"Dragon's Lair/Home Sweet Home" analysis

Scottlee · 29-04-04, 21:25

Core’s ‘floating’ encore proceeds fisticuffs with both dragons and house burglars. This is climax time. Bartoli the dragon has nowhere else to run to, and if he did he would only burn the place down and waddle sheepishly through the embers. He must be destroyed. The flying guardians cannot forfil their potential inside indoor levels. They must be destroyed also. The ninja’s wear stereotypical black costumes akin to those usually worn by baddies in the Karate Kid movies. They too must perish, if only for their lack of class. Oh, and do I really need to give a reason as to why house burglars should fall victim to a spot of bad luck?

Last night, by the way…..
The Karate Kid- Well, that new neighbour of ours seems like an alright guy. Don’t you think so, Mr Miyaghi?

Mr Miyaghi (busy attending to a bonsai tree with a pair of toe clippers) - No, Daniel son! Neighbour wears black karate uniform. Black is symbol of evil. Most likely neighbour turn out to be guy you end up defeating with the crane kick in this year’s tournament.

The Karate Kid - Yeah, unluckily for him, huh? Mind you, it isn’t all bad for ninja’s in black uniforms. Some of them get recruited into the world of popular film and video entertainment. I met a guy last week who claims he had a bit-part in Tomb Raider 2 for the Playstation and P.C.

Mr Miyaghi Doesn’t surprise me Daniel son! I myself was asked to be a ninja in Tomb Raider 2.

The Karate Kid - Really? Wow! How come you didn’t accept?

Mr Miyaghi Can never travel to England, Daniel son. Must stay here and attend to Bonsai!”

The Karate Kid - Oh.

The game (TR2) abandons all pretensions of being half-puzzle, half action during these last two offerings before the credits. From hereon in it’s all about how quickly you can draw you weapon and aim it. The first indication of this comes with the last stand of the flying guardians right at the start of the Dragon’s Lair. Strangely, the setting here is almost exactly the same as the one at the beginning of the Tomb of Qualopec level in TR1; square room, doors in the middle of each of the four walls, enemies popping out from them every time you pull the available levers. The only thing missing it seems is a rolling boulder, but that’s no bad thing. I also seem to remember a room vaguely similar to this (albeit much smaller than the aforementioned two) in the Lost City of Tinnos level from TR3.

Slightly more enjoyable is the next area, the one with the dark room infested with large pillars and energetic ninja’s. The chore of wiping out the latter feels like a satisfying action scene from a Steven Seagal movie. There’s more room to move around in, too. You’ve no idea how much the outstretched circumference of a large spear limits the amount of ground you can actually walk on with a degree of safety. The ninja’s when trying to gang-bang you may have all the team co-ordination of Wolverhampton Wanderers’ back four, and but at least from a gamer-enjoying-his-video-game point of view they give you plenty of room to manoeuvre in. Two of them also kindly drop the appropriate keys that allow you access to the next section. Cheers, maties!

The battle with the dragon is like one of those Internet I.Q quizzes that just drag on and on depending on how gullible you are. I put the damn thing down on its knees nine times before realising there was probably something I wasn’t doing right. Core obviously expects you to go on even longer than that, because they’ve dumped enough spare uzi ammo under the water to keep a Colombian gunrunner in business for months. Why a dragon would have water in his lair in the first place, and worse still enough to fill a small reservoir, is another question. Lara of course totally rubs in this lack of forethought during the fight, first surviving being set on fire as she runs for a water hole, then by returning moments later completely healed and without a single burn mark on her entire body. Either the health packs are magical health packs or that dragon is blowing farts. Anyway, once you’ve pulled the dagger out of the dragon it’s time to mimic the ending of TR1 and sprint heroically out of the building before it collapses around you. Half of this we control. The other half we watch.

