Remember Locking The Butler In The Freezer in ‘Tomb Raider’ 20 Years Ago?

  As 2016 winds down, the nostalgic gamertastic among us look back at what a big year it was for the industry. For the industry’s past, just as much as for new releases. Iconic series like Resident Evil, Sonic the Hedgehog and such hit milestone anniversaries this year. It’s been pretty great to take an ogle back at.  

We’re talking some goddamn priceless memories right here, after all. The first time those bastard dogs jumped through the mansion window back in 1996? You fouled your undercrackers, didn’t you (sure you did, it wasn’t just me)? The first hadoukens and shoryukens you busted out in Street Fighter II, the first time you heard that jangly Green Hill Zone tune… this stuff stays with you.

For players of the original Tomb Raider, there’s one standout moment in particular. One dastardly and bastardly act that nobody could seem to resist: locking Lara’s poor harmless ol’ butler in her huge walk-in freezer. Everyone’s done it, don’t deny.

Sure, doing this left me with a dark spot on my soul that no amount of remorse could make up for. I wake screaming in the night, after dreaming of creepy-ass looking old men slowly becoming human popsicles. At the same time, though, all this gets me wondering. What harm would this treatment have done the butler in real life?

If this is the kind of morbid shit you also find yourself pondering on a Wednesday morning, then ponder no more. Reality Check dedicates itself to checking out the science behind games, and their latest episode looks at the whole freezer incident. Check it out.

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that
supports HTML5 video