IGN:Tomb Raider Legend Hands-on

作者 TombCrow, 2006 二月 08, 23:34:45

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TombCrow

We manhandle Lara Croft. Watch us make the moves in these new flicks.
by Douglass C. Perry

February 7, 2006 - I\'m just going to say it: Tomb Raider Legend is the first game since Tomb Raider 2 that\'s worth your time and money. Crystal Dynamics\' upcoming version of the famed action-adventure game, a series that helped forge PlayStation\'s fame in the late 1990s and pushed the first major female videogame character into the worldwide spotlight (no offense to Nintendo\'s great Samus, of course), really should be called Tomb Raider 3.



Crystal Dynamics, in place of the original development team Core Design, has fashioned an adventure game that targets the roots of the original. You\'ll encounter vast landscapes, a litany of ancient tombs, mystic creatures, and corrupt raiders. But instead of an RPG-like adventure in an empty city (Angel of Darkness), or a frustrating set of London puzzles (TR3), or a patchwork of slightly related missions (TR Chronicles), you\'ve got a coherent storyline, an athletic easy-to-move character, and focus on adventure, exploration, and lots of tomb raiding. Admittedly, it\'s difficult to shake off the old cynicisms about this once-tired series, but in a way, Tomb Raider: Legend is actually refreshing.

Smoking Hot 360 Lara
In today\'s demo we played the Xbox and PS2 versions and watched the Xbox 360 game. The 360 version is beautiful. The game is the same content on all platforms, so you won\'t play anything different on the Xbox than you will on Xbox 360. Although admittedly, the PSP version does offer mini-games and neat additions the others don\'t. But the Xbox 360 version is the high-end floor model. It\'s the showgirl. Lara\'s character features 24 MBs of textures alone and it contains 12 times the texture memory capable on the PS2. She\'s comprised of 20,000 polygons -- so her model is entirely re-done from the ground up on Xbox 360. And I have to say, this version of Lara Croft is sexy. For a character that lost her charm long ago, it\'s nice to see Ms. Croft looking so realistic in design, so carefully crafted, and as a result, so hot. This is the best looking version of Lara Croft you\'ve ever seen.

The game boasts all sorts of geeky techno lighting features that we love to believe we know about. It delivers realtime lighting on everything and highlights reatlime reflection on water surfaces as well as refraction from the watery surfaces beneath. It offers Normal Mapping, Specular Mapping, Diffuse Mapping, and special shaders. It\'s got Fernel Shaders (which we just learned about from Crystal Dynamics today), an effect that shows off lighting effects when a light is shown behind Lara and highlights her shoulders, hips and other edges. She even has self-shadowing, meaning that when a beam of sunlight shines across her arm, her arm will cast a realtime shadow across her body. And to top off the geek list of tech terms, the game delivers ambient occlusion: so that even when Lara is hiding in the shadows, the normal mapping still functions properly, showing off consistent highlights, shadows and skin and cloth surfaces.

The Xbox 360 is all powered up for the next generation. On every system the game features three difficulty levels, but on Xbox 360 you\'ll be rewarded with as many as 18-20 achievements. You\'ll earn some for beating the game on normal difficulty, while you\'ll earn others beating it on hard. Each time you beat a level, you\'ll have the chance to replay that same level (similar to the way you could replay King Kong) in a time trial. The game sets a specific time and you try to beat it. If you do in fact achieve or beat that time, you\'ll earn medals (bronze, silver, and gold) and achievement points. Tomb Raider: Legend is a single-player offline adventure, but it\'s Xbox Live aware, and so at any time that you\'re connected online, friends can see what you\'ve achieved and what progress you\'re making in realtime.

The Xbox 360 version also delivers 480p and 720p, widescreen and full Dolby 5.1 surround sound (it\'s widescreen on all versions). The PS2 version is very close in look to the Xbox version, which is to say it\'s good looking, with special lighting effects such as specular highlights used regularly; and the PC version will range in looks from the Xbox to the Xbox 360 version, depending on the graphics card and processors in that PC.

