Emperor's Tomb Demo Review SPOILERS

Posted by Sean from proxy.cogeco.net (216.221.81.97) on Friday, February 07, 2003 at 11:48am :

Hey Guys:

Well, as you probably know by now I snagged the XBOX demo and Emperor's Tomb about an hour ago. Here's my first impressions review, including spoilers, so stop reading if you don't want to wreck your initial experience!

I will break it down into a few different sections:

PLOT

The level takes place in ancient ruins, somewhere deep in the jungle. You are already armed with your whip, revolver, and a canteen (which is actually a very cool feature). Upon a very little bit of exploration, you discover that the area is an encampment for Ivory poachers, and of course, it's up to you to stop them. You basically jump, punch, swing, swim and whip through the level. Very Tomb-Raider-esque, from the original Tomb Raider! You progress through the level exploring, finding various items stashed in crates, and beating up on the poachers. Very promising for things to come. Also, there are a few booby-traps here and there that can hamper your progress, but, sometimes the traps (ie: a falling floor) open up a new area to explore. I'm (guessing) 3/4 of the way through the level. You encounter a grotto at one point, and can swim around exploring.

COMBAT

The fighting is very cool. You have a basic 1-2 combo punch move, but using the sticks and different button combos, you can head butt because, after all, Indy is a brawler at heart. With the right trigger, you can block an opponents attack, and actually grab onto them. The whip attack is neat, with 2 different strikes; an overhead strike and a side-swipe, which can swipe a weapon out of an enemy's hand, and draw them close for you to punch them. Neat. Your revolver is good a long-distance attacks, and trust me, sometimes you just want to draw the gun and, as Harrison Ford so eloquently put it, "Shoot the %$#!er." One complaint, is that the revolver should drop a guy in one or two shots, but it almost takes a full chamber to take out the enemy. And ammo is few and far between. You pick up a more powerful shotgun later on, which can do quite a bit or damage.

I took great pleasure in confronting a poacher, having him approach me and say "I'll get you you Amer..." before I punched him in the face and dropped him.

CAMERA

A bit of work is needed to improve it, but if you've played the Buffy game you know what to expect. I'm not a huge 3D 3rd person gamer, but it only took me about 5 minutes to get used to using the camera. A nice feature when you're turned around by the camera, is to press the left trigger and it centers you automatically.

CONTROLS

Very tight, and easy to pick up. It's almost instinctual. Besides the basic punches and weapons attacks, you can climb up ledges, and (very cool) shimmy along a ledge with your back to the wall, and attack at the same time. It actually gives you options with how you want to deal with the enemy, there's more than one way. Sometimes stealth works best.

GRAPHICS

Nicely done, on par with Splinter Cell. The character animation is great for a demo, and bound to be better for the release. It's nice to finally play an Indiana Jones game where the character looks like Harrison Ford. Similar to Resident Evil, damage you take affects your on-screen appearance, Indy becomes tired, drags his feet, and is hunched over. He goes back to normal once you replenish your health (using the canteen). Also, if left idle, Indy does some funny little stretches for his sore, tired muscles.

There was very little draw-in for a demo, and no clipping or frame rate drop off. Nicely done Lucasarts & The Collective.

MUSIC

Very, very, very good. Excellent. The score uses "The Raiders March" atmospherically, and sets the tone right away. It is continuous, and changes as you move through the level, according to your actions. I fell through a huge section of floor, and the score almost anticipated my move! It got dark and dangerous right away. I can't wait for a CD soundtrack of this, if they release one.

MY HAT!!!

I lost my fedora half way through the level, and couldn't find it anywhere. Be careful, as you Gear-heads know, those things are expensive! But a very cool feature.

FINAL VERDICT (SO FAR!!!)

This is going to be a great game - it's action, it's high adventure, it's mystery - IT IS INDIANA JONES. The best Indy game EVER, even based on a demo for a game that isn't due for a few weeks. I don't say that lightly.

EASTER EGG (SORT OF)

Pause the game for a bit, and you'll get to see the game trailer that was released a while ago. Nice to see on a TV.

