Mute2Conversations

TRA: Level 5 St. Francis Folly So we start out putting lions on the endangered species list. Did you all notice that all the lions are female? My hand hurts in sympathy with all this jumping and grabbing. It sucks to play TR games when you are old. I often make the same mistakes every time I play. One that I always make at the beginning of this level is never finding the end pillar which is the best one to climb on. It is a pretty view on top of the pillars. I often take a few second breather to admire the view. Funny, but I don't tend to do that often in TR games. Mistake I always make--I do more climbing than what is necessary. I usually stop at the tall central structure room. I can never complete this level in one sitting. I think it usually takes three sittings. When I continue, where is that bat? I hear it, but I don't see it. Oh, it is stuck in the pillar again--but it doesn't stop it from attacking me when I jump over. I used to like to open one switch at a time to make sure that I do everything, which did require a lot of backtracking. However, I just noticed that when you complete a room, the lanterns go out. If they are still lit, it means you have to do that room. Rats...where are the Visitor's when you need them? In the Neptune room, putting the blocks back over the fish blow hole is always difficult. I always forget to do that second lever and have to put the water back up. This time I forgot to pull both levers the first time! It is such a long fall with the central structure if you fail to grab a ledge, and I always seem to fall at least once. The Electric Room--I hate it! I forgot temporarily how to lower the bars on the gate. You have to give Lara credit. She does her own stunts. Can you imagine if she had an assistant like the Muppets Beaker? Go step on the floor switch, Beaker. BZZZT! Of course, maybe she went through a lot of assistants that way--and then she got a reputation that nobody would want to work for her. Maybe that is who all those skeletons are in the original TR. When I did the Damocles room, I encountered that bug where the block is too short. You need the ring on the top of the block--not facing you. The Damocles room is scary, tiring, and stressful. I usually can only tolerate doing that one room, and then I have to stop. I love the legend, though! In Atlas room, I was curious if Lara could jump to alcove before the ball crushed her. Answer: Nope. I hate it when I fall into the pit, and I don't die. The screen goes black, the sound continues, and I can't get out. That didn't happen this time, fortunately, but it happens frequently when I play. It is a tiring level, but I actually do like it. I think it is the one level I actually prefer in TRA to TR1. Completion 3:57:49 Kills 9 Supplies 12 Artifacts 6/6 TR1: Level 5: St Francis Folly Lara didn't try to hide the fact that she rifled through Natla's office. How did that monk know about Tihocan? Pierre ate beans. I hope he doesn't have to use the bathroom. Maybe that is why he keeps disappearing. So, I was busy reading the walkthrough when the lion attacked. In the gorilla room, hopping over the pad still closes the door. Yeah, it wastes health, but I just prefer to shoot it out with Pierre. Otherwise, he just runs around like a girl, "You can't catch me!" I got that tricky jump on the third try, which is an improvement. Then I fell to my death getting secret 1. I'm sure I made that same mistake last time too. I began to remember why I hated this level. I'm playing on a Playstation, and we can only save when we get a save crystal. Death means redoing it from the beginning. So I redid it. I didn't get the tricky jump in three tries. It took more. I'm always amazed when I can just stand jump to that tall pillar with the medipack. But then I forget that I need to jump from the middle of the pillar and not the edge. I over jumped and fell to my death again. Why couldn't they have put a save crystal in this area? Why can't they have mediocre players test the levels so they can tell the pros where save crystals are most needed? This is the first time I got secret 2. After I killed croc, he floated in mid air after I drained the water. Then finally a save crystal--yay! I decided not to go after Secret 4. I forgot about how Pierre tries to shoot you when I emerged from the Thor room, which I did first. The swords got close to me when I did the Damocles room, but it wasn't as scary. I wasted so many medipacks falling from the central structure. Mainly, this was my fault because I was running. There is something about this particular structure that makes me feel impatient. The climbing seems more inconvenient than it does in TRA. Don't ask me why. It should be easier in many ways, but maybe it is more boring. Neptune room--I never recognize the lever. Another mistake I always make--I mistake a dead bat for a shotgun on the ground level. The Atlas room is actually the hardest room for me. I always die at least once. I find it easier to actually hop to the boulder and then hop back. So I get down to the bottom and I'm opening the door--and I realized I forgot the Atlas key! Kills 21 Pickups 17 Secrets 3/4 Time 1:10:37

