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Tomb Raider Anniversary Review (continued)
More User Submitted Tomb Raider Anniversary Reviews
Date: 2007-06-23
Excellence Revisited
"Tomb Raider Anniversary" could have so easily been little more than a stop-gap rehash of the original, using the same engine and graphics as 2005's brilliant-yet-tiny "Tomb Raider Legend". You couldn't really blame the developers for overlooking the now-ancient PS2 technological limits for something more flash like the new-gen consoles, and yet, those geniuses at Crystal Dynamics and Eidos have really taken great pains with this to remake it into something different, new and fun.
GRAPHICS: 5/5
When I first played TR: Legend, I had several honest-to-god "Wow!" moments because of the gorgeous visuals. "Tomb Raider Anniversary" gave me more than that, it couples the "Wow!" factor with a hefty dose of nostalgia and some insanely detailed models that are totally reminiscent of the feel of the original 1996 game, while still managing to be new and fresh and engaging. Level design is changed to accommodate Lara's new movement style, but are still recognizable enough to make us fans of the original game grin from ear-to-ear with the familiarity of the settings. For example: the water-filled subterranean room in The Great Pyramid is so nostalgic as to be breathtaking, but requires a whole new thought process and set of puzzle solutions to traverse. Similarly, St. Francis' Folly, arguably the first level in the history of video games that really proved the
worth of the 3D environment, looks so familiar, but plays very differently. The upshot of this is a game that will not only thrill newcomers, but will make us old-time Tomb Raiders sit back and remember exactly why we fell so much in love with Lara Croft in the first place.
Character and monster designs are, as you'd expect after TR: Legend, simply beautiful, only now more so: this is certainly the most beautiful incarnation of Lara to date, and all of her co-stars in this adventure are great examples of what can still be achieved when talented people program for the PS2. The only exception, oddly, is Jacqueline Natla - she looks more supernatural than before, and less plausible - but that's just some odd character design, not badly executed graphics.
SOUND: 5/5
As with the graphics, the sound designers of "Tomb Raider Anniversary" must be praised excessively for creating an aural atmosphere that will grab and entertain not only newbies to this series, but that will also make fans of the series remember the original atmosphere with delight. Gone is Lara's PDA - no interruptions from colleagues pepper the silence of the tombs and jungles here - and the music is a brilliantly re-imagined rendition of the original's themes.
PLAYABILITY: 5/5
I know I've been walking down memory lane here for a while - this game is just so across-the-board reminiscent of the original - but where this updated version of "Tomb Raider" really comes into its own is with the control system. It's basically the same brilliant engine as TR: Legend, but rejigged and tightened to make "Tomb Raider Anniversary" an absolute joy to play. You won't be falling to your death or making silly mistakes because of controls (the camera, as with all 3D games, does cause some moments of frustration, however these are few and far between), and Lara in combat mode is now a much more challenging and rewarding thing: you can't just point and shoot anymore, you really do need to think.
LASTIBILITY: 4/5
This game is tougher and longer than TR: Legend, so it's nice to see that Crystal Dynamics really listened to the critics of the 2005 game - levels are bigger, there are more of them, enemies are tougher with a progressive difficulty curve, and traps and puzzles are now more involved, with far more emphasis on Lara's (and your) acrobatic ability.
But it's still a little short.
It's MUCH better than TR: Legend - a twelve to fourteen-hour playtime the first time you go through it, and as before, there are multiple ways to complete a level, and multiple rewards for doing so, particularly in time trial mode, but it's still a bit too short. The reason I love the original TR games on the PSOne is for their longevity - this game, while absolutely breathtaking in all other areas, is still no match for the length of the first three.
Still, compared to most contemporary videogames, it's absolutely fine, and in and of itself is a rewarding and challenging game, full of respectful nods to the original, and full of new tricks and features to keep us all entertained.
OVERALL: 4.5/5
Buy it now. I can't recommend it highly enough, "Tomb Raider Anniversary" is a stunning game. If you liked the original, or if you're just curious to see what all the fuss is about, "Tomb Raider Anniversary" represents the pinnacle of Lara Croft's exploits, both technically and artistically.
Date: 2007-06-22
TR Makes A Come Back
I am a BIG TR fan and i must say I found TR legend to be a big Disappointment. The thing I realy didnt like was that legend was the first TR game that the new company Crystal Dynamics Inc had done. It realy made me not want to buy any other TR game done by Crystal Dynamics, but then I looked at its reviews and one review made me buy it and i must say I LOVE IT, Lara is back her get out of my way or els attitudeher her passion for raiding, and guss what the Tombs are back! For anyone who plaied the orignal TR and loved it Anniversary realy brings back memories and with the more advanced graphics.... trust me this game puts it on the top of the must play list!
Date: 2007-06-20
great game... but it's missing something from the original
This game it a LOT better than the original if we talk about graphics, but for some reason the environments don't feel as "huge" as the ones in the original game, one example I can give is the colosseum level, even though it is more detailed it doesn't feel as big as in the original game. The game has plenty action and puzzle-solving as the original and the new moves work really well. But the big letdown (for me , at least) is the music, it not as strong as in the original game, it sounds too soft, cheesy at times.
This game is fun to play but not to listen to, so play it listening to your favorite artist and you'll have a better experience.
Date: 2007-06-20
No Title
Man, theres nothing like a good Tomb Raider game, well, mabey the Prince of Persia, both are made incredibly simular. Edios anin't fooling around with Lara like those other dudes did. They gave her a makeover, took her back to her roots and put in some Prince of Persia platforming into it.
Anniversary is just a remix of the origonal Tomb Raider, they got the same puzzels(all those greek gods in St. Francis Folly), put some cornerstone fights in it(the T-Rex), remade Lara, she's so fine, and put a fresh coat of paint on the enviroment. But don't worry, there's new stuff, plenty of platforming that they obviolously were inspiered by Ubisoft and there Prince of Perisa. They got those Resident Evil 4 cutsences, that when your watching a cutsceen, then Lara does an action, you press the button or she dies in the sceen.
There's no one who I can think of who wouldn't like this game, it's got something for everybody. Very nice Edios, very nice
Date: 2007-06-18
A must for Tomb Raider fans of 1997!
The only Tomb Raider games I enjoyed were the original 3 for PSone. If you loved the orginal Tomb Raider one, then you must get this game, if only for the memories. The graphics are wonderful and it comes with the same adventure as the orginal with a twist. Wonderful play!
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