Quote:
Originally Posted by Roper Klacks
What Tomb Raider games did you play?
|
Tomb Raider II
Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation
Tomb Raider: Chronicles
Tomb Raider: Legend
Quote:
Originally Posted by Roper Klacks
In what aspects? I'm not doubting you guys, its only curiosity, cause i never played the Uncharted games and i'm a huge Tomb Raider fan. And being honest i'm a bit tired to see people comparing them and when asked why the Naughty Dog game is better they all rave about Uncharted strong points, and ignore Tomb Raider's strong ones..
I'm just saying, Tomb Raider 1 and 2 are really amazing, i've played very few games that "kicked their asses", and i've played a LOT of games.
|
What the Tomb Raider games, particularly the first couple and TLR, have done was introduce a fast paced action and exploration experience in gaming in real time 3D when back then (mid to late 90s) flat 2D was still the norm. Puzzles, though light compared to, say, a game like Myst punctuated the thrill of treasure hunting and discovery. However, the stories in the games tended to remain in the passenger seat while all the action - shooting, running, jumping, platforming, blowing things up, etc. - almost always drove the experience. And that's understandable because the main feature of the games were that they were real-time 3D. Back in 1995 it was a huge deal to finally be able to run and jump INTO the gameworld as opposed to merely on top of the gameworld, from one side of the screen to the other (side scrolling 2D).
The original Tomb Raider, 1995, on the Playstation.
As well, all the cinematic cutscenes in the earlier TR games were non-interactive and not in-game (not generated in real time, just like most non-action oriented puzzle heavy adventure games), but still a kind of reward for beating and completing levels nonetheless.
I think it took a decade - and advanced technology - to reformulate that essential thrilling action adventure experience and re-introduce it in a far more fluid and seamless way. Yes, it has always been possible to improve on previous excellent games (just as in any kind of media - film, novels, plays, television, etc.), and though some of us may place a game like Tomb Raider on a pedestal and worship it, in the end another game (or game series) could overtake it on many levels.
The Uncharted series did just that. Naughty Dog most likely studied the mechanics of Tomb Raider games as well as other action adventure titles. The cover and shoot combat system has its lineage in Gears of War, the hand-to-hand combat is similar to Indiana Jones And The Emperor's Tomb but much more stripped down. The rock climbing, mantling, and scaling moves mirror that of Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time and Assassin's Creed (though Uncharted: Drake's Fortune also came out in 2007). Many of these games' gameplay ideas naturally also came from Tomb Raider.
Uncharted 2 gameplay video (demo) | Gametrailers
But the strongest, most piquant refinement in the Uncharted games, and what sets them apart from the Tomb Raider titles and many other action adventures, is the seamless and impressively balanced
integration of all these elements, often DURING GAMEPLAY: player interaction, high quality directorial work in the classic cinematic style (approaching that of movies like
Raiders Of The Lost Ark), expert voice acting and ubiquitous dialogue between characters, subtle and highly realistic facial expressions and motion capture animation, artificial intelligence (both for enemies and your companions), light puzzlework, precise pacing of events and challenges (many times creating suspenseful transitions from one kind of action to another, thereby demanding the player to quickly adapt and shift frames of mind), and other elements.
Yeah, the games are
that tight. The quality is very high. Naughty Dog essentially set a new benchmark.
I guess the bottom line is for you to actually play Uncharted and Uncharted 2. That's pretty much the only way you can know yourself.