TRA Level 4 Tomb of Qualopec I felt woozy again going across the pit. So we go up the ramp, where we see a large suspended ball. It falls down and tries to crush us. Oh, yeah...who didn't see that coming? Adjusting pillars are a pain. I did the wolf room first. I remember the first time I played I had such a hard time finding that cage. Is it just me, or do TRA velicoraptors seem almost domesticated? That other room should be called the FAIL room. I failed to grapple. I failed to grab the pole. Then I got dizzy. Thank god for medipacks. Return trips--oh goody, all the dart traps (and swinging blades) are working. Hooray. Remind me not to vacation here again. I kept trying to grab the wrong ledge on the way back and falling. Then I remembered it was behind me. Earthquake....velicoraptor in pit. I swore he said, "Ah, come on, miss! Please get me out of here! I won't eat you, I swear!" What about that Larson, huh? Tries to shoot a lady in the back! There are no gentlemen these days! I really...really hate this level. I get motion sickness. I rarely get things done right the first time. I get a headache. I hate it! Complete time 2:18:50 Kills 5 Supplies 4 Artifacts 2/2 Relics 0/0 No way I'm doing the time trial. I hate doing this level the first time. Didn't anybody think Natla Technologies was just a little too easy to break into? And a juice called Bob? TR1 Level 4 Tomb of Qualopec It is so funny that the level I hate so much in TRA is one of my favorite levels in TR1. I lost a lot of health until I realized Stella is right...shotgun is better for the two velicoraptors in the beginning. I just want to save my ammo for that big mutant boss. Did you guys ever think about how terrible it is to go to the bathroom in these temples? I mean, if the ancients didn't have an off switch, imagine what it is like. You have a bad case of diarrhea, and you go up the ramp to the restroom...but then a boulder comes rolling down. There must have been a lot of soiled underwear in those days. Maybe that is what was hanging on those stands we past. Of course, I don't think these people had underwear, so the floors must have been a mess. Hey, Lara! Guess what? That isn't mud you are trekking through! And then you are in the bathroom, and you hear this snorting. You think it is a pervert, but no! It's a velicoraptor coming to eat you! What do the symbols above the doors look like to you? To me, I see a turkey (appropriate for this time of year), astronaut with an alien sneaking behind him, and that grumpy eagle on the Muppets, who is eating an apple. I had a fear with the red block area that I would keep climbing into those tunnels and going from one block to another, seeing no switch. That didn't happen, though. The jump over the spikes to the switch room was tricky. I hate these sideways jumps. I knew the velicoraptor was coming, but he still startled me. Human skeletons are never an encouraging sign. I forgot about the breakaway tiles for Secret 1, but I managed to get to the platform before they fully broke. My reflexes are getting better. I have to admit that the earthquake is much more dramatic in TRA than it is in TR1. I was glad for the save crystal. I hadn't read ahead and came out to have Larson shooting at me. Despite that, I did go after the last pick-up. Dang it, though! There is a sound bug at the end with the cutscene, so I didn't hear the conversations. The bug has Lara going "sorry" many times, and then after she knocks out Larson, it sounds like she is saying, "Bizz Bizz Bizz!" Kills 7 Pickups 8 Secrets 3/3 Time 35:57

Yes, Caity, I am at least....very, very slowly. Very. Besides, it is the holidays. 'Tis the season to shop, eat turkey, and listen to your relatives fight over who granny loved best and get groped by Uncle Gromer. Who has time for Tombraider? Anyway.... TRA Level 3 Lost Valley What can I say? Things are easier to kill when you are out of reach. I guess it isn't very sporting...like shooting fish in the barrel. However, if you have ever been fishing--sober--you know how frustrating it is trying to do it the hard way. So yay, shooting fish in a barrel! Those big a** cogs! Lara must have an extension charm in her backpack if she can fit those things in. OMG! Lara's a witch! I wonder what house she was in? This is the first time I understood how to get the large medpack and shotgun after checkpoint 5. Even though I read the walkthrough, I didn't seem to understand that I needed to shoot out that bridge. It is always fun to discover new things when replaying games! The only thing that is better than that is being able to do something you couldn't before. So show of hands...who fell into the water a lot the first time you played? Mine is raised. Lara didn't seem to enjoy the water this time. She keeps making those movements my cat makes after a bath. Yes, I definitely like shooting fish in the barrel. The wolves were not as easy to kill on my return trip when I wasn't on the high ledge. WHY? WHY? WHY? WHY DO THE CREATORS PUT LOAD AND SAVE NEXT TO EACH OTHER! I loaded instead of saved and had to redo a whole section. Then afterwards it was like I was jinxed and kept dying. There seems to be a weird bug in the area where you go into that underwater tunnel (the second one that had been locked by a gate and you have to wait for the waters to calm). I can't get Lara to grab the ledge except at the far left. Then sometimes she won't submerge. The first time I played this game, I fell off a lot of ladders and poles too. Stella's walkthrough allowed me to see places I never had seen before, like the large medipack after Checkpoint 10. I think this is the fastest amount of time I've killed the T-rex. He didn't bite my head off even once. I was shocked when that happened to me the first time. I do tend to suffer from motion sickness a lot after getting the third cog. The waterfalls on the outside looked inviting. Artifact 2 is still hard to get. I got it--fell--died. Then I forgot I didn't need to do it again. Then on the way back, I slipped down the ramp before I could save. It is also easy to get turned around. I forgot the relic but went back for it. Completion 1:41:33 Kills 17 Supplies 18 Artifact 2/2 Relics 1/1 TR Lost Valley I definitely prefer this level in TR1. Going down the fall is a bad idea. Next time I'll take the stairs. I couldn't get on the ledge, so I had to get out--and the wolves bit me. I reloaded and went by stairs. Lara started shooting at something that looked like a rock. It was a wolf, but it didn't move until she got down onto the last step. Is it my imagination, or does this cavern seem more spacious than TRA? I wonder what the skeleton died of? Must have been something that couldn't bee fixed by a first aide kit. The velicoraptors are definitely much scarier in TR1. One took me by surprise and actually trapped me against a rock. The Medipack from the skeleton came in handy once I was able to finally free myself. My mother thought I was being murdered because I was actually screaming. I said, "No, Lara is being murdered!" I kept getting cornered by dinosaurs. The T-rex cornered me too. I found the cave while fighting it. I enticed it to come over when it walked away by dangling off the alcove, but then it bit me. It did seem to die a little too easily. Finding the rock to climb on for secret 1 is hard. The keys are big, but the cogs are smaller. The second cog blended into the background. I also had a hard time finding the cave that held the third cog. Where is secret 2? I also almost missed the side room to secret 3. Oh, now I find the compass! I needed that...earlier. On the trip back, I went the wrong way and found the wolves. I'm glad I looked at the walkthrough, for I would have definitely knocked my head with that third jump across the stream. I definitely did better on that area than the first time. Didn't fall into the water once. Kills 13 Pickups 15 Secrets 4/5 Time 1:02:10

