Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation

"Little new, but still the best in the series"

Lara Croft has head off to Egypt in search of a mythical artefact belonging to the Egyptian god Set. Upon finding it however, she unwittingly awakens the dormant gods' malevolent spirit and sets in motion a chain of events which could end in the destruction of planet earth. Oops. Also not helping matters is the fact that her thought-to-be-dead mentor Von Cruy is back and is trying to kill her and get the artefact for himself. So with time running out, a tomb raider's gotta do what a tomb raiders gotta do...

So here we have the first of two Tomb Raider outings which appeared on the Dreamcast. Following the crushingly tough TR3, Tomb Raider 4 sees the gameplay shift back towards the emphasis of adventuring over action dynamic that appeared in the original game. Also rather than going round the world, the whole adventure takes place in Egypt. By using these two features, Core have made Tomb Raider 4 a far more cohesive and if anything, more cinematic title than any of its predecessors. Once again the use of vehicles is an important gameplay element, with several levels made up entirely of driving jeeps across sand dunes and through ancient ruins. As always sadly, the controls can be frustrating, with many untimely deaths and smashed controllers being likely to occur (in that order). However, mercifully, you can save any time and anywhere, again much like the PC version of the original.

In spite of much of the game emphasising on the more platform and exploration based elements of gameplay, there's still a fair bit of blasting to do. As well as the usual bats and crocodiles, there's Anubis like wolves and scorpions. Also, it has to be said that the ante has been well and truly upped on the human enemy front. They duck and dodge like never before and at times you'll feel like you're actually fighting real human opposition, which is very impressive indeed.

Graphically, whilst not up to the level of the PS to DC conversion of Soul Reaver, this is still the prettiest Tomb Raider to date (at least until Angel of Darkness finally comes out). There are some glitches and the occassional drop in frame rate in the larger areas, but the lighting effects are stunning - just try lighting a flare in a darkened room! - and the textures are all very high resolution and well designed. Another point to note is the FMV - these CGI sequences are absolutely stunning and really add to the mood of the game. Sonically, the music whilst occassional to the extreme, is very good and the ambient noises and enemy sounds are handedly more than adequately.

It also must be said that this game is huge. With 50 odd large levels, this will last you a long time. Whilst there is little replayability, there are at least pictures to be unlocked in the Gallery as you go along. Despite the fact that the Tomb Raider series as long since been villified as being everything that's wrong with gaming, this is a remarkably solid adventure. The balance of gameplay elements is just right and whilst little new ground has been covered, it does its job incredibly well. Easily the most fulfilling Tomb Raider to date, Tomb Raider 4 hones all the elements and at least most of the criticisms of previous outings to create a huge and intricate adventure. Many may sneer at a good review of a Tomb Raider game, but there's no denying this is a great game.

GRAPHICS - 7/10 - The odd glitch and bit of slowdown and hardly the most awe-inspiring conversion ever made, but huge and intricate environments and great lighting effects up the score.

SOUND - 8/10 - The voice acting is a bit iffy at times, but the score and sound effects are all suitably cinematic.

GAMEPLAY - 8/10 - The same only different - the same frustrating controls apply, but the mixture of action and adventure has finally been got just right.

LIFESPAN - 7/10 - A big big game, but once you've completed it, you're unlikely to go back for a long time.

OVERALL - 8/10 - Love it or hate it, this is the best Tomb Raider game there is. The formula hasn't been changed a lot, but this time they've got it just right. A solid and enjoyable adventure, if ever there was one.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/04/03, Updated 01/04/03