Lara Croft is back in Tomb Raider 2, and she’s ready to explore, using new weapons and moves and solving new puzzles. Lara races against three competitors to find the Dagger of Xian, an artifact hidden within the Great Wall of China. Legend has it, whoever drives the dagger into his or her own heart will receive the power of the dragon. Tomb Raider 2 sends Lara to Tibet, Venice, and more exotic locations in search of the doors to the emperor’s palace, the home of the dagger.
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Review: Tomb Raider 2 (PS1)
I recall Resident Evil 2 and Tomb Raider 2 being released at similar times and the former outselling its rival substantially. A sequel to the excellent Tomb Raider was inevitable and with a large world for Lara Croft to explore there was plenty of scope for further adventures. Looking back, is this sequel better than the original?
The story begins with the background to the Dagger of Xian that is stolen by an evil Emperor who plunges it into his heart, turns into a dragon and leads his army into battle. Warrior monks manage to defeat the Emperor, removing the dagger from his heart, before returning it to its home within the Great Wall of China. In the present day Lara comes in search of the Dagger but she soon finds she has a rival, Marco Bartoli, hoping to defeat her in the race.
This sequel is somewhat different to the original in that there are many levels that don’t really involve raiding tombs as such. Beginning in China, Lara heads for beautiful Venice, before moving onto an oil rig, heading to the bottom of the sea where a sunken ship is being excavated, onto Tibet and finally to China. The variety of settings are fantastic and you’ll come under some heavy fire from Bartoli’s men in the majority of places you explore. When Bartoli’s men are not around there’s usually some other danger waiting to trip you up.
The format is very similar to the original. Lara has her trusty pistols for company but can gather a variety of different weapons to make fights much more straightforward. This game is slightly more difficult than the first one and the bonus of a save anytime, anywhere feature certainly makes this a more friendly experience. I found some of the underwater sections tricky, especially the races against time to reach the surface for air. Driving a boat around Venice is memorable and a snow jet through the mountains of Tibet is cool, especially when you can run your enemies through with it. Finally, the last couple of levels are especially memorable with the penultimate one before the final boss just bizarre.
Tomb Raider 2 still has a lot to offer. There’s a lot more variety than the first game but I still think I prefer the original just a fraction. Although there is a risk of monotony in having Lara exploring just tombs I think that ties in better to her profession but that’s just me. All of the settings in Tomb Raider 2 are great fun and the new save option minimises the frustration immensely.
Tomb Raider 2 is a great follow-up to the excellent original. Although this doesn’t carry quite the same charm as its predecessor it still has many merits of its own including some memorable settings and that much more generous save option.
Verdict: 5/5