TR1: Level 2 continued Ayyy! I didn't realize I hadn't finished Level 2 when I posted the above. The question you always wonder when you stop in the middle of a level...where did I leave off (this is important when going with a walkthrough). I took damage from the dart trap and 5 wolves that I forgot about, even though I had just read about it in the walkthrough. When I opened the right door of that temple, the pretty music abruptly ended, and I was like, "Hey!" I remember the first time I played that part with the temple that has three doors. I fell into the pool so many times, particularly the area with the broken tile. I didn't fall once this time. I also remember that the first time I played, when I jumped into the pool after opening the middle door, I hit the walkway instead. Either Lara's aim is better, or the bats are getting easier to kill. I got the save crystal on the roof, and then I discovered that I can't save them for later. I either use it or lose it. Dang! Then the part with the swinging blades. I had a memory of really hating this part. Then I remembered why when I got diced by the second blade. I manage to get by the first blade, but then I run into the second. I had my doubts whether I could pull the switch safely after the third, but I had plenty of room. The bear roar scared me. Did you guys know that if you dangle from the top area, the bear can bite you? I found that out. The bear was hard to kill. I couldn't do it from the top because he hid under me. He was very fast and sneaky for such a large target. I had a hard time seeing secret 3. Do Uzi clips look like Twix bars to everyone else too? Statistics: 29 Kills 13 Pickups 3/3 Secrets Time 48:55

First it was the ear infection. Then I discovered Knight Rider on Netflix, and I reacquainted myself with the show I loved so much from my childhood. I still love it. I don't drool over David Hasselhoff as I once did, but I still like KITT...even if he is a fussy pants. Then again, if I hung around Michael Knight that much, I'd probably become a fussy pants too. I used to want to marry Michael Knight. Not anymore. Then I got to the episodes where he started to sing, and that pretty much cured me. I liked him as an actor, but as a singer...well....I'm spiraling into a totally non-Tombraider topic, ain't I? Sorry, folks, I blame it on old age. So, Level 2--City of Vilcabamba. TRA version first. I had enough patience to snag that artifact from Level 1 that I refused to get at the time. It wasn't as difficult. I also did better with the adrenaline dodge. Ah, the loyal catfish guide in the pool scenes...but I still almost always drown when I try to pull the lever. I get caught while trying to surface. And the dead things in cages...nice touch! I'm sure Martha Steward would approve! It's a good thing! (NOT) I just noticed this time around too...tiny a** places, and we are picking up these huge a** keys. The first one was about the size of Lara's thigh. Something that big would be heavy too! I found it helpful to keep the cage away from that pole we have to jump to (are we getting a secret then? I don't remember). When I have it next to the pole, I can never jump up there. Goddamn bats! Flying rodents! I hate them so much! And there is always a straggler that gets me in the middle of something. Is it a sign of old age that I constantly think about the germs in the water, the jumps that will require knee replacements when Lara is not so old, etc.? TRA Level 2 Stats: Complete 54:00 Kills 16 Supplies 8 Art 1/1 TR1 Level 2 The first bear attack took a lot of health out of me. I swear it came from behind me from the outside! I was glad to be playing this game at the time. I was trying my best to ignore the disgusting taste in my mouth that was coming up from my belches. I had just had a V8 with strawberry go-gurt. Underwater scenes always stress me out. I remember the first time I played this. I couldn't find the lever because it blended so well into the wall. I drowned so many times! I always love emerging into the pretty mosaic room. These people must have been big into doing laundry. You always see skins hanging around on racks. I can never make the jump in the skull room. Do you guys like occasional music like how it is in TR1 or more constant music? I sometimes think that is why some of the later games--like TRA and Underworld--are so stressful for me. I sometimes think it is more relaxing when I just hear Lara's footsteps. The soundtrack in Underworld was great, but it was intense! I usually liked the music in Legend. Then we find another big a** key! And then there is the big question: To use the save crystal or not. I like to save them if possible, but if I die, then I will have to repeat the whole level again. I don't know if this has been neglected so long that you have all quit. I might be playing very slowly, but I'm still playing.

Guys, I just want to assure everyone that I am still going to play this. I have an ear infection now, and I have dizzy spells...and Lara isn't the type of game to play when you have dizzy spells. I just didn't want you to think I started this and then bailed.

