Mute2Conversations

I hope you guys don't mind me double posting, but I always worry about character limits--and I thought I might have more to say about Ice Palace than what could fit--though this site is nice about giving you lots of space to write. So, that is the level I completed yesterday. The bells, the bells, the bells! Bells have played a part in other TR games and movies, which has been mentioned. A bell also was helpful in TR7 for breaking King Arthur's amber cocoon so Lara could get a piece of the sword (I was so proud of being able to figure that puzzle out by myself). No matter how many times it has happened before, the dramatic music mixed with the yeti bellowing always makes my heart palpitate. Of course, I got kind of grossed out. One of the yetis was belching--did you guys hear? I thought they were yelling at Lara, but I think she walked in on some gross male bonding experience. One of the yetis was trying to impress his friends that he could belch one of the Lady Gaga songs or something. Lara was totally grossed out. That is one part of her that has remained a Duchess. She crawls through sewers and hangs out with riffraff, but she doesn't like gross male tricks. Shotguns are the weapon of choice for yetis. Oddly enough, they are easier to kill than the dang fish are. Small things are much harder to kill in these games than big games--you all notice that? Lara was wishing we could take a photo of her on the invisible bridge. She wanted to send it to all the girls who had been mean to her in boarding school. Nanny-nanny-boo-boo, you looked your nose down on me for wearing army boots, but while your accomplishment is holding down martinis at 9 A.M. and sleeping with the illegal immigrant pool boy...I can walk on air! I was surprised that Lara felt this way, you don't expect her to care what people say...but I guess we all carry that wounded inner child that remembers every rejection. She particularly wanted to send it to Miss Hyphenated Name...the one who had scrunched up her nose in disgust when Lara had told them what she had done for her summer vacation. They had all went to the Riviera or shopped at fashionable boutiques in France. Lara had went excavating with Von Croy and brought back her lucky backpack as a souvenir--which she had taken off a corpse. Miss Hyphenated Name had sniffed and said, "Oh. It isn't even from coach." (This story isn't original--one I picked up from a Lara Croft novel). I personally think Lara embellishes sometimes, though her stories are interesting enough. I'm quite certain I saw a "Made in Taiwan" tag on her backpack. Had a problem finding Secret #2. I kept going to where that door is, which is on the same side. That little nook wasn't visible to me until I went up to it. The secret is opposite the door and at the beginning of the right ramp--near the entrance. You have to jump over an angled block. I know there is a good chance you all know this, but I sometimes write down things I feel could use more explaining for Stella's benefit. Of course, I'm playing from the perspective of PS2, and I do believe that there are variations among consoles, and even different releases of the games. What I found interesting is that the copyright on my TR2 is a year earlier than the copyright on my TR1. I had my doubts about jumping into that water that was melted by the hot oil. I was saying to Lara, "Ah, man. Not only you might be risking some burns and becoming flammable, but you are going to be as greasy as a customer at one of the ill-reputed massage parlors." The fish didn't get cooked, though--a shame. I was getting hungry again, and I'm certain those fishies would be good eatin'. I never understood, when I was learning the level building, why you would want to copy a room. Now, playing the games, I realize why. If Lara is going to return to the room later in the game, it is a time saver. I believe this is what they do--and why you'll find shotgun shells or something in an alcove that weren't there the first time. Technically, it isn't the same room, but a copy with altered objects. Sometimes learning the tricks spoils the illusion, but I haven't found that with video games. Actually, it can be helpful--you can find trigger squares if you know what to look for. I died shortly after picking up the gong hammer, but I had saved before I did. When I reloaded, the game showed the gong hammer under the water again. I picked it up. In my inventory, I had two gong hammers. Were there two, or was this a confusion of the game? @Stella--in Under the Ice/Gong Hammer, four yetis greeted me. In the tunnel on the left, I had the one yeti that I expected. However, in the right tunnel, I only had to deal with one yeti on the stairs. The second one never showed up, unless it had been the fourth yeti at the beginning. Lara is never going to want to build snowmen or have snowball fights after this game, I think. I think she will be totally allergic to snowballs. I probably will be too. For the drop you have to make to the gong, be sure to have full health or more than half anyway. You'll die otherwise. I think Superman had the same designer as the Tibetan monks for his Ice Palace. I had a hard time figuring out where to climb up to the gong after going after the secret. You can climb up, facing the front of the gong (back to pillars), on the far left blocks. These are also, as mentioned in the walkthrough later, a good place to fire at the guardian safely...though you can lose some health getting to them. I expected the gong to hurt my and Lara's ears. It wasn't that loud, which I guess was good...but a little disappointing. The guardian of the Talion...that is one Polly that has had too many crackers--and steroids. Moved pretty fast, though. I swore I saw a prison tattoo. Lara is certain she saw him on America's Most Wanted--though she can't remember whether he was the actor that did the re-enactment or the criminal himself. So, the Temple of Xian is next. I watched the little movie. I was relieved that nothing bad happened, because my mom tripped over the plug and pulled it out of the wall. However, I had already saved, and it hadn't hurt the console. The car chase in the snow was awesome! Lara shooting out the window of the other car was so cool--and the guy saying, "Die!" right before it crashes and explodes. And Lara says, "Yeah, that is exactly what you are doing!" And then when she jumps over that gap, I heard her shout to the bad guys behind her in that UPS truck, "Try to do this in that truck!" Why do bad guys have impractical cars for chases? You figure that they probably are going to chase someone or run from the cops--so why don't they have better cars?

@JD_Zen--somebody needs to call the hospital...I think the guy in the white suit escaped. He probably wants to get revenge on Lara for putting him in there. I guess this is why Lara believes in killing enemies dead. In Lara's world, if your enemies live, they come after you later. TR1 taught her that. Of course, since not everything truly dies in Lara's world--just comes back gross sometimes--I don't know if her concept always works. I guess it normally works on regular humans--but if it is one of the few exceptions...it just ticks them off! It is nice to see the photos. I can't play the bonus levels since I'm doing TR by Playstation. It would be nice if they would release the bonus levels on other formats. @Helion555--thank you! As I've said, I enjoy reading everyone's posts. Aside from the fact that this has been fun, I'm glad Stella introduced me to this site because there are so many nice people on it. I have to admit that while I love Tombraider, some of the fans on other sites have freaked me out just a little bit. Once you get to know them, they seem to be pretty nice people...but you have to get to know them before you can truly appreciate them, and getting to know them can be difficult because your first instinct is to punch them in the puss. Lara is starting to talk to me more again. I did it during Legends, but it was easier with the constant interaction with Zip and Alister. That is one thing I really enjoyed about TR7--though I guess some levels have more impact when you can feel the isolation. I didn't bother doing it for TR8, and the first time I played it I was glad. I was so bummed out by the ending. I don't know how I wanted the Amelia story to end, but that was really depressing--and to lose Alister too! I've been in the mood to play TR8, and I might do that once I'm done with TR2 and Lego Harry Potter. I'm assuming you all might be taking a break for the new game coming out. I'm going to hold off on that. I graduate in October, and I want to reward my hard work with a graduation gift. What I would really like, but it is expensive, is a Wii and a Ju-on game. If I can't afford that, then the new TR game is probably going to be my cheap alternative. Anyway, I hope Lara talking to me isn't a sign that I'm losing touch with reality like they say is a constant danger of playing video games --NAH! I'm no more crazy than I normally am! Speaking of gamer critics --that stupid Blockbuster manager guy keeps charging my mom's account for a game pass she has canceled, which is why it is overdrafting...he's a gamer bigot and he's costing us money--UNFORGIVABLE! He is so lucky I take out my aggression in TR games and GTA IV! He better be glad I do the things I want to do to him in video games rather than in real life! @Stella--Are you planning to make a walkthrough for the Guardian of Light? That is the advantage of waiting. I didn't know, since it seems to be a little different in style, whether you would bother. And I know you are swamped with other walkthroughs.

