Tomb Raider

[Iron Draggon]

I recently decided that this game was too significant to not include it in my collection, despite previously boycotting it on purpose, due to my distate for it's apparent advocacy of killing endangered species just for the sport of it. I still disagree with those aspects of the game, but I'm now willing to look past them at what made this game and its resulting franchise what it is today.

I'm aware that this game spawned an entire genre of 3PS games, so I'm wondering what other games used the same engine as the original game, or one of its sequels. I figure if I end up enjoying Tomb Raider, I'd prolly enjoy other 3PS games, and I know the Playstation has plenty to choose from. I'm just not sure which of them I might want to add to my collection someday.

Thoughts?

Suggestions?

[jdc]

There's a pile of Tomb Raider games on the PSX. They're not easy to play and it's not hard to back or side flip yourself into certain doom, but they'll last you a while. I always had respect for people who could finish them. Good thing is that the guides are fairly easy to come across in the wild as well as the games. They remind me of the Resident Evil games as well. It's best to play them with an original digital Playstation controller if you have one. Thumbsticks seem to detract from the control needed to play.

[Sniderman]

I....despite previously boycotting it on purpose, due to my distate for it's apparent advocacy of killing endangered species just for the sport of it.
http://media.tools4noobs.com/Level3_The_Lost_Valley/Level3_The_Lost_Valley_image035.jpg

???

Joking aside, what species is endangered? Bats, wolves, tigers, bears, panthers, gorillas (ah, that may be it), crocs, and rats. If it IS the gorillas, then maybe I'm missing something since Mario caged up DK in DK Jr and also made him fall to his doom in the original DK, but I bet you have a few Mario games in the ol' collection. Not being snarky, I just don't get being that worked up over a game.

[crazyjackcsa]

It was the dnosaurs from the first one. Save the T-REX!

[geneshifter]

Sorry for my ignorance, but I've played most of the TR games and I like them a lot but I don't know what 3PS means.

[jdc]

I think that it means 3rd person shooter.

[CastlevaniaDude]

I always thought the Tomb Raider games were horrible and overrated.

[kupomogli]

The first title was okay. The second was alot better. After the first two, the series just sucked balls up until Tomb Raider Legend then Tomb Raider Anniversary(a remake of the original.) Those two games took a dead series, or rather a series ruined by alot of crappy releases, and brought it back to life. Never played Tomb Raider Underworld.

I'd say that the original Tomb Raider games have marked their place in history regardless. If you ask me, Shadow of the Colossus' gameplay seems very inspired off from that of the Tomb Raider series, though SotC is a far better game than even the best of them in my opinion. If you look at it that way, we may have never received SotC if it wasn't for Tomb Raider.

[CosmicMonkey]

I always thought the Tomb Raider games were horrible and overrated.

To be fair I have to agree. The controls were really horrible and precise movements seemed impossible. But then, if I had breasts that size (seemingly growing by a cup size per game) on such a slender figure I'm sure I'd have problems moving around coherently.

[eskobar]

I'm wondering what other games used the same engine as the original game, or one of its sequels.


I didn't quite understood the question ...

If it was about the game engine, probably it was used only by 5 Tomb Raider games :

Tomb Raider
Tomb Raider II
Tomb Raider III
Tomb Raider : The Last Revelation
Tomb Raider Chronicles



There are many similar games but INDIANA JONES and the INFERNAL MACHINE is worth buying.

[roushimsx]

Of the ones developed by Core, the only one worth picking up is the first title. Make sure you get it on PC though, not PS1 or Saturn. With the PC version, there's a few additional missions in Unfinished Business (available as part of Tomb Raider Gold) in addition to the fan created content. A little more involved in getting up and running (DOSbox, GliDOS, dgVoodoo, etc), but well worth the effort.

Fun Reading (http://www.tombraiders.net/stella/tomb1.html).

