Tomb Raider Underworld (Xbox 360, 2008)

I just finished playig Tomb Raider: Underworld and honestly this is one of the few games where I've been happy to finish it so I could be done with it. I've always loved the idea games based mostly on puzzles that you have to solve to get through the game instead of just kill em all hack and slash but this game takes that idea to a whole new level and just makes it ridiculous. If you're a die hard Tomb Raider fan, then this game is for you, but you'll already have this game anyways and love it regardless because you love the series. Anyone from casual gamer to semi fan of Tomb Raider I would recommend staying away. Here's a breakdown of what I've found in the game.

Scenery/Soundtrack
Decent, one of the only reasons I didn't give this game a poor rating. I play on an HD tv and the detail in the scenery is decent. I wouldn't go so far as to say breath taking but its definitely not bad. Same with the soundtrack. Good "action" music and otherwise nothing exceptional.

Camera
Abysmal. About the only possible upside of the horrendous camera is that it would get so screwed up that half the time I would end up three inches away from her staring at her ass. Not exactly helpful when I'm standing on a beam ready to jump to god knows where.

Story
If you haven't played both Tomb Raider Legend and Anniversary then you won't understand most of the story. Crystal Dynamics helps out some by giving you a short synopsis of both games in the extras menu but really doesn't reveal much about the characters or whats going on between them. this leaves the plot very broken and hard to understand, so you have to take whats happening with a grain of salt and just assume that what is happening makes sense.

Gameplay
The gameplay is so ranged in difficulty that I swear somehow the settings got changed to easy at the end of the game. I'll start positively, you start off with your two pistols and whatever heavier gun you choose and depending on your difficulty setting the game plays like you would expect. The adrenaline meter and the action kills are a nice touch and make the gameplay more varied, which adds appeal. Two thirds of the way through though, you get Thors Hammer. Now you've become a wizard on steroids. The hammer will one hit kill any enemy you can target, and i mean target as in red reticule twenty feet away target, excluding the biggest baddies, which take three hits. Going from having to strafe and dodge while attacking to standing around swinging at the air took all the complexity and difficulty out of the fighting.

Puzzles
One of the biggest problems of the game for me because the puzzles are what so much of the game is based off of. Now I enjoy puzzles, I do. And the puzzles in this installment of Tomb Raider aren't simple in any regard and I enjoyed them, until I realized that I have to every single puzzle twice. Literally every puzzle in the game has two identical parts to it that you have to complete to get through the puzzle. I wouldn't mind a really drawn out, multi-part puzzle if the pieces weren't exactly the same each step of the way. Not really much else to say about it.

In the end, this latest installment in the Tomb Raider series had its strong points. But they were few and far between and obscured by the games utter failings. Like I said, die hard Tomb Raider fans enjoy. Everyone else, beware.

Not having played LEGEND (yet), I went from the Anniversary game straight to Underworld.. AND THE GRAPHICS ROCK!!! The new engine is definitely a plus. The cliff climbing section in Thailand will BLOW YOUR MIND! Stop on a ledge somewhere and just take a look all around!! AWESOME!

As far as game play goes, they have maxed out Laura's abilities and have given her some much needed moves (and she looks HOTTER then ever!!!). She can now fire her weapons while hanging from anything (and you're gonna need it), and have given her some need climbing and pole play abilities. I very much miss her Desert Eagles, but her grenades somewhat makeup for their absence.

As you have probably been reading, there are bugs in this version. For instance there are times where she will get 'stuck' in a place for no apparent reason. It will seem like her feet have been glued to the ground. Just wiggle the directional stick and tap a few buttons. She'll come loose. Also the camera angles are a PAIN!. It will mess with your head, and often cause you to miss-jump or jump the wrong direction (since the camera angle also determines perspective direction on the stick. Angle changes so does the direction on the stick). Eidos definitely needed to spend more time on the camera angles!!

The other (more critical) bugs involve sections of the game, in which doing something one way will trigger a bug which prevents you from completing the next level and finishing the game. So far, there are only 3 known bugs of this type in the console game (PC version got a patch). You can Google them for more specific information and how to get around or prevent them.

Over all, however, I give this game a 9++ on the Tomb Raider scale. If you're a fan of this game since the PlayStation era, then you MUST have this one in your collection. It will really show off your XBOX 360!!

Happy Hunting!

I'll try to keep this review short...If you like Tomb Raider or Prince of Persia style games I recommend this game. The level design is good and some of the puzzles are absolutely huge. The graphics have never looked better, especially in the enviroments. Lara herself looks good but she seems to be a bit more "cartoony" than her surroundings. The gameplay is what you would expect from the series but sometimes Lara dosn't quite do what you want her to do. You will die many times because she jumps at a diffrent angle than you planned. Its not game breaking but it needs to be polished more. The motorcycle returns and this time it is integrated into the game better than in legend. Overall it is a good game but does not evolve the series and I feel there is still quite a bit of room for improvment. I would like to see the artifacts and relics have a value so you can sell them to a shop or dealer to purchase upgrades for weapons and maybe a feature where you can trade them to a martial arts master to improve your fighting tecniques. Also it would be nice if the outfits gave you diffrent attributes like more health, expanded ammo ect. This would really give you the motivation to find or unlock everything. This game is good and worth playing it will last around 10-15 hrs depending on how determind you are to find the hidden items and it may be fun to go through a second time with the unlockable outfits or to complete the game in a "speedrun" or to find the remaining treasure/artifacts. But the replay is really based on what kind of gamer you are. I also wanted to mention that they got rid of the QTE's (quick time events) during cut scenes, I missed them being there and feel they should bring them back. I have always enjoyed tomb raider games but the series really needs to step it up in the next game to avoid becoming repetitive. I give it a 8 out of 10.

Welcome to Tomb Raider Underworld. This iteration of Tomb Raider ties up storylines in from the previous two titles following the reboot of the franchise, so it's highly recommended you pick up at least Tomb Raider: Legend if you want to be up to date on the story. In addition, there is no training level (usually Croft Manor) in this version, so if you're new to the series, take some time during the prologue and first level to adapt yourself with Lara's moves; players of Anniversary or Legend will find the controls nearly the same.

To obtain 1000 gamerscore, you can obtain it all in one playthrough by starting on the Master Survivalist difficulty. There are 2 level packs available as DLC, each adding 125 The combat isn't too difficult and there is no penalty for dying, so there's nothing to worry about. Upon completing the game, you unlock Treasure Hunter mode, which allows you to revisit locations and pick up any missed treasures or relics.

Overview:
- Estimated achievement difficulty: 4/10
- Offline achievements: 41 (1250 )
- Online achievements: 0
- Approximate time for 1000 : 7-10 hours (for 1000) + 1-2 hours (for 125 in Beneath The Ashes + 2-3 hours (for 125 in Lara's Shadow)
- Minimum number of playthroughs required for completion: 1
- Number of missable achievements: 6 (Master Swan Diver, Master Speed Demon, Grenadier, Master Grenadier, Weapons Expert, Master Weapons Expert)
- Glitched achievements: None

Excellent Product at a great item price. For generations, stories have been told of the fearsome weapon of Thor, the Norse god of thunder. Legend holds that Thor's hammer had the power to smash mountains into valleys and to destroy even the gods. For more than a thousand years it has existed only as a myth...until now.In an ancient ruin on the floor of the Mediterranean Sea, Lara Croft uncovers proof of the Norse underworld and the mythical hammer. As she attempts to unravel the secrets behind these myths, Lara's perilous journey leads her toward a forgotten power that, if unleashed, could lay waste to all civilization.