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Tomb Raider Review Thread!

T

toastyToast

Member
strafer said:
laraxxu4e.gif
Click to expand...

Someone needs to replace her face with the NeoGAF logo :lol
 
R

rvy

Banned
I like how the GT review hardly praises the game but gives it an 8.5

lel, gaming journalism. Will try to find Underworld on eBay.
 
EdwardTivrusky

EdwardTivrusky

Member
Relaxed Muscle said:
Whatever the scores are, the reviews confirm the fears a lot of us had with the game.

I'll get the game for cheap but this game definetly kill the Tomb Raider games as we know it.
Click to expand...

I'm hoping it will sell well enough that they give us an old-school Lara game in the future.

I know, I know i'm in a dream world and this is what we have for a Lara game from now on but... i can still dream about a Lara game in this engine with proper Tomb Raiding, environmental puzzles and isolation. I can dream.
 
H

Heart Attack

Member
Eurogamer:

"The problem with Tomb Raider is not that it's trying to do something new. The problem is it's trying to do what everyone else is doing.

It succeeds in that aim. The boxes can be ticked, several times over - collectables, upgrade systems, big fat guns, blood and gore, pretty graphics, set pieces, boss battles, cut-scenes where the characters' lip movements almost match what they are saying, multiplayer modes, art galleries, quick-time events, more collectables. All of these tricks are pulled off with competence and polish."

Edge:

"It’s got the kill-confirming XP popup of Call Of Duty; the gentle, optional stealth of an Assassin’s Creed; and Batman’s Detective mode. It’s got the linear, cinematic spectacle of Uncharted, with the narrative fleshed out by audiologs borrowed from BioShock. Platforming is Drake by way of Ezio Auditore, and combat borrows from, well, take your pick"

Rev3:

"incredibly over simplified. They rarely, if ever, extend beyond a single room and even with some of the more involved puzzles, the challenge seems to come more from precisely timed platforming than critical problem solving."

Shacknews:

"In the end, I enjoyed the Tomb Raider ride, but in a B-grade thriller sort of way. A lot of that has to do with the new direction it takes, which skews towards a much different and action-oriented balance of gameplay than its predecessors, and a script that can't quite bear the weight of the story's serious tone. There are a lot of exciting, cinematic moments and action to experience within, even though they come at the expense of the spirit of exploration and environmental puzzling the IP was originally built upon."

Gametrailers:

"A few things about the new Tomb Raider come across as wasted effort. The story of Lara’s transformation is sabotaged by the gameplay, and is frankly a little dorky, with an after-school special style multi-ethnic cast filled by lame sterotypes like angry black woman and scrap-happy Scotsman. Likewise a multiplayer mode, which nobody familiar with Tomb Raider would expect or even think to ask for, is competent but utterly unremarkable and requires underpowered newbies to grind for more effective weapons and perks to level a wonky playing field.

The payoff from this pre-packaged drama and live-target online practice barely amount to the value of a single, raidable tomb, and it’s easy to imagine the resources spent on these being better utlized to bloster the game’s strengths. The road to the triple-A summit hasn’t been reached in a single game, but there’s hope that Lara could reach greater heights in the inevitable sequel."




The game is being rewarded with too many high scores, and the content of each review just doesn't add up to the final score. S-E must have spent a shitload on bribes.
 
S

sleepykyo

Member
shidoshi said:
Here's my review over on EGM. Interesting that some people seem to be saying that the first hour is the worst, when I thought the first hour was the most representative to what I had wanted from the game.



The tomb puzzles are extremely simple.
Click to expand...

I do have one personal beef with the mode: the complete lack of selectable female characters for one of the two factions presented in multiplayer. In a series built around a strong female protagonist, a lack of gender equality in one of its included portions is unacceptable.
Click to expand...

Should the scavenger faction have a female skin?

What did you think of Underworld's Lara?
 
