Tomb Raider
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UK sales charts, April 9-15: Croft unchallenged
The UK sales charts for last week are in, with Tomb Raider: Legend remaining calmly at the top. Movie tie-in Ice Age 2 has been boosted up to number two, but anyone avidly following the chart battle between Guitar Hero and Crazy Frog Racer will be disappointed to know that Guitar Hero has fallen to 35th while the Crazy Frog is ding-ding-dinging along at number 28, thanks to its budget price and better placement on the shelves. The ten bestselling games in the UK for the week ending April 15: 1. Tomb Raider Legend 2. Ice Age 2: The Meltdown 3. Fifa Street 2 4. The Godfather 5. Football Manager 2006 6. Animal Crossing: Wild World 7. Buzz! The Big Quiz 8. King Kong: The Official Game of the Movie 9. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter 10. Battlefield 2: Modern Combat
Lara Croft used to be a guy
In an interesting Guardian GamesBlog interview with Toby Gard, the artist who designed the look of Lara Croft, there's one point in particular that sticks out. In response to the question "How many designs did you scrap before Lara?" he answered that his "initial design was a guy in some tombs." Although artists often set out several different designs before they choose which one to go for, this decision was probably the most important career decision Toby ever made. Can you imagine a world without Lara, the most succesful video game heroine of all time?For all you cynical types -- the decision to "sex up" Lara wasn't made by Toby. In fact, he left Core over concerns that Lara's character was being reduced to cater to the lowest common denominator: although she was designed to look good, it was never supposed to be "about her boobs getting bigger."
Ad critic: Lara's booty too big to believe? [update 1]
As promised, this is the second weekly installment of a series of posts in which we invite you to rip ads apart after we rip them out of magazines. Pictured here, a two-page spread that appeared in the April 2006 issue of Electronic Gaming Monthly (click for a high-res image). There are actually several variations of this same ad in gaming magazines, but all of them feature Lara Croft's ample posterior, a bootylicious bundle of badonka-donk so large it serves as a friggin' grenade shelf. You might even say it's the bomb. At least that's the sort of salacious thinking that the ad invites. What do you think of the ad? Does it succeed? Will it sell games? What does "seeing is believing" mean, exactly? Is it really all about the ass? Sure, we know that game quality ultimately sells games, so let's avoid talking about the quality of the game itself. What we want to get at here is whether this ad succeeds or fails to interest you in purchasing a copy of this game. Gloves off! Go to! [Update 1: fixed a small typo that nobody else noticed, but that bugged the heck out of me.]
Metareview - Tomb Raider: Legend
Since Tomb Raider II, Lara Croft's adventures have been on a steady decline, almost to the point where reruns of Relic Hunter were a better use of time. The last entry was so weak, many thought Lara had raided her last tomb. This actually turned out to be the case at long-time developer Core Design. Enter Crystal Dynamics. Now it's time to forget about Angel of Darkness, the umpteenth Lara Croft model, the Guinness Book induction, and all the hype that has surrounded the rebirth of one of gaming's most famous franchises. Tomb Raider Legend is finally here, Lara is as irresistible as ever, and the game just might be worth the $40-60 you're about to shell out for it. IGN (82/100) on all versions: "Crystal D's fresh approach, erudite design and execution, and its focus on good controls, smart puzzles, and competent combat, do the trick. They've resurrected an icon and a legacy from its tumultuous past by making the best and most definitive Tomb Raider yet." TeamXbox (80/100) on the Xbox 360 version: "Lara looks mighty fine. Even on a non-HD television, the increased clarity of the bump mapping and lighting effects add to the entire Tomb Raider feel." 1UP (80/100) on all console versions: "Where Legend truly excels is in its sense of pacing. Gun battles are used as a sort of punctuation, bookends to the exploration and puzzle-solving at the core of the game. Legend's designers have an excellent sense of how a game should flow, and the result is an adventure that never becomes dull and rarely feels forced." GameSpot (78/100) on all console versions: "Legend looks great on each of the consoles, with convincingly dark and decrepit environments and plenty of detail and lighting effects. The controls are a lot more fluid and responsive than they have been in previous Tomb Raider games, which makes Lara movements feel much more natural than before." [via Metacritic]
Blingbox 360
Apparently the folks from Xbox's German division had some spare time on their hands — and some spare crystals! The gang decorated an Xbox 360 with thousands* of tiny crystals, paying a special homage to Tomb Raider's Lara Croft in the process. The unit is now valued at $11,000. Did we mention they're gonna give the thing away?*Gamerscore Blog cites two very different crystal counts: 43,000 and 3,000.