Return to Roots
In a sense, the original Tomb Raider was really a 3D version of Prince of Persia. Now that Prince of Persia has become this outstandingly animated action-adventure-platform game that defies any real genre, there is little to compare it to. Tomb Raider Legend doesn\'t try to be Prince of Persia. Instead it tries and succeeds in being a very good Tomb Raider. The most refreshing thing about it is Lara\'s controls. Whichever system you play it on -- PC, PS2, PSP, Xbox, or Xbox 360 -- the game frees Lara from the magnetic grid of yesteryear and provides a massive set of landscapes in which to climb, solve puzzles, and combat enemies.



The latest build puts to bed some of my fears, which sprung up due to the clunky demo that is about to hit retail stands. In that short demo, you\'ll find some very basic combat, which isn\'t the focus of the game. Combat always has been an area in need of improvement in Tomb Raider. But it\'s never been fixed. Even though I played the demo twice, I missed a bunch of hidden action moves in Lara\'s new repertoire. Her trademark twin pistols do make a comeback. She runs and strafes around enemies when you press the lock-on button, and she can certainly perform the classic side-ways strafe flip to boot. But the list gets better.

She\'s got a nifty slide attack. Run up to an enemy press B on Xbox (circle on PS2) and watch her slide into the shins of the assailant. This flips the enemy into the air, at which point you\'ll be able to whip out your guns and shred him to mincemeat in air. Hey, Lara can juggle. Nice. Lara also wields grenades. I came across a ransacked old town filled with about five enemies all slinging lead. I pressed the black button (shoulder on PS2) and hurled grenades. They went ka-boom. I like that. As I mentioned in the disc demo impressions, Crystal D prompts players with interactive environments by placing a face button symbol on objects like loose rocky cliffs, wooden posts, and explosive barrels.

Action options such as these break up very basic, and possibly boring, gunfights, and they also make enemy deaths a lot more pleasurable. I learned even more kick-ass new moves. Lara can jump onto her opponent, a chest-jump of sorts, which sets off a bullet-time chain reaction. This jump springboards Lara either off the enemy\'s chest, after which she slices her enemy to ribbons with bullets, or over his head to do the same. Bullet time has been used and abused in many a game, but this is sparingly implemented so it makes for great variety in combat. Lara can also reach out and gun-butt her enemy too, another little satisfying move. Oh, and that rappel line you\'ve heard about so often? It too comes in handy during a fight. Players can aim it at an enemy, grapple him, reel him in, and then beat the culprit to a pulp. The new combat and melee moves aren\'t going take this game into God of War or Dead or Alive 4 territory; they\'re not that sophisticated. But they complement a familiar set of moves well, and most importantly, they\'re fun.

Finally...
Now, if you think that I\'ve overstated my initial statement (\"Tomb Raider Legend is the first game since Tomb Raider 2 that\'s worth your time and money.\"), it\'s OK to disagree. After all, it\'s taken nine years and six games for the series to make any real valid improvements. But I\'m both a fan and a critic of the series, and while I want it to be good, I\'m wary of the natural pitfalls (pun intended) it faces. Also, the statement needs to be put into context: It\'s the year 2006 and a more than dozen games have put the series in a kind of time shell. Tomb Raider Legend is the first real step out of 1997 and it\'s a welcome one.

What about the story, vehicles, additional character, and the d**ned nude code? Ah, all in good time, game fans. We\'re not done with Lara yet -- check back for more media, a video interview, and special features on Tomb Raider: Legend soon.

