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For a series that was left practically dead after the horrifying Angel of Darkness, Tomb Raider has been revived so well by Crystal Dynamics that it’s now got people who’ve never played the games hopelessly falling in love with it. Having first taken the spunky, extremely well-endowed Lara out for a spin in 1997, and having gone back to where it all began with Anniversary, this deranged, maniacal, slack-jawed Tomb Raider nutcase has seen it all. Having made Legend and Anniversary the best damned games in the series, Crystal Dynamics looks set to pull out all the stops in the upcoming Tomb Raider: Underworld, which already has a quite a bit of fans going “Drake who?”
We sat and dug through the first preview on the PLAY magazine, and we’ve got all the dirt on Lara’s latest adventure. Directly continuing from her adventures in Legend, Tomb Raider: Underworld (as the name suggests) will see Lara explore vast labyrinthian areas around the world, in addition to doing all the monkey stuff that she does in one of the largest, lush areas seen this side of Uncharted: Drake’s Fortune. While it is not entirely sure how the story will tie in to Legend’s and all that is hinted at in Anniversary, fans might want to look closer into Lord Richard Croft’s words in Anniversary, and at the deeper connections between Jacqueline Natla and Amanda Evert (as in why do they look so much like each other and why Amanda’s operation in Bolivia has crates with Natla Technologies logos on them) to figure out where the story is heading in Underworld.
Oh GOD! FINALLY! After months of no activity at the site, and most fans having given up the series for dead, the final episode of Tomb Raider: Re\Visioned is now up at the GameTap Tomb Raider site.
The final episode, A Complicated Woman, written and directed by Jim Lee (Punisher, X-Men, Fantastic Four, Batman, Superman) and Christos N. Gage (Legends of the Dark Knight, World War Hulk: X-Men, House of M: Avengers), tells the story of three fortune hunters after the Treasure of Perseus who regale each other with tales of how each one of them killed Lara.
Wrapping up the final episode, GameTap has also announced that the second season of Re\Visioned will feature six animated episodes that will showcase games from “the golden age of Activision” - like Pitfall, Kaboom and Pressure Cooker. GameTap has even partnered with The Hero Initiative that will feature top writers like Mark Waid (Flash, Kingdom Come, Legion of Superheroes), John Ostrander (X-Men, Punisher, Star Wars Republic) and Paul Jenkins (Spectacular Spider-Man, Incredible Hulk, Civil War: Front Line) to bring their awesome talents in to work for the next season
To download the final episode, click the links below. Needless to say, you will need a Flash player to play these files.
Download Episode 10 - A Complicated Woman (Requires Flash Player)
Download Episodes 01-09
So it didn’t answer any of the questions that Legend threw up, but Tomb Raider: Anniversary was a shining beacon as far as the franchise was concerned, thanks in full to Crystal Dynamics’ brilliant efforts. With PC, PS2 and PSP owners getting their action a long time back, Eidos had announced that the game would be made available to Xbox 360 owners as DLC on Marketplace sometime near the end of the year.
As of yesterday, though, all that has changed. People who were hoping for a retail release, like yours truly, will be happy to know that Eidos will release the retail version of Ms. Croft’s adventures on the Xbox 360 come October 23rd in the US, followed by a European release three days later. A DLC pack, split into two pieces, the first of which will contain the first two major areas and Croft Manor, will be released over Xbox LIVE in November and will require a retail copy of Tomb Raider: Legend to run.
That’s right, one more game that threatens to make me go flat B-R-O-K, broke, in the next three months. (sigh) Check, please!
I’ve forgotten how many times I’ve played the recent Tomb Raider games, Legend and Anniversary. After getting completely disillusioned with the franchise, thanks to Angel of Darkness, I was more than satisfied with Crystal Dynamics’ take on Lady Lara Croft’s adventures even though the puzzle elements left a big huge gap in Legend, (not so bad with Anniversary). And for those that were eagerly awaiting Eidos’ announcement at E2 2007 about the next game in the series in vain, there’s hope yet.
Talking to SPOnG.com, Eidos’ Ian Livingstone talked about how the next game in the series was already “Well in development” and said that the third Tomb Raider movie adaptation hasn’t yet been given the green signal yet, while gushing all over Angelina Jolie. Considering the cliffhanger with which Legend ended, and the seemingly obvious ties to the Atlantean storyline in Anniversary, the next game is something I just can’t wait for. On the other hand, if you don’t have any other console except a Wii, enjoy the first look at the Wii edition of Tomb Raider: Anniversary, which, according to senior producer Morgan Gray “adds more tomb raider to Tomb Raider”. Xbox 360 owners can expect to see Tomb Raider: Anniversary as Downloadable Content on Xbox Live sometime next month, whereas PSP, PS2 and PC owners can rush out right now and pick up their copies at stores, if you haven’t already done so.