The shootout back at the Croft Mansion is the first and only time to date we’ve been given a sting-in-the-tail climax for our money. It’s a welcome addition to the main levels, but was clearly only thrown in late in the day. Not much time has been spent thinking up interesting ways for Lara to best the thugs, and some of the more interesting parts of the grounds are not even made use of (the assault course, the attic, the maze etc). Also, the motivations of those henchmen going there in the first place are quite dubious to me. They’ve seen the fate that awaited Bartoli when messing around with the Seraph, so why would they want to get it back again? I can only imagine their trip over from Rome to London is entirely revenge-based, bloody retaliation for Lara killing their leader. The Bond flick Diamonds are forever ends on a similar tone.

So, TR2 comes to an end. This is still the best game in the series IMO. The levels are consistantly great all the way through, where in most of the other entries there is the occasional horror of a level littered in amongst all the good ones. The path of the adventure is more exciting that in any other, the increased amount of shooting you have to do is fun, and the graphics and backdrops look fab. The music is also fab. I had more fun playing this Lara game than any other. It’s the one I would keep if I had to ditch five of the six. God I’m in a good mood now. Cya’s.

Best Part - Teaching the ninja’s a lesson

Worst Part - Not being able to do the crane kick on their sorry asses whilst you’re at it.

Secrets - There’s none in either of these levels, and in the Dragon Lair’s case there’s nowhere you could hide any anyway.

This level is most like - The Dragon’s lair is most like the final level on TR3, but I can’t remember what it’s called (Not ‘City of Tinnos’. I mean the short one that follows that). Home Sweet Home, meanwhile? Well, take your pick out of any of the training levels from TR1,2,and 3, or is that a cop-out?

No 1 in the list of things not to say in front of a girl who stops to admire your six pack when you’re washing the car - See, this is how you do it. WAX ON, WAX OFF. WAX ON, WAX OFF

All the things she said, all the things she said, running through my head, running through my head - And a month after the duo have split, nobody still can’t quite shed any light on what ‘she’ did say.

(And so my TR2 warbling come to a closure. I shall return soon to inflict boredom and grievance-literary-harm on all those with a passion for visiting the TR3 forum)

[ 29. April 2004, 22:28: Message edited by: Scottlee ]

ELEN · 29-04-04, 21:38

Excellent Scot!! Excellent!!! Who is gonna catch your sense of humor? (this Miyaghi\ Karate Kid dialogue really cracked me up

). Thanks!!

I'm really looking forward for your TR3 analysis

Bokkie · 30-04-04, 06:45

Excellent review Scottlee

You are going to write TR3 articles? Great, can't wait!

Celli · 30-04-04, 20:51

Your seemingly random thoughts always come at the right moment.

A great way to end your TR2 analysis.

What will you do now?

wantafanta · 23-05-04, 05:14

I too felled the dragon probably 4 times before realizing something must be wrong.
I finally noticed that dagger in its belly. This was no easy thing to do. The graphics were so poor you could hardly notice the tiny thing. I almost didn't pay any attention to it. Getting into position to pull it out wasn't easy to do either. Lara had to stand directly in front of it, quite difficult with only a second or two to spare.
Strange there was a large arena in an adjacent room which never gets to be used. It has no water in in it and it is impossible to outrun the dragon there, with no hiding places. Another meanspirited joke from the friendly folks at CORE!
All in all, the most difficult and frustrating level in the 3 TR games I have played, TR1,2 & AOD.

Ever since this level, I have been very suspicious of boss battles. There is usually some sneaky trick required. Brute force and perseverance are usually not enough.

Lara fan · 28-06-04, 07:37

GOOD 1 SCOTT LOL UR FUNNY

*claps*

SUGARPIE · 30-06-04, 19:26

What an excellent review, informative and thought-provoking. I tend to dread the last levels of any of the TR games simply because my suspicions are usually confirmed with the unwanted appearance of a particularly bullet resistant mutant.

As for the aforementioned dragon, I have to admit that quite by accident I discovered a fault in the game whereby standing Lara in a specific spot and then side-stepping her a few times to activate the dragon's appearance then repositioning her allows her to fire at will. The dragon becomes trapped behind a pillar, it's head peering round and the path of it's firey breath pointing away from Lara. Like many others I then had to fathom out what I was doing wrong when the blighter kept recovering. But from the spot I positioned Lara, the run up to the dragon's belly was short and straight, saving me valuable seconds and enabling me to complete the level.

