Colosseum
From Tomb Raider Wiki
The Colosseum is a large amphitheatre that lies in the complex behind St Francis' Folly. It links the 'God Rooms' from St Francis' Folly to the impressive buildings that make up the Palace Midas. Abandoned for several centuries, the Colosseum is now a haunt for the various exotic animals which once fought in the arena. Lara must now travel through it to continue her search for Tihocan's piece of the Atlantean Scion.
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Original Version
In the original the Colosseum is approached from one of its main entrances - a high colonnaded wall with a closed door. The Colosseum has either been built entirely underground or has been the victim of very severe subsidence, as daylight cannot be seen from any part of the arena. Access to the Colosseum itself is gained by use of a cave over a crocodile pit.
The arena itself is oblong rather than elliptical, evidently a restriction placed upon it by the game designers and the tools they had available in the mid-1990s. There are various side rooms such as animal pits, balconies and the seating areas of the Colosseum - all of which can be explored.
The entrance to the next level, the Palace Midas, is made through one of the balconies. Presumably it was here that the king would watch any gladiatorial games that were being held.
Anniversary Version
Rather than approaching the Colosseum from its main entrance, Lara instead arrives in one of the animal pits that surround the arena floor. Entering the arena, Lara is confronted by a short cutscene featuring the first of a group of gorillas that she meets.
Most of the side rooms have been dramatically cut, leaving only the two sets of animal pits underneath opposite balconies. This makes the Colosseum a much more linear level than before; it is also considerably shorter and smaller than the original.
Exiting the level now involves grappling across various platforms and hooks in the ceiling of the Colosseum. As with the original, the exit is by way of a balcony for use of the reigning monarch or governor. Notice that with this version of the Colosseum, the roof is in fact an example of manmade coffering and a circular skylight which illuminates the arena floor. A similar example of this kind of architecture would be the Pantheon in Rome, Italy.
Links
Notes
Colosseums and amphitheatres were not a Greek concept, but instead were a Roman invention. The idea of watching gladiatorial games grew out of the many enemies that the Romans faced and conquered, and thus gladiators were given names and characteristics thought to be typical of Roman enemies (for example, Samnite, Thracian and Gaulish gladiators). The fighting of exotic animals by the bestiarii, or the execution of convicted criminals by predatory carnivores was also a popular attraction to the arenas.
Greek entertainment on the other hand did not include such spectacles, as the Greeks preferred music, theatre and athletics to mass blood sports. The Romans incorporated Greek entertainments as they did also with religion, philosophy and science, but constructed arenas in Greece also when they conquered Greek lands.
With the growth of Christianity, gladiatorial games and other such events that took place in arenas declined, and seem to have ceased altogether by the middle of the fifth century CE.
Enemies
- Bats
- Rats (Anniversary only)
- Crocodiles (Tomb Raider only)
- Lions
- Gorillas
- Pierre Dupont (He could be seen and combated in Tomb Raider, Only his voice can be heard in Anniversary)
