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View Full Version : Finished the game - Here are my views


carlitoo
07-19-2007, 02:45 PM
For anyone interested!

This is the best TR game since TR3. TR1 and 2 are the best TR games without a doubt in my mind and it has steadily gone downhill since so this was a good effort at making the game better. So for that well done the creators. The controls I dislike but I have accepted things will never go back to how they were, I'm just glad many of the concerns from Legend have been listened to and sorted out. HOWEVER:

Wall running and jumping backwards. This just isn't fun. It's a lottery. I have died 1000 times in a row at Natla's mines and that great staircase and somewhere else i can't remember now. I have read the ways to do it, I have tried, I have moved the camera, it just doesn't work. With the way the controls are and the camera, it's just not a move that is easily doable or one that is down to the player. It's a farce and having to watch reload after reload xs 100 because of this is just torture. Please remove this from future games.

Exploration. I got stuck about twice. It's too straightforward. You can't possibly get lost in this game. There isn't one room that you don't need to go in. There isn't one ledge that you don't need to climb on. Where is the challenge? It's like they have given you a map and you have to follow it. Why?? Is it to do with dumbing down? Please I would love to know. Is this why they made the game so much shorter than the original? Croft manor was the most challenging in terms of exploration and therefore that was one of the best bits.

Colours. Where have they gone? I think the graphics look great, but still not a patch on the original. Where are the colours? It's just too grey? Natla's mines were blue, not in TRA. Why?

The final level. Boring. Too much has been said about the climbing the pyramid but it was a joke. This was a great and vast level in the original and felt really disappointed by it.

Boulders. Where did they go to? One bolder in the whole game and that was on our side to kill the rats. Why?

Bosses. Never liked these and would like an option to not have to do them but I guess that will never happen.

Red targets for shooting things. Well that just gives it away doesn't it? I know before having to work it out that i need to shoot that switch to make the door open. Again, dumbing down?


Still, I did enjoy this game much more than Legend, AOD (awful), TR4 (awful) and TRC (so bad) so I am grateful for that. Please keep to the tombs for the next game and listen to the advice of the original fans :)

boots
07-19-2007, 03:46 PM
Interesting thoughts! I more or less agree with you, actually.

I hated the boulders in the original games but as I've been replaying TRA, I've really come to miss them. I think because of the fact that they were a constant threat, the lack of them in this game made it feel... off. Although, actually, there were three - the rat one (for us), the one in Qualopec's tomb and the Atlas globe. But the point remains. I never thought I'd be endorsing boulders, but really. :rolleyes:

I think (and someone correct me if I'm wrong, since I haven't played the game in question) that when they made Legend, they erm, easy'd it up for broader appeal to a new audience, and from what I've seen, most people found it too easy, so perhaps they tried to balance it better in TRA. I think they did a rather decent job, even if it was usually a bit on the easy side, but there was still an issue with linear levels and such. Maybe in the next game they'll tweak it a bit more. And also add in some of the old color - the levels were gorgeous and atmospheric, but yes, rather bland. Sad.

Another thing, I didn't really mind the red targets so much as the fact that they got in the way so often. It's not always easy to just switch to an enemy in the heat of battle.

TheRidster
07-19-2007, 03:57 PM
It was not as colourful as Tomb raider one because I think they tried to make the enviroments look more natural. I think it worked, it really felt like to me that I was really there! I think TR:A is the best yet. The wall run and adrenaline dodge did have a step learning curve but once I mastered them the became easy. I thought the control system beat the original hands down, Lara felt much more fluid and natural to control for me and I love that. It was a little to frustrating in some places but overall not too hard, not too easy. Great, bring on Legend 2.

virumor
07-19-2007, 04:49 PM
The only things that frustrated me were the instances where one needs to fight multiple tough enemies in very limited or narrow spaces (e.g. 2 harpies + 2 sabretooth mummies in the Great Pyramid, or 2 mummies + 2 centaurs)... I've found it very hard to use the adrenaline dodge at such cases when Lara automatically targets a far-off enemy instead of a near one (and manually switching targets didn't really work out well for me)... it's hard to focus on dodging the enraged beastie when it comes charging for you, when there are three others at your toes.

I got smacked around big-time at those points... found it to be even harder than bossfights. *sigh*

Other than that, I liked everything.. :whistle:

boots
07-19-2007, 05:01 PM
The only things that frustrated me were the instances where one needs to fight multiple tough enemies in very limited or narrow spaces (e.g. 2 harpies + 2 sabretooth mummies in the Great Pyramid, or 2 mummies + 2 centaurs)... I've found it very hard to use the adrenaline dodge at such cases when Lara automatically targets a far-off enemy instead of a near one (and manually switching targets didn't really work out well for me)... it's hard to focus on dodging the enraged beastie when it comes charging for you, when there are three others at your toes.

I got smacked around big-time at those points... found it to be even harder than bossfights. *sigh*

Amen to that. If I had to pick the hardest fight in the game, it would be the one at the end of the Sanctuary of the Scion level. Especially since the first time I got to it, I had no ammo aside from the shotgun (too slow for multiple quick enemies like that), the AD was utterly useless, and there was nowhere to catch a breather. Augh, nightmare. I detest that fight with all my being.

Ghostwolfalpha
07-19-2007, 07:36 PM
They can also tone down a bit on the ragdoll effect, it really annoys me when Lara dies she started to bounce around bit too much.

Bampire
07-19-2007, 09:49 PM
I agree with you on the Straight Forward to the levels, the shortening the game itself.

The Ragdoll, what Ghotwolf mentioned, I agree with that as well. It's really annoying, just to see her fall like 10 feet and suddenly her body shoot all the way across the room, and hit the wall. When hitting the wall she slides and either gets attacked by an animal, crushed, or into the water. It's like playing with a string puppet.

LisaB
07-20-2007, 10:03 AM
Yeah, the rag doll death does get old. When she falls straight down, I think it's a bit much for her to fly across the room. Also, slipping off the spikes in Midas was just *shrugs* I'm not opting for tons of gore or anything, just something a little more different.

As for natural, the Greeks and Egyptians painted everything; only the exteriors need to be washed out due to weather damage. Cleopatra's Palace was like a "wow" moment for me in TLR because it was so pristine. I'd like something like that.

Mangar The Dark
07-20-2007, 12:12 PM
As for natural, the Greeks and Egyptians painted everything; only the exteriors need to be washed out due to weather damage. Cleopatra's Palace was like a "wow" moment for me in TLR because it was so pristine. I'd like something like that.

Cleopatra's Palace was a great looking level. But the Egypt levels in TRA did feel older, so I kind of liked that.