N

Nibel

Member
So there are people who look at numbers and there are people who read the reviews/watch the videos

One of those two groups is a minority
 
C

chickdigger802

Banned
Sounds like gameplay is good. Game seems like an uncharted game designed to address the issues with uncharted games.

Getting it free with my new ati card, glad it's ok.

Would gaf like this more if it didn't have the Lara croft name and pretended to have a good emotional story?
 
D

Diablo Rosso

Member
Heart Attack said:
Eurogamer:

"The problem with Tomb Raider is not that it's trying to do something new. The problem is it's trying to do what everyone else is doing.

It succeeds in that aim. The boxes can be ticked, several times over - collectables, upgrade systems, big fat guns, blood and gore, pretty graphics, set pieces, boss battles, cut-scenes where the characters' lip movements almost match what they are saying, multiplayer modes, art galleries, quick-time events, more collectables. All of these tricks are pulled off with competence and polish."

Edge:

"It’s got the kill-confirming XP popup of Call Of Duty; the gentle, optional stealth of an Assassin’s Creed; and Batman’s Detective mode. It’s got the linear, cinematic spectacle of Uncharted, with the narrative fleshed out by audiologs borrowed from BioShock. Platforming is Drake by way of Ezio Auditore, and combat borrows from, well, take your pick"

Rev3:

"incredibly over simplified. They rarely, if ever, extend beyond a single room and even with some of the more involved puzzles, the challenge seems to come more from precisely timed platforming than critical problem solving."

Shacknews:

"In the end, I enjoyed the Tomb Raider ride, but in a B-grade thriller sort of way. A lot of that has to do with the new direction it takes, which skews towards a much different and action-oriented balance of gameplay than its predecessors, and a script that can't quite bear the weight of the story's serious tone. There are a lot of exciting, cinematic moments and action to experience within, even though they come at the expense of the spirit of exploration and environmental puzzling the IP was originally built upon."

Gametrailers:

"A few things about the new Tomb Raider come across as wasted effort. The story of Lara’s transformation is sabotaged by the gameplay, and is frankly a little dorky, with an after-school special style multi-ethnic cast filled by lame sterotypes like angry black woman and scrap-happy Scotsman. Likewise a multiplayer mode, which nobody familiar with Tomb Raider would expect or even think to ask for, is competent but utterly unremarkable and requires underpowered newbies to grind for more effective weapons and perks to level a wonky playing field.

The payoff from this pre-packaged drama and live-target online practice barely amount to the value of a single, raidable tomb, and it’s easy to imagine the resources spent on these being better utlized to bloster the game’s strengths. The road to the triple-A summit hasn’t been reached in a single game, but there’s hope that Lara could reach greater heights in the inevitable sequel."




The game is being rewarded with too many high scores, and the content of each review just doesn't add up to the final score. S-E must have spent a shitload on bribes.
Click to expand...

I knew this would happen. After the whole Wainwright thing this was to be expected.
 
L

Lime

Member
Jim Sterling said:
Perfectly happy to answer questions!

I don't believe in stone-clad objective rules when it comes to assessing a game. I take each thing on a case by case basis, and in a game that relies too heavily in its narrative would indeed have deserved more ragging on the failure to keep this theme consistent. In Tomb Raider, it simply did not matter that much.

In the case of Tomb Raider, the taking of human life is only ever a light theme, not something consistently portrayed or heavily important to the narrative. Hence, it only came across as an amusing irony than a glaring literary sin. That, coupled with the fact that the combat design is something I found beautiful in its elegance, contributed to my being forgiving.

Narrative is important, it absolutely is. But its importance varies by game, as does its themes, depending on which ones the writer chooses to emphasize the most.
Click to expand...

Thanks for that excellent answer. I understand and respect your point, but I would still disagree with the notion that such a flaw of gameplay clashing with narrative does not matter much. This disagreement is motivated by the internal contradiction actually existing in the game in the first place, which I frankly cannot overlook. But that simply might be because I'm probably not as forgiving as you :)
 
S

SlasherJPC

Banned
derFeef said:
You like it? When is your review coming up?
Click to expand...

