Tomb Raider: Chronicles | |
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Developer(s) | Core Design [lower-alpha 1] |
Publisher(s) | Eidos Interactive [lower-alpha 2] |
Producer(s) | Troy Horton |
Designer(s) |
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Programmer(s) |
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Writer(s) |
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Composer(s) | Peter Connelly |
Series | Tomb Raider |
Platform(s) | |
Release | PlayStationWindowsDreamcastMac OS
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Genre(s) | Action-adventure, platform |
Mode(s) | Single-player |
Tomb Raider: Chronicles is an action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive. It was first released for PlayStation, Windows, and Dreamcast in 2000, then on Mac OS the following year. It is the fifth instalment in the Tomb Raider series. The narrative continues from Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation with archaeologist-adventurer Lara Croft presumed dead, and three friends recall adventures from her early career. Gameplay follows Lara through linear levels, solving puzzles and fighting enemies. Some levels incorporate additional gameplay elements such as stealth.
Despite the intended death of Lara Croft in The Last Revelation, Core Design was told by Eidos to continue the series; while a new team worked on The Angel of Darkness for the PlayStation 2, a veteran team developed Chronicles based on concepts cut from The Last Revelation. It was to be the last Tomb Raider built on the original engine, with the team having little enthusiasm for the project. Journalistic opinions of Chronicles were mixed, with both positive and negative reviews noting a lack of new mechanics. It is remembered as one of the weakest Tomb Raider games, and at 1.5 million units is one of the worst-selling games in the series. A remastered version of the game will be included in Tomb Raider IV–VI Remastered , releasing in 2025.
Tomb Raider: Chronicles is an action-adventure video game in which the player assumes the role of archaeologist-adventurer Lara Croft, exploring a series of locations in search of ancient artefacts. The events of Chronicles are portrayed as a series of flashbacks to adventures at different points in Lara's life. [4] [5] The levels are split between four locations: Rome, the coast of Russia, an island near Ireland, and a corporate building in New York City. [6] [7] The Windows version includes a level editor, allowing players to create levels using available Tomb Raider architecture and mechanics. [8]
As with earlier Tomb Raider titles, the game is presented from a third person perspective with a camera system which moves with Lara or remains fixed depending on the environment. [4] Key to progress is solving puzzles scattered through the level, which can rely on pulling different types of switches, completing platforming challenges, or finding key items. [9] Gameplay is mostly carried over from Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation ; Lara is navigated via tank controls, can jump in four directions, walk, sprint, crawl and roll through narrow areas, swim and wade through bodies of water, climb up and along ledges and ladders, and use monkey bars to traverse gaps. [4] [9] [10] New additions are her ability to walk along tightropes, swing from horizontal poles, and flip out of crawl spaces. [6] [11]
Lara can search the area, including cupboards, for items such as medipacks and secrets. [4] [6] She has access to several tools including binoculars for seeing distant areas, a grapple gun for creating ropes to swing on, and a crowbar that can be used contextually to break locks. [4] Combat focuses on Lara firing at enemies with her equipped weapon; they are her trademark pistols with unlimited ammunition, and other weapons with limited ammunition that can be found in levels. [7] [10] Each level has specific themes and mechanics: the Rome levels are inspired by earlier Tomb Raider titles, a Russian level includes an Extreme Depth Suit for exploring an underwater area, the Ireland levels portray a young Lara without access to weapons, while the New York levels focus on stealth and give Lara limited ammunition for her weapon. [6] [7]
Following the events of The Last Revelation, Lara Croft is presumed dead, buried under the collapsed Great Pyramid of Giza. At Lara's home of Croft Manor, three former friends and associates—Lara's butler Winston, the family priest Father Patrick Dunstan and Lara's history teacher Charles Kane—reminisce over some of Lara's early exploits following a memorial service.
The first story follows Lara's quest through the catacombs of Rome in search of the Philosopher's stone. She is pursued by Larson Conway and Pierre DuPont, adversaries she would encounter during the events of Tomb Raider . The second story, recounted by Kane, sees Lara hunting the Spear of Destiny, lost on the ocean floor since World War II. Infiltrating Zapadnaya Litsa, she smuggles herself aboard a Russian Naval submarine commanded by Admiral Yarofev and his Mafia handler Sergei Mikhailov, who also seeks the Spear. Lara recovers the Spear, but she is ambushed by Mikhailov. The Spear's power is unleashed, killing Mikhailov, damaging the submarine, and wounding Yarofev. Lara leaves in an escape pod, but Yarofev remains behind as the Spear destroys the submarine.
