Anime Forum Games Links Movies Music Profiles Survivor TV Shows Tomb Raider is one of those series that you either love or you hate. Eidos took a few years off to release the next game in the series and after a year of delays, it finally hits stores but does it live up to the previous titles or are the changes too much? Angel Of Darkness takes place some time after The Last Revolation and has Lara being asked by her mentor, Von Croy, to find some paintings. A number of murders have been happening around the city and Lara returns to Croy's to find him dead and the police suddenly arrive. Lara has been framed is now on the run from the police and looking for the real murderer. The plot is so much better than the other games. There is also a new character that becomes playable which changes a number of things for this series. The game starts off in the streets as Lara heads for the roof tops and the first thing you will notice is the huge upgrade in the graphics. Gone are the horrible lines surrounding objectes. Everything appears smooth but does look outdated compared to newer Playstation 2 games. The weather effects are nice, if not a tad bit generic at times and I like the new motions for Lara, they seem smoother and more realistic. The voice acting is rather good, better then most games. The sound effects are good, everything sounds just like it should. However, there are a few problems with sounds being heard but are coming from nowhere. This is most noticable with gunshots. The music is really good and gives the game a real dark feel that the makers obviously strived for. The biggest change in this game is the control. Gone is the awkward stuttering like motions of Lara and she now moves in analog. It didtake me about a hour to get use to them since I was recently playing some of the older Tomb Raider games. I really like how you don't have to hold down the walk button now or the stealth button, it makes it a little easier. Hit detection is a little off when using the action command though. Gameplay is sorta the same but not really. The game feels huge at the begining and I honestly felt overwelmed by the sheer ammount of choices that lay before me. After the training you end up in a building and it's easy to get through as it's raher straigt forward but once you get a key, you've got two choices. Return to that locked door or just leave the building. Once outside you end up on the roof and then inside some more buildings where you soon find you can't progress unless Lara gets stronger. That's a new feature, Lara gets stronger by you doing certain things. Say you can't shimmy across a certain ledge because your strength meter goes out before you get to the end, you can find a crowbar to open a door, making you strong enough to shimmy all the way. Can't make that jump? Pushing a crate later on helps Lara's leg muscle become stronger. The game is all about strength and going on the players abilty. The game also seems a lot harder now that you're given more freedom. The enemy AI is rather good which was something I wasn't expecting. The new character adds a whole new aspect to the game as he has certain skills that Lara doesn't. Overall, I feel the game play has been changed for the better but it's still a little rough around the edges. The replay value also gets a boost from the fact that you can take different paths. I feel, as a fan of the series, that Angel Of Darkness is taking Lara in the perfect direction. Hopefully in the next game they iron out the little problems and work on a more solid frame rate as it tends to drop in a few spots early in the game but is fine later on. Fans of the series should pick it up and for those tha are interesed in the game, go rent it and see if you like it. Control: 7 Gameplay: 7 Graphics: 7 Replay Value: 4 Sound: 8 Story: 8 Score: C+ or a 74/100 Reviewed by: Americanpieflute Reviewed on June 27th 2003