20 Years Later: Why Tomb Raider Chronicles Was The Franchise's Worst
While the world of video games has come a long way in the past 20 years, it's time to deliver a blast from the past with a look back at the maligned Tomb Raider Chronicles. Lara Croft has had plenty of adventures in her 24-year history; however, for every Tomb Raider (2013), we have a Chronicles. By the time the game came out in 2000, Lara had well and truly found her stride and was spewing out new games on a regular basis.
Unfortunately for Tomb Raider Chronicles, it was criticised for everything from its controls to storytelling. It also didn't help that Chronicles didn't get much love from the developers, making it a black sheep of the series. If you haven't played it, chances are you might never. Still, if you want a trip down memory lane, let's look at the facts and the controversial legacy of Tomb Raider Chronicles.
Why does everyone hate Tomb Raider Chronicles?
Click to enlargeIt's no secret that Tomb Raider Chronicles is a sidelined chapter in terms of development. In 2016, Game Designer Andy Sandham dubbed the game "a load of old sh*t". Sandham told Eurogamer, "Tomb Raider 5 was effectively a load of old sh*t. That was the most depressing one for us. We were effectively just doing that for a paycheck because no other team wanted to take it on. So we had to do it, basically. By that time, it had taken its toll. Three years of hammering it, and we were burnt out. That shows in the product".
The biggest problem came from the fact Lara Croft wasn't even meant to be around for Chronicles. 1999's Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation was held as a return to form and had a dramatic ending. When Lara fell to her death during a quest to Egpyt, and a temple fell around her, it looked pretty definitive that she'd met her maker. Sandham knew it was a risk to take, but one that was meant to end Lara's journey while it was still on some form of high.
Core Design had grown tired of the series and was keen to retire the character. Eidos put its foot down and demanded another outing, which led to Core Design splitting into two groups. While one worked on Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness for the PlayStation 2, a veteran team shifted focus to Chronicles on multiple platforms. The developers' hearts simply weren't in it, which might explain why Chronicles came toward the end of Core Designs' time with the series before it was handed over to Crystal Dynamics.
There were also gripes over the game's structure. With Lara "dead", Chronicles took on a flashback narrative and told stories from Lara's life that hadn't been seen before. Although this allowed the game to go on a tour of the globe and juggle several different designs, the general consensus was that some locales fared better than others. Weirdly, two levels took place on the exact same submarine. Added to this, Sandham didn't consult the original script for Tomb Raider, meaning there are several continuity errors.
Is Tomb Raider Chronicles really the franchise's worst?
Click to enlargeAmong the many complaints, Chronicles simply didn't move with the times - instead, rehashing a similar story and mechanics. At the time, GamePro said, "Despite the improved graphics and imaginative story, Tomb Raider Chronicles has the same controls as previous Tomb Raider games, and they feel as antiquated as any relic Lara ever unearthed."
Chronicles was not only declared as "too easy", but it was achingly short. News of Chronicles being a forgettable cash cow clearly spread as the game limped onto consoles and PC. If you thought Chronicles was just a matter of taste, the title didn't even do well. It wasn't only the developers who faced burnout. Looking at the stats, Tomb Raider Chronicles only sold 1.5 million copies, making in the lowest-selling entry to date.
Some hold Chronicles as being the end of the original era; however, Tomb Raider purists wouldn't even dare class it as that. To be fair, though, things could be worse. At least it wasn't Angel of Darkness, which had a smorgasbord of glitches also adding to its problems. Either way, the early '00s wasn't exactly great for Lara, and is a far cry from her recent resurgence with the reboot trilogy that started in 2013. As Tomb Raider Chronicles celebrates its 20th anniversary and grows old disgracefully, maybe it's time to dust it off and give it one more chance. Then again, maybe not.
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Images via Core Design
