An autograph from Peter Connelly, composer for Tomb Raider 4-AOD. Check out my collection. 

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TOMB RAIDER

THE LAST REVELATION: 

Brief storyline 

EGYPT- Present Day 

Lara moves across an unforgiving
desert, on camel, a guide by her side. 

She halts at a small rocky outcrop, dismounts and activates
an ancient mechanism, revealing what appears to be a virgin tomb… 

Upon her later escape, Lara’s guide attempts to double
cross her and steal an artefact she has taken from the tomb. She outwits him
and he flees. 

Anxious to discover who her latest enemy is, Lara pursues
the guide but runs into an ambush. She escapes by the skin of her teeth across
the Nile. 

It is at this point that we recognise Lara’s rival and learn
of his true intentions…

Lara meets with an old colleague and fellow archaeologist
to gather more information about the artefact she has discovered. Lara must now
begin her real task and collect vital pieces of information and other artefacts
etc. 

Her next stop is the Tomb of Semerkhet at Karnak; she can only enter using the
artefact as a key, and henceforth leaves it in the key-slot as she enters. 

Somebody then traps her inside, steeling the artefact and
sealing Lara inside the tomb…

She escapes to discover her rival is heading to Alexandria in an attempt to find the
other artefacts and information.

Once in Alexandria, it’s a game of cat and mouse. Lara
must regain the artefacts before her enemy. 

Lara’s enemy then kidnaps her colleague in an attempt to
lure Lara to Cairo. 

Lara reaches Cairo on motorbike, and fights her way through
to the Citadel, subsequently to the Giza Pyramids for the final show-down. 

Document info:

Susie Hamilton was the Public Relations expert for Core Design in 1993-2002

The post Tomb Raider the Last Revelation OFFICIAL STORY OUTLINE appeared first on Tomb of Ash.

UPDATED OVERVIEW 5^TH AUGUST 1999

Storyline (See overview for plot details).

This is driven seamlessly through game and gives
Lara very clear objectives throughout.

The storyline is related via FMV’s, cut-scenes and Lara’s
interaction with characters, plus the collection of information (from
inscriptions etc).

Gameplay dissolves to cut-scenes, cut-scenes to FMV,
and vice-versa. The intention is to completely eliminate loading screens and
keep the adventure continuous

Whereas for previous Tomb Raider games, the story
was used as a means of linking locations, Last Revelation’s plot  will be completely integrated throughout the
game, keeping the player clearly focused.

FMV and cut scenes are far more prevalent than seen
in previous games and quality is vastly improved. Last Revelation will feature
11 FMVs (20 minutes).

The Last Revelation introduces two important
characters that have influenced Lara’s life tremendously. These characters play
integral roles through the entire game.

 Locations

The game is set entirely in Egypt.

Main locations:

• Karnak
• Cairo
• Giza
• Alexandria
• Valley of the Kings

Last Revelation is the same size as previous Tomb Raider games, but
locations themselves are smaller and more atmospheric. The player will not be
required to wander around vast maps in search of clues and will have a very
clear idea of what needs to be achieved. Puzzles will be solved with
information/items from the near vicinity in order to keep objectives clear.

Training Level 

Lara’s mansion is not featured. 

The training level takes place in Cambodia and is a
‘flashback’ level that is used to introduce Lara’s mentor, Von Croy, and also
to re-introduce Lara herself at the age of 16 years. 

The 16 year version of Lara is not a feature of Last
Revelation but is used as a means to tell both old and new users more about her
history and the reasons why she is an adventurer today. 

Von Croy has the same moves as Lara and teaches her
how to perform all moves, both old and new. 

The level features a race against Von Croy.
Experienced / proficient players will be rewarded with an alternative route
toward the end of the training level. 

The training level may be repeated by re-starting
the game. It must be completed in order to access the real adventure. 

At the end of the training level, the player is
presented with an FMV: Von Croy’s leg becomes trapped. When Lara tries to save
him, the area around her becomes unstable. She flees to save her own life – and
has to leave Von Croy for dead. 

The player is subsequently presented with an
introductory FMV that sets the scene for The Last Revelation itself. 

Inventory

Upon loading Last Revelation, the player is
presented with a brand-new interface. The old inventory rings and passport
system are now obsolete. 

The new inventory system is more akin to that of a
traditional adventure game e.g. Monkey Island. 