This is probably one of the things that spoil the game for me personally - these particularly difficult creatures. They are perhaps unrealistic and far-fetched and I find it tiresome having to, for example at the end of TR1, keep dropping off that high ledge and shimmy to the corners, waiting for the BLOB to back off then climb up, fire 3 or four shotgun rounds then hang off the edge again. I also dislike some of the puzzles and having to keep running off and returning to the same room with another piece of the 'jigsaw' only to get something in the wrong order. I know some might suggest this is all part of the challenge and admittedly the relief that ensues once a particularly challenging puzzle has been solved does compensate. But there have been a number of times when I have turned the game off in frustration.

I think of all the games I have (every one aside from The Lost Artefact), TR2 3 and Chronicles are the best. TR2 because of the sheer diversity between locations. TR3 again because we got to see a bit of London where I once lived and of course the graphics had improved on this game. Chronicles I am still playing - it has some lovely haunting sounds in Ireland levels and I liked the submarine level enormously. I just hope that future games will not reflect a desire to become more techically advanced because sometimes sticking to original formats pleases the fans best. For example I was horrified when initially playing AOD. I found less fluidity in Lara's movement and the under water scenes are not smooth on the eye. The conversations just made me want to press the fast forward button!

On that note, I wonder if Core design actually employ people to research these forums to get the vibe on fans' wishes or is that just wishful thinking on my part?!

caisenma · 01-09-04, 18:21

I've been taking a bit of a Tomb Raider break lately (hence my disappearence from the forum), and suddenly I thought "damn, I never finished reading Scott's TR2 analysis!" and now I remember you're doing TR3 as well. I think I'll stick around.

