Tomb Raider reboot

Single player content takes more time and money to develop than a few multiplayer maps. I am assuming that the content is coming, but it will be a few months before they have something ready for prime time.

It is also possible, considering that this reboot was a bit of a risk, that they shelved the idea of an expansion pack. For all we know the game may not have been designed with additional single player content in mind.

Demyx wrote:
Scratched wrote:

That's another thing with having it so combat heavy, once you go past a few dozen enemies you have to put some plausible society and support in there. Later on, the scale of the ship scavenging/salvage gets a little silly for a lost, abandoned island.
.

Yeah, I don't think it counts as an abandoned island when there are hundreds of guys somehow living on it.

EDIT: I had the same issue with Borderlands, where there's about a thousand bandits for every "ordinary" person living on Pandora. But at least Borderlands doesn't take itself seriously.

I think complexmath sums it up nicely:

complexmath wrote:

But it's like the Bermuda Triangle. Any ship or plane that passes ends up stranded along with any surviving crew. The only weird thing to me in that respect is that every person I've seen is white, and this is an island near the Philippeans, isn't it?

There have been ships/planes/helicopters/whatever crashing on this island for centuries. I mean, Lara was finding Portuguese dubloons, feudal samurai swords, and WWII bunkers. It's not unreasonable to believe that the survivors would have eventually caught on to the mystical properties of the island, and that some would have been seduced by the quest to discover what they are/what the source of them is. Kinda like Mathias, no?

Yeah, it's weird there weren't more South Pacific/Asian survivors, but a reasonable guess would be that knowledge of Yamatai has a longer history in their cultures (as evidenced by the age of the legends and supporting journals that Lara finds around the island), so that they have been actively avoiding that part of the ocean for a longer period of time, thus the original survivors of Asian descent have long passed away. Mathias et al have only been there since the early 1990s.

Scratched wrote:

They're focussing on multiplayer DLC: http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2013...

Is multiplayer a side of TR that can really be significantly improved either by DLC or sequels? It didn't really grab me at any level.

The only improvement they can make to the multiplayer would be to patch in party support. As it stands right now, we have 4 lone wolf modes.

TheGameguru wrote:

Perhaps they are nervous releasing anything related to SP DLC with all the internet backlash associated around any sort of non-multiplayer DLC. Can't say I blame them. One one hand the Internet complains viciously about any DLC that relates to SP games.. and yet clearly we aren't happy with strictly MP DLC in what we perceive as a SP game.

Damned if you do damned if you don't... so MP DLC is a safe bet despite probably not selling.

Other than From Ashes (and the complaint there was that it was 'day one' DLC that added quite a bit of interesting stuff to the narrative), has anyone complained about the ME2 or ME3 DLC? How about the Skyrim stuff? I'll agree that MP DLC is safer, as the only people who care about it are people playing MP while everyone else just ignores it, but good SP DLC is possible and will be well received.

That's a good point. People do get too focused on the poor examples and forget about the good ones. Quality and release date issues aside, Bethesda really do deliver on expansions worth paying for.

Scratched wrote:

That's a good point. People do get too focused on the poor examples and forget about the good ones. Quality and release date issues aside, Bethesda really do deliver on expansions worth paying for.

Internet Angry men are almost deafening on the Internet. That being said I agree that DLC done right is always a good thing. Any time I can continue to play a game I love with new "stuff" is a good thing. But I can understand how a developer may now be more cautious.

I would have paid for a series of large, complex tombs to evaluate and puzzle through (bonus points for making them considerably harder than the current ones) but MP maps? Meh, I'll pass.

Finally got 100% last night. Definitely one of my favorite games in a while. There are a couple achievements I haven't gotten, but i'll save those for the eventual replay. I don't feel much desire to try the multiplayer, and I certainly won't be buying any map packs. It's a shame (for me) that there won't be another entry in the series for another two or three years, but if it matches or exceeds the quality of this one, it'll be well worth the wait. Definitely looking forward to where they go with the series.

beanman101283 wrote:

Finally got 100% last night. Definitely one of my favorite games in a while. There are a couple achievements I haven't gotten, but i'll save those for the eventual replay. I don't feel much desire to try the multiplayer, and I certainly won't be buying any map packs. It's a shame (for me) that there won't be another entry in the series for another two or three years, but if it matches or exceeds the quality of this one, it'll be well worth the wait. Definitely looking forward to where they go with the series.

I just wish the singleplayer wasn't so "in one ear, out the other". That sounds like I'm trying to diminish the game, but not really what I'm aiming for. This thread is over two years two months old, and then they had probably been working on it for a while already (TR:U was 2008, LC:GoL was 2010), and you can play through the finished so fast, just a few days. I wish there was more to it, but I guess that's the nature of making such a pretty/cinematic game.

The latest NVidia beta drivers have definitely helped. I'm now running with max settings at a stable 60fps. As far as the game itself is concerned, I think they put in a bit too much combat. I like the occasional opportunity for stealth kills, but the scripted horde mode fights just feel out of place and some portions of the game (shantytown in particular) feel like they are present simply to provide an opportunity for more combat. Overall though, this is a wonderful game and I'm having a lot of fun with the exploration and the occasional "tomb".

complexmath wrote:

I like the occasional opportunity for stealth kills, but the scripted horde mode fights just feel out of place and some portions of the game (shantytown in particular) feel like they are present simply to provide an opportunity for more combat.