Standard inventory items: 

• Colt pistols
• Canteen
• Flares
• Compass – required for solving some of the puzzles
• Binoculars – these have a zoom in/out feature
• Diary – see ‘Diary’ section  

 Inventory contd.

 Items may be collected, combined and stored in the
new inventory.

Objects:           Batteries

Diary 

The new inventory also features a diary that has the
following uses: 

·        
Storing of information – the Diary makes a journal that details Lara’s
progress e.g plot details, location details etc. If Lara reads inscriptions,
these will also appear in the Diary as if she has written them in herself.
Information contained within the Diary can be referred to at any time. 

·        
Hints and tips – For areas where Lara becomes stuck, the player may enter this
section of the diary for simple clues. (There will be some kind of penalty for
frequent referral to this section). 

·        
Maps
– Lara may collect pieces of maps throughout the game. These may be overlaid on
the screen during gameplay to assist the player (PC only). Once Lara has all
pieces of a particular map, secret areas may be opened up for additional
exploration. 

·        
Scrapbook – throughout the game, background information will appear in the
scrapbook e.g. pictures of Lara, her family, friends, information about her
past and previous Tomb Raider adventures etc. This is not required for
completion of the game, being used purely for the player’s interest /
amusement. 

·        
Save / Load game – both PSX and PC games use a ‘save-anywhere’ system. PSX format
offers 5 save-game slots. 

Game Engine

The existing Tomb Raider engine, although solid,
prevented Core from changing fundamental elements for Tomb Raiders II and III.

Development of Last Revelation started Spring 1998.
The engine is 90% new, having has been completely re-designed. 

Fundamental changes include the following: 

·        
New comprehensive inventory system 

·        
New targeting system – Lara will no longer automatically lock-on to
enemies. The player will have the option to toggle between targets. Objects
within the environment may now also be targeted. 

·        
New AI – due to the new targeting system, AI is now able to reach
advanced levels (see Artificial Intelligence) 

·        
New ‘Organics’ – 3D objects are introduced via the new editing system.
This results in areas featuring ‘real’ objects that Lara may interact with, 3D
architecture and therefore greater levels of detail. 

·        
Collapsible walls – some walls may now be blown up / collapsed. 

·        
Lighting system – Dynamic lighting and spotlighting are featured.
Spotlighting enables concentrated beams of light to be used to guide the
player/ focus attention/create additional atmospheric effects. 

·        
Environment Mapping – textures and 3D objects are environment-mapped to
display realistic characteristics and react to light. E.g. metallic surfaces
will now be reflective, marble surfaces will shine etc. 

·        
Bump Mapping (PC only) – for greater visual clarity, detail and depth. 

·        
PSX version is hi-res and supports dual-analog. 

·        
PC Specification: 266 Minimum (software and hardware). Details to be
confirmed.  

Artificial Intelligence 

Last Revelation features advanced levels of AI. 

Many enemies are given the same moves as Lara and
will be able to mimic her moves around the environment. 

Human enemies are not prevalent but will be given
almost the same range of moves as Lara herself. 

Lara will no longer be able to reach a safe point
and simply shoot enemies from safety – they will pursue her and/or counter her
moves. 

Lara will have to ‘deal’ with enemies, using far
more complex methods than seen in previous TR games. Enemies now have the
capacity to dodge and evade. 

Some enemies may not be killed outright e.g.
Skeletons may not be shot down since they are already dead. Lara must find
other means to destroy them e.g. they may be pushed off ledges, smashed or
trapped etc. 

Supernatural enemies may not be killed outright
either – e.g. different types of Wraiths will require different methods for
their elimination. 

Enemies now follow the environments closely and will
‘hug’ the landscape for greater levels of realism. 

Lara may be poisoned by some of Last Revelation’s
enemies. To restore health she will need to use specific items that may be
collected and stored in the inventory. 

Enemies 

Due to the storyline and setting, the majority of
enemies are non-human. Set’s approach to earth gradually begins to influence
the environments and bizarre events begin to occur… 

Examples of enemies:

• Mummies
• Skeletons
• Wraiths
• Sphinxes
• Statues (ancient Gods/creatures come to life)
• Von Croy’s followers (human)
• Giant scorpions, beetles etc. 

