3 Fun Games, but Sound Issues Detract from the HD Facelift
THIS review is ONLY in regards to the HD remastering of the PS2 games, and the compression for all 3 games onto a single bluray. I suggest reading reviews on the individual games (Legend, Anniversary, Underworld) to learn more about those games. All 3 of Crystal Dynamics' Tomb Raider games feature some large-scale environmental puzzles, some interesting stories (if you are interested in ancient history/myth), and some competent platforming. They also have an occasionally difficult camera, so-so combat and slightly imprecise gameplay mechanics. In short, these were the predecessors to Uncharted. Controls aren't as great and the stories don't quite feel like Oscar winning material but the puzzle design is much more thought-provoking with a lot less hand-holding.
If I were to assign individual scores for each game Legend is a 7.0/10 (decent graphics, archaic gunplay, average puzzles), Anniversary is an 8.3/10 (best puzzles) and Underworld would be an 8.0/10 (best graphics). However, I would have given this collection a 5/5 based on the overall value if not for the several issues I experienced.
In Tomb Raider Legend the sound between cinematics and gameplay is not uniform and is slightly higher during the latter. Lara often receives instructions or commentary via radio transmissions that will distort 90% of the time. These audio segments are unusually high in the master audio mix, probably as much as 25% higher at times. Since these messages can be very difficult to discern, I had to turn on subtitles just to make sure I wasn't missing anything related to the story. Visually there are still some interlacing issues as well which *could (*read SHOULD) have been addressed as well. The game is old, but if Sly Cooper doesn't have any of these problems then I believe it is sloppy to see them here in Legend. The elevated grapple points are also highlighted by an "X" even though "[]" is the grapple button. This problem was corrected in Anniversary, so it was indeed a problem nobody caught when the game was remastered.
In Tomb Raider Anniversary the sound distorts primarily during the cinematics. The sound during gameplay is usually pretty good, but voiceover work when you read Lara's journal is very very loud compared to everything else. I also experienced some distortion at certain locations when music reached a crescendo. (I was more annoyed during these parts because the music in this game is phenomenal!) Graphically this game is a step up from Legend (probably because it was a newer game to begin with) and I haven't noticed the same interlacing issues evident in Legend during in-game action. Cinematic sound is somewhat quieter than the rest of gameplay, and I have to say it is somewhat jarring to experience sound issues during a pre-rendered segment that is "supposed" to demonstrate film CGI quality. For the sound to distort during quieter segments makes me think these files were compressed quite a bit!
The audio problem with Legend could be attributed to issues adjusting the audio tracks to a a uniform dB level during the remastering process; However, the problem with Anniversary is more likely a result of file compression since it is present in every cut-scene. Visually these cut-scenes are a step-down from the rest of the gameplay as well. Considering that these pre-rendered CGI segments are the largest individual files within the game, it would be easiest for the developers to compress them first.
Many people have stated that the original retail version of Underworld is superior due to problems with compression in the trilogy. Since I did not have the luxury of playing the stand-alone version, I can neither justify nor dispute this claim. I have not noticed any jarring issues that could be attributed to having this game on the same bluray as the other games. At the same time, I find it helpful to note that Square Enix has stated that Underworld is the exact same code as the original. This means it would not have any improvements, but could have additional issues I would not notice in my playthrough.
Just as a point of reference - I play Uncharted 2, Killzone 3, Crysis 2, God of War and many other games at around 50% volume on both the Astro mixamp or conventional speaker setup with the in-game menu sound options set at default. I haven't adjusted the master volume in about 6 months because most games or films are within the same volume level. In order to prevent most of the distortion so that I can enjoy the Tomb Raider games I had to set the master volume to 30% and change the in game sound options to 75/100. I actually lowered Sound Effects to 69/100 which seems to be a better level for the mix. I have experienced less audible clipping since changing this, but it shows how much of a difference there are in volume levels based on proper encoding.
Since the whole reason for buying this trilogy is to have an HD release of some great older puzzle games, I have to say I am somewhat disappointed in the overall treatment. Although still an improvement from standard definition, I feel like Tomb Raider doesn't quite provide the HD experience I had expected. HD collections should have a bit more polish, considering they're a game we've already seen (and often purchased). I applaud Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics for trying to maximize content for the consumer (even though one game didn't take any work on their behalf to include), but I wish QA had worked out the bugs.
***Personally I would have been much happier if this was a collection of Legend and Anniversary that included a voucher for the retail (not downloadable) version of Tomb Raider Underworld. The development team could have minimized any compression to allow both games the maximum amount of file space onto the bluray disc, and spent more time trying to polish the code. Considering Underworld is now selling for $19.99, they could have lowered the MSRP on the collection to $29.99 and included a $10 voucher for Underworld. This would have been the best way to experience this trilogy.