That's a good point, everyone fixates on the big fights, but the combat where it's a handful of guys out in the world and you can do interesting things to flank them or pick them off one by one are good.

I didn't even know the game had multiplayer. Guaranteed not to sell me any multiplayer DLC.

Scratched wrote:
complexmath wrote:

I like the occasional opportunity for stealth kills, but the scripted horde mode fights just feel out of place and some portions of the game (shantytown in particular) feel like they are present simply to provide an opportunity for more combat.

That's a good point, everyone fixates on the big fights, but the combat where it's a handful of guys out in the world and you can do interesting things to flank them or pick them off one by one are good.

I actually remember shanty town a lot more for the exploration and loot. 2.5 hrs of that level and i remember it fondly too.

nel e nel wrote:
Scratched wrote:

They're focussing on multiplayer DLC: http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2013...

Is multiplayer a side of TR that can really be significantly improved either by DLC or sequels? It didn't really grab me at any level.

The only improvement they can make to the multiplayer would be to patch in party support. As it stands right now, we have 4 lone wolf modes.

I just hope they don't take the coming utter failure of their MP dlc as indicitive of people not liking the game. The MP utterly sucks imho. The single player...i totally want good expansion of.

I just wish they could get stories in the TR games that actually made sense from all angles. This one is fun while you're playing it, but falls to ribbons if you spend any time thinking about it at all. At the base level, the game does not cohere; all the various parts are pulling in various different directions.

It's really good, but with some more thought, and with every piece aiming at the same target, that team could have made one of the all-time greats. I think of Dishonored as being a lesser game in terms of technology (although that may not be fair) and resources available to the team, but because everything works so well together, it ends up being substantially better as a game and as a story. TR had all the ingredients to be better still, but it just sort of flailed around and never quite got there. Individual moments were fantastic, but in the end, it's kind of fragmented.

If, however, you're on the fence on this game, go buy it. You'll enjoy the hell out of it.

Just finished up at 73%. Wow what a game. Definitely best game I've played in the last few months. Bioshock is going to have to really impress me to knock this off the top spot.

Ultimately, I think its a better game than any of the Uncharted Series. Yes its linear, but Crystal Dynamics did a great job of making it feel not so linear. Throwing in a few tombs here and there to explore, and I liked the weapon and skill upgrade system. Not sure I'll go back to try for 100%, but highly highly recommended. Everything about the game systems were tight. I'm not a story person at all, so just being plain old fun will trump any sort of character or story development for me. Honestly, every time the plot line was "Let's go save XXXX" or "where is XXXXX", I didn't even know who they were referring to.

There were only 2 things in the game that "broke" the immersion for me.

Spoiler:

1. The rope pulling tool. I've never done any rock climbing in my life, but I don't think that device was powered, and even if it was, I don't think it could just zip someone up a line like that. I laughed the first time I used it to zip myself around. 2. Near the end when the wind is blowing so hard Lara can barely stand or walk, yet she can shoot arrows 100 yards in a line right on target.

But those are definitely nits to pick at.

Fuzzballx wrote:
nel e nel wrote:
Scratched wrote:

They're focussing on multiplayer DLC: http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2013...

Is multiplayer a side of TR that can really be significantly improved either by DLC or sequels? It didn't really grab me at any level.

The only improvement they can make to the multiplayer would be to patch in party support. As it stands right now, we have 4 lone wolf modes.

I just hope they don't take the coming utter failure of their MP dlc as indicitive of people not liking the game. The MP utterly sucks imho. The single player...i totally want good expansion of.

I totally agree I could use a Tomb expansion pack or something like that for the SP, the MP is actually pretty good...once you get into a match. The maps are well designed with a lot of nooks and crannies and have a lot of verticality that adds to the tactical strategies you need to employ to be successful. The problem is that the surrounding architecture for getting into a game is just terrible. Long wait/load times, terrible team balancing, and no party support.

Interview with Rhianna Pratchett (writer for this game, and daughter of a rather well known author) on RPS.

Rhianna had a childhood where women warriors weren’t just Lara Croft… they were everywhere. “I grew up with Ripley and Sarah Connor at the age I discovered them at…I don’t know – twelve? I discovered them first… That was just what women did… Which I think was a fine lie to grow up with.” She goes on to tell me that when she was twelve she had a six foot Alien queen on the back of her door, where I had a blu-tack stained picture of the All Saints pouting in parachute pants. I’m outdone really. Whatever the equivalent of emasculated is right now, I am feeling it. Femasculated.
Rhianna also tells me about her conflicting feelings on Lara’s violence curve going from being afraid to kill, to being a mass executioner. “Hand on heart, the narrative team would have liked that to be a bit slower, but on the other hand we’d kept the player without a gun for at least an hour, we’d kept them without a weapon for a while. …We found that as soon as gamers got a gun, they wanted to use it. …You’ve got the needs of gameplay, you’ve got the needs of narrative, and you’ve got the needs of the player for this to be a fun experience. They don’t always align exactly. Sometimes you’ve got to make compromises on this.”