Characters 

Lara will interact with several characters but there are
two main characters that she will meet frequently throughout Last Revelation: 

Von Croy: Lara’s arch-enemy, unbeknown to her at the outset.
He will appear throughout the game and will usually be one step ahead of Lara 

Jean-Yves: Lara meets this old friend several times. Lara and
Jean Yves share a mutual respect for one another – like Lara, he is an
adventurer/archaologist. There is an ‘X-files’ sexual tension between the two
but this is not developed to a romantic level. Lara will visit Jean-Yves
several times and at one point will have to save his life. 

Weapons 

Again, due to the setting and storyline, Lara has no
need for hi-tech weapons. Her standard weapons are a pair of Colt pistols. 

Other weapons include: 

• Shotgun
• Uzis (with standard and new tracer bullets)
• Revolver
• Grenades (standard, stun and smoke)
• Crossbow – this is a very accurate, targetable
  weapon. When used, perspective will move to first person. 

Moves 

Last Revelation features a higher ratio of new moves
than seen in previous games.  Two of the
key moves are the use of ropes and new ‘shimmy’: 

Use of ropes –  This opens
up brand new methods for negotiation of environments and puzzles.  Lara may climb up and down, grab, swing from
and build momentum using ropes. 

Shimmy round corners – Lara can now move
hand-over-hand around corners. Again, this opens up new possibilities for
exploration. 

Examples of other new moves:

• Shoulder barge door
• Kick down door
• Open door (with hand)
• Crowbar door open
• Search bodies
• Open trap door in floor / ceiling  

Lara Croft

 Lara is now fully skinned and has an increased
number of polygons. She can now blink and
her mouth will move so that she will now be seen to talk in cut-scenes. 

Lara may look toward certain important objects, features. This will help
toward detection of small objects and interactive objects such as door handles
and switches etc. 

Lara also has a new voice for Last Revelation! 

Costume changes will not be heavily featured since
the story is set in one country only. There may be small changes – these to be
confirmed. 

When Lara emerges from the water, the player will
now see water dripping from her. 

Vehicles 

Last Revelation features 2 main vehicles – a jeep
and a motorbike with side-car. 

Also featured is a train. A ‘level’ will be played
in/on the roof of the train. 

Vehicles are used to link geographical areas via
gameplay. As such, they are intrinsic to gameplay/progression to a new area.

Puzzles 

Last Revelation is heavily puzzle-based, more so
than even the original Tomb Raider. 

Puzzles themselves are all-new. Lara’s new moves,
plus the new inventory system allows greater scope than ever before for
invention of new puzzle ideas. 

All items required to solve puzzles may be found
within Lara’s near vicinity. This eliminates the need for the player to cover
vast distances searching for objects. The difficulty will lie in actually working out the puzzles, rather than
obtaining the items required to solve them. 

Puzzles
feature element such as: ropes and pulleys, pressure-pads, timed levers,
rotating hubs, wheels, hanging switches, switches in holes, levers and
fulcrums, platforms and blocks that can be raised, trip wires, breakable walls,
direction puzzles (using compass). 

The
old levers/switches from previous games are now obsolete. Lara has a range of
new systems to operate, using new animations and the new inventory.

 Document info:

Susie Hamilton was the Public Relations expert for Core Design in 1993-2002

The post Official Core Design Tomb Raider 4 Memo appeared first on Tomb of Ash.

Exclusive concept arts for Tomb Raider 3 (Aldwych) and Tomb Raider 5 (Ireland) kindly provided by Andy Sandham after his interview with me! Please have a read if you haven’t already

The post appeared first on Tomb of Ash.

Andy Sandham was involved in majority of Tomb Raider games by Core Design. He was an artist, level designer and a scriptwriter throughout his work on Tomb Raider series. And today he kindly agreed to an interview with me.

Andy Sandham, Core Design

Hello Andy, thank you for agreeing to have Q&A with us.

You had a great level of involvement from Tomb Raider II until Tomb Raider (5) Chronicles.  Which was your favourite game that you worked on? 

Tomb Raider 3 – we really pushed the boundaries of what the PSONE was capable of, and there was a healthy sense of competition in the team. I also created the London level, which allowed me a lot of ‘research time’ in London, if that’s the right phrase. I still recall standing in tube stations with my breeze block sized digital camera taking photographs of the floor and walls for textures!

Tomb Raider III (1998)

Croft manor has always been a great training area for beginners and veterans alike to establish the new skill sets each game had.  Previously we have read that Croft Manor was inspired by Kedleston Hall however we have personally gone there and it does not have that many similarities.  Having been in Darby and outside the original Core Design building, we noticed many of the buildings were brick with white edging and had architectural similarities.  What inspired the look of Croft Manor really?

