March 5th is almost here and with that will see the rebirth of video game icon Lara Croft. Crystal Dynamics has been hard at work putting the finishing touches on [amazon_link id=”B004FS8LYK” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Tomb Raider[/amazon_link] which sees Lara crash land on a tropical island and serves as her first adventure as we see the events that begin to shape the hardened character we know from previous installments.
The developer has been good to show off a lot of the process in making the game through a series of videos titled The Final Hours of Tomb Raider. They have been coming out every few months with the fourth installment being released this week. Hosted by Zachary Levi, (Chuck, Thor: The Dark World) the series focuses on many aspects of the development process including the motion capture process and the emotional tole the role has taken on actress Camilla Ludington. The second video shows the makers as they bring the game to the public for the first time in playable form at last year’s San Diego Comic Con. Next, you get a listen to how the game’s score came together complete with the fabrication of a brand new “instrument” made just for the unique sounds you will hear in the soundtrack.
A big announcement came when the fourth video in the series released this week with the addition of multiplayer for the first time ever in the Tomb Raider series. It is being developed by a completely separate team at Eidos Montreal. Please don’t think that this is just some tacked on multiplayer element. Teams will be using every bit of the terrain that is available including climbing walls with Lara’s climbing tool as well as being able to set booby traps for your opponents like fake ammunition crates that explode and snare traps. Zachary Levi is even a playable character so you can fulfill all of your Chuck video game fantasies (or is that just me?).
Catch up on the series below and we will keep you filled in with more [amazon_link id=”B004FSE52C” target=”_blank” container=”” container_class=”” ]Tomb Raider[/amazon_link] as March 5th draws near.
