Tomb Raider

Console: Xbox 360

Estimated gameplay time (main story): 12-15 hours

When the news came out that the classic Lara Croft: Tomb Raider series was being completely rebooted, I was a little nervous about how they were going to pull it off. As a die-hard fan of the series and an avid collector of everything Lara Croft, I was hoping against hope that this game would be awesome. Turns out, all my worries have been completely put to rest by this amazing new game.

Tomb Raider is, essentially, the origins story of Lara Croft and the story is this: she's on an expedition looking for the lost kingdom of Queen Himiko and the Yamatai when the ship she's on is wrecked on a mysterious island in the Dragon's Triangle (pretty much the Japanese version of the Bermuda Triangle). So begins an epic struggle to escape the island's mysterious inhabitants, rescue her separated crew and get off the island.

Tomb Raider is one of the most enjoyable games I've ever played and arguably the best game in the Tomb Raider franchise. It's the first Tomb Raider to be rated 17+ (MA15+ in Australia) and it certainly shows. There are BIG amounts of blood and gore in this game, and some parts will make you cringe like nothing else (people who've played the game already will know what I'm talking about).

The visuals are utterly gorgeous, pushing the Xbox's capabilities to the limit. There is a simply stunning amount of detail as well, from the dirt and blood that coats Lara at times to the sheer scale of the environments.

Character development is top-notch, especially for Lara, showcasing her dramatic journey from frightened young woman to hardened survivor. She's also far more realistic than she was in previous games, with more believable proportions and skills. Her movements are much more realistic as well, and for the first time she really shows emotion, not just in cut scenes. Voice acting is pretty good across the board, with Camilla Luddington in particular doing some great work for Lara. She really suits the character.

Combat is, frankly, awesome. To start off with you only have a bow and arrow, but even this is a lot of fun. Later on, a pistol, rifle and shotgun are also added to the weapons list. Unfortunately, no unlimited ammo this time around, but that only makes the game even more realistic.

The game is pretty evenly spaced between exploring and combat. And relax, there ARE tombs to explore in this game, but they're not a big part of the main story. A good feature of the game is you can go back to past locations and explore tombs or the general area for more rewards, which unlock weapons and skills.

Overall, Tomb Raider is an amazing, well-written, exciting, realistic and gritty reboot of the classic game franchise. Die-hard fans and new fans alike will love this great game, which is easily one of the best games of 2013 so far.

10/10

Lara Croft - Optional Tomb Raider

Tomb Raider is an interesting little gem. You see, like most people around the PS1 era, I grew up with Tomb Raider. I loved those games, with their interesting stories about Mythological Artifacts and Raptors, their fun, fluid combat system. And I also loved the character of Lara Croft who was a wise-cracking English treasure hunter with (in the original PS1 game) triangular breasts. This new instalment in the Tomb Raider franchise is a far cry from what the original games were and is almost in no way connected apart from by it's name. And whilst I have my problems with that and other issues, I generally think this is a solid game.

First of all, this is a Prequel to the original Tomb Raider and shows her origins of how she 'because a treasure hunter'. However, it doesn't really feel like that. Because of the very strong willed but generally well humoured Lara Croft I grew up with all the gritty stabbing, shooting by tough grizzly men and the stabbing and shooting from Mother Nature who is your worst enemy in this game, it really makes this game feel incredibly out of place in the rest of the franchise. And yes, whilst I realise this is a REBOOT, it still should have some feel of the originals. The puzzles are gone, and the platforming is really stripped down to scaling pre determined walls and traversing via rope one anchor point to another. And before I move on I must go back to Mother Nature. In this game, the entire freaking island is trying to kill you, whether it be from conveniently placed sticks and spikes or the ground beneath you collapsing, Mother Nature is out to get you. And never in any video game ever I seen the main character been abused as much as in this game. Whether it be from being stabbed through the side with a stake, stabbing yourself with a burning arrow, being crushed by a rock or getting a wooden spike driven through your neck, you are going to have a lot of moments in this game where you cringe from the sheer brutality.

And with all that it makes the game seem rather realistic, however this vision of Realism is shattered by two major things. Firstly you have the RIDICULOUS amount of people that Lara kills during this game. She has slaughtered THOUSANDS of people by the end of the game and she crys about killing a deer and goes "Oh God" when she shoots another human being and that is about it. At least in Far Cry 3 at the end Jason Brody acknowledges the copious amount of blood he has spilt and has vowed to never do it again. In her she says nothing and continues on with her life, leading me to believe that she is a Psychopath and a Masochist. And the second thing that breaks the tone of realism is the fact that they decide to KEEP the mythological side of the Tomb Raider series and add in the Island from Lost and ghostly Samurai, because why not?

