Posted April 12, 2015
I have always been a huge Indy fan and even though I had owned Fate of Atlantis for a long time -- and absolutely love it, to the point of getting it again here on GOG as soon as it was released --, I've been postponing getting Emperor's Tomb, mostly because of some backlash the game gets from "professional reviewers" and even a lot of gamers. Well, let me just say this: they couldn't be more wrong about it.
Yesterday I finally decided I shouldn't let others decide for me and bought Emperor's Tomb. I haven't made it very far, yet (just arrived at Istanbul after that awesome Prague chapter), so my opinion may change in later levels of the game but, so far, I'm feeling this game is somehow truer to the Indy feel than the highly acclaimed Fate of Atlantis.
It's obvious that it draws a lot of gameplay mechanics and overall ambiance and feel of the early Tomb Raider games, it has been said to hell and back, but, as I see it, it's just an Indiana Jones game taking back what was rightfully its property to begin with -- it's undeniable how Tomb Raider was inspired by the Indiana Jones setting and premises, so, it's just right that an Indy game takes that back to the place where it all started. To give an example, I wouldn't mind at all if someone made a Spider-Man game blatantly using Batman Arkham's signature counters, as it is a mechanic that was downright taken off of Spider-Man's universe (cf. spider sense, down to the onscreen flashing arrows over Batman's head). Or how Sergio Leone's A Fistful Of Dollars is an almost shot-by-shot remake of Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo, though Yojimbo itself is inspired by Western works (namely, Red Harvest and Servant of Two Masters), so all Leone did was to "re-Westernize" the story. So, all of this to say I admittedly recognize Emperor's Tomb feels a lot like Tomb Raider games, but that's to be expected, as they predated it, and their distinctive elements were taken from the Indy universe to begin with.
Graphically it's definitely no power-house and I doubt it even was one when it came out, but the graphics hold up very well, in my modest opinion, and they serve their purpose. I like the reflective metal surfaces and other little touches of polish and attention like those. I find it to have an amazing art direction that ends up covering some shortcoming or other the engine might have, and if you're not a graphics junkie, then this game will still look quite pretty.
Controls seem fluid enough, Indy jumps and runs and moves around with no noticeable lag, everything is responsive. I've read people complaining about the platforming parts but, to be honest, they seem great to me, and, if anything, I tend to find combat a little boring -- I understand they give you an amazing plethora of combat choices, being able to pick up pretty much everything in your surroundings, but I tend to simply fistfight enemies, as it's quicker and they don't land a shot or two while I'm trying to pick up a chair, a table leg or a liquor bottle; when there are more than two enemies I usually use my guns, but that's it: I think combat is serviceable and nice, but I could do with less of it and more platforming and puzzling parts. I often have minor camera issues when trying to place it behind Indy whenever he's next to a wall, though it's only a minor issue and nothing more, easily solved as it's happening.
The lack of checkpoints and being able to save whenever I feel like it hasn't been that huge a deal for me, as well; every time I die after having done some extensive progress in a level I just take it as a sign of "OK, you've been playing for quite a while, so take a break, go read something, watch a movie or go for a walk and try it again later", and it has been working for me like so. Then again, I'm not that far into the game and there seems to be a "dreaded part" ahead that might change my mind about it, so I'll hold my peace until I can speak about it from experience. So far, it hasn't been troublesome, but we shall see.
And that's pretty much my opinions on it so far. Any Emperor's Tomb newcomers out there, feel free to speak your mind and share your experiences. And, veterans of the game, if you have advice or you just want to share your love for the game, feel free to chime in as well.
I will update this thread as soon as I either finish the game or reach a point that I find worth discussing.
Happy gaming!
[EDIT] As for the music and sound design side of things, I must admit I'm not that big an audiophile when it comes to video game music, especially when it's orchestrated stuff like the music in Emperor's Tomb. The unmistakable Indy theme is there and that's all that matters to me; music tends to add to the feel of a certain Indiana Jones-ness, and that means it's very well made, by my standards, even though I wouldn't care much for having the game's OST. The voice acting is great, I think the actor voicing Indy does a pretty good Harrison Ford impersonation, almost flawless, to be completely honest, down to voice flexion and tone. The person voicing the chinese girl isn't that great, but that's the only negative I can think of. She does her job, but it's a bit cringy to listen to, especially when you have such awesome voice talent all around.
