Tomb Raider: Legend

"Surprisingly Good"

Anyone who played the PlayStation console for any decent amount of time played Tomb Raider. I can almost promise that. Great, interesting , fun game. I'll never forget the first time I saw that darn bear on the opening level. Scared the be-jesus out of me. And the tigers in the opening level of Tomb Raider 2... Good times. Unfortunately, the games after that point were sub-par to say the least -- and we won't talk about Angel of Darkness.
Needless to say, I was looking forward to a new incarnation of the series, and with Crystal Dynamics (Legacy of Kain franchise), a favorite PlayStation developer of mine, holding the reigns there was a lot to be excited about. Of course, there were the ambivalent feelings that one always has when one hears or reads the word "innovation" too much. Nine times out of ten, unless you're Nintendo, "innovation" means "gimmick." Up to now, I had one pseudo-word hit my head when somebody brought up Tomb Raider: Legend:

"Eh..."

Well, now it's out, and now I've played it. All I have to say is, "It doesn't suck! Yay!" I mean that in the nicest sense possible, as the game is genuinely good. I came into it with one request on my lips, though. Please, please, please don't suck...

Graphics: 7/10

The first thing you'll notice is the environments. Very pretty, very exotic, and very detailed. There are no complaints coming from my mouth (or fingers) as far as that goes. I often find myself just standing on top of a ledge looking around me, be it a dark jungle, an ancient tomb, or an urban playground.

Once you get past that, however, you'll notice the character models. Of course, in most gameplay situations it's not that bad, as you really only see Lara's back. But when you get to the action, you begin to notice how every enemy looks exactly like the enemy you just killed five minutes ago. The mercenaries aren't so bad, because they're masked... But the unmasked enemies are apparently the product of some kind of raging trend in having septuplets. Plus, the animals look as though they've been wrapped in plastic. You can't really fault Crystal Dynamics for that, though -- it seems to be a trend in graphic design for the new generation to take character models, make them shiny, and call them next gen.

The main character models are probably the biggest drawback. They were clearly ported, polished a bit, and set free. Lara looks a lot better than she did in previous incarnations, but I would have liked her a bit better if it didn't seem as though her hair had been styled by a 1976 club hopper (see: "way too much gel"). Put aside that, though, and take the time to notice how fluid her movements are. She's animated very well, even if she isn't designed that well.

Sound: 7/10

I'll start with the music. On first listen, it's very appropriate. However, after a while, you begin to notice that the music is a bit TOO appropriate. In other words, it's the same style of music that's been used a thousand times in similar situations. It does sound really good, though, coming through surround sound. No real complaints if you ignore the triteness.

The sound effects suffer a bit from cloning, specifically the guns. Is it really that hard to make a shotgun sound different form a pistol? Instead, it just sounds louder. Eh, oh well. This will only bother the biggest nit-picker.

The voice acting, though not stellar, is relatively good when compared to other video games. What I mean to say is that, though no awards will be received, the game doesn't grate my nerves with every word spoken. Plus, the jokes heard over Lara's headset (product placement? I can't recognize the earpiece, but it must be...) are pretty funny in a not-funny kind of way. I'm a big fan of anti-humor.

Controls and Gameplay: 9/10

I'm not sure if the game on a larger scale really deserves this, but I cannot begin to explain just how much an improvement the controls are within the franchise. My only real complaint is that I'd like a fully free camera instead of the restricted free one. Plus, pushing stuff is unnecessarily difficult.

This game borrowed a lot from modern platformers. The platforming is much more fluid than the previous "jump. stop. jump. stop." formula. Instead, it strings together a lot of techniques that really leave you feeling like you're doing some virtual rock-climbing. They've also added a couple moves to Lara's acrobatic book, a la Prince of Persia. They kept it realistic though, leaving wall running to the ninja. One thing I did notice, however, is that the ledges you can grab onto must be specified within the games code. There are some ledges Lara simply will not grab, no matter what, closing the door for any nifty cookies.

One major complaint I have, and this may just be me being spoiled by PC FPSs, is the lack of quick saves... Nothing sucks more than spending what feels like a million years ascending a ledge, falling, and having to start over. They compensated a bit with a checkpoint feature. This is nice, but it seems to happen really often when you don't really need it, and not often enough when you do.

The combat system could use a little tweaking. Compared to the platforming, the viscosity of it is just way too sticky. I'll relate it to a person who suddenly gains 100 pounds. It is a bit better than the old one, though.

Story and Cinematics: 7/10

Relatively, this is a pretty solid storyline. There aren't any glaringly obnoxious characters, nobody really stands out as bad. In the video game world, this is easily one of the better ones.

However, in the larger scheme of things, this isn't that great. It's essentially just an Indiana Jones-esque, supernatural hunt for some kind of wild artifact. Nothing you haven't seen a million times before on the big screen or, heck, on the History Channel.

I'm about to do something that isn't done often enough in reviews -- critique the direction of the cut scenes. Anybody who watched movies regularly knows just how important good directing is. That, and the screenplay, is what makes or breaks a movie.

One thing that video games like to do that make me want to yell at the cinematic directors is that they do things with the "camera" that are impossible to do in real life seemingly just because they can. It's a hard thing to explain, but if you go and play Ninja Gaiden (XBOX), or some other pretty action game, you'll know what I'm talking about. It's just wild, gratuitous directing decisions.

That said, Tomb Raider: Legend strays form that in a refreshing way. Sure, there are some over-the-top scenes, but nothing we haven't seen in big-budget, Hollywood action flicks. I do feel like the "camera" cuts a little too much to increase the action, which gives some cut-scenes a bit of an overdramatic flair, but I suppose the entire concept of Tomb Raider is a bit overdramatic.

Replayability: 7/10

I suppose this really depends on how much you, personally, enjoy the game. There aren't any extra levels or anything, but there are quite a few unlockables. It just comes down to whether or not you feel like playing through some of the levels again. Which you will have to do. A lot. It doesn't bother me one bit, because I've done more tedious things in the past (such as the lightning dodge mini-game in Final Fantasy X) to unlock something that I really didn't need. So, I suppose it comes down to your patience.

Let's just say that if you went through and got everything in Shadow of the Colossus, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker (or any Zelda game, for that matter), or Rogue Squadron II, you should be fine. I'm not promising fun, but there's plenty of time to be spent if you're looking to unlock everything.

Overall: 8/10

I fudged my average a little bit simply because, despite the drawbacks of this game, I had a lot of fun with it. It's not a long game, so it should keep most people's interest.

I liked it. The End.

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 05/24/06, Updated 05/25/06