Lara Croft's Big Comeback

Comeback... by otis+wildflower · 2006-03-01 05:25 · Score: 0

Uh.. huh huh.. huh huh... /guttermind

Re:Comeback... by jo42 · 2006-03-01 05:41 · Score: 2, Funny

Bigger Jiggling Jubblies.
Re:Comeback... by PaganRitual · 2006-03-01 11:43 · Score: 1

I was interested.

Then I was very interested.

Then I was VERY VERY interested.

The I was VERY VERY VERY interested. ...

Now I'm not so interested anymore.

Its About time... by ganjadude · 2006-03-01 05:25 · Score: 2, Insightful

those screenshots look amazing, however screenshots almost ALWAYS lok better than grafix... Now lots hope that the gameplay is as good as the OG and it should be a hugh sucess.

--
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same

Re:Its About time... by hal9000(jr) · 2006-03-01 05:37 · Score: 1

those screenshots look amazing, however screenshots almost ALWAYS lok better than grafix...

Yeah, what kind of hardware do you need to get that kind of resolution? I have seen similar screen shots from other games, but never live. I want build a gaming machine and I want it cheap, fast, and reliable and I want all three. :)
Re:Its About time... by Verteiron · 2006-03-01 07:06 · Score: 1

I've only played 2 games where the gameplay actually looked as good as the screenshots.

Guild Wars, and F.E.A.R.

Mind you, the latter runs like a slideshow on my system, but BOY is it pretty. And creepy.

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End of lesson. You may press the button.
Re:Its About time... by Wolfrider · 2006-03-01 17:45 · Score: 1

--The original Wing Commander (on floppies no less) pretty much amazed me, running in DOS on a 286 with 640K + 384K of extended Ram. That game was awesome.

--
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== WolfriderV6 == I'm willing to admit that *I just might* be wrong... Are you??

My Firm Belief by American+AC+in+Paris · 2006-03-01 05:25 · Score: 5, Funny

I find this prediction of a big bounce for Lara Croft a little inflated, personally.

Perky, uplifting statements from the director of marketing tend to arouse my suspicion. It seems to me he's just attempting to implant totally artificial marketingspeak in our heads.

...

(Boobies! *snrk*)

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Obliteracy: Words with explosions

Re:My Firm Belief by guido1 · 2006-03-01 06:23 · Score: 1

It's too bad that no one seems to have mod points, 'cause this is hilarious.
Re:My Firm Belief by davez0r · 2006-03-01 07:56 · Score: 1

correction:

BOOBIES!

(if anything deserves all caps, it's that)
Re:My Firm Belief by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 10:25 · Score: 0

you mean : bOObies!

Shifting focus to her other attributes? by Animaether · 2006-03-01 05:27 · Score: 2, Interesting

Lindsey says the negative associations surrounding Lara will be swept away with a single decent iteration, arguing that Lara, far from being a one-decade wonder, has legs

Well, I suppose after all those Chest Reductions, somebody at Eidos was bound to notice eventually ;)

Re:Shifting focus to her other attributes? by badfish274 · 2006-03-02 06:09 · Score: 1

Chest reductions? HAH! Check out who's filling in Angelina Jolie's shoes... a previously unknown actress from Wales named Karima Adebibe. Yeah, big chest reduction there.... pardon me while i wipe the drool off my keyboard. More here.

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I'll fill this in later

I'm Not Exactly Opposed... by WeAzElMaN · 2006-03-01 05:29 · Score: 2, Interesting

I wouldn't be opposed to the idea of bringing back Tomb Raider, but Eidos has to deliver. They spun a similar web before the release of the last Tomb Raider game - one that sucked horribly. I would hope that Eidos would have learned from that mistake, but I'm going to remain skeptical.

Additionally, I don't necissarily agree with their idea regarding canning huge franchises. Sometimes you just have to know when to put Ol' Yeller down - I would hope that Eidos realizes when that time comes for Tomb Raider and not just continue to spurn out crap games.

-WeAz

Re:I'm Not Exactly Opposed... by dwbassett42 · 2006-03-01 05:40 · Score: 1

I agree. That article was nothing more than empty marketing lingo and hot air. I would say that the time has already come and gone for Eidos to bury the Tomb Raider franchise. This is the same crap we heard before the launch of Angel of Darkness, and that was one of the crappiest games I've ever played. Gameplay, story, mechanics, all were crap. I'll wait a couple of months after Legends has come out, and if people are still saying that it's a decent game, then I might take a look at it.
Re:I'm Not Exactly Opposed... by Traiklin · 2006-03-01 10:10 · Score: 1

actually when that time comes that they run out of ideas for Tomb Raider they will do like every other game company...

Make SPINOFFS! oh how they love making spinoffs, oh and let's not forget the tried and true remake on another platform!

look at Capcom, how many Street Fighters are there?
How about Square with Final Fantasy VII?
Capcom again with the Megaman games?

I can See Edios doing tons of spinoffs about lara and maybe even a remake on a future handheld.