I've only just begun. Still working on my MGR review since I'm behind (almost done). As for my first impressions... really blown away by everything so far. From sound design, exploring, upgrading, story, gunplay, and graphics. Just such outstanding production behind this game and it shows. I'd expect a review up this weekend or launch day.
 
K

Knux-Future

Banned
"It's not like the old games, therefore it's bad".

"It's too much like the old games, are they even trying?"

I guess they gotta find that happy medium or dudes will be mad...

I never knew the old Tomb Raider games where masterpieces. Once again opinions and all that but I don't think that type of gameplay aged well just like the old Resident Evil games.

Maybe you need to just take it for what it is instead of what Tomb Raider used to be.

Unlike RE6 (which from the little I played wasn't as awful as everyone says...I played very little mind you), this seems to be a solif competant game.

Not everything is going to be perfect and godlike guys.
 
D

Durante

Member
Heart Attack said:
The game is being rewarded with too many high scores, and the content of each review just doesn't add up to the final score. S-E must have spent a shitload on bribes.
Click to expand...
There are tons of games in the industry that are (even more) similar to other titles or their own predecessors and get even higher scores. I don't really see why this should be focused so much on Tomb Raider. Well, besides lots of people somehow hating the game's guts.

Salaadin said:
What the hell is going on with Polygon. This is my first time on that site and....monochrome gifs? What?
Click to expand...
It's a site by hipsters for hipsters. You wouldn't understand.
 
O

OwlyKnees

Member
Heart Attack said:
Eurogamer:

"The problem with Tomb Raider is not that it's trying to do something new. The problem is it's trying to do what everyone else is doing.

It succeeds in that aim. The boxes can be ticked, several times over - collectables, upgrade systems, big fat guns, blood and gore, pretty graphics, set pieces, boss battles, cut-scenes where the characters' lip movements almost match what they are saying, multiplayer modes, art galleries, quick-time events, more collectables. All of these tricks are pulled off with competence and polish."

Edge:

"It’s got the kill-confirming XP popup of Call Of Duty; the gentle, optional stealth of an Assassin’s Creed; and Batman’s Detective mode. It’s got the linear, cinematic spectacle of Uncharted, with the narrative fleshed out by audiologs borrowed from BioShock. Platforming is Drake by way of Ezio Auditore, and combat borrows from, well, take your pick"

Rev3:

"incredibly over simplified. They rarely, if ever, extend beyond a single room and even with some of the more involved puzzles, the challenge seems to come more from precisely timed platforming than critical problem solving."

Shacknews:

"In the end, I enjoyed the Tomb Raider ride, but in a B-grade thriller sort of way. A lot of that has to do with the new direction it takes, which skews towards a much different and action-oriented balance of gameplay than its predecessors, and a script that can't quite bear the weight of the story's serious tone. There are a lot of exciting, cinematic moments and action to experience within, even though they come at the expense of the spirit of exploration and environmental puzzling the IP was originally built upon."

Gametrailers:

"A few things about the new Tomb Raider come across as wasted effort. The story of Lara’s transformation is sabotaged by the gameplay, and is frankly a little dorky, with an after-school special style multi-ethnic cast filled by lame sterotypes like angry black woman and scrap-happy Scotsman. Likewise a multiplayer mode, which nobody familiar with Tomb Raider would expect or even think to ask for, is competent but utterly unremarkable and requires underpowered newbies to grind for more effective weapons and perks to level a wonky playing field.

The payoff from this pre-packaged drama and live-target online practice barely amount to the value of a single, raidable tomb, and it’s easy to imagine the resources spent on these being better utlized to bloster the game’s strengths. The road to the triple-A summit hasn’t been reached in a single game, but there’s hope that Lara could reach greater heights in the inevitable sequel."




The game is being rewarded with too many high scores, and the content of each review just doesn't add up to the final score. S-E must have spent a shitload on bribes.
Click to expand...

Confirmation bias in all it's glory, ladies and gentlemen.
 
