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GameTrailers Tomb Raider Retrospective!
- Thread starter Tricky I Shadow
- Start date
jacob armitage
Banned
Cheers for the heads up, i'll be eager to watch all of this as the first tomb raider is quite a fond gaming experience of mine.
MrGreencastle
Member
Sweet. Also, nice pic. I'm so in on Croft's new look. She looks badass, like Indiana Jane or something.
Criminal Upper
Banned
"Eidos then decided a new Tomb Raider should come out every November from then on."
GREAT PLAN GUYS
GREAT PLAN GUYS
Tricky I Shadow
Banned
I did not know Eidos had financial problems at the time, but it does explain why they wanted to release 1 game per year, they most likely had no other choice.
Also explains why Lara was everywhere at the time, i have about 80 PC, PSX mags stashed some where and i bet half of them got her on the cover, guess Eidos needed the money and just allowed everyone to plaster her everywhere.
Also explains why Lara was everywhere at the time, i have about 80 PC, PSX mags stashed some where and i bet half of them got her on the cover, guess Eidos needed the money and just allowed everyone to plaster her everywhere.
Sapphire Dreams
Member
Cool, will give it a watch 
The Praiseworthy
Member
Ohhhh... that was a very nostalgic 15 minutes, The first TR games had the BEST atmospheric levels to explore.
Wish they could nail that feeling again
Wish they could nail that feeling again
One day there will be a New Tomb Raider, I just pray that day is soonOhhhh... that was a very nostalgic 15 minutes, The first TR games had the BEST atmospheric levels to explore.
Wish they could nail that feeling again
and on 3DS
Truth. I get disappointed when people recommend Anniversary over it.
The Smoking Bun
Banned
I noticed how expansive and open Tomb Raider 1's levels looked despite being linear in comparison to 2013's tight corridor's. Holy hell, game design is going backwards.
Come back Toby! Where are you?!
Come back Toby! Where are you?!
Tricky I Shadow
Banned
Oh boy.......can we stop being bitter for just this thread? I mean is it even worth mentioning?
No.
And who the hell is Newt Lara? Some kinda reptile that had sex with Lara to make Newt Lara?
AgentOtaku
Member
Don't care for this franchise really anymore but as always, these retrospective are fantastic!
Well that was disappointing. Struck me as a lazy, "we get paid by Square Enix to help promote the new game either way, so let's not bother too much" affair.
No real analysis into exactly why the games were so compelling at the time, or why they had so much impact.
Over-focus on shooting, which in playing takes up maybe 10% of a Tomb Raider game.
Don't even mention the haunting, minimal score.
And a cursory, almost dismissive glance at the Lara Croft pop culture phenomenon, which is arguably an even more important element of the story than the games themselves.
There is so much to the story of Tomb Raider. Both in terms of game industry and cultural impact, the series is one of the classics. This extremely barebones "retrospective" seems more a "here's a bunch of games that got released!" than a genuine look back.
I suggest anyone wanting a quality retrospective on Tomb Raider that does more than just pay lip-service to the various elements check out GameTap's 10 Years Of Tomb Raider.
No real analysis into exactly why the games were so compelling at the time, or why they had so much impact.
Over-focus on shooting, which in playing takes up maybe 10% of a Tomb Raider game.
Don't even mention the haunting, minimal score.
And a cursory, almost dismissive glance at the Lara Croft pop culture phenomenon, which is arguably an even more important element of the story than the games themselves.
There is so much to the story of Tomb Raider. Both in terms of game industry and cultural impact, the series is one of the classics. This extremely barebones "retrospective" seems more a "here's a bunch of games that got released!" than a genuine look back.
I suggest anyone wanting a quality retrospective on Tomb Raider that does more than just pay lip-service to the various elements check out GameTap's 10 Years Of Tomb Raider.
Oh boy.......can we stop being bitter for just this thread? I mean is it even worth mentioning?No.
And who the hell is Newt Lara? Some kinda reptile that had sex with Lara to make Newt Lara?
