Tomb Raider Anniversary Review

Originally in development with Lara Croft's original creators and scheduled for a release exclusively on the PSP, plans to commemorate Lara's success were put on hold with the subsequent sale of Core Studios to fellow UK outfit Rebellion. Never one to let an opportunity pass (particularly given the prolificacy of the series), Eidos and Crystal Dynamics set to work on Tomb Raider Anniversary for the PlayStation2, PSP, PC and Wii - even if it has arrived a year too late to celebrate the 10th anniversary.

Inspired by the original game that kicked off the Lara Croft craze eleven years ago, Tomb Raider Anniversary dresses it all up with the engine Crystal Dynamics created for last year's Tomb Raider Legend. Beyond a visual overhaul to ensure Lara doesn't look like the pointy-breasted protagonist that first got gamers into a steam back on the PSone and Sega Saturn, the Legend engine allows for a number of features that were introduced by Crystal Dynamics along with the silky smooth controls that replaced the archaic grid-based system employed prior to last year's effort.

Whilst many of Legends features make an appearance in Lara's latest adventure, several have been adjusted to suit her "new" adventure whilst a number have been scrapped completely. The grappling hook remains, but instead of attaching to metallic objects is resigned to sporadic use at specific moments and cannot be used in combat, whilst Lara's PDA, headset, binoculars and personal light have all been obviously removed. Making a first appearance for the series, Crystal Dynamics have incorporated Adrenaline Dodge and Headshot techniques, which provide the fanciful, cinematic, slow-motion dodge manoeuvres that have become an all-too-common occurrence in any game with the slightest hint of action. Challenging players to lock-on to an opponent and literally wait until you can see the whites of their eyeballs, the implementation fails to add anything significant to the dated combat system and as a result is left largely unutilised throughout the entire game.

Despite a considerable reworking of the game's levels, Tomb Raider Anniversary follows a largely identical blueprint to the original. As such, the storyline still revolves around Lara's pursuit of the Atlantean Scion and her struggles against Jacqueline Natla as she travels to Peru, Greece and Egypt, before culminating in the final showdown in Atlantis. All of the classic scenarios have been marinated for the remake, such as the legendary encounter with the T-Rex, although Crystal Dynamics have chosen to rework it considerably resulting in plenty of Quick-Time-Event strewn set-pieces and an alternative solution to the original guns-blazing approach - understandably it's not as jaw-dropping as we seem to remember.

Although Crystal Dynamics have reworked a great number of the game's puzzles and adapted the level designs, many of the puzzles suffer from the dated design of the original with too much emphasis placed on leap of faiths and tricky camera angles. It's almost as though Crystal Dynamics decided that the frustrating aspects that were very much a part of the original Tomb Raider had to make an appearance in this year's reworking. Too often, Tomb Raider Anniversary provides a simple task such as leaping to a certain area, but makes the challenge inextricably frustrating by pitting it above a bottomless chasm with an awkward camera angle - the resulting death and noticeable loading screen soon drives your temperature through the roof. The manual camera is also a cause for frustration, frequently requiring you to change its alignment to get a good perspective on the action and all-too often making this fiddlier then it should be. Anybody tempted to check out the original game will soon realise that Anniversary is a major improvement to the game that originally put Tomb Raider on the map, particularly because of the improvements to Lara's movement and the inclusion of generous checkpoints, however it does feel distinctly less enjoyable and engaging then last year's effort.

Beyond the occasionally frustrating aspects, Tomb Raider Anniversary fails to provide any real sense of engagement or urgency, with a bland blend of combat, traps and largely lifeless environments to trundle through. Ultimately, it's another legacy of the game's eleven year old design, and as such, one that Crystal Dynamics couldn't really handle without rewriting the game considerably, thus negating its entire purpose.