Eric Lindstrom has posted an interesting entry on the blog at the Official Tomb Raider Portal, boasting about the gorgeous visuals of Tomb Raider: Underworld. When you compare a batch of screenshots printed out in a fairly recent magazine, to shots as the game is currently looking, you can see a dramatic improvement -- and Eric adds that he's been telling previewers viewing the demo that the version they have upstairs already looks better than the one they're showing.

Attached to his blog entry was a comparison of two screenshots taken in the same spot of the Mexico level. The first one is from the pre-Alpha stage, unveiled back in November 2007; and the second one is a true representation of what the next-generation platforms has to offer, taken from the June 2008 pre-Beta version of Tomb Raider: Underworld.

Eric also clarifies that the five unnamed days of the Mayan calendar are still present in the storyline, being part of the Mexico level ,where Lara will reach Xibalba. This is one of the many underworlds that feature in her newest adventure. We'll get a chance to glance at Lara's weaponry -- featured in the pre-Beta screenshot -- at some point next week.

>> click below to compare the screenshots
>> visit TombRaider.com and read Eric Lindstrom's blog entry