I think I'll pass on doing the TRLE level too. It is difficult enough to play the two games, particularly as Anniversary tends to stress me out a little. I think it overstimulates me. So first, TR1 impressions. I played the first level. Do you know that I didn't realize until the third time I played Anniversary that it was Natla at the beginning flying away after that atomic bomb in Mexico? I was always trying to figure out what that was about. It wasn't until I saw that green light on her back that I realized it was Natla freed from her prison. I definitely like Larson and Natla better in TRA. Larson is retarded in TR1, and Natla seems like she should be on some reality show puking, whoring, and stabbing people in the back. I just cannot picture her being an Atlantean. Yes, I have standards even for my villains. So here we have Lara, in her big endowed glory. Unlike Legends, she does climb mountains with some gear. She does not dress appropriately for the frigid mountain air. I never get Lara. Except in Legends, this is one thing that always gets me. When she is in arctic temperatures, she running around in short shorts and a sleeveless top. Then when she is in the Amazon, she wears a leather outfit. I live in a hot climate--trust me, you don't wear leather! Lara not looking away from that one area while I'm going to get Secret 1 is really annoying. I realize that is where I have to go! Now will you look in front of you! I prefer TR1 in many ways to Anniversary, though I dislike having to rely on save crystals. I'm playing on Playstation 2. I have to get used to the D-pad again. Lara is doing a lot of "oophing" as I run her into walls and make her jump. It took me a minute to remember how to sidestep. The initial third bat didn't appear until I went for secret 2. I figured out the side step, and I was side stepping for a long time. I decided to sing "Achy Breaky Heart"--and then I realized I was side stepping under the wrong wall. :/ I'm doing better than I did the last time I played. I have to admit that my old eyes sometimes have a problem distinguishing graphics. I was trying to pick up this medipack and getting frustrated that I couldn't, and then I realized that was because it was a bat. TR1 Statistics: Kills 14 Pickups 7 3/3 Secrets Time 28:49 TRA: Caves Level 1 Though Lara's endowments had started to decrease with the sequel games, TRA decided to hold true to the original it was making. Not only are they huge, she jiggles them on the Start screen. It is very distracting. Here I am trying to read Stella's walkthrough, and out of the corner of my eye, I see Lara bouncing the twins. And she is wearing even less clothing! I have a theory that the twins decreased in size because they suffered from hypothermia from all the times Lara runs around in freezing temperatures in just a tank top. I hope I'm not offending anyone here. In my defense, the above paragraph was written by my inner teenage boy. Yes, I have one of those too...even though I'm a girl. It gets crowded in my head. I have an inner child, an inner sociopath, an inner teenage boy, and Padme Amidala from Star Wars. So if you guys hear me shouting, "Get out of my head!"...you'll know why. I get a little ahead of myself. The Mexico scene where Natla was released from her prison was more impressive. When I first played this game, I was frustrated with how dark it was. I didn't realize I could adjust the brightness. I missed Alistair and Zip talking to me. I felt rather isolated and lonely. Mr. Croft and his employee problems. Gee...it is hard to understand why his employees were fed up with him, isn't it? I mean, I wouldn't be so bent out of shape if we were low on supplies, and I was chasing around some guy who believed in Atlantis--which I think most people don't believe in. Yeah, sure. I liked being able to do more at the beginning. However, did anyone interact with that stupid sherpa? You know, the ill-prepared guide that we hired who didn't think to bring rope? Well, at least I get to practice my Spanish. I tried to shoot him. He dies anyway, so it didn't seem like murder. I just love how he says, "We can go to the left." We? He means Lara. He is just going to stand there and complain about how tired he is. I'm surprised he doesn't say, "I like tacos and burritos!" He seems determined to live up to a stereotype. Lara's shooting was a little inaccurate. She hit a lot of snow. She seemed to regret the guide's death, though I wondered if she was actually thinking, "Damn! I didn't get to kill him!" Visually, TRA is more interesting and easier to see--but it also stresses me out more, particularly the heart beat sound during timed stuff. I never noticed I could deactivate the dart traps. It never seemed necessary really. Artifact 2 is a real b**** to get. The secret sound was traumatizing my cat. I don't know why. I didn't bother getting the relic. I just want to end the level by that point. Maybe I'll get it in Level 2, though it is hard to get, if I recall. TRA statistics: Time 26:50 Kills 14 Supplies 5 Secrets 3/3 Relics 0/1 I don't do time trials.

Myself, I'm going to do both--doing it the way Stella suggested. However, whichever way you guys want to do it for yourselves, that is fine. @CaityFM--it has been a while! Nice to have some new blood too!

I decided to do something a little different...or I think it is different anyway. My friend Eldin wanted to do a group play, and I've been in the mood to play Tombraider 1 or Anniversary. Then I got the idea...why not do both? It might be neat to discuss the comparisons between the two. It is a unique opportunity, for Tombraider 1 is the only game--as far as I know--that was remade. Now, I don't want anyone to be excluded. If you don't have one of the games, or you don't want to play both...that is fine. You can still play with us and give your views about the game. I just thought this might be an interesting variation on the group play. It may also be nice for those players who always shoot ahead the rest of us--you know who you are! The people who play until their eyes bleed, I'm sure! So, happy gaming! Don't worry if you post infrequently. I know a lot of people are busy. I'm busy too--and sometimes after looking at a computer all day, I don't really feel like looking at the TV screen.

I'm out. I'm sorry, folks, but this game--at least on Playstation--is more challenge than I really want in a video game. Maybe if I ever get the PC version...er, you know what, not even then.