@Rosinna--thanks! I enjoy reading everyone else's too! I've actually thought, when I have the time, of writing about me and Lara's adventures. I did that with Legends and it was fun--and pretty good, I thought. I had to alter the story a bit to include myself, but I pretty much stayed true to the game. I embellished--there are some spicy scenes that would be inappropriate to post. So I completed the Catacombs of Talion. What was with that dramatic music when you get Secret #1? It scared me! I guess it was announcing the yeti down below. I think Yeti and Winston have the same diet or are the same age--they both have flatulence when they walk. I think the yeti was howling angrily because he never got over being passed over for an English porter to play the part of Chewbacca in Star Wars. George Lucas has p***ed off so many people in the past. Lara got bored waiting to kill the Yeti from a safe distance, so she jumped down despite my protests. I have to admit, it does seem that the animals are starting to figure out that trick and are not cooperating. Even trying to entice them by safely dropping over the side doesn't seem to tempt them. Poor sports--not letting us kill them safely! I had a hard time finding that switch with the first yeti. It is by the bars on the right when you are facing them. The leopard wouldn't let us kill him from safety either. So Lara went down to the ledge. Here kitty, kitty--come here so I can kill you for the inheritance of your coat. The big cat seemed rather affectionate more than menacing--but Lara wasn't moved. I didn't see the thugs you first encountered. I didn't realize they come in from behind you. I hate it when they disappear into the floor and you can't get their goodies! And inevitably, they have a goody that you really need--like a medipack! @Stella--the leopards with Room with Pool and Cage didn't charge me from behind. They came from the front even before I reached the door. My back was to the stairs. This level made me totally okay with leopards going extinct. Ditto yeti--if they exist. That was a powerfully scary moment when I entered that dark room and I heard all those Yeti howling--and the flares didn't cast a lot of light--and I was running around looking for where I had to go. Lara tried to shoot the Yeti in the cages, but it didn't work. However, it did seem like shooting fish in a barrel--they were dispatched so easily! She shot them before they even got to her. I was holding my nose when we went into the cages. I imagine yetis must smell bad. I was telling Lara she better look at the bottom of her shoe. I don't know if I was getting hungry, but I wanted to cook those fish that were nipping at me. They looked like good eatin'! This level didn't quite interest me as much. Next I'm off to the Ice Palace. It may be a slow week. I do intend to take a break and play, of course...but this is going to be a rough week for me. I'm taking an e-blended class. Our online web site that has all our tests is being taken off for an entire week so they can once again upgrade us to another server (they've done this every term--and it always is inconvenient...but never like this!). So I'm trying to do as many tests as possible before Sunday morning when it goes off. Then they told us that they are taking three weeks off of our last term (which I'm going into). We were supposed to graduate October 28, and now we are graduating October 11. Sounds great--except it has messed up the syllabus and is giving us much more work...and we had so much to begin with! I hope my financial aide check comes when it should. Last term, it was two months late! I need to register, and my mom has had to borrow all the money in my account because she overdrafted hers--and we didn't have money for groceries. So I hope either the check comes or she pays me back! I definitely need to make time to play TR, though--no matter how difficult it is. The shooting and adventure helps ease the tension of my studies and life. I'm trying to figure out if I'm a late bloomer, or a person repeats the teenage stage where they start questioning their parent's competency. I look at my mom often these days and say, "I wonder if it is time to put you in a nursing home?" Eh, it isn't that bad yet.

@Helion555--Thanks to your warning, I have been more careful with my flares...and now that I'm not playing TR1, I'm not getting as confused and accidentally lighting a flare. The last time I checked, I had forty flares. I don't think I used any in Tibetan Foothills, and I only used one or two in Barkhang Monastery. Usually I can make my way around if there is a little bit of light up ahead--and no traps. I tried to do the three metal doors without the flare, but that wasn't possible. So, to continue my narration....Lara liked shooting blindly into room--which I got on her about. We didn't know who she was shooting at. By now, Lara was pouting. I only am presented with the view of her butt--but like most parents, I can sense the pout even if I can't see it. I used to think baddies were perverts because of their heavy breathing--and it was more suggestive when they were breathing in a darkened room, and you heard the monks going, "Ar-oooh! Ar-ooh!" However, I'm beginning to think they are suffering from congestive heart failure, probably due to their steroid abuse. Of course, I guess they could be working out...though that wouldn't explain why the lights were off. When I first crossed the main hall, the three thugs didn't appear. I waited for a few moments, and then I went to get the first prayer wheel. When I returned, I reread the walkthrough and decided to cross the hall again. I'm not into kills, but I wanted the goodies they carried. The baddies aren't triggered until I am near the statue. Though the monks did very well, Lara still had her doubts about their abilities to defend her. After all, they had kung fu and spears--and baddies had machine guns. Normally, this wouldn't be a fair fight, and I understood Lara's skepticism. However, the monks did very well--they must be able to transcend bullets, since they weren't fazed by machine gun fire. Lara probably only had to kill less than five baddies the entire level. Still, Lara doesn't like relying on other people to defend her--no damsel in distress is she. I also wondered if the monks would object to Lara stealing their gemstones and prayer wheels, even though she argued it was for a good cause. Besides, she said, she never steals. She just borrows things without any intention on returning them. After picking up the harpoons, I could not jump over that trapdoor in the hallway. I tried several times and several types of jumps. Finally, I climbed down and climbed up the other side. That hallway of burners, swinging spikes, and rolling blades was difficult--I was glad that we didn't have to return that way. What was nice is that Lara was so distracted that she stopped her b**ching about not being able to shoot monks. She did incur the wrath of one monk near the end of the level. I have to admit I don't know how. She was firing at two birds (this was near the wooden bridge). I didn't see her fire at the monk, but I suppose she must have. She was like, "I didn't touch him! Did you see me fire at him? What is his problem? Those birds reincarnations of some of his dead relatives or something?" So we had to reload to get the monk off her butt. So I'll do Catacombs of the Talion next.