Eidos’ Ian Livingstone On The Future of Tomb Raider [SPOnG.com]
Tomb Raider: Anniversay (Wii) - Preview Video
Remember Lara’s foray to find Atlantis in the first game, and more recently, in Anniversary? Well, Lara’s up to her old tricks again in the latest episode in GameTap’s Tomb Raider: Re\Visioned series, Raising Thaumopolis. Trying to find the (new) Lost City, Lara is contacted by a mysterious man, Anton Cooper, who provides Lara with all that she needs to find and recover the powerful arsenal of the Thaumopolians, before her itchy trigger-finger gun-nuts can. Facing off against the leader of the gun-wackos in the dream realm (where they are informed by the Thaumopolian leader that death in the dream world will mean death in the real one, just like good ol’ Matrix mindfuck) Lara must successfully complete three ancient challenges to secure her prize.
Written by Michael A. Stackpole and designed by Louie Del Carmen, Raising Thaumopolis, for the first time, actually seems like an animated fly-through of a Tomb Raider game, complete with the sophisticated yet funny remarks by the Countess of Abbingdon and all the puzzle solving elements that are the hallmark of the franchise, making this, practically the best (and truest) adaptation of the games in the animated series. Keep checking back for the last episode in the first season of the Re\Visioned series, A Complicated Woman, where three fortune hunters tell the tale of how each of them killed Lara Croft as they try to recover the ancient Treasure of Perseus. Obviously, Lara is going to crash on their little party and walk away with the Treasure, as you will see later in the episode when it releases. How do I know? Well, let’s just say I am a psychic. Click the links below to download Episode 09 - Raising Thaumopolis. Needless to say, you will need the Flash Player to play these files and oh, do check out and download the other episodes as well so that you can catch up with the rest of us. mmmkay?
Download Episode 09 - Raising Thaumopolis (Requires Flash Player)
Download Episodes 01-08
It’s finally here, the much anticipated eighth episode in GameTap’s Re\Visioned: Tomb Raider series. Written by the legendary Gail Simone (Birds of Prey, The Simpsons and the upcoming Wonder Woman) and designed by Six Point Harness, Pre-Teen Raider tells the story of a young Lara Croft with itchy fingers breaking into Croft Academy (there’s a Croft ACADEMY?!) in her typical, flamboyant style to “borrow” yet another precious, ancient and potentially deadly artifact.
While the episode seems to draw inspiration from Disney’s Kim Possible, Pre-Teen Raider is just briefly entertaining, without the adolescent charm of Disney’s teen-hottie-slash-butt-kicker. With Lara sporting, for the first time since Chronicles, a table top bustline and nary a shout-out to Minnie Driver in the credits (Looks like she didn’t voice Ms. Croft this time, judging the by the pained “Ouch” in the basketball court), Pre-Teen Raider may be the best episode so far in the animated series, but that’s like saying BloodRayne is Uwe “Toilet” Boll’s best movie to date.
Bah! Looks like the series would have done a lot better with some more focus and a slightly more “connected” plot. At least it would keep bringing people back. Oh well, we’ve got the episode download at the bottom of this post. (Click here for previous episodes) Check back next week for Ep. 09 - Raising Thaumopolis, where our booby adventurer friend must solve three ancient puzzles in the lost underwater city of Thaumapolis. Once you are done watching, head over to Kotaku where Gail Simone talks about the show and writing and designing for it.
Gail Simone Talks Pre-Teen Raider [Kotaku.com]
Gail Simone Interview [Wired]
NOTE: You will need a video player that can play the Flash Video format (FLV) in order to play these files. Download the Riva FLV player below.
Download Videos: (right click, select “Save Target As”)
Click here for previous episodes
Episode 08 - Pre-Teen Raider
We’d already brought you news about Tomb Raider: Re\Visioned the awesome new animated shorts being made by GameTap for their GameTap TV service. And now, to sweeten the pot, we bring you the latest episode to hit the intertubes! Angel Spit Pt. 2 takes off from the previous episode, which saw Lara head over to Antarctica in search of a mysterious substance that is claimed to have the property to cure any disease. Download the episode in Flash Video format right here and get your freak on with the luscious Lady Lara Croft, mysterious subterranean temples and lots of gooey Xenomorph-ey alien creatures. Check back tomorrow for Episode 07 - Lara Croft: Legacy, where the bombshell billionaire takes on an army of half-man / half-beast creatures as she tries to recover a scepter from an ancient monastery.
Download links for Angel Spit, Pt. 2 and previous episodes after the jump.
Update: As promised, we have Ep. 10 - A Complicated Woman right here for your download pleasure. Click here for more details and to download the video.