UK sales charts, April 3-8: Lara on top
Tomb Raider: Legend marks its UK release by soaring straight to the top of the charts; the other much-touted arrival on European shores, Guitar Hero, has a slightly less impressive debut at 28, just one place ahead of Crazy Frog Racer. The video game adaptation of Narnia is also a new member of the top ten, going straight in at number nine.The ten bestselling games in the UK for the week ending April 8:1. Tomb Raider: Legend2. The Godfather3. Fifa Street 24. Ice Age 2: The Meltdown5. Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter6. Animal Crossing: Wild World7. The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion8. Buzz! The Big Quiz9. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe10. Championship Manager 2006
Tomb Raider headlines weekly release lineup
Lara Croft is making her multiplatform comeback this week with Tomb Raider: Legend (PC, PS2, Xbox, and Xbox 360). Any GameCube owners feeling left out can look forward to the RTS pinball oddity, Odama. Here's the week's release breakdown:
Lara Croft lands in Guinness Book of World Records
A decade after Lara Croft took the video game industry by storm, she will be immortalized in the Guinness Book of World Records as the most successful video game heroine of all time (sorry, Princess Peach). Eidos' well-endowed, gun-toting femme fatale has come under fire over the years from anti-violence groups, women's rights organizations, and even animal activists. However, the Tomb Raider franchise has still managed to sell 28 million games, and has spawned a lucrative licensing industry valued at over $1 billion. Lara gets ready to take center stage again next week with the multi-platform release of Tomb Raider: Legend. Stay tuned for reviews.
Tomb Raider demo on XBLM; spend some quality time with Lara
Your friendly neighborhood tomb raider, Lara Croft, has decided to stop by the Xbox Live Marketplace and let everyone get a look at her latest adventure ... but just a peek. The demo for Tomb Raider: Legend is live now, weighing in around 640Mb. First impression: yup, it's Tomb Raider. [Thanks, [sinz] and Selucresh]
Tomb Raider: Legend, Pandemonium coming to mobile phones
Alongside the Tomb Raider: Legend content that should be appearing on the Xbox Live marketplace anytime soon, Eidos announced today that they're working on a 3D mobile phone version of Tomb Raider: Legend. Apparently the title will feature a new movement system and back to basics gameplay; a given considering the technological limitations of mobile phones. Eidos also announced a mobile phone version of Pandemonium: a platform adventure game where the lead character Nikki can shape-change from an invulnerable duck and cover turtle to a fire-blasting dragon. Both titles will be distributed via QUALCOMM's "BREW" solution which will apparently make it easy for gamers with 3G phones to download the game onto their handset.
Tomb Raider content on Xbox Marketplace
Eidos Interactive announced today the availability of exclusive Tomb Raider Legend content for Xbox 360 on Live Marketplace, including a playable demo of Legend, and Lara Croft dashboard themes and picture packs. While this initial content is free, it's not hard to imagine Eidos and other publishers following in the footsteps of Bethesda Softworks, who is already taking some heat for selling Oblivion "extras" through the Marketplace service. The most obvious bonus content for a Tomb Raider game would be alternate outfits for Lara, or maybe enhanced weaponry, and although this content isn't necessary to play the game, the "just gotta have it" factor can be as seductive to gamers as Lara herself. In the end, this is basically legalized goldfarming, where the publishers benefit instead of some shadowy operation, and the wealthiest gamers have the most fun. Whatever happened to earning unlockable content the old fashioned way -- through blisters, sweat, and tearful bottomless pits of death? Welcome to next gen gaming, indeed.
Lara models eveningwear in 43 new screenshots
WorthPlaying has been kind enough to post 43 new screenshots from Tomb Raider: Legend, mostly centered on Lara Croft cavorting about in a slinky black dress for an undoubtedly exciting evening shindig. And yes, we're as relieved as you are that she chose to ditch the pumps before leaping into action (to pump some lead into some fellow guests).
Eidos' comeback carried on Lara's shoulders
Lara Croft seems to be on the up; despite the declining quality and popularity of Tomb Raider titles, suddenly everyone's going mad for Tomb Raider: Legend. It looks to be the title that will make or break Eidos, and with hype-inducing tidbits released one at a time, so far it's looking good. Also, as Next Generation's interview with Eidos' Bob Lindsey reveals, the delay in releasing Legend may have a silver lining, as it ensures a captive audience during the low spring season. We'll see come April if their high hopes come true.
Lara Croft makes Forbes' Fictional 15 richest list
Forbes Magazine has put together a new feature on the 15 richest fictional characters. Lara Croft ranks 13th with fictional net assets of $1 billion. What? Those gravity-defying assets aren't real? And she's 37? What the heck is going on here? Those are not the only shockers unveiled. Forbes writer David Ewalt notes, "Experienced windfall this year by licensing name to endorse variety of products, from handguns to hot pants. Rumored to have fought, killed Bigfoot." Don't let Chuck Norris find out you're claiming to have killed Bigfoot, toots. Just some friendly advice.
A new voice for Lara?
Our favourite English gaming pinup may be getting a makeover--a verbal one, that is. Eidos have yet to reveal details on the voice acting for Tomb Raider: Legend, but Playstation Magazine has hinted that actress Rachel Weisz may be stepping up to the microphone.A British actress and Cambridge graduate who's made it to Hollywood, starring in blockbuster films such as The Mummy, Weisz may bring an extra spark of talent and believability to the character of Lara Croft. Given that SCi's Ian Livingstone is a fan of keeping things British, this is good news all round.[via Game Insider]