LONDON PART 1: THAMES WHARF As I said before, I found this level refreshing after all the others. I could relax a little more. Everything was do-able. That isn't to say I never died. I died plenty of times. However, I didn't mind so much because usually I knew what my mistake was. It wasn't because the task seemed impossible. I really liked the scenery. It is more primitive, but it reminds me of the Japan level in TR: Legend. I often like these night-time outdoor levels. It never fails. In levels that aren't that hard, save crystals are plentiful. Eight save crystals in this level! Oh, if only I had so many in the other levels! I almost forgot to flip the switches in this level! They didn't give us much room often to take out bad guys. I almost always had to use a medipack after a gun fight. Actually, my statistics said I used 6.5 medipacks, and I think that is more than I used in Madubu Gorge. I had many doubts about the jumps I had to do to other ledges--like the one with the breakaway tiles. Usually I missed and died at least once. Also had a hard time making out crevices that I had to shimmy across in this level. I got caught in the opening trying to get Secret 2. Had a problem on how to drop down for SECRET 3. I also had a lot of problems with jumping and grabbing in this level. I have to remember that I have to press both buttons at the same time. In other levels, I can press jump and then action. I was a little disoriented in the water tank room. I got through the propellers, but they didn't seem to be moving that slowly to me. The robot....It was funny. I got killed often trying to push that cage. I found something interesting, though. If I pulled the cage on the right path (the right path when you first face the cage in its alcove), I didn't get killed even when the robot ran into me. On the left path, I did get electrocuted. I couldn't quite visualize what I was supposed to do, but I did wind up figuring it out. It was a little before this part that I started getting a little bored with the level. I nearly drowned in that diamond shaped passage from tank 3. I was hoping to save the very last save crystal. However, I kept dying when I jumped over the barb wire to grab the ladder. Tired of doing that part, I decided to use it. The sight of the moon on the roof of the cathedral was incredible, particularly when you saw it through the windows when getting SECRET 4.

Yeah, if I remember correctly--when you slide down the ramp, it is on the left. You pull out the box, and it stops the ceiling from crushing you. Stella has it written in her walkthrough. I usually use the walkthrough when I play.

I think that room in Francis Folly was Atlas. He was the Titan that had to hold the earth on his shoulders. With the spike trap--are you talking about the ceiling? I found pulling out that box worked very well.

Madubu Gorge is a tough level, no doubt. A lot of people complain about the kayaking. I hated the kayaking and all those monkey swings. I figured out how to the get save crystal after the first dive you take with the kayak--but I could never get that one that was mid-way down the waterfall. I swore I passed through it, and I still didn't get it! Then I usually died from the impact. In the end, I usually chose to just go through the spikes rather than avoid them. I did use more medipacks this way. Later I wished I had went through the green rope, though, since this apparently produced a save crystal. But I didn't. However, Madubu Gorge is just a bad memory now. I'm now fighting the robot in Thames Wharf. This area is a little boring now, but I still like it better than the South Pacific levels. Though my favorite level too was Temple of Puna.

@Hunter--nice to see you! Did you see my notification about closing my Facebook account? So far, I like the first London level. Know why? I was able actually to walk around for a little while and enjoy the scenery. So far, everything is manageable. I did have a bit of deja vu. Is it my imagination, or was some of TR3's London level re-used much later in Angel of Darkness? I have never gotten this far in TR3, and it just feels so familiar.

Well, I think I'm more into role playing more than challenges. Yes, I like a little challenge, but mainly I'm into role playing. I like pretending to be Lara because she is totally different from me. As I am role playing, I like to make a certain amount of progress in a level. That is what I liked about TR Legend There were some difficult boss fights--like that big serpent and the last one. However, even though that was my first TR game--and actually it was the second game I had played on PS2, I was able to complete it. My skills were not that honed, but it was something I could do. The ability to progress is really important, I think, in role playing. Imagine your real life if you constantly did something wrong, and you were bounced back to some prior point...and you had to do it over and over and over again. And if you don't like the area you have to constantly repeat, then it is hard to like the game. I don't know if I will get rid of the game, though I probably will get the PC version. I think if I can actually conquer this, I'll want to do it again sometime in the future to see if I can do it better. For me, completing this game is completing Meteorite Cavern. I'm not worrying about the Bonus Level this time. I've missed only one secret so far--I think, and I don't know if that will eliminate me from the Bonus Level. I don't think I want to replay anything just now. The Bonus Level can be something I aim for if I ever do this again. However, completing my goal will be a huge victory for me. I completed TEMPLE OF PUNA yesterday, and I think this is my new favorite level. It is funny, because I started out ticked off with it. I have given up the thought that I will be able to walk around for a little while before coming up on something challenging in this game. Every step is pretty much a challenge, which causes my heart to thud in an unpleasant way. Oddly enough, I had more patience with this game because yesterday I was stuck in bed with the stomach flu. Even after I stopped yakking, I still had cramps. The game ticked me off, but I welcomed the distraction. That is probably why I was able to finish this level so quickly. It was a short level but difficult. So I started cursing with those rolling blades. How can I possibly see where the seam is when the floor is down below? At first, I stayed in the corner. This worked at the far left--but the corners are not always safe, I found. And Lara, for some reason, gets killed when she turns around and crouches (she is not facing the wall). However, after repeatedly doing it, I finally figured out the safe places to crouch. I used the save crystal before doing the first switch so at least I didn't have to keep dealing with the blowpipe guys and climbing all those stairs. Spiked ceilings always unnerve me, but I managed to pull the block out. Boulder traps are also unnerving. Even though Stella had warned about using Look to break Lara's vision of the boulder, I got confused and got crushed. I guess what I liked about this level is that I didn't really mind repeating the stuff over again when I screwed up. I really got tired of kayaking and monkey swings. The second time I did the boulder run, I succeeded. I used the save crystal afterwards. I had a hard time finding the secret. I never saw the door, so it took me a while to find it. Then I had my doubts about the textures I had to jump and grab to get to it, but I trusted Stella. Is it my imagination, or does the PUNA look like the alien in Indiana Jones and The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull? I didn't get a close look at the dude, but it looked like him, I thought. I got toasted pretty much right away. I didn't realize he had his force field up and wasted my desert eagle bullets. I was frustrated because I found it difficult to take care of the lizards. You had to move quickly once they died because then he would start firing at you. I found it hard to target them. I usually tried to get them when they ran in front of me, but that wasn't always possible. For my credit, I never fell off the platform--even though they tried to push me off. I don't like switching guns while jumping because it ruins my "flow". This is what worked for me. I used the Rocket Launcher (I hope I don't regret this later). I only had three rockets. You would think that would have ended it there, but it didn't. Afterwards, I just let myself go to dual pistols rather than switching to another gun. I don't have Uzis, and as I've said--switching to another gun ruins my flow. After two or three bouts with the lizards, I managed to explode the creep. So now I'm on my way to London. I really like the opening scene in London. I hope I don't share Stefy's opinion about the London levels. I doubt they'll be easy.

