Tomb Raider
| Template:Gameline|Tomb Raider | ||
|---|---|---|
| ||
| Template:Gameline|Featuring Lara Croft | ||
| Release Date | 1996 | |
| Platforms | PC, Mac, PlayStation, Sega Saturn and Nokia N-Gage | |
| Number of Levels | 15 | |
| Secrets | 45 | |
| Developer | Core Design | |
| Publisher | Eidos Interactive | |
| Designers | Toby Gard and Phil Campbell | |
| Rating | ESRB: Teen | |
| Add-On | Unfinished Business | |
| Template:Gameline|Game Chronology | ||
| Tomb Raider | Tomb Raider II | |
| Template:Gameline|Walkthrough | ||
Tomb Raider was the first of the series, the seed of a legacy. It impressed players at the time, with it's 3D graphics, and new player interaction, as well as the third-person perspective that all the games have adopted. This game introduces us to the protagonist of Tomb Raider itself: Lara Croft. An expansion came out in 1998 with a seperate 4-level adventure attached. This expansion was known as Tomb Raider Unfinished Business. A PDA version was also released later on. It was released on Nokia N-Gage in 2003.
Contents
Synopsis
Adventurer Lara Croft has been hired to recover the pieces of an ancient artefact known as the Scion. With her fearless acrobatic style, she runs, jumps, swims and climbs her way toward the truth of its origins and powers - leaving only a trail of empty tombs and gun-cartridges in her wake.
Levels
(See notes section for an explanation to why the second set of levels take place in Turkey. Although the game does not specify the location, it does leave clues as to the actual location of the Tomb of Tihocan).
Peru
- 1 - Caves
- 2 - City of Vilcabamba
- 3 - Lost Valley
- 4 - Tomb of Qualopec
Greece
- 5 - St. Francis' Folly
- 6 - Colosseum
- 7 - Palace Midas
- 8 - The Cistern
- 9 - Tomb of Tihocan
Egypt
- 10 - City of Khamoon
- 11 - Obelisk of Khamoon
- 12 - Sanctuary of the Scion
Atlantis
- 13 - Natla's Mines
- 14 - Atlantis
- 15 - The Great Pyramid
Release Dates in Detail
DOS
- United States - 15th November 1996
- United Kingdom - 22nd November 1996
PlayStation
- United States - 15th November 1996
- United Kingdom - 22nd November 1996
- Germany - November 1996
- Australia - 29th September 2000
- Japan - 14th February 1997
Sega Saturn
- United States - 18th November 1996
Nokia N-Gage
- United Kingdom - 7th October 2003
Gameplay
Tomb Raider is third perspective with the camera following Lara. She can run, walk, vault, shimmy, jump, move blocks, swim, swan dive, roll, shoot and perform numerous acrobatic aerial manoeuvres. She automatically locks on to enemies and can run and jump while locked on, giving her the advantage to jump behind the enemy while shooting it in the back. The AI of enemies is mediocre. When confronted with a lion, the lion will run but stop to growl and then run again, and then stopping to growl and so forth. This can be seen as unrealistic, but the overall AI is okay.
When Lara is jumping to another platform, she must produce a well timed jump for longer distances, with simple stationary jumps for shorter distances. Some platforms may require Lara to produce a running jump which causes her to grab the edge of the platform, she must then vault up. To get to another platform, Lara must grab onto the edge of the platform she is standing on, and shimmy across a group of edges before she can vault up. If Lara drops down from a great height she will die. Some heights will only deal damage but not kill her, the damage depends on the altitude. She can also be killed by the actions of enemies and by numerous traps throughout the game.
There are some puzzles in the game but they are more practical than mathematical. For example, some doors may be timed and Lara must use a lever to open it then cross a series of obstacles, usually requiring timed jumps. Some puzzles require the finding of items and keys. The Palace Midas level requires the player to find a magical process in order to complete the level.
In the PlayStation and Sega Saturn versions of Tomb Raider, saving the game is restricted to fixed save points within each level, marked by a floating blue crystal. When Lara touches one of these the option to save is made available. The scarcity of these points, however, means that if the player dies, large portions of each level must be replayed, much to the players' frustration. Following criticism on this system, Core implemented a save anywhere at anytime feature in Tomb Raider II, which, in turn, lead to complaints that the game was made too easy. A compromise was reached with Tomb Raider III under the form of "collectible save crystals." The PC and Mac versions of the game allow the player to save at any time.
Game Elements
Characters
Jacqueline Natla - The villain of the game. She hired Lara to find the Scion. Her intentions were evil and she only wanted to use the Scion for one purpose.....to finish what she had started thousands of years ago.
Larson - A dimwitted henchman of Natla. He originally made contact with Lara in Calcutta on behalf of Natla. In Peru, he tried to kill Lara but failed. He ultimately met his demise in Egypt. He uses a Revolver.
Pierre Du Pont - Another henchman of Natla. He was sent to find the second Scion piece in Turkey before Lara. He usually would play cat and mouse throughout the Midas and Tihocan complex. He was killed by Lara. He uses Magnums.
Cowboy - One of Natla's goon trio. He steals Lara's magnums from her. He is killed in Natla's Mines and Lara reclaims her magnums.
Skater Boy - One of Natla's goon trio. He steals Lara's uzis from her. He is killed in Natla's Mines and Lara reclaims her uzis.
Bald Guy - One of Natla's goon trio. He steals Lara's shotgun from her. He is killed in Natla's Mines and Lara reclaims her shotgun.
Weapons
Enemies
- Atlantean Flying Mutant
- Atlantean Mutant
- Bear
- Bats
- Black Panther
- Centaurs
- Crocodiles
- Gorillas
- Lions
- Khamoon Mummy
- Rats
- T-Rex
- Velociraptor
- Wolves
Notes
This section exlains why the second set of levels take part in Turkey. Firstly Midas was a king of Phrygia, an area that is now in modern day Turkey. If Midas had a palace, it would have been in Turkey. The greek architecture which is present in these levels might convince you that the levels should be taking place in Greece. But the folk who originally populated Phrygia were from Greece and they bought Greek culture, music and architecture with them. Colosseums have been found all over Eastern Turkey and also Christian monasteries, which can give explanations, on behalf of St. Francis' Folly and Colosseum. The Palace and the Colosseum were probably remains of Pessinus, the city within Phrygia where Midas ruled. The monastery was built on top of the ruins, since the monks knew of the Tomb of Tihocan which lay below and they decided to protect it and keep it secret.
Walkthrough
For a detailed walkthrough click here
