Tomb Raider How to Climb Walls With Axe Xbox

In the world of video games, climbing is a protagonist's bread and butter. After all, it is what enables players to reach places that would typically be inaccessible to the average homo sapiens. The upper body strength possessed by supposedly-mortal gaming heroes such as Uncharted 's Nathan Drake or Tomb Raider 's Lara Croft is truly astounding. But even in more fantastical titles, such as those within the Legend of Zelda series, the Hylian Link can defy the laws of gravity (and reason) as he scales not just rocky cliff sides, but also any vertical surface with little to no defined detail there to feasibly grab hold of.

Obviously, video games are there to suspend disbelief a certain amount. Indeed, life simulation games such as The Sims still add in unexpected little twists and turns to keep the gameplay engaging for its player. In the case of The Sims, even the incredibly human event of death itself is met with the more light-hearted and outlandish arrival of a cartoon Grim Reaper.

But what if video games were meant to be taken at face value? Taking part in a series of videos with gaming YouTube channel Gamology, professional rock climbers John Long and Natalie Duran (AKA: Ninja Natalie) cast their critical eyes over the climbing techniques of some of video games' greatest leads… and discuss how they would actually fair in the real world.

Lara Croft's Climbing In Tomb Raider (2013 Reboot)

In 2013's Tomb Raider, Lara Croft is put through her paces by cultists as well as the supernatural as she battles to get herself off the island of Yamatai. It is fair to say she does not have an easy go of this. Within the opening cinematics alone, Lara nearly drowns, gets knocked unconscious, suffers from burns, and manages to get herself impaled on a rusty spike sticking up from the ground. But even with all of that to deal with within the first 10 minutes of gameplay, she still continues the game with only an ever-so-slightly alarming "can do" attitude and an uncanny knack for yelling out her friends' names when they are trying to lay low.

As far as Lara's climbing in Tomb Raider goes, however, according to the Gamology pros it is pretty accurate in terms of technique. There are some areas where Lara's moves are exaggerated, for example where she pulls herself up until her arms are straight on a ledge before releasing a hand for the next hold (according to Long, one should "pop in one motion"), but generally it is much like climbing IRL, with Long commenting on the realistic way Lara's body swings when traversing.

Where Lara's climbing technique does fail in Tomb Raider, though, is in her equipment. More specifically, how she uses it. Duran's look of shock at seeing Lara using a single crampon / axe to scale a rocky wall ("usually you only use crampons for ice!" she exclaims) tells exactly how she feels about this change in gear functionality. And while Duran does give Lara points for her personal style choices, she claims that "unless (the heel of Lara's boot) is spring loaded," they are not going to be much help.

Nathan Drake's Climbing In Uncharted 4: A Thief's End

After years of treasure hunting and extreme terrain traversal, Nathan Drake from Uncharted 4: A Thief's End has plenty of past experience to account for his nimble progressions from the ground to, quite frankly, dizzying heights. Even with his advancing years, he can still swing from rafter to rooftop, defying the laws of physics like some kind of human sized flying squirrel with a much better wardrobe.

Given that Uncharted's developer Naughty Dog is renowned for its attention to detail and realistic storytelling, it will come as little surprise that rock climbing pros John Long and Natalie Duran (via Gamology) rate Nathan's climbing as being overall pretty accurate. The use of moves such as dynoing (producing enough momentum to fly between holds with all four points of contact off the surface) and the regular run ups to gain additional momentum between jumps are lauded by the pros for their authenticity. Duran says, "whoever put this together must do parkour also, this is very accurate."

Some of the Uncharted 4 climbing set pieces are labeled by the pros as being "a little farfetched," with Long citing Nate's jumps between the clock tower mechanics as being ", something a cat might do." Generally, though, the pros are impressed by Nathan Drake (are not we all) and Duran gives certain elements of the climbing style and technique shown in the video an "A+."

Link's Climbing In The Legend of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild

After Link awakens from a 100-year slumber in Breath of the Wild, he is no doubt relieved that his prolonged hibernation has not resulted in any muscle wastage. As soon as he emerges from the Shrine of Resurrection and out into the sprawling Kingdom of Hyrule, he can climb, leap, and hang off any vertical surface he chooses with an unrestrained impulsiveness that many can only dream of.

While Link's climbing abilities, especially given how long out of practice they are, are certainly enviable, it will likely come as no surprise to hear that the Gamology pros think they are pretty ludicrous. Or, as Long likes to put it, "this is bunk." Where Nathan Drake was praised for his dynoing skills, Link is left with a slightly perplexed reaction from the pros, with Duran saying "this is more like flying," and Long saying that Link must be somebody that "has no gravity."

How Breath of the Wild's design does regain some realism points from the rock-climbing duo, though, is through the way that, unlike in the two previously mentioned games, Link gets tired. The pros do note that he recovers incredibly quickly, however. All in all, Breath of the Wild is a fantasy, but more than just because of the otherworldly entities fans experience during the gameplay. It is also, unsurprisingly, offering players a fantasy method of terrain traversal.

While these bits of insight are a fun way to look at some of gaming's most popular offerings, it does not really mean anything in terms of the enjoyment that can be had from playing a certain title. And the pros know that themselves. John Long concludes the Tomb Raider video with a sentiment that any gamer, regardless of skill, preferred genre or gameplay frequency can agree on… "Who cares, it's fun!" And really, when it comes down to it, that is all games need to be.

Next: Culture: How It Can Make A Video Game Protagonist Come Alive

Tomb Raider is available now for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and Microsoft Windows.

Uncharted 4: A Thief's End is available now for the PlayStation 4.

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is available now for the Nintendo Switch.

Source: Gamology (1, 2 & 3)

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About The Author

Victoria Phillips Kennedy (389 Articles Published)

Victoria is a freelance writer from the UK with a love of good games, bad films and buffet breakfasts. Affectionately known as Lady V, when she tells people she writes about gaming news, they assume she is talking about pheasants and shotguns. She is not. You can follow her on Instagram and Twitter via @lilchopshopgal