We're well aware of the reboot coming out very soon
Would it kill you to acknowledge or post of a picture if the Not-New Reboot?
jediyoshi
Member
Are we supposed to compare their part 1 to GT's part 1? Or the whole 9 parts? I need my context.
AgentOtaku
Member
I believe the whole 9 parts
Can't stand the ladies' cheesy sultry voice over though
Can't stand the ladies' cheesy sultry voice over though
OP, any one of the following images will make a better thread header:
That said, even the GameTap series shies away from properly analysing why the games were so addictive.
Well, this GT video covers the first three games, so view up to that in the GameTap? I mean, the quality difference between the two should be instantly apparent either way.
That said, even the GameTap series shies away from properly analysing why the games were so addictive.
You can say a lot about Keeley Hawes' tenure on Tomb Raider, but I wouldn't say "sultry" would be the correct adjective at all. I'd even hesitate over "cheesy", but I can see why some might think that.Can't stand the ladies' cheesy sultry voice over though
FantasticMrFoxdie
Mumber
Thanks for sharing this! GTs Retrospectives are great.
Watching now.
Watching now.
Baloonatic
Member
Man, I love those games and their soundtracks.
The music always felt like a big part of Tomb Raider to me. Always kicked in at just the right moments.
The music always felt like a big part of Tomb Raider to me. Always kicked in at just the right moments.
Absolutely. Long periods of silence compounding your isolation. You guide Lara through restrictive caverns and passages, claustrophobia setting in, no sound save her own boot thuds.
Suddenly a wolf, or a boulder, or spikes! High strung (synth) strings kick in. Panic.
And back to silence.
Later, you emerge from the claustrophobic passageways and come across an opening. A giant, underground civilization, lost for centuries. And the awe kicks in.
Tricky I Shadow
Banned
Wow.....this is really good stuff! Thanks man!
Why do you care about the series origins anyway? I thought you didn't like Core Design Tomb Raiders?
Tricky I Shadow
Banned
I never said I didn't like them. I do. Apparently I'm a "fake fan" because I love the looks of the reboot too.
You missed out on never playing 4/Revelations. Core's swan song to the franchise, where they put all their effort in to deliver the best final (lol) chapter they could. Whether 4 or 1 is my favourite really just depends on what day of the week it is.
Underworld is absolutely considered worth playing. It's the moment that Crystal Dynamics finally nailed the feeling of classic Tomb Raider while finally working out how to update Tomb Raider for a modern world, and stepped out of Core's shadow.
And then of course they decided to just throw out all that good work and make an Uncharted clone instead.
The biggest flaw with Underworld is that it's rushed. Game needed another 6 to 12 months in the cooker to perfect it. Look past that, and you have a truly modern Tomb Raider game to play and enjoy.
AgentOtaku
Member
She's doing the GameTap VA?
Tomb Raider 1 is the reason i'm still playing videogames.
I liked videogames before it, with the SNES and all, but it was a not very prominent interest i had.
One day i remember seeing one of my parent's friends play Tomb Raider on ps1, and my mind broke.
Free exploration, huge 3d spaces.. i was hooked; then to top it off, this dude loads the house level, runs to the pool and dives in, swimming underwater.
After that experience my interest in videogames grew exponentially, especially open world games.
I liked videogames before it, with the SNES and all, but it was a not very prominent interest i had.
One day i remember seeing one of my parent's friends play Tomb Raider on ps1, and my mind broke.
Free exploration, huge 3d spaces.. i was hooked; then to top it off, this dude loads the house level, runs to the pool and dives in, swimming underwater.
After that experience my interest in videogames grew exponentially, especially open world games.
Yes.
AgentOtaku
Member
Maybe I should pick up that TR PS3 trilogy...
SneakyStephan
Banned
I don't really want to be reminded of what good times I'll never have in a tomb raider game again.
Just dicking around in the mansion in tr2 and swandiving off everything was good for hours of fun.
Just dicking around in the mansion in tr2 and swandiving off everything was good for hours of fun.