Finished Level 12: Barkhang Monastery Lara and I had more conversation in this level than we normally do--at least not since Legends. Actually, we argued more. The main problem was that whenever there was a scuffle, Lara wanted to be a part of it. However, I don't trust Lara to show restraint--and I didn't want to complicate the level by shooting at the monks. Besides, it is hard to just aim for the bad guys when the monks are fighting them. But Lara isn't really discriminating, I don't think. The level was more stunning visually, and I liked the music. When people were first were commenting on the soundtrack, I had to admit I wasn't that impressed. The best TR soundtrack is Underworld's, though I also liked TR1 and Legends soundtrack. Lara was getting ticked off with the monks, though they did prove to be helpful. However, they were bad about bumping into Lara--and she took it as an act of aggression and wanted to teach them some manners (shoot them). And I was like, "No, you can't shoot them--you'll make things more difficult for us." Even though she said, "Ow!" when they bumped into her, it didn't seem to affect her health. You can't shoot people just because they annoy you, Lara. It is always interesting how the game varies between reloads. The first time I played the very beginning of the level, the monks were killed and one of the baddies lived--and Lara had to finish him. The second time (I died falling off the ladder when the bird attacked) I reloaded, the monks won the fight. It is always fun to shoot out windows, but I was wondering if it would upset the monks. Probably these windows are very old--put in during the reign of some ancient emperor or something. It was very hard every time we heard a scuffle to keep Lara on task. She was like kids in a school yard. Oh, a fight! A fight! A fight! Let the monks take care of the bad guys, Lara. You need to climb the ladder. I'm sure you'll have plenty of opportunities to shoot people later in the game. I had to admit that I was surprised that the monks didn't stop Lara and ask her who she was, what she was doing there, etc. I mean, here they were being attacked by outsiders. How did they not know Lara was with Bartoli's men--and besides, here is some broad walking around in a sacred place where men are only supposed to be. I guess being monks, they've had to rid themselves of feelings of sexism and stranger danger. I did get confused a lot in this level on where to go. I couldn't always picture what Stella wrote in her walkthrough, though I was able to figure it out and didn't have to stop to go to YouTube. I'll tell you, though...these temples in foreign countries! It makes one feel fortunate to be an American. The only thing we have to worry about is pedophiles. In foreign countries, temples have boulder traps and rolling blades. I'll continue this later, folks--my breakfast is ready (pizza).

@Shrensh--springyboard...ouch! And that Parrot Boss--I swear, is everything in TR2 on steroids? @CaityFM--where do you think you are going to college in Florida? I was favoring FIU, but mostly because it is close. Of course, I didn't wind up going. Everytime I go to college, I remember why I stopped going. I may eventually further my medical coding degree--but I'm an online course kind of gal. @Rosinna--you're talking about the M-16, right? Yeah, that requires standing still and aiming, so you can only use it when you are someplace high where enemies can't fire at you. Generally, it is useless because that doesn't happen very often. However, it did do very well for some of the guys on snowmobiles in the later part of the level I completed today. First, I am psyched, guys! I finished TR1 last night--and I wasn't able to finish the game the first time I played it! The timed run at the end of Atlantis, which I used a cheat save to get past the first time--I got it on my second try! And while I died seven times, I finally killed that huge mutant boss. Escaping the pyramid was harder, and I thought that the fight between Natla and Lara was very anti-climatic. Anniversary definitely did that better. But my skills have definitely improved! So today I did Tibetan Foothills. It was fun to watch the cut scene again--I didn't save yesterday so I could watch it again. I noticed some things I didn't before. Like that engine smoking. When Lara was pulling out of there so fast, I was saying, "Hey, I don't think that engine is very healthy! You need to baby it." Eidos better not make Lara a mother like they had considered. She is not very motherly! And Stella is right, the look on her face when she sees that jacket--it is worth a million words! So, here we are yet again in a snowy place--and Lara is wearing shorts. I know that sometimes your top is cold and your bottom isn't--but it is snow, for goodness sakes! Has anyone else noticed Lara's odd fashion sense? She wears shorts on snowy mountains and full leather jacket and pants in an Amazon jungle. I remember when Lara had skimpy bikinis for TR8, and everybody said that wasn't practical wear--when has her wardrobe ever been practical? She looks good, yes--my favorite is that little motorcycle ensemble in TR7. But practical? When I saw the eagles, I said to Lara, "Aren't these extinct?" She said, "They are now." Why is a leopard easier to kill than an eagle? Things were a little easier to kill in this level, particularly the cats. Of course, they looked pregnant--and I think Lara just ruined the chances of bringing an endangered species back. I briefly panicked when I slid after dropping down, but I caught the edge. When I was going for the medipack, I got confused because I saw a bird frozen at the upper right. I thought that was the one that was supposed to attack me--but it wasn't. I swear the game learns. I had to reload because I died. This time, the birds attacked me before I even made it out of the cave. One got stuck in the wall. Then I loaded instead of saved and had to redo it. Thank god it hadn't been a difficult boss fight or timed run. This time, one bird came at me in the cave and the other attacked outside of it. Personally, I think Lara really enjoyed jumping through that ice wall. That is very Bruce Willis-ish. I was able to do the shortcut, though--which I had miss the first time. I was wondering if Lara was getting cold. Man, I thought I could feel that water and the wind! I had such a hard time getting that medipack--and then I lost most of my health when I did and had to use it. Seemed a bit of a waste , but then I realized that is how I got up to the hut. At one point while climbing the wall, Lara kept bouncing and couldn't raise up onto the block. The first baddies, I had a hard time finding their clips because they were hidden. The snowmobile music was great! And running over people with the snowmobile kicks! It wasn't like riding a bicycle, though. I had to review the controls again because I had forgotten. I'm glad I printed them out. I definitely recommend using the snowmobile! It is difficult to control at times, but it is so much fun! I did kill Lara a lot, but I didn't mind because it was fun! I'm not usually into TR snuff, but this was fun! And I don't think Lara minded--she enjoyed it too! The benefits of being a video game character is that life has a reset button! You see, this is what the critics of video games don't understand. They say why don't you do these things in real life? It is true--you can do these things in real life. You could go on a snowmobile and ride off a cliff--but the point is, do you really want to? Lara has a reset button and is fine. You don't have a reset button, and if you don't die--you will incur a lot of medical expenses and break your neck! Maybe spend the rest of your life being a quadriplegic. So who can't distinguish reality now--the gamer or the idiot who says you should do this in real life? I ask you incompetent Blockbuster manager guy who says he isn't ordering Star Wars: Force Unleashed 2 because it is too violent--and the kids should instead rent a nice movie like Saw! So, in the ramp area, I blew Lara up several times just for fun. That is what is nice about TR2 and being able to save when I want. In TR1, I had to wait either to complete the level or wait for a save crystal (playing on a PS2)--and so I didn't like to kill Lara on purpose. @Stella--in Through Caves and Over Narrow Bridge, the two pairs of grenades were actually opposite the ladder (in PS2). I don't know if that is what you meant when you said they were near it, but I usually assume that near it means it is by it. Do you guys ever notice how long it takes the game to reload after Lara dies--and you are sitting there looking at her corpse? Do you think they do this so we feel guilty? Now, look what you did to poor Lara! Don't you feel ashamed of yourself? No, not really. The three leopards in the gap below Secret #2 really were groggy. I don't know if they were too cold, or they were too pregnant. That was some stud--all the leopards were knocked up. Of course, I'm afraid he has no legacy to show for it--all thanks to Lara. The big boom at the drawbridge was very satisfying. I sometimes wish we could see it as well as hear it. The baddies were definitely not easier to kill. Not only are they overdoing steroids, but they had all that padding--because they know how to dress in cold weather unlike some people! I couldn't take one of the baddies snowmobiles because it always wound up on a slope. After taking out the two snowmobile riders, I got worried because the music sounded like timed run music...but it wasn't. The movable block near the end of the level--that little trick about hopping to the left to not set off the baddies--BEWARE! It will not work if you go back to pull it because you want to get the snowmobile. If you want to go over the edge with the snowmobile, you are going to have to fight the baddies. Going back to pull the block activates the baddies. So, Barkhang Monastery is next. While this was a fun level with the snowmobiles, I still think The Deck is my favorite so far. But this was an enjoyable level too--my second favorite so far.

