Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Legend

I bought Tomb Raider the day of the UK release, I finished the main story 2 days later. But I'm still hunting for the rewards which is a week later and I'm almost done!

Brilliant game, nice and simple storyline (more or less), which plays on one of the best legends of all time, King Arthur etc.

The levels could have done with being longer, and it would have been better if they're were more. But what was there was brilliant (except for the motorbike bits, a little dull and repetitive). There are plenty of Tombs, my favourite being in Africa. There is a nice change of pace in the Japan and Russia levels that are more modern. All have great puzzles and secrets along the way.

Lara has more to say for once and is voiced perfectly by Keely Hawes of Spooks fame. All the dialogue is perfectly executed for the character of Lara, the scenes with Rutland and Takamoto are excellent and show she is capable of more than making big jumps! A fine role model for young women. Her movements fit her dialogue in the cutscenes, and in the game play she flows like an eagle on an up-drift! Lara is aided by Zip (her tech guy), Alister (her history/research guy) and Winston (butler, minus the hump from the old games). Winston doesn't get much of a look-in but the other 2 provide comic relief, and insight into the story. The weapons are OK, but you only really need her Pistols, which are upgradable.

The only serious problem i have with this Tomb Raider is the mansion. Its crap compared to previous efforts. You can only go outside into a courtyard and apart from that there are 5 rooms. There's a lot to find, but it just lacks the spark of running around the huge house, with the butler slowly strolling after you. It doesn't compare well. A mixture of the two would be perfect.

All in all a good game. Minor flaws in comparison to other Tomb Raider games, but they weren't perfect either. A mixture of the game play and story of Legend with the length and mansion of previous games is all we need. There will clearly be a sequel due to the huge cliffhanger at the end of the game that leaves you wanting more, but hopefully you won't have to wait too long! 8.5/10

P.S She looks great! Real for once!

All right, here's the deal. Tomb Raider:legend rocks. In fact, this game is sOoOoO much better than any other Tomb Raider, it's safe to say the series has indeed, been saved. Why? Off the top of my head ( as minutes before this online entry I wrapped the game): 1. It's pretty. My only bitch slip is that when Lara is done pumping some baddie or rabid cougar full of the ol' metal injection via her two pistals, shotgun, or semi-automatic, they blip and disappear. Kinda takes the realism out of it, a mistake they should have noted in Angel of Darkness. I know it sounds morbid as more or less I'm demanding the presence of my enemy's corpses, but it's just strange.... whatever. 2. Lara is no longer the stiff, frigid, mechanical, rigid, cubic, movement inclined... OK, you get the point, character from the previous iterations. She -get this-... MOVES! And moves properly! You'll be playing through this game, and the controller literally cradles your every whim with the best controls for this series... EVER! And since this game involves split second button presses, it's an aspect of the game that if not done properly, would have ruined the franchise and damaged it... a lot. 3. The story. What the hell was with Angel of Darkness? You know what, I don't even wanna know. You know what I do wanna know? When Legend will become a movie, it's that good. I loved this story, and I won't spoil it, but wow. It's not the best story ever, not a Final Fantasy or Metal Gear, but it urges you to continue long after an area or puzzle has you stumped, and that's just fine by me. I loved the character of Amanda, and Lara is wicked witty in this game. The ending leads nicely into the next game, unlike Angel which just left me with an urge slathor my game disc with meat sauce and feed it to my dog. 4. TOMBS! A tomb with a view... I love the tomb areas, as... ya know, your raiding again! Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of moments outside the archaic monuments, but nothing even compares to the tomb moments. The puzzles are more organic, and although the "pull the lever crap" is still in this one, it's minimal. So I likey:) A lot! 5.Bottom line, Lara is back. I like where the series is headed. Crystal Dynamics really did their homework for this game. On a personal note, I loved the music as well. The ambiance the music creates is subtle, but just as easily as it can permeate like a whisper, it has thumping moments of bravado, and I love the motorcycle music, of which there are two instances. Yeah for Ducati! This game has restored my faith, and I know it will be successful, as they have retained the essence of Tomb Raider, while importing new ideas ( the grapple mechanism rocks!). I am guessing a movie reprise will surface at some point or another as the games begin to become more refined. Now that Cyrstal Dynamics has stepped into the water, I wanna see what they have planned next. BUY THIS GAME!! * (the mansion you get to explore kicks a lot also!:)*