29-04-04, 21:25	#1
Scottlee Relic Hunter Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Leeds, England Posts: 7,507	Core’s ‘floating’ encore proceeds fisticuffs with both dragons and house burglars. This is climax time. Bartoli the dragon has nowhere else to run to, and if he did he would only burn the place down and waddle sheepishly through the embers. He must be destroyed. The flying guardians cannot forfil their potential inside indoor levels. They must be destroyed also. The ninja’s wear stereotypical black costumes akin to those usually worn by baddies in the Karate Kid movies. They too must perish, if only for their lack of class. Oh, and do I really need to give a reason as to why house burglars should fall victim to a spot of bad luck? Last night, by the way….. The Karate Kid- Well, that new neighbour of ours seems like an alright guy. Don’t you think so, Mr Miyaghi? Mr Miyaghi (busy attending to a bonsai tree with a pair of toe clippers) - No, Daniel son! Neighbour wears black karate uniform. Black is symbol of evil. Most likely neighbour turn out to be guy you end up defeating with the crane kick in this year’s tournament. The Karate Kid - Yeah, unluckily for him, huh? Mind you, it isn’t all bad for ninja’s in black uniforms. Some of them get recruited into the world of popular film and video entertainment. I met a guy last week who claims he had a bit-part in Tomb Raider 2 for the Playstation and P.C. Mr Miyaghi Doesn’t surprise me Daniel son! I myself was asked to be a ninja in Tomb Raider 2. The Karate Kid - Really? Wow! How come you didn’t accept? Mr Miyaghi Can never travel to England, Daniel son. Must stay here and attend to Bonsai!” The Karate Kid - Oh. The game (TR2) abandons all pretensions of being half-puzzle, half action during these last two offerings before the credits. From hereon in it’s all about how quickly you can draw you weapon and aim it. The first indication of this comes with the last stand of the flying guardians right at the start of the Dragon’s Lair. Strangely, the setting here is almost exactly the same as the one at the beginning of the Tomb of Qualopec level in TR1; square room, doors in the middle of each of the four walls, enemies popping out from them every time you pull the available levers. The only thing missing it seems is a rolling boulder, but that’s no bad thing. I also seem to remember a room vaguely similar to this (albeit much smaller than the aforementioned two) in the Lost City of Tinnos level from TR3. Slightly more enjoyable is the next area, the one with the dark room infested with large pillars and energetic ninja’s. The chore of wiping out the latter feels like a satisfying action scene from a Steven Seagal movie. There’s more room to move around in, too. You’ve no idea how much the outstretched circumference of a large spear limits the amount of ground you can actually walk on with a degree of safety. The ninja’s when trying to gang-bang you may have all the team co-ordination of Wolverhampton Wanderers’ back four, and but at least from a gamer-enjoying-his-video-game point of view they give you plenty of room to manoeuvre in. Two of them also kindly drop the appropriate keys that allow you access to the next section. Cheers, maties! The battle with the dragon is like one of those Internet I.Q quizzes that just drag on and on depending on how gullible you are. I put the damn thing down on its knees nine times before realising there was probably something I wasn’t doing right. Core obviously expects you to go on even longer than that, because they’ve dumped enough spare uzi ammo under the water to keep a Colombian gunrunner in business for months. Why a dragon would have water in his lair in the first place, and worse still enough to fill a small reservoir, is another question. Lara of course totally rubs in this lack of forethought during the fight, first surviving being set on fire as she runs for a water hole, then by returning moments later completely healed and without a single burn mark on her entire body. Either the health packs are magical health packs or that dragon is blowing farts. Anyway, once you’ve pulled the dagger out of the dragon it’s time to mimic the ending of TR1 and sprint heroically out of the building before it collapses around you. Half of this we control. The other half we watch. The shootout back at the Croft Mansion is the first and only time to date we’ve been given a sting-in-the-tail climax for our money. It’s a welcome addition to the main levels, but was clearly only thrown in late in the day. Not much time has been spent thinking up interesting ways for Lara to best the thugs, and some of the more interesting parts of the grounds are not even made use of (the assault course, the attic, the maze etc). Also, the motivations of those henchmen going there in the first place are quite dubious to me. They’ve seen the fate that awaited Bartoli when messing around with the Seraph, so why would they want to get it back again? I can only imagine their trip over from Rome to London is entirely revenge-based, bloody retaliation for Lara killing their leader. The Bond flick Diamonds are forever ends on a similar tone. So, TR2 comes to an end. This is still the best game in the series IMO. The levels are consistantly great all the way through, where in most of the other entries there is the occasional horror of a level littered in amongst all the good ones. The path of the adventure is more exciting that in any other, the increased amount of shooting you have to do is fun, and the graphics and backdrops look fab. The music is also fab. I had more fun playing this Lara game than any other. It’s the one I would keep if I had to ditch five of the six. God I’m in a good mood now. Cya’s. Best Part - Teaching the ninja’s a lesson Worst Part - Not being able to do the crane kick on their sorry asses whilst you’re at it. Secrets - There’s none in either of these levels, and in the Dragon Lair’s case there’s nowhere you could hide any anyway. This level is most like - The Dragon’s lair is most like the final level on TR3, but I can’t remember what it’s called (Not ‘City of Tinnos’. I mean the short one that follows that). Home Sweet Home, meanwhile? Well, take your pick out of any of the training levels from TR1,2,and 3, or is that a cop-out? No 1 in the list of things not to say in front of a girl who stops to admire your six pack when you’re washing the car - See, this is how you do it. WAX ON, WAX OFF. WAX ON, WAX OFF All the things she said, all the things she said, running through my head, running through my head - And a month after the duo have split, nobody still can’t quite shed any light on what ‘she’ did say. (And so my TR2 warbling come to a closure. I shall return soon to inflict boredom and grievance-literary-harm on all those with a passion for visiting the TR3 forum) [ 29. April 2004, 22:28: Message edited by: Scottlee ]

29-04-04, 21:38	#2
ELEN Most Honourable Member Join Date: May 2002 Location: Athens, Greece Posts: 28,578	Excellent Scot!! Excellent!!! Who is gonna catch your sense of humor? (this Miyaghi\ Karate Kid dialogue really cracked me up ). Thanks!! I'm really looking forward for your TR3 analysis

30-04-04, 06:45	#3
Bokkie Administrator Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Serbia Posts: 6,333	Excellent review Scottlee You are going to write TR3 articles? Great, can't wait!

