Tomb Raider: Underworld (PC) Preview

Posted by Chris Vicari on 11.03.2008

Hands on: In a world where pony tails have physics and girls need adrenaline to pull off headshots, Lara Croft reigns supreme.



Lara Croft, who tops the nerd's most wanted list, is back for another go of climbing, shooting, flexing, butt-shots, moans, grunts...oh sorry got a little off track there. I recently had the chance of playing the demo for Tomb Raider: Underworld and my feelings are a mixed bag. On one hand, I was very impressed with the visuals and effects, but on the other I couldn't help but notice how little Lara has changed since her Playstation debut all those years ago.

In this episode, as far as I could surmise from playing the demo, Lara is on a mission to locate Thor's hammer, an artifact from the Vikings. Lara is off the coast of Thailand and she must make her way into the jungle and find the ruins to an old city. Sound familiar? Lara, per usual behavior, leaps, climbs and shoots her way to her final destination and the demo ends right before the plunge, as they often do.

What did I enjoy most out of this demo? Climbing to a high altitude, jumping off, and watching Lara plummet to her death. I honestly spent most of my time cooking up ways to end her career more than anything else. I tried timing it so her hot bod would cascade off the side of a roof making the inevitable thud all the more fulfilling. I think I have problems. As for the rest of the game, it's typical Tomb Raider fare. Several new additions have been added to the latest installment such as Lara learning Kung Fu, the ability to use a grappling hook, and the wherewithal to fire at two different targets simultaneously. Think Equilibrium, minus the sense-offenders.

So far, I've encountered two problems which really jar me: Off-kilter controls and a dodgy camera. Here's an example of Underworld's screwed-up control scheme; Let's say for instance you find a target worth shooting at and you earned enough adrenaline, which is simply gained by shooting stuff, to pull off a headshot. You now have to hold G to lock onto your target, even though stuff is automatically locked onto anyway, and then press Z while running, dodging and shooting. Needless to say, I didn't have enough fingers to do the job and I had to stop moving and get chomped by a tiger before I could perform the dashing feat. Ironically, the tiger survived. While you can re-map key bindings, my opinion still remains that the defaults are freakin' weird. As for the camera, well that's a different story entirely.



When I'm in the mood to enjoy a nice pair of fun bags and a firm posterior, which is most of the time, I'd rather they be on a real person. Underworld takes the initiative and assumes I've sought after Ms. Croft since I played "You show me yours, I show you mine" by taking every ample opportunity possible to put Lara in some sexually awkward position. I kid you not, when Lara scales a wall, she looks like she's having sex with it. In tight positions, which is not a reference to anything whatsoever, the camera acts up a little as well and zooms in so close to Lara, you feel like you're watching a flick through a gyroscope, and you haven't a clue as to what's going on. There are certain camera angles where the game casually "allows" you to look down the front of Lara's shirt, but these opportunities are best avoided lest you wish to further the symptoms of a potentially acute social disorder.

Nonetheless, I had fun with Lara and if you're a current fan, then I'm sure you'll enjoy your time in Underworld when it comes out. Which sounds really weird, actually. I hope she calls me back.

Stay tuned for 411mania's full review of Tomb Raider: Underworld upon its release on November 18.