However, as much as I've been complaining about this game it is genuinely a fantastic experience. The combat is fun and satisfying and following the current trend of Bow and Arrow wielding heroes you get to use one. Several in fact, and they are very satisfying and later have multiple uses. The story is interesting and really puts you in the shoes of Lara and makes you care for her. You feel every blow she takes, every hit she deals and it is rather exciting. It's interesting to see her struggle play out and to help her through these horrendous situations. The sound design is brilliant, whether it is the whistle of the wind or the loud bang of firing a shotgun. The visuals are stunning and has many varied areas to explore, including the Tombs. And here is the thing about this game. It is CALLED Tomb Raider. You'd expect to raid some tombs in it. And you can, and they are all rather unique and contain interesting puzzles. But they are ALL optional. They should have just called this game "Lara Croft presents - Optional Tomb Raiding".

There is also a Multiplayer mode which is interesting at first glance, with it's Versatile maps with Ziplines and Climbing points, but when you get down to it, it is rather generic and won't keep you playing for very much longer. It feels very tagged on and would have been better left out entirely.

In all seriousness however, this game is fantastic. Yes, it has it's problems, some can be overlooked, others cannot, like it's disgusting use of QTE's, but it is a very unique journey with an unfortunately lack lustre and sequel bait ending. However, this is one of those games that really shouldn't be overlooked.

When I had read about the character development for Lara Croft before playing this game, I was concerned that they used this reboot/prequel as an excuse to turn Lara Croft into some cliché damsel-in-distress in a horror-survival situation. It is technically like that, but it feels more gritty and raw and violent, and Croft kicks way too much ass to be that cliché. It draws you into her role, and makes you think: "if I were in that situation, what would I do? How would I cope?" The director of the game successfully creates an experience where you go from normal relatable everyday life to living in a Jerry Bruckheimer-action movie, (and at some points a horror movie). The game successfully conveys Lara Croft as a normal young person who triumphs through adversity to be strong, brave, even a bit ruthless.

In recent popular culture, the bow-and-arrow seems to have become a symbol of the strong independent woman in a fantasy setting. Perhaps they are channeling the ol' goddess archetypes like Artemis, the Greek, bow- wielding moon goddess. But often these depictions fall flat because the writer/director doesn't know how/is afraid to really run with it, and the bow-and-arrow just becomes a prop or a fashion accessory. (The movie "Brave" comes to mind.) But Lara Croft is different: she has a bow and arrow, and she actually USES it. To KILL people (and animals).

Speaking of violence, this game has just the right amount. The temples full of bloody bodies is a bit unrealistic, I mean, how could they have that many bodies on a little island that are so fresh and bloody? But the action sequences are gritty and real and drawn out, and they draw you in in that way a movie can't. To get through the game you have have shoot and stab and blow people up and that's that. It is what it is.

The plot is nothing original but it is enjoyable and suspenseful. I am halfway through the game and there are still big mysteries about what is going on. The overarching plot reminds me of the show "Lost" (except it makes sense and isn't full of random crap that goes nowhere). When the player gets into the action it reminds me of action movies from 10 or 15 years ago, especially with some of the background music they chose. The dialogue of the various enemies and henchmen wandering around can be pretty amusing too.

The gameplay is good ol' Tomb-Raidery goodness with some modern touches thrown in. There's the classic climbing and 3D-platform jumping that Tomb Raider games invented, plus elements reminiscent of newer series' like Assassins Creed, Prince of Persia, or God of War such as elements of stealth, first-person-shooter, scripted action sequences that require the player to press the right buttons, or mash the buttons quickly. At some points the game seems too easy though, and it holds the player's hand too much. It gives you too many hints without the option to turn it off. Often in the beginning of a puzzle Croft thinks something out loud, or an NPC makes some comment that steals the opportunity for the player to figure it out by themself. But I like it better than how impossible the old original games were, where the reading walkthroughs was pretty much a requirement. (Everyone I know always got stuck because they didn't notice that one tiny ledge of in a corner they're supposed to jump to, etc.) The combat sequences in the game has adjustable difficulty though.

The gameplay has elements of collecting random things. Usually that turns me off but in this game it's done right. Croft finds many artifacts throughout the game but they are realistic and rendered and described in detail. She finds old writing and journals that game reads aloud to you. Unlike many video games, the voice acting is good, and it is engaging enough that I want to read them, unlike most games where I don't even bother.

Overall this is a very well-done, professional, polished game, where the game designers did their homework in including time-tested fun and balanced game elements. A couple of times I did come across bugs though: At one point I was trapped because a cutscene wouldn't trigger when it was supposed to. I reloaded from the last save point and it worked OK after that though. Also there was a curious door that swung open. The door opened fine, but the graphic for the bullet-hole in the window of the door remained in the doorway floating in mid-air.

My only complaint is the over-done menu system. Every time you go a submenu or do something there has to be swooshing sound effects and text flying around and turning upside-down and exploding. (I'm exaggerating, but not *that* much.) It's just a minor quibble, it doesn't truly detract from the game, but I would have preferred a more clean and simple menu system.

