Story/Plot: Lara Croft never really had a solid background. Underworld tried to shed some light into her past but by then the game had spawned quite a few sequels that perhaps it was getting a bit stale. Then came this game that promised a Lara Croft that we have never seen before: vulnerable, young, and very much NOT the gun trotting femme fatale we have known her to be. Suffice to say, the game wasn't lying at all! The story starts where Lara is aboard a ship named Endurance; their main aspiration is to hit gold! An Adventure! A story to tell! A reality show! A myriad of reasons and different for each crew member. Lara's is to follow on the footsteps of her mentor. Needless to say, shit hits the fan when they decide to embark on a route that had always been considered dangerous to anyone who sails that direction. A terrible storm hits the Endurance sending the crew to the volatile and hostile island where nothing is what it seems.
Lara must use her survival skills to save the people that are left and her closest friends form the peril that this island brings, and believe me, there are PLENTY of danger to be faced left and right for both Lara and her surviving crew. In the hostility within the island, the young adventurer adapts, learns, and gets beat the hell up as well as learning that what was once just a simple science and plain facts becomes obscure when involving a few tomb raiding and such. Needless to say, this paints a much more eloquent picture in the younger years of Lara and at the end, there is a fine line drawn/written as to why, how, and when the Lara we knew these few years took the path she did.
9.5/10
Gameplay: The core of what Tomb Raider used to be were climbing gargantuan statues or mountains, ride a motorcycles and boats, and of course a seldom need to shoot a few thugs or sasquatches. The newly rebooted Tomb Raider doesn't entirely stray away from that notion, at least not entirely. It does that and adding a few flavor on its own. So let's talk about the combat sequence, shall we? Almost immediately, a Tomb Raider follower will be able to feel the difference in Lara's signature weapon. It's no longer the dual wielding guns, it's actually now a bow; the first weapon she acquires and honestly, the best and smoothest weapon in the game(in my humble opinion). This becomes her more prominent and much more effective weapon for the first few levels, and this is one thing I might add with this Tomb Raider, the combat is much more enhanced that stealth is even added into the mix!
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| Some fights are hell of a lot easier when dealt in a clandestine manner. |
For those who are the gun blazing kind of person, there are three other choices that are loud and just as lethal(or for some cases, far more) as Lara's bow. Switching between weapons is an easy task as well and being able to do so on the whim without any hassle is a great thing since there will be more than one occasion where a shotgun is needed for its close range damage rather than a much more long range assault rifle(but again, using extreme example since the assault can still be as useful close range). Certain weapons when upgraded enough do get certain firing variation which again, makes for deadlier fire power as well as adding a bit of a fresher feel for the said weapon.
Quick Time Events are also an addition to Tomb Raider. And why not, right? QTE has gotten popular since the dawn of the the first few games that first had it. Admittedly, some games went overzealous with that notion(RE6) and did it completely wrong, but for Tomb Raider it works quite well. There were many moments of QTE but in regards to combat, some were optional(kill sequence) and some were mandatory. It wasn't a meticulous buttons sequence at all and it wasn't too simple; timing is everything and it added an extra element of fun; shifts the gear a bit instead of just running, cover, and shooting(which on its own was still enjoyable!) And unlike games like Asura's Wrath, failing QTE's will result in death so one has to be on top of the timely button sequencing!
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| Escape! Escape! |
And what is tomb raiding without the climbing aspect? Now unlike previous Tomb Raider games, the climbing forte innuendo of Lara's is not just for the concept of getting to the next part of the a certain tomb so one can either solve a puzzle or plunder... most times Lara has to use her climbing prowess to survive! Now don't get me wrong, there are 'serene' moments of tomb raiding, climbing and solving puzzles or what not, but for the most part, me as Lara is all about getting to the next stable thing to latch on to as everything else seems to fall apart. QTE makes it a bit more exciting as well, and again, the game play on this part is just as refreshed as the combat. It was for sure not a task to dive right into this kind of sequence immediately after some grueling(for Lara of course not for me) shoot out.
Overall, I'd like to say the gameplay made the game. The ambiance of the RPG element being added on to Tomb Raider was for sure beneficial since it gives players to fast travel and redo certain areas! So great job on the gameplay part, Square Enix!
10/10
Graphics: I've always given it to Square in regards to their prowess when it comes to graphics. Tomb Raider isn't going to rob them of such praise since this game is a good looking game! And might I add that young Lara is a good looking damsel... I mean protagonist? So her character design is obviously the main attraction and she is sensational! That being said, everything else was beautiful to look at. Environment that shifted from snow, to wilderness, beautiful landscape to distraught temples on fire, they all did their magic well enough. The character designs were simple enough though, there was nothing too 'out of this world' to say it stood out, but that was the purpose of this game. The oriental theme did justice and the special affect in combat sparked enough that I didn't see odd balls on areas where it didn't need it. Basically, fire looked like fire and Lara looks like a girl.