I am with you though in hoping they know when the time has come to just let her die, atleast untill a talented group decides they want to take a shot at making a Tomb Raider game, but for that to happen the series has to die first.
Re:I'm Not Exactly Opposed... by rtb61 · 2006-03-01 19:11 · Score: 1

Well that is the normal content providers game. Build a reputation on a high investment cost title and get reasonable returns. Then use that reputation on a low investment interation, with lots of advertising and cash in big time (so they think). They still try it, even though it should be obvious to them by now what a failure that is and how much money they loose as well as the permanent damage done to the brand name (It's all those RIAA gits floating around in the gaming industry, it sort of works on music so they try it elsewhere). The internet age just kills it, gamers talk, loudly and often.

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Chaos - everything, everywhere, everywhen

I don't think Lara will be. . . by smooth+wombat · 2006-03-01 05:31 · Score: 2, Funny

making a comeback anytime in the near future.

Oh, wait. You meant the character Lara Croft.

Never mind.

--
We will bankrupt ourselves in the vain search for absolute security. -- Dwight D. Eisenhower

Success of first by Taulin · 2006-03-01 05:34 · Score: 1

TR1 came out back in the day where 3d games were sparse, if non existant on consoles, especially adventure 3d games. This is one of the main reasons it sold well. Very few people praise its level design or music, for example. TR2 had a far better level design and story to it, yet it was not deamed as well as the first solely on the fact that by that time, more 3d adventure games were coming out and people realised that there wasn't much to the TR series. Since TR1 was the first of its kind for most of us, we hold it dear to our hearts and overlook its many faults, much like many 70s and 80s movies which are no where as good as you remember them being.

Re:Success of first by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 05:53 · Score: 0

Since TR1 was the first of its kind for most of us, we hold it dear to our hearts and overlook its many faults, much like many 70s and 80s movies which are no where as good as you remember them being.

Kiss my ass. I still watch the Porky's movies and whenever Revenge of The Nerds is on I catch it. First Blood & Rambo are still a great action films.

Ok the Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street series of films aren't as good as I thought they were when I was 13, but they're still entertaining.
Re:Success of first by grumbel · 2006-03-01 06:03 · Score: 1

### TR1 came out back in the day where 3d games were sparse, if non existant on consoles, especially adventure 3d games. This is one of the main reasons it sold well.

I wouldn't say so. Sure, it might have had its faults, but it still has many aspects that even today are quite popular. For one there is the HUD-less screen, most of the time there is no HUD at all shown, only when an enemy aproaches you energie bar is shown, thus giving quite a cinematic experience. Then the gameplay, which is basically Prince of Persia turned into 3D. The game is basically all about puzzle solving, pressing switches, exploring and much less about shooting stuff. One other nice thing is that you don't kill any human at all in the first part, if I remember correctly you mostly just a few wolfs and bears in self defense. Having a female hero was also something new for the time, sure they overdid it quite a bit and turned her into a boob-monster, but still having a strong female lead isn't the worst thing you can do. There are also some noteworthy moments such when you first encounter the T-Rex, thats quite close to what Shadow of the Colossus provides these days, sure not as well done as toy, but still quite nice. The first TombRaider was really not that far of what are Prince of Persia:SoT, Ico or Shadow of the Colossus these days, it was quite a bit more then just one of the first 3d platform games.
Re:Success of first by AKAImBatman · 2006-03-01 06:32 · Score: 2, Interesting

Having a female hero was also something new for the time, sure they overdid it quite a bit and turned her into a boob-monster, but still having a strong female lead isn't the worst thing you can do.

What's interesting is that the massive bosom was supposedly a complete accident. According to the Wikipedia article, character designer Toby Gard was, "fudging around with the model when he accidentally blew up Lara's bosom to 150% of what he intended it to be." While he was correcting his mistake, the other designers noticed and asked him to keep it as part of the character.

You just can't make this stuff up. :-)

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Javascript + Nintendo DSi = DSiCade
Re:Success of first by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 06:44 · Score: 0

el viento, valis, popful mail, metroid, final fantasy 3...... just off the top of my head....
Re:Success of first by XenoRyet · 2006-03-01 07:54 · Score: 1

Thank you sir, I only wish you hadn't posted as AC so I could add you to my freinds.
There is a special place in hell for people who think Lara Croft is anything like the first female hero in a video game. Fact is there are many before her, and all are better. Lara is an example of all that is wrong with female game charachters, not what is right with them, yet she has compleatly stolen the spotlight from the likes of Samus Aran.

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If forums teach us anything, it is that logic and critical thinking should be required courses in the public schools.
Re:Success of first by Belgand · 2006-03-01 08:32 · Score: 1

Indeed. The entire franchise always seemed to be based around the fact that the first game sold very well. Third-person shooters went through a brief surge of popularity on the PC at the time and consoles finally made it to the point where they could render jagged, polygonal 3d games. The game itself was ok, a bit of a rip-off of Prince of Persia (before the actual PoP remake came out and blew it away), but mainly sold because it was an artifact of it's time. The sequels were dutifully cranked out to diminishing returns just like any crappy film franchise (which, these days doesn't even require that the first film does especially well).

