170°

In The New Tomb Raider, Lara Croft Gets Woke

Forbes: We spoke to the narrative director of Shadow of the Tomb Raider, the new game in the Lara Croft series, to find out more about how Lara has matured alongside her audience.

yarbie10002404d ago

Ah, so that's why sales are so bad

nyu12404d ago

Ah, so you didn't read the article

lxeasy2404d ago

he's just trolling don't get worked up over it. I beat the game earlier this week and enjoyed it.

Inzo2404d ago

"how Lara has matured alongside her audience."

There is only one problem with that, this isnt the Tomb Raider her "matured" audience wants.

nyu12404d ago (Edited 2404d ago )

They can make Lara however they see fit. If they want to go realistic and serious, let them do that. Although it is difficult to pull off for sure.

Gh05t2404d ago (Edited 2404d ago )

"They can make Lara however they see fit."

No one said they COULDNT, they simply stated that a portion dont WANT what they are making. Two totally different things.

Hungryalpaca2404d ago

They did let them make it. They just didn’t buy it.

rainslacker2404d ago

Saying she matured implies that the character had some sort of growth throughout the trilogy. My question is, did that maturity come with the same suddenness as he getting over being assaulted and turning into a killing machine? The first couple games i wouldn't really say she matured at all, just kind of kept going on about her way, with some shallow "growth" to make the story passable.

starchild2404d ago

Hmm that's funny, I've been playing Tomb Raider since its inception and Shadow of the Tomb Raider has been a great experience for me. It has the right mix between the older and newer Tomb Raider games.

Gh05t2404d ago

"...it was important to us to use an element and emotion that video games can do very well: guilt."

Yes because that is what I want in my "games" that I play for FUN.

Also I expect more from "respected" publications than slang words like woke, have a little pride in what you do.

letsa_go2404d ago

What else would you expect from a feminist, liberal writer like this journalist? They seem to have infected the media.

nyu12404d ago (Edited 2404d ago )

"Yes because that is what I want in my "games" that I play for FUN. "

Precisely, I really hate that they try to make Lara a believable character with a serious narrative. Video games are supposed to be FUN. No serious emotions, because that defeats the point of the video game.

Similarly, all video games should just ditch any serious narrative. That's Mass Effect 2 sucked - it was dragged down by all those serious emotions. Why would we want that ? After all, we play games for FUN. Same for Uncharted 4 and The Last Of Us, especially the latter. It's supposed to be FUN, I have no idea why Naughty Dog tried to include a serious, believable story arc for the characters.

Same shit for the Bioshock series. Give me FUN, not complicated emotians. It's meant to be FUN.

:P

Gh05t2404d ago (Edited 2404d ago )

Mock all you want, I either didnt like or didnt play any game you just mentioned.

I dont like heavy story driven games, and I dont usually play them.

I focus on the gameplay and I prefer my drama and thought provoking art to not be my games.

It was clearly stated that is what "I want" and "I play for FUN." You can play for whatever reason you want, I dont want something im doing to relax to give me a guilt trip.

nyu12404d ago (Edited 2404d ago )

Okay, so that's clarified. You don't like the decision because you don't like story driven games in general.

It's still a bit weird seeing n4g circle jerking around this. Most people say they want story driven narrative focused games. If you talk about Anthem, everyone here will bitch about that (and I agree with them).

For some reason, now it's the opposite. I suppose it's because of the title using the word 'woke'. That's my only explanation.

Gh05t2404d ago

Not all story driven games need to (or do) make the player feel guilty. My issue is that particular emotion. If a game has a plot that is meant to make you feel upset at an event so you blast through the "enemy" with righteous indignation, cool, I get it, but guilt... That is like playing a game that is depressing and leaves you depressed... how is that a good thing in something called a "GAME"?

"Most people say they want story driven narrative focused games."

Most gamers (on N4G anyways) do, I am not one of those gamers.

"For some reason, now it's the opposite."

Hardly, I am one very minor voice who stands up for gameplay over story everytime. Most gamers still want story driven games, but as I said not all stories need to elicit a feeling of guilt for playing the game and not all gamers want a dev to make them feel GUILTY for being a TOMB RAIDER.

That in and of itself is the issue. Its cognitive dissonance at its core. You make a game where you raid tombs and then slap the player in the face with guilt for doing what the previous games were based off of, because all the sudden we grew a bleeding heart. At that point they should just stop making the game or make a new game based off of Doctors without borders or Green Peace or some crap but dont act like they arent changing the formula of the game and then wonder why people arent liking it.

Silly gameAr2404d ago

Woke is a slang word? Interesting.

Gh05t2404d ago

Not sure if serious or you are trying to be edgy and just dont know that yes "woke" is slang.

xX-oldboy-Xx2404d ago

Did Eddie Bravo write the headline? I despise modern English sometimes.

ot: I haven't been interested in Tomb Raider since PS1.

x_xavier_x2404d ago

Modern English had a few decent songs and one classic.

Cajun Chicken2404d ago

I love this series.The reboot series has been far more accessable to me to play and generally designed far better, part inspired by Uncharted which was obviously inspired by Tomb Raider, but offering something totally different than Uncharted has. Old Lara controlled like a tank and it was difficult to make her backup or somersault. I understand the culture behind the original Tomb Raider and Lara, but these are so much better. I actually LIKE Lara in this series, she's not just an upper class twit getting her head over the Mafia and supernatural relics. She's strong but still shows signs of weakness as anyone will with the things she's seen. Jonah is a great addition and it makes you wonder what this Lara will become without Jonah. This is MY Tomb Raider.

