Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation spells the final outing for Lara Croft on the PlayStation. With this latest chapter in the popular series, Eidos has taken Lara back to her roots - tombs. Unlike the previous games where Lara trotted all over the world, this time around she spends the entire game in Egypt traversing deep and dark ancient ruins. Unfortunately, despite a more focused storyline and setting, the game doesn't really bring anything new to the genre.

The biggest problem I have with this game is the plot. It is clichéd beyond belief.  Basically Lara accidentally awakens an ancient evil - the Death God, Set - and spends the rest of the game trying to seal his power and keep her rivals from using it for their own ends. The game follows the plotline of Universal's "The Mummy" right down to the flesh eating scarab beetles. Her rival, former mentor Von Croy, could have stepped right out of "Raiders of the Lost Ark."  Sure, it makes for an exciting plot but any semblance of originality has been left out.

Graphics-wise, the game features slightly smoother textures and better curves however, it's still the same basic style as the previous games. Mainly there's still lots of clipping, seeing through walls, and overly dark corners. One big improvement is in the FMV sequences. Now, cut scenes are all done in fabulous CG instead of the ugly in-game graphics of the earlier games.  These cinematics are the best of any Tomb Raider game and show the transition this series will hopefully make to the PlayStation 2. 

Other changes include a redesign of the level mechanics. Instead of several alternate paths through the levels, this time around the player will go back and forth between levels to solve the puzzles. This approach helps with the coherency of the game by keeping the action in the same general locale.  Eidos has also opted for the save anywhere feature which I feel is a smart move for this type of game since around every corner lurks the potential for a grisly death. The sound and music is again very sparse occurring only during dramatic moments or when an important item is obtained.

Gameplay has not changed very much. Lara can do all the basic moves such as running, jumping, swimming, shooting, crawling, and hanging in pursuit of her goals. New moves added this time around include shimmying around corners, climbing poles, swinging on ropes, and crawling into narrow spaces above cliffs. All add new possibilities for challenges. Puzzles are also slightly different, getting away from the endless keys and block manipulations. This time around, Lara must find many different ancient relics in order to open up new levels and advance the plot. 

One rather unique addition is the ability to combine items to form new items and use them to solve puzzles. This ability applies to relic items as well as weapons.  For instance if you have a revolver and a laser sight, you can combine the two into a sharpshooter. There's a wide variety of weapons, most with several possible ammo types which can be used per weapon. Enemies are a balanced assortment of animals and humanoids which fill the otherwise empty levels. Overall, this system is more flexible and adds nice variety to a rather unoriginal game.

Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation succeeds in bringing the series back to the style of the original which made these games so popular. Unfortunately, that is all it does. While the additions to the game mechanics enhance the game and there are several clever puzzles, ultimately there really is nothing new here. The plot is not particularly engrossing and the game is still plagued with the same graphic problems that were present in the first three games. If any game company can be said to have run out of ideas, Eidos is it. I just hope the next Tomb Raider for the PlayStation 2 will finally succeed in originality where all the present sequels have failed.