Also seconding Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine, though I guess the N64 version of that is the best one to get? Can't remember exactly why...I own both but never really spent any time with the N64 one. Going to have to fix that sometime.

[Aussie2B]

Joking aside, what species is endangered? Bats, wolves, tigers, bears, panthers, gorillas (ah, that may be it), crocs, and rats.

I'm honestly very surprised that you don't at least know right off the bat that tigers and gorillas are critically endangered. I figure that was common knowledge among just about everyone by now. Even elementary school kids are usually taught that. It's also fairly well-known that many species of wolves and bears are endangered. Basically any large predator that needs a large amount of territory is struggling these days. You should take a trip to a zoo, man.

Not that I agree with the whole idea of boycotting Tomb Raider on the basis that you kill endangered animals. Unless a game is really malicious in its message, I don't think the inclusion of defeating tigers or bears or whatever is meant to be taken seriously. Now, there are plenty of other good reasons to boycott Tomb Raider. :P

[Sniderman]

I'm honestly very surprised that you don't at least know right off the bat that tigers and gorillas are critically endangered. I figure that was common knowledge among just about everyone by now. Even elementary school kids are usually taught that. It's also fairly well-known that many species of wolves and bears are endangered. Basically any large predator that needs a large amount of territory is struggling these days. You should take a trip to a zoo, man.

Not that I agree with the whole idea of boycotting Tomb Raider on the basis that you kill endangered animals. Unless a game is really malicious in its message, I don't think the inclusion of defeating tigers or bears or whatever is meant to be taken seriously. Now, there are plenty of other good reasons to boycott Tomb Raider. :P


When I think "endangered" I guess I immediately thought of the classically endangered animals. So I was trying to remember pandas and eagles and snail darters in Tomb Raider. :? I'm fairly ignorant in certain areas - animals and geography and true weaknesses sadly.

[CastlevaniaDude]

To be fair I have to agree. The controls were really horrible and precise movements seemed impossible. But then, if I had breasts that size (seemingly growing by a cup size per game) on such a slender figure I'm sure I'd have problems moving around coherently.

For better or for worse, the breasts were probably the main selling point of the game. Not to mention the fabled but ultimately urban legend "Nude Raider" code. Haha

[j_factor]

For better or for worse, the breasts were probably the main selling point of the game. Not to mention the fabled but ultimately urban legend "Nude Raider" code. Haha

Nude Raider was a patch for the PC version that actually existed. But they got shut down by Eidos.

[CastlevaniaDude]

Nude Raider was a patch for the PC version that actually existed. But they got shut down by Eidos.

Yeah, I remember hearing about that. I just remember whispers all over the middle school that there was a code for the PSX version.

[Haoie]

Hey, me too!!

In fact I just purchased all 4 titles on the PS1 just this week, waiting for them to arrive.

What a coincidence.

[tom]

I recently decided that this game was too significant to not include it in my collection, despite previously boycotting it on purpose, due to my distate for it's apparent advocacy of killing endangered species just for the sport of it.


Mario's been getting away with for years, you play Mario games? (Ok sniderman beat me to it :-)

(The problem for you should be 'killing animals' period. No animals should be killed, regardless of them being endangered or not, even less for 'sport' (They call murder sport? How convenient!).

.

[scooterb23]

I didn't realize that shooting a tiger that is mauling your leg is considered "killing for sport"

I played the heck out of the first Tomb Raider, but kind of lost interest after that one.

[j_factor]

Hey, me too!!

In fact I just purchased all 4 titles on the PS1 just this week, waiting for them to arrive.

What a coincidence.

There are 5 of 'em for Playstation. Although, the fifth one, Chronicles, is pretty crappy overall, and The Last Revelation is a lot better on Dreamcast.

