Tomb Raider I-III Remastered | Review – Polygonal Nostalgia
At the end of the 90s, when Lara Croft When we debuted in the world of video games, perhaps we weren't ready. We weren't ready to experience an adventure like no other, a game that – although inspired by some great classics like the Prince of Persia by Jordan Mechner – everything brought into a three-dimensionality that was still unexplored at the time, which was absolutely surprising at the time. So here in 1996, with the first one Grave robbersthe history of action-adventures and perhaps video games themselves was written.
Unsurprisingly, the outsized success of the game – which originally appeared on the original PlayStation, SEGA Saturn and PC – gave the franchise the opportunity to explode in all its might, with Miss Croft destined to become a real game Pop icon of the early 2000s. With Tomb Raider 2 (published just a year after the original chapter) e Tomb Raider 3 (from 1998 instead), the series actually entered the collective imagination.
Now, after a host of spooky sequels, crossovers and reboots (and you'll find them too At Amazon), time has passed and many of the original chapters that brought Lara Croft fame and fame are forgotten in the memory drawer.
At least until today, considering that with Tomb Raider I-III Remastered The goal is precisely to help people discover – or rediscover – three timeless games that, despite their age, still have a lot to offer in various ways. much to teach more modern adventure games.
Once upon a time there was an archaeologist…
Almost thirty years have passed since Lara took her first steps in the mountains of Peru, and thanks to Aspyr's work we can now relive Lara's first three adventures around the world, with an appearance that balances preservation and modernization.
When you play the trilogy, you get the feeling that the developers have succeeded Find the right compromisethat both pay homage to the series' foundations and ensure that the original titles are accessible to today's gamers.
Aspyr actually chose to use the original source code and engine, allowing the player to return to the original look and feel of the first game Grave robbers. The games' gameplay was also expected to remain intact, with every element – including jumps, secrets, enemies and puzzles – true to how it was designed and conceived by the original development team in the late 1990s.
In short words, you can play Tomb Raider I, II And III just like on the first PlayStation, with the “tank” control system that is as punishing as it is satisfying. Jumping at the right time and at the right angle can mean the difference between life and death, as Lara will soon break her neck and perhaps fall from a great height.
And no, you won't have a “yellow line” secretly telling you where you can climb, so be careful.
For her modern controller settingsInstead, Aspyr decided to take inspiration from him Tomb Raider Legend, anniversary And Underworld, i.e. the “intermediate chapters” of the archaeological saga. These become clear in Lara's movements: the right stick controls the camera while the figure moves depending on its position.
The original and modern tank controls are present switchable at will in the menu of each chapter, so a simple touch is enough to switch from one game model to another. The decision to include dual gameplay is certainly a winning decision and allows even beginners to delve into caves and tombs without necessarily having to pray for the success of each individual jump.
“I write my own fate”
I'll examine game by game, Tomb Raider I-III Remastered offers – as the title suggests – the first three chapters of the franchise, three games that represent the sum of what was playable in the days of the glorious 32-bit version. Grave robberswhich is ultimately the oldest game in the package, is still one Glorious lesson in level designa product so captivating and comprehensive that it will strike fear into the hearts of even the most accomplished gamer.
Tomb Raider I-III Remastered is a true love letter to three timeless classics.
Levels like Lost Valley (i.e. the Lost Valley complete with T-Rex), or Tomb of Qualopec and especially The Folly of St. FrancisFrom a purely architectural point of view, they are still marvels, so much so that the lack of reference points forces us to really explore each place in detail to find the key, the equipment or the way out.
The shooter phases are reduced to a minimum, although Lara is still equipped with a variety of utensils (including: the legendary pair of pistolsthrough rifles and machine guns). Grave robbers The focus is certainly more on the atmosphere and the design of the locations than on the action in the narrower sense. A groundbreaking title.
Tomb Raider 2 It partially follows the philosophy of the previous chapter, but takes various creative liberties that inevitably place it a step below its predecessor.
The very Italian Venice and that Opera House It is the levels that have remained in the hearts of players more than any other, although it is clear that the shooter element plays a much stronger role in the gaming experience this time around. In fact, Lara shoots in this sequel – a lot – and sacrifices a bit the exploration phases, which are significantly less refined and impressive than the original chapter.
Not a bad game, not a bad sequel, Tomb Raider 2 It simply fails to achieve the perfection of its predecessor. Although the opportunity to explore Lara's villa, with the butler who must be strictly locked in the freezeris definitely one Plus Nostalgia that should not be underestimated.
Final part of the original trilogy, Tomb Raider 3 puts to paper the best ideas of the first two chapters and sends Lara around the world, although in the end we undoubtedly have on our hands the weakest of the three chapters – but also perhaps the game that needed a boost more than any other technician.
There jungle and the whole part of the South Pacific They give a feel very similar to the first game, but similar levels London and above all thatArea 51 They still raise eyebrows today, mainly because of their cold and cheesy aesthetic taste, bordering on a Z-series film.
The original PAL version of Tomb Raider 3 You'll remember that it was practically unplayable on the first PlayStation, with an unacceptable frame rate and a ton of bugs that made the experience beyond frustrating, so much so that Aspyr ended up fixing almost everything in the run-up to this remaster making the game pleasant in every way. And yes, in this chapter too Lara's house is ready to test your skills.
Because the biggest challenge for the developers, and this applies to the entire trilogy, was this do the three Grave robbers as they appeared in their mindswithout all the technical restrictions of the time.
So let's move on to modern graphics: we have stable lighting effects in real time, new models for Lara and her enemies (but without distorting their appearance) and some additions here and there (like the bosses' health bar and the 3D models for medical and ammunition cases ), all harmonious and with a more sophisticated appearance.
Fortunately, this is also reflected in a stable frame countin polygonal penetrations and errors reduced to a minimum (except for the “historical” ones that were deliberately left in the game) and more generally in a look that we would have liked in a remaster for games like these important that they are also thirty years old still deserve attention after their publication.
