My greatest source of shame

Sat42 · 24-11-22, 22:17

Hi all,

So I have previously stated how Tomb Raider II was my first Tomb Raider game - I actually got my first experience around the age of 8 at some friends' place and holy s**t I thought it looked realistic and scary as hell! (that impression came from The Great Wall and Venice - that's all I saw besides Croft Manor) I only got the game for myself at the age of 12 and only finished it around the age of 16...
There was a hiatus.
Why?
No, having to call my friend when I was 12 (with landline) to figure out what to do on the Great Wall exterior (where you need to dive into a small lake and swim into a small tunnel to find a key) doesn't count as a great source of shame (I was simply inexperienced and not thinking the way this sort of game demanded). Besides, my friend knew the answer so I was able to proceed.
No. The reason for the hiatus was Venice.
How to get to the exit on time? Crazy sequence with a motor boat where you need to navigate everything perfectly, jump out just before the mines to let the boat trigger them without getting yourself blown up, and swim to the timed gate as efficiently as possible in order to squeeze through before it closes! My brother and I couldn't do it.
But eventually I came back to the game some years later, with renewed determination!
After much training through repeated attempts and reloads, I finally pulled it off! And for your info: the closing doors had begun to snag on me as I desperately lurched forward on that final victorious lap...
That's it! In the end, I only ever needed a walthrough once for Tomb Raider II (the call to that friend for the key in the pool does not count), in The Deck, and I explained this before in another thread (quoting myself: where I needed help was with figuring out how to get past the huge propeller to the underground lake in the first place - I had the stern key, but it didn't occur to me that the stern entrance was hidden behind those movable crates which I had only partially played with...

)
But now you know my greatest source of shame: I never figured out the simply logical puzzle which was the intended way to beat the level, no ma'am, I never did think of using the lock in order to bring over a spare boat for the finale.
Just... damn!
Besides that: no I did not figure out the 'cheater's way' either
https://tombraiders.net/stella/walks...s/venice45.jpg
but now I know why one of my friends was confused back in the day: he'd go on about how you can actually swim to the exit faster than you can get there by boat. I told him he was full of s**t - turns out he was just misremembering...

What is your greatest source of shame? (Tomb Raider related please!

)

Mokono · 25-11-22, 00:07

I was 7 when TRII first released and i couldn't for the life of me get past the traps in The Great Wall. I remember my cousin actually finished the level for me.

Same thing with Venice. Silly little me couldn't figure out you needed both boats to finish the level.

After that, i kept playing myself until the end of the game i believe.

**TombHackR** · 25-11-22, 12:00

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sat42

No. The reason for the hiatus was Venice.
How to get to the exit on time? Crazy sequence with a motor boat where you need to navigate everything perfectly, jump out just before the mines to let the boat trigger them without getting yourself blown up, and swim to the timed gate as efficiently as possible in order to squeeze through before it closes! My brother and I couldn't do it.

I don't think I have ever done the proper way of getting the boats in Venice through the timed door

. It baffled me and my dad years and years ago how we could possibly make it through that timed door... years later, I discovered the cheaters' way of getting through; which, I think is the only ever shortcut/glitch I've independently discovered and not found from the internet or somewhere else.

perryloo · 25-11-22, 19:31

Timed runs in tomb raider are always difficult. They got harder as the games progressed up to TR4, and many custom games you are pulling your hair out trying to get to the end of a timed run, as you only have a second to spare.

The answer is just practice to get through a run, just countless runs, and see if there are methods of short cuts, till you eventually get through

fallenangle · 26-11-22, 01:00

I think one of he hardest timed puzzles was actually in TR1 - in The Colosseum where you get, I think, the magnum pistols.

But thinking about that reminded me also about the secret room in St.Francis' Folly I completely missed first time.

Even when you know what's going on, and you won't first time through, you're simply not given enough time to get down to the floor level unless you've planned the route or are willing to take massive damage.

So I'd argue the opposite is the case - the critical timed challenges slowly get, slightly, easier as the series developed.

I'm probably forgetting things in TR5 but the only timed challenge in that I remember having difficulty with and even knowing what was going on was the VCI shooting range.

JoelCaesar · 26-11-22, 07:26

Then there's me that as a kid couldn't get past River Ganges in TRIII because I couldn't figure out how to get off the quad bike.

DenisTheRaider · 27-11-22, 10:21

I think I was 9 when I first played Tomb Raider II. I started the game and i had no ideea what to do! I kept drowning Lara into the small water pool at the begging of the level!
Fun fact that was my very first time I played TR!

NikkySan · 28-11-22, 03:00

I use downloaded save games off Stella’s site to get past any bit in TR2 when I have to swim while avoiding sharks. The sharks actually terrify me and I just hit a mental block whenever I reach the Maria Doria levels. I would replay TR2 way more often if sharks didn’t exist in that game.

