Tomb Raider 8

Lara Croft's next crusade pushes adventure gameplay-not just graphics-to new levels

When the Tomb Raider franchise was snatched away (or possibly rescued) from the series creators Core Design and delivered into the eager hands of Crystal Dynamics, it required a near-complete overhaul. Fresh off a series of successful Legacy of Kain titles, Crystal Dynamics then delivered the goods with the superb Tomb Raider: Legend. The team succeeded in updating iconic heroine Lara Croft's looks and delivering a blend of imaginative puzzles, solid combat, much-need control changes, and a damned fine story. Many of the gameplay improvements-including some new mechanics-found their way into last years PS2 redux of the very first game in the series. Building on this solid foundation, we're expecting the evolution on to the PS3 to be so much more than a prettier version of Legend.

The Story So Far

Still tentatively titled Tomb Raider 8, the development team confirmed that it is set after the events of Tomb Raider: Legend, but doesn't necessarily run with or tie up any unresolved plot threads from that game. What we do know is that, contrary to intarwebz speculation, the game is not titled Tomb Raider: Underworld and that, while mysteries of the Mayan calendar and belief in an underworld ruled by the dead are part of the game, that's definitely not the extent of the adventure. In fact, Lara will be traveling around the globe once again, handling the mythologies of her destinations, and connecting them to a larger, still top-secret, overall story. As a tease, the team promised that Lara will be going to one location that will have players saying "They really did that?!" We pushed for more, but could only get them to divulge that it's somewhere Lara would go if she could, and that it requires the might of the latest technology to pull off. Atlantis? Space? What's your best guess?

Love at First Sight

As the massive HD panel being used for our hands-off demo powered-up, we got our first glimpse of the new Lara; standing in dense jungle with ruins in the distance, rainwater ran down her clearly more detailed body. While many of the tweaks made to her appearance since Legend are subtle, they add up to a Lara that is the closest to looking like a real woman yet, and conveys the character's athleticism better than ever.

As our tour guides were quick to point out, Lara's moves have been freshly motion-captured for her eighth outing, hand tweaked, and joined with an advanced animation blending system akin to that used in Uncharted: Drakes Fortune. So not only to her moves look more natural, they flow together just as you'ld expect from a real person. It goes as far as her pushing foliage aside with both hands as she passes through it, or only one if she's carrying something. The enemies she'll encounter have also benefited from the new animation approach; in this case, we witnessed her fighting poachers and panthers.

Speaking of Fighting

Among the many new mechanics introduced in Legend were Lara's close-quarters moves: launching off enemies' bodies, kicking them into the air, and just plain kicking them...below the belt. Moves of that sort will return, but she'll be able to employ some equally cool new tactics in battle. For one, she can target two enemies at once while using her trademark dual pistols, or any pair of one-handed weapons. She can also pick up objects (a pole in our demo) and club enemies...or throw it as a spear. More exciting yet, combat is being much more tightly intergrated into the platformer elements, which is getting a boost as well. For instance, she'll be able to dual-target while perched on a balance beam, and use a free hand to shoot enemies above and below while climbing-even on vertical columns.

About That Platforming

Much of the evolution in play mechanics we've witnessed thus far has to do with Lara's acrobatic traversal of levels. The game's creators have a simple design philosophy: "Would Lara be able to do this, given her skills?" So we now have free climbing where there are hand holds on walls, no-jump gaps where she simply reaches to the other side with one hand and pops over, jumping off and onto corners, climbing into a perch atop pillars, and the ability to not just swing from horizontal bars and poles, but also to pull up and stand on them as platforms to jump from.

We've mentioned picking up objects as weapons... but those objects will often factor into platforming. The stick that could be swung or thrown? It can also be planted into a hole in the wall to create a makeshift swing pole in order to reach an otherwise inaccessible next area.

One of our favorite additions in Legend-Lara's grapple line- is back, and more useful. One puzzle-solving example we saw involved using leverage to force a block off the top of a pillar and through a breakable floor.

Shooting the grapple to a pole on the opposite side of the block, and moving Lara to the far right of the long platform she was on until line tension sends the stone cube sliding off.

Oh yes... sliding. It was very rainy outside the Mayan ruins that made up the demo level. As the buildings were ruins, rain poured inside, sheeting down walls and across ledges Lara would need to traverse. As expected, she could jump and grab them, but would quickly slip off if not for a quick button press to secure her grip.

The Bike is Back

It had its own level in Legend, now Lara's motorcycle is set to play a more significant role in her latest adventure. It's now a tool in her adventuring arsenal that she'll frequently use to leap chasms and traps on the way to tombs of the raiding variety. We got a taste of what to expect after Lara solved a puzzle involving the five "missing" days from the Mayan calendar (it only had 360) and opened the gateway to the underworld. She couldn't possibly get to it fast enough on foot before it resealed, so, while totally under our control, she dashed for the bike and tore down a previously traversed path littered with pits and traps. As she rocketed down the ramp and through the gate, an in-engine cinema kicked in, revealing what was at the end of the ramp (and our demo)-a spike pit. Fortunately for Lara, and everyone eagerly awaiting her return in 2008, she slid to a stop, and we were left asking when we could see more of what is sure to be one of the PS3's biggest games this year.

Randy Nelson

PSM

Thanks to Gia for typing the article

Every time i read it, i get more more EXCITED!!!!!

The whole "Fighting" paragraph has me totally enthralled already, especially the idea of being able to shoot 2 enemies at once, not to mention being able to use 2 different weapons!!

Sounds to me like they have made her about as "life-like" as possible without her actually coming through the TV/Computer screen, lol......

I SIMPLY CAN"T WAIT!!

Thanks for the info Tom & for typing it Gia

Thanks Gia & Tom.

I really hate that everyone compares TR:U to "Uncharted"; they're honestly worlds apart. Uncharted's more of a shooter with adventure elements and TR:U (and TR in general) is an adventure with shooting elements. But that's not what the thread's about.

Didn't AoD use motion capturing, too? Of course, I think everyone just ignores AoD....

Of course, AoD probably didn't have an Olympic Gymnast doing the motion capturing*.

*: Source

Footage of Olympic gymnast Heidi Moneymaker, the woman doing Lara's motion-capture in TR:U

I won't mention how "Moneymaker" is the most absurd last name ever....

Edited January 23, 200818 yr by VonCroyJr.

I saw this (or one very similar) on gamer tv recently. It really does look amazing. I saw the demo that is mentioned in the above review...I am so beyond excited. They have made it so realistic.