Tomb Raider Challenge
The Tomb Raider Challenge is an online competition where fans can solve clues to win Playstation 3 consoles and copies of Tomb Raider Underworld daily. It runs from the 28th of November 2008 until the 18th of December 2008. The winner of the major challenge will win these and other prizes, as well as a round the world trip. The winner will be announced on the 9th of January 2009.
The contest is however only open to fans from Australia and New Zealand, prompting disappointment from many other fans of the series. Eidos has collaborated with Google Earth for the method of decoding the clues, and Sony for the prizes it is offering.
The contest's tagline is "Twenty-one days. Twenty-one artefacts. Are you up for a little adventure?" It features Alison Carroll who introduces both the challenges and reads the clues for fans to decode.
In actual fact, many of these are not artefacts, but locations. However deep Lara's backpack is, she would find it a challenge to load up some of these 'artefacts'! Also, while many of the solutions seem to be very famous and not at all obscure, the nature of Google Earth and the fact that the locations are marked with minute logos - a circle with T and R inside it - that exact coordinates produce a better result than merely typing in the location.
Example - Searching for 'Mount Sinai', 'Mt Sinai' and 'Sinai Peninsula' results in various locations across the United States, while searching for 'Mount Sinai, Egypt' results in the Sinai Peninsula but not the exact location of the logo.
Daily Challenges
- 28th November 2008
Riddle: Man’s blood was spilled by the turn of a thumb.
Answer: The Colosseum of Rome, Italy.
Reasoning: Very simply, this refers to the practice of using the thumb to determine the fate of gladiators in the arenas of the Roman Empire. While the popular misconception is that a 'thumbs up' meant that the defeated gladiator should be spared, and a 'thumbs down' meant that he should be killed, the reality was rather different. To signify that the gladiator should be spared, the thumb was shown in a closed fist, indicating a sheathed sword. If the gladiator should be killed, it was the 'thumbs up' sign.
- 29th November 2008
Riddle: Dedicated to Vishnu, Wat lies south of Thom.
Answer: Angkor Wat, Cambodia
Reasoning: Angkor Wat and Angkor Thom are two temple complexes in north-western Cambodia, near the town of Siem Reap. Angkor Thom was part of the Khmer capital, but it was Angkor Wat that was dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu, later converted to a Theravada Buddhism. Angkor Wat also lies south of Angkor Thom.
- 30th November 2008
Riddle: Follow the railway up through the clouds to find the Lost City.
- 1st December 2008
Riddle: Near the earthly Milky Way, I guard the Belt of Osiris.
Answer: The Sphinx of Giza, Cairo, Egypt.
Reasoning: The Belt of Osiris in fact refers to the three stars of the constellation of Orion, but in Australasia it is often known as Osiris. The river Nile was often known as the earthly Milky Way, and there are three larger pyramids at Giza - those of Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure. The Sphinx lies nearby, and was often used as a guardian statue in Egyptian temples.
- 2nd December 2008
Riddle: This Ethiopian Cross looks skyward from below.
Answer: The monolithic churches of Lalibela in northern Ethiopia.
Reasoning: The churches of Lalibela are carved from the ground, so that they actually lie below ground level. They are carved in the shape of a symmetrical cross, so that from above the cross can be seen, yet the churches themselves are below ground.
- 3rd December 2008
Riddle: At the tip of the Lower River, ground trembles and an island of Light becomes dark.
Answer: The Pharos Peninsula, Alexandria, Egypt.
The river Nile is split into the Upper and Lower Nile in Egypt. The Lower Nile empties into the Mediterranean Sea, and Alexandria lies on the western edge of it's delta. The Island of Light refers to the site of the Pharos Lighthouse of Classical Alexandria, but which was destroyed by earthquakes - thus the island becomes dark.
- 4th December 2008
Riddle: When waters rose on the first occasion, a Genesis of this mighty place.
- 5th December 2008
Riddle: Within a circle of Earth and Air, like clockwork skies align.
Answer: Stonehenge, Wiltshire, England.