The third story, told by Dunstan, follows a teenage Lara when she secretly follows Dunstan to an island haunted by demonic forces. Lara confronts several apparitions and monsters which inhabit the island, including a horse-riding humanoid demon called Vladimir Kaleta who was trapped in a prison of running water by the island's former monastic community. Dunstan is taken hostage by Kaleta, who forces Lara to block the river imprisoning him. Using a book discovered in the ruined monastery's library, Lara says Kaleta's demon name "Verdelet", taking control of him and banishing him from Earth. The fourth story, related by Winston, shows Lara infiltrating the New York corporate headquarters of her former mentor Werner Von Croy to retrieve the Iris, the pursuit of which caused the schism between them.
Their stories completed, the three toast Lara. In parallel to these events, Von Croy digs through the rubble of the Great Pyramid in a desperate attempt to find her. He finally discovers Lara's backpack among the ruins of the Great Pyramid but no sign of her body: he declares "We've found her!", presuming that Lara is alive.
Core Design, developers of Tomb Raider since its inception, had grown fatigued of the series after producing three games successively since completing the original game. The team had attempted killing off Lara in The Last Revelation, but Eidos insisted that the series continue. [12] Core Design split into two teams; one new team worked on Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness for PlayStation 2, while a veteran team developed Chronicles. [13] Most of the team from The Last Revelation returned to create Chronicles. [14] Designer Andy Sandham, speaking in 2016, said that the staff created the game to earn a living rather than having any passion for it, deeming it as the worst title in his career. [15] He called it the hardest Tomb Raider title he worked on. [16] Reportedly the lead animator had fun creating new death animations for Lara, as the team as a whole disliked the project. [12] The full-motion video cutscenes were created by ExMachina, a French studio which had previously worked on a number of video game projects including Dark Earth and Final Fantasy IX , in addition to a series of SEAT commercials featuring Lara. [17] [18]
Each area was designed around a different gameplay theme: Rome emulated classic Tomb Raider platforming, Russia was focused on action and stealth elements, Ireland was designed around having no weapons, and the fourth area brought more stealth and a remote companion helping Lara. [19] Several level ideas were originally pitched for The Last Revelation before Jeremy Heath-Smith, the head of Core Design, insisted that the latter game focus on tomb-based environments. [12] [20] As with The Last Revelation, a separate tutorial area based in Lara's home was removed to reduce the workload. [20] Several gameplay elements were expanded, new moves were incorporated, and the inventory UI refined. [19] [14] For the Windows version, Core Design released the level building tools as a level editor on a second disc, as Chronicles would be the last game using that generation of technology, and they wanted to allow fans the freedom to create levels of their own. [14] [19] [21]
The script was written by Sandham, based on a story by Sandham and Richard Morton. [4] Chronicles was a direct follow-up to The Last Revelation, continuing to assume that Lara was dead. [19] Due to this style, the narrative structure broke away from the linear style used in earlier titles in favour of an anthology format, with four separate adventures loosely tied together by framing sequences. [12] Sandham wrote the game's script after the game's level structure was finalised. There was a continuity error in the Rome segment of Chronicles related to Pierre's apparent death, attributed by Sandham to not "properly" referring to the original game's script. [16] The use of flashbacks rather than a continuous contemporary narrative allowed Core Design to create very different levels without being tied together with an overarching story. It was also designed to close off the original era of Tomb Raider—including its technology and storyline—prior to the release of The Angel of Darkness. [14] The Irish levels were included by Sandham, who had a love of Irish folklore and was inspired by the cover art of The Black Island , a book from The Adventures of Tintin . [16] [21] Jean-Yves, a character from The Last Revelation, was initially the narrator of the Russian section. Due to a controversy about the character's similarity to real-life archaeologist Jean-Yves Empereur, Jean-Yves was replaced with Charles Kane. [22] [23] [24]
The music was composed by Peter Connelly, who returned from The Last Revelation. [25] As with his other projects, Connelly used early level builds as inspiration for his compositions. Taking inspiration from the narrative's gloomy tone, Chronicles used a darker musical style while retaining established Tomb Raider musical motifs. [26] The main theme is short compared to earlier Tomb Raider games, but Connelly had wanted something "epic". Time constraints meant that Chronicles did not have a proper main theme, with the closest being an opening segment that was inspired by Connelly's original plans. [25]