yew


yew

IGN:《古墓丽影:传奇》亲体验

道格拉斯·C·皮利

06年2月7日——我只想说:《古墓丽影:传奇》是自《古墓丽影 2》以来又一款值得你去花精力和金钱的游戏。晶体动力即将问世的著名动作-

冒险游戏,一个自90年代晚期帮助PS巩固了声誉并推动视频游戏史上第一个重要的女明星笼罩在世界的聚光灯下(当然,任天堂的Samus也很了

不得)的游戏的又一续集,真应该叫做《古墓丽影 3》。

晶体动力,取代Core工作室,并修改了这个冒险游戏使之更接近原作的精髓。迎接你的将是宏大的景观,数不清的古墓,奇异的生物,以及坏

透了的袭击者。不再有类RPG型的空城历险(《黑暗天使》),或是令人沮丧的伦敦地下铁(《古墓丽影 3》),或是一些关联甚微的任务的简

单拼凑(《古墓丽影之历代记》),你得到的是一个连贯的剧情,一个身手佼健的主角,一个关注于冒险,猎奇,以及诸多墓室内的战斗。不

可否认,要消除对于这些稍纵即逝的失败尝试的挖苦与讽刺是一件相当艰难的过程,但是在某种程度上,《古墓丽影: 传奇》已经做到了。

豪华的360版劳拉
我们试玩了Xbox和PS2版并观看了Xbox 360版的演示。360版相当精美。游戏内容与其它平台的版本并无二致,因此你不用担心它们之间有任何

的不同。当然,PSP版提额外供了其它版本所没有的迷你游戏和独立的赠品。Xbox 360版本是高端的典范。仅劳拉这个角色就赋予了24兆的材质

,12倍于PS2上的材质体积(译者注:PS2的图像处理器内存已硬性规格为4MB)。劳拉由多达20,000多边形组成——因此Xbox 360的她是整个

地另起炉灶。我不得不说,该版本的劳拉·克劳馥特相当性感。对于这个已经褪去魅力很久的明星而言,我们很欣喜地发现克劳馥特小姐的容

貌在设计上是如此真实,如此的细致,表现出的效果是如此的吸引人。这绝对是你见过的最好看的劳拉·克劳馥特。

游戏以使用了许多我们所熟悉的超炫光影技术而自豪。这些技术分为实时的物体光照效果和水面的高光实时反射以及水面下的光折射。技术提

供了普通纹理映射,镜面纹理映射,扩散纹理映射,以及特殊阴影。其中用到了Fernel阴影(我们今天才从晶体动力得知),这是一种当光源

处在劳拉身后的位置时,突出她的肩膀,臀部以及其它边缘棱角光线的光照效果。她甚至还有自投射阴影,这就是说当一束阳光照耀在她的手

臂,她的手臂就会投射实时的穿越她的身体的阴影。更锦上添花的是,游戏还考虑了周围环境对光线的吸收效果:因此即使劳拉躲在阴影里,

普通纹理映射依然正常起作用,呈现合理的高光,阴影,皮肤以及服饰表面。

Xbox 360是用次世代技术武装起来的。游戏的每一个版本都分为3个难度,但是在Xbox 360版你会奖励多达18到20个游戏点数。你可以以普通难

度挑战游戏来赚取它,你也可以挑战更难的模式来赚取。每一次挑战成功,你就有机会以限时的方式重新再玩一遍关卡(如同游戏《金刚》)