Yesterday I finally decided I shouldn't let others decide for me and bought Emperor's Tomb. I haven't made it very far, yet (just arrived at Istanbul after that awesome Prague chapter), so my opinion may change in later levels of the game but, so far, I'm feeling this game is somehow truer to the Indy feel than the highly acclaimed Fate of Atlantis.
It's obvious that it draws a lot of gameplay mechanics and overall ambiance and feel of the early Tomb Raider games, it has been said to hell and back, but, as I see it, it's just an Indiana Jones game taking back what was rightfully its property to begin with -- it's undeniable how Tomb Raider was inspired by the Indiana Jones setting and premises, so, it's just right that an Indy game takes that back to the place where it all started. To give an example, I wouldn't mind at all if someone made a Spider-Man game blatantly using Batman Arkham's signature counters, as it is a mechanic that was downright taken off of Spider-Man's universe (cf. spider sense, down to the onscreen flashing arrows over Batman's head). Or how Sergio Leone's A Fistful Of Dollars is an almost shot-by-shot remake of Akira Kurosawa's Yojimbo, though Yojimbo itself is inspired by Western works (namely, Red Harvest and Servant of Two Masters), so all Leone did was to "re-Westernize" the story. So, all of this to say I admittedly recognize Emperor's Tomb feels a lot like Tomb Raider games, but that's to be expected, as they predated it, and their distinctive elements were taken from the Indy universe to begin with.
Graphically it's definitely no power-house and I doubt it even was one when it came out, but the graphics hold up very well, in my modest opinion, and they serve their purpose. I like the reflective metal surfaces and other little touches of polish and attention like those. I find it to have an amazing art direction that ends up covering some shortcoming or other the engine might have, and if you're not a graphics junkie, then this game will still look quite pretty.
Controls seem fluid enough, Indy jumps and runs and moves around with no noticeable lag, everything is responsive. I've read people complaining about the platforming parts but, to be honest, they seem great to me, and, if anything, I tend to find combat a little boring -- I understand they give you an amazing plethora of combat choices, being able to pick up pretty much everything in your surroundings, but I tend to simply fistfight enemies, as it's quicker and they don't land a shot or two while I'm trying to pick up a chair, a table leg or a liquor bottle; when there are more than two enemies I usually use my guns, but that's it: I think combat is serviceable and nice, but I could do with less of it and more platforming and puzzling parts. I often have minor camera issues when trying to place it behind Indy whenever he's next to a wall, though it's only a minor issue and nothing more, easily solved as it's happening.
The lack of checkpoints and being able to save whenever I feel like it hasn't been that huge a deal for me, as well; every time I die after having done some extensive progress in a level I just take it as a sign of "OK, you've been playing for quite a while, so take a break, go read something, watch a movie or go for a walk and try it again later", and it has been working for me like so. Then again, I'm not that far into the game and there seems to be a "dreaded part" ahead that might change my mind about it, so I'll hold my peace until I can speak about it from experience. So far, it hasn't been troublesome, but we shall see.
And that's pretty much my opinions on it so far. Any Emperor's Tomb newcomers out there, feel free to speak your mind and share your experiences. And, veterans of the game, if you have advice or you just want to share your love for the game, feel free to chime in as well.
I will update this thread as soon as I either finish the game or reach a point that I find worth discussing.
Happy gaming!
[EDIT] As for the music and sound design side of things, I must admit I'm not that big an audiophile when it comes to video game music, especially when it's orchestrated stuff like the music in Emperor's Tomb. The unmistakable Indy theme is there and that's all that matters to me; music tends to add to the feel of a certain Indiana Jones-ness, and that means it's very well made, by my standards, even though I wouldn't care much for having the game's OST. The voice acting is great, I think the actor voicing Indy does a pretty good Harrison Ford impersonation, almost flawless, to be completely honest, down to voice flexion and tone. The person voicing the chinese girl isn't that great, but that's the only negative I can think of. She does her job, but it's a bit cringy to listen to, especially when you have such awesome voice talent all around.
Post edited April 12, 2015 by groze