[MASTERWEEDO]

So noone is fans of the hunting games? Lets all turn our backs on Duck Hunt now

[Iron Draggon]

Specifically, it's the killing of tigers in Tomb Raider 2 that I'm the most opposed to. Tigers are my favorite animals, so I'd have no interest in killing them, even if they weren't endangered. However, since there are no tigers in the original Tomb Raider, I finally decided to give it a chance with me. I'm also not very interested in staring at Lara Croft's ass for an entire game though, so that's the other thing that's kept me from getting it for all these years. But now it's obvious that not owning Tomb Raider would be like not owning Resident Evil, which I've owned since it came out for the Saturn.

I chose the Saturn version of Tomb Raider over the Playstation version too though. I know it's inferior to the PS version, but I'll feel less compelled to get all the PS sequels if I only own the Saturn version, making it easier to avoid the offending tiger murders in Tomb Raider 2. I know it sounds kinda silly for me to be so opposed to any form of killing in a video game, and it's still considered OK to kill tigers and other endangered species if they're attacking you, but I just can't get into anything to do with killing tigers.

I guess it's actually appropriate for Lara Croft to be notorious for killing endangered animals though, as far as the game's story goes. It's well known that most people question her unorthodox methods, according to the story, so in that context her rampant murdering of endangered animals makes sense.

Now as for similar games on the PS, I was thinking more along the lines of other 3D action games, not necessarily those with similar themes. Perhaps some by the same developer or publisher, if there are any. It's been a long time since I was really into the PS, so I don't remember what's available.

[jb143]

Although it might make her sad, I'm sure even Jane Goodall would see the logic in shooting a gorilla that was trying to kill you.

I'm wondering though, how many games do you own where you go around killing people? Should we boycott those as well? OK, I guess people aren't quite endangered yet.

EDIT-
Although it's been a while since I've played the game. I'm sure it's quite possible to beat Tomb Raider II without hurting the tiger. You just have to be good at jumping otherwise you'll fall back down with it and it'll be quite anoying.

[A Black Falcon]

The Saturn version of Tomb Raider 1 is the original version, actually... it was developed first for Saturn. It has far worse graphics than the PC version of course (and probably also the Playstation version, but I haven't played that one), but it is the original version...

I was never a Tomb Raider fan, though. The first one didn't interest me much at all, and the clones (like Indiana Jones and the Infernal Machine, which was better on N64 than PC because of the improved controls, at least) didn't interest me much more. I love adventure games, but somehow... I don't know. I did get Saturn Tomb Raider 1 last year though. Haven't played it yet, but I will, some at least (I also have Dreamcast Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation... got a little bit in before quitting in semi-boredom and frustration.).

The original Tomb Raider was highly praised, though. I remember PC Gamer giving it Action Game of the Year the year it came out, and runner-up for Game of the Year, only slightly behind Civilization II... I couldn't understand then why it was ranked so highly. Not sure if I do now... oh well. I guess it was innovative for the time.

[j_factor]

Tomb Raider is about even on Saturn and Playstation. The Playstation version had some textures re-done in higher resolution, but the Saturn version has a better draw distance. Both versions are quite a bit inferior to the PC version (especially Tomb Raider Gold which has extra levels), but getting it to run on modern PCs is probably a huge pain.

[Haoie]

Oh crap.

Wonder which I'm missing.

I'll post once I check.

[gameofyou]

despite previously boycotting it on purpose, due to my distate for it's apparent advocacy of killing endangered species just for the sport of it.


I have a similar boycott of the Grand Theft Auto games, due to it's apparent advocacy of killing Hos.

[gameofyou]

By the way, in Tomb Raider, there is no "killing for sport". The only reason that you ever shoot anything is to prevent the animals from killing you. It's completely self defense. Just like I'm sure, in real life, you would kill an attacking Tiger (instead of letting it maul you).

[jb143]

Tigers are beautuful creatures and hunting them for sport is cruel but take this into consideration...


