Gamescom 2018: Shadow of the Tomb Raider makes Lara's quest more exciting

Shadow of the Tomb Raider is the third game in the rebooted series, developed by the Deus Ex team Edios Montreal, instead of Crystal Dynamics. I got to play 2 demos at Nvidia GeForce Celebration, and was left satisfied, but unimpressed at the same time. Primarily because of how similar the game looks and plays to the previous game Rise of the Tomb Raider. But that also means that it will be a solid experience for both fans and newcomers.

In the first demo, Lara is, as always, on the hunt of an artefact and must navigate through caves, jump on platforms and solve puzzles to get to it. It seemed like the tutorial area of the game and the beginning of the story. I was using the trusted bow, attaching and detaching ropes to get through. The puzzles were light but fun. I did manage to somehow break the game by jumping on top of a platform and falling through it, but that’s extremely normal for games under development. After the platforming sequences, Lara finds the dagger and is quickly stormed by enemies. Here, it showcased all of the stealth mechanics. There are bushes everywhere for you to hide, and you can even take advantage of grass that is attached to the walls, allowing you to navigate the level without being spotted. But I managed to get a few stealth kills before being spotted, at which point I had to go all out. There was a small set-piece at the end right before the demo got over. I was happy to see the action as it looked and played well, but disappointed that they did not take this opportunity to showcase exciting new features.

In the second demo, I was thrown into a puzzle room of sorts, where I had to climb to the top of a structure and navigate all of the traps before reaching my goal. It was a complex level, and although you were following a linear path, I was impressed by the detail present in its design. In this area, there was no combat, just platforming and puzzles. In several cases, you were required to time your jumps and double jumps, because the rotating spikes would instantly kill her. It was also extremely easy to fall to your death or get lost, as I managed to somewhere go backwards in the level. But that goes to show how complex the new area was, and I hope the main game is filled with more of such rooms.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider may not be the most exciting game coming in the second half of this year, but that doesn’t mean it won’t be a great game. Hopefully, the final game can showcase how they are implanting new features or enhancing old ones, but the blueprint is solid enough to be worth your time.

By: Parth Bagaria

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