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Dom Robinson reviews
Eidos Interactive Limited
- Windows 95/98
- Pentium PC 166 Mhz (200 Mhz recommended)
- 16Mb RAM (32Mb RAM rec.)
- Quad-speed CD-ROM Drive
- DirectX 6.0 (included on CD)
- Supports most major 3D acceleration graphics cards and compatible soundcards through DirectX 6.0
Tomb Raider III: The Lost Artefactis the third in the successfulseries of games from Core Design. This time round, our storybegins millions of years ago when a meteor foresaw the damage done in theHollywood films, Deep Impact and Armageddon, and turned the thenwarm climes of Antarctica into a place that’s colder than a pensioner’s housein winter.
In the impressive FMV opener, we see that nowadays the site is being excavatedby research company “RX Tech”, who are picking up unusual readings from themeteorite’s impact zone. In this zone they uncover the body of a sailor fromCharles Darwin’s voyage on The Beagle. A few of the sailors had, it seems,briefly explored the crater’s interior…
After reading the sailor’s journal it turns out that this isn’t the only placethat sailors had travelled to and died in…
One of these places in India – where Lara is currently searching for thelegendary Infada artefact. Unaware of its true history, she only knows that inlocal beliefs it was supposed to hold great powers and has been revered bytribes there throughout the years.
Soon she will discover much more…
…and so will you too since The Lost Artefact includes 5 brand newlevels that provide a continuation of Laras adventures in Tomb Raider III.
After receiving a strange invitation to a Scottish estate, Lara now learnsof the existence of a fifth. Lost for many years, this final piece willcomplete the set. A hazardous trail riddled with traps and enemies takes herfrom a Scottish castles subterranean laboratory to the Paris Catacombs. Beready for anything and prepare to be amazed!
Anyone who has played either of the other Tomb Raider games willknow what to expect and for those not in the know, check out my review ofthe second gameand thefourth gameand if you’ve never heard of Lara Croft, then you’re either dead or lying.
Actions
My review of Tomb Raider IIstated the additional moves allowed in that game, and what follows is a summaryof the new moves for game No.3.
Moving
Sprinting is now a possibility. Need a quick burst of energy? Don’thave another doughnut, just press the Sprint key. A small energy bar willappear and when that bar depletes Lara will revert back to a run.
Other actions
Lara is now able to Duck and Crawl by pressing the crawl key and holdingthat down whilst using the cursor keys. If Lara is not able to stand up, thenholding this key down is not necessary, but when she is able to stretch herpixelated legs, she will resume her erect position.
Monkey is not only the name of a highly-popular Japanese TV show from the1980s, but is also one-half of the phrase Monkey Swing and if Laradiscovers an overhead frame she may decide to “Monkey Swing” across it.To perform this, press the Jump key and then Action to jump and then cling ontothe frame. Keep the Action key held down whilst pressing the cursor keys tomove Lara in your chosen direction.
Pressing the Left and Right cursor keys will cause Lara to rotate, whilereleasing the Action key will drop Lara like a stone.
And one other thing…
Unlike the first two games, after completing the India levels, you will bepresented with an Area Selection screen, allowing you to choose which one ofthe three remaining areas to visit first: London, South Pacific or Area 51.
You can choose each of these in any order and upon completion, you shall finishup in Antarctica for the final leg of your journey.
Hints and Tips
Contrary to popular belief, there never was a “Nude Lara” cheat for the firstgame despite many magazines printing the supposed codes for it.
Level Skip Code :
While in a level do the following with Lara :
Take out your pistols (number 1 key). Then, walk one step backwards, thenone step forwards, turn around 3 full times (doesn’t matter which direction),squat then release button and then do a Forward jump.
All Ammo And Items Code :
While in a level do the following with Lara :
Take out your pistols (number 1 key). Then, walk one step backwards, thenone step forwards, turn around 3 full times (doesn’t matter which direction),squat then release button and then do a Backward jump.
Lara Bug?
It appears there is a bug in the game that will cause corruption of the mapdata. Standing on a certain tile in a certain room and saving the game willcause invisible walls to come up and prevent the player from completing thelevel. Core have released a patch which will rectify the problem on the PC, butthere is no such solution for the Playstation version.
In “Temple Ruins”, if you save your game in the room with the statue (at thebottom of the slope) and then go back into that room later in the game, despitethe fact that you don’t need to, then you won’t be able to go through doorsthat have already been opened, thus you won’t be able to complete the level.The solution is not to save the game in that room and never to return to it.
The patch will also fix problems that some PC owners (not including me) mayhave had with the sound, even though it affects the AWE 64 sound card (which Ihave). Core used compression sound in the game instead of the audio CD tracksused in the first two games.
Graphics, Sound and Playability
As in the first two games, the fluidity and movement of the graphics engine isunsurpassable. Crisp, fast and smooth graphics is what’s on show here andanyone used to this will know what to expect… but things haven’t changedfor Lara in a long time so I’d like to see some improvements made.
The sound effects and music match this too. From the music on the startscreen, to the special effects and music which shout out at you during the game,everything is very good indeed, but still the same.
The playability is as spot-on as the first game. The controls allow Lara to movesimply around the environment be it simply running, or running along up to aledge, performing a forward roll and then pressing Action to hold onto the ledgebefore swinging forward to clear certain items. Sounds like a complicatedmanoeuvre, but it could be the sort of movement you’ll need to perform manya time.
Overall
Three games on and the cult of Lara Croft continues. When Lara was portrayedin the media by model-turned-Pepsi Chart Show presenter RhonaMitra, Ms. Mitra was due to release a single early last year in the UKcalled Raiders. It never materialised in this country, but France wereallowed to hear her dulcet tones on an album entitled Come Alive whichwas more like an extended 12″ single, since most of the tracks are remixes,but on the plus-side, it was produced by Dave Stewart.
Afterwards, came Man-O-Man chicken-skinned-bimbo-turned-modelNell McAndrew (real first name: Tracey). It was when she appeared nakedand bald that she came to the fore, but I really wished she’d been left at the”three” as she turned out as appealing as Sinead O’Connor’s lesbian sister.
The model on the right, though, is current Lara, Lara Weller, althoughthe film version will be portrayed by Angelina Jolie.
About the game though, we all know what the game is like. This version reviewedhere is a budget re-release with five new levels. However, why can’t I playthese extra new levels from the off without going through the first levelagain?
SOUND EFFECTS AND MUSIC
PLAYABILITY
ORIGINALITY
ENJOYMENT
OVERALL
If you’re after some more info on Eidos Interactive’s games, you can checkout their official Website atwww.eidosinteractive.com orthe
Review copyright © Dominic Robinson, 2000.
Reviewer of movies, videogames and music since 1994. Aortic valve operation survivor from the same year. Running DVDfever.co.uk since 2000. Nobel Peace Prize winner 2021.