14 DAY TRIAL // Tomb Raider 2, the next iteration in the action adventure series from Crystal Dynamics, has just received some more details via several job listings posted by the studio, confirming that, while it has mostly the same mechanics, it will also feature some new things, like an economy system.
Tomb Raider appeared back in 2013 and delivered an impressive reboot to the classic action adventure franchise, starring a younger version of protagonist Lara Croft but also some more modernized mechanics that put it in line with other games in the genre.
After such a successful game on PC, PS3, and Xbox 360, not to mention the Definitive Edition experience that appeared on PS4 and Xbox One at the beginning of the year, Crystal Dynamics and publisher Square Enix have started working on a brand new iteration.
Unfortunately, there haven't been that many details about it since the official confirmation, but now a set of job listings from Crystal Dynamics has appeared online.
The first is for a Combat Systems Designer who needs to have plenty of experience in the gaming industry and in this particular role, and should be willing to work on a variety of different mechanics for a "third-person cover-based action adventure game.
"Design responsibilities include but are not limited to Enemy AI, combat behaviors, stealth, player weapons and tools, cover and melee based mechanics," the listing mentioned, confirming quite a lot of the different gameplay mechanics already seen in Tomb Raider last year.
Besides these attributions, the potential candidate must also "work closely with AI Engineers to produce clear, concise and fun enemy behaviors, stealth rules and assault combat systems that a wide variety of players can relate to."
This hints that Crystal Dynamics wants to improve AI behavior and probably give Lara and players a tougher challenge.
The second job listing is for a Systems Designer, who needs to "plan, prototype and build game wide systems that impact all pillars of an award winning action adventure title."
"Design responsibilities include but are not limited to RPG lite elements, character progression, game difficulty, player mechanics, economy, combat difficulty, world systems design and general maintenance from concept to ship."
While Tomb Raider has already featured some role-playing mechanics, it did not have an economy, so expect to see such a system in the upcoming sequel, perhaps to deal with upgrading the weapons and abilities of Lara throughout the single-player campaign.
As of yet, however, Crystal Dynamics has yet to comment on the job listings or its plans for the next Tomb Raider.