F

Fine Ham Abounds

Member
kuroshiki said:
So you call other people's opinion 'shit' and then your 'opinion' is something worth than others.

Fuck you.
joking, but some people just hated the game.
Click to expand...

Well, I was not implying that you yourself were shit, it was a dismissive, throwaway post you made though, joking aside.

I'm coming from a place where I would like from this game a certain level of quality and originality while at the same time doing justice to a series in which it finds itself. I'm just not sure what manner of self-flagellation is necessary to be able to make these statements without being dismissed as "fundamentalist" or "elitist".
 
A

antitrop

Member
rvy said:
I like how the GT review hardly praises the game but gives it an 8.5

lel, gaming journalism. Will try to find Underworld on eBay.
Click to expand...

"It's a highly enjoyable, often skillfully executed game exhibiting all the traits of a modern blockbuster." - GameTrailers

Would that look so out of place next to an 8.5 on the back of the box?
 
J

JaseC

gave away the keys to the kingdom.
Sid said:
Oh,I have a 580 anyways.
Click to expand...

ColonelColon said:
AMD's marketing manager for high end discrete GPUs commented on this topic at OCN:

We're not going to do the same, because we don't believe in cutting out half of the market with proprietary technologies. The OpenCL/DirectCompute capabilities of Graphics Core Next, or your friendly local processor, are capable of everything PhysX is doing without locking users out of features they should be able to run if it weren't for a silly and arbitrary lockout.

Few people know that PhysX is a carbon copy of OpenCL with a handful of NVIDIA-specific features. That means if PhysX can do it, OpenCL can do it. Gamers should be asking game developers to do more open physics work, because that is the roadblock.
Click to expand...

http://www.overclock.net/t/1364404/gpu-physx-coming-to-amd/0_100#post_19374275
It sounds like this won't be a proprietary technology.
Click to expand...

.
 
A

Always-honest

Banned
kuroshiki said:
So you call other people's opinion 'shit' and then your 'opinion' is something worth than others.

Fuck you.
joking, but some people just hated the game.
Click to expand...
Some people were worried this game might be a decent game, but nothing like the Tomb Raider games they new.
Sorry but you are acting like a little kid. Spoilertag-damage-reducing these insults won't really help you i think.

Anyway, after watching the reviews (i was really really surprised at the high scores) i'm afraid this game still doesn't make me run to the stores and buy it. I'd like a demo though to see if playing the game will change my mind.
 
N

Nirolak

Mrgrgr
TheNatural said:
Modern day reviewing:

YOU GET AN 8!

YOU GET AN 8!

YOU GET AN 8!

oprah-you-get-a-car-o.gif
Click to expand...

I don't really get this comment. Let's go look at Metacritic averages for 2013 games based on the most reviewed version:

Tomb Raider: 87
Devil May Cry: 86
Crysis 3: 79
Metal Gear Rising: 79
Dead Space 3: 78
Aliens: CM: 49

Are there a lot of numbers near 80? Sure, but there are also pretty clear bands of separation here.
 
J

Jim Sterling

Member
Lime said:
Thanks for that excellent answer. I understand and respect your point, but I would still disagree with the notion that such a flaw of gameplay clashing with narrative does not matter much. This disagreement is motivated by the internal contradiction actually existing in the game in the first place, which I frankly cannot overlook. But that simply might be because I'm probably not as forgiving as you :)
Click to expand...
That is absolutely fair, and you're welcome to disagree. I can see why, for some, this would be a big deal to them and don't blame them for feeling put off by it. I can't fault a person for placing more importance on different elements than I do. The order in which you stack a game's elements can, of course, lead to very different impressions, even if you agree on every individual element.

And this is why I love review discussion!
 
sublimit

sublimit

Banned
madmackem said:
Uncharted borrowed alot from the tomb raider games, heck alot of games did.
Click to expand...