Tomb Raider has failed to keep up because the gameplay and level design itself was never that original or compelling. Maybe a new game can come along and make it interesting, but it has a long, long road to get there. The thematic elements (not including her too massive to be attractive breasts) aren't bad though. The idea of basically an obvious female rip-off of Indiana Jones traveling around the globe adventuring has promise. Then again, the only good Indiana Jones game ever made was a LucasArts adventure.
Re:Success of first by bar-agent · 2006-03-01 16:23 · Score: 1

Samus Aran does not count as the first female action hero. Because no one knew.

I am certain that the designers of Metroid thought it was a guy inside that armor. They just retconned Samus into being female. I mean, by that argument, the character you play in Zork was the first female. And why not?

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i'd hit it so hard, if you pulled me out you'd be the king of britain [bash.org]
Re:Success of first by geminidomino · 2006-03-01 21:00 · Score: 1

I am certain that the designers of Metroid thought it was a guy inside that armor. They just retconned Samus into being female

Err... it's not a retcon just because it's a surprise.

Samus was revealed to be female at the end of the first game provided you didn't leave it on overnight or something (it's kind of hard NOT to beat it in under 5 hours unless you're actively trying)
Re:Success of first by WWWWolf · 2006-03-01 23:20 · Score: 1

Samus Aran does not count as the first female action hero. Because no one knew. I am certain that the designers of Metroid thought it was a guy inside that armor.

Oh, thought it was a guy and then accidentally brutally not only put a woman in the end credits, but also designed an alternate player sprite that was clearly a woman? (Start Metroid with code "000000 000020 000000 000020", or if you prefer the more famous code, "JUSTIN BAILEY" with the rest as space, and you'll get the alternate sprite.)

Also, it definitely didn't take that long until the word got out, and by the time Metroid II or Super Metroid came out, everyone knew, and those pre-date TR quite definitely too... =)
Re:Success of first by gruntled · 2006-03-02 01:31 · Score: 1

I think you make valid points, however, TR1 also gave the player an unprecedented level of control over the character: You could leap up and hang from your fingertips, shimmy left or right, do a diving roll, do multiple jumps sideways and backwards...it was just phenomenal. It was one of those games I showed people who actively disliked videgames and they uniformly became enthralled. In addition, the settings you explored and the images portrayed, coupled with your ability to fully explore the environment (I remember spending hours crawling over those enormous statutes, looking at things from different angles) made the game quite compelling. All those aspects, combined with a reasonable storyline, make this game a standout. I firmly believe that you could sell a million copies of TR1 with merely a graphics update. The real disappointment of the more recent games, from my perspective, has been the execrebale control systems; I would argue that one of TR's greatest strenths has been to lessen the distiction between the user and the game avatar but a less than vigorous control system destroys that illusion. TR was the second game I loved (the first being Wing Commander).
Re:Success of first by fbjon · 2006-03-02 02:35 · Score: 1

I guess Lara Croft is the first real&virtual female model/porn star in a computer game.

--
True confidence comes not from realising you are as good as your peers, but that your peers are as bad as you are.
Re:Success of first by bar-agent · 2006-03-02 04:48 · Score: 1

I stand corrected.

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i'd hit it so hard, if you pulled me out you'd be the king of britain [bash.org]
Re:Success of first by Taulin · 2006-03-05 04:33 · Score: 1

When people say something like that, hard not to beat it under 5 hours, a red BS flag goes up for me. I am guessing you did not play the game when it first came out. Even with training from modern games, first time players without a map would still average at more than 5 hours. Of course most modern day players don't even bother to play it because it doestn't have an in game map. Can you imagine if a game like Metroid came out today? A small un-formative manual, no map, and just plopping you down inside a huge maze?
Re:Success of first by geminidomino · 2006-03-05 06:07 · Score: 1

I played it a year or so after it came out.

Fortunately, back then, it didn't keep track of item percentages, so if you weren't the completionist type (I wasn't until I started getting into RPGs), and didn't get too unlucky (picking the wrong fscking hall to drop into to get the ice beam) you could generally pull it off on the second play-through with the bonus missles you got from dropping Kraid and Ridley and the E-tanks that were right in the open.

I mean, come on... who has only played through the original metroid ONCE?

So basically... by rAiNsT0rm · 2006-03-01 05:37 · Score: 1

A decent third-person platformer with a wonky camera which is mainly trained on Lara's ample TnA assets needs to be made to "right" any wrongs that were made when whoring the franchise out for maximum dollars fell flat. I guess that will salvage Lara's prestigeous name... that and a nude hot coffee mod.

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http://teasphere.wordpress.com - A little spot of tea

Revolution by ganjadude · 2006-03-01 05:40 · Score: 1

Unfortunately that leave Nintendos Revolution only. if it can be on the gamecube side of pricing, with a more adult oriented gaming (more 3rd party DEVs) it whould take the cake

--
have you seen my sig? there are many others like it but none that are the same

Well, do it then by TheSkepticalOptimist · 2006-03-01 05:40 · Score: 2, Insightful

The last Tomb Raider game was simply marred by horrible controls that prevented you from doing anything properly in the game. I mean, I was stuck in the first alley way for a hour trying to carefully jump between platforms without falling and having to get myself back to that location. In a game all about precise jumping and timing, having poor game control simply ruined the experience.

