| 96 |
GamingTrend
This is high adventure in the grandest sense, and running around in the shoes of Indiana Jones is truly a great thing. Not to mention the manual has got to be seen to be believed. It’s so bloody cool, it’s amazing.
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| 94 |
XGP Gaming
Playing The Emperor's Tomb is just like watching your favorite Indy movie; it's got everything, and strikes a wonderful balance of platforming, puzzle solving and combat.
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| 92 |
Games Radar UK (Pre-2006)
It's all top notch Indy stuff and perfectly captures all the ace elements of the man and the movies. Monsters, exotic locations, suspicious characters and back-stabbing. He even looks and sounds like Harrison Ford which makes it all even more believable, charming and utterly essential. [GamesMaster]
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| 90 |
Deeko
With a great musical score, fantastic gameplay and great graphics (for the most part), this is one adventure you do not want to miss!
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| 90 |
Official Xbox Magazine
The huge number of levels and their often epic scale is backed up by a worthy storyline. [Mar 2003, p.40]
|
| 85 |
ActionTrip
If there is a problem with the game it's that it offers nothing new to this style of game that hasn't already come from the Boob Raider saga. That's not to say it's a bad game. It a great game.
|
| 85 |
Game Informer
Let's put it this way: Anything you see Indy do in a movie, he can do in the game - the control is that good. [Mar 2003, p.86]
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| 84 |
Team Xbox
LucasArts did a fine job making the closest thing to a replication of all the movies thrown into a video game. The gameplay is fantastic, the level design is overwhelming at times, and the graphics and sound make their own positive arguments.
|
| 83 |
GameNow
It's like "Tomb Raider" with a better fighting engine. [Apr 2003, p.54]
|
| 82 |
GameSpy
It might be some time until the Xbox sees another adventure that's this enjoyable again.
|
| 80 |
Play Magazine
I think LucasArts should have The Collective make all of their A-list movie games. Howard the Duck beckons. [Apr 2003, p.59]
|
| 80 |
GamePro
The combat is especially well executed, although the amount of punishment opponents can take is a tad unrealistic.
|
| 80 |
GameZone
Excellent graphics and sound, but may be spending too much time on that puzzle-heavy road.
|
| 80 |
Gamer's Pulse
It immersed you in a pit of action and puzzle solving, all classic adventure game elements, and it was just fun controlling Indy and his whip.
|
| 80 |
GameCritics
The fights, though violent, are unfortunately completely bloodless—not a drop of claret is spilled—and the bodies of his enemies, once beaten, magically vanish. This makes the game feel as tidy and antiseptic as a Disney ride.
|
| 80 |
TotalGames.net
This combination of adherence to the Lucas/Spielberg rules and innovative game design not only makes this a convincing depiction of an icon, but also makes for a satisfying and rewarding play.
|
| 80 |
Total Video Games
Thanks to the use of the Buffy engine, the game features an excellent combat system that refuses to tire on you and a compelling story to pull you through the game.
|
| 78 |
Game Chronicles
Manages to capture the spirit of the films and packs a ton of combat and action sequences into a good old-fashioned adventure game. The puzzles are mindless so check your brain at the door.
|
| 78 |
Gamezilla!
Issues like graphics that are clearly below Xbox standards also keep the game from becoming great.
|
| 75 |
Into Liquid Sky
Look past the glitches and the mediocre puzzles and you can find a fun action/adventure for just about anyone.
|
| 75 |
Entertainment Weekly
At times the game has all the pulse-pounding thrills of an archaeological dig. [7 Mar 2003, p.78]
|
| 75 |
Electronic Gaming Monthly
Gorgeous graphics, inspired combat, fun minigames, and cool puzzles and platform challenges bolster play immensely. [Apr 2003, p.130]
|
| 75 |
Game Over Online
If not for the abundant technical glitches, repetitive level design and spotty camera system, recommending The Emperor’s Tomb would have been a no-brainer.
|
| 75 |
Game Revolution
Better than average combat through exotic locales is always fun. Just steady that camera, grab your wetsuit and don't eat the monkey brains.
|
| 74 |
Armchair Empire
You’ll be looking for opportunities to heave enemies off catwalks or crack them against a wall so Indy can smack them silly.
|
| 70 |
Gamestyle
It’s just a really good fun game that does not take itself at all seriously and for fans of Dr Jones it is absolutely fantastic and I cannot recommend it high enough.
|
| 70 |
GamerWeb Xbox
The over emphasis on action and less emphasis on using your wits drags it down to a pretty standard evolution of the Tomb Raider formula.
|
| 70 |
Cheat Code Central
The graphics themselves are good but not befitting of the Xbox. The gameplay is challenging to an extent but is more targeted at novice gamers.
|
| 70 |
EuroGamer
It's a blast from start to finish and somehow manages to be greater than the sum of its parts. It's perhaps a classic example of the ideal game to rent.
|
| 70 |
GMR Magazine
While the action runs smoothly, textures and level design are a bit on the simple side, making some of the more ambitious "natural" levels feel a little too grid based. [Apr 2003, p.67]
|
| 70 |
Electric Playground
My copy of Emperor's Tomb had occasional moments of severe slowdown and music stuttering. These instances never occurred during a life or death situation, but they were aggravating all the same.
|
| 70 |
Xbox Nation Magazine
Sadly, however, not even the best Indy console game necessarily makes for a great Xbox title. [Apr 2003, p.80]
|
| 70 |
All Game Guide
While these are disappointments, there are few games that have you leaning into every jump you make, your heart in your throat each time Indy barely grabs onto a ledge with his fingertips before pulling himself up.
|
| 67 |
XenGamers
It’s pretty much a given that beating up Nazis is inherently fun, but the developers threw in some truly entertaining wrinkles into the combat to make the Nazi-bashing especially enticing.
|
| 67 |
Gaming Age
A poorly done camera is the only true blemish on what is a fantastic game.
|
| 66 |
GameSpot
While the game does a lot of things right, severe technical issues surface at almost every turn and really drag down the game's high points, leaving behind a game with tons of untapped potential.
|
| 61 |
IGN
It's fun and a bit addictive. But there are a ton of flaws to be found and the puzzle design is so incredibly meager it hurts the game a great deal.
|
| 60 |
Yahoo! Games
What Indiana Jones and the Emperor's Tomb amounts to is lots of riddles, lots of combat, too many deathtraps and jumping puzzles, and a decent, if contrived story.
|
| 60 |
Maxim Online
Despite the occasionally clunky controls, Emperor’s Tomb does impress with its hand-to-hand brawls (Ms. Croft would be lost without HER weapons) and the free-range exploration allowed within each level.
|
| 60 |
G4 TV
Plays it safe for the most part. It takes familiar gameplay and runs with it, without trying to innovate much beyond the fun brawling.
|
| 50 |
Cinescape
Falls short by being vastly repetitive and not offering much new to gamers. A rental at best.
|
| 46 |
netjak
About the only thing that I didn’t absolutely hate in The Emperor’s Tomb (but it was still lacking) is that there are a few cool big boss fights.
|
| 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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