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Review
A super idea for a level this one. It makes you wonder how interesting it would have been to see Lara placed in a more modern sports stadium. Maybe she could have waltzed around Wembley as part of the London section of TR3, or visited an American football stadium somewhere in Nevada during the same game? Who knows? You certainly have to at least raise a smile at the thought of firing a desert eagle at an evil eight foot high quarterback on the 22 yard line. We can dream.
Ancient gladiator combat argubly is not a sport, though. And whether it is or it isn't, there are not any vicious Russell Crowe types here. It is all tigers, crocodiles, and buffoons. (I include Pierre with the latter). I mention the animals high at the top of this thread because that is where much of the Colosseum challenge comes from. I can think of at least three occasions where a tiger wounds you before it's even physically possible to get a shot off at the damn thing. Thankfully however, most of the non-humans on the level can be killed from the safety of the stands. Hell it's almost like a duck-hunt at times, but still great fun. Shame we don't have the laser sight by this stage in the series. That would have made for some enjoyable long range bedlam. Hell yes.
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Sidenote - With all the animal killings and everything, I personally might have been tempted to call this level "Lara on Safari", or "Lara goes ape-**** at the colosseum". Submit your own ideas on a stamp-addressed envelope.
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Pierre's appearance is quite effective this time around. It's helped largely by the distant black graphics phenomenon I first spoke about in the Lost Valley. Creating an accidental effect that makes you wonder if there is a ceiling present or not is just one thing. Being able to spot a human assassin sneak out from the blackness around the far corner of the stand is something else. Of course having said that, any competent assassin would surely have had the sense to shoot Lara from a distance. Pierre from the TR games though insists on getting within two yards before he makes his shot and it is just never gonna work. His tiger-repelling deodrant on the other hand works only too well, and for the second level running we get the king of the jungle attacking the human female present but not the male. Oh well. At least Pierre doesn't shout "abracadabra" and vanish on this level like he did in the presence of Mr Francis. Every plus point helps.
The whole is greater than the sum of the parts in the Colosseum. I look back on it fondly without actually being able to list many instances in the proceedings as being that good. The boulder thing had become boring even by this stage in the game, and I sigh in annoyance whenever I get hit by a bat attack. Redeemable moments on the other hand include a cleverly hidden exit door, a stomach-churning crocodile pit, and a timed run through two gates that would probably make even the T1000 from Terminator 2 gasp for breath.
Changing topics slightly, I have to point out that I am more than a little perturbed by how uncomfortable the stone seats in the stands look. Would you really want to have parked your arse on there for an hour or two? Personally I would have had to either stand or bring a deckchair. And if the tigers on display had ignored the gladiators like they did Pierre then I would have demanded my money back. That or my pebbles back, or whatever the hell the currency was back then.
Colosseum is a classic level that by rights should have become a series martyr since that inferior TRC rehash came onto the market. (Pierre's warts and all included). The level design is a treat, and the action is fun. The big question remains though - What behavioural herb did our favourite slimy Frenchman slip into that tiger's ready brek the morning Lara went to Greece? 8/10
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