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Marsh931
59,117 (33,255)
TA Score for this game: 2,156
Posted on 28 April 14 at 07:40 |
This review has 19 positive votes and 0 negative votes. Please log in to vote. |
I was reluctant to pay full price for Tomb Raider Definitive Edition when it released, despite all of the DLC it came with, as I’d never got in to the Tomb Raider series before. In the end, I got it for around £25 in an XBL sale. Had I known it was going to be as good as it is, I would have happily paid full price for it.
Having not played the non Definitive Edition version of this game, I can’t comment on the improvements to the graphics etc. I will however, say that the graphics are very impressive; certainly not the best out there, but nonetheless impressive. Things like the way Lara’s hair moves in the wind or as you run, or the way that the flames from your torch move according to the shape of the low ceiling as you’re crawling through a cave, are all very subtle, but make quite an impression.
The controls are fairly basic and have an Assassins Creed-esque feel to them, especially with regard to free-running and combat. I noticed occasional camera-angle issues, but for the most part, they were quite responsive.
The story, should you wish to actually follow it, is relatively gripping. It isn’t too long, there aren’t too many plot twists or side stories that confuse the main themes at all and I quite often found myself wanting to do the next level just to see how the story would progress.
There are plenty of collectibles and side objectives to complete, so the likelihood is that you’ll finish the story and then spend about the same amount of time again finishing off the rest. One of the side objectives involves searching lost temples. Each one of these temples consists of a different puzzle that you have to solve in order to find the treasure at the end. The puzzles are challenging, but can be solved with a bit of thought. Some may take 5 minutes, some 20, and so they are a nice break from the main story objectives.
There were a couple of times during the story mode where I would run towards a wall on the edge of the map, and fall through it, or cut scenes wouldn’t trigger meaning I had to reset back to the previous checkpoint. Luckily, the checkpoints are fairly regularly spaced out so this wasn’t too much of a problem. There was one mission however where a glitch caused Lara’s body to cover the objective, blocking it from sight. It took me about half an hour and a couple of YouTube videos just to figure out what the hell I was supposed to be doing.
The main let down of this game however is the multiplayer. The maps are a decent size, split over multiple levels with plenty of places to hide, sneak up on the enemy, and snipe from afar. This is all well and good, if you can ever find a lobby to join. I must note that my internet connection isn’t the best in the world, so this could be one of the causes, but quite often I could spend 15 minutes just waiting to join a lobby. Even after I’ve found a lobby, by the time the game starts, it normally ends up being a 1v1 as everyone else has dropped out.
In order to buy new characters and weapon upgrades in multiplayer, you need to collect salvage which is basically the currency of the game. The multiplayer maps usually have 1 or 2 spawn points where a crate of salvage will appear. The weapons you start with are fairly rubbish, so everyone wants to upgrade as soon as possible. There’s also an achievement for buying every single multiplayer upgrade which requires around 250k salvage I believe. This leads to players camping next to the salvage spawn points waiting for it to respawn, and ultimately mean that players only kill enemies in order to ensure they receive the salvage for themselves. This basically distracts from the purpose of the given game type and quickly becomes annoying and frustrating.
I think it would be unfair to give this game a low rating based on the multiplayer issues, as I feel that the single player is fantastic.
I’m therefore going to rate the single player mode 4.5/5
And the multiplayer mode 3/5.5
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Skycaptin5
474,579 (302,030)
TA Score for this game: 1,557
Posted on 31 January 14 at 05:11 |
This review has 24 positive votes and 7 negative votes. Please log in to vote. |
Campaign
After having played the original Tomb Raider that was released last year I am more than happy to say this is definitely the definitive version. I felt like I was playing a completely different game as everything was redone and just sparkled. So onto the campaign of the game, it does feature the same story from the last generation version though it feels brand new throughout its entirety. Featuring a younger and more fragile Lara on her first mission things go crazy within a random viscous storm that casues the crew to crash on this island. From there things get even worse as she is basically kidnapped and must go to crazy methods in order to escape. It is with this thought that Lara eventually becomes furtherly tasked with surviving and trying to figure a way to get herself off this island. Along the way she will meet up with others and discover the survivor within as she has to go far extremes for survival. Lara will do this by basically collecting new tools to use throughout her struggles from more advanced bows, to guns and climbing equipment. On the side there is a many optional tombs to explore through or even a ton of collectables to collect for extra experience. Lara has been given a complete remake from the ground up this time around with fancy hair, new emotions and of course the amazing voice acting from before that really put you into the emotion a she struggles. The story was intense and gripping as you played through with many action sequences chained with areas of exploration.