I don't believe you
Lies are a part of your game, but they won't help you in this thread
Entire Tomb Raider soundtrack. Only 14 minutes long. Beautiful minimalism.
And make sure you turn off the "next gen" effects on Legend and Anniversary. Horrific bloom lighting. Lara's face goes fully white at points.
That said, Tomb Raider Legend is a fantastic, arcade, speed-run experience, so if you want to earn some trophies and can look past bloom, it might be worth getting the PS3 trilogy. I 100%'d Legend on PS2, then did the same with the 360 version when I got one. My first and only 1000/1000.
PC PC PC PC PC PC PC PC PC PC
And make sure you turn off the "next gen" effects on Legend and Anniversary. Horrific bloom lighting. Lara's face goes fully white at points.
That said, Tomb Raider Legend is a fantastic, arcade, speed-run experience, so if you want to earn some trophies and can look past bloom, it might be worth getting the PS3 trilogy. I 100%'d Legend on PS2, then did the same with the 360 version when I got one. My first and only 1000/1000.
Tricky I Shadow
Banned
Yep, Anniversary is quite good remake, but didn't have the atmosphere of the original.
Beat Anniversary on PC. Finish original Tomb Raider two times on Saturn, and two times on PSone...
Yep, Anniversary is quite good remake, but didn't have the atmosphere of the original.[/quote]It's enjoyable, but it lacks any identity of its own. Really, I view the whole thing as a learning exercise for Crystal Dynamics that they shouldn't have made public. Revisiting the original obviously did wonders for them in terms of design as they then went on to make Underworld, but the levels were contracted, imposing caverns made stupidly humongous, and goddamn QTEs and cutscenes put in places where QTEs and cutscenes had no business being.
Worst part of it was the introduction of the enemies. In the original, you just stumble across them. You'd be all exploring, exploring, sure is lonely in here, exploring, exploring, man these old buildings are awe-inspiring, exploring, exploring, what's that noise, exploring, explor-HOLY SHIT WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK.
Anniversary just shoved everything in a cutscene for its introduction which completely removed the menace and fear element.
It was an ugly middle-point between the arcade pop-culture brilliance of Legend and the classic exploration of Underworld.
Also Toby Gard was brought on board for the writing and he was obviously trying to compensate for Maxim-era Lara by having her be a personality-lacking tsundre of a character.
Worst part of it was the introduction of the enemies. In the original, you just stumble across them. You'd be all exploring, exploring, sure is lonely in here, exploring, exploring, man these old buildings are awe-inspiring, exploring, exploring, what's that noise, exploring, explor-HOLY SHIT WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT OH FUCK OH FUCK OH FUCK.
Anniversary just shoved everything in a cutscene for its introduction which completely removed the menace and fear element.
It was an ugly middle-point between the arcade pop-culture brilliance of Legend and the classic exploration of Underworld.
Also Toby Gard was brought on board for the writing and he was obviously trying to compensate for Maxim-era Lara by having her be a personality-lacking tsundre of a character.
Go back and play the original on PC for Unfinished Business.
Messofanego
Banned
lol at the boob slider history.
Thanks for this! The interviews of the actual designers really help. This is better, like the focus on character design evolution from a male to female, justification for exaggerated features, and innovative level design. Didn't know how worked Core Design was that they
Lara in 4.
Both are still worth watching.
Thanks for this! The interviews of the actual designers really help. This is better, like the focus on character design evolution from a male to female, justification for exaggerated features, and innovative level design. Didn't know how worked Core Design was that they
killed off
Both are still worth watching.
Tricky I Shadow
Banned
LiquidSolid
Member
Oh boy.......can we stop being bitter for just this thread? I mean is it even worth mentioning?No.
And who the hell is Newt Lara? Some kinda reptile that had sex with Lara to make Newt Lara?
Haha. Blatantly try to incite arguments about the reboot and then complain when that happens. What a troll.
Decent video anyway. Gametrailers retrospectives never go as in depth as I'd like but they're decent overviews.