WHOO-HOO! I FINISHED MADUBU GORGE! HOORAY FOR ME! I don't know if I like this game. However, it p***es me off so much that I just can't bear to let it beat me, and I think that is why I keep playing it. Of course, my life would be easier if I got the PC version. Indeed, it is not expensive. People who like this game seem to always have the PC version. I have to admit, though, when I do finish a level, I am giddy with happiness. It is a bigger high than what I normally feel when I finish a level, and maybe that is why TR3 is addictive for some people. You feel like banging your fists against your chest and screaming, "I am Queen of the World" like a deranged lunatic. I am glad to be finished. I swear I felt like puking everytime I had to start over at the alcove before all those dang monkey swings (after the first part of the kayaking level). Since last I've written: 1. I got past all the boulders, but I failed to make the jump to the ledge and fell into the water. 2. When I redid the level, I miscounted my steps with the third boulder and wound up in the burner. I believe that you should stop at the edge of the second face wall texture. You have to make sure Lara has room to dangle from or she'll lose her grip and fall into the pit. I found I had to take seven steps to do this. 3. Then I got toasted by the burners on the monkey swings. 4. Then I fell into the water trying to get those MP5 clips. 5. THEN, I made it to the whirlpool. I made sure Lara was at full health. I could taste completion of the level. She went down the hole...and died. WHY?!!!! This time, I did three things differently. One, I used a medpack even though I had full health. Then I paddled to the opposite side of the whirlpool, As I was going down, I back paddled. All this preserved Lara's life. She got some chunks bitten out of her by the crocs that came after, but fortunately I still had plenty of medipacks. I am starting to give up hope in this game, though, that there is ever a time where I can just walk a little while without having to do a difficult jump, evade a trap, or have something try to eat me. This game gives you no time for a breather. This is what I find annoying. Yes, I like a challenge. However, I like to have some down time in between challenges.

I don't know if I'll keep TR3 after this--if I ever finish it. However, if I do, Madubu Gorge will always be memorable at the part I am now. It is the part I was playing while Tropical Storm Isaac was blowing through my neck of the woods. There are too many monkey swings in this level. My thumb is starting to hurt. It is funny that things that will get you criticism in level building are often found in the old games. I've gotten a little farther than I have been before. I made it to the second boulder--but I didn't run close enough to the step and got crushed. Though I have gotten past it in the past, I got toasted by the third burner on one of the retries.

Stella, a quick note. I got really confused with the instructions for Madubu Gorge. It is after you have passed the third flame trap and have picked up flares and shotgun shells. It was traversing to the other ledge. I didn't find the screenshots that easy to understand either. As for me, Legend is my favorite TR game. It was my first Tombraider game. Before that, I had been doing Plug-and-Play games, which are like the old arcade games I grew up with: classic pac-man, etc. That first scene when Lara is climbing the mountain was incredible after playing those types of games. I loved the puzzles in Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light. However, I think TR1 is my next favorite. I loved the underwater levels in TR2 and the snowmobile, but otherwise I wasn't fond of that game. TR3 is a good game when it is not p***ing me off , which it does most of the time. I might feel differently if I had the PC version where I could save anywhere. I'm playing on PS2, though. TR4 I've never finsihed, though I've started plalying plenty of times. I get bored a lot with it. TR5 I never completed either. I loved the Ireland levels. I screwed up at the end by saving instead of reloading with the gunshot range. I hated TR6 the first time I played it but liked it a little better the second time--though it isn't a favorite. I like the greenhouse level. Anniversary I hated the first time too. I liked it better the second time. I prefer Natla in Anniversary, but otherwise I prefer TR1. Underworld is intense and rather emotional for me, as I really related to the plotline about Lara losing her mother. I hated losing Alister too. I also get a lot of headaches playing Underworld. I loved Lara's Shadow but wasn't impressed by Beneath the Ashess I'm trying to keep an open mind about this new game, but it looks like another intense one.

