Review by Richard Brindley
Name:         Tomb Raider
Publisher:    Eidos Interactive
Format:       CD
Available:    Now

Requires:

O/S:          DOS 5.0+
Processor:    Pentium 60Mhz (Pentium 90Mhz strongly recommended)
RAM:          8MB+
Graphics:     VGA (SVGA Vesa Local Bus recommended)
CD-Rom:       Double Speed
Soundcard:    All major cards supported

Tested on:

O/S:          Windows 95 (DOS 7.0)
Processor:    Pentium Pro 200MHz
RAM:          256Mb
Graphics:     8Mb Matrox Millenium + Orchid Righteous 3D
CD-ROM:       Toshiba SCSI 12 Speed
Soundcard:    Soundblaster AWE32 + Yamaha DBXG50
Controls:     Keyboard / MS Sidewinder Pro Gamepad

Women just aren't built that way, and that the sort of big-breasted, wide-hipped, narrow -waisted super-vixens so loved by the male-dominated fantasy and game-playing fraternities just don't exist in real life.

She obviously hasn't met Lara Croft. There's a girl you wouldn't mind taking home to mother. It has to be said that if there's one thing sadder than post-pubescent ageing men spending hours ogling the tight little backside of Eidos Interactive's latest starlet, it's people who just don't get the joke. I mean, that's a woman who's beating the shit out of those gun-toting he-men, there. You should be pleased that there's finally a game on the market where a woman is playing a serious role which doesn't rely on her stripping off, baring all in the shower while the psychotic killer is creeping up the stairs, or going down on Michael Douglas.

She has got a great butt, though.

Founded in 1988 by Jeremy Smith, Core's success has depended on the development of high-quality, award winning games. Early hits include Rick Dangerous and Corporation. I personally thought that their last effort, Shellshock, was a great disappointment, but they've more than made up for it with Tomb Raider, which has been developed for PlayStation, Saturn and PC simultaneously, and incorporates both action and adventure elements to provide superior and addictive gameplay. The superb graphics and fully rendered 3D environments insure this game will provide a complete gaming experience unlike most games currently available. Tomb Raider is the culmination of a total of 18 months of solid effort on the part of Core's team of nine artists and programmers.

The Storyline

Lara Croft has just returned from a hunting trip in the Himalayas where, having bagged a 12-foot tall yeti, she's itching for a new challenge. While enjoying a little R & R, she's contacted by Jacqueline Natla, a conniving businesswoman who convinces Lara to recover a mysterious artefact from the tomb of Qualopec in Peru.

Wasting no time, Lara sets out on her quest to find one of the three pieces of the ancient Atlantean Scion, a talisman of incredible power. After discovering the fragment things get ugly, Lara finds herself face to face with one of Natla's hired goons. Using her cunning wits and athletic strength, Lara escapes!

As she delves into the reasons why Natla would double cross her, she uncovers a mystery that reaches back before the dawn of recorded time to the treachery that destroyed the Atlantean civilisation and the disasters that struck the world when it fell.

So what sort of game is Tomb Raider, then? "I want a platform game, but I want 3D graphics, a decent plot-line, exciting action, and a look at a fit bird's backside." "But that's four games". Not with Tomb Raider, it's not.

Take the skilful gameplay of Prince of Persia, add the stunning graphics of Myst, throw in a dash of hi-res 3D action such as Magic Carpet, and the fast-moving cinematography of Ecstatica, and you come close what has become known as "The Tomb Raider Experience". Eidos have created a game with all of your favourite elements thrown into one marvellously crafted package. The game rambles through 15 separate levels within 4 "lost worlds":

Each level is extremely well thought out, with excellent level design and superb graphics. One of the great things about Tomb Raider is that you never know what's going to be around the next corner.

It's a Mystery to Me

Graphically, the game is fantastic. The game can either be played in standard VGA resolution for those mere mortals who have a Pentium 60 or below, and a 640 x 480 x 256 colour SVGA version for those of us who like our systems fast. For those of you with one of the new wave of 3D graphics accelerators, there is both a 3Dfx version (as found on the Orchid Righteous 3D card and the Diamond Monster 3D card), and a Rendition version (the chipset used on the Creative Labs 3D Blaster). These provide 640 x 480 x 16-bit colour, with all of the graphics work being taken off the CPU by the 3D accelerator chipset. The net result is not only do you get a much more colourful environment, but you lose all the "jaggedness" which you see on 256 colour games. This means that we can finally see on a PC something that looks better than an arcade machine, and not before time. There are some fantastic cut-scenes which are not only a great introduction to the next level, but also often contain vital clues on how to complete a scenario. Sufficient time and money has been spent on the storyline and dialogue to ensure that you don't get any dull "can we get this cut scene over so we can get on with the game" moments which seem to litter other 3D games nowadays. Moreover, such attention to detail in the movement of the animals and other monsters in the game, and in the use of realistic water currents, gravity effects, and so on is evident that you start anticipating what's going to happen next. One fantastic level is set in a lost valley of the dinosaurs, complete with rope bridges and Raptors, and the "Oh shiiiiiiiiittt" factor when the T-Rex comes round the corner has to be experienced to be believed. Waterfalls, tidal pools, storm drains and Roman baths are all present in the underwater elements of the game, and are all extremely realistic. Some puzzle elements involve pushing or pulling stone slabs, and the quality of the character animation is fantastic.