Fishta · 28-11-22, 05:14

First time playing TR4(also the first game of TR I play) I didn't know rope swinging key is also for sprinting. So it's like I was playing TR2 instead. I couldn't read or understand English at that time, and I didn't look for manuals written in the language I use. Everyone around me didn't know Lara can sprint, even my cousin not, who brought me to TR. She mocked me

when she watched me playing TR4 as I was a newbie plus she played it more than me

24-11-22, 22:17	#1
Sat42 Hobbyist Join Date: Aug 2017 Posts: 49	My greatest source of shame Hi all, So I have previously stated how Tomb Raider II was my first Tomb Raider game - I actually got my first experience around the age of 8 at some friends' place and holy st I thought it looked realistic and scary as hell! (that impression came from The Great Wall and Venice - that's all I saw besides Croft Manor) I only got the game for myself at the age of 12 and only finished it around the age of 16... There was a hiatus. Why? No, having to call my friend when I was 12 (with landline) to figure out what to do on the Great Wall exterior (where you need to dive into a small lake and swim into a small tunnel to find a key) doesn't count as a great source of shame (I was simply inexperienced and not thinking the way this sort of game demanded). Besides, my friend knew the answer so I was able to proceed. No. The reason for the hiatus was Venice*. How to get to the exit on time? Crazy sequence with a motor boat where you need to navigate everything perfectly, jump out just before the mines* to let the boat trigger them without getting yourself blown up, and swim to the timed gate as efficiently as possible in order to squeeze through before it closes! My brother and I couldn't do it. But eventually I came back to the game some years later, with renewed determination! After much training through repeated attempts and reloads, I finally pulled it off! And for your info: the closing doors had begun to snag on me as I desperately lurched forward on that final victorious lap... That's it! In the end, I only ever needed a walthrough once for Tomb Raider II (the call to that friend for the key in the pool does not count), in The Deck, and I explained this before in another thread (quoting myself: where I needed help was with figuring out how to get past the huge propeller to the underground lake in the first place - I had the stern key, but it didn't occur to me that the stern entrance was hidden behind those movable crates which I had only partially played with... ) But now you know my greatest source of shame: I never figured out the simply logical puzzle which was the intended way to beat the level, no ma'am, I never did think of using the lock in order to bring over a spare boat for the finale. Just... damn! Besides that: no I did not figure out the 'cheater's way' either https://tombraiders.net/stella/walks...s/venice45.jpg but now I know why one of my friends was confused back in the day: he'd go on about how you can actually swim to the exit faster than you can get there by boat. I told him he was full of s**t - turns out he was just misremembering... What is your greatest source of shame? (Tomb Raider related please! )

26-11-22, 07:26	#6
JoelCaesar Professor Join Date: Mar 2016 Location: 8th DLC's Tomb Posts: 2,512	Then there's me that as a kid couldn't get past River Ganges in TRIII because I couldn't figure out how to get off the quad bike. __________________ Just think. You wouldn't be needing those unsightly weapons anymore. :)

27-11-22, 10:21	#7
DenisTheRaider Hobbyist Join Date: Sep 2022 Location: Offshore Rig Posts: 13	I think I was 9 when I first played Tomb Raider II. I started the game and i had no ideea what to do! I kept drowning Lara into the small water pool at the begging of the level! Fun fact that was my very first time I played TR! __________________ "not everyone here wants to be guinea pigs"

25-11-22, 00:07	#2
Mokono Relic Hunter Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Perú Posts: 8,865	I was 7 when TRII first released and i couldn't for the life of me get past the traps in The Great Wall. I remember my cousin actually finished the level for me. Same thing with Venice. Silly little me couldn't figure out you needed both boats to finish the level. After that, i kept playing myself until the end of the game i believe.

25-11-22, 19:31	#4
perryloo Explorer Join Date: Jan 2021 Location: Sunny UK Posts: 663	Timed runs in tomb raider are always difficult. They got harder as the games progressed up to TR4, and many custom games you are pulling your hair out trying to get to the end of a timed run, as you only have a second to spare. The answer is just practice to get through a run, just countless runs, and see if there are methods of short cuts, till you eventually get through

26-11-22, 01:00	#5
fallenangle Archaeologist Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: NW London Posts: 2,073	I think one of he hardest timed puzzles was actually in TR1 - in The Colosseum where you get, I think, the magnum pistols. But thinking about that reminded me also about the secret room in St.Francis' Folly I completely missed first time. Even when you know what's going on, and you won't first time through, you're simply not given enough time to get down to the floor level unless you've planned the route or are willing to take massive damage. So I'd argue the opposite is the case - the critical timed challenges slowly get, slightly, easier as the series developed. I'm probably forgetting things in TR5 but the only timed challenge in that I remember having difficulty with and even knowing what was going on was the VCI shooting range.

28-11-22, 03:00	#8
NikkySan Hobbyist Join Date: Jan 2013 Posts: 76	I use downloaded save games off Stella’s site to get past any bit in TR2 when I have to swim while avoiding sharks. The sharks actually terrify me and I just hit a mental block whenever I reach the Maria Doria levels. I would replay TR2 way more often if sharks didn’t exist in that game.

28-11-22, 05:14	#9
Fishta Hobbyist Join Date: Aug 2013 Posts: 41	First time playing TR4(also the first game of TR I play) I didn't know rope swinging key is also for sprinting. So it's like I was playing TR2 instead. I couldn't read or understand English at that time, and I didn't look for manuals written in the language I use. Everyone around me didn't know Lara can sprint, even my cousin not, who brought me to TR. She mocked me when she watched me playing TR4 as I was a newbie plus she played it more than me