Portable Gaming Revolution

IGN has posted a hands-on preview of Tomb Raider: Legend. When Tomb Raider first launched in 1996, the series took off. The series gained much popularity partly because of Lara herself but also because it was actually fun. The game offered large 3D environments for you to explore to your hearts content. However, as time past by, the series slowly degraded too the point where no one would even touch the game.

Then came Legend, which revitalized the series with beautiful graphics, detailed environments, and excellent voice work. Despite its shortcomings, gamers were generally pretty satisfied with the game. The game has already been released on PC, PS2, XBOX, and X360 and is slated to be released for the GameCube and PSP later this year. IGN got a chance to play with an early build of the PSP version at the E3 2006 Preshow.

The good news is that Lara will be coming to the PSP intact. In fact, the PSP version will include bonus content not available in the console version.

To start, just know everything from the console versions makes it into this portable edition. Everything from missions and weapons to secrets and bonuses appear in full form. What’s more, the interface you use to access said weapons and missions looks exactly the same. It’s no big thing, of course, but it helps make it feel like you’re getting the same package as those who bought the game for the PS2 or Xbox. More importantly, the game retains the same complex level design throughout the entire adventure.

Read the full preview