Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary

Developers: Crystal Dynamics, Buzz Monkey Software
Publisher: Eidos Interactive
Release Date: June 5, 2007
Systems: PC (reviewed), PS2, PSP

In a nutshell: Has it really been ten years since we first jumped around and shot at things in caverns?

0:01 Lara looks less... pointy than she did ten years back. Less robotic too.
0:03 "How quickly can you get to Peru" Rather quickly I'd guess. The writing is pretty good, but the female characters are distractingly stacked and anorexic.
0:04 I'm using an Xbox 360 controller, so why does the game tell me the controls for the keyboard?
0:07 The guide says six different things in Spanish before repeating. Impressive.
0:09 Lara just shot a bunch of wolves in a cut scene. Isn't that something I could have done?
0:10 Here's some shooting, but it's bats? Where's the wolves?
0:12 Is it wrong of me to notice that Lara sounds a lot like Link from Ocarina of Time when she jumps? I think it is.
0:14 There's the wolves. Ouch! Die, damn wolves.
0:17 Less than twenty minutes in and I'm already stuck when a bridge collapses out from under me. Great.
0:18 Hitting the roll button after a jump makes Lara do a Supergirl-style leap. Sweet!
0:21 Two minutes of wandering later I figure out you can climb the collapsed bridge. I'm a freakin' idiot.
0:22 BROWN BEAR! A good reason not to fall from the rope.
0:23 Breaking your neck. Another good reason not to fall from the rope
0:24 A large Medipack... a good reason NOT to fall from the rope.
0:25 I love how lonely everything feels. It's like I'm really raiding a tomb! I imagine.
0:27 "Open Lara's Journal to hear her thoughts on this situation." OK *open* "There must be a way to open this door." GEE THANKS LARA THAT WAS SO HELPFUL!
0:29 Supergirl jumps are the only way to travel. Every game should have them.
0:31 I open a door and the "Mountain Caves" end abruptly.
0:32 BROWN BEAR AGAIN. Lucky I'm in the Matrix and can activate Bullet Ti-- Er, I mean the "Adrenaline Dodge"
0:34 When I shoot a wolf it runs directly into a wall. Now that's a smart wolf.
0:36 While fighting a Brown Bear I get stuck in a pool and can't figure out how to get out. I drown twice trying to figure out how to get out. Great.
0:42 I finally figure out how to get out of the pool, by going through an underwater tunnel. Again, I'm a freaking idiot.
0:43 Lara's clothes stick to her when she gets wet. If I believed in hell, I'd think I was going there for noticing this.
0:44 Shotgun ammo... you know what that means!
0:45 Standing not one foot from the keyhole, I select the key from my inventory. Lara gives a curt "No!" in response. I keep hitting the button, making a little beatbox rap out of it. "N-n--nnn-n-nuh-no!"
0:47 The music flourish for the wolf battles sounds just like the main theme from Metal Gear Solid.
0:48 I can't imagine playing this with a keyboard would be much fun at all.
0:51 Two quick deaths from errant steps. *Sign*
0:58 Level two ends just as abruptly as level one, except this time there's a pretty waterfall in the background.

Would I play this game for more than an hour: Yes
Why?: Gotta find that inevitable shotgun. Also: Supergirl jumps!

This review is based on the full game downloaded from GameTap