While Tomb Raider's original interface was novel at the time, the idea of specifically leaping up to ledges, swining on vines, leaping over platforms, all with a more manual approach to gameplay, ultimately what they need to do is adopt a more 3rd person style shooter system, where the character responds more quickly and some of the movements are automated to make the franchise shine. I don't want to play another version where I spend a hour falling off a platform because they keyboard and or gamepad doesn't respond quickly enough.

Just, don't make another movie out of it, please!

--
I haven't thought of anything clever to put here, but then again most of you haven't either.

Re:Well, do it then by eggsurplus · 2006-03-01 06:01 · Score: 1

I loved the original Tomb Raiders because of that manual gameplay. It took awhile to adjust to gameplay types like GTA after the fact, partly because I didn't want to give that up. I'd love to be able to go back jumping up and hanging and having to press a button to lift myself up. It simply worked. It didn't assume what I was trying to do which is a big plus. Because of that I could easily do something like hang and shuffle to the side in one attempt instead of trying to convince the system that I don't want to do a simple jump and pull up.

I completely agree on the camera though on the last iteration. That's what made me quit playing the game.
Re:Well, do it then by viperblades · 2006-03-01 07:01 · Score: 1

i think they'll do just as well as they did with the Deus Ex "sequel" .
Re:Well, do it then by lpangelrob · 2006-03-01 10:22 · Score: 1

That's interesting. Compare it to Ocarina of Time, whose controls, when they were announced, were almost universally criticized.
"No jump button? Why the hell don't I have a jump button in a 3-D game?"
And yet, Nintendo provided other opportunities to fill the gap (instead of timed jumping, solving puzzles) and, a few moments of fine-controls (a few heart containers took some maneuvering to get to).
That said, I seem to remember back then a distinct, strong desire not to become "the female Link". Perhaps things will be better.

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-Rob
Biblical fiscal responsibility
Re:Well, do it then by Jace+of+Fuse! · 2006-03-01 10:42 · Score: 1

Link suffered from the "no jump button" partially because they wanted people to focus more on the problem solving than the issue of controls. Mario 64 was already pure action. Link was supposed to be something more.

Tomb Raider, in my opinion, failed totally to be anything better than a mediocre novelty because the controls schemes are too mechanical, they felt fake, and they were sluggish.

I used to hate how walking forward just a tad took you forward an exact and predictable amount. Turning turned you a specific number of degrees. It was like Lara Croft lived in a world where everybody walked around on a grid and they had to stand at the center of whatever block they occupied.

It was like a 3D reincarnation of Flashback, only less fun and more noticable, and the plots were infinitely more retarded.

Polygon pushing power has become so advanced these days and gamepads have become so versatile that there is no excuse to make a Tomb Raider game with such rigid and mechanical controls. They probably could adopt more traditional 3rd person control schemes and concentrate on a plot that doesn't suck with good results. But who are we kidding? Eidos isn't any more concerned with releasing good games than EA or Acclaim. That's going to show through no matter what they do with the next Tomb Raider.

--

"Everything you know is wrong. (And stupid.)"

Moderation Totals: Wrong=2, Stupid=3, Total=5.

Re:Success of other assets by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 05:43 · Score: 0

This is one of the main reasons it sold well

That and the main character was a female with big boobs that carried guns. You can decide which was _really_ the bigger factor.

Let's just hope... by Eightyford · 2006-03-01 05:44 · Score: 1

Let's just hope that there is another naked patch for this game. What? I know I'm not the only one thinking that...

--
Religion for nerds. Stuff that really matters

Re:Let's just hope... by merlin_jim · 2006-03-01 07:01 · Score: 1

Let's just hope that there is another naked patch for this game. What? I know I'm not the only one thinking that...

What I've been wondering is where are the nude patches for the movies?

Angelina Jolie... *drool*

Did anyone else get a stiffy watching her in Hackers? Smart chicks rule.

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I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
Re:Let's just hope... by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 08:08 · Score: 0

How about in Gia? ;-)
Re:Let's just hope... by Belgand · 2006-03-01 08:21 · Score: 1

Yes, smart chicks do rule. But lame, script-kiddie, self-consciously "alternative" women don't. I've long considered her the worst part of Hackers... which is quite a feat.

Then again, I personally find her very, very unattractive. Something about her giant mouth and how she has this weird face that makes her look like an alien.
Re:Let's just hope... by merlin_jim · 2006-03-02 03:37 · Score: 1

Yes, smart chicks do rule. But lame, script-kiddie, self-consciously "alternative" women don't. I've long considered her the worst part of Hackers... which is quite a feat.

