Metacritic Games

Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb (Playstation 2)

Indiana Jones as he travels to 1935 China to prevent a powerful artifact from falling into evil hands. Indy's latest globe-spanning adventure takes you from the jungles of Ceylon and underwater palaces in Istanbul, to the deadly streets of Hong Kong and beyond. Racing against evil Nazis and the Asian underworld with mysterious, alluring partner Mei Ying, you'll leap, swim, climb and punch your way through exotic locales, fighting hand-to-hand combat from street brawls to martial arts battles. It will take more than just your trusty whip and pistol to avoid deadly traps and navigate through all the dangerous environments. Do you have what it takes to possess the mysterious "Heart of the Dragon?" [LucasArts]

LucasArts
Third-Person Action, Adventure
Players: 1
T (Teen)
Developer: The Collective
Released June 25, 2003

Overall Metascore

This is a weighted, normalized average of all individual scores given by critics, on a scale of 0 (worst) to 100 (best).

65 / 100

Critic Reviews

83 Game Informer
This title's epic scope, engrossing story, and addictive combat system easily outweigh these minor concerns. [Aug 2003, p.92]
80 IGN
I'd only get this if I were desperately in need of a new adventure game (any adventure game), or a ridiculous Indy fan. Or, if I'd never played an Indiana Jones game before, I'd get it but on another system.
80 GameZone
This may not be the prettiest game, but it plays great. It's a little mellow, yet still very addictive.
80 PSM Magazine
Solid gameplay, spot-on voice acting, and a classic Indy story make this a must have title. [Sept 2003, p.40]
80 GameSpy
It's well worth your time to play through, if only for the motorcycle and gun turret scenes, and some of the more freakish weirdoes to cull later in your romp.
75 TotalGames.net
Get past the visuals, the levers, the stupid bloody water sections and you’ve got a game that doesn’t get anywhere near the high potential of the worlds greatest action hero, but still manages to provide some guilty pleasures.
75 Games Radar UK (Pre-2006)
Its strongest asset is the fact that the developers have pulled off the feat of marrying some old-style Tomb Raider gameplay with a brilliant control system that makes Lara seem rather sloth-like by comparison. [Playstation 2 Max]
70 Game Chronicles
A classic adventure that doesn't try to innovate yet still manages to deliver the goods.
70 GMR Magazine
The textures aren't quite as sharp [as the Xbox version] and the framerate is a little dodgy, but Indy controls slightly better on the PS2 controller, thanks to the additional shoulder buttons. [Sept 2003, p.69]
60 GamePro
A mix of intense head-bashing against smart A.I. and an occasional crate-smashing balance out to some solid gameplay.
60 Official U.S. Playstation Magazine
The framerate here bogs down so much that it actually hampers gameplay. And there's no excuse for that - Emperor's Tomb isn't doing anything PS2 can't handle. [Aug 2003, p.98]
60 Gamer's Pulse
Indy has a game that is worthy of his name in terms of gameplay and style, but definitely not technically on the Playstation 2.
60 PSX Nation
Some people (myself included) just can’t stand games with graphics as choppy and visually butchered as this one.
58 Armchair Empire
The replayability is very poor as it is already boring the first time you go through it. Levels are very predictable and the action is weak... It's simply just not worth your time.
50 Play Magazine
Most disappointing, the drab use of color and flat architecture design show a basic lack of aesthetic awareness. [Aug 2003, p.77]
48 GameSpot
While the game does a lot of things right, severe graphical issues surface at almost every turn and essentially nullify its strong points, leaving behind a game with lots of untapped potential.
40 Edge Magazine
Instant deaths, glitchy combat, uninspiring boss encounters and twitchy controls conspire to make this a below-par experience. If it wasn't for the occasional flashes of imagination and the familiarity and richness conveyed through the license then The Emperor's Tomb would be utterly forgettable. [May 2003, p.99]

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