RADAR HONES IN ON CHRONICLES
Copyright 2000 www.tombraiderchronicles.com

[ November 21st 2000 ]

Almost a week following the release of Eidos Interactive's fifth Tomb Raider Chronicles, game fans across the map have had heads down frantically toying Lara Croft through four new flashback levels, noting the graphical, architectural and mechanical improvements Core Design's Adrian Smith boasted prior to it's release. Feedback from gamers and online magazines has been mixed, and one resource not pulling any punches is Daily Radar, who do not seem overly impressed with Chronicles. (their review here)

Were it not for the Tomb Raider trappings, we'd have easily passed this game off as yet another spin-off of a certifiable classic. As it is, the increasingly anaemic additions and improvements to the game's rusty engine don't do the series justice. Does it play as well as its latest predecessor? Sure -- but that's not saying much. In a recent interview, a member of the design team addressed next-gen development by stating that " it's extremely hard to keep re-inventing the wheel." - We couldn't agree more.

Another point raised in the article was the concentration by designers to improve character animation while ignoring incidental and environmental elements like the sky. Tomb Raider Chronicles will be perceived differently by each camp, and some wonder whether or not such bias against any game not using a Quake hybrid makes for unconditional opinion. Daily Radar has in any event set the opinion ball rolling, and it won't be long before others roll out theirs.