We've had this discussion about who borrowed what many times in past TR threads.The only people who insist that Uncharted borrowed a lot from TR have either never played the classic TR games,or they have only a superficial knoweldge of the series.

madmackem said:
Are you saying the makers should not borrowed what some of the most highly rated games of this gen have been doing.
Click to expand...

No they shouldn't copy every trend that is hot today because that way they are loosing the identity of a series that was known for some very specific elements and they are also loosing the fans that were supporting this games for more than a decade.
For some like the Edge reviewer obviously having Lara and the name Tomb Raider on the cover is enough to say that the game retains its identity,but for the true fans who knew exactly what it was they loved about these games this whole copying and dilluting of the series is unbearable anymore.

This doesn't mean that a game can't be evolved by still holding on to the same parameters that gave it its identity.Far from it.They could easily improve its strengths and mechanics and translate them to modern gamers but without sacrificing its core.

But of course that would be hard.It's much more difficult to make a good,solid gamer's game and still be able to make it reasonably commercially successful than going for the easy solution to make a passive cinematic experience game.The former requires true talent from a game design point of view while the later requires only big budgets and time in order to make it as shiny as possible just like a good Hollywood movie or series.The 90's TR games were gamer's games and still managed to sell incredibly well.Someone would argue that those were different times and gamers don't want actual games anymore but if that was the case then games like Demon's Souls wouldn't exist and still be successful.

madmackem said:
Why is this game under fire for what every single game does.
Click to expand...

I don't care what other games do.I don't want all games to be exactly the same.I want games to still be identifiable for all the elements that once gave them their identities in the first place and made them stand out in the market.These elements don't have to be dilluted in order to bring them to a modern market but instead they need to be re-examined and make their effectiveness even more stronger.
 
R

razgriz417

Member
Jim Sterling said:
Perfectly happy to answer questions!

I don't believe in stone-clad objective rules when it comes to assessing a game. I take each thing on a case by case basis, and in a game that relies too heavily in its narrative would indeed have deserved more ragging on the failure to keep this theme consistent. In Tomb Raider, it simply did not matter that much.

In the case of Tomb Raider, the taking of human life is only ever a light theme, not something consistently portrayed or heavily important to the narrative. Hence, it only came across as an amusing irony than a glaring literary sin. That, coupled with the fact that the combat design is something I found beautiful in its elegance, contributed to my being forgiving.

Narrative is important, it absolutely is. But its importance varies by game, as does its themes, depending on which ones the writer chooses to emphasize the most.
Click to expand...

Great explanation Jim, any chance you'll do a review of DW7:Empires (feel like you're the only reviewer I know of that likes the series)?
 
S

Skilletor

Member
Knux-Future said:
"It's not like the old games, therefore it's bad".

"It's too much like the old games, are they even trying?"

I guess they gotta find that happy medium or dudes will be mad...

I never knew the old Tomb Raider games where masterpieces. Once again opinions and all that but I don't think that type of gameplay aged well just like the old Resident Evil games.

Maybe you need to just take it for what it is instead of what Tomb Raider used to be.

Unlike RE6 (which from the little I played wasn't as awful as everyone says...I played very little mind you), this seems to be a solif competant game.

Not everything is going to be perfect and godlike guys.
Click to expand...

jimcarrey.gif
 
G

grumble

Member
Jim Sterling said:
Perfectly happy to answer questions!

I don't believe in stone-clad objective rules when it comes to assessing a game. I take each thing on a case by case basis, and in a game that relies too heavily in its narrative would indeed have deserved more ragging on the failure to keep this theme consistent. In Tomb Raider, it simply did not matter that much.

In the case of Tomb Raider, the taking of human life is only ever a light theme, not something consistently portrayed or heavily important to the narrative. Hence, it only came across as an amusing irony than a glaring literary sin. That, coupled with the fact that the combat design is something I found beautiful in its elegance, contributed to my being forgiving.

Narrative is important, it absolutely is. But its importance varies by game, as does its themes, depending on which ones the writer chooses to emphasize the most.
Click to expand...

Good response and philosophy.
 
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