Yes, this was a fun Tomb Raider game and it is more like the first one unlike a couple of the later ones are. Here you are mainly exploring tombs, granted, you take a side trip to one skyscraper in Japan. The controls are a bit different, but more like real life as you may still have unlimited ammo with the default guns, this time you will have to reload. The game features some very beautiful locales, especially if you are playing on the X-box 360 as the backgrounds look all the more grand on this system. The character looks are about the same. The fighting is good as you are going to be involved in a lot of shoot outs, but for me the best parts of the game were the jumps from here to there and such. Almost like those found in a Prince of Persia game, albeit without the wall run. The story, Laura once again while just trying to find an artifact runs afoul of another group also seeking what she is. This leads to startling revelations into Laura's past as those thought dead might not be and myth and reality seem to merge. Of course, you must go from location to location to search for pieces of an artifact, that is usually a must in most of the tomb raider games. The only complaint I have is this is a very short game. Not that I want a game that goes over twenty hours all the time, but I won this one in only six hours. Still, it was fun while it lasted, though the ending suggests a sequel will be made.

I've just joined the legion. And it's not just because the character redesign is absolutely beautiful (less about Lara's famous chest and more about her appearance as a whole). Lara Croft also has that sexy British accent, plus, she's clever, funny, and physically strong while still being totally feminine. The type of gal you take home to mom.

She's also incredibly athletic, something that comes in handy during the game-play of "Tomb Raider: Legend." As this is my first Tomb Raider game, I have no way of comparing it to the other games in the series. As it is, game-play consists largely of performing gymnastic feats while scaling mountains and hanging from cliffs. This actually takes a lot of thought, as it sometimes requires process of elimination to plan Lara's next move as she hangs from a ledge, possibly leaping to her death several times before finding the next foothold or handhold.

Battles with enemies also make use of Lara's gymnastic abilities. While locked on to a target, Lara can perform cartwheels, somersaults, and flips through the air to dodge bullets while returning fire with a series of weapons. But most of the game consists of wall climbing, cliff diving, and solving puzzles based on moving objects and manipulating items. Even certain bosses require more thought than simple running-and-gunning.

Anyone who still isn't convinced that this is more than a simple actioner merely has to enter "Croft Manor", a bonus game available through the options menu, and try to solve the riddles there to give their brain a workout.

Lara also has a series of tools to assist her. These include a pair of special binoculars and a magnetic grapple hook. The binoculars can be used to analyze the environment and provide hints to solve the puzzles, while the grappling hook can be used to swing across chasms, move distant objects, or even attack enemies. Of course, the similarities to Indiana Jones' whip make it obvious where the material is drawn from, but fans of the genre shouldn't mind.

Lara even has a headset that allows her to communicate with two sidekicks. Of course, this is part of the recent video game convention of having someone hiss orders at you the whole time, but here it actually works. Lara has two sidekicks, a hip American gadget expert and a whiny British historian. Rather than boss Lara around, the two sidekicks offer encouraging hints, but mainly provide someone for Lara to exchange witty banter with and serve as comic relief.

Several sequences also require the player to interact with cinematics, pressing buttons as they flash on the screen to save Lara from terrible fates. These are somewhat exciting, but overall a little too easy, and if they remain a feature in future games will have to be better perfected. There are also a couple of motorcycling levels that add some variety to the game-play.

The graphics are glorious, and not just the new Lara Croft design. Environments are eye-catching as well. The voice acting is also very well done. Keeley Hawes' voice suits the title character very well, while Kath Soucie, of "Rugrats" fame, plays the antagonist, a blonde, American ex-colleague of Lara's gone bad. The orchestral score and camera angles also add to the cinematic feel of the game.

Lara's main quest throughout the game is to collect shattered fragments of Excalibur and solve the disappearance of her mother that took place when she was a young girl, but with extra effort Lara can also uncover artifacts which will unlock special features and new costumes for the Tomb Raider. Levels can be returned to at any time to recover more artifacts. Once a level is completed, there's also an option to replay it with a time limit. This provides the game with at least a small amount of re-playability.

As much fun as the game is, it, like so many games, falls apart at the end, and not just because the storyline is left open for a possible sequel. The last couple of missions and puzzles and the final boss fight are far too easy, even anticlimactic. However, as my introduction to Lara Croft, Tomb Raider, "Legend" was well worth playing.

I have played all other tomb raider games and must say that legend is definitely the best one out there in my opinion. Though it is a rather short game (which i am sure you have read elsewhere) it is still a great game. For one the graphics are excellent, making characters look more realistic than ever, and also there is more conversation than the previous tomb raider games which makes you feel more involved with the story. Overall it does use a lot of elements from the Prince of Persia games, but then again there isn't anything wrong with that since they were great, so adding a few things from them isn't bad.

So great game, great graphics and story, rather short. Well if you don't like the idea of it being short, try renting the game, its definitely worth a try!