Review
Played on: PlayStation
Released: 1997
Released: 1997
Much the same story as with my TR1 review, I only played partially played TR2 through a friend, back when it was released. Differently from TR1 though, I borrowed TR2 from said friend as I finally got a PS1 in 1997. I ended up playing it more than TR1. I don’t recall my skills being particularly good and as such I've never fully completed it from beginning to end. I saw most of the levels through watching my friend play.
Having gone back and completed TR1 properly by myself last year, I decided to continue with TR2 this year, which will have its the 25th anniversary in November.
After an intriguing intro, showing the powers of the Chinese myth of Dagger of Xian, TR2 boldly begins with a level at the Chinese wall. Showcasing a large area, with the sky above and new lighting effects. It’s an ambitious first level, with tigers, open aired spaces and massive buildings. You’re also introduced to some of Lara’s new abilities like climbing walls and turning quickly, 360 degrees, underwater.
After an intriguing intro, showing the powers of the Chinese myth of Dagger of Xian, TR2 boldly begins with a level at the Chinese wall. Showcasing a large area, with the sky above and new lighting effects. It’s an ambitious first level, with tigers, open aired spaces and massive buildings. You’re also introduced to some of Lara’s new abilities like climbing walls and turning quickly, 360 degrees, underwater.
Overall, she feels a little nimbler and quicker in her movement, make no mistake though the gameplay is still the mechanical movement of TR1s tank controls. But like I mentioned in my TR1 review, these controls work well with how the levels are designed.
Following the initial impressive Chinese wall level, however, are TR2s more problematic levels. While they interestingly feature Venice's streets of water, they quickly introduce the player to awkward level design. There’s something a bit off about the bland and ordinary buildings. Lara is comparably scaled weird with the block-based 3D engine of Tomb Raider making houses seem oversized with massive windows, doors and rooms compared to Lara.
This is where you also realise there’s a large amount of human enemies shooting at you too. Which is feels like a generic choice and a change I don't care for. TR2 loses momentum quickly, a turn towards something I didn’t want the franchise to go. I get the action focus, considering its time of release, but in hindsight shooting mafia members with guns makes it seem like any other shooter. Add in the cumbersome aiming and shooting mechanics that just aren’t well equipped for close quarter combat and the Venice levels end up disappointing.
Luckily, TR2 turns the tides from here. Venice ends on a high note with a fantastic Opera house level, albeit with more shooting, but it has a dark and creepy vibe to it. What follows are levels that outdo each other one after another. We go to an oil rig, which turns out to be a non-typical, but effective Tomb Raider level. Building up the story for an underwater dive to a massive shipwreck at the bottom of the ocean! This wreck is so large there are several levels contained within and they are great.
Giving vibes from exploring something like the Titanic, the whole wreck is upside down and Lara must find her way through it. Resulting in many claustrophobic swimming sections through elegant old ship compartments. Swimming is, luckily, still excellent in TR2 and this time Lara even has a proper wetsuit for the occasion and a harpoon gun to defend herself underwater!
Let-downs aside, even in the shipwreck there are human enemies, for this playthrough I lay aside my dislike for human enemies rather than animal ones, which suit the franchise better. I chose to accept it and move on, it felt easier to just focus in on the exploring part. Regardless, there are a lot of animals and nasty creatures to fight too, luckily!
From the shipwreck, TR2 continues to impress even more. We move to the snow filled mountains of Tibet, complete with an entertaining snow scooter section arriving at a massive monk temple. The mountains surrounding these levels bring back happy memories of TR1 and then some.
Following the initial impressive Chinese wall level, however, are TR2s more problematic levels. While they interestingly feature Venice's streets of water, they quickly introduce the player to awkward level design. There’s something a bit off about the bland and ordinary buildings. Lara is comparably scaled weird with the block-based 3D engine of Tomb Raider making houses seem oversized with massive windows, doors and rooms compared to Lara.
This is where you also realise there’s a large amount of human enemies shooting at you too. Which is feels like a generic choice and a change I don't care for. TR2 loses momentum quickly, a turn towards something I didn’t want the franchise to go. I get the action focus, considering its time of release, but in hindsight shooting mafia members with guns makes it seem like any other shooter. Add in the cumbersome aiming and shooting mechanics that just aren’t well equipped for close quarter combat and the Venice levels end up disappointing.
Luckily, TR2 turns the tides from here. Venice ends on a high note with a fantastic Opera house level, albeit with more shooting, but it has a dark and creepy vibe to it. What follows are levels that outdo each other one after another. We go to an oil rig, which turns out to be a non-typical, but effective Tomb Raider level. Building up the story for an underwater dive to a massive shipwreck at the bottom of the ocean! This wreck is so large there are several levels contained within and they are great.
Giving vibes from exploring something like the Titanic, the whole wreck is upside down and Lara must find her way through it. Resulting in many claustrophobic swimming sections through elegant old ship compartments. Swimming is, luckily, still excellent in TR2 and this time Lara even has a proper wetsuit for the occasion and a harpoon gun to defend herself underwater!
Let-downs aside, even in the shipwreck there are human enemies, for this playthrough I lay aside my dislike for human enemies rather than animal ones, which suit the franchise better. I chose to accept it and move on, it felt easier to just focus in on the exploring part. Regardless, there are a lot of animals and nasty creatures to fight too, luckily!