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| That's not your Tom Cruise Last Samurai. |
The cut scenes of course are beautiful and the in game graphics doesn't deter my appreciation level. So I have no qualms with giving this area a pretty high praise. Where there distortions? Yes. Was it prominent? No. So the final score is justifiable.
9/10
Difficulty: Part of the past Tomb Raider's difficulty level is the fact that there were puzzles that required a bit of attentiveness with the surroundings and being able to judge certain terrain and how to use it as a means to get to point A to point B. Combat was(comparing it to this Tomb Raider, though without it, it can still be said the way I am about to say it) a joke and barely worth mentioning as thought provoking, then the objective of trying to do the side quests to add a bit of flare doesn't really compute as well. This Tomb Raider however has its way to make things coherent, balanced, somewhat challenging, and fun. Now, to be a bit more forward, because Lara can level up and gain a bit more durability and weapons can be updated, the difficulty threshold doesn't entirely have THAT potential to encumber a seasoned gamer.
Players have a mediocre amount of freedom to mediate how their Lara Croft will be when gaining exp; from the get go we have a choice to allow Lara to get more exp and 'parts'(weapon exp) with each kill or each hunt which in turn makes accumulating points much faster. So all in all, combat wise in the default difficulty was not at all that over bearing. Jumping right into the puzzles and such, maybe I was as enamored by this game than the past Tomb Raiders in compared to this one so my patience wasn't as high; though admittedly, this reboot wasn't that difficult. Getting lost in translation wasn't possible because of one thing:
Lara's survival instincts(Spider-Sense). Enemies can be found on a whim with a push of a button, the next available part of a puzzle, and also the next objective. A modern day gaming's 'gamers'101-for dummies' innuendo if you ask me. Amongst other things that makes this game more than sustainable for the casual or the seasoned gamer is that there is an abundance of ammo and arrows everywhere! And like I talked about earlier, using experience to further boost Lara can also apply to gaining more ammos/arrows when looting or what not. There will never be a shortage of ammo; even if one gun or her bow runs out, there are are three other alternate means to kill in terms of long range. Unless one just frivolously goes trigger happy, but there are also environmental factors that could help! Big tip? Using a fire arrow on a barrel filled with gas; does wonders! All in all, fun, and I bet it could be a funner challenge on the harder difficulty! We'll try that later then.
8/10
Voice Acting/Sound: The environment had a very serene tone when just merely 'exploring' the vast surroundings of the hostile island. At the same time when danger is lurking and explosions are serenading Lara, the background music is intense but can be muffled with firearms' bellowing and the cringing sound of an airplane damn near pulverizing the young Tomb Raider. Overall the music doesn't stand out. For me in this day and age, it is hard to get me to really get music to stand out unless it falls under the bar of stellar and breath taking. Tomb Raider's wasn't bad, it wasn't spectacular.
Lara's voice actor did a fine job. Well enough to pay some homage to the sensual accent that the Lara Croft we knew in the past and being able to convey emotions through all the pain and suffering that the young Tomb Raider had to go through was some magnificent acting. The other casts did the job well enough. Nothing spectacular from the others but all in all, I wasn't cringing when someone spoke. The annoying character had the right voice, the crazed antagonist had the sullen and melodramatic tone, the damsel had the right screams muffled or not, the big bulky guy had the proper fluctuation of a man who is out of shape... all in all, it was a little bit above mediocre. Nothing really to patronize or admonish. It was a good crew that played the ambiance right.
8/10
Overall:
I didn't have a high or a low expectation when it came to this game prior. In fact I was a bit ambivalent in regards to EXPECTING disappointment(with the past Tomb Raiders the way they are and the streak that Square Enix have accumulated), or perhaps be enthralled with a brand new take on a franchise that had acquired a reputation for lackluster. Truthfully, the first hour of the game was ecstatic and the ride was nothing short of the word: 'amazing'. Perhaps this last section I should elaborate more but I think the past few sections would suffice to explain how enamored I am with this game. What they delivered wasn't just a great new game, but it added color to a character who has been around in our gaming world. They gave Lara Croft a humanity in which I thought she had been lacking for so long. While one or two Tomb Raiders of the past were FUN, this one is a great enjoyable game. If this is the route of Tomb Raider, then perhaps it will survive the next generation and more!
Yes, Lara. I gave you praise. Shed some tears for me and come back for another great game and show us more enticing struggle in your future perils to come(~.-)!
9.5/10
