Very Underrated

User Rating: 8.8 | Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness PC
I don't submit many game reviews but felt I needed to add my thoughts about this game given the overwhelming negative response. This is the first Tomb Raider game that I've played. I've been curious about the series for awhile and decided to pick up the new bargain priced game that's now available at Best Buy. I knew going into it that the game had been an overall disappointment and somewhat poorly rated.
I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed this game. It had an intriguing story line, interesting gameplay and some challenging puzzles. The controls were very hard to get used to but eventually I became quite adept at them after several levels. I thought the graphics were more than adequate - very fine indeed. It should also be noted that Lara gains agility and speed as the game progress which makes the controls easier. There are some slight flaws here and there with respect to gameplay and some camera angles are difficult to get used to.
In my opinion, I think many people rated this game poorly or were disappointed because they did not have the patience to continue the game past the first few levels. I have to admit that my patience was tried a little on the Paris Ghetto level (an early level), due to the slow load