Shadow of the Tomb Raider has been unveiled to the world, giving us our first glimpse at what Lara’s subsequent journey brings by way of new adventures, mechanics, and concepts. This new iteration of Crystal Dynamics’ set-piece system doesn’t seem to reinvent the sequence in fairly the identical was as Rise of the Tomb Raider did with its hub world, however the brand new setting guarantees a group of nice enhancements that may bolster Lara’s darker, extra predatory section.
Take a deeper take a look at Lara’s first steps into Central America with our Shadow of the Tomb Raider hands-on.
The jungle
Lara has all the time had a supporting forged within the likes of Jonah and Sam, however Shadow of the Tomb Raider’s secondary character is, in response to Eidos Montreal, the jungle. The Central American setting locations Lara amongst dense, unique fauna, and it appears like the sport enables you to profit from it.
The vines and undergrowth can be utilized to hide Lara from sight. Lean in opposition to a floor and he or she’ll conceal among the many leaves, permitting for stealth takedowns that wouldn’t be misplaced in Metal Gear Solid. Gameplay footage proven on the press reveal occasion additionally revealed that tree branches can be utilized to string up enemies with the grappling hook, suggesting that Lara is studying a number of predatory classes from the Batman Arkham video games.
We anticipate there to be a number of extra strategies of constructing use of this surroundings, and for it to spring a number of surprises of its personal upon us, too. Some of these surprises could even be on the endangered species record…
Underwater depths
The historical Mayan civilisation used to make use of cenotes – a pure sinkhole stuffed with water – for sacrificial choices. With Lara descending her means right into a plethora of Mayan buildings, there can be a number of events by which she’ll must take a deep breath and discover the depths of those caves. While Tomb Raider has compelled Lara’s head underwater earlier than, that is the primary time that the brand new sequence has featured full underwater exploration.
While not a elaborate new addition to the style, the specter of deep water provides a contemporary degree of hazard. Finding pockets of air turns into a continuing, panicked intention, and when surfacing the digital camera holds shut on Lara’s face, emphasising the desperation of refilling her lungs. It provides texture to the set-pieces, and managing Lara’s capability to remain submerged will little question come into play throughout some tomb puzzles.
Mayan gods, civilisation, and sacrifice
After tackling Japanese and Byzantine evils, Lara is that this time contending with the Mayans. Their chunky pyramids are among the many most iconic relics on the earth, and so it was solely a matter of time till Lara arrived within the jungles of Central America to hunt them down.
The introduction to Shadow of the Tomb Raider appears to recommend that the journey will revolve round Chac Chel, the Mayan goddess of destruction, and Ix Chel, the moon goddess. Together they type a pair, with the Mayan tradition putting emphasis on duality. As such, objects that symbolize them shouldn’t be seperated. It could be a catastrophic concept, then, for Lara to take a Mayan dagger from its resting place in a tomb with out checking for a second piece beforehand. Luckily for anybody hoping for an end-of-the-world plot, that is precisely what Lara does.
With the apocalypse fairly actually raining down, Lara will discover additional Mayan ruins, temples, and tombs. Our hands-on solely demonstrated a really small space that was virtually totally remoted, however the gameplay trailer provided glimpses at Mayan tribes and sacrifices. There was additionally a second glimpsed of Lara wearing Mayan clothes, operating away as a wood construction collapsed round her. Perhaps this time Lara will be capable to disguise herself and mix in with enemies to help along with her new stealth method?
A darker, extra hardened Lara
The world round Lara has definitely modified since her earlier outing, with the jungle setting providing a number of new methods for her to climb, combat, and discover. But Lara herself has modified, too. From the opening moments of the hands-on demo, it’s apparent that she’s a really totally different particular person to who we left behind on the finish of Rise of the Tomb Raider. This time she’s extra ruthless, single-minded, and hell-bent on conserving two steps forward of Trinity.
But that mindset has its drawbacks. Sacrificing her regular head leads Lara down a harmful path, and there are specific to be penalties to her recklessness. As such, Shadow of the Tomb Raider is certain to be a extra complicated, introspective take a look at themes of obsession, drive, and what it means to be a saviour. By holding Lara’s actions below a microscope and analysing their repercussions, we’re prone to see her realise the errors of her present heading, and discover her means again to a extra assured place. Only then can she change into the Tomb Raider that this whole journey has been a journey in direction of.
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