Difference between revisions of "Tomb Raider: Underworld"
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==Gear== | ==Gear== | ||
Revision as of 04:36, 17 August 2008
| Tomb Raider Underworld | ||
|---|---|---|
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| Tomb Raider 8 | ||
| Release Date | 18th and 21st November 2008 | |
| Platforms | PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PS2, Wii, Nintendo DS | |
| Developer | Crystal Dynamics | |
| Publisher | Eidos Interactive | |
| Rating | T for Teen | |
| Game Chronology: | ||
| Tomb Raider Anniversary | Tomb Raider Underworld | |
Tomb Raider Underworld will continue the story of Tomb Raider Legend, as it was left open at the end. Lara's next adventure revolves around the ancient Mayan calendar and the five days that leave the portal to the Underworld open. This Underworld may be the same as Avalon.
Contents
Release Dates & Platforms
Tomb Raider Underworld will be released in November 2008. It will be playable on the PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii, Nintendo DS and PS2.
- Europe - 21st November 2008
- United States - 18th November 2008
Levels
- Mediterranean
- Coastal Thailand
- Croft Manor
- Southern Mexico
- Jan Mayen Island
- Andaman Sea
- Arctic Sea
Features and Controls
Differences from previous iterations in the series are that Lara's world will be an "interactive world that reacts and remembers", such that footprints left in the mud or mud transferred to Lara's knee from kneeling on the ground will be washed away by rain, the bodies of the foes she encounters will remain where she killed them, and any destruction to the environment she causes will be permanent.[13] According to creative director Eric Lindstrom, this is "to not only reward the player for the effect they're having on the world, but to give them navigational aids."[15] The game utilises an animation blending system that allows Lara to interact dynamically with her environment, such as pushing foliage aside with one or two hands, depending on if she is carrying a weapon.[16] It also features a "hybrid lighting model that combines dynamic lights with carefully created light maps" and a weather system that changes the environment, for example, "If Lara’s negotiating a wet ledge she’s more apt to slip or lose grip," which makes "the environment ... her adversary" for a large part of the game.[13][17]
Previously seen separate aspects of gameplay have been combined together for a new experience. Lindstrom explained that "in the past, there was climbing, and there was shooting, and there was puzzle solving. And they often didn't overlap. We've now integrated all of those elements."[18] This instalment also features a new melee combat system, requiring Lara in some instances to use "direct combat and evasive manoeuvres to distance herself from her attacker". Notably, Lara's bike, among other things, will be a key component in solving the puzzles she will encounter in her adventure.[13] Pick-ups will have multiple uses as weapons and tools in interaction with the environment, and Lindstrom stated that Lara "can also split up her guns and fire at two different targets simultaneously,"[15] or hold an item with one hand and fire a gun with the other.[18] The grappling hook can now be stretched taut and used to push objects off ledges unlike in previous iterations, illustrating what project lead Rob Pavey said, that "Lara will be able to do anything that you'd expect her to be able to do," which he called "the big theme this year."[7] Lindstrom describes this as "a philosophy called 'What Could Lara Do?'—WCLD. It's short-hand for having the player be able to use their own intuition about what someone with her abilities should be able to do in an environment such as this, and consistency across the different mechanics and abilities. If she can throw a grenade, then if she can pick up this pole, why can't she throw it?" Crystal Dynamics also aims to make the game non-linear, unlike Tomb Raider: Legend, and eliminate the need for hint icons that indicate the ability to interact with objects.[15]
Aside from these changes, Lara's costume was redesigned and she no longer wears her trademark blue sleeveless top and khaki shorts, but instead, a dark brown halter top and black shorts. Additionally, her hair is no longer braided, but worn in a ponytail. According to Play, Lara "moves as good as she looks [and] no longer moves like a video game character" thanks to being fully motion captured.[13]
These revelations and Play's assertions that this is the "first true next gen Lara" and "one big physics smorgasbord" which "looks altogether photo-real"[13] have led to speculation that Tomb Raider: Underworld might be using a new game engine for its next-generation graphics rather than the Tomb Raider: Legend system used by Tomb Raider: Anniversary and Deus Ex 3,[19] but Eidos has neither confirmed nor denied this.[5]
Keeley Hawes will provide the voice of Lara in this instalment, as she did in Anniversary and Legend.[5] Olympic gymnast and NCAA Women's Gymnastics champion Heidi Moneymaker was the model used for motion capturing.
Here is a brief list of new and key elements in Tomb Raider: Underworld
- dynamic weather
- dynamic dirt on Lara's clothes
- Lara "has more than a dozen layers that determine her skin tone and texture, how light reflects or scatters, how shadows form, etc." [4]
- Lara has additional non-gameplay-relevant animations like pushing away branches [5]
- Destroyed objects and defeated enemies will no longer vanish
- new combat tactics (hand-to-hand combat - kicking and punching - melee combat... e.g. hitting opponents with picked-up sticks)
- shooting two targets at once
- shooting while climbing
- shooting while balancing on a pole
- advanced environment interaction
- multiple usage of objects (e.g. using picked up items - like a wooden stick - as weapons or for climbing)
- sprinting
- balancing on ropes
- new, advanced wall-climbing
- multiple usage of the grapple rope (e.g. pulling objects closer, for climbing, for balancing across...)
