Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb is an enjoyable game on the PC, though the fact that it is a port comes shining through like a beam of light.
While Dan didn't particularly enjoy this game on Microsoft's system, I thought it was quite a bit of fun, and almost a spiritual successor of sorts to Pitfall. However, some of the indoor areas got pretty boring and repetitive, and the same can be said for the PC version, as it is essentially a port of the Xbox version. Indeed, Indy is at his best when he is acting like a modern day Pitfall Harry or Lara Croft: dodging traps in the forests or jumping from platform to platform with his trusty whip. When you bog Mr. Jones down with pesky puzzles in a library that belong in a RE game, things begin to reek.
Aside from the schizophrenic gameplay, (is it a platformer? Is it a puzzle game? Is it a survival horror game, sans the horror?) Emperor's Tomb has a few more problems, including some that are exclusive to the PC port. While the graphics in the Xbox version had a bit of a blocky quality to them, they were certainly flashy enough. Here, they are not. Textures are a bit bland, and seem "shiny" for the sake of being as such. Definitely inferior to the original in a visual sense.
All the wonderful sound from the Xbox version has been preserved for you, from the John Williams theme to the crack of the whip. In fact, if you have an upper end sound card and speakers, you may even experience better audio performance than you would from the console version. Still, this is about the only area where the PC version can meet or beat its source.
Perhaps the biggest problem with Indiana Jones is the simple fact that third person action games are best experienced on a couch, with a controller, in front of a large TV. The PC just doesn't adapt very well to this idea. Nonetheless, Emperor's Tomb remains a fun little game that's well worth your time – it just lost a little something in the transition.
-George
Company Line
Indy is Tougher Than Ever in this Heart-Stopping, Globe-Spanning Action Adventure for Xbox(TM), PlayStation(R) 2, and PC
SAN RAFAEL, Calif. May 8, 2002: Indiana Jones is back and better than ever! From the crocodile-infested waters in Ceylon to the bustling streets of Hong Kong, perennial action hero Indiana Jones' wits, agility, whip lashing and hand-to-hand combat skills will be put to the test as never before in Indiana Jones(R) and the Emperor's Tomb(TM) from LucasArts Entertainment Company LLC. The exhilarating third person action-adventure is expected to release fall 2002 for Xbox, PlayStation 2, and PC. The game is being developed in collaboration with The Collective, Inc.
Indy's latest adventure plays out in dramatic fashion thanks to new gameplay features such as brawling combat. This time, in addition to using his trademark whip and pistol, Indy can engage in fierce hand-to-hand combat against foes, many of whom are well-versed in martial arts. Improvised weapons such as shovels, chairs and table legs also can be used to fend off adversaries. The result is a more immersive and more Indy-like gameplay experience, set amidst spine-tingling movie-like action sequences, such as a rickshaw chase in Hong Kong and a spectacular battle atop moving gondolas in the South China Sea area.
Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb features The Collective's proprietary 3D engine that supports completely immersive, highly interactive environments. The game will offer 10 levels, all set in unique locales such as a 15th century castle that looms over Prague, an underwater palace in Istanbul, and a mountaintop fortress in China. A sophisticated camera tracking system makes sure that the player always has an optimal view of the third-person action.
"Indiana Jones is back in a bold new way that players have never seen him," says Tom Byron, director of product marketing for LucasArts. "Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb faithfully recreates all the heroism, action and edge-of-the-seat adventure of the blockbuster film series thanks to a state-of-the-art game engine, a rich story, and compelling gameplay."
Indy's whirlwind adventure, set in the Far East in 1935, plunges him into an international crisis of terrifying magnitude. As the game begins, a powerful underground Asian society, the Black Dragon Triad, and a German mercenary, Albrecht Von Beck, have formed an unholy alliance in the hopes of acquiring the Heart of the Dragon, a black pearl that gives its possessor the power to mold minds. Rumored to be buried in the crypt of China's first emperor, it has been safely hidden for more than two thousand years. Now, with this unwelcome coalition in desperate pursuit of one of the most powerful artifacts known to man, it's up to Indy to prevent the Heart of the Dragon from falling into the wrong hands.
Indy enters the race for the Heart at the behest of Marshal K'ai, an Asian businessman who asks him to retrieve the pearl and return it to the government of China. But in order to retrieve the Heart, Indy must first traverse the world to find and assemble the three scattered pieces of the Dragon Seal, the key to unlocking the crypt. Jones is aided in his search by K'ai's stunningly beautiful assistant, Mei Ying, who helps him throughout this epic conflict.
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