Multiplayer/Gameplay
It looks great with all the redesigns and more fluid environment that is told through this cinematic heavy title. Lara's design is absolutely stunning with everything moving on her with dynamic changes depending on the environment she is in. Everything is very action styled between climbing or basically moving from space to space though there are really no issues. The multiplayer component features a few modes and includes all the DLC from the past title. The only problem may be finding people, though other than that it is a blast. It features a few modes that vary in task and an interesting class system which keeps you interested as you level. It really isn't a bad mode and just adds time to the game as far as some playability.
Conclusion
Tomb Raider Definitive is the definite version of this game. It has been completely redone with absolutely stunning graphics and environments for you to explore. If you haven't played it previously that makes the title only more worthwhile and even coming back it was stunning. Multiplayer is interesting and welcomed with some intersting change of play for you to enjoy on the side. Though the main portion of the game is the campaign which is just fantastic. I can't wait to see the continuation of this rebooted series.
Review of Mine from Gamerheadquarters.com
Gave Tomb Raider Definitive 9.5/10
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togethawiistand
263,373 (136,910)
TA Score for this game: 2,156
Posted on 13 June 16 at 19:55, Edited on 20 June 16 at 01:09 |
This review has 2 positive votes and 11 negative votes. Please log in to vote. |
CAMPAIGN
It starts in an interesting fast pace that grasps your attention. It makes you feel that a great story is coming, or so it seems. In fact, a lot of nonsense is on its way and I'm not talking about the overall fiction in the story but, for starters, about its narrative and plot weaknesses. I won't get into specifics here to keep it spoiler free for those who haven't finished it yet, but unfortunately about one third of the way into it, it became evident that it wouldn't live up to the expectation of being a great game, therefore falling into the category of "just another game".
And so, to stuff the game up, there's "the works" of any mediocre title: hidden challenges (which in this case can be considered like a form of collectibles), a number of more traditional collectibles and optional tombs. These last ones, while a good idea to provide you with a break from the main story, are too small and too easy to figure out the solution. Everytime you do that, Lara loots their standard big chest, although the camera never captures the image of whatever riches she hides in her pockets.
Other let downs are related to concepts that they didn't execute well in this game, such as the leveling mechanics. Most of the perks in that system are uninteresting, so at some point doesn't matter which one you decide to purchase, you either won't use/need it or notice it when you do.
Also the need to go around during the whole campaign (and also in the MP mode) searching and destroying crates to find metal nuts/salvage, gets old after a while.
MULTIPLAYER
The first time I played it online, there was a lot of issues connecting and keeping people connected. Unfortunately that experience didn't resume itself just to that first time. More often than not the game would fail to keep or return people to the lobby after the first round of a match, to the point that it's easier to back out and search again for a match after playing a first round.
The MP isn't horrible though, as some people may say, but clearly it's not something very polished neither. After completing their duty on reaching level 60 (over 1,700,000 XP), it's likely that completionists will abandom it.
ACHIEVEMENTS
Except for the MP achievements, which they obviously overdid it, this was a fast and easy completion. The campaign achievements are not tied to a difficult and there's only one that's story related, which is an interesting change from what we're used to. On the other hand, reaching level 60 online will be a beach and will cost you many hours of investment, no matter if you boost it solo, with a partner or through finding online matches to do it legit. If you opt for the last, avoid playing "Team Deathmatch", as it is the one that returns the least XP per match. "Rescue" is one of the modes that rewards the most XP if you're the one collecting the health packs, which is possible since people tend to focus on killing each other instead of completing the objective. "Free for all" is another interesting choice, if you're a skilled player and can finish in first or second.
SUMMARY
Most Positive:
- Story graphics; Voice acting; Playability (controls and combat).
Most Negative:
- Weak plot/narrative; Uninteresting in-game features such as the skills to purchase in the leveling trees; Grindy MP achievements and irrelevant campaign collectibles; Unstable MP mode.
P.S.: 2,5 stars is my personal rating from my gaming collection, where I compare with the bunch I've played. Since I cannot change it there without change it here, I'll leave it as it is. But I think that many gamers would rate this title at least a 3 out of 5 stars. It's not a AAA game though, no matter the weight of its brand.
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