Finally got around to finishing. 100% completion (I circled back to finish things up with fast travel as I was nearing the end.) I want more.

Hand on heart, the narrative team would have liked that to be a bit slower, but on the other hand we’d kept the player without a gun for at least an hour, we’d kept them without a weapon for a while. …We found that as soon as gamers got a gun, they wanted to use it.

I would have been just fine if Lara didn't get anything but a bow until about the 3/4 mark, and never used any firearm but a pistol. Unfortunately, they're aiming at the end goal of gunslinger Lara. I wouldn't have minded if they'd circular-filed that idea for the reboot, but they probably didn't feel safe doing so. I suspect, if reimagined Lara were too different from the original, there would have been virtual riots, online pitchforks and torches marching on their website.

Given the realities of the fan base and the development budget, this is probably about as good as we could have expected, but her comment here is precisely what I meant about the various parts of the game pulling in different directions. They had multiple competing goals, and did a good job of compromising between them, but I think it would have been a better game if they could have discarded some.

It's still a damn fine game, but I wish they'd had the freedom to stick with "survival Lara" more.

Just finished. It started getting kind of crazy there toward the end, but all in all I'd say it was an excellent experience. I'd probably rate it a little higher than Legend.

I have just finished, with 100% completion. Without a doubt, my favourite Tomb Raider or Uncharted game! I have zero interest in the MP, but would have loved a New Game + mode with some post-game tombs. I didn't finish levelling weapons until the point of no return, and barely got a chance to play with them.

spider_j wrote:

I have just finished, with 100% completion. Without a doubt, my favourite Tomb Raider or Uncharted game! I have zero interest in the MP, but would have loved a New Game + mode with some post-game tombs. I didn't finish levelling weapons until the point of no return, and barely got a chance to play with them.

I just 100%ed on the 360 yesterday, deliberately trying to upgrade as much along the way. I only had one weapon upgrade left, and with the skill tree maxed, ninnies and chickens in Mountain Village were giving nine-odd salvage per, PLUS I had exploding arrows, so...that was fun...

Malor wrote:

I would have been just fine if Lara didn't get anything but a bow until about the 3/4 mark, and never used any firearm but a pistol. Unfortunately, they're aiming at the end goal of gunslinger Lara. I wouldn't have minded if they'd circular-filed that idea for the reboot, but they probably didn't feel safe doing so. I suspect, if reimagined Lara were too different from the original, there would have been virtual riots, online pitchforks and torches marching on their website.

I think I would've much preferred this game, with fewer enemies and more emphasis on exploration and stealthily killing small amounts of guys. Not that Tomb Raider is bad so far, but the parts where you're sneaking around exploring are a lot more solid than mowing down tons of dudes with shotguns.

I was thinking about the upgrades yesterday, and with the exception of a few functional ones (napalm, silencer, shotgun choke) it seems most of them are fairly missable or forgettable, or otherwise not really noteworthy. I could probably remember most of them, but slight upgrades upgrades like fire rate, accuracy, reload speed, or magazine size just don't really strike me as fun or interesting, at least not in a game like TR. I don't remember feeling "OMG that upgrade really made the difference" for most of them.

All Tomb Raider DLC will be multiplayer-based (Videogamer)

Karl Stewart wrote:

There are currently no plans in place for any Single Player expansions...All of our DLC is based around the Multiplayer experience for now.

Amazon has the game as the deal of the day. $34.99 for the pc version was too difficult to pass up after reading the comments here and reviews.

I think that's around the price I got it for from GMG. I thought it was well worth that price.

I finished up last night. I predicted the following would happen, but it was delightful nonetheless:

Spoiler:

Lara shooting with both pistols.

By the end I was at 100% completion, fully leveled, and was only missing two upgrades for my shotgun. I did look up several locations for the challenges, since they don't appear on the map, and they could be very difficult to find. My days of hunting aimlessly for collectables is done.

Some of the upgrades seemed awesome but never panned out. Like I got the napalm arrows but they're limited in some way, so I used them up just screwing around in about 5 seconds and never had one available after that? Also, the armor piercing arrow option sounded nice, but when I tried shooting armored enemies with my bow the arrows still bounced off. Overall, I found the fully upgraded assault rifle to be ideal for the horde battles, which I guess was expected since they give you tons of AR ammo during those fights.

complexmath wrote:

Some of the upgrades seemed awesome but never panned out. Like I got the napalm arrows but they're limited in some way, so I used them up just screwing around in about 5 seconds and never had one available after that? Also, the armor piercing arrow option sounded nice, but when I tried shooting armored enemies with my bow the arrows still bounced off. Overall, I found the fully upgraded assault rifle to be ideal for the horde battles, which I guess was expected since they give you tons of AR ammo during those fights.

You press the 1 button to switch between arrow types (normal, fire/napalm, explosive). The same arrow ammo is used for all three. I believe armor piercing works on guys protected from headshots if you charge the shot, but it was easier just to headshot them once to take the helmet off and then again.