Guess Who's Back?

I've been looking for something besides WoW to occupy my gaming time as the "treadmill" of MMORPG's is starting to get dull. There's a free download (500 meg!) of the new "Tomb Raider: Legend" game for the PC. After about 30 minutes, I loaded the program and was mightily impressed.

The intro to the game is very cinematic and quite sharp. The demo is an entire level and features the "well equipped" Lara (I'm talking about weapons and gear, of course) discovering a Bolivian temple and a band of terrorists who have taken up residence there.

The controls were tough to get used to having played WoW for so long. This is a typical case of the camera following a different lead from the movement so it took some time. Once I got the hang of that (Lara only died once) I got a chance to adjust to the character moves. Lara has a nice set of abilities that seem to mimic the new Prince of Persia trilogy. Targetting is easily handled by hitting the "G" key and then the guns begin blazing by pounding on "H". She also has a graple which can be used to swing over chasms as well as grapple and pull things close to her (bullwhip, anyone?)

I haven't made it through the whole level yet, but so far, it is a lot of fun. I'm running a mid-range video card (128 meg Xtasy) and it looks great. Lara looks a lot more human than previous incarnations and she's had a little reduction in the chest. (Sorry ladies, but she now also has a waist size of -1.)

All in all, if you're looking for good solo, adventure gaming, this Legend could be what you're looking for.