Thanks and enjoy.
Sean

Follow Ups:

I'm not a big game guy but.... - Man With Cool Hat 4:11pm 02/07/2003

question - Donovan 2:11pm 02/07/2003

Answer... - Sean 10:47pm 02/07/2003

SUH-WHEET!! Thanks, Sean!! (NM) - Jimmie 1:26pm 02/07/2003

Re: Emperor's Tomb Demo Review *SPOILERS* - JerryKing 12:23pm 02/07/2003

Re: Emperor's Tomb Demo Review *SPOILERS* - Ben Friend of Indy 10:01pm 02/07/2003

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: Hey Guys: : Well, as you probably know by now I snagged the XBOX demo and Emperor's Tomb about an hour ago. Here's my first impressions review, including spoilers, so stop reading if you don't want to wreck your initial experience! : I will break it down into a few different sections: : PLOT : The level takes place in ancient ruins, somewhere deep in the jungle. You are already armed with your whip, revolver, and a canteen (which is actually a very cool feature). Upon a very little bit of exploration, you discover that the area is an encampment for Ivory poachers, and of course, it's up to you to stop them. You basically jump, punch, swing, swim and whip through the level. Very Tomb-Raider-esque, from the original Tomb Raider! You progress through the level exploring, finding various items stashed in crates, and beating up on the poachers. Very promising for things to come. Also, there are a few booby-traps here and there that can hamper your progress, but, sometimes the traps (ie: a falling floor) open up a new area to explore. I'm (guessing) 3/4 of the way through the level. You encounter a grotto at one point, and can swim around exploring. : COMBAT : The fighting is very cool. You have a basic 1-2 combo punch move, but using the sticks and different button combos, you can head butt because, after all, Indy is a brawler at heart. With the right trigger, you can block an opponents attack, and actually grab onto them. The whip attack is neat, with 2 different strikes; an overhead strike and a side-swipe, which can swipe a weapon out of an enemy's hand, and draw them close for you to punch them. Neat. Your revolver is good a long-distance attacks, and trust me, sometimes you just want to draw the gun and, as Harrison Ford so eloquently put it, "Shoot the %$#!er." One complaint, is that the revolver should drop a guy in one or two shots, but it almost takes a full chamber to take out the enemy. And ammo is few and far between. You pick up a more powerful shotgun later on, which can do quite a bit or damage. : I took great pleasure in confronting a poacher, having him approach me and say "I'll get you you Amer..." before I punched him in the face and dropped him. : CAMERA : A bit of work is needed to improve it, but if you've played the Buffy game you know what to expect. I'm not a huge 3D 3rd person gamer, but it only took me about 5 minutes to get used to using the camera. A nice feature when you're turned around by the camera, is to press the left trigger and it centers you automatically. : CONTROLS : Very tight, and easy to pick up. It's almost instinctual. Besides the basic punches and weapons attacks, you can climb up ledges, and (very cool) shimmy along a ledge with your back to the wall, and attack at the same time. It actually gives you options with how you want to deal with the enemy, there's more than one way. Sometimes stealth works best. : GRAPHICS : Nicely done, on par with Splinter Cell. The character animation is great for a demo, and bound to be better for the release. It's nice to finally play an Indiana Jones game where the character looks like Harrison Ford. Similar to Resident Evil, damage you take affects your on-screen appearance, Indy becomes tired, drags his feet, and is hunched over. He goes back to normal once you replenish your health (using the canteen). Also, if left idle, Indy does some funny little stretches for his sore, tired muscles. : There was very little draw-in for a demo, and no clipping or frame rate drop off. Nicely done Lucasarts & The Collective. : MUSIC : Very, very, very good. Excellent. The score uses "The Raiders March" atmospherically, and sets the tone right away. It is continuous, and changes as you move through the level, according to your actions. I fell through a huge section of floor, and the score almost anticipated my move! It got dark and dangerous right away. I can't wait for a CD soundtrack of this, if they release one. : MY HAT!!! : I lost my fedora half way through the level, and couldn't find it anywhere. Be careful, as you Gear-heads know, those things are expensive! But a very cool feature. : FINAL VERDICT (SO FAR!!!) : This is going to be a great game - it's action, it's high adventure, it's mystery - IT IS INDIANA JONES. The best Indy game EVER, even based on a demo for a game that isn't due for a few weeks. I don't say that lightly. : EASTER EGG (SORT OF) : Pause the game for a bit, and you'll get to see the game trailer that was released a while ago. Nice to see on a TV. : Thanks and enjoy. : Sean

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