30-04-04, 20:51	#4
Celli World News Editor Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Michigan, US Posts: 6,070	Your seemingly random thoughts always come at the right moment. A great way to end your TR2 analysis. What will you do now?

23-05-04, 05:14	#5
wantafanta Archaeologist Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Chicago Posts: 1,296	I too felled the dragon probably 4 times before realizing something must be wrong. I finally noticed that dagger in its belly. This was no easy thing to do. The graphics were so poor you could hardly notice the tiny thing. I almost didn't pay any attention to it. Getting into position to pull it out wasn't easy to do either. Lara had to stand directly in front of it, quite difficult with only a second or two to spare. Strange there was a large arena in an adjacent room which never gets to be used. It has no water in in it and it is impossible to outrun the dragon there, with no hiding places. Another meanspirited joke from the friendly folks at CORE! All in all, the most difficult and frustrating level in the 3 TR games I have played, TR1,2 & AOD. Ever since this level, I have been very suspicious of boss battles. There is usually some sneaky trick required. Brute force and perseverance are usually not enough.

28-06-04, 07:37	#6
Lara fan Hobbyist Join Date: May 2004 Location: the glitter planet ^_^ Posts: 48	GOOD 1 SCOTT LOL UR FUNNY claps

30-06-04, 19:26	#7
SUGARPIE Junior Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Venus Posts: 3,249	What an excellent review, informative and thought-provoking. I tend to dread the last levels of any of the TR games simply because my suspicions are usually confirmed with the unwanted appearance of a particularly bullet resistant mutant. As for the aforementioned dragon, I have to admit that quite by accident I discovered a fault in the game whereby standing Lara in a specific spot and then side-stepping her a few times to activate the dragon's appearance then repositioning her allows her to fire at will. The dragon becomes trapped behind a pillar, it's head peering round and the path of it's firey breath pointing away from Lara. Like many others I then had to fathom out what I was doing wrong when the blighter kept recovering. But from the spot I positioned Lara, the run up to the dragon's belly was short and straight, saving me valuable seconds and enabling me to complete the level. This is probably one of the things that spoil the game for me personally - these particularly difficult creatures. They are perhaps unrealistic and far-fetched and I find it tiresome having to, for example at the end of TR1, keep dropping off that high ledge and shimmy to the corners, waiting for the BLOB to back off then climb up, fire 3 or four shotgun rounds then hang off the edge again. I also dislike some of the puzzles and having to keep running off and returning to the same room with another piece of the 'jigsaw' only to get something in the wrong order. I know some might suggest this is all part of the challenge and admittedly the relief that ensues once a particularly challenging puzzle has been solved does compensate. But there have been a number of times when I have turned the game off in frustration. I think of all the games I have (every one aside from The Lost Artefact), TR2 3 and Chronicles are the best. TR2 because of the sheer diversity between locations. TR3 again because we got to see a bit of London where I once lived and of course the graphics had improved on this game. Chronicles I am still playing - it has some lovely haunting sounds in Ireland levels and I liked the submarine level enormously. I just hope that future games will not reflect a desire to become more techically advanced because sometimes sticking to original formats pleases the fans best. For example I was horrified when initially playing AOD. I found less fluidity in Lara's movement and the under water scenes are not smooth on the eye. The conversations just made me want to press the fast forward button! On that note, I wonder if Core design actually employ people to research these forums to get the vibe on fans' wishes or is that just wishful thinking on my part?!

01-09-04, 18:21	#8
caisenma Historian Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Leeeeeeeeeeeeds, UK Posts: 398	I've been taking a bit of a Tomb Raider break lately (hence my disappearence from the forum), and suddenly I thought "damn, I never finished reading Scott's TR2 analysis!" and now I remember you're doing TR3 as well. I think I'll stick around.