Man, I think this post dies and comes back to life as much as Natla. Anyway, I'm back in--having finished Lego Star Wars III. The break actually improved my game playing somehow. I was finally able to get that blue crystal at the right when you first go down in the kayaking level. I saved it until I got to the area with the crocodile and lizard, where you have to jump to grab the ceiling. I wanted to use it there because I was having problems with the grabbing the ceiling part. I almost cried, though, when I accidentally fell into the water--and I wound up in an area where I drowned. However, I was able to get the crystal again. And I was able to save at that part. I was able to grab the ceiling once I realized I had to press jump and grab at the same time. I even managed to make it past the burners. My only problem now is that Lara keeps falling into the water during the jumps and getting eaten by piranhas or dying a slow death from drowning. But at least I don't have to do the kayaking anymore. I was getting so sick of that! We have a tropical storm coming our way. I don't expect it to be a problem, but I may go offline if I lose my electric. Oh, and if any of you are my friends of Facebook, I disabled my account. I'm hardly there anymore, and leaving an open account that isn't being used leaves you vulnerable to hackers.

Yeah, the save crystals are blue. I liked the stone statue with the swords. It reminds me of the scene in the first Tombraider movie. One thing that is good about TR3 is that you can cheat a little bit by using health packs. I wasn't able to ever get out of that switch room with the spiked ceiling fast enough, so I had to use a medipack to survive. You would think I would get very good at that part because I had to redo it so often. I died several times attempting it. Then even after I finished it, I died by drowning in the next part where you have to fight the underwater currents. Well, folks. I am totally addicted to Lego Star Wars III at the moment and have abandoned TR3. If this thread is still active when I finish with that, then I'll continue to post. Sorry to ditch like this...but right now I feel like a Jedi...or maybe a Sith...than a Tombraider.

I'm currently playing it, and as long as there is no problem with me starting from where I am now, I'm in too! I am currently stuck in the South Pacific Levels in Madubu Gorge (not sure if I spelled it correctly). The kayaking seemed cool, but it was a pain. Still, I got through it. However, I can't seem to grab the stupid ceiling in the part after you kill the lizard and croc, but before the burners. I did it once, and I've never been able to do it again. I can't figure out what is wrong! It is such a stupid thing to get stuck on. I'm playing on a Playstation, which is very frustrating because I can only save when I get a save crystal. I was just starting to really like this game, and now I'm stuck. The last time I was stuck, in the last level of Nevada, I was stuck an entire month! It would be nice if I could get one of the two save crystals while kayaking. I cannot figure out how you can get the one at the beginning of the kayaking level. I've almost gotten it, but not quite. Same thing with the save crystal at the big water fall. I swore I fell right on top of it, but I didn't get it...and I died for the trouble. I don't know how much I'll be able to contribute if I can't get past this....

SOUTHERN MEXICO I always get confused at the first temple because I forget how to get up to the window. Normally, I always have Stella's walkthrough handy--but this time I'm playing to see how good my memory is since I'm not going after artifacts. I really have a problem swinging to the door to get the jaguar head. Then it was off to the second temple. Growling and dead bodies is always a good sign. I swore while I was driving the motorcycle, I heard Lara's falling scream--but she wasn't falling. This game is very buggy on the more complicated settings. I am also no better at going into that pit which you uncover by shoving the block off the pillar. I always die at least once, and usually several times. I never realized how ugly the skull head was--but the def seems better on the more complicated levels. I never tried killing things by running over them with the bicycle. AWESOME! And why didn't it ever occur to me that motorcycle would beat blank panther? DUH! I will always remember the place where you put the skull on the handle to turn that wheel track to make the second row of statues stand up. The first time I played this game, I was playing this part in the morning right before my Physical Science class in college. I was trying to complete it--but I had already been playing so long, and I was getting a headache. I was having a hard time getting through the door--you know, you have to jump from the pole and get through the door before it closes. My eye started twitching, and yet I couldn't stop. I just had to get through that door. It was a bad idea to give myself a headache, for I had a final that day--and yet I did very well on the test. Maybe it stimulated my brain cells or something. I can only do the timed run on the jaguar head side, not the skull side--and I always do the skull side second. Therefore, I never make the timed run the first time round. The music is very dramatic and makes my pulse race. My mom could only do the timed run when she muted it because the music made her so nervous. I don't remember the spiders having death groans. I also don't remember them jumping and attacking like Bruce Lee. The fire room--summed up in one word: ARGH! I always have a hard time seeing where I'm supposed to go. I also have a hard time jumping to the last short pole with the skeletons so I can go to the blade room. This time, my duck button wasn't working--it was like the game was still partially in a cutscene when I had to duck. I had a weird spider moment. I noticed the dead spider floating in mid-air, so I went to capture it with the camcorder. However, I triggered three other spiders to attack me. One of the living spiders started this crazy jumping, as if he was trying to pull down his friend...or maybe he was also trying to do the "stiff as a board, light as a feather" thing. I shot him, and he still kept jumping. The only thing that happened when he "died" is that he did the death groan and the red target circle disappeared. But he was jumping. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jfJd7PWMBMw The motorcycle seemed more sluggish. I hate getting Thor's belt. I always forget what I'm supposed to do. I should have had Stella's walkthrough handy for this part. :/ The crumbling ledges are always hard for me. I'm trying to remember where to go, and so I usually fall at least once into the Eitr. I thought Thor looked like he was sleeping: http://twitpic.com/8vymwa I think the thralls remind me of the ghosts in Garfield's Halloween special. What do you think? http://twitpic.com/8vyvli Garfield's ghosts freaked me out! I'm doing better with the thralls. I noticed that they always attack the same way. Of course, these aren't the spitting ones. When I grappled the ring to swing to the other side, I forgot to go up a bit and swung right into the pool. Then I got all the way to the bottom, turned that screw thing, and couldn't figure out why Thor's shield was blocking me from reaching the steps. I had forgotten to grapple it away. So I had to redo the section--and I had a hard time figuring out how to get back up there. I realized I had to grapple one of he snake's mouths to do it. While going to the area where I could grapple the arm with the shield, I caught two thralls checking out Lara's butt. http://twitpic.com/8vylol There must be some Viagra in that blue poisonous goo. Next will be Jan Mayen island--which I think, if memory serves, is my favorite level (aside from boat levels). I started it and a freaky thing happened--Lara totally disappeared! I wish I had caught it on camcorder, but I was irritated and didn't think to. Maybe I'll see if can make her disappear again. I think I did it by running her over the light that comes out of the floor when you move that first part of the pillar.

