Tomb Raider Chronicles
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| Tomb Raider Chronicles | |
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| Developer(s) | Core Design |
| Publisher(s) | Eidos Interactive |
| Release date(s) | November 2000 |
| Genre(s) | Third-person shooter/Platform |
| Mode(s) | Single player |
| Rating(s) | ESRB: Teen |
| Platform(s) | Sega Dreamcast, PlayStation, Microsoft Windows and Mac |
| Media | CD-ROM |
| Input | Gamepad, keyboard |
Tomb Raider Chronicles is the fifth game in the Tomb Raider series and the sequel to Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation. It was developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive. The game was originally released in 2000 for PC, Sega Dreamcast and PlayStation.
Contents |
[edit] Storyline
Tomb Raider Chronicles opens just days after the events of The Last Revelation. Lara is still missing and presumed dead. A memorial service brings together three old friends of Lara: Winston, Charles Kane and Father Patrick Dunstan. While the rain outside is pouring, the three reminisce about Lara's earlier adventures at Croft mansion. Meanwhile, hundred of miles away Werner Von Croy co-ordinates the frantic dig searching for answers buried deep beneath the Egyptian desert.
[edit] Gameplay
[edit] Features
The gameplay of Tomb Raider Chronicles is closely tied to that of The Last Revelation. In terms of movement, the only new additions to Lara's skills are the ability to walk on a tightrope, the ability to grab and swing on horizontal bars and the ability to drop from a ledge forwards while crouching. Several weapons from the previous game have disappeared but the MP5 submachine gun and the Desert Eagle from Tomb Raider III have returned. Also new is a grappling hook, which is used to latch on certain areas of the ceiling and swing across vaults. Only one vehicle of sorts appears: a high tech diving suit designed to penetrate deep waters.
In addition to her familiar outfit, Lara wears two new and one old costume in Tomb Raider Chronicles: thermal combat gear to withstand sub-zero temperatures, her Young Lara outfit from The Last Revelation and a black catsuit, which was a modified version of the one already seen in Tomb Raider III.
Secrets in Tomb Raider Chronicles are represented by a golden rose (much like the dragons in Tomb Raider II). In total there are 36 scattered throughout the game and when the player has found every one of them, a new special features menu is unlocked from the Options screen.
The game consists of four sub-adventures and brings Lara back in time to Rome, a haunted island called the Black Isle in Ireland, a high-tech building in New York and a Russian submarine. Each adventure requires its specific game characteristics. In Ireland, a teenage Lara has to find her way without any weapons, whereas the Russian sub can be compared to an episode of The X-Files. Rome is said to be the classical Tomb Raider action, and in the high tech building the keyword is stealth.
[edit] Characters
- Lara Croft: Although missing and presumed dead, the player relives Lara's past adventures through the memories of her friends.
- Werner Von Croy: At the end of The Last Revelation, Lara saved the life of her one-time mentor and rival Werner Von Croy at the expense of her own. Tomb Raider Chronicles delves deeper into the reasons of their animosity, which involves the quest for an artifact called "The Iris."
- Winston: Lara's loyal butler Winston is hosting a memorial service at Croft Manor, where he and her friends reminisce about her early adventures.
- Father Patrick Dunstan: One of the three friends gathered at Croft Manor, Father Dunstan has known Lara since she was a teenager. At that time, he was involved in a dangerous exorcism on the Black Isle.
- Charles Kane: Charles was a teacher at Gordonstoun Boarding school, where he taught Lara the subject of history for two years. He has a personal interest in the old Iron Curtain countries and with the advent of glasnost seized his opportunity to visit the Eastern block whenever he could afford the time.
- Zip: This wiz-kid assists Lara in her attempt to infiltrate the main office of Von Croy Industries. He guides her through the building's ventilation system from a bus parked outside.
- Pierre DuPont: The French relic hunter Pierre DuPont is an old acquaintance of Lara. This time he is out on the streets of Rome looking for the Philosopher's Stone, but he intends to let Lara do the dirty work for him. Players of the original Tomb Raider will remember him for his appearances in the Graeco-Roman levels.
- Larson: Wherever Pierre is, Larson follows. Together with his companion they stalk Lara through the catacombs of Rome. Players of the original Tomb Raider will remember him for his appearance in the two levels, Sanctuary of the Scion and Tomb of Qualopec.
- Sergei Mikhailov: Sergei Mikhailov is a Russian crime boss hunting for the lost Spear of Destiny. He has corrupted Captain Yarofev in order to use his submarine.
