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Tomb Raider Review

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  • Is it wrong that I was more disturbed by the fact that he's holding a red saber and yelling "I'm a jedi!" than his state of undress?  Probably.

    Anyway, the funniest part of that Conan O'Biren video was the repeated deaths at the end and him freaking out.  I think its nice that a mainstream source like his treats games respectfully, and he's often very funny. (he called Whiterun in Skyrim a racist town)  But what I like the most is that he claims that he doesn't actually know anything about games and that he doesn't even really like them, but there are moments when he sounds very astute, even in a joke like his reaction to Lara's "I hate tombs."  And he never gives a game his fictitious 'bad' score either.  I think its just proof that the show is a sign of respect for the medium.

    So far with Tomb Raider, I'm loving the idea of that cover system, which is something I want to see implemented into a proper stealth game.  Just imagine being able to organically move around the environment without worrying about pressing 'X' (or 'A' Xboxers) to enter cover and protect yourself.  But I'm worried about how her morality is conveyed; is her personal journey from timid girl to battle-ready woman just a case of *1st kill -> vomit -> kill 100 men*?  We can have a character like Drake kill guys from left to right without remorse and still have no problem with it, but as soon as you put a spotlight on the morality of killing, you better do it perfectly because otherwise you just gave us something new to criticise (deservedly).  Her line played in the Rev3's review, "run you bastards! I'm coming for you all!" is of particular heartless concern, unless its been taken far out of context.  Although it does appear to take place where her reported 1st kill happens...    

  • Its kind of a risk taking a character and making them so that they never killed or don't have experience, and than turning them into a survivor without dragging on the beginning of the game for hours. With Uncharted you can say that Drake has been getting shot at for years and he has been forced to kill a countless number of time so it no longer bothers him. Remember chapter 2 of Uncharted 3 which should that he's been on his own and surviving as a kid. (Great, now you got me talking about Uncharted, I could on and on forever) The point is, with this Tomb Raider you can't say, "Oh, Lara has been doing this for years so of course she isn't bothered." We are going to control Lara as she makes her first kill and see her transform. Its a big risk because, again, they can't take too much time and slowly develop her into a killer.

    Its just like what Ubisoft did with Far Cry 3. In past FC games you play as people with a background experience in the field. In Far Cry 3, Jason is just some dudebro who has never picked up a gun. He starts off scared to death but after he is forced to kill he slowly becomes use to killing people. However, he changes from scared little dudebro into bona fide solider pretty quick. Some people probably critique that he changed so fast and that its kind of ridiculous. However however, the game did do a good job of really showing him lose his sanity. I really liked one of his lines that he says to himself: "I've killed so many people, I lost count. I can't come back from this. I'm a monster. I can feel the anger inside me, but I am still...somewhere inside me, more than that. Better than that."  

    I don't think Lara will be losing her sanity because she is fighting for just survival and not in an illegal war like in FC3. But I'm more than excited to see Lara transform throughout her journey.


  • You bring up great points.  I still need to get Far Cry 3 but I can understand what you're saying.  Its really something you have to play for yourself and judge on your own, because like you said with FC3, some thought it was too sudden while others felt it was great.

  • Also worth throwing out there... that thing I said I was going to write about Tomb Raider? It's done: www.newbcastgaming.com/.../a-survivors-take-on-tomb-raider-and-the-controversy-that-will-not-die

  • Well people its almost here. So lock your doors and hold down the fort...Oh sorry, I was talking about something else. In other news, Tomb Raider is out tomorrow...or tonight for you vampires who are out at midnight. Someone should make sure deck's okay, with the amount of excitement he has for this game he might be losing his mind. (its a gaming thing) Anyway, who plans on getting it?


  • I can't believe this is finally less than 24 hours away. Gonna marathon the hell out of this game tomorrow.

  • Game stop will be open when I get off work, going straight there to pick up my copy!

  • I am very much loving this game! I'm sorry I ever doubted you Lara. My only issue is the multiplayer. Most reviews said it was "lackluster" but I think that's being too nice. The multiplayer is awful, I suggest that you avoid it like a plague. There is a lag every time you fire a gun for crying out loud. Other than that, this game is FAR better than I thought it was going to be!


  • Great to hear J.  You know my concerns with it, so if you can mosey on over somewhere now and again to clear things up from your point of view, I'll be a very happy potential 'Raider. :)

  • So...how many people got it? Is it worth the wait?

    My copy won't get here 'til the 12th. Ordering online is the pits...

  • I finished it this past Friday, and the single player is a fantastic experience. It does fall victim to a few video game tropes of its own, but it's still a great story to play through, and by GOD do I love what they've done with reinventing Lara. I can't imagine that they're not already discussing a sequel based on all the positive news I've seen.

  • I saw this and thought you guys might enjoy it. Tomb Raider: The Musical. I don't know if I'll ever be able to think of the new Tomb Raider without getting this song in my head.

  • I finally wrote up an actual review, if you're interested.


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