Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light

Light fantastic.

What constitutes a Tomb Raider game? Is it the act of raiding tombs? Probably not, since tombs have been of less importance in the series, especially in its Angel of Darkness days. Is it the blend of puzzle-solving, shooting and platforming that have becomes series hallmarks as well as, quite often, genre-defining standards? Probably not, because Guardian of Light features all of the above in spades, but doesn’t bear the Tomb Raider name. Is it the presence of the quintessentially British Lara Croft herself? Probably not, since she also features rather prominently in this downloadable adventure from Crystal Dynamics. Is it the third person, over-the-shoulder camera? Potentially so, since that is the only element missing from the makeup of the series in Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light.

But whatever the reason (and the developers insist that its simply to denote that this title is separate to the core franchise), Crystal Dynamics has dropped the Tomb Raider name from the title, leaving us with a Lara Croft adventure instead. A glance at the game might make this decision easy to understand, since, on the surface, GoL looks very different to past entries of the series. But, camera angle notwithstanding, this is perhaps the most pure Tomb Raider game in years, with all of the series elements intact and some new added for good measure, and it’s also one of the best.

Guardian of Light’s story is a little thin, with Lara squaring off against ancient Aztec god Xolotl who wants to kill her after being reawakened. The reasons for it all are all a bit vague, but it sets the scene well enough. Well enough, certainly, to make the introduction of ancient Maya warrior Totec – and GoL’s second-biggest twist on the formula – make sense. Because for the first time in a Tomb Raider game, Lara won’t be on her own, and a second player can join in. What’s the biggest twist? The change from an over-the-shoulder camera to a fixed isometric one, which lends an almost Diablo / Alien Breed feel to proceedings, especially with the twin-stick moving and shooting controls. It might sound like an alien experience, but a few minutes in the game will convince even the most hardened naysayer otherwise – Guardian of Light is certainly different, but it is still, despite the name, very much a Tomb Raider game.

As for the co-op elements, their integration is superb. GoL is a game where co-op has been carefully thought about and implemented, not just thrown in. Lara and Totec aren’t just reskins of the same character with the same abilities; they have very different abilities, and must use their unique skills together to progress. Lara has access to all of her old tricks; she can jump, roll, climb, use her grappling hook, shoot, and can also plant remotely detonated explosives. Totec, meanwhile, can’t use firearms, but has a supply of magical spears which he can throw at enemies, as well as a sturdy shield that can repel projectiles. He also borrows a few of those explosives from Lara. Totec is bigger and stronger- by holding his shield above him (a simple hold of the right bumper), Lara can jump on top to reach higher ledges, and his spears can stick into walls to provide a precarious platform for the spry miss Croft to jump onto, though they can’t bear the weight of Totec himself. Meanwhile Lara’s grappling hook lets her reach higher ledges, create a tightrope for Totec, or catch him should he fall to his death.

Co-operating is key to progression, and especially to solving many of the fiendish puzzles Crystal Dynamics has dreamed up, which often span multiple levels, regions and sections of the game. Complementing these are the Challenge rooms, infrequently dotted throughout each level, which offer rewards (more on those later) for their completion. And what if you don’t want to play it co-op? That aspect has been carefully thought of, too. Rather than be accompanied by an incompetent AI (Lost Planet 2, I’m looking at you), Lara instead ventures forth on her own, but she is given access to the platform-making spears, and puzzles are shifted around or altered subtly to make them possible to complete on your own, without making you feel like you’re only experiencing half of the game. Co-op is drop-in, drop-out, though currently only local play is supported- Crystal Dynamics intends to patch-in Xbox Live multiplayer later. There’s also an element of competitiveness added to the co-op, since each player accumulates points individually, leading to a bit of a mini-competition between players for killing enemies and grabbing loot.

Tomb Raider games have always had a bit of a collecting fetish, and Guardian of Light is no different in that regard. There are all kinds of hidden collectibles stashed throughout the levels, from the bog-standard health kits and ammo supplies to trophies, upgrades, red skulls and relics. Both Lara and Totec can collect symbols to upgrade their maximum health or ammo capacities, as well as equip up to three trophies that they’ve found, and one relic. The trophies enhance abilities in relatively minor ways, often to the detriment of another ability – one might increase your speed, for example, whilst lowering your defence, whilst another might increase your attack power at the cost of agility. There’s a bit of fun to be had experimenting with different trophies, but the real fun comes with relics. Only one can be equipped at a time, and they provide access to special powers – as long as your special power bar is full and you don’t take hit. These powers generally increase your damage, or add special properties to your attacks, such as scatter, which spreads attacks over a bigger area, and keeping them active for as long as possible can be a fun additional challenge – as well as a benefit.

Speaking of challenges, Guardian of Light has plenty of those on offer as well. Each level has its own ‘reward challenges,’ which, alongside score challenges, task you with completing a certain action on a level. This might be something simple, like jumping across a set of stepping stones without falling into the water, or something more devious like destroying all of a certain type of object in the level, and in every level there are 10 red skulls to hunt down and collect. These challenges add a hefty level of replay to the game, since each unlocks new upgrades, weapons, trophies or relics to play with.

Guardian of Light re-uses the impressive engine from Tomb Raider Underworld, and to great effect, bolstered by its superb lighting and loads of subtle details, like vegetation swaying in the wind or disturbed when a character passes through it. There’s plenty of physics effects and pyrotechnics as well, even some destructible scenery, as well as great animations for the characters. Keeley Hawes returns to voice Lara, once again suiting the part perfectly, though veteran voice actor Jim Cummings isn’t as convincing as Totec / Xolotl. Sound effects and music are recycled from Legend, Anniversary and Underworld, but that’s no bad thing given the strengths of both, and helps to create a feel of familiarity.

Written by :

James Hall