| MANUFACTURER |
EIDOS |
| GENRE |
ACTION / ADVENTURE |
| RATING |
9 / 10 - Must buy! |
| MULTIPLAYER OPTION |
NO |
| 3D CARD SUPPORT |
YES.DIRECT 3D |
OVERVIEW
Lara Croft returns in the sequel to the award winning Tomb Raider . Although the basic engine stil remains the same and EIDOS could have improved it, the game has some interesting features that were missed out in the original including unique moves,outdoor settings and the use of vehicles.Now you can actually roam around Lara's mansion and explore the interiors . The game's stunning 3d environment and scenery is one it's plus points ( Venice is a prime example ) . It's graphics are further intensified with a 3d card . This combined with unmatched gameplay including both action and adventure make TR2 one of the year's best releases .
STORYLINE
There exists a dagger which when plunged into a peron's heart gives him(or her),the power of a dragon,literally.
Years ago , this dagger was hidden somewhere in the great wall of China . It is your objective to obtain it .However Lara Croft isn't the only one after it . There are 2 more groups of people who are prepared to do anything to obtain the dagger . During her journey Lara will come across the other two and a whole load of beastly animals who are hell bent on stopping her from achieving her goal . Lara , on the other hand can be armed with standard and automatic pistols ( John Woo style , i.e. one in each hand ),a shotgun , an M16 and a grenade launcher .
8.5 / 10
GAMEPLAY
In one word , cool . We have never seen such a great game that combines two of gamings most necessary aspects - action and adventure . So besides mindless shooting and utterly beautiful violence , you also have the opurtunity to solve some mind boggling puzzles that usually involve tons of gears and buttons scatterred about the place and naturally, a couple of opening doors that are your reward for pushing all those buttons. I bet that doesn't sound too exciting but it is . The game's star attraction, Lara Croft also changes her oufit after every level . All these elementary changes offer a refreshing change from the prequels' dull atmosphere . Besides this more interaction has been implemented . You can break glass windows and smash through gondolas in your boat in Venice . The originals' obsession with animals as enemies is done away ,with the introduction of more human opponents . Tomb Raider's winning formula is also being implemented in other Eidos games such as Deathtrap Dungeon and Daikatana.
9 / 10
GRAPHICS
Tomb Raider was always known for it's graphics and it's sequel is no less . But the bad part is that the graphics aren't much more either . The graphics have been improved but not to the extent that was expected . However you will find Lara in more lively colourful surroundings that show the true capabilty of the graphics . The underwater distortion and transparency effects are good too . One really irritating bug is the clipping problem . Often , you seem to practically walk through enemies,walls,boat etc . Like every other game, Tomb Raider II looks great with a 3d card . It supports bilinear filtering ( this makes an incredible diiference by smoothening the edges to give a more realistic appearance ), Z-Buffering, perspective correction and dithering . Fogging and mip mapping although specified in the manual were apparantly not implemented
Move your cursor over the image to view it with bilenear filtering
