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Domain: tombraider.com

Stories and comments across the archive that link to tombraider.com.

Stories · 6

  1. Lara Creator Returns To Tomb Raider Franchise

    Games · Games · · posted by simoniker · from the laura-craft dept. · 26 comments
    KBV writes "According to Gamesindustry.biz: 'Lara Croft creator Toby Gard has joined [Eidos-owned] US development studio Crystal Dynamics to work as a senior designer on the next Tomb Raider title - marking his return to the series after leaving Core Design following the launch of the original game. The move follows reports that Gard's own studio, Confounding Factor, was set to disband after the release of Galleon - its long-delayed Xbox adventure title, which came out in Europe and North America this summer after almost seven years in development.'"

  2. Driv3r - Atari's Savior, Or Lara Croft-Style Travesty?

    Games · Playstation · · posted by simoniker · from the driven-to-distraction dept. · 28 comments
    Thanks to Eurogamer for its hands-on preview of a near-complete build of Atari's PlayStation 2 title Driv3r, as the article notes: "Never before has an entire company's fate rested so heavily on the release of one product [financials reveal $20 million for 'production costs'... and 'marketing costs... double that amount'], but Reflection's long-overdue sequel is that kind of game, and Atari is doubtlessly slightly peeved that... it has had to watch from the sidelines while Rockstar, Sony and even Activision have cleaned up in mission-based driving stakes." Although the previewer rhapsodizes: "Anyone who loves pure driving will have a fantastic time in Driv3r", the out-of-car elements are another story: "The third-person control system feels sluggish [and] the combat/shooting is currently nowhere near the standard it needs to be", and the preview ends with the warning (though it's possible the gameplay "may well come together at the last minute"): "Releasing [the game] in an unpolished state would be a crime of Angel Of Darkness proportions."

  3. Gard On Tomb Raider, Galleon, Delays

    Games · Xbox · · posted by simoniker · from the for-he's-a-jolie-good-fellow dept. · 24 comments
    Thanks to The UK Independent for its article-based interview with Confounding Factor's Toby Gard, best known as the creator of Tomb Raider while at Core Design. The article discusses the genesis of Lara Croft, with Gard arguing: "I thought that what was interesting about her was she was this unattainable, austere, dangerous sort of person." Of the hideously delayed Galleon, finally due out this summer, the article suggests: "It's not too silly an exaggeration to say that, in the computer-games industry, Galleon is the equivalent of Donna Tartt's The Little Friend or the Stone Roses's The Second Coming", and Gard clarifies his impressions of the game's intriguing influences: "I wanted to have a visual language that was quite comic book... I realised the Ray Harryhausen Sinbad films were the way to go."

  4. Tomb Raider Company Founders Regroup In Circle

    Games · Playstation · · posted by simoniker · from the beware-of-natives-with-sharp-sticks dept. · 24 comments
    Thanks to Gamesindustry.biz for its article discussing the formation of a new game developer called Circle Studio, set up by Jeremy Heath Smith and his brother Adrian Smith, the founders of Tomb Raider developers Core Design. The piece explains that "the problems surrounding last year's critically derided Tomb Raider: Angel Of Darkness led to [Jeremy] Heath-Smith's resignation from the Eidos board, and the franchise being dramatically handed over to US developer Crystal Dynamics", and so the UK-based duo "have hired 35 former Core Design employees to work on two prototype titles." The article goes on to explore Core's history, pointing out that, while "[the company's] achievements during an amazing four year period between 1996 and 2000 were breathtaking, with five annual Tomb Raider incarnations all global multi-million sellers", problems with the franchise started early, when "the game's original creator Toby Gard left Core Design after the release of the first (and some would say the best) Tomb Raider to set up Confounding Factor."

  5. The Rise Of Bugs In Console Games

    Games · Gamecube · · posted by simoniker · from the not-the-armorines-kind dept. · 132 comments
    Thanks to GameSpy for posting a column discussing the increasing prevalence of serious bugs and glitches in console titles, especially in relation to several of this summer's 'blockbusters'. Singled out are Enter The Matrix: "Even if you enjoy the game.. you can't ignore the fact that all three console makers let Atari have a 'get out of final approval free card' when it came to testing...", as well as the new Tomb Raider title: "AOD froze up on me at least half a dozen times... Lara fell through invisible gaps in the street, walked through invisible gaps in walls, and refused to walk up stairs that she was supposed to be able to climb." What's to be done when, as the author says, "judging from the sales of these... titles, enough of you guys just aren't punishing the companies for releasing sub-par products to make a difference"?

  6. Take Lara Croft To Work Day

    Games · Pcgames · · posted by simoniker · from the chris-barrie-can-tag-along-too dept. · 27 comments
    Thanks to an anonymous reader for pointing to a Spong.com article discussing publisher Eidos naming this Friday, 4th July, as 'Take Lara Croft To Work Day' in the UK. According to the official site, "The 'Take Lara To Work Day' initiative was devised following a recent report from the London School of Economics on how creating a happy working environment stimulates the workforce", and the publicity stunt even has an 'Email Your Boss' link so you can beg him to let you play Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Angel Of Darkness in work hours. Unfortunately, any companies that do this may not actually be making their employees happy.