Crystal Dynamics’ 2015 Rise of the Tomb Raider continues where Tomb Raider (2013) left off. This time Lara Croft is looking for the secret of immortality, following her father’s research. The graphics of the 2013 game were already impressive, but have still improved a lot. The cutscenes are crisp and smooth, along with the character animations.
The quick-time events of the previous game were absent from this one. It took away from the immersion of the cutscenes more than I thought it would. In the previous game, the quick-time events, though some were frustrating, added to the immersion in the cutscene. The cutscenes felt more a part of the action before, rather than pausing for a movie. Despite the lessened immersion in the cutscenes, they carried the story forward well and were never boring or slow. Crafting is much more complex in this one and adds further depth to the game. Gathering materials as you progress is a nice addition to the survival part of the game. The clothing choices were nice, but as the game progressed, Lara’s appearance didn’t change much, how it did in the previous game. Her adventures had less of a visual impact on her. As for the combat, it was definitely improved. Stealth felt more realistic and being able to use the environment more added to the benefits of using stealth. There was a much wider choice of weapons and just enough ammo spread in the environment that there wasn’t too much, but there was still a chance of running out. The side quests varied from each other, but a few felt like fetch quests. The side quests are optional, but a lot of them add further depth to the game. Journal entries and collectible items were as interesting and enjoyable to find as in the previous game. The main story felt shorter than that of its predecessor. Near the end, it seemed more was going to happen, but instead it was the end of the game. It’s better that the story wasn’t drawn out longer than it needed to be, but it felt shortened. The previous game felt like it had more at stake for Lara, with the lives of her and her friends being threatened. Rise of the Tomb Raider moved her character forward, toward a more capable adventurer, but felt less personal. The main objective was something personal to her character, but what would happen if she succeeded or failed, wasn’t as clear as in the previous game. Overall, Rise of the Tomb Raider was well worth playing and a good addition to the series. It had far more things working well for it, than those that didn’t. It still had the possibility of exploration that the previous game had, with even more tombs and temples to discover and explore.
0 Comments
|
ArchivesCategories
|