More action, more locations and more of Lara…so let's go adventuring!
Graphics: 10 (Lara never looked better / outdoor environ renders well / great shading effects)
Sounds: 8 (glorious musical scores / pretty good voice acting as I'm glad the developers still kept Lara's English accent)
Value: 10 (more maps / doesn't feel repetitive due to the vastly different locales)
Tilt: 9 (a worthy sequel)
Actual score: 8.9
The unstoppable Lara is back for more globe trotting in Tomb Raider 2 (TR2). Obviously a sequel for Tomb Raider (TR1), this time Lara's main objective is to locate an artefact called the Dagger of Xian. This dagger normally used by the Emperor of China, once plunged into the heart will turn a person into a fearsome dragon. Pretty risky I'll say however this won't stop Lara trying to obtain the dagger and add it to her collection.
To those who played the first Tomb Raider, the gameplay remains mostly the same. That means any newcomers to this series will have a fairly step learning curve to control Lara. Fail to execute her many moves will cause frustrations and most likely exit the game rather quickly. Or if you are sadistic witness her many deaths in the most spectacular fashion.
Thankfully though, there is a training ground in Lara's manor where you can practice her tumbling, climbing, swimming and so forth. Also there is also a cool obstacle course where she performs most of the moves in a timed manner. And as an added bonus by entering the maze hosts an easter egg if you look carefully enough. Yet to those veterans of the first Tomb Raider, I highly suggest to traverse through Lara's playground regardless as there are additional manoeuvres like the mid-air roll and climbing as both will play an integral part in her up-and-coming adventure.
To seize the dagger Lara will be travelling through China and Venice and then going underwater into the wreck of Maria Doria. After that she'll be heading to the frozen lands of Tibet and then back again to China. So comparing to TR1, TR2 now has outdoor environs (as well as vast subterranean caves) and an entire chapter dedicated to swimming. And considering some maps are quite large, Lara will get her hands on a speedboat (Venice) and the snowmobile (Tibet). Sadly there is no motorcycle to be seen of (as shown in the cutscene from TR1).
Yet what hasn't change from TR1 are some levels are quite confusing to start off with. As you enter some of the vast chambers with many entrances and exits, it's a matter of trial and error for which can be quite frustrating as poor Lara will meet a dead end…only to backtrack to the start. Yet as cleverly the level designs are, all it takes is to spot the first active lever / button or key then follow the short cutscene to your next destination. Yet the beauty of this is that Lara can practically free roam almost anywhere.
With these vast and different locales, Lara will change into different outfits. For China and Venice sports her famous Tomb Raider outfit however in the ocean levels she's bare-footed and wears a wetsuit and Tibet a flight jacket. Also there are new weaponry like the speargun (great for killing sharks), M16 rifle, grenade launcher and of course her twin pistols among others.
And let's don't forget her physical changes as now they become full bodied with curvy features (as apposed to those pointy features in TR1…read between the lines people) and finally her flowing pony tail. Apparently this was omitted in TR1 because it took too much processing power to get that flowing effect. So with the newly added outfits and physical appearance Lara never looked better.
To those adventurer types TR2 also has hard to find dragon statues. These statues arrive in three colours being green, silver and gold for which marks the level of difficulty locating them. Yet you need to collect all three to receive a reward like increase ammo count et al. Of course the other incentive is see how much of a Tomb Raider you really are as some are quite difficult to get. For me I managed to collect forty six out of forty eight.
Other new features are the flares to light up those dark corners (and to boast the game's new dynamic lighting effects) and as mentioned before, Lara's ability to tumble in mid air. There are also minor camera angle improvements however like TR1 there will be times that you will execute a jump blindly. Yet the manual justify this by stating before executing the jump is to press the default '0' button so Lara can see what's ahead.
Whilst TR1 had an eerie, monotonous looking yet brought a sense of isolation, TR2 is definitely more vibrant and action orientated. I feel this was a great move as one of my major criticism for TR1 was the lack of action and limited colour palette. Now to add the dynamic lighting effects it really made this game more alive.
Unfortunately there are some noticeable weaknesses that were brought forward from TR1. Namely the poor camera angle where Lara from time to time will jump 'blindly' and the steep learning curve. Whilst most games don the mouse / keyboard combination, TR2 has no mouse configuration at all. This would be a cool feature to have (instead of press '0') yet the good news is that the keyboard can be customised. Again I highly suggest practicing her manoeuvres at the Croft Manor before diving in otherwise it can be quite frustrating.
Tomb Raider 2 is arguably one of the most anticipated games for 1997. Pulling on the strengths of better computer power, without a doubt TR2 is certainly a technical marvel and will test any power machine for its time. Now add the iconic character Lara Croft with her many voluptuous poses before the launch date, it was clear it was going to be a major hit. Yet when playing the game the developers took meticulous care in all of Lara's movements ensuring a realistic feel in every possible way, TR2 will certainly be an enjoyable experience for newer and older fans alike. As Lara says let's go adventuring!