Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration PS4 Pro Tech

20 Years of Tomb Raider: Digging Up the Past, Defining the Future Out Now

The "20 Years of Tomb Raider: Digging Up the Past, Defining the Future" book written by Meagan Marie is available now! Get yours at you local book store or online HERE. Inside you'll find a massive insight to the entire Tomb Raider franchise including fan content and unreleased games! I have the amazing pleasure of being featured in the book as well, Showing off some of my Tomb Raider tattoos! Be sure to pick up a copy for your collection!

Source: Official Tomb Raider Blog

Tomb Raider Comic #9 Out Now

The 9th issue of the comic series taking place after "Rise of the Tomb Raider" is available now! Get your copy from your local retailer or Dark Horse.

Preview:

"Escaping from a mental institution was just the beginning. Now Sam Nishimura is making her way across Europe and leaving a trail of destruction in her wake, gathering followers to her violent cause. Lara Croft and Jonah are on the case, trying to rescue Sam from the mysterious force that has overtaken her. But as haunting memories of Yamatai resurface and the sinister Order of Trinity gets more involved, this search-and-rescue mission becomes so much more."

Source: Dark Horse Comics

Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration Unboxing

Watch as I unbox the PS4 version of Rise of the Tomb Raider!

20 Year Celebration Medley

Player Piano and Crystal Dynamics debut the Tomb Raider 20 Year Celebration Medley along with an amazing music video! Composer and Pianist Sonya Belousova and Director Tom Grey beautifully blend Tomb Raider's Main Theme, The Angel of Darkness, Legend, and finally Tomb Raider 2013.

“I had an incredible time composing and producing the music for Crystal Dynamics,” said Composer and Pianist Sonya Belousova. “My goal was to reflect the spirit and the journey of the Tomb Raider franchise by travelling all the way from the intimate solo piano moments through the dark romantic lush strings to the epicness of the whole symphony orchestra.” 

“We wanted to capture the spirit of adventure found in the Tomb Raider series and I figured that there would be no better way than to take our piano on its own escapade to the desert, the forests, and in the center of a storm” elaborated Director Tom Grey. “We certainly had a lot of fun…I can’t say the same for the piano.”

Fans can download the track for free via SoundCloud and the sheet music to boot!

Source: Official Tomb Raider Blog

Tomb Raider in VR

Get a taste of what Tomb Raider's "Blood Ties" is like in VR mode and the development process behind it.

Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration Launch Material

Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration launches this coming Tuesday! Until then we've got a bunch of new screenshots and a glorious new trailer to tide us over. The game is releasing on PS4, but the new DLC and modes will be available for Xbox One and PC users as well with the Season Pass or separately.

Rise of the Tomb Raider: Woman VS Wild - Part Four - Croft Manor

The "Woman VS Wild" series continues with a deeper look at all that is to come in Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration, including Croft Manor! Check it out!

WIP Concepts for Lara Croft and the Blade of Gwynnever

Crystal Dynamics concept artist, Brandon Russell, demonstrates his process in creating the cover for Lara Croft and the Blade of Gwynnever. See the final cover and read more HERE.

ROTTR: 20 Year Celebration Gamescom Content

I was recently invited to a private viewing of the content shown at this past Gamescom event. I was joined by many of the other fansite webmasters as we watched the footage unfold and Meagan Marie and Will Kerslake answered some of our eager questions. What was previously only shown behind closed doors in the Gamescom Theatre is now revealed for all to see in the video above. Rich Briggs narrates the video giving a little more insight of what to expect without spoiling too much.

The demo opens up with what is called "Thin Ice," showcasing a section from the middle of the game. From what I could tell the game runs very beautifully on the PS4. We still need confirmation on the controllers supporting lighting and sound effects, as was with the reboot on PS4, but Will did mention the controller works as a flashlight in the VR mode of "Blood Ties." Speaking of VR, it sounds as though it is a very rich experience worth trying. Regarding the inclusion of old school, polygonal Lara skins, Meagan spoke of wanting to capture the history of the franchise with a good variety and even including the AOD sunglasses. The "Extreme Survival" difficulty mode sounds very difficult. There are no checkpoints. The only way to save is to fight your way to the next available campsite and ignite the camp. New achievements/trophies are added to the package as well.

Now the "Blood Ties" content in Croft Manor is what I'm most excited about. Lara's uncle is contesting her legal status in ownership of the Manor and she must find her father's will and testament to prove she is the rightful owner. This story-driven content actually fits into the main game's timeline in between Syria and Siberia, which I find is a nice touch. Lara wears her "London Jacket" outfit during this level as she discovers rooms she had never been in. There will be plenty of clues, relics, and even references to the old games. "So many throwbacks and secrets" Meagan noted. Will also spoke of "comments from Winston about certain freezing devices."

"Lara's Nightmare" is a new mode playable in Lara's Manor after completing the story portion. The level makes more sense to me now after hearing Meagan and Will elaborate. Think of it as Lara having a literal nightmare. Where everything that she has seen, everything she has encountered is culminating into one dark, twisted dream. It's the Manor story again, but then Lara's uncle is morphed into a demon like visage condemning her to death for fighting him on the matter of the estate. The manor is flooded with zombie-like men coming for Lara constantly. "Supernatural has always been a part of the Tomb Raider universe" said Meagan. You only have one life. You are trying to beat the level and get the highest score. You have to survive the hordes of zombies, destroy floating skull effigies, and then there is a boss apparently, which I did not see. The level is randomized each time you play as well which makes it that much more of a challenge.

Last, but not least is the Co-Op Endurance Mode which has you surviving with a friend in the bitter wilderness. This mode is only only, no local play. You both get to choose a couple of challenges and cards before starting and share them. The traps are more difficult in the fact that they do not slow down to give you time to shoot them. You need to disable them by tripping them first or you will die. Your teammate can revive you, bu you only have a limited number of revives. You can gain a revive by discovering a sarcophagi. You and your teammate share food and other supplies, but only if you are near each other. You individually collect weapons for more realism.

I, personally, am so excited to play this new content when it arrives on October 11th and I hope this inside information has you ready to play as well.

Check out more and pre-order HERE.