Getting hollywood to accurately portray a single piece of modern technology is a frickin miracle - even The Matrix fell short in spots when it came to technobabble - and you expect them to accurately portray a smart modern female technophile? I was willing to settle for their best effort - best being used extremely loosely here hahaha

Then again, I personally find her very, very unattractive. Something about her giant mouth and how she has this weird face that makes her look like an alien.

The giant mouth and exotic features are what attracted me to her in the first place hahaha I think I just crave differences....

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I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!

Wait.... by smaerd · 2006-03-01 05:50 · Score: 0, Flamebait

....when the hell did Lara Croft have a good name?

Am I the only one who's always thought of this series as "that game that idiots and 11 year olds who don't know what a good game is play on their playstations?"

Everyone is entitled to play what they want, but when the hell has Boob Raider been critically acclaimed?

Re:Wait.... by Headcase88 · 2006-03-01 06:18 · Score: 1

"but when the hell has Boob Raider been critically acclaimed?"

At this point and this point.

I wouldn't know, I never played it myself precisely because of the big boobies. Not that I don't like big boobies, but history has taught us that they're used to sell shitty products, so I've always discriminated againt them in cases like this.

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"When the atomic bomb goes off there's devastation...but when the atomic bong goes off there's celebraaaaation!"
Re:Wait.... by Vasey · 2006-03-01 07:44 · Score: 1

The first couple of games were well received but I never saw the appeal myself. Played a demo of the first game and spent more time fighting with the bloody camera system than anything else, so I never bothered with the game.
Re:Wait.... by RubberDogBone · 2006-03-01 14:56 · Score: 1

Same here. There was a demo involving some tigers in a cave or something. It was very pixelated even by PS1 standards.

Played it once. Died a lot. Cursed poor camera and indistinct graphics.

Yawned.

Never bothered again.

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Sig for hire.
Re:Wait.... by famebait · 2006-03-01 21:32 · Score: 1

The first tomb raider was awesome. The controls and fluid movemnts were in a class noone had visited since the original Prince of Persia (and only a few since), and the environments, lighting etc. was very atmospheric for its time. As long as you accepted that the underlying game was basically a series platform/timing puzzles (much like PoP, BTW), it was a damn fine game. And well received in the press.

BTW, although she always had a somewhat unrealistic body, the really huge boobies only came in the follow-ups. In the original they were fairly normally sized, albeit abnormally triangular, and apparently constructed of tempered steel or something.

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sudo ergo sum

The problem here is by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 05:52 · Score: 0

the negative associations surrounding Lara will be swept away with a single decent iteration

The problem is this is the kind of thing that would mean something coming from someone who had played the game, but doesn't mean anything coming from a director of marketing.

A person who is being paid to make people think the game is good is saying the game is good. Not encouraging, considering the tomb raider franchise is going to have to overcome two terrible sequels and mature a great deal in order to sell a single copy in today's gaming world.

What a brilliant plan by Scrameustache · 2006-03-01 06:05 · Score: 2, Insightful

Lindsey says Lara will mark the comeback for Eidos, a company which has, in recent years, lost its reputation for innovation.

I'm sure that releasing the nth sequel of a tired franchise will bring back their reputation for innovation.

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You can't take the sky from me...

Re:What a brilliant plan by hobbesx · 2006-03-01 06:26 · Score: 1

I'm sure that releasing the nth sequel of a tired franchise will bring back their reputation for innovation
::cough::Mario!::cough::

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This rating is Unfair ( ) ( ) Fair (*) Funny
Sigh... If only. Modding would be so much more fun.
Re:What a brilliant plan by grumbel · 2006-03-01 07:25 · Score: 1

### I'm sure that releasing the nth sequel of a tired franchise will bring back their reputation for innovation.

There is nothing wrong with a sequel if its actually good and new enough in terms of gameplay. And as far as I can remember there hasn't been a decent TombRaider on the current generation of consoles, Angle of Darkness wasn't any good and the rest seems to be for PSone and friends, so doing a good sequel now would be quite ok. The annoying part with sequels is only if they recycle the same engine over and over again and add nothing to the gameplay, so that the result is more add-on then real sequel, TombRaider definitivly was a victim of that, that however doesn't mean that the next part will follow the trend, even so it of course doesn't gurantee success either.
Re:What a brilliant plan by Khuffie · 2006-03-01 08:46 · Score: 1

While you have a point about the fact that Nintendo's released god knows how many Mario games, you can't deny two things:
1) In general, they do try to add new things to the sequels (ie, the vacuum element in Luigi's Mansion and the water squirter thing in Mario Sunshine), and that the games generally stand well on their own.
2) At the same time, they do release other non-franchise titles, aka Nintendogs, Elektroplankton, Odama, and so on.
Not every game a company makes has to be 'innovative'. Some can just build on previous franchises or ideas, and their's nothing wrong in that.
I know you were probably joking, but I'm bored. :p
Re:What a brilliant plan by hobbesx · 2006-03-01 09:52 · Score: 1

Yeah, at least half joking. :D

Nintendo definately does a good job for nearly all of the games that use Mario, especially when compared to the Croft franchise. I just wish that we'd see less of the 'Oh God, another foo game?', and not necessarily for the Tomb Raider series but in general. While we're wishing, I'd also like two ponies, and a new Sam and Max.