Storywise it's an exciting journey that takes you from innocent little Lara to Bad-ass Lara in a natural way. Cliches and scripted scenes are abundant, but the production value is through the roof and doesn't hurt the experience imho.

Gameplaywise the pacing (action - exploring) is excellent and the new abilities and weapon upgrades keep the game interesting throughout. Tombs offer some excellent puzzles and the randomly scattered and fully voiced diary entries add to the experience.

I've finished the game twice already.

I feel ashamed that i got this on a sale for only 5 bucks...

"Dark and gritty reboot" is a hot buzz term right now. When it works, you end up with something like Daniel Craig as James Bond or Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight trilogy. When it doesn't, you get lackluster remakes of better classics. The new "Tomb Raider" is the video game equivalent of one of the former. This applies to more than just character and story. In the same way you think James Bond will never quip again at the start of "Casino Royale" or it takes Bruce Wayne an hour to dawn the batsuit in "Batman Begins", this reboot is almost unrecognizable as a Tomb Raider game at first, but eventually turns out to be exactly what the franchise needed to feel contemporary and relevant.

Reintroduced as human rather than iconic, clad in a practical pair of cargo pants instead of short shorts, Lara is a meek research assistant for a conceited reality TV archaeologist. Part of a crew including her mentor Captain Roth and her best friend Samantha, Lara barely gets up the nerve to offer her opinion on how to find a mythical island. Her advice leaves her team shipwrecked on the island they were searching for.

Tomb Raider games have usually consisted mainly of elaborate jumping puzzles and platforming sequences. While Lara's still able to jump and climb better than most to traverse the island, with platforming becoming more prevalent in the later stages of the game, gameplay places more emphasis on exploration and combat. While many will find parallels with the Uncharted games, which owe much of their inspiration to the Tomb Raider series, I found a lot in common with the Batman Arkham games. While not truly open world, with transitions between areas being accessed and blocked off through cut scenes, the island consists of several large hub areas, connected by fast travel camps that allow Lara to teleport from one campfire to another. While the plot itself is pretty linear, there are several side missions available in each area, including collecting relics (which Lara can examine L.A. Noire style) and GPS caches, hunting game for XP, and exploring various tombs. Some areas are blocked off while Lara collects and upgrades gear.

Lara's methods are far more lethal than Batman's. While the game has been advertised as turning Lara into a survivor, keeping her sheltered from the elements and hunting to keep from starving only play a role in the earliest missions. Soon, it turns from Lara surviving the elements to a more combat based type of survival. An army formed from other shipwreck victims controls the island. Lara starts with a torch and a bow and arrow, but can eventually collect and upgrade other weapons. Her arsenal's small but effective: one pistol, one shotgun, and one machine gun. While I never found much motivation to switch from the default weapon in previous games in the series, each of these has its advantages at different ranges, though the bow remains Lara's most reliable weapon, allowing Lara to pick off enemies with headshots, silently and from a distance. Lara also has access to a climbing axe, allowing her to pull off close-range stealth kills and melee attacks.

The most engaging part of this reboot is Lara Croft's character arc, taking Lara from trembling in terror and crying at each kill to the point she is hyper-confident and enemies are terrified of her. Reading about the transition from shipwreck victim to tomb raider is one thing. Experiencing it is another. This is partially thanks to a great voice acting/motion capture performance from Camilla Luddington (if you don't like her voice for Lara at first, wait until you hear her analysis of a tomb or an artifact), and partially to the gameplay itself. As more XP and salvage (in-game currency) is collected and Lara's skills and equipment are upgraded, the player feels more confident navigating the environment and battling heavily-armed foes. While failure can result in some pretty brutal death scenes for Lara, she can gain the ability to pull off some satisfyingly brutal finishes herself. Supporting characters are also well done, with back stories and motivations explored through both cut scenes and documents scattered throughout the island, rather than caricatures or plot devices as in previous games.

The highlights of the game, for me, were the optional side quests in which Lara gets to actually do some tomb raiding. The player makes their way to the center of a tomb, solves a puzzle, collects the treasure, and gets out. These are the moments that feel the most like classic Tomb Raider games.

With heavier emphasis placed on combat than platforming, the multiplayer component seems more appropriate now. Players chose an avatar for each faction, Lara's friends and the island's crueler inhabitants, and alternate sides between rounds of shooting. Refreshingly, players can do almost anything they can in single player in multiplayer, include climbing and jumping across the maps, detonating explosives, avoiding traps, and making stealth kills with the climbing axe. While not as good as many other multiplayer modes out there, it's a decent chunk of extra content.

With excellent graphics and some great set pieces that feel lifted right out of a modern action movie, complete with explosions and flying debris, this reboot is a totally new Tomb Raider with a great new direction for the series. I can't recommend it enough. Long time Lara Croft fans will find new things to love about the character, and newcomers have a perfect jumping-on point here.