by David Perkins
May 29, 1998

Tomb Raider 3 is looking as good as its heroine. The designers have corrected the clipping problems which formerly had Lara's elbow disappearing into walls, her legs separating at the knee, and vertical cracks showing up in impassable walls.

The most impressive visual effects in the demo we watched were the deep, rich skies and the equally tangible water. The sky didn't get its depth from layering, as far as I could tell. The cloud cover looked like it could be walked through, if only Lara could fly. As I watched, a player leapt his Lara from the top of a waterfall, and as she fell for several stomach-roiling seconds, she folded herself into a dive, finally entering the water with a splash and ensuing ripples.

Lara will be equipped with more weapons, more animations, move combat moves, and, of course, the ponytail that blows in the wind. Environments that range from jungle to icefloes will be her playgrounds. Look for the game's release to be late this year.

OGR's Coverage of E3 1998

Pre-Show