Official E3 2012 Ambassador Program - Demo Thread | update: review is up!

[chip5541]

http://driber.net/os/forum/e3-2012-ambassador-program-banner.jpg

UPDATE: Chip's TR demo impressions are up! http://forums.eidosgames.com/showthread.php?p=1767537#post1767537


This demo thread is a place for all of you to give our forum ambassador (see announcement (http://forums.eidosgames.com/showthread.php?t=126113)) me hints about what you’d like me to look for in the new demo during this year's E3 event.

I'm sure a lot of you have very specific curiosities on how the new game has developed during the past year since E3 2011, so feel free to use this thread to make requests what you would like for me to keep my eye on during my visit to LA.

This thread is also where I will share my impressions and updates during the show, and a longer format preview of the game post-E3.

For reference, below are some videos of last year's demo that was shown to the press at E3 and played by a select number of community members during last year's Community Tour (http://forums.eidosgames.com/showthread.php?p=1713382#post1713382).

E3 2011 Gameplay Demo
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Extended E3 2011 Gameplay Demo
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[Shaikh]

This thread will be filled up with some super excited comments later after the demo released. Can't wait to see the demo! Still wondering where it will be shown first!! :scratch:

[TranceTrouble]

When i see the demo again it makes me want to play the game :D

Chip i'm curious about the sound Lara is making, in last Demo I thought the screaming was a little bit to much, like jumping she constantly had a short scream just curious if that has changed to a bit less or anything.

[pidipidi39]

in the new demo i want to see the island and some battles... i want to see how lara will moves herself around the island and how her will survive ;) and, of course, i want to play the E3 2011 Demo!! release it please :)

[Andy64]

I'd like to see some level of corelation with classic Lara. Maybe a little bit of cutscene chat between Lara and Conrad with some Lara wit.

We didn't really yet how the combat works and if it''s more directed to precise targeting or evasive dodging. That would be interesting to see.

[LaraRocks2]

When i see the demo again it makes me want to play the game :D

Chip i'm curious about the sound Lara is making, in last Demo I thought the screaming was a little bit to much, like jumping she constantly had a short scream just curious if that has changed to a bit less or anything.

Haha yes the Lara moaning was a little bit excessive. IGN did a "sexy lara" video with just the moans and it's kinda funny :P Chip good sir, 1. Please enjoy this experience a little extra for me ;__; lol, and 2. can you please tell us how the animations are, is everything more cinematic or is it only certain events? can you give us the control scheme? (ie what buttons do what while youre playing) i'm dying to give the demo a try. even if it was pre alpha

[TheBlade]

Can i see a death scene?

:lol:

It always made me laugh killing Lara Croft. It really was one of the only replay values in TR.

[LARALOVERnr.1]

As a matter of fact, I would like to see a Lara death-scene too. I wanna see if the game is really as bloody and gruesome as the developers said. The death-scene in the trailer above sure lived up to my expectations :)

[chip5541]

Ok, so let me get this straight. You don't want Lara to sound like an adult star and you want to watch her die. ;)

[Driber]

Don't you know...those are today's morals.

The slightest hint of sex is banned but random ultra-violence is perfectly fine :whistle:

*cough (http://driber.net/os/troll-face.png)*

[LARALOVERnr.1]

^
I'm actually one of the few people who think that Lara's moaning in the demo was realistic and I have no problems with it, though I do think they should turn it down a notch (like, make it a few 'Aaaaaargh's' instead of a lot of 'oeh's' and 'oh's' in a really high voice :p )

And I don't want to see her die just for the sake of her virtually being dead, I'd like to see her die so I can get an idea of the deathscenes in the game. Will they be cinematic/scripted or will she turrn into a raggdoll like in previous games?
In fact, I'm going to ask it in the official thread :D

[chip5541]

They should just pick up Kagero's Deception 2 if all they want is different ways to die. :)

[LadyRufina]

Yeah, I'm the other way around. I don't mind the moaning because it's realistic but I don't want to see poor Lara die horrific deaths.

[TheBlade]

Well i really like the moaning and i don't think it's "dirty" anyway. It was a very unique thing they went to having a character in pain. I hope Lara does scream out like she did in the first E3 demo, they changed it in the second unfortunately.

[Ivana KC]

I want to see wether or not Lara is making those horrible sounds, too. As for Lara's death, that would be fun to see! :D

Also, I would like to see if there are any hints that can help the player and if player can turn the help off. For example, if Lara is talking to herself or if some objects are highlighted.

[LaraRocks2]

Don't you know...those are today's morals.

The slightest hint of sex is banned but random ultra-violence is perfectly fine :whistle:

*cough (http://driber.net/os/troll-face.png)*

Lol well this is true. I was just saying it was funny how she squealed. When I hey hurt I yell "ow" or "(bad word here)" I dont sexually moan at high frequencies :p hehe all joking aside I do like that they gave Lara more sound during the game. She was always quiet and to herself I bet it falls into the "scared and unprepared" category. Like I said I just wanna know what each button does. :)

[LaraRocks2]

While playing this portion of the game in the demo, can you swivel the camera for a look to see if Lara has the jade thing on her necklace? I noticed in the newest render, it's not there... So I'm interested to see if it's an artifact of some sort or what... lol

[temirlan]

where to get this демо version ?

[TranceTrouble]

where to get this демо version ?

there is not an official demo out yet but it people say that it will be at the E3 show in Los Angeles to try out.

[Driber]

Update: our forum ambassador Chip will be going for demo sessions (yes, 2 of them!) today (Wednesday) starting at around noon LA time!

If there are any last minute requests or tips, post them now and I'll relay them to him :)

[Driber]

Update: The demo sessions have ended and so the call for tips has ended :)

Thanks for your input, guys!