。游戏设置了限定时间供你挑战。 如果你能挑战成功,你就会获得奖牌(金,银,铜)和游戏点数。《古墓丽影:传奇》是单人单机版冒险游

戏,但是有了Xbox Live,任何时候只要你联机,你的好友能够实时看到你的进度。

Xbox 360版也分为480P和720P两种显示格式,宽屏幕加杜比5.1环绕立体声(所有版本都是宽屏幕的)。PS2版画面很接近Xbox版,亦即画面不

错,也有特殊的灯光效果如反射高光; PC版将介于Xbox和Xbox 360版之间,这取决于PC机的显卡和中央处理器的性能。

回归本源
从某种意义上讲,初代《古墓丽影》就是一个《波斯王子》的3D版。既然《波斯王子》已经成为杰出的,反对添加任何现实成分的动作-冒险平

台游戏,再拿《古墓丽影》与之做对比是不合适的。《古墓丽影:传奇》并不是努力去变成《波斯王子》。事实上所有的努力和成就诣在打造

一个非常棒的《古墓丽影》。变化最大的就是劳拉的控制系统。无论是在哪种平台上——PC,PS2,PSP,Xbox或是Xbox 360——游戏将劳拉从

昨日的有磁性的格子世界中解放出来并置身于庞大的景观,解迷,以及激战中。


最近的进度消除了我的部分担忧,其依据就是这个即将在上市前突然出现的重量级demo。在这个短小的demo里,你会看到一些非常基本的战斗

,这并非是游戏的重点。战斗一直是《古墓丽影》需要提高的方面。但是从来没有彻底改进过。 即便我试玩了两遍,有些隐藏动作还是没有玩

出来。她那标志性的双枪又再度回归。按住瞄准键,劳拉一边跑一边向周围敌人扫射。她会做出经典的侧身跳扫射,但是动作要好看得多。

她还会漂亮的倒地攻击。助跑接近敌人按Xbox手柄B键(PS2手柄对应按键○)然后看着她使扫堂腿(译注,原文描述应该是这样的情形——"

劳拉跑向敌人,快接近时倒地同时踢敌人的小腿,敌人会失去重心而不由自主地翻个跟头"。好酷,就是不晓得用中文该如何说,TombCrow快

为这个动作命名^-^)。敌人会失去重心,此时你再抽出枪将他凌空撒得粉碎。哈,劳拉也会耍酷。赞一个。劳拉也会扔手雷。我有一次在一

座消凋的旧城遭遇大约5个全副武装的敌人。按黑键(PS2手柄对应L或R键)扔手榴弹。他们就灰飞烟灭了。我喜欢这种方式。我还注意到,晶

体动力专门为可互动的道具比如摇摇欲坠的悬崖大石头,木制神龛,以及火药桶等设置了一个人脸符号用以提示玩家。

这些动作的组合是相当基础的,而且时间长了可能会乏味,至于枪战,充其量是让敌人死得更体面些。我"二踢脚"这种新动作更感兴趣。劳

拉面对敌人跳起,借敌人的胸口做第二跳,同时引发子弹时间。待劳拉跃过敌人头顶或是脱离与敌人的身体接触时,再把敌人打成筛子。子弹

时间已经并且被许多游戏所滥用,但是在这里使用的非常保守,仅仅作为增加战斗多样性的一种补充。劳拉还可以用枪揍晕敌人,这又是一个

不错的招数。对了,是不是觉得最近"套马索"这个词出现得很频繁?这应该缘于劳拉的徒手格斗。玩家只要对准任何一个敌人,套住他,裹

起来,然后就可以将他揍成肉饼。新的格斗和动作招数并非是刻意追求《战神》或是《生与死4》的动作风格,新花样没有那样复杂花俏,但是

它们为那些已被我们所熟悉的动作增添了新鲜感,最重要的是,它们很有趣。

结束语。。。
好吧,也许读者会认为相比我最初的评价已经言过其实了("《古墓丽影:传奇》是自《古墓丽影 2》以来又一款值得你去花精力和金钱的游

戏。"),OK,随便吧。毕竟,这是花了9个年头,6部作品才换来的如此实在而又积极的改进。我既是一个古墓粉丝又是一个古墓派评论家,

我衷心地希望有个良好的结果。并且,成绩是要凭事实来说话的:06年将有超过1打的游戏轮番上阵。《古墓丽影:传奇》将是《古墓丽影》自

1997来第一次切实的,受欢迎的进步。

至于游戏的剧情,交通工具,新增角色,还有属性编辑器究竟详情如何? 耐心是种美德。在游戏还未上货架之前——请关注更多的媒体,视频

访谈,以及《古墓丽影:传奇》的特别报道。  

yew

此文信息相当丰富,不愧为"亲体验",作者不烦其烦地将LARA的战斗技全盘托出,另外对画质分析也很深入。好了,太晚了,要睡觉了。

TombCrow


rainbow