I’m uncertain what Toby’s (Toby Gard) original inspiration was – although, yup, It did bear a few similarities to the original Core building – without the hidden quad bike track, of course.

Ex Core Design building (55 Ashbourne Road, Derby, UK) and Croft Manor in Tomb Raider III

Why was Croft Manor removed from Tomb  Raider (4) Last Revelation and Tomb Raider (5) Chronicles?

If memory serves, I think we began to try and build the tutorials into the levels – as per the Werner Von Croy intro section out of Last Revelation – so that we weren’t doubling up work. As a side note, that tutorial sequence with Werner Von Croy still gives a number of us re-occurring nightmares – companion AI in those days was a relatively new thing, even if Werner was (supposed to be) on a fairly linear path… Myself and Tom (AI coder) battled through this day and night for a number of weeks — although I think if we hadn’t already cut our teeth with the nightmarish baptism of fire ‘Sophia boss battle’ from Tomb3, one of us may have ended up leaping out of a window. I think we’re both still catching up on sleep from that one…

Von Croy (Tomb Raider 4) and Sophia Leigh (Tomb Raider III)

We noticed right next to the old Core Design building there was an office building called “Croft House”.  Was Lara Croft’s last name inspired by the building next door or is the “phone book” story true on how her name was chosen?

Nope, neither. Lara was originally Lara Cruz as created by Toby, but I believe the boss wanted something more English. Toby and the original scriptwriter, Vicky (Vicky Arnold), came up with ‘Croft’, as being quintessentially English.

Croft House, 51 Ashbourne Rd, Derby

In Tomb Raider (4) Last Revelation we get to see Lara Croft as a young girl going on one of her first adventures with Von Croy.  How did you come up with the concept and story to involve her younger and being guided by someone?

As above, this was to integrate the tutorial ‘seamlessly’ into the game. Obviously didn’t work out quite that way, though!

Our hero, Lara Croft, has been known to save the world a few times.  She saved it from power hungry Natla who was going to release an Atlantean race of beasts, Bartroli who was releasing a dragon, and Dr. Willard who was trying to accelerate evolution.  In Tomb Raider (4) Last Revelation suddenly Lara Croft is the one leading the world to the apocalypse by reading the Amulet of Horus.  What made the team decide to make Lara make this critical mistake?

The Core team all sat down together to outline the story for Tomb 4 (which I scripted, as no-one else wanted to do it), and it was kinda decided we needed something new – the ‘revelation’, so to speak. That’s where the plot device originated from.

Tomb Raider 4: The Last Revelation (1999)

What was the reason to make it seem like she died?  Was this a plot-based move (such as a cliffhanger to have Tomb Raider advance to a new console) or perhaps did Core feel this was the end of the Tomb Raider franchise as a whole due to a dip in sales?

Jeremy and Adrian (our bosses) were very much hands off with regards what we wanted to do with the games  – other than ‘greenlighting’ settings, etc. – We were all a little sick of Lara, and decided killing her might give us a chance to move onto a new project.  Didn’t work – although in hindsight, I’m amazed how much freedom they gave us – these days, If you proposed killing Lara croft, you’d probably end up sleeping with the fishes…The joys of a small team are coming back though, via indie projects…

Clearly, a ton of research on ancient Egypt and its mythology went into Tomb Raider (4) Last Revelation.  How did you go about researching for all the levels? 

Jeremy (to his credit) actually decided we needed to set 4 back in Egypt – to get Lara back to Tombs – and generously planned a trip out there for all of us – unfortunately, with the deadline rapidly approaching, and a number of inoculations required with specific time periods before they took effect, meant  another trip to London instead! We all spent a lot of time in the British museum, and trawling around the bookstores on the street opposite for the books with the most photographs of textures in! It was always a highly sought after prize – the book with the most textures that we could scan in. (I should point out the internet was still relatively useless with regards resources at this point)

Locations in Tomb Raider 4

In Tomb Raider (4) Last Revelation we all were introduced to the ability to walk back to the previous level despite our advancement to the next.  How did this idea come up?  Was this something that was thought of early on and could not be done due to technological limitations or was this a new idea for the game series?

We were all keen on a ‘hub’ and more player choice so that if the player was stuck in one area, they’d be able to try another without getting frustrated – what now would be referred to in poncy ludological terminology  as ‘player agency’

In Tomb Raider (5) Chronicles there are four stories that are going back to Lara’s past. How did  the concept of Tomb Raider (5) Chronicles come about?

