The New Direction of Tomb Raider

I say "new direction" loosely, because the two points I'm about to bring up aren't necessarily how the franchise is going to move forward. Rather, it's how I view the current and previous DLC offerings Eidos has released for Tomb Raider: Underworld.

Beneath the Ashes was the first bit of DLC, and it was basically a level from the game, in both scope and gameplay. If you've played any of the recent Tomb Raider games, then you'll know what to expect. It didn't really bring anything new to the table, but I enjoyed it a lot, and even played through it a few times. Now this is where Lara's Shadow comes in.

Lara's Shadow is the latest release, and wow - it totally changes the dynamics of Tomb Raider. For once, I actually enjoyed the combat. So far, combat has been the one glaring weak point in the revamped series, since all it requires is circle strafing and holding down the right trigger. Not so in Lara's Shadow. Since you're playing as Lara's doppelganger, her abilities are quite a significant upgrade in every sense. She has special moves that stagger even the biggest enemies Underworld pitted against you, and firing weapons receives a much needed boost. These abilities are: a super punch capable of breaking enemies into pieces, a jump kick that serves to knock down any enemies in its range, and a slow-motion weapon firing mode that lets you pump about three times more bullets into your target than normal. All these are very, very welcome, and fun to play around with. Add to all of this the super-human platforming, and it almost feels like a totally different game.

Now, on to my two points:

1) I think DLC like these are totally the way to go from now on. Keep releasing DLC with similar-sized content, and give the next full Lara game at least three years of development. In the meantime, if Eidos were to release these episodes about four times a year (roughly every three months), people like me could get my Tomb Raider fix, while still knowing a brand-new adventure was in the works.

2) Experiment more with new gameplay. Lara's Shadow is an excellent first step, and by breathing new life into an already solid formula, Eidos has piqued my interest even moreso than it already was (it was really, really high).

These are the two things I hope Eidos focuses on, instead of releasing a better-looking game that largely does the same thing the last two did. Sure, there were improvements made in Underworld, and yes, I thought the game was awesome. But now, after getting a glimpse of what could happen, I simply can't see them doing the same old shit again and again. If they do, I'll probably still enjoy the game, but the obviousness of a missed opportunity won't be far back in my mind. Another thing I should mention is the pricing. At least for the first two DLC installments, the price tag is $10.00. I think cutting that in half would be about right, but at the same time, I didn't have any reservations getting either one. Lara's Shadow, in particular, gave me my money's worth. If they want to keep the current price, Eidos should look at extending the levels by about a third. Still, what's there is good enough, and I'm not really complaining. Here's to hoping Eidos is reading this and appreciates my analysis enough to hire me as a consultant.


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Crystal Dynamics staff cut by 30 members; makes interesting companion piece...

...to my previous post. If you were to look at these two posts, the stories wouldn't correlate. The Crystal Dynamics news is pretty much the exact opposite of everything I just said. I still hold fast to my opinion that the safer the product, the more sales you'll see, but this bit of news makes me wonder -- with a very sad panda face -- just what the hell is wrong with people?


I mean, seriously. What the fuck is wrong with people? Tomb Raider did exactly what conservative people would have you believe was the smart thing to do; they made the same game, with some added improvements. Now let me just say that I love the revamped Tomb Raider series, blemishes and all. It's some of the best platforming you could ask for, and a story you could definitely ask better of. Who really gives a shit what's going on in a Tomb Raider game? Surely, not I. I know she's usually looking for some artifact that has to do with her mum, daddy, Amanda or that crazy winged bitch. Yea, whatever. That next jump looks pretty tough, so I gotta go.


My main concern here, however, is that the game underperformed. Is it because the story is finally getting old with this franchise? Are they not innovating enough within the platforming genre? Is the world not believable enough in these scrutinizing modern times? Or are you bastards just looking a gift horse in the mouth? I think the answer is a little bit of everything.


Using Uncharted as a reference point, the story and characters of Tomb Raider are utter shit. I don't think anyone would argue that point, however heart breaking it might be. Nathan Drake is a much more believable character; he seems like an actual human being, not some super hero who can do back flips on motorcycles using nigh but their sexy yet well built calf muscles. At the same time, I don't mind the stupidity of Tomb Raider. Call me a hypocrite, an idiot, or a boob-starer if you must, but I can't help it. Yes, everything about Uncharted(except the platforming) is technically better than Tomb Raider, but I can't quit the old girl just yet. Now, you people need to get on board with me. Pretty please? Read more...