LucasRuinedChildhood2404d ago

Modern Lara and Jonah barely qualify as actual characters. Both of them lack personality (plain, boring and unlikeable), believable motivations, decent dialogue or good voice acting.

I like the new Tomb Raider games but the story is a disaster. Also there was a second TR trilogy with good controls. Rise Of The Tomb Raider ripped a lot of its story from those games.

Hungryalpaca2404d ago

It may be your tomb raider but as a fan of the pat games it sure as hell ain’t mine.

starchild2404d ago

Well good for you. I've played the series since the beginning and Shadow of the Tomb Raider feels very much like the older Tomb Raider games, only better and more refined in nearly every way.

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70°

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33: How the 'Game of the Year' was made

The makers of a video game that even impressed the French president tell the unusual tale of its development.

210°

Ex-Far Cry lead says ‘lame’ Nintendo Switch 2 Game-Key Cards lose what makes gaming ‘special’

Former Assassin's Creed and Far Cry lead Alex Hutchinson explains that Nintendo will get away with their awful Game Key Cards.

Read Full Story >>
videogamer.com
darthv7214h ago

...still better than a one time use code in a box.

Neonridr13h ago

people here forget that Sony sells Collector's Editions of games (God of War, Horizon, etc) that give you a steelbook with no disc. Just a code on a piece of paper. But because some 3rd party devs are choosing this route it's all Nintendo's fault.

Si-Fly13h ago

If the option was a physical cartridge or a game key card then that would be the best possible situation. However it’s looking increasingly like game key cards will totally phase out physical media and that is really disappointing. I have a huge physical Switch libary and was looking forward to doing the same for the Switch 2.

staticall11h ago

@Neonridr
But it was Nintendo, who introduced this game key thingy. So it's 100% their fault.

CrimsonWing6914h ago

Ironic coming from an ex-Ubisoft lead dev.

SPEAKxTHExTRUTH13h ago

How so? Do you think devs have any say on how a game is distributed?

Neonridr13h ago

yes.. they could pay full price to put their games on a cartridge, or pay less and provide a digital code and save money.

Which do you think devs would opt for?

CrimsonWing6913h ago

It wasn’t about distribution… 🤦‍♂️

The irony being him criticizing what creates of the loss of making gaming feel “special.” You know, annual releases with a paint-by-number blue print, monetization, and in general just Ubisoft practices for the last decade.

Sorry that one went over your head.

SPEAKxTHExTRUTH11h ago

Then maybe you should do a better job of making your point instead of readers assuming what you’re trying to say.

Muigi14h ago

Yet most games these days on Blu-ray's don’t even contain the full game or the game at all. But he wasn’t complaining when he was at Ubisoft tho.

Christopher13h ago

Kind of normal to not want to get fired for public complaints about your company, though.

Duke1913h ago

Buying a physical box, just to open it for a glorified QR code is a shitty practice but I can absolutely see it becoming the norm sadly.

The enjoyment of owning something physically is going away, now its just a paid trial of services you never really "own".

Neonridr13h ago

except this is still a physical cartridge that you have to put in your console. You just have to download the entire game. But instead of it just being a code in a box (which is a one time use), you could still sell this or lend it to your friend.

It's not great no, but it's nothing like what we had with some Switch games.

Duke1913h ago

Fair, its better than a one time use code but it I agree with the point in the article. It still takes away from the overall experience (especially from a nostalgia perspective).

Neonridr11h ago

@Duke19 - I mean we have digital edition only consoles now from MS and Sony. That's ok?

Seems like this is just a physical vs digital conversation, you can't exactly single out Nintendo here as everyone seems to be doing it.

gold_drake12h ago

thisnis definitely gonna bite nintendo in the arse in some way.

kids mostly use the consoles and not all parents know what to do with it.

also, what if u dont or cant use wifi ? lol

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240°

Nintendo Sues Accessory Maker for Switch 2 Leak

Nintendo is suing Genki, a Japanese accessory maker, for showing a replica of the Nintendo Switch 2 before its official announcement.

MDTunkown1d 17h ago

Won’t be surprised that they will blame Genki for missing the target sales. After all it’s Genki that decided to price the console and games

Christopher1d 16h ago

Aren't they already sold out on preorders in most places?

MDTunkown1d 12h ago

It’s still not hard to find them here in Europe. Amazon fr even until this weekend sold them for 20 euro cheaper than market price.

Profchaos1d 3h ago

US and Japan are sold out Australia is in stock and UK has limited stock in some retailers left

Agent751d 16h ago

The money that Nintendo lost on Wii U, they made up for on Switch, but still, the loss is still there. All guns blazing with Switch 2 pricing, suing Genki is a 'we need to make money' exercise. Goes without saying that Switch 2 will sell out at launch, but once it settles down, the masses won't pay it.

Profchaos16h ago

Actually the 3DS kept Nintendo afloat during the Wii U era it was a huge hit with a healthy profit margin

Profchaos1d 3h ago

Genki abused its position as a partner to drum up hype for their business so they deserve the lawsuit however it's not going to be blamed for missing any targets

Dhika1d 17h ago

They should be renamed to "Suetendo" haha

xHeavYx1d 10h ago

Please don't laugh at the end of your own jokes

Yui_Suzumiya1d 4h ago

I was once addicted to soap but now I'm clean, haha

jznrpg1d 17h ago

It’s almost identical to the first Switch. No surprise.

Profchaos1d 3h ago

Pretty clear cut here they were under a partnership agreement here they violated that

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