Tomb Raider: Legend - Reviewed

Last week I rented Tomb Raider: Legend for the Xbox 360 and have to say that I'm thoroughly disappointed. On the surface the game seems very promising - rather quickly, though, the game's flaws start to shine through. One thing is for certain, the game is a step up from previous Tomb Raider jaunts.

For now I'm going to skip the storyline and dive straight into gameplay (truth be told this is really where my issues with the game lay.) If you're a fan of the Prince of Persia series a lot of the gameplay will be really familiar - thing is that all the really good parts of the Prince are desperately lacking from this Tomb Raider adventure game.

Control Issues

Starting with the controls, there are a variety of stumbling blocks. One of the major evolutionary steps in the third person adventure game was POV "snapping" - I wish I knew a better term for this but "snapping" will have to do. Think back to Prince of Persia and the ability to automatically swing the camera in the direction Prince is facing. For an adventure game which requires you to carefully aim towards ropes, ledges, poles and enemies this is essential. Legend lacks this basic feature and as a result you'll find yourself off by just a degree when making jumps, that of course can be fatal.

Repeating the same series of jumps, ad nausea, until you get each stage exactly right can really be a pain - I guess to some degree this could be forgivable if not for the fact that occasionally the game forces you to make impossible jumps which in that one circumstance show possible. You'll notice Lara snap a little left, bend a little right, or slide an extra bit of space away when a ledge or pole looks completely unreachable.

Another issue with frequent deaths revolves around the decision to create auto saves just before CGI cut scenes. While many scenes can be skipped (by exiting to a sub menu and selecting "skip cut scene") some remain to be watched over and over while you move trial and error through a series of steps.

Game Design Flaws

Trial and error should never be a mechanic of gameplay - unfortunately its something that many adventure games rely on. In Prince of Persia we can dismiss this thanks to Prince's ability to manipulate time. Lara lacks this ability though. The result is a need for almost painfully accurate movement.

Another major problem is the game's lack of variety. Lara essentially can run, jump, swim and climb - everything she climbs is pretty much the same, everything she jumps over is pretty much the same, and all the swimming is to the same end (get under an obstacle.) The game quickly becomes tedious and after just a few levels everything pretty much seems the same.

The game itself is setup for two types of gameplay, you essentially adventure and then fight. After a while adventuring you fight a bit - after a while fighting you adventure a bit and on it goes. For the most part the fighting really hasn't evolved though. Lock on to a target, hold the trigger and wait for your target to fall.

The exception to the rule is "mounted" combat - when Lara rides a motorcycle and fights while attempting to achive a specific goal. The problems that arise here are a general inability to aim coupled with several problematic issues with riding while BARELY hitting your target. While "locked on" you can certainly land some hits - thing is you don't really land enough. Add to this a really wonky steering setup (honestly I found myself never really pointing exactly where I wanted to go) and it proves a bit more frustrating than fun.

In three days I moved through the entire "Hard" version of the game with little to no real challenge (only one boss fight really slowed me down.) Admittedly I didn't spend much time on the time trial - but truth is the game was so tiring playing through the storyline that the thought of rushing through the level to make a time trial achievement really didn't get me going.

The Storyline

When it comes to gaming I'm 50/50 on good gameplay and good storyline, while I wouldn't put Tomb Raider in the highest realm of video game storytelling I'd say that it is definitely entertaining. From beginning to end the basic idea revolves around Lara's past.

The long and short is that Lara's mother disappeared after encountering a mystical item while after she and young Lara survived a plain crash. While exploring a tomb Lara learns that one of her previous archaeological trips might hold answers to her mother's mysterious disappearance - from there the race is on to find the pieces of a mystical artifact (which turns out to be the source of the Arthur Legend) and decrypt their power.

The story ends leaving plenty of room for a sequel (which at least from a storytelling perspective) looks promising.

Presentation

One thing you can't argue about is the artwork. Tomb Raider: Legend is definitely a beautiful game. You'll definitely get drawn into the levels from both visuals and audio. Are they "Next Generation Graphics?" - No. But they're definitely top of the line for Last Generation.

Nothing really stood out when it came to sound effects - but sometimes that's a good thing. In the end the settings are strong and immersive.

Final Verdict

If you really want to play the game - just rent it. By no means is this a must play, but truth is its not really a "skip this" either. If you have Gamefly then add it to your Queue otherwise move along and save the Loot.