@Shrensh--I can think of two reasons why every animal wants to kill Lara. One is an Ew reason. Reason #1: Maybe Lara just really p****s them off! You know, it is that karma kicking in. How many people and animals has Lara dispatched over the years? They are supposed to get their amnesia shot when they reincarnate, but things are backed up even in the afterlife. Ew Reason: They are attracted to her--and nothing says, "Oh, baby, you touch my ta-la-la," like mauling and biting. As for that Yeti--isn't he in the World Wrestling Federation? @Jellie5678--congrats! I'm hoping to actually finish TR1, which I wasn't able to the first time I played it. I'm up to the part where I got stuck on before, the beginning of The Great Pyramid where I have to fight that huge mutant. I'm optimistic. I had such a hard time with that timed run at the end of Atlantis the first time I played it, and this time I got it on my second try. As for TR2, I just completed The Deck. This is my favorite level so far. It is a good thing that is the case, because I had to retrace my steps twice. I started having a problem understanding Stella's walkthrough around Onto the Overturned Hull. I couldn't picture what she was talking about--or if I could, I was still lost on what to do with it. I went to YouTube and checked out a video walkthrough that helped me...but I still had to retrace my steps twice because I was in the wrong place. (I'm not saying anything is wrong with your walkthrough, Stella--sometimes I just can't picture it, and that may just be me). I did notice that the ship was right side up on this level. How to explain that? I'm assuming perhaps it did what Titanic did and split in half--and one part landed right side up and the other landed upside down. Actually, I think they showed that. I really had a hard time finding the grenades at the beginning of the level. Gripe to the designers: whose idea was it to put that fall to the raft so high up that Lara loses most of her health? That person should be spanked! Unless they enjoy it--then they should never be spanked again! I lost three medipacks--all my medipacks that I had. I had to use a small medipack before then because one of my fights didn't go well. Then I had to use a large health pack to make the fall--because while my health bar was three quarters full, it was still too low to survive the fall. Then I had to use another large medipack because the fall cost me a good portion of my health, and I didn't think I could face the next onslaught of enemies on such a small amount of health. So that's a bad designer! In Blue Cave with Stepped Blocks: I found it best to lure the two baddies to the floor. If I killed them as they came down the slope, they died on the slope and I couldn't get the health pack. In another part of the level, I killed a thug and half of his body disappeared into the floor. It was really creepy! There were just these legs, unless you moved a certain way--then the body came into view. I wish I could take a picture, but I'm on PS2 . Lara looked pretty beat at the end of the level. Stealing that plane, though, was way cool! That crash was even cooler! I said to Lara, though, "You just wrecked your ride. How you going to get home?" "I'll improvise," she said. She always seems to. I swear, though, don't let this chick borrow your car or your Blockbusster tape. She can figure out how to break a crowbar, I'm sure. On the scale of one to ten--one being lame and ten being killer--how cool is it to steal a sea plane? It is definitely cooler than stealing a car. But is it as cool as stealing an ice cream truck? One of those digging construction vehicles? An ambulance? A hearse? A helicopter transporting human organs? Okay, getting morbid. Get thee back into the dusty regions of my brain, inner sociopath! Well, I'm going to try and defeat the mutant in TR1 and see if I can get past the level that stumped me before. Then it is off to the snowy Tibetan foothills. I should do my homework now, since I've been fooling around all day--but my inner child needs a nap.

@Helion555--I also am playing TR2 on PS2. There must be different versions of the game. My TR2 doesn't have any demos or movie trailers. However, my TR1 does have a demo for TR2 (beginning Venice level) and a demo for some other video game. I can't read the name, but it is some stupid ninja fighting game. @CaityFM--(1) Which movie did you see? There are two TR movies with Angelina Jolie. The second one The Cradle of Life is my favorite. I like the first one, but I get creeped out when I see Angelina Jolie and her dad together. Actually, Jon Voight kinda creeps me out anyway on his own. But the two together give me the boo-boo-jeebies. Angelina Jolie was a good Lara Croft. I've heard rumors of a third movie, and supposedly I've heard Megan Fox may play Lara. I guess Angie may be getting too old. I don't know how I feel about Megan Fox, though I suppose she looks the part. I don't make judgments after I was wrong about Tom Cruise playing the vampire Lestat--which he did very well. (2) I think the goons that are walking around the Maria Doria are supposed to be Bartoli's people, not the crew. There may be no skeletons because maybe the crew got off in time. Of course, they don't find skeletons with the Titanic either. They used to see a lot of shoes in the hallways and on the sea floor. They were wondering what was up with all that--and then they realized that the shoes were all that were left of the bodies. As for Lara being able to step on hot surfaces, maybe she learned how to be a coal walker. It seems like something she would learn to do. @Stella--bummer! By chance, do you have more than one account on YouTube? Does your husband or son use your computer and also have a YouTube account? My mother had several YouTube accounts. One day, YouTube just deleted one with no warning. She had over two hundred videos on it. She had two other accounts, though--and I use the same computer, and I have an account. YouTube frequently erases my videos too. It always seems when I add one, I lose one. Some things are just impossible to keep, I suppose because of copyright issues. Since TR games are from Britain and are copyrighted, I wonder if that is why they would go after yours? It may not be your fault or a hacker. @Shrensh--honestly, did Lara really accidentally shoot those monks? I finished Living Quarters today. I got confused a lot in this level. First, at the beginning, I had a problem finding the lever. It was harder to control Lara in the current. In the engine room, when I killed the baddy, his body disappeared into the ducks running along the floor and I couldn't get the medipack. I also accidentally used another flare trying to sidestep. I could hear the bad guys, but I couldn't see them. In the Burner room, all three thugs and the barrels came at the same time. Needless to say, I died. The one thug came early--he was supposed to wait. I really wished we could have seen the pistons move. That was my favorite part in the Titanic movie--when Titanic leaves, and they start the engines, and you see the pistons going up and down...that was so awesome! I'm more into machinery than I am into romance. My version of the game didn't have the first movable block in the Hallways with the Movable Blocks. After pulling the switch that floods the burner room, I couldn't figure out how to get down. I chose the wrong way the first time and died. I got confused at the sea bottom part of where to go after pulling the lever (and I couldn't avoid the eel chomping on me ). The only good news is that it was easier to kill the scuba diver with the harpoon gun, and I could prevent drowning by surfacing in the room that a ladder lead to in the burner room. When I found the opening, I had a hard time getting into it. I loved the Passenger Areas of the level. They were really spooky. I did expect to meet a ghost. I loved looking out the window at the Jade Dragon, and this is when I wish I was playing the computer version of the game so I could take a screenshot. Is it overkill to use an M-16 on an eel? I suspect that the gold sofas, along with the carpet at the Opera, were salvaged from someone's garbage heaps...probably the same person seeing their garish tastes. Can you imagine the gold sofas with the Opera carpet? Who would have the bad taste to put those two together, do you think? Maybe it was Stevie Wonder's interior designer, who was trying to get rid of designs, thinking, "He won't know the difference!" In the theater, all three of my baddies were in the balcony seat. One did crawl out to meet me on the floor, unlike his two buddies--but they were all three there originally. At the very end, after pulling the switch to part the curtain on stage and climbing through the hole, I said to Lara, "I think you need a flare." Just then, Lara fell into the pit and got impaled on broken glass. So, next up is the Deck. I thought that part at the beginning was neat--until I saw flame-thrower guy. Question:By the way, guys. I failed to notice--are all the rooms upside down? What about the theater? I know they all should be...but I was wondering if the designers were cosistent. That black and white tile and the landing...that seemed right side up? I wish I would have paid more attention, but I was too busy with the game at the time.