Reasoning: The circle of Earth and Air refers to something like an earthworks or built structure, but is not an enclosed space. Stonehenge is arguably the most famous (but not the oldest) example of pre-historic earthworks and henges, and it is generally theorised that it was used as a calender, by calculating the position of the stars.
- 6th December 2008
Riddle: Follow my instructions to find its place, its heavenly rules now misplaced.
Answer: Mount Sinai, Sinai Peninsula, Egypt
Reasoning: The references to instructions and rules - especially their description as 'heavenly' derives from the Ten Commandments of Judaism and Christianity, brought down from Mount Sinai by Moses after the Israelites fled their life of slavery in Egypt. It is clarified by their description as 'misplaced' as the commandments, along with the Ark of the Covenant in which they were kept, were looted from the Temple of Jerusalem by Roman conquerors and have not been recovered since. The place therefore is Mount Sinai.
- 7th December 2008
Riddle: Deep in the canyon, find my face of stone.
Answer: The City of Petra, Jordan
Reasoning: Petra is located in a canyon in Jordan, a site of the ancient Nabatean civilisation that used to inhabit that area before their annexation by the Roman Empire. The city is carved out of the walls of the canyon, much like the Churches of Lalibela.
- 8th December 2008
Riddle: Between Persia and Phoenicia you will find Zenobia's oasis.
Answer: The ancient city of Palmyra.
Reasoning: Simply, Zenobia was the queen of the Palmyrans, who lived in what is now modern Syria, and had their capital, Palmyra, at a significant oasis on the trade routes from the East. Also, Persia is now modern Iran and Phoenicia is what is now Lebanon; Syria lies between these countries.
- 9th December 2008
Riddle: In the country that bears his name, you will need to find the first.
Answer: Tomb of Qin Shi Huang-di, Xi'an, China.
Reasoning: China is named after the clan name of the First Emperor, which was Qin, which is pronounced 'Chin'. He is buried near the city of Xian, the ancient capital of China which was then called Chang'an.
- 10th December 2008
Riddle: A mysterious three, don't get lost in this western sea.
Answer: The Bermuda Triangle, Caribbean Sea.
Reasoning:
- 11th December 2008
Riddle: You'll find it in the dark, through Bronze Age bull's eyes.
Answer: The Palace of Knossos, Crete, Greece.
Reasoning:
- 12th December 2008
Riddle:
- 13th December 2008
Riddle: From bombs and ashes the galleries rise in a whisper.
Answer: St Paul's Cathedral, London, England.
Reasoning: St Paul's Cathedral is one of the most important religious buildings in the capital. It has existed since medieval times, and has been destroyed or damaged twice - once by the Great Fire of London in 1666, and again by the German Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain during the Second World War. The dome of St Paul's has a gallery running round the inside, where the echoes reverberate under the dome, giving it the name the 'Gallery of Whispers.'
- 14th December 2008
Riddle:
- 15th December 2008
Riddle: You will find my stones hot and dry, where spiders, monkeys and hummingbirds fly.
Answer: The Nazca Lines, Atacama Desert, Peru.
Reasoning: The first clause of the sentence makes one think of deserts. The Nazca lines are a group of images made of lines on the ground in seemingly unfathomable shapes. From above however, can be seen the outlines of various animals including the ones mentioned in the riddle. No one knows quite how they were made, but they have parallels throughout the world, both in Europe and in Meso-America.
More to follow
Major Challenge
As every daily challenge is solved, a segment of an image is added to the major challenge, allowing fans to guess what it might be. It may already have been won, but we won't know until January, so for those of us in Australia and New Zealand it's still all to play for!
Gallery
The Colosseum, from the 28th November 2008.
Angkor Wat, from the 29th November 2008.
The Sphinx of Giza, from the 1st December 2008.
St George's Church, from the 2nd December 2008.
Stonehenge, from the 5th December 2008.
The area around Mount Sinai, from the 6th December 2008.
The Treasury of the city of Petra, from the 7th December 2008.
The ancient theatre in Palmyra, from the 8th December 2008.
