Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1300 in Computer & Video Games
• Brand: Eidos
• Released on: 2006-04-07
• Rating: To Be Announced
• Platform: Xbox 360
• Number of items: 1

Amazon.co.uk Review
In a nutshell:
Lara Croft is finally back in the first game to do her legacy justice since the days of the original PlayStation. With updated graphics and gameplay, and a whole new suite of moves and equipment this is the sequel fans have always demanded.

The lowdown:
After the disappointment of Angel of Darkness, the Tomb Raider series has gone back to basics with a new developer and even a new Lara. Combat is back to being only around a third of the game with everything else centred on platform jumping and puzzle solving. To help this, there's a canny new movement system that allows Lara to jump onto and grab objects at an angle, so there's none of the awkward grid based movement of the earlier games. This is also the first Tomb Raider to have a proper physics engine, with lots of the puzzles revolving around movement and the use of Lara's natty new magnetic grappling hook. The graphics are also excellent, and with input from the original creator this is a long awaited return to form.

Most exciting moment:
The realisation that this is actually a proper update of the original game, as Lara leaps around cliffs like a mountain goat, with graphics and controls that aren't still stuck in 1996.

Since you ask:
The new voice of Lara is provided by Keeley Hawes, who also plays Zoe Reynolds in BBC TV show Spooks.

The bottom line:
Lara Croft is back in the first decent new Tomb Raider game for a long time.
Harrison Dent

Manufacturer's Description
Gaming's most famous heroine makes her triumphant return in Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Legend!

Lara Croft travels the globe in search of an ancient English artifact and is pitted against rival forces led by a nemesis from her past...long thought dead.

Customer Reviews

Welcome Back Lara!
Lets all face it, expectations for this game were never that high. Lara Croft has suffered one of the biggest falls from grace in videogames history and it was hard for anybody to see a way out. After 6 games, all identical in many ways nobody would have been blamed for thinking that she had nothing more to offer, just as well that they were all wrong.

Tomb Raider Legend builds upon the original formula, which lets face it maybe old but it works. Lara now has a much smoother look and feel, her movements are fluid and she no longer maneuvers like a tank. The puzzles are cleverly implemented but simple enough to make you kick yourself when you realise the solution. Another greatly improved area is the combat... it still has vast room for improvement (lets not forget, at the heart this is an adventure game and not a shooter so its forgivable) it works a great deal better than before, with a targeting system and bullet time Lara can now aim in more than 8 simple directions.

The story line has been completely revamped too, and gives us a much better insight to the wonderful world of Miss Croft. This time she has much more personality, helped also by some excellent script writing and voice work. Acrobatically she is simply a marvel, the game has a great way of making you feel special. You can pull of all of these breathtaking vaults and leaps with simple touches of a button, all it takes is some precision and good timing.

Crystal Dynamics have really poured a lot of effort into this game, it has a much better replay value than ever before with hidden relics, extra costumes and time trials. It also looks marvelous with much needed updated graphics, which really catch the eye and bring these brilliant locations to life (especially the 360 version). It is an all round package, which provides a genuinely enjoyable (if a little short) experience

It was always going to be hard to judge, do you base it on the previous few games or on the original and the pure popularity of the brand? It sticks to the original winning Tomb Raider formula enough to keep veterans happy, while offering enough to pull in new fans too. This isn't as good as it gets but it's a very promising start.Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Legend (Xbox 360)

Great game, lauzy controls!
This game is a lot of fun. The scenarios are great, the puzzles are fantastic and overall it is a good addition to Lara Croft's saga. Unfortunately, the Eidos guys messed up with the controls and fast players will have a feeling of unresponsiveness, mostly during the more intensive parts of the game like boss battles.

Princess of Persia?
Had this game for ages and got round to playing and completing in a few days, I must admit its not half bad- or good in fact.
You know the story and general gameplay of Tomb raiders - Run around, solve crypt puzzle and generally further your gameplay by not swan diving on a load of rocks.
This follows memories raised by lara and her journey around the globe looking for treasure.
Graphically it's pretty good - characters are well voice acted and well designed. ( but yet again some breast crazed nutjob has designed Lara- how she can run,jump and climb with that baggage is anyones guess?)
Level design is also good not yet got the scale and height of the out door climbs and puzzles to Prince of persia scale yet but not far off.

Now the bad -
The guncontrol is brilliant upto a point and then a slight mis-calculated flick of the right thumb stick and your left targeting something completely random. The semi final boss is horrendously bad to target and hit and then the so called grapple button works when is wants.

The extremely bad camera angles are a major woe, at points when you need to know exactly where to land, the camera throws a wobbly and your left facing lara rather behind her and as you expect you cant see the jump your trying to make and go flying off a cliff.

The jumping control has a few niggles that are mainly caused by the above bad camera work but at points you just dont feel confiedent in Lara's abilty to jump gaps or leap boxes etc.

This is a massive improvement on previous Tomb Raiders and I generally look forward to the next, But .. and its a massive But... I still believe in story,graphics and general frantic puzzle solving and leaping Prince of Persia has it nailed.

With Assassins Creed (From POP studios- Ubisoft) soon out this will show how far behind poor old Lara's fallen behind in the 3rd person action,adventure,puzzle series. Tomb Raider Legend- hmmm not even close. Tomb Raider -Semi heard off - yes.