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Tomb Raider II: Golden Mask, also known as Tomb Raider II Gold[1], is an standalone expansion of Tomb Raider II released in 1999 for Windows and Macintosh. The game comprises the scenarios of the original game with the addition of five new bonus levels in a separate mini-adventure entitled the "Golden Mask". Unlike the other two expanded games however, this contains no story ties to its corresponding game from the main Tomb Raider series: its plot is completely unique.
Plot[]
The story involves Lara Croft coming across some clues referring to a small island in the Bering Sea: a faded photograph showing an Inuit whale hunter holding what looks like an ancient Golden Mask, an old newspaper from 1945 referring to a conflict over an Alaskan gold discovery, and a secret kind of fortified military mine base. Lara is primarily interested in finding the Mask, as it is rumoured to be the famed Golden Mask of Tornarsuk - a greater spirit said to bestow powers of re-animation on the mask wearer.
Lara arrives to the island via a helicopter, but finds a mercenary treasure hunters , the A.V.A.L.A.N.C.H.E. already there looking for the lost gold.
Moving more inland Lara discovers old abandoned Russian government mine. The mine seems to be abandoned quickly. Deep in the mine Lara discovers the remains of the miners, and foreboding cave paintings.
The mine had been built above an ancient Inuit settlement - a warren of cave dwellings, sacrificial chambers and furnaces. The mine also hides a lush tropical valley, hidden from the world for thousands of years. Ancient technology has been used to keep the heat and light pouring into this mysterious chasm.[2]
Gameplay[]
Unlike Tomb Raider: Unfinished Business, The Golden Mask has new sets of level textures made specially for the expansion. Some sprites and models were changed too: the jade, silver, and gold dragon secrets of the base version of TR2 were changed to gold coins, a gold bar, and a golden skull. Also, the crosses on the medipacks were changed from red to green, as the use of a Red Cross symbol without authorisation is a violation of the Geneva Convention. There is an attempt to emulate the changing background ambience audio tracks of later games by playing them as staged music tracks at certain points in the level. This does mean though that the background audio will revert to the original after playing through once.
Levels[]
1. Alaska[]
2. Las Vegas[]
Characters[]
Allies[]
Enemies[]
References[]
- ↑ North American version
- ↑ Tomb Raider II Gold: Interview with Philip Campbell and Mike Schmitt (archived)