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This rating is Unfair ( ) ( ) Fair (*) Funny
Sigh... If only. Modding would be so much more fun.

More screens here by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 06:08 · Score: 0

http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/action/tombraidervii/s creenindex.html

So... by steveo777 · 2006-03-01 06:08 · Score: 1

We'd rather the Duke of Nukem' was Eidos' comeback. Lara has stared in too many crappy games over the last 10 years or so. The Duke always delivers. (even in "A Time to Kill").

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This sig isn't original enough, it's time to come up with something witty...

Dont call it a Comeback... by aka_big_wurm · 2006-03-01 06:19 · Score: 1

when I see Laura Croft and Big in the same line I tend to think of something ...

Re:Dont call it a Comeback... by hobbesx · 2006-03-01 06:32 · Score: 1

When I see Lara Croft and Big in the same line I tend to think of something...

Disappointment?

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This rating is Unfair ( ) ( ) Fair (*) Funny
Sigh... If only. Modding would be so much more fun.

Is that what the kids are calling them these days? by smellsofbikes · 2006-03-01 06:23 · Score: 2, Funny

Lara's prominently displayed "Big Comebacks" indeed.

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Nostalgia's not what it used to be.

Video game of dreams by digitalderbs · 2006-03-01 06:23 · Score: 1

If they're bouncy, they will come.

Duh by VGR · 2006-03-01 06:25 · Score: 1

Eidos has learned in spades that just because we make it, does not means they will come.

Isn't this the problem with the videogaming industry as a whole? Isn't virtually every publisher counting on the name and the packaging to sell the game instead of bothering with a good game? It's only been said a few thousand times on Slashdot now.

I would think a game review site that isn't a payola machine or an outright front controlled by the publisher would be welcome, but maybe there's so much crap floating in the pool that it's a job too depressing for anyone to take on.

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Re:Duh by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 06:42 · Score: 0

The problem is, the moment a review site prints a truthful but scathing review of a bad game from a big publisher, that publisher stops allowing that review site review copies of their games. In order to review the games, they have to cater to the publishers.

Of course, it's not like they're reviewing cars, here - games are only 50 bucks or so. So it's not like the review magazines/sites can't afford to buy review copies.

It's that the only way they can get the review copies before the consumer, is if they kneel down before the giant wang of the game publishing giants, open wide, and swallow it deep.
Re:Duh by VGR · 2006-03-01 07:06 · Score: 1

You're right, and this means early reviews may never be trustworthy.

I almost never pre-order games anyway, so I don't care if a review is written after the game is on the shelves. Even after release, a trustworthy review would be pretty valuable. Personally I'd rather wait an additional month and know more about what I'd be getting.

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The Internet is full. Go away.
Re:Duh by merlin_jim · 2006-03-01 07:10 · Score: 1

There are game sites that don't give a game a good review just because - but they are few and far between.

I generally read penny arcade - and while not a traditional review site, I've found their insights keen. They recently did a strip about a reviewer (maybe an editor?) at a big mag that actually wrote what he thought about a game - I would suggest trolling the archives to find his name and paying attention to his mag in the future.

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I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
Re:Duh by cornface · 2006-03-01 09:07 · Score: 1

There are game sites that don't give a game a good review just because - but they are few and far between.

What games sites are you reading? I see a lot of sites and magazines that give previews that are pretty much advertisements, but most of the established sites are fairly honest in their post-release reviews. Game Informer, Gamespot, Computer Gaming, etc. Gamespot even puts reader scores and scores from other sources right next to their own.

So really, what are you reading? "Joe's Super Madden EA Awesome Site Forever?"
Re:Duh by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 11:31 · Score: 0

It's very simple. If you run a review site, and publishers pull that kind of crap, then you place them on your "Hall of Shame" page. This page lists publishers that have tried to penalize you for giving them bad reviews, with a warning that they've published at least one crappy game and furthermore, since they won't send you their new titles, it's safe to assume they're planning to publish more.
An appearance on the "Hall of Shame" ought to frighten a publisher into giving up on the petty retaliation antics.
Re:Duh by merlin_jim · 2006-03-02 03:44 · Score: 1

There are good sites out there - all I'm saying is that it's a big problem in the industry right now, one that a few editors have recognized and chosen to speak up about.

I've seen horrible games reviewed glowingly on site after site, in magazine after magazine. I get XBOX mag - ok I expected that to be an advertising rag. I get Game Informer - which if I actually sit down and read it and compare reviews for some games to the actual gameplay experience, I sometimes wonder if I got the right game.

I'm not saying every article is a shill. I'm not saying any articles are shills. What I am saying is that, for the bigger named titles, the experience they report seldom matches what I personally experience from the titles - it could simply be that their editor's play styles differ vastly than my own (a theory I wouldn't debunk outright)

I'm not trying to single out any particular magazine either - all I'm trying to say, really, is if you find a game reviewer who obviously doesn't mind telling you things the manufacturer probably doesn't want you to know about before buying the game, that this is a rare and precious thing and should be treasured.