Chronicles was announced in August 2000 for PlayStation, Windows, and Dreamcast for a release in November. [27] Eidos marketed Chronicles extensively through commercials alongside promotional advertisements for the movie adaptation Lara Croft: Tomb Raider . [28] Development was completed on 15 November, with Eidos confirming that the game was declared gold (indicating that it was being prepared for duplication and release). [29] Chronicles was released in Europe on 17 November for PlayStation, and 24 November for Windows. [30] [31] The Dreamcast version was released in Europe on 15 December. [32] In North America, all three versions arrived on 26 November. [33] The Windows version was published in Japan by Eidos on 19 January 2001, being the English version with a Japanese language manual. [34] The PlayStation version was published in Japan by Capcom on 31 May. [2] A version for Mac OS was developed by Westlake Interactive and published by Aspyr on 20 June 2001. [35] Like the Windows version, the Mac OS port included the level editor. [1] [3]
Aggregator | Score | ||
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Dreamcast | PC | PS | |
Metacritic | 59/100 [36] | 57/100 [37] | 63/100 [38] |
Publication | Score | ||
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Dreamcast | PC | PS | |
Computer Gaming World | N/A | 1.5/5 [39] | N/A |
Edge | 4/10 [40] | 4/10 [40] | 4/10 [40] |
Electronic Gaming Monthly | 5.5/10 [11] | N/A | 4.33/10 [41] |
Eurogamer | N/A | 6/10 [10] | N/A |
Famitsu | N/A | N/A | 27/40 [42] |
Game Informer | N/A | 4/10 [43] | 7/10 [44] |
GamePro | 3.5/5 [45] | N/A | 3.5/5 [46] |
GameSpot | 7.2/10 [47] | 6.3/10 [48] | 7.2/10 [9] |
IGN | 5.8/10 [49] | 6.3/10 [50] | 6.5/10 [51] |
Next Generation | N/A | N/A | 3/5 [52] |
Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine | N/A | N/A | 2.5/5 [53] |
X-Play | N/A | 3/5 [54] | N/A |
ODCM (UK) | 6/10 [55] | N/A | N/A |
The game received "mixed" reviews on all platforms according to the review aggregation website Metacritic. [36] [37] [38]
While reviewers were divided on specific elements they liked or disliked, all noted that the game had few new mechanics, with the series becoming stale and lacking innovation compared to other popular game series. [43] [48] [51] [52] [56] Edge referred to the overall game as mediocre due to its underwhelming graphics and lack of new mechanics. [40] Game Informer journalists had varied opinions: Andrew Reiner enjoyed the premise and sound design, Andy McNamara enjoyed the puzzles but felt the series was growing stale in other areas, while Kristian Brogger and Erik Reppen were both negative due to the lack of mechanical or graphical improvements across five consecutive releases, and all reviewers felt it was time for a series reboot. [43] [44]
David Zdyrko of IGN was primarily mixed about the PlayStation release, calling it the best game in the series yet lacking significant differences from earlier entries. [51] GameSpot 's Joe Fielder praised the PlayStation version's graphics, details, and level design. [9] GamePro remarked that the game had improved graphics and a good story but the controls had become antiquated. [46] David Chen of Next Generation was positive about the PlayStation version, but similarly noted a feeling of series fatigue. [52] Electronic Gaming Monthly dismissed the game as a "cash grab" from Eidos, with reviewers noting attempts at new ideas but faulting their poor execution and the clear limitations of the game's engine. [41] Greg Sewart, writing for Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine described Chronicles as the best Tomb Raider sequel to date, but was tired of the series' formula and by-now unfair puzzle and trap design. [53] Japanese gaming magazine Famitsu noted a lack of clear direction in finding puzzle elements while enjoying the character movement. [42]
Reviewing the Dreamcast version for Electronic Gaming Monthly, Sewart noted the improved lighting over the PlayStation version, but negatively noted simplified character models. [11] Fielder summed it up as a duplicate of the PlayStation version, but praised its controls and graphics as presenting better than The Last Revelation's Dreamcast version. [47] Writing for IGN, Anthony Chau praised it as graphically the best console version of Chronicles, but expected more differences from the PlayStation version. [49] These sentiments were echoed by GamePro. [45] Dylan Davies of Official Dreamcast Magazine (UK) noted a few new ideas being implemented and varied level environments, but felt the series had seen little innovation and criticised the port as lacking for the console's power. [55]
Eurogamer 's John Bye criticised the lack of PC-specific features such as mouse support and updated graphics. [10] Ron Dulin of GameSpot was mixed on the PC version, saying that the series had not grown with the times. [48] IGN's Erik Peterson noted low-quality graphics carried over from the PlayStation version. [50] Joshua Roberts of X-Play , while generally positive about the gameplay, noticed that the game and the series should have gone into a new direction. [54] Steve Bauman of Computer Games Strategy Plus was more critical, faulting Eidos for publishing yearly titles, and contributing to its decline and formula. [57] Jason Babler of Computer Gaming World , alongside general criticism of a lack of fresh elements, noted increased technical problems and game-breaking bugs. [39] Reviewing the Mac OS version, Frank O'Connor of MacAddict felt the game was "the best Tomb Raider yet", but noted the series had not kept up with the rest of the gaming industry. [56]