@Rosinna--I know we like to think Lara is invulnerable...but I'm not sure if she couldn't have someone sneak up on her. I know people that are the closest thing to a real Lara Croft, and what I have found is that they are people who...well, it is like the old saying, "They concentrate on a few tracks but they miss the buffalo run." What that means is that they focus on one aspect, and they sometimes miss something big. In any case, she needs to be a little invulnerable--otherwise, the game wouldn't be so much fun. And think how heartbroken CaityFM would be if Lara couldn't die in the acid pools, get cut in half, etc. As for the carpet, if you don't know any dumpster divers--well, you won't believe some of the junk they do think is treasure. My neighbor showed my mom his "new" sofa that he got from someone's swail. It did actually look pretty good--and it was an expensive sofa. He couldn't believe someone had thrown it out. However, it became very obvious to my mother why they had--there was a very strong poop smell. The sofa had been re-upholstered, but apparently they hadn't changed the cushions. @CaityFM--I'm not usually into snuff Tombraider, but do you happen to have pictures of Lara being cut in half by the saw? Did she really get cut into two pieces? (if I missed them, sorry--sometimes this page thingy jumps on me) @JD_Zen--you were able to play this game at six or seven years old? Uh! Now I know how my mom felt. When I was a baby, she bought me these developmental puzzle toys for infants (you know, the box that had blocks--and you were supposed to put the block into a hole that was the same shape). According to the box, I put in the blocks very quickly and was a genius. My mom tried to do it, and the amount of time it took her--the box told her to see a doctor, because her child is retarded. I'm 35, and I have a hard time with Tombraider games--and there are six year olds that can do them. @Shrensh--cool video! I love the explosion! Today I finished The Wreck of the Maria Doria. I was glad to progress in TR2 because I had been looking forward to exploring a sunken ship. Today, I wasn't p***ed off, so I was able to enjoy it more--and this level is more scenic. I forgot that harpoons can be shot out of the water too. The scuba diver got me when he surfaced, when I climbed onto the ledge to shoot him. Some Captain Ahmed I'd make! I really liked the upside down swimming pool. I wanted to go through the windows. I forgot I couldn't crouch, and wound up using yet another flare. I realized that when I get back to level building, it would be neat to build a level where Lara explores the Titanic. I wonder if someone has already done it? Of course, Lara really couldn't explore the Titanic because the water pressure would kill her--but we have to take a certain amount of artistic license. After all, I don't know if Lara could really do those amazing jumps if she were weighed down with D-cup endowments like she is in some games. There is even a legend that the Titanic was carrying a cursed mummy case, so that could be a very good idea. In the Ballroom--I thought I'd mention that one of the three thugs comes out of the passage that you came from. That was the grungiest restroom I had ever seen! It was nasty! Even the sewers in AOD were cleaner! And where were the toilets? That might explain why the restroom was so filthy. The Titanic cut costs by only putting only half of the lifeboats they would need for the amount of people they carried, the Maria Doria did without toilets. The crew and passengers could pee in the pool! What is it with the heavy breathing? Footsteps worked very well for me in notifying of an enemy ahead. The breathing really creeps me out! People are going to think I'm playing a sex game. It did inspire me to create a rap. Want to hear it? Hello, my name is Lara, I'm going to have to bid you sayonara! I'm the last person you've seen-ah, all because you're too fond of that funky cold Medina! Eat your heart out, Eminem! Why is it, when you make a mistake that is irreversible, you are more likely to hit save instead of load? This happened to me when I played TR5. I was at the very end--and I messed up on the shooting range. I meant to load, but I saved instead. Fortunately, I caught myself in time in TR2. With the timed trap doors, I realized that (1) I was taking the longest way to get there, and (2) I could re-activate it by standing on the square where the circuit had been. I got creeped out in the burner room, because Lara didn't have any health on her bar. She was still walking around, though. I didn't want to save because I thought it was a glitch, and I was trying to figure out whether I should use a health pack. While I was thinking, the wrench guy killed me. I love the dramatic music! I keep expecting to see Captain Nemo or a giant squid. Of course, I'm glad there is no giant squid. Those stinky sharks are troublesome enough! When I was getting the key outside of the ship, I kept screaming at Lara, "They're coming! Hurry! They're coming! They're coming!". I had died so many times. I finally gave up trying to kill the sharks and barracudas and tried to outswim them. I finally succeeded...and then I realized I had to go back out there to get the third secret. I may not have bothered, but you got extra grenades--and I heard that grenades are going to be useful at the end. So I died more times until I finally succeeded--screaming at Lara when she got cornered, when she swam too slow, and when she lost the opening. If my neighbors can hear me--I wonder what they think is happening...between my screaming and the heavy panting of the baddies. So next is Living Quarters.

@Helion555 and CaityFM, glad you enjoy the posts. I enjoy yours as well! @Rosinna--the rats are hard to kill for the same reason the spiders are. You see, I have this theory that every creature in TR2--human and animal--would fail a urinalysis. They are on steroids. Of course, I have heard that creatures in other countries are bigger and tougher than their North American counterparts. I know some of my Spanish neighbors sometimes grill their chicken on the barbeque. I was a little suspicious of them at first. That meat seemed too big and didn't look anything like chicken to me. I swear, it looked like something from the Flintstones. Then I saw the birds...and I now believe there is a good possibility that birds did evolve from dinosaurs. As for the carpet in the Opera House...well, I have one explanation. In my neighborhood, everybody looks forward to large trash pick-up. The night before, everybody sneaks around and looks through somebody else's junk. Why they sneak when everybody does it, I don't know. Anyway, many of my neighbors decorate their house with someone else's junk. Probably that is how the opera got the 80's carpet. You know, one man's garbage is another person's treasure. I completed 40 Fathoms today. It was difficult. I probably wasn't in the right frame of mind. I was totally p***ed off! You know how it is. Somebody annoys you, and you spend the rest of the day thinking about how you want to run them over with your car...several times. Okay, now that I've creeped all of you out--I'll talk about my observations about this level. (For the record, I got into a much happier frame of mind reading your guys post--so thank you...and the person that ticked me off today thanks you too--because I didn't ruin his shirt with Mitsubishi Mirage tire marks). Okay...40 Fathoms. Actually, I wish I had played this in a better frame of mind. I may have enjoyed it more. This level satisfied the desire I've always had to explore a sunken ship--even though I totally suck with maneuvering Lara in water and I died a lot. The heartbeat was creepy. @JD_Zen--you are right, harpoons work very well against sharks. I took care of the first two with the harpoon gun, and I'm glad I bothered to pick them up in the earlier level. It is good that they work against sharks, because I don't think tampons would in this case. I got totally confused with the first shotgun goon I encountered. He seemed to disappear, and I thought I heard him pacing in the room. Then I found him dead, and I realized the footsteps were actually dripping water. Bodies disappeared in this level for me--did that happen with anyone else? It got confusing. I thought I killed the barracuda or the thug, and then they showed up. But other times I killed them and they disappeared. It made finding items difficult. I'm doing better with timed runs . However, I avoided the barracudas and shark when I got the Jade Dragon, but then the barracudas depleted a lot of my health because I didn't realize they would follow me back inside. Dummy me! Lara was getting verbally abused during the attempt to get the last secret. Nobody would guess that this nice little white girl could have such a filthy mouth! They would probably say that video games have warped my little mind ...but the truth is, MY MIND WAS WARPED TO BEGIN WITH!!! (HA-HA-HA--Evil laugh continued) In the dirt pile areas--I think they recycled some Kazakhstan music. And that was a fabulous crash when you pulled the switch! I found it hard to climb up the dirt pile you climb to get to the opening in the ceiling. The best way, I thought, was to climb the rocks to the right...then do a running jump to a flattish ledge mid-way that was to the left. So, the Maria Doria is next for me.