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I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
Re:Duh by cornface · 2006-03-02 06:00 · Score: 1

Really, you think Game Informer has misleading reviews? They give out a LOT of 4's, and don't seem to hesitate to bash the ever loving crap out of stupid games. Their _previews_ are full of it. Whatever game is on the cover, you can pretty much bet that it is going to suck ass. Every preview article is basically verbatim talking points from the publisher.

But, the _reviews_ seem to be accurate and as harsh as necessary. Look at the last months issue, as an example. They don't give out good scores very often.

Don't know.
Re:Duh by merlin_jim · 2006-03-02 07:00 · Score: 1

I have no disagreements with anything you say - in fact it is what you say that leads me to believe that Game Informer does misleading reviews.

The cover is obviously for sale; no problems there, you've got to make your money somewhere right? However the cover is apparently a two-for-one package deal with a glowing review included. I, like you, have come to the conclusion that any game I see on the cover of Game Informer is definitely one I want to stay away from hahaha

Ditto on the previews; such obvious advertising drivel.

The thing to keep in mind about Game Informer is that it's a magazine that is not published to be an accurate and informative source of information. It's published to sell games. Now it helps to sell games if you actually get some credibility - and most of their reviews are honest well thought out pieces (I particularly appreciate the second opinions and the editorial game genre preferences published) - but if a "review" is being paid for by the manufacturer, then the editor has a responsiblity to the readers to make that clear in the body of the review.

This is not the case today.

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I am disrespectful to dirt! Can you see that I am serious?!
Re:Duh by cornface · 2006-03-02 09:08 · Score: 1

The cover is obviously for sale; no problems there, you've got to make your money somewhere right? However the cover is apparently a two-for-one package deal with a glowing review included. I, like you, have come to the conclusion that any game I see on the cover of Game Informer is definitely one I want to stay away from hahah

This isn't really the case, though. Very frequently the game that gets slobbered on in the "cover story" preview gets ripped to shreds two months later in the actual review. More often than not, I'd say. I don't think the reviews are paid for. The previews, don't know. I think they do a pretty good job, all things considered. I think it's important to seperate the "coming soon preview for a game that's not out yet" from the "review written after playing a final copy of a game you can actually buy," though.

All the way by Jim+Hall · 2006-03-01 06:40 · Score: 1

...Lara, far from being a one-decade wonder, has legs.

Oh yeah, and they go all the way up! ;-)

Too late.. the only way to rescue the series is... by Channard · 2006-03-01 06:45 · Score: 1

.. by merging it with the Bloodrayne franchise. That way you can have a game with double the boobies - and if that's not enough to ensure the game will sell, how about tacking on a Hot Coffee style end sequence were Ms Croft and Ms Rayne make out. Heck, Majesco could sure use the money.

What about her waist? by r_jensen11 · 2006-03-01 07:14 · Score: 1

Is it just me, or does her waist seem smaller than the average waist-size of actresses in movies from the 1950's? I'm not saying she has to have a size 20, but honestly, it's like it goes from her hips to her spine, and then back to something that can support her reduced breasts...

Lara Croft's Big Bouncy Comeback by Captain+Spam · 2006-03-01 07:21 · Score: 1

Restoration of Lara Croft's good name? Doesn't that imply she had a good name to begin with?

*rimshot*

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Demanding constant attention will only lead to attention.

Well, of course she does! by Keith+Russell · 2006-03-01 07:29 · Score: 1

...Lara, far from being a one-decade wonder, has legs.

What else would those short shorts be showing off?

Although prosthetic legs would certainly explain why the controls sucked in Angel Of Darkness.

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Really? by argStyopa · 2006-03-01 07:36 · Score: 1

Lara, far from being a one-decade wonder, has legs.

R-i-g-h-t.

Next time you're going to be telling us that Cameron Diaz has ears, or Salma Hayek has elbows.

Balderdash. I can't remember seeing them even ONCE.

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-Styopa

More of the same. by MaWeiTao · 2006-03-01 08:12 · Score: 1

The screenshots for the new game look pretty nice, but in this day and age it's nothing special. That isn't a bad thing, it just means that the gameplay has to be pretty damn good.

Unfortunately, from what I've seen of screenshots so far it looks like the game is going to play pretty much like the previous Tomb Raiders; it's just more of the same.

The only reason I see this game enjoying any success is because the lead character is hot. Some guys will have a good time staring at her rear all day. It's interesting to compare her to Samus from Metroid who doesn't need to run around half-naked to get the job done.

Not that I don't mind staring at the new Lara myself, but still...

Ahh... by JustNiz · 2006-03-01 09:09 · Score: 1

>> He says the marketing and positioning is all going to be based around the character herself, revamped in every way imaginable. "This character is coming to life in every way; in terms of physics and animation...

So even bigger tits then.

Re:Ahh... by mabinogi · 2006-03-01 14:08 · Score: 1

actually, smaller.