The PlayStation version received a "Silver" sales award from the Entertainment and Leisure Software Publishers Association (ELSPA), [58] indicating sales of at least 100,000 units in the UK. [59] In their financial report in February 2001, Eidos included Chronicles among the successful titles published during the late 2000 period. [60] The game has sold 1.5 million units worldwide as of 2009; this made Chronicles the worst-selling Core Design-developed Tomb Raider game, and the second worst-selling main title up to that point. [12] [61]
Retrospective staff opinions of Chronicles have been mixed, with many staff feeling it was their worst Tomb Raider project at that time due to a lack of enthusiasm and franchise fatigue. [12] [15] [62] In journalistic retrospectives, Chronicles has been ranked as one of the weakest 32-bit entries, and one of the worst Tomb Raider entries. [6] [15] [63] [64] Core Design's last Tomb Raider title, The Angel of Darkness (2003), was beset with production issues and released to poor critical reception, leading to Eidos taking the property away from Core Design. [13] [12] [65]
Chronicles is set for is being re-released as part of Tomb Raider IV–VI Remastered , a high-definition remaster for Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S. Releasing on 14 February 2025, it is being developed and published by Aspyr in partnership with Crystal Dynamics. The remaster includes options for new control schemes, and revamped graphics. [66]
Tomb Raider, known as Lara Croft: Tomb Raider from 2001 to 2008, is a media franchise that originated with an action-adventure video game series created by British video game developer Core Design. The franchise is currently owned by CDE Entertainment; it was formerly owned by Eidos Interactive, then by Square Enix Europe after Square Enix's acquisition of Eidos in 2009 until Embracer Group purchased the intellectual property alongside Eidos in 2022. The franchise focuses on the fictional British archaeologist Lara Croft, who travels around the world searching for lost artefacts and infiltrating dangerous tombs and ruins. Gameplay generally focuses on exploration, solving puzzles, navigating hostile environments filled with traps, and fighting enemies. Additional media has been developed for the franchise in the form of film adaptations, comics and novels.
Lara Croft is a character and the main protagonist of the video game franchise Tomb Raider. She is presented as a highly intelligent and athletic British archaeologist who ventures into ancient tombs and hazardous ruins around the world. Created by a team at British developer Core Design that included Toby Gard, the character first appeared in the video game Tomb Raider in 1996.
Core Design Limited was a British video game developer based in Derby. Founded in May 1988 by former Gremlin Graphics employees, it originally bore the name Megabrite until rebranding as Core Design in October the same year. The company was acquired by umbrella company CentreGold in December 1994, which in turn was acquired by Eidos Interactive in April 1996. In May 2006, the Core Design personnel and assets were acquired by Rebellion Developments, and the company became Rebellion Derby, which was then shut down in March 2010.
Fighting Force is a 1997 3D beat 'em up developed by Core Design and published by Eidos. It was released for PlayStation, Microsoft Windows, and Nintendo 64. Announced shortly after Core became a star developer through the critical and commercial success of Tomb Raider, Fighting Force was highly anticipated but met with mixed reviews.
Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation is an action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive. It was first released for PlayStation and Microsoft Windows in 1999, then on Dreamcast and Mac OS the following year. It is the fourth instalment in the Tomb Raider series. The narrative follows archaeologist-adventurer Lara Croft as she races to imprison the Egyptian god Set after accidentally setting him free. Gameplay features Lara navigating levels split into multiple areas and room complexes, fighting enemies and solving puzzles to progress.
Tomb Raider III is an action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive. It was released for the PlayStation and Microsoft Windows platforms in 1998. Tomb Raider III is the third title in the Tomb Raider series and a sequel to Tomb Raider II. The story of the game follows archaeologist-adventurer Lara Croft as she embarks upon a quest to recover four pieces of a meteorite that are scattered across the world. To progress through the game, the player must complete a series of levels that involve solving puzzles, traversing dangerous locations, and defeating enemies.
Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness is a 2003 action-adventure game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive for PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows. A Mac OS X port was developed by Beenox and published by Aspyr the same year. It is the sixth instalment in the Tomb Raider series, acting as a direct sequel to Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation and Tomb Raider: Chronicles. The storyline follows Lara Croft as she attempts to clear herself of being the suspect of her former mentor Werner Von Croy's murder while investigating the activities of a black magic cult. The gameplay follows series tradition, with Lara navigating platforming environments while incorporating stealth and character growth elements.
Tomb Raider: Legend is an action-adventure video game developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Eidos Interactive. It is the seventh main entry in the Tomb Raider series and a reboot of the series that reimagined the origins and character of series protagonist Lara Croft. The game was released in 2006 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation Portable, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, and mobile phones. A PlayStation 3 port was released in 2011 as part of The Tomb Raider Trilogy.
Tomb Raider is a 1996 action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive as the debut entry in the Tomb Raider media franchise. It was first released on the Sega Saturn, followed shortly by versions for MS-DOS and the PlayStation. Later releases came for Mac OS (1999), Pocket PC (2002), N-Gage (2003), iOS (2013) and Android (2015). The game follows archaeologist-adventurer Lara Croft, who is hired by businesswoman Jacqueline Natla to find an artefact called the Scion of Atlantis. Gameplay features Lara navigating levels split into multiple areas and room complexes while fighting enemies and solving puzzles to progress. An expansion pack subtitled Unfinished Business was released in 1997, containing new standalone levels.
Tomb Raider: Anniversary is an action-adventure video game developed by Crystal Dynamics and Buzz Monkey Software and published by Eidos Interactive in 2007 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox 360, PlayStation Portable, Wii and mobile phones. It was later ported to OS X in 2008 and PlayStation 3 in 2011. The eighth overall entry in the Tomb Raider series and second in the Legend trilogy, Anniversary is a remake of the first Tomb Raider game, originally released in 1996.
Tomb Raider: The Prophecy is a 2002 action-adventure video game developed by Ubi Soft Milan and published by Ubi Soft for the Game Boy Advance. Part of the Tomb Raider series, it follows protagonist Lara Croft as she explores multiple temples in search of keys to a world-destroying power. Gameplay features exploration, combat and platforming displayed from a top-down isometric perspective.
Tomb Raider: Curse of the Sword is an action-adventure video game, part of the Tomb Raider series, developed by Core Design and published by Activision under license from Eidos Interactive. It was released for the Game Boy Color in 2001, and is a sequel to the first Tomb Raider for the same system. The next Tomb Raider game for a handheld system was Tomb Raider: The Prophecy for the Game Boy Advance.
Tomb Raider is a 2000 action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by THQ for the Game Boy Color under license from series owner Eidos Interactive. Following series protagonist Lara Croft as she searches ruins in South America for a powerful artefact, the gameplay features platforming and puzzle-solving on a 2D side-scrolling environment.
Tomb Raider: Underworld is an action-adventure video game developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Eidos Interactive for Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and Nintendo DS in November 2008. Later versions were released for mobile in December 2008, PlayStation 2 in 2009, and OS X in 2012. Various companies ported or developed the different versions. The ninth overall entry in the Tomb Raider series and third in the Legend trilogy, Underworld follows archaeologist-adventurer Lara Croft as she searches for Mjolnir, an artefact key to entering the realm of Helheim, while confronting adversaries from her past. Gameplay features Lara navigating levels set across the world through platforming, fighting enemies and solving puzzles to progress.
Tomb Raider II is a 1997 action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive. It was first released on Windows and PlayStation. Later releases came for Mac OS (1998), iOS (2014) and Android (2015). It is the second entry in the Tomb Raider series, and follows archaeologist-adventurer Lara Croft hunting the magical Dagger of Xian in competition with an Italian cult. Gameplay features Lara navigating levels split into multiple areas and room complexes while fighting enemies and solving puzzles to progress, with some areas allowing for or requiring the use of vehicles.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is a 2018 action-adventure game developed by Eidos-Montréal and published by Square Enix's European subsidiary. The game is the sequel to Rise of the Tomb Raider and is the twelfth mainline entry in the Tomb Raider series, as well as the third and final entry of the Survivor trilogy. It was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in September 2018. Versions for Linux and macOS, and Stadia, were released in November 2019. After release, the game was expanded upon with downloadable content in both a season pass and as standalone releases.
Tomb Raider IV–VI Remastered is an upcoming action-adventure video game developed and published by Aspyr. It is a remastered compilation of three games in the Tomb Raider series originally developed by Core Design: The Last Revelation (1999), Chronicles (2000), and The Angel of Darkness (2003). IV–VI Remastered is scheduled to release for the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S on 14 February 2025.