EXCLUSIVE
Tomb Raider Level Editor
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Tools and media for construction of levels using Tomb Raider Level Editor.

WHAT IS TOMB RAIDER LEVEL EDITOR?

The PC version of Tomb Raider: Chronicles is available right this second to buy and ships with the much hyped Tomb Raider Level Editor which enables users to create infinite new worlds and adventures for Lara Croft. Eidos Interactive asked Core Design about their level editor....

What is the Tomb Raider Level Editor ? Users will be provided with the basic Tomb Raider: Room Editor and instructions how to get started. This editor allows users to create rooms/levels from scratch. We are also working on 2 tutorial levels that go hand-in-hand with the documentation. The first tutorial level goes over the basics (making rooms, connecting rooms, lighting, placing pick-ups and objects, etc...) while the seconds tutorial will demonstrate some of the more advanced TR concepts. Additionally, we'll also be including 4 different level sets from TR:TLR. Users can open these projects in the editor to study how certain things were put together, and will also be able to use these objects, enemies, textures, etc...in their own levels! If the editor is well received and people crave more, we hope to make additional level sets available for download. The Level Editor can only work with the environments that Lara explores. You will not be able to modify the textures or the model of Lara or the objects that you place in the world.

How long will it take to create a level ? It all depends how quickly you pick up the concepts and how much time you want to put into it. It's easy to quickly make a few rooms and connect them...it takes more time to texture them nicely and get the lighting right etc... Game play tweaking can take a few minutes or many days depending on how much effort you want to put into it.

What kind of skills are needed ? Patience & basic computing skills. It also helps if you're creative!

Would you expect a talented teenager in school to be able to create a level with a tutorial, or will creating a level require skills of a training computer programmer? You do not need to be a programmer in order to create a level with the TR Editor. All the programming work that 'makes the editor work' has already been done...You'll just be building new levels for Lara to explore. Any object that Lara has to interact with already has the animation codes built into them.

How does one create a room ? Without going into too much detail (you'll have to read the manual for that!) everything is based on blocks/squares....You basically start off with a big empty square and proceed to build it up and shape it. You then apply textures, lighting, place objects/enemies/various triggers etc...

Is Lara pre-programmed to interact with surfaces ? Lara's control codes and animations are already programmed to interact with whatever type of tomb you create....For example, if you create a long drop into a water room, she will go into her swimming animations when she hits the water. We'll also include a section in the manual explaining how things need to be constructed in order for Lara to function properly...She can only jump and grab blocks/ledges when the dimensions have been setup correctly...All of these types of instances will be documented.

Do enemies require any special programming ? Not really "special programming", it's more like assigning behavior to the Baddies. The editor does allow the user to set specific AI attributes for certain enemies...For instance, you can assign an enemy to go after floor pickups in addition to attacking Lara. Some of these options will be discussed in the advanced tutorial level.

How are enemies triggered ? You will have to set triggers for when Lara walks over certain areas. The key to placing enemies is to make sure that they don't trigger directly in front of your eyes (they'll just appear).

 
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