But still pretty obscene - they did the best they could, but realised that the world wasn't ready for a realistically proportioned Lara Croft just yet....

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Advanced users are users too!
Re:Ahh... by snuf23 · 2006-03-01 14:27 · Score: 1

"This character is coming to life in every way; in terms of physics and animation..."

The key words are physics and animation. This time around it's not the size of the balls that matter it's how high they bounce.

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Sometimes my arms bend back.

Sigh, am I the only who liked Tomb Raider? by SmallFurryCreature · 2006-03-01 09:10 · Score: 1

Well the original one. On the PC. The only 'platformer' in fact I ever liked, the one with the save anywhere system so you could take Lara for a stroll and then quit when real life reared its ugly head.

More or less the game was just fun to play. The sequel was sorta fun as well except it somehow never had the magic moments of the first and was a lot harder. Then came the console save points. Remember game designers, save points are a hardware limitation, NOT good game design.

ME the PAYING customer want to play your game in the way I the PAYING customer wants to play it. That includes sessions of a few minutes between other activities. NOT having to play for as long as some level designer decided I need to play to get between save points.

The game lost the magic, became too hard while not keeping up with PC developments. Somebody needs to shoot the people that worked on the sequels and get the original magic back. A simple fun platform game where you usually just make the jump, the run, the leap with some impressive architecture to stare at. I am talkling about the SCENERY! You pervert. Geez.

As for Lara getting more 'realistic'. WHAT THE FUCK!

So what is some people with to much estrogen complain. Sell the game to the real men that want their women to have impossible looks. They are impossible to live with anyway, they might as well look it too. I just remember Planescape torment, now that was a game with big boobies.

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MMO Quests are like orgasms:

You may solo them, I prefer them in a group.

Re:Sigh, am I the only who liked Tomb Raider? by payndz · 2006-03-01 09:48 · Score: 1

I still play the original TR (and TR2, to a lesser extent) on my PS2. The irony of the series is that as the technology improved, the gameplay deteriorated. TR 1 and 2 concentrated on doing one thing well - 3D platforming and puzzles. From TR3 onwards, more and more distracting crap was thrown in to make the games more 'realistic', to the point where you practically needed a shift key on the joypad to access all of Lara's new abilities. (Angel Of Darkness was all but unplayable because of the horrible control system.)
The original Tomb Raider had a purity to it that rapidly became lost in the sequels. Hopefully getting the original game's creator back for Legends will return some of that feeling.

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You must think in Russian.
Re:Sigh, am I the only who liked Tomb Raider? by meringuoid · 2006-03-02 02:27 · Score: 1

I just remember Planescape torment, now that was a game with big boobies.
Oh hell yeah. Annah and Fall-from-Grace... t3h h4wt.

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Real Daleks don't climb stairs - they level the building.

Re:Too late.. the only way to rescue the series is by Laserwulf · 2006-03-01 09:13 · Score: 1

Wonder if Uwe Boll is available for the cinematic translation?

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"Make cyberlove, not cyberwar!" -Khaed(544779)

Chest reductions?? by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 11:09 · Score: 0

What chest reductions? They're not smaller. They're just sagging with age.

No more enemies by Goldrush · 2006-03-01 12:03 · Score: 1

I have the same complaint about the series ever since the first one. The enemies sucks the fun out of the game. Before AOD, the controls weren't too bad for platforming. However, once some of the later enemies appears, the game became unplayable. I never beaten any Tomb Raider games. Of those I played, I enjoyed the tricky jumps. However, once the second or third wave of enemies started appearing, I quit in frustration. Oh yeah, the sneaking missions...get rid of that, too.

Lara the Murderess by tabby · 2006-03-01 19:50 · Score: 1

http://curmudgeongamer.com/article.php?story=20021 022212750878&mode=print

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I've experiments to run, there is research to be done on the people who are still alive.

Um, no. The original was actually quite popular by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-01 20:18 · Score: 0

Hence the whole "90th percentile in it's first incarnation" business that's mentioned in the very first paragraph of the article.

Lara Croft's Big Come... by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-02 03:40 · Score: 0

FRONT!

Links to previews of the game by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-02 04:19 · Score: 0

Nothing's for sure until the reviews come out, but these previews are positive: http://ps2.ign.com/articles/686/686719p1.html http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/action/tombraidervii/n ews.html?sid=6143861

Re:Links to previews of the game by Anonymous Coward · 2006-03-02 05:38 · Score: 0

Thanks for the links, I was hoping to see more than one shot...

hmm... by cheeseboybeans · 2006-03-02 05:40 · Score: 1

that lindsey guy seems very arrogant and money driven indeed...

Romulan Hotness by BancBoy · 2006-03-02 10:22 · Score: 1

Did anyone else get a stiffy watching her in Hackers? Smart chicks rule.

She looked a bit like a Romulan in Hackers. But a damn hot Romulan!

With pix.

http://images.celebritymoviearchive.com/members/th umbs/d/down-Angelina_Jolie-Hackers-Trailer-720x480 .jpg

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[UID-HeinzIntel]

96 comments