@Stella--don't worry about it! I have to think before I remember what is right and left anyway. The only time that is important...well, I guess you should know it when you are traveling somewhere--but it is only fatal if you are a surgeon. It is really annoying in my medical coding course, because you don't think about right and left according to what it is to you...you have to think about the patient's right or left. Hear about those stories where the doctor operates on the wrong side? That is what happened more than likely. Anyway, finished Diving Area today. At the start, I was confused. I didn't recognize the area as the same area I had saved at the day before. The game put me a little further. The squealing sound was annoying and I wasn't pleased to hear it yet again. In the room with the swinging hooks, I kept falling into the water when I was trying to take out the thugs and Doberman. After checking the walkthrough to make sure I didn't have to keep them in reserve, I switched to the automatic pistols. Lara's regular pistols, frankly, are just not powerful enough to take out enemies without a lot of damage to health. Toxic Waste Pool I didn't make the jump at the end. Decided to ignore Stella's advice, because it seemed to me Lara could grab the edge. After all, Stella has been known to be wrong before So, I pressed action the next time...and realized Stella was right--you can't make the jump at all if you press action. Helpful hint: I found it best to climb out on the far left (your back is to the secret and facing pool). Oh, and the bubbles in the pool that float up can give you some damage. The designer of that level who did that long, long ladder would be getting a lot of criticism from level editor builders if it were an unofficial game . At some point, it looked like Lara was going to let go on me, and I shouted, "You wouldn't dare!" I don't doubt she would dare, but she didn't. Up in the room the ladder lead to, the camera got buggy when I walked onto the metal walkway. I got a good look at Lara's butt. Of course, some people wouldn't mind that view . When I pressed Look, I saw her shoes. The goodies were hard to locate--Helpful hint: Lara's back to the entrance, they are in the back of the room in the right corner and in the middle. Stay on the blue floor to avoid the problems with the camera. After sliding down and dropping to the walkway, I was fortunate the guard must be walking in his sleep. Even though Lara dropped down in front of him, he didn't fire at her. I was glad for myself and Lara, but even villians can't get good help these days. Helpful hints:With the jump to get the blue pass card, I found it helpful to turn Lara to the rightjust a little bit. I finally got to see what you were all talking about with the floating stiffs when I took out a guard in the Room with the Pool and Circular Saw. I don't know how many times he gave me a scare, because every time I turned to go up the stairs--I ran into his shotgun in my face. I also learned that you all were right about something else--HARPOON GUNS ARE TOTALLY USELESS! Even tampons would work better than harpoon guns! You fire them, and the scuba divers would be like, "Eww!!!" and would probably swim away. I'm not looking forward to underwater levels--I have such issues with Lara when it comes to pulling levers underwater. She got trapped in a passage, and I was yelling at her, "No! Lara! No! You have to get out of there! You're almost out of air!" My mom was sitting at the computer while I was playing and laughing. She says it reminds her of when I was a kid playing soldier and she heard me scream, "No, Tommy, you have to keep going even if both of your legs have been blown off! The Vietcong are coming! Tommy!" In the Helipad, there seems to be no good way to take out the three goons without losing health. Helpful hint: when going into trapdoor in the burner sequence, fall in, roll, run to other side, and press action. Then you can climb out. Room with Pool and Yellow TanksLara gets set on fire the first time, and I have to listen to the heavy panting of the flame thrower guy. Creep. Helpful hint Run past the guy with the club and take both out quite easily. Why can't I pick up the flamethrower? Definitely more useful than those stupid harpoon guns. It was so cool when I killed the scuba divers, and their bodies floated up! By the end of the game, I was getting awfully tired of going back and forth, back and forth. I couldn't get a medipack from one of the thugs I had killed because he died on a slope that Lara couldn't access. That monk is doomed to come back as a termite because I personally think he was having some impure thoughts while Lara was undressing. And the submarine crash was way cool! Tomorrow, I do 40 Fathoms.

@Rosinna--watch your cat. My cat abducted one of my stuffed animals (a cat) for his harem. Fortunately, I wasn't as fond of that one as I am of some of my other stuffed animals. I let him have it. Of course, sometimes I hide it because otherwise he'll wake me up late at night with his yowling. Cats cannot make love down by the fire without alerting the whole household. I thought the lady on the side of the sea plane looked like Sybil Danning. @Stellalune--Thanks! Nice to hear from you! Hopefully, I am correct about some of these perceived differences. I have to admit that sometimes I get turned around and the area I'm in isn't actually the area I'm supposed to be. However, I do think I was right about that particular thing. Stella, I do have a question: Is there any rule you follow when you are giving directions...um, let me explain this better. When you say something is to the left, do you usually say this with the thought in mind that Lara's back is to the entrance? That is usually how I consider things. I know a few times I have wound up in the wrong place because your walkthrough said something was on the right, and I found it on the left. I don't know if there is a difference in design in games (generally, I haven't found this to be the case in actual design, though there may be variations in objects like bad guys and how they behave). I haven't wanted to mention this, because the problem is direction is relative. If you are saying something is on the right because you are facing the entrance--or you are using something else to determine direction...then it might be on the left for me because I'm using a different point to determine direction. But I was wondering--do you have a particular rule when giving directions? It isn't a constant problem--but in TR1 I find that I've found things in the opposite direction than what you said...so I was curious. But otherwise, your walkthroughs are wonderful and I'd be lost without them! Question: Do you guys ever get the idea that the baddies learn? I felt so clever playing TR1 last night. Though it was more work, I figured out a safe way to destroy the second mummy you encounter in the Temple of Khamoon. Then I fell and died, and of course with PS2--we can't save when we want, only when we find a save crystal. When I tried my technique again, the mummy didn't act the same way--which made him harder to kill. I swore he remembered what I did the first time!