Tomb Raider 5 was based around the levels we originally pitched for Tomb 4 – Jez (Jeremy) told us he wanted Lara ‘back in some fucking Tombs!’ – hence Tomb 4 being set in Egypt.

As a level designer what was your process to turn concept into reality?  Did you physically draw out maps or diagrams to aid in creation?  Do you have original concept art you would like to share with us? (UPD. Andy sent us some concept art)

Yup, very much a case of thinking of an area you’d like to tackle (like the London Underground), then drawing out rough sketches of the layout and what you wanted Lara to achieve at the end of each level (funnily enough, I found some of these just the other day…), and then a lot of time working my way around puzzles, and then off to collect the textures using my trusty gigantic digital camera!

I’d note that around tomb 5, creating original puzzles was becoming pretty difficult, and I worked out a number of systems with which to formulate new puzzle concepts – a number of which I’m now teaching my award winning Design students within my puzzle design course at NHTV school of international game architecture and design (IGAD)*

*(please note this is a plug) (please no we included it )

Tomb Raider 5 – Chronicles (2000)

Was it a coincidence that there was a Russian sub by the name of Kursk that sunk in the Barents Sea a few months before the release date of Tomb Raider (5) Chronicles which included a Russia level with similar themes?

This was Joby’s (Joby Wood) level – I’m unsure if this event was related, although I do know Joby had an enormous pile of books on his desk focussing on the ‘spear of destiny’?

In concept form and even once the script has been written there are many differences to the completed project.  What are some of the notable changes on the games you worked on from concept to finished project?

Tomb Raider three was interesting as we kept pushing the boundaries – one of the coders would shout ‘Hey, I’ve got a quad bike working!’ or something similar, and we’d all crowd around and then start working out ways to get these new systems into our levels. I still distinctly remember, at least once a week, asking Chris (Coupe), one of the programming leads, for some new feature I wanted to make my level better, to be told quite categorically to ‘fuck right off’. Without fail, two or three days later, Chris would call me over with the feature implemented and say ‘Happy Now’? We had some world class (although potty mouthed) talent on that team.

Have you played the newer Tomb Raider games by Crystal Dynamics?  What are your thoughts on them? 

Yup, been playing the new ones – Some really nice work here. And I do love the way they’ve taken some of the core features and revamped and upgraded them (i.e. the vine climbing becoming the ice hook walls, and the zip lines you’re able to shimmy back up). It’s all building on what was originally a simple, clean, genius concept within the original Tomb Raider.

As the scriptwriter and as a level designer you had a lot of say in the feel of the Tomb Raider classics.  How do you feel about the direction the story of the new games has taken?  What would you have done different?

I actually correctly predicted that the series may try for a bit of ‘survival horror’, as the solitary nature was something that made the original so unique. With regards the script on the new game, I’m not entirely convinced – I feel they were going in a particular survival horror direction, and then lost their nerve. Very much a ‘Hills have eyes’ and ‘Deliverance’ vibe, became ‘Bear Grylls with a crossbow’…

Tomb Raider (2013) by Crystal Dynamics

How do you feel about the level design of the new games?  What would you have done different?

I’m impressed! You’re guided along the critical path in such a way that you actually feel as if you’re exploring – a vitally important aspect as a player motivator within these games. It’s really a case of drip feeding setpieces, spectacle, and awe inspiring moments as player motivators – which they do well.

In theory if you had your team then with the same projects with MODERN technology what advancements in level design would you take advantage of?  What ideas you wish you could have used were thrown out because of technical limitations?

Lara croft floating in orbit, surrounded by the wreckage of her broken satellite, attempting to find a way back to Earth whilst utilising the canny guidance of George Clooney? Joking aside, with regards advancements in level design, I teach a number of subjects within this field, and wouldn’t say there are many MAJOR advancements – it’s just knowing the techniques on how to motivate and reward the player while providing the right amount of challenge. So, in a nutshell, just knowing how to do it right in the first place!

Thank you very much for your time!

It’s been a pleasure.

AshKa/Fiend for Lara Croft in Russia. Read this article in Russian

Special Thanks to Tatiana Leitzel.

READ PART II OF THIS INTERVIEW

The post Interview with Andy Sandham (Core Design) appeared first on Tomb of Ash.