PROTECTED BY THE DEAD I really didn't care for Beneath the Ashes, but I do like this level. Now, Zip, what is an English manor without a few hidden passages with festering dead bodies? I don't doubt there is a torture chamber somewhere too. I am certain it is a requirement when you get knighted or made a lord or whatever. Normally, shooting spiders seems like a waste of ammo when my boots do just as good of a job. However, there were more spiders in the crypt...and they were more aggressive. I kept expecting to see Aragog pop out somewhere...oh, wait....wrong story. So, the batteries in the tape recorder are still good after all this time...but the gloves run out of juice quickly. Oh, well, they are older technology and probably not made in Japan. Accidentally used a health pack when trying to turn on my boob light. Dang big fingers and small D-pad! I wonder if Lara's dad was good about telling her where the will was? I would have wanted a little bit more warning--like before I entered the crypt at all--that there were thralls running around down there. Unless white people look the same to other races, I cannot figure out how Zip could have confused Lara with the doppelganger. Of course, I thought it was Lara the first time blowing up her house. However, I just thought Eidos gave her a new look. But really--doppel seems like a bigger girl, has redder hair, longer hair, different color eyes, deeper voice (actually, you only realize this if you get to play Lara's Shadow), paler skin--and I realized this time around, she is even wearing a different outfit! I think my painting looks a little different from Eldin's: http://twitpic.com/8s6a2o Sorry that my pictures are more grainy in appearance I'm taking them with a camcorder off my TV. Also pardon me that I don't take many of them. I don't know if you guys always know what I'm talking about, and maybe pictures would help. I love seeing your guys pictures, but it does take a while for my screen to load them all...so I don't like putting on many myself. Besides, it is rather disruptive when you are playing on an Xbox. Most of you are playing on PC, right? Once the house exploded, my boob light stopped working! I was so upset when Alister got killed. I liked Alister...and I always pictured him and Lara getting together eventually. I stopped at Southern Mexico. One problem with not collecting artifacts, I found out, is that I don't get my sexy swimsuits. Oh, well. They aren't practical to wear anyway.

THAILAND CONTINUED. I stopped at the Kali statue. I always have a hard time jumping off that pole in the socket (the one you put in). I certainly don't remember the camera being as buggy. Is it my imagination, for does it get buggy when you increase the difficulty? I wonder if they do it on purpose? There were more lizards than I remembered too. Certainly killed any desire I ever had to own an iguana. At some point, my dual pistols made the put-put sound you get with the spear gun. I hate getting the lenses for the Kali statue, but the soundtrack is great! I hate that part, where you are getting the lenses. You have to slip over the edge and use your hands to go the the left side because the pillar prevents you from getting there...and just then two iguanas ambush you...and it isn't like you have a lot of room to move anyway. However, I made them eat sticky grenade! I didn't get as lost in that area. Got a little lost in the area with the tigers. The tigers used to seem playful, but not anymore. I backtracked because I did get lost. I had to reload. I remember the first time how difficult that one jump was where you have to land on that small outcropping of rocks on the side before jumping to the sticky out thingy. It didn't even look like an area where you could stand. I think I almost quit playing the game at that point. I am doing better with the jumps in the sticky out thingy areas. Don't you just love my vocabulary? I'm sure Stella would just love me to make a walkthrough for her. I hated the parts before, but I do love the Kali statue puzzle. One thing that always vexes me, though, with most TR games--why is save and load next to each other, and why do they look the same? I almost loaded when I wanted to save. Next mystery--why was I smelling chocolate chip cookies while in this area? Oh! Mom was baking them! I was proud the first time because I was able solve the Kali statue by myself. Still not good at going down into that area where you pull down the snake statue. Lara's father...now I know where Lara gets her insanity. Let's face it--the whole Croft family is nuts. Another area that always gives me a headache--the area where you have to jump to the ring that is over water--and then backflip to the ledge. I quit. When I started up again, I was upset to find out I had to move that stupid platform again to reach the exit door. I did discover something neat in the headache area--spiders can't swim. I jumped into the pull, and they went after me. They drowned--and they made little "oh,no" noises when they did. FINALLY I make that jump, and do they have a save point? Well, yes, they do once you jump on the pole--but I would have preferred it after landing on the ledge. What if I had fallen into the water during one of the jumps? Got turned around somehow while going through underwater exit and wound up where I started. I got worried when I saw the closed door and thought I had activated the bug. However, I just had to pull the knob. I was trying to swim faster. I always get the swim faster button confused with the throw a grenade button--and I did this twice within a few seconds! I felt like a dope!