I've been very happy. I am playing much better. I'm not using TR2 to gauge this but TR1. I've played TR1 before, and though I didn't finish the first time...I made it to the level where you fight that huge mutant. I am doing much better in all the levels. Levels that used to take me three or four days are only taking one day usually. Things that I struggled with the first time I'm doing much better on. I'm hoping I might finish this game. But we aren't here to talk about TR1. On TR2, I finished Offshore Rig. Question: Is it my imagination, or does Lara use up more air when she is going for a secret? I admit that I'm not very good with underwater areas because I don' have as fine of control over Lara. I think the breath meter might also be influenced by the health bar, because I notice that I can't hold my breath as long when my health is getting low. Still, I swear it goes faster when I go for a secret. I accidentally used yet another flare because I got confused about where the sidestep button is (sigh). I really liked the area where we picked up the silver dragon. Very pretty sunset. I was surprised too. I lingered there for a few minutes because I enjoyed being outside so much. I didn't realize that I felt claustrophobic in the rig. I don't often feel claustrophobic in tombs, so why the rig? I think because I was associating the rig with bad smells--the smell of rusting metal...and worse, gross men smells--the kind you only like when you are madly in love. I'm sure the gals know what I'm talking about. And I bet these brutes particularly smell--since they seem to be all testosterone. For a change, I saw the scuba divers a lot better than Lara. At the very end, I panicked because it seemed after the gate opened--the water was pushing me back. However, I just had to go more towards the middle--I was caught apparently on the lever. Then I was confused about whether I was on the next level--even though I got the statistics screen. Usually, the next level looks a little different, but not in this case. I didn't use as many medi-packs and managed to keep a few. So tomorrow, I will do Diving Area. Question: What is one of your favorite buttons to use in TR games? I know Lara can do many fancy moves, but I'm talking about practical buttons that help you...buttons that would grieve you to lose. I have to say Walk is my favorite--because it keeps me from falling off ledges. It also helps me walk through spikes and set off traps.

Just finished Level 4: Opera House. Observations: First of all, I have several suggestions why there are boulder traps in an opera house: 1) They were scene props for an opera, but anyone who has been to foreign countries knows they aren't big into leveling...so it is only natural props are going to run away. 2) Italians take their opera very seriously, and if they don't like the singer--they release the boulders. 3) The Phantom of the Opera has moved to Italy--and either the owners didn't pay their tribute or reserve his seat, the cleaning lady didn't clean his seat and leave a box of cannolis, or he doesn't like the singer...he releases the boulders. 4) The mafia owns the opera house, and they have realized that it is totally disgusting to off enemies at a restaurant while you are eating spaghetti--can't tell what is sauce and what is blood. So now they take them to the opera--hence, boulder traps. 5) At the risk of sounding like I play the banjo and procreate with immediate family members, foreigners like to live dangerously. Hasn't playing Tombraider taught us that? Think about it. Their ancestors only lived to age thirty if they were lucky because of infant mortality, mothers dying in childbirth, epidemics, getting eaten by animals, being killed by bandits, being sacrificed because they are a virgin (which doesn't sound like a good incentive for abstinence) etc. Yet, these people still felt the need to build their temples over active volcanoes and put booby traps in them. This spirit is still embraced by their descendants--like my Peruvian neighbor, who has managed to burn down three of his five houses and eats green, maggoty meat...and can't figure out why I don't want to come over to his house and eat dinner with him. The beginning of the level, I was rather bored and irritable. I don't know why exactly. It seemed challenging enough. I felt the same way I did in The Cistern level in TR: Anniversary (oddly enough, in TR1 it is one of my favorite levels) and in several levels in AOD. However, I started getting into it by the time I got my first secret. The elevator...I must say that is the slowest dang elevator I have ever had to take. And when I went to replace the relay switch, I got attacked by dobermans. I thought I had already taken care of these guys. Did I forget? Did they come back from the dead? Did Stella forget another pair? I don't know. It is possible that if I got killed at some point and hadn't saved, I might have forgotten to take care of the dobermans. Actually, that might be the explanation. I thought the circuit board looked like a bag of potato chips. I was getting concerned by the end of the level because I was running out of medipacks. I only had one small medipack by the time I reached the room with the crates (the second one with super-thug). Super-thug...who is this guy? Or maybe it is more appropriate to say what is he? I used my uzis, shotgun, and even a grenade--and he still kept coming like the Terminator. I finally realized that I could get him if I jumped from the top of crates to other crates and used my uzis. I even managed to reserve my medipack. Oh, and I learned that you can lose some health if you stand too close to a window while shooting it. So now I am off to the offshore rig. Lara seems a little more cautious now. I remember how surprised I was in TR1 when she snuck onto Natla's boat and fell asleep like an exhausted child. I thought she was nuts to do that. An immortal queen and three thugs--one that likes to cut people--and she decides this is a good time to take a nap. Oh, and the view of Venice before getting on the sea plane was pretty.

@Shrensh--By the way, I love your avatar. That is so funny! @Stella--I didn't know if we should mention corrections on this thread or send you an email. Since you do seem to read the posts, I decide to write it here rather than clog up your email. On Level 4: Opera House, the very end part of The Roof when you've pressed the button in the alcove with the swinging crate to open the trapdoor out of the roof. In your walkthrough, you claim that two thugs come out of here. In my game--the PS2--there were three thugs. Of course, I don't know if the third came from the trapdoor...I only saw two in the screenshot. The two ran around on the ground, but the third fired from on top of the dome. It was the third thug on the dome that had the shotgun shells and flares.

I finished Bartoli's Hideout last night. I hope this game is generous with medipacks, because it seems I can't fight those goons without losing a lot of health--particularly those near to last two gun-toting goons that you shoot at through the window. I found it best to shoot at them through the window then jump back into the other room and let them come at me there. Question: I just noticed this. Let us say you have just did a running jump and grab to a higher level ledge. You pull the switch or get a secret, and then you are supposed to return the way you came. Does it seem to be a general rule...even if you did a running jump and grab to get to a ledge, if it is higher than the previous one...when you are returning, you do a standing jump? I hope I put this well. I just started noticing that Stella often mentions this in her walkthroughs. You would assume that if you did a running jump to get to a place, you would do a running jump to leave. However, I often overshoot the lower ledge when I do this. The hardest part for me in Bartoli's Hideout was the underwater sequence where we get the grenades and one of the secrets. I found it helpful to pull the lever before getting the goodies. There seemed to be a current that pushed Lara a bit, or else I just have a problem controlling her underwater. I had a problem in TR1 in The Cistern. She kept swimming past the key, even when I pressed action. Then one time I got stuck in the wall somehow and had to reload. Even though I lose a health pack with every goon I fight, it seems, I'm glad TR2 isn't like TR1 in having baddies you can't kill. I'm playing TR1 too, and even though I take Stella's advice, Pierre keeps coming after me. Stella's advice is always sound, but it never works for me when it comes to Pierre. I wonder if the games have coded instructions that adapt the game to the player--because I swear Pierre just has it in for me. I shoot at him twice, I run past him, I don't block the exit, I break eye contact--he comes after me when he should run away. I lose two big medipacks with every confrontation before he'll disappear. So I'm glad that, at least so far, TR2 has killable baddies. Another question: Do you think the explosion at the end of Bartoli's Hideout was worth losing a little health in fighting the sniper? I was a little disappointed in it personally. I was thinking I would have been better off just ending the level early. I still lose a lot of flares because I get the sidestep button confused with the flare button--and it is particularly bad because it is different from TR1, which I'm also playing at the moment. TR1, R1 and R2 both sidestep. In TR2, it is...R2 + D-pad right or left (I think). And I almost saved a game rather than load it, but I caught myself in time. Then I remembered just in time to make a copy to my other disk, but to make sure the disk in memory slot 1 was the one I had just used. I initially put the wrong disk in the wrong memory slot, and if I hadn't of caught myself--I would have copied an earlier save and lost my Bartoli level. One of these days, I expect to pee myself. I don't know why I do this. There is a pause button, after all. But often when I'm in a challenging area, I don't want to interrupt myself to go to the bathroom. I'm afraid I'll lose...I don't know what. I tend to make more mistakes, and it is probably because I'm distracted by a full bladder. I'm really enjoying reading all your posts, guys! This is fun! I don't always comment on your posts, but I appreciate them!