From the shipwreck, TR2 continues to impress even more. We move to the snow filled mountains of Tibet, complete with an entertaining snow scooter section arriving at a massive monk temple. The mountains surrounding these levels bring back happy memories of TR1 and then some.
TR2 isn’t scared of throwing you into more cunning, brutal and often scary sections to keep players at their toes. To avoid spoilers, the levels further in you’ll have to explore for yourself, but they're excellent levels all the way through to the ending.
What helps TR2 out in favour of TR1 is the more cinematic, richer and intriguing story. While TR1 excelled at loneliness and atmosphere, it was sparsely presented in its cutscenes. Leaving the player with hours of gameplay with no explanation. TR2 improves this massively. Cutscenes are polished and its story flows and captivates the player far better. In addition to the much improved CGI cutscenes, it even uses in-game cutscenes to flesh out the script with far more dialogue than the first game.
This polish echoes into the graphics too. TR2 is more ambitious visually in its variety. Sure, we have mountainous tombs and ancient ruins, but TR2 outdoes itself in variety and creativity. It dares to have massive open areas beneath the sky, or large buildings with lots of rooms and secret passages, as well as the familiar tombs and rock tunnels from the first game.
What helps TR2 out in favour of TR1 is the more cinematic, richer and intriguing story. While TR1 excelled at loneliness and atmosphere, it was sparsely presented in its cutscenes. Leaving the player with hours of gameplay with no explanation. TR2 improves this massively. Cutscenes are polished and its story flows and captivates the player far better. In addition to the much improved CGI cutscenes, it even uses in-game cutscenes to flesh out the script with far more dialogue than the first game.
This polish echoes into the graphics too. TR2 is more ambitious visually in its variety. Sure, we have mountainous tombs and ancient ruins, but TR2 outdoes itself in variety and creativity. It dares to have massive open areas beneath the sky, or large buildings with lots of rooms and secret passages, as well as the familiar tombs and rock tunnels from the first game.
The lighting needs to be mentioned too, its cleverly used. Distinct coloured levels with usage of effects like flickering lights, torches or cool flares. Lighting up the world in a way TR1 technically couldn't. Seeing Lara’s dark silhouette in a doorway in front of a blue or orange tinted room is impressive, considering the age of the game.
As with other titles from this era, I usually play the NTSC version, TR1 was not PAL optimised anyhow. But after seeing slowdown occur here and there in TR1 and knowing well that TR2 was even more ambitious, I settled for the PAL version of TR2. It's properly optimised for PAL and allows the PS1 a 25 fps chance at catching up when the framerate drops. Although, playing on a CRT its nowhere near the problems you see with modern screens and slowdown, it feels responsive regardless.
As a little cherry on top, I found the unfiltered rougher textures of TR1 suit the PS1 output nicely. However, for TR2, with its more varied locations, I went with playing it on the PS2 and added the often forgotten texture smoothing filter. Making it look less rough on the eye and it really suited the locations, I can’t think of a better usage of a PS1 game running on a PS2. Plus, the added bonus of speeding up loading times is neat too. For a controller I stuck with my beloved, d-pad only, standard PS1 controller!
As with other titles from this era, I usually play the NTSC version, TR1 was not PAL optimised anyhow. But after seeing slowdown occur here and there in TR1 and knowing well that TR2 was even more ambitious, I settled for the PAL version of TR2. It's properly optimised for PAL and allows the PS1 a 25 fps chance at catching up when the framerate drops. Although, playing on a CRT its nowhere near the problems you see with modern screens and slowdown, it feels responsive regardless.
As a little cherry on top, I found the unfiltered rougher textures of TR1 suit the PS1 output nicely. However, for TR2, with its more varied locations, I went with playing it on the PS2 and added the often forgotten texture smoothing filter. Making it look less rough on the eye and it really suited the locations, I can’t think of a better usage of a PS1 game running on a PS2. Plus, the added bonus of speeding up loading times is neat too. For a controller I stuck with my beloved, d-pad only, standard PS1 controller!
Summarising then, TR2 does for the Tomb Raider franchise, what RE2 did for the Resident Evil franchise, it takes the premise of the first game but adds more variation, weapons, enemies, cutscenes and overall polish to the idea and ends up being objectively the stronger title as a whole.
Its where the series gains its blueprint for years to come, with things like Laras costume changes and vehicles sections being used for many entries thereafter. Unlike RE2 though, TR2 is a sequel that takes for granted players skill from playing the first game. Harshly throwing cunning traps at you, even in the very first level. TR2 can be brutally hard in sections, requiring many a restart from your save.
Personally, I'm more drawn atmospherically to TR1, as with the first Resident Evil; their empty, darker and lonelier approach to tension. That said, overall, the sequels have more refined gameplay and better when it comes to variation, presentation and appealing momentum. Most players will prefer the lean towards more action anyhow and thus the sequels are the most cherished in hindsight.
What a landmark title to finally completely finish, its right up there with the first game, but for me I prefer slightly the pace and atmosphere of the first. For most others though, this is their favourite.
What a landmark title to finally completely finish, its right up there with the first game, but for me I prefer slightly the pace and atmosphere of the first. For most others though, this is their favourite.