From Wikipedia's Tiger Article:

Although humans are not regular prey for tigers, they have killed more people than any other cat, particularly in areas where population growth, logging, and farming have put pressure on tiger habitats. Most man-eating tigers are old and missing teeth, acquiring a taste for humans because of their inability to capture preferred prey. Almost all tigers that are identified as man-eaters are quickly captured, shot, or poisoned. Unlike man-eating leopards, even established man-eating tigers will seldom enter human settlements, usually remaining at village outskirts. Nevertheless, attacks in human villages do occur. Man-eaters have been a particular problem in India and Bangladesh, especially in Kumaon, Garhwal and the Sundarbans mangrove swamps of Bengal, where some healthy tigers have been known to hunt humans. Because of rapid habitat loss due to climate change, tiger attacks have increased in the Sundarbans.

[Haoie]

OK I checked. And I got all 5 games.

Woot.

Now to play. Chronologically of course.

[Garry Silljo]

Some one needs to be trapped with several hungry tigers and a gun so they can see what happens.

[j_factor]

I'm also not very interested in staring at Lara Croft's ass for an entire game though

Why wouldn't you be?


...


Oh. Right.

[walrusmonger]

The first Tomb Raider was a great game, I didn't really like any of them after that.

[Haoie]

So I wonder why the gaming community is divided over whether these games are good or not?

Looking at the reviews, it's a split camp, even both ways.

[crazyjackcsa]

Looking back, they haven't aged all that well. Then again, most early 3D games haven't. The first two were great, and the best 3D done up to that point. Then the series went downhill, so far downhill that people disowned ever liking the first two. Legend was really good, Underworld looked a little iffy and I never played Anniversary.

[Iron Draggon]

Why wouldn't you be?


...


Oh. Right.

It's OK to be gay! LOL

I always thought this series was overhyped, and it seems that at least half of the people who've played one of these games agrees. Apparently what made it so pupular is the fact that at the time it was released, there was nothing else like it, and the fact that most players loved staring at Lara Croft's ass. If they had used a male lead character, it prolly wouldn't be anywhere near what it is today. Lara was a perfect balance of sexy and badass. Straight guys and girls as well as lesbians fell in love with her, so the only demographic she didn't appeal to was gay guys like me, and there's been tons of games for us to satisfy whatever her and her games don't do for us. So the Tomb Raider franchise has an almost universal appeal to most players.

I've read reviews that say no Saturn owner should be without it, and I've read reviews that say get the Playstation version instead, if you own both systems. But I've always preferred the Saturn's crisp graphics over the Playstation's smooth graphics. Most people deride the Saturn version for being too pixelated, but I think this is only because the Saturn shows better detail than the Playstation. I also prefer the Saturn controllers over the PS controllers, so I decided I'd rather get the Saturn version first. Then I can see if it really is the best 3D game for that system, as some reviews said.

To be honest though, it'll prolly just gather dust in my house. I'm really only getting it to find out what all the hype is about, and just to have it in my collection. I'm still not really that interested in it, but I already own nearly every other game ever released for the Saturn in the US, so why not own it?

If I didn't enjoy the movies so much, I'd prolly still be boycotting it, but since the movies were good, I figure the game can't be too bad, otherwise they never would've made any movies based on it. So there has to be alot more to it than just Lara Croft. The plot sounds good, so I'll prolly enjoy that much of it at least. And I guess I could always pretend that Lara Croft is really just Indiana Jones in drag. That would make it alot more entertaining for me. LOL

[Aussie2B]

I wouldn't say women like Lara. Some, sure, but certainly not all. She's pretty bottom of the barrel in terms of admirable female characters as far as I'm concerned. It doesn't matter if she's a fiery adventurer; she's still exists for the sole purpose of eye candy. Far better examples of strong female characters that women can admire would be, say, The Boss from Metal Gear Solid 3 or Lenneth from Valkyrie Profile.

Although, I never understood the eye candy thing either. Up until relatively recently, her models, even the ones rendered on hardware far more powerful than the PlayStation, were hideous. I don't know a single guy in my circle that doesn't find her fugly to the extreme.