- The game will be significantly longer than Tomb Raider Legend
- The game will contain more difficult puzzles
- The hint system can be turned off
- fewer boss fights
- Lara will encounter dangerous cryptids (creatures that are presumed extinct, or have yet to be discovered) that require many shots before being defeated
- improved opponent AI (e.g. recognition of thrown grenades and evasive actions)
- It has been confirmed that the medipacks will no longer exist and Lara will heal herself in due time
- Keeley Hawes voices Lara as she had in Legend and Underworld
- The game's key artifact, The Hammer of Thor, once retrieved may be used as a weapon like Excalibur.
Story
For generations, stories have been told of the fearsome weapon of the Norse god Thor. Legend holds that he who wields the hammer has the power to smash mountains into valleys and the strength to destroy even the gods. For more than a thousand years it has existed only as a myth…until now.
In an ancient ruin on the floor of the Mediterranean Sea, Lara Croft uncovers proof of the Norse underworld and the mythical hammer. As she attempts to unravel the secrets behind these myths, Lara's perilous journey leads her toward a forgotten power that, if unleashed, could lay waste to all civilization.
Locations
Confirmed
- South America, Mexico [6] [7]
- Xibalba (the Mayan underworld) [8] [9]
- Mediterranean Sea [10]
- Thailand [11]
- Arctic [12]
- Croft Manor (likely in ruins) [13]
Rumoured
- Australia [14]
- Easter Island [15]
- the Golden Triangle - Laos, Thailand and Myanmar [16]
- Mesopotamia [17]
- Rome and the Vatican [18]
- England (besides Croft Manor)
Lara's confirmed Moves/ Animations
Lara will now have over 1700 moves. [19]
- Mantle onto ledges
- Melee kicks and punches
- Wall kick/ Wall kick on perch
- Free climb on concave and convex surfaces
- Split target, even on perch
- Can use poles as a weapon, slot into walls, climb on, swing on or balance on
- Run with picked up objects
- Can use "sticky grenades" on still/ moving targets
- Glances at killed enemies as she goes by
- Pushes branches out of her way
- Sprint (updated)
- Different stances when running with picked up objects
- Can balance on beams and ledges, but will slip off when wet
- Can cartwheel
- Personal Light Source
- Can shimmy on ledges and around corners smoothly
- Can free-climb
- New reach move
- Can shoot while swan diving
- Can exert force using the grapple
- Can climb horizontally
Traps and Obstacles
- Spring Board [20]
- Column/Pole
- Tightrope
Artifacts
Gear
- Active Sonar map
- A revolutionary new tool that emits an active sonar ping to create a 3D image of Lara’s surroundings, perfect for uncovering hidden items and locations. [21]
- Multi-purpose grapple
- A claw-like device with a high-tension cable designed for climbing, rappelling, performing wall runs and manipulating objects within the environment.
Weapons
Outfits
As in Tomb Raider Legend and Anniversary Lara will have numerous Outfits at her disposal.
Vehicles
Lara will be able to drive her motorbike as part of the Mexico and Arctic levels. She will also make use of other (still unnamed) vehicles.
- Motorbike (the Wii version will support steering wheels for exclusive motorbike sequences)
- All-terrain hybrid motorbike: A unique vehicle design built to drive on everything from mud to snow and ice.
- a yacht (most likely seen in cut scenes only) [22]
Characters and Enemies
Characters
Confirmed
- Lara Croft
- Jacqueline Natla
- Winston
- Zip - will return in low profile (possibly as a doublecrosser)
- Alister - will return in low profile
Rumoured
Several characters from the Tomb Raider series are likely to appear in Underworld. Amanda Evert being the only one still alive is the most likely of those, all others are either expected in flashbacks or as plottwists bringing them back from the dead.
Enemies
The number of human opponents is less than the number of animals in the game.
- Animals
- Monster Creatures
- a Kraken
- Human Opponents
Unlockables
Press Releases
January 2008
SCI Entertainment announces that Tomb Raider Underworld will be released in the fourth quarter of 2008, for PS3, XBox 360, PC, Wii, Nintendo DS and PS2. [28]
References
- ↑ PlayStation Official Magazine - UK Issue 020 July 2008
- ↑ Computerbild Spiele (German computer games magazine), issue 2/2008
- ↑ CD Action
- ↑ play magazine, January 2008
- ↑ CD Action magazine
- ↑ play, January 2008
- ↑ Computerbild Spiele (German computer games magazine), issue 2/2008
- ↑ play, January 2008
- ↑ Computerbild Spiele (German computer games magazine), issue 2/2008
- ↑ PlayStation Official Magazine - UK Issue 020 July 2008
- ↑ Eidos Press Release July 15th
- ↑ Eidos Press Release July 15th
- ↑ Gamestar 03/2008 page 52
- ↑ French PSM3, January 2008
- ↑ French PSM3, January 2008
- ↑ French PSM3, January 2008
- ↑ French PSM3, January 2008
- ↑ French PSM3, January 2008
- ↑ Eidos press release
- ↑ CD Action
- ↑ Fact Sheet by Eidos
- ↑ PlayStation Official Magazine - UK Issue 020 July 2008
- ↑ Computerbild Spiele (German computer games magazine), issue 2/2008
- ↑ Computerbild Spiele (German computer games magazine), issue 2/2008
- ↑ CD Action
- ↑ http://www.tombraidergirl.com/tr8/articles07.php
- ↑ http://www.tombraidergirl.com/tr8/articles07.php
- ↑ http://www.hemscott.com/news/latest-news/item.do?newsId=57266947022972
