Navigate
Back
Contents

Forward
General
Hints
Backplot
Level 01
Guide
Hints
Walkthrough
The Shadow of the Cat -- General Strategy Guide
1. KNOW THE GAME
Welcome back to Egypt. If you are playing the Shadow of the Cat levels, then you must have either purchased Tomb Raider Gold or downloaded these levels from the internet for use with your original Tomb Raider game.

With that all said and done, then you should already know how to play Tomb Raider. However, in the case that you have forgotten what's what in the world of Tomb Raider, we kindly direct your attention back to the General Strategy Guide for the original game for a refresher course in all the moves.
2. MORE ABOUT THE LEVELS
If you are new to Tomb Raider, or maybe even if you're not new to Tomb Raider, you might be asking yourself, "What's Tomb Raider Gold? What's Unfinished Business? What extra four levels?"

There is significant confusion as to what these levels are and how the are related to the Tomb Raider series and how to obtain them and so forth. Here's a basic run down of what's what in a special editorial:
Rumors and News
(March - May 1997)
Four months after the initial release of the first Tomb Raider game (November 1996), Eidos Interactive issued a press release announcing that four additional "expert" levels would be released as an "add-on" pack to the original game.

There was much discussion and disagreement as to whether the additional levels would be sold for $19.99 US or distributed as a free download on the internet. Due to the controversy surrounding the idea of charging for these additional levels, Jeremy Smith, founder of Core Design announced that the add-on pack would be released for free on the internet. Jeremy Smith revealed that the original intent was to create an entire add-on pack/sequel and retail it for £39.99 but after the completion of the first two levels, Core Design realized that the levels did not represent good value for the money.

Multiple sources implied that these levels were slated for "summer" release. The purpose was to keep media interest in the Tomb Raider game as the Tomb Raider 2 sequel was being developed.
Disappointments
(June - August 1997)
By July, PC Gamer magazine reported that the four additional levels would be released as part of a "Tomb Raider Special Edition" and only one of the levels would be released on the internet. In the same month Adrian Smith, of Core Design, revealed that the new levels were nearing completion and were being tested.

In August Next Generation Online announced that the additional levels would available exclusively on their web site. They actually so far as to set a date (August 15, 1997) for the release of these levels. That date came and went, and Core and Eidos made no comment about whether the levels were ever ready for release. Next Generation Online countered that the cause of the delay was technical difficulties at Eidos and the release would be pushed back at least to September.
Hope Renewed
(September - December 1997)
Adrian Smith, Operations Director at Core Design, Ltd., stated in an interview in October that these levels were competed and ready for release, but noted that "our marketing dept. [wants] to do something special with it, as it is coming out so close to TR II".

The release never really happened the way anyone thought. The public expected these levels to be released with great fanfare shortly before Tomb Raider II: The Dagger of Xian to hype up the release of the sequel. The sequel's release in November of 1998 came and went and "Unfinished Business" was forgotten.
She Lives!
(January - March 1998)
After being all but forgotten, one day without any news or warning, a reference to Tomb Raider Gold was found on the Eidos Interactive web site, listed only as a prize for the "Lara Croft's Birthday On-Line Contest" on February 14, 1998. No further information was available at that time about what Tomb Raider Gold was or what was included in the package.

However, about a month later, it was announced that Tomb Raider was being re-released with patches for support of various 3D cards included as well as additional things, such as a calendar program, a Windows95/98 Theme pack, a screen saver, and also the long forgotten "Unfinished Business" levels. Concurrently, the four additional levels were available for free download on the internet.
The Name Game
So, what's in a name? To clarify what has been released as what and for what platform, the relevant information is as follows: Tomb Raider Gold is a re-release of the entire original Tomb Raider game only for the PC platform (DOS). [Not for Sega Saturn or Sony Playstation.] This product is marketed in the UK under the name Tomb Raider: Unfinished Business. Do not be confused here by the difference in name or packaging. They are the same product. They include the add-on levels and the aforementioned Windows95 trinkets.

The four level Unfinished Business add-on pack can be found on the second CD in the two-CD set that is Tomb Raider Gold [or Tomb Raider Gold: Unfinished Business in the UK] package. The program installs into the original "tombraid" directory, and requires the first CD to play. The four levels are also available for download for free from the internet, and it also installs into the original "tombraid" directory and requires the original Tomb Raider CD to play.

Unfinished Business, the four level add-on pack to the original Tomb Raider game has been subdivided into two "scenarios" based on location. The first two levels are set in Egypt and the last two levels set in Atlantis. The first two levels of the Unfinished Business add-on are named "The Shadow of the Cat" and the last two levels of the are self-titled "Unfinished Business".
Cutting Through the Haze
This web site organizes the four levels of the "Unfinished Business Add-on pack" into two separate guides, because that is how the official Tomb Raider Gold Web Site refers to them. Therefore, on the title page of this web site, we list four separate guides: "Atlantean Scion", "The Shadow of the Cat", "Unfinished Business", and "The Dagger of Xian." When this web site makes a reference to "Unfinished Business", we generally mean the last two levels of the four-level add-on pack. If you are looking for help for the last two levels of the add-on pack, then you need to go to the "Unfinished Business" Guide.
The Plot Thickens
The original Tomb Raider game revolved around a gripping and strong plot arc. The second game has a slightly weaker plot, but the game still revolves around a general plot. The add-on packs do not include any cut-scenes or FMV's which means there is absolutely no plot for these levels. If you are frustrated by the fact that there appears to be no motivation for returning to Egypt, feel free to read the Backplot that we dreamed up for these levels.
Digging for Gold
So if you already own the PC-CD version of the original Tomb Raider game, then you can download the additional levels at no charge. Below are links to the add-on levels:
Version
Location
Software Renderer Version Eidos Interactive FTP server
Software Renderer Version Core Design FTP server
Software Renderer Version Local anonymous FTP server
3Dfx Version Eidos Interactive FTP server
3Dfx Version Core Design FTP server