Oh it's a Mystery, it's a Mystery

So what can we do with our heroine Lara, then? No, you can't do that, but you can do a lot. The game is based around a third-person perspective "flying camera" view of Lara's backsi... er back. This camera system follows you at a distance while you are running, gets closer when you're staying still, and sort of leans around corners. In addition, it gives you some important visual clues when you are moving around the place; at one point Lara hears the sound of bats' wings. What would you do? Look up? That's exactly what Lara does. In addition to the default camera view, you can slide into Lara (figuratively speaking) to take over a first-person perspective view. This is an essential feature for when you want to have a look around, up, or down, to see where the next place to jump to is, or where the next hidden switch is. The combination of the keypad '0' key and the cursor keys allow a pretty much 180-degree field of vision in these circumstances.

You have various ways of moving. The default mode is to jog alluringly along; a press of the shift key later, and you're edging your way to the edge of the sheer precipice in front of you. You can pull yourself up to high ledges with an elegant chin-up motion, jump forward, backflip, and somersault from side to side. There's a quick front-roll turn around move, and a fall off but hold on move which is very useful in those situations where that extra 6-foot drop might do you some serious damage. On addition, there are side step and step back movements, all easily placed around the movement keys (which are, naturally enough all user-definable). All of these movements can also be controlled using a joystick (but I wouldn't bother - your big wobbly stick is just not sensitive enough for Lara's needs), or a gamepad. The Microsoft Sidewinder Pro gamepad is particularly good for this game.

A Shot in the Dark

You have access to all sorts of weapons in Tomb Raider, from the twin pistols which you start off with, through the inevitable shotgun, magnums, and the Uzi machine pistol. A quick tap of the space bar and the selected weapon is ready to be discharged. The control system for combat is quite unlike anything I've seen before, but exceedingly effective. As soon as you have drawn your weapon, you are auto-targeted on the nearest enemy/monster/attacker, and remain targeted on that attacker while you are shooting. The camera viewpoint also changes at this juncture to give you a clear birds-eye view of the target which Lara is shooting at. As soon as you stop firing, the next nearest attacker is auto-targeted, and so on. This is particularly useful, as it means that you can use severe evasion tactics while still targeted on one attacker, without having to line up crosshairs or suchlike. And boy, do you need it! When you're being attacked by a pack of ravenous wolves, the ability to run, jump, roll, and backflip whilst still targeted and firing really helps to keep down on the injuries.

The pistols are of the unlimited ammo kind (you wondered where all those bumps had come from), but all of the other weapons require ammunition. Unlike most shoot-em-up games, the ammo for these extra weapons is generally in secret areas rather than just lying around the place. There are various places which are almost inaccessible unless you really practice the full range of movements with .. er, that Lara's capable of, so practice, as they say makes perfect.

In order to make sure you are capable of the full range of movement as it were, there is a full trainer scenario for you to play with as long as you like, based in Lara's mansion. She has converted the ballroom into a gymnasium, where you are led through each of the available moves from "Let's try some tumbling", the gymnastic kind, of course, to "I don't always run everywhere" (I sometimes just stand around panting). Lara then takes you through the wall-scaling excercises, and finishes off with a session in the pool, where you learn to dive and swim. The water sequences are where the 3D graphic accelerators come into their own - they do a superb job of the reflection and refraction that are a natural part of any underwater activity. At the end of this sequence, Lara tells you "I really must get out of these wet clothes now". Sadly, the game is "U" rated....

So is it any good, then?

What, are you deaf?

The score would have to start at 9/10 for the standard VGA version, with an extra half-point per extra graphic resolution. When you get up to the 3Dfx and Rendition versions, the game scores so close to 10/10 that it's frightening. The only thing that lets it down is that the graphics are sometimes a bit buggy. There are occasional (well, not that occasional) times when the floor isn't where it's supposed to be, or you stop with your head stuck into the ceiling, and this I feel this detracts from the gameplay enough to make it worth a red mark. If you imagine that no one is ever going to release a game that's so perfect that it gets 10/10, the most I can award is 9/10. So sue me. And while you're at it, get yourself a 3D accelerator!

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Rating: 9/10 (Classic - Must Buy!)
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