Tomb Raider Legend, Anniversary, and Underworld got flak around their release for feeling outdated compared to the flashy new kid on the block, Uncharted. But by today's standards, I think they're better games, and highlight what's really important for games to stand the test of time.
This is mostly because the stuff Uncharted was good at hasn't aged all that well, while Tomb Raider's strengths have.
For Uncharted, the games were great at scripted spectacle and graphical prowess. They had good shooting mechanics for the time. They also had passable writing (at least Uncharted 2). Problem is, none of those things are very strong by today's standards. And the Uncharted weaknesses, especially brain-dead puzzle design and mindless platforming, are more obvious than before.
What were those three Tomb Raider games good at? Puzzles and platforming, plain and simple. Those have aged supremely well. The combat sucks, as ever, but so does Uncharted now. The graphics, divorced from the relatively realistic and now-dated Uncharted style, look cartoony but still appealing. And the writing and story aren't good, but no one should be playing UC1-3 for those things anyways.
What do you think?
This is mostly because the stuff Uncharted was good at hasn't aged all that well, while Tomb Raider's strengths have.
For Uncharted, the games were great at scripted spectacle and graphical prowess. They had good shooting mechanics for the time. They also had passable writing (at least Uncharted 2). Problem is, none of those things are very strong by today's standards. And the Uncharted weaknesses, especially brain-dead puzzle design and mindless platforming, are more obvious than before.
What were those three Tomb Raider games good at? Puzzles and platforming, plain and simple. Those have aged supremely well. The combat sucks, as ever, but so does Uncharted now. The graphics, divorced from the relatively realistic and now-dated Uncharted style, look cartoony but still appealing. And the writing and story aren't good, but no one should be playing UC1-3 for those things anyways.
What do you think?