Lara Croft: Tomb Raider - The Angel of Darkness

The Good
There is lot of disparity between critics and user reviews for TR6. I noticed that disparity on Moby but also on Metacritic. Users give this game way higher score than critics. How's that? IMO, critics reviewed the game mostly from day 1 when it was probably plagued with bugs, users mostly played the game some time after release, when most of bugs were ironed out. Critics waited for series restart a la TR1 again, users probably more likely considered the game in its own merits.

Now to positives:

= graphics: significant step-up from previous game and even if not top-notch graphics is ok for its time (2003).

= story: one of the strongest points of this title is story and "memorability". I recall the game after years (I played it in 2012), which can't be much said about other Lara titles. This is because other titles were just focused on exploring and action, then some lame cutscene and then again exploring and action. No interactivity. Here, you talk to other characters, go between various places, which you must visit to move story forward, so apart from some action and exploring you have a small feel of "adventure" game. In result, after years, I have this title written in my memory better than other Lara titles.

The Bad
I really can't recall some bad points. I was able to beat the game and I can't recall some big troubles. Probably there were some bugs here and there, but nothing critical. But again I must stress, that I played the game with latest patches. People who played the game freshly released probably have much worse experience, I guess.

The Bottom Line
TR6 is underdog of whole serie. It has lowest general score between critics, but I reckon, this game is not worst IMO. I played all Lara major titles (except last two "ROTR" and "SOTR" which I already bought and I have them in my playlist) and there are games which I almost totally forgot. From TR2 I recall just a bit, from TR5 I recall just some bug which made game unbeatable (I had to go to earlier save), from Legend I vaguely recall some house, fire and island and nothing else (despite the fact that game was highly praised), from Underworld I don't recall anything at all. TR6 I recall after years. In retrospective, TR6 deserve much higher score than it has on critics aggregate sites.

The Good
EVERYTHING!!!!! Of course the environments are incredible, the sound is stellar, the movement is PRECISE, saving at any moment is extremely helpfull, and lara has never looked so good. Everything about this game is CRISPY!!! Any of you crackheads that can't seem to get a handle on the movement should stick to TETRIS or something that requires minimal "touch". If you are a true fan of Tomb Raider you should appreciate how far this game has come. Maybe you need a reminder?, by sticking in the first one and comparing. I can't seem to put this game down once I dive into it night after night.

The Bad
There are very few slow downs that I have come across and I can't find anything that I don't like. Instead of being impatient with the controls just chill out and take your time, this game needs to be savoured for the greatness involved.

The Bottom Line
If you like quick, dull games STAY AWAY!! This game rips!! I have not once regretted shelling out the $65.

The Good
By the end of The Last Revelation, Croft was merely left for rubble, and in Chronicles, just a slew of memories. Thus, Murti Schofield was hired by Core Design to rewrite the series for a new generation. The result was Angel of Darkness, in which Schofield opted for a Gothic renovation of Tomb Raider inspired by both noir and Legacy of Kain: Blood Omen developed by Silicon Knights. The orchestrated score featured in Angel of Darkness sounds phenomenal, and was composed by Peter Connelly and Martin Iveson, and performed by The London Symphony Orchestra.

The Bad
Once Crystal Dynamics took over the franchise they would not continue with Schofield’s proposed sequel entitled The Lost Dominion. Sneaking around the Louvre like Solid Snake was a change of character for Lara Croft. Additionally, maneuvering Lara was made even more awkward with broken mechanics that were rarely reminiscent of the original Tomb Raider. Eventually, the player would discover the Tomb of Ancients beneath The Louvre. However, much of the game was spent conversing with characters in a Parisian Ghetto via dialogue trees straight out of Funcom’s The Longest Journey.

The Bottom Line
Due to the commercial failure of Angel of Darkness, Schofield literally burned the game’s manuscript, which inevitably prompted Crystal Dynamics to reboot Tomb Raider. To make up for Schofield’s proposed sequel, Eidos shoehorned novel adaptions such as The Amulet of Power by Mike Resnick, and two other novels that are loosely tied with Angel of Darkness. Despite the interesting direction and presentation, Angel of Darkness did not live up to its hype.