- Yarofev: The proud captain of a first class nuclear submarine, hard times have forced Yarofev to accept bribes and missions he would rather not be involved with.
- Vladimir Kaleta: Vladimir Kaleta is a 500 year old demon who goes under the name of Verdilet. Father Dunstan and Lara meet him at the Black Isle.
[edit] Levels
[edit] Rome
Tomb Raider Chronicles begins in the streets of Rome, but before the player moves onto the real game they may complete a detour past an optional training level, set in the backstage of an opera house. The opening sequence shows Lara losing and reclaiming an artefact known as The Mercury Stone, which will be needed if she is to recover the famed Philosopher's Stone. She descends deep into the catacombs of the Colosseum, where she will fight lions and gladiators. The stages in Rome are the easiest in the game.
- Level 1 - Streets of Rome
- Level 2 - Trajan's Markets
- Level 3 - Colosseum
[edit] Russia
During World War II a German U-Boat carrying the legendary Spear of Destiny sank somewhere in the North Atlantic. A Russian crime organization headed by Sergei Mikhailov is out to retrieve it, and towards that end they have bribed a captain of the navy into using his submarine. Lara is closely on their tail. Here she must infiltrate the Zapadnaya Litsa port and sneak on board a nuclear submarine. Underwater the excavation of the wreck is done through an armoured diving suit. The stages in Russia are of an average difficulty.
- Level 4 - The Base
- Level 5 - The Submarine
- Level 6 - Deep-sea Dive
- Level 7 - Sinking Submarine
[edit] Ireland
Rumours of demonic activity on the long-abandoned Black Isle has spread across Ireland. Lara, still in her teens, is spending the holidays at Winston's house in a nearby village and Father Patrick Dunstan has arrived to investigate. One night he sets out to travel to the island alone, with Lara hidden in his boat. In these stages, the player must solve puzzles and outsmart enemies without weapons. Lara will be faced with many paranormal creatures such as ghosts, mischievous imps, a sea hag, a talking corpse and the demon knight Verdilet. The stages in Ireland are of hard difficulty.
- Level 8 - Gallows Tree
- Level 9 - Labyrinth
- Level 10 - The Old Mill
[edit] New York
Lara infiltrates the Head Quarters of Von Croy Industries to retrieve the "Iris", the artefact which was stolen by Werner Von Croy in the Angkor Wat temple many years ago. Assisted by the tech expert Zip, she makes her way through the ventilation system and into the offices of this skyscraper. Some of the enemies the player faces on these levels are indestructible androids. Lara cannot gun them down but there are other ways to dispose of them. The use of stealth is imperative. The stages in Von Croy Industries are the hardest in the game.
- Level 11 - 13th Floor
- Level 12 - Escape With the Iris
- Level 13 - Red Alert
[edit] Reception
Although graphically praised as one of the best installments in the series, the game was subject to numerous criticisms, primarily due to its lack of originality. Many felt that with The Last Revelation, the Tomb Raider formula had been stretched to its limits, and that a sequel would offer nothing new. In addition, the game still used the engine from the original Tomb Raider, which despite improved tweaking began to show its age with each subsequent game. Reviewers complained that the series were out of touch with contemporary game development.
The PC version of the game is notoriously problematic with level bugs. In the last stage "Red Alert" loading certain save points may cause key items to disappear. Sometimes specific events will not be triggered at all.
The return of Larson and Pierre was also subject to scorn as gamers decried their use as "comic relief" characters, while creating plot inconsistencies with that of the original Tomb Raider (theoretically Lara could have known Pierre DuPont, but she had not previously met with Larson).
Although Core Design admitted that Chronicles was not intended to revolutionize the series, they felt it was necessary to wrap up the plot of The Last Revelation before moving on to a more ambitious project involving Lara Croft. That game would become Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness, which ironically, became the most panned game of the series.
[edit] Trivia
- As with many Tomb Raider games, Tomb Raider Chronicles makes numerous references to movies. This time they include Sleepy Hollow and The Exorcist (The Black Isle), The Hunt for Red October (Russia), and Mission: Impossible and Total Recall (Von Croy Industries).
- Jonell Elliott continued her role as Lara's voice actress in Chronicles.
[edit] References
- Erikson, Peter (2000). "Some girls just don't know when to quit...". Retrieved Feb. 9, 2006
[edit] External links
- Tomb Raider Chronicles at MobyGames - info sheet on all ports of the game.
- Tomb Raider at Tombraider.com - Everything Official.