I DID IT! (Forgive the all-caps...I'm screaming for joy, not being aggressive). I finished the Venice level, which stumped me last time! Actually, I'm going between euphoria and wanting to give myself a good kick in the butt. I must have been stressed out the last time I played the level, because apparently I wasn't understanding the walkthrough when I was reading it. My reading comprehension can go to zero when I am stressed out. I can't believe it was the walkthrough--since it was Stella's. I didn't realize we were supposed to smash the gondolas. I didn't realize we were supposed to set off the mines. I didn't notice that ramp that went over the gated area. Those were key points! How could I miss those? That is like going through medical school to become a brain surgeon, and somehow never learning that the brain is in the head! Obviously, my brain wasn't in my head the first time I played this game...or it was on a coffee break. I also didn't know about the area with the T-rexes in The Great Wall, and when everybody was talking about it...I was like, "We are playing TR2, right?" Thanks for the map, Stella. I had printed your walkthrough yesterday. I think you've already revised the map from the one I remember, didn't you? I remembered a small map--and this one was big with lots of detail. Of course, if this is the old one...well, obviously I had been high on stupid pills the first time playing this. I still sometimes got turned around, but it wasn't so bad this time. Of course, I couldn't fight the bad guys without using a medipack--even the guys with baseball bats. And driving over that ramp over the gate--now that was totally cool! I did the timed boat thing without cheating--and I'm glad! That was the highlight of the game! So now I am going to print Stella's walkthrough for Bartoli's Hideout. I've never played that! It is like playing a new game! This is so exciting! And I guess it is good to every so often go back to Stella's walkthroughs and see if there are any revisions. You might wind up with a better copy.

Lara's "no" ticked me off when I was playing TR5, and I was trying to sneak up on soldiers to chloroform them. I thought she was in the perfect spot to do it, and she always disagreed with me. I'm going to have to remember to keep active with these old games. I am so proud of myself. I am doing much better controlling Lara with the D-pad...and I don't want to lose my skill. Now the question is, am I good enough to get past the Venice level--which I couldn't get past before? Part of the problem was that I got lost in that level. I think I'll make a map. I also had a hard time maneuvering the boat in those tiny canals. Today, I redid the Great Wall. I got all the secrets and the extra goodies. I rather wished I had tried for the pistols since I do seem to be faster. I have also learned that the jump and roll (where you push look+Jump+forward) is very neat and useful in some situations...but when it comes to speed, regular jumping is just better (I got killed several times in the area with the three blades. Today, I had problems with the rolling wheel blades for some reason, but I did better with everything else. Mrs. T-rex was harder to kill today, but I still keep hearing her roar after she is dead. I am still proud of myself. I am doing much better. I'm completing levels in this game and in TR1 without dying as much and using as many health packs as the first time I played them. Even if I can't finish them, it gives me hope that maybe someday I can improve even more--and one day I will complete them to the end. The old games are more challenging than the new games--particularly since you have to control Lara with the D-pad on PS2. I do wish we could configure the controls back to the joystick. Yet, I like the "story" feel of the new games.

Hey, I think I have come across a buggy sound effect. It doesn't interfere with game play...but it had me cowering in a corner--thinking Stella's walkthrough had neglected to mention a third T-rex...or maybe Mr. T-rex had came back as a zombie T-rex. Anyway, after dispatching Mrs. T-rex, I still continued to hear her roar--even though her carcass was right in front of me. Was this a bug or an echo? Has it happened to anyone else? I finished the first level today, but I want to redo it. I somehow forgot to get the first dragon and want to get it so that I can get the extra goodies at the end when you get all three. Besides, I'm trying to put off the speed boat thing as long as I can. Plus, I don't how many flares I have used because I was hoping to crouch. Have I missed it in the moves, or can Lara not crouch in this game? Couldn't she crouch in TR1? Or am I confused because I've recently played TR5, and I've went back to earlier games?

Is it my imagination, or does it take way too many bullets to kill those damn spiders? They're spiders! I think I use more ammo killing them than I do tigers! Of course, I have heard that insects in other countries are bigger and meaner than they are in the States--an Australian on my literature forum showed us some pictures of spiders that were big enough to chase humans with wadded up newspapers. Still, I'm beginning to wonder if Lara is as good of a shot as we have been lead to believe. I think Eidos needs to add a can of insect repellant to her arsenal. I just started the game--though it seems I've already fallen behind. Last time, I couldn't get pass the Venice level with the timed boat ride. However, I am a little better of a player, so I am hoping I can beat it this time. TR2 didn't grab my attention like some of the other games. I think, the first time I played it, just as I was getting into it, I got stuck...which was tragic. The beginning is amusing. "Okay, I'm obviously older--but you go on ahead and stick the sword into that thingy over there...and if you get vaporized, I'll have plenty of time to high-tail out of here. That is how I got this old to begin with...though I have lost a lot of people this way." I played Croft Manor to get accustomed to anything new. I didn't realize I could sidestep in TR1 until I reviewed the moves again. What I do love about TR2, though, is that I can save any time I want! No more save crystals! I often don't try optional challenges in TR1 because just getting through the game to the next save crystal is tiring enough. I much prefer being able to save when I want. And save crystals are rarely placed practically. Often, you come across two or three close together--and then there is a huge part you have to play until you get to another. LOL--and Winston does suffer from flatulence. I remember reading that on a Facebook site, and I didn't recall that. I remember Winston being very old, but then I heard the extra sounds last night while playing. Poor Winston!

Hi, Stella. It's Jessica, in my mysterious identity...a misnomer, since I'm hardly mute to conversations. Anyway, looking forward to it! I may get stuck and have to drop out. I am playing better, though. I'm playing TR1 at the moment, and I don't use as many health packs and am completing things easier. I even managed to do a time run that I couldn't do before--the one in the Colosseum where you have to leap on top of the pillars and get to the door. Now I am doing that pillars of fire part. I'm trying to do it without cheating--which I did last time. For AnAustralianCitizen, if he is playing on a computer, I believe that some of the tombraider sites have downloads. Doesn't tombraiderchronicles have one? I don't want to give false hope, but I was certain I had ran into downloads for the game on one of the tombraider sites. I had been looking for downloads myself at the time, but in my case it didn't work out because they were all for XP--and I have Vista. Oh, anybody that is new to this site (like me), when you edit your profile...you need to choose your gender twice on the page--I just looked over and noticed that I was listed as a male and had to go fix it.

Hello. I heard about this place from Stella Lune's Facebook page. I registered mainly because I hope to participate in the gameplay she is planning. I really like your music player thingy, though. I thought TR: Underworld had the best soundtrack, but I like the original TR1 music too. Anyway, nice to meet you!