
She was a sex symbol and icon back then, today its just a character.
Lara Croft was behind Mario and maybe Sonic the most iconic video game character of the mid to late 90s, she was on every magazine known to man.
This new Lara is not going to be plastered everywhere nor have the same impact as the original.
She was a sex symbol and icon back then, today its just a character.
Piston Hyundai
Member
Back then, she was pretty much defined by her boobs. Regardless of how she was written, that's what people of that era latched on to. That being said, it was a pleasant surprise to play the first few Core games for the first time ever last year and see that Lara exuded confidence and was a pretty solid character, with the "fan service" never really coming up outside of her appearance.
SolidSnakex
Member
The revisionist history about the old Lara is such bullshit. Yeah, in terms of marketing she was pushed as a sex symbol. But for the most part in Core's games she was always a strong adventurer. She controlled shit in her games. I don't see why she has to be ragdolled around and bloodied to be made believable.
She absolutely was. There's some revisionist history going on here, as if the old games were nothing but Nude Raider hacks and all the good things about them were invented by the reboot.
eot
Banned
This pretty much sums it up.
Coffee Dog
Banned
Lara is not only still marketed as a sex symbol, she's not an icon anymore either.
She's still sexy. Just not in a 90s way but in a 2010s way. And the writing is terrible. She was more of an icon back in the day, people don't really care about her anymore. Some care about her games, but not about her - she's basically a non-character. Her design is also super generic now.
yeah i dont know man..
yes her classic design was ridiculous, and a lot of the marketing for the games had her creepy design posed in all kinds of "provocative" positions (aka appealing to horny 12 year old boys)
but in the actual games classic lara as actually pretty rad
the new lara is shallow as fuck. they hyped up her arc so much but then you get the game and she basically has a breakdown in 1 cutscene over killing someone...and then proceeds to murder an entire island without batting an eye.
yes her classic design was ridiculous, and a lot of the marketing for the games had her creepy design posed in all kinds of "provocative" positions (aka appealing to horny 12 year old boys)
but in the actual games classic lara as actually pretty rad
the new lara is shallow as fuck. they hyped up her arc so much but then you get the game and she basically has a breakdown in 1 cutscene over killing someone...and then proceeds to murder an entire island without batting an eye.
Yepp, I don't want to deny the games its merit. It stands by it self but it was not a Tomb Raider game from my perspective. Still, cool that so many people like this new thing.
Stilton Disco
Member
Yeah, that's all a load of bollocks. She's still sexualised, she's no where near the icon she once was, and the combination of poor writing and shitty voice acting made her easily the weakest incarnation of Lara personality wise.
I mean I loved the reboot, but the addition of a bow aside, they rather badly fucked up with how they handled both Lara and the general staples of the Tomb Raider franchise pretty thoroughly.
I mean I loved the reboot, but the addition of a bow aside, they rather badly fucked up with how they handled both Lara and the general staples of the Tomb Raider franchise pretty thoroughly.
Head.spawn
Junior Member
Did you guys read the article?
Piston Hyundai
Member
alright that's pretty ridiculous
she's basically lara croft by way of that shitty far cry 3 protagonist
Lord of Ostia
Member
The responses in this thread are really negative about the way Lara was portrayed as a character in the 2013 reboot, though I'm confused as to why. The game doesn't have a great story or anything, but nothing about her stood out to me as noticeably bad compared to other AAA video game characters and narratives. Honestly I found her and the story in general to be slightly above average.
Pretty much. They might have "saved" Lara, but TR is dead (unless you play custom levels).
Dragon1893
Member
Seriously?
Writing must've really improved in the new one because based on the first game that is quite a stretch.
Giolon
Member
I hate what Crystal Dynamics has done with Lara and the franchise in their most recent reboot. What they had done w/ Tomb Raider Legend, Anniversary, and Underworld was the greatest incarnation Lara had - a more quippy, James Bond-esque grand adventure. Admittedly the games had some gameplay issues (though I maintain Legend is the best romp of the entire series).
I don't want realistic Lara. I want larger than life Lara - in all aspects. Physicality, personality, lifestyle. It's a shame they went chasing after Uncharted so hard, but understandable why they'd do it. Unfortunately, that means that Lara Croft and Tomb Raider are pretty much over for me.
Edge Magazine had an article making similar points in their Nov 2015 issue, that it was nice to see I wasn't alone in my opinion.
I don't want realistic Lara. I want larger than life Lara - in all aspects. Physicality, personality, lifestyle. It's a shame they went chasing after Uncharted so hard, but understandable why they'd do it. Unfortunately, that means that Lara Croft and Tomb Raider are pretty much over for me.
Edge Magazine had an article making similar points in their Nov 2015 issue, that it was nice to see I wasn't alone in my opinion.
ElBoxyBrown
Banned
The design is fine but the way the article talks about the story makes it seem like they played a different game.
Andy Believes
Banned
I think what people are saying, is that she became a generic character. And instead of being a hard as nails protagonist (as in the old games), she was moaning and groaning her way though the game.
UnemployedVillain
Member
Because I'd you've played the older games, as I'm sure much if the negative commenters in here have, you'll know she was a much better character before. The only significant positive chance CD has made is in her design. Lara was sexy, confident, in charge and essentially what a female Indiana Jones would be like.
From gaming icon to an avatar pretty devoid of character that I really couldn't care less about honestly.
I enjoyed the Tomb Raider reboot. It was a well made game, albeit not a great Tomb Raider game. Yes I reside in that camp of thought. Anyhow, does anyone really feel that the new Lara is that great of a character? Aesthetically, yes, they have done a fine job making her more believable and realistic, but does anyone really care that much about her character? She was more of a means to an end for me. A vehicle to use to partake in the gameplay and progression systems. I guess the charaters and story were serviceable overall, but I certainly didn't feel there were any industry milestones at play here.
I enjoyed the Tomb Raider reboot. It was a well made game, albeit not a great Tomb Raider game. Yes I reside in that camp of thought. Anyhow, does anyone really feel that the new Lara is that great of a character? Aesthetically, yes, they have done a fine job making her more believable and realistic, but does anyone really care that much about her character? She was more of a means to an end for me. A vehicle to use to partake in the gameplay and progression systems. I guess the charaters and story were serviceable overall, but I certainly didn't feel there were any industry milestones at play here.