When it comes to remastering older games for newer consoles, a lot of gamers are still somehow under the belief that it’s as easy as a few clicks. Today’s hardware is might better than it was when these games first came out, they should be able to work without issues, right?
What many players don’t realize is that getting the game to work on the latest consoles is really only a part of the battle. There’s so much work that goes into these remasters, and in some cases, a good remaster can restore aspects of the original game that were never quite right.
Aspyr Media, the team behind the upcoming Tomb Raider Remastered IV-VI trilogy collection and the same team behind Tomb Raider I-III Remastered has just given players a peek behind the curtain of what can be restored with these remaster projects, specifically in the case of Tomb Raider VI: Angel of Darkness.
In a blog post about the content Aspyr Media restored for Tomb Raider VI: Angel of Darkness, the team calls out the controls, Kurtis Trent’s abilities, the Parisian training area, how Daniel Rennes’ Pawnshop operates and even some unused voice lines, notebook notes and inventory items as aspects of the game that have been restored for the remaster.
“Various voice lines from Lara and Kurtis have been restored, providing more context to help players better understand the story and offer additional hints,” the post reads.
Regarding the changes to Rennes’ Pawnshop, it’ll now be a place where Lara can “obtain weapons and weapon accessories such as the Silencer and Lasersight,” instead of just being a function for selling items as it was in the original.
The training area in the Parisian Back Streets has also been fully restored in the remaster, rather than it remaining an unfinished level where players could learn the commando crawl ability, and Kurtis Trent has been given a refresh in how he handles. He can even now use new abilities, like a psychic shield, and he can now wield the Chirugai as a weapon.
Last but very certainly not least, the refresh to the controls is a huge point, since they were a source of frustration for players who struggled through the original game.
“With the Modern controls, Lara feels noticeably more responsive and intuitive to handle,” the blog post reads. “The camera can be fully rotated 360 degrees, and Lara can jump in the direction the camera is pointing without needing to adjust her facing before jumping. Not only can Lara now shoot mid-air and perform consecutive jumps, but she can also shoot from around corners in stealth mode.”
Though of course there is still an option to pick the original controls, should you be someone who wants to go through the bellyache of dealing with them for full nostalgia points.
You’ll be able to jump back into Lara’s classic adventures in Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered on February 14, 2025.
Source – [Aspyr Media]