World Famous Comics: Tomb Raider Anniversary (Wii Edition)
Tomb Raider Anniversary (Wii Edition)
From: Eidos Interactive Average Rating: Binding: Video Game ESRB Age Rating: Teen Label: Eidos Interactive Platform: Nintendo Wii Release Date: November 13, 2007
Features:
Redesigned Puzzles: All-new puzzles have been created specifically to take advantage of the Wii Remote and Nunchuk providing a dynamic new experience not available on any other platform.
Archaeologist's Tool Kit: Draw runes and hieroglyphs in the sand to activate ancient mechanisms, uncover clues buried in layers of ancient grime with the chisel and brush, and take charcoal rubbings of findings to put in your journal.
Remote Flashlight: Illuminate dark areas by pointing and aiming the Wii Remote like a torch to reveal ancient clues. Twist the Wii Remote to narrow the beam of light allowing you to uncover secrets hidden in the dark.
Flick of the Wrist Controls: Use the movement of the Nunchuk and Wii Remote to climb and shimmy along ledges, swim, grapple, swing, and shake free from enemy clutches.
Active Aim Combat System: Use the Wii Remote to aim your pistols at the screen and unleash a hail of bullets at charging enemies.
Product Description: The adventure begins when Lara is hired by a powerful syndicate to retrieve a mythical object called the Scion. As Lara searches ancient tombs and isolated worlds that have lain undisturbed for thousands of years, she discovers that she is not alone. Not only has she awoken their fearsome guardians but there are others desperate to learn the Scion's dark secrets. Celebrate and commemorate ten years of Tomb Raider and Lara Croft with Tomb Raider: Anniversary, a new action adventure inspired by the original Tomb Raider video game, one of the greatest action adventure games of all time.
Explore Whole New Worlds of Tedium!! This game is hard to control and very hard to look around, to top that off it is the very same as all the others. So if you like dying, arduous repetition, hard to use controls, and going over the same areas again and again this is the game for you. There are far better titles out on the Wii, there is also a reason this game costs $29.99 New.
I'm surprised. Like a fine wine, this game aged well. I purchased this game for my girlfriend (along with Tomb Raider Legend for the Game Cube) because she really likes the Tomb Raider games, but I did not expect to play the game much at all. I have never been a huge Tomb Raider fan. On the original game I never progressed farther than half of the first level and watched my friends beat the rest of the game. I wanted to play more of the original game, but the controls really annoyed me. I didn't expect much from this version of the game either.
I'm glad that I was wrong. This game is very good. Not perfect, but very good. I found myself pressuring my girlfriend to play more of the game so that I could have a crack at it. The big problem is that I get into trouble if I start playing one of her games and I get farther into the game than she does, so I have to wait until she's done.
Graphically, the game is pretty good. The levels are large, expansive, and look good. Not amazing, but good. Levels are designed to be aethetically pleasing and complex at the same time. One of my favorite parts of the game is the waterfall zone in Peru. There are moving cogs, gears, water wheels, and other objects on screen creating a vibrant and active environment, much of it interactive. When I saw my girlfriend hit this part of the game, I had to give it a go.
I would favorably compare the game to the Prince of Persia: Sands of Time series. Lara moves with more freedom than she has in any other game except perhaps Tomb Raider legend. She controls fluidly and feels acrobatic, but the Prince would own her any day with his mad Persian ninja skills. The motion controls work well, especially the grappling hook. There are some quick-time motion control events that work well, but feel slightly out of place mostly due to the glaring animation superimposed on top of the screen instructing you what to do. Reducing the size of the instructional animation would have been a better design decision, but it doesn't hurt the overall fun factor.
Combat will probably upset some Tomb Raider purists while gamers who enjoy action games will probably view the changes to gunplay as an improvement. Although Lara can lock the camera onto enemies, the player must actually aim the cursor using the wiimote pointer at the actual target. Personally, I view it as an improvement and I like that combat requires more than just locking onto the enemy, running in circles around it while mashing down the fire button down. My girlfriend didn't like it as much and it took her some getting used to because it was a major departure from the way combat has been handled in previous Tomb Raider games. It doesn't actually make the game any better or worse, but it is a difference to take into account. Ultimately, the game is truly about exploration and puzzle solving so a change in the combat system doesn't really affect my overall opinion of the game, as long as it works. My only serious complaint about the game is the camera. Usually the camera isn't a problem, but in combat it is easy to get disoriented in tight quarters if you aren't careful. I didn't have much of a problem adapting to the camera, but my girlfriend did. I chalk the difference up to the fact that I probably play way too many video games and have learned to adapt quickly to different camera systems while my girlfriend generally tries to do more productive things with her time and has less practice with those types of issues. Ultimately, she got going along pretty smoothly and can raid tombs with the best of them.
Tomb Raider pros: ===> Clean, crisp graphics and beautiful environments. ===> Levels that are based off on the original Tomb Raider. The levels have been changed signifigantly but still will hold a lot of nostalgia for gamers that played the original. ===> Generally well designed motion controls that add to the immersive nature of the game. ===> Low price tag: At $40, this game is definitely worth it.
Tomb Raider cons: ===> The camera gets a little too twitchy when in close quarters combat. ===> Player profiles automatically default to the first file, so if you have a second person playing through on their own profile, the game will automatically default to the first person's profile upon start-up, requiring any other player to load up their profile instead. This is a really minor complaint, but it isn't an intuitive design unless you happen to be the only person playing the game. I'm just picky about that.
Overall, I highly recommend this title to most gamers. If you are looking for an action-packed blast fest with guns a-blazin', I recommend avoiding Tomb Raider games in general, but if you want a well-designed cerebral adventure with a great sense of exploration and wonder, this game is for you. I enjoy this game so much that I really want to see Tomb Raider 2 and 3 given the same treatment. Now if someone, and by someone I specifically mean Lucas Arts, could just get around to creating a really good Indiana Jones game for the consoles...
Great update The Wii update of the original Tomb Raider game is a welcomed edition where some things worked well and others didnt. The graphical update is a welcomed change and makes the game play much nicer. For the most part, the Wii specific controls add depth to the game, but some controls work better than others. I had no issue with the camera and I found using the IR of the Wii remote to swing the camera works very well (contrary to what other reviewers have said). However, what holds this game back from being completely captivating is the original storyline. While the locals are neat, the story itself does not compel me to continue playing. The gameplay can be frustrating at times and the overall challenge of the game is pretty substantial. But completing the bosses does feel good and is generally worth the effort.
If you like adventure games (i.e. Prince of Persia), you should enjoy this game. While not as engaging as Prince of Persia: Sands of Time, the game is worth playing through, even if just to watch Lara complete her adventure.
Fun, Immersive, and Takes Practice I got this game a month ago. At first, I could not get the hang of the controls for the finer moves. After doing the Croft Manor sections - which is by far the hardest "practice" section of any TR I've played - I got the wiimote to work okay. I love the scenes and interactiveness - the puzzles and bonus items are always a great time investing challenge. I just wish the camera angle would not be so weird - I constantly need to reset it the whe "c" button. Practice. Once you practice it a lot, it's as easy as the PS2 versions and more fun. I'm pretty sure I can actually finish this game for once!
FUN! I'm a novice wii player, and I am having a blast with this game, it is difficult, specially the shooting. But you get used to it, And I had to search for some walkthroughs at times, but it is FUN!
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Trevor
Megaton Man