[chip5541]

Tomb Raider Demo Impression's by Chip

After a long flight and nice walk to E3, all the Ambassadors were treated to a walk through of a small portion of the upcoming Tomb Raider game. This is the continuation of the trailer where she is trapped underground working her way out of a cave before obtaining any tools. This is a small portion of the beginning of the walk-through that was presented to us. As Lara stands, we see the wound in her side. We also the beautifully dark coastline behind her strewn with wrecked ships, dark ominous clouds and lightning.

This really feels like it foreshadows the more darker and mature tone of the game. As Lara moves about trying to find her way away from the cliffs and maybe to find others from the ship she has a tendency to talk a little to herself which I am sure if we were in the same situation we would probably do the same. I actually found it entertaining and allowed a personal connection to the character.

As we move along the ledge that winds away from the cliffs along the coast we come to plane wreckage which she must climb to get to the other side and a continuation of the ledge. The animation of Lara is really spot on and I felt a little tense, thinking move faster, as parts of the planes skin started to fall away. Finally making it to the other side I had a feeling that some part of the plane would fall off and land near her and for that I wasn't disappointed. Moving along a path that was partially covered by a ridge line she came to a small camp that someone had set up.

This is where she uses her last match to try and start a fire. Blowing on the branches trying to get warm and dry off from the rain, you can see her breath and her shivering. This is when I noticed her eyes and brow. It was so full of emotion that without saying a word you could tell the character felt fear. The only other game I have ever seen with that much detail would be Heavy Rain. Really stunning.

As the rain stopped and she recouped herself she moved on to find the others only to end up in a lower area of the forest. Deer and rabbits inhabit this area and the overall design of both the environment (trees, water, etc.) and the wildlife (deer, rabbits, etc.) have a very organic flow. Looking about a bit she finds a cadaver hanging upside down from a rope from a tree. My first thought is “Is that Freddy Kruger?” Nope. Just for a split second it kind of reminded me of him until we got a good look. Lara, working her way up to the body by climbing fallen tree trucks and a portion of a small collapsed structure, reached out to grab the bow that was still around the cadavers shoulder. Now armed she needs to hunt for food and practice using the bow and arrows.

Upon bringing down her first Deer we are treated to another wonderful closeup of her face and the expression of emotional pain of having to do what she has to do to survive. Anyone who is familiar with Red Dead Revolver knows what she has to do, although at least she isn't complaining about it stinking. While I do not think it is a direct copy I can see if some think the sequence is a little too close. While story wise the taking down of the deer is for food it really goes toward experience points that will upgrade Lara's abilities. I believe the first one selected was auto retrieve arrows. There are other options that will allow the collection of herbs and plants. What would an exploring game be without the collection of hidden items? Well, we have that too from ancient artifacts to finding and shooting hidden skulls. This should keep the gamers that want to explore every nook and cranny very happy.

As Lara explores she finds your usual abandoned, or maybe not, buildings with areas to explore. It is these places that you will find tools, artifacts and thingamajigs. It is also a good area to be on the lookout for scrap or whatever is needed to upgrade Lara's tools or weapons. As you look for the scraps you will more than likely run into one of the forests more dangerous denizens, the wolves. Pack hunters and, from the demo, always a tense battle with sounds and music that will get the ol' heart pumping. Not all tools will allow Lara to access certain areas at first so exploring and upgrading is the key to unlocking other areas.

The interaction with the characters not only plays a vital part in telling the story but also is well written and during our presentation there was absolutely no cringe worthy dialog. In fact I found it well paced and even at one point wanted to yell at one character “What the hell are you doing?” The darker tones that run through the story, and at one point the cut scene, did not seem out of place and felt directed at a more mature audience than something that is tacked on just to grab headlines.

By the end of the demo we do see what would drive Lara Croft to be Lara Croft. The transition from child to adult. While I found a few issues, torch not flickering right when going down a ladder, I was assured that these were being addressed with the additional time given and I have very little doubt that when this game is released it will be a AAA title in every sense of the word.

Welcome back Lara Croft.

[Metalrocks]

nice read.
they have plenty of time to fix all these little issues so im not too concerned.

[mugenkb1]

Thanks for the impressions Chip!

Glad to know that they're taking the extra time to really polish the game up. Looking so forward to it.

[Andrashi]

Thank you for a nice article, Chip.

Talking about "small issues", can the team please fix Lara's reactions to bullet wounds? On E3 we were presented "industry standard" Lara, who goes through enemies like a terminator (no reaction to pain, no emotions) just because the given part of the game clearly exhibits "this is action sequence, let's get crazy".

Can I ask for Tomb Raider project to differ, can I please ask for AI to be smarter and more aware of its surroundings and can I please ask for Lara to react on incoming gunfire wounds? Pretty please. I don't want to read "Uncharted copy" catchphrase all over reviews when this project hits shelves. Thanks.

[TranceTrouble]

very nice read thank you Chip :D

[chip5541]

My pleasure. I am surprised no comment on the Freddy Kruger post ;)

[Driber]

Just wanted to give this one a little *bump* in case anyone missed our forum ambassador's demo impressions :)

click here (http://forums.eidosgames.com/showthread.php?p=1767537#post1767537) to go to the post

[LadyRufina]

Just wanted to give this one a little *bump* in case anyone missed our forum ambassador's demo impressions :)

click here (http://forums.eidosgames.com/showthread.php?p=1767537#post1767537) to go to the post

Thanks, Driber. I didn't notice it. It's good to get an opinion of the dialogue we didn't see because some bits that we did see were a little cringeworthy

[chip5541]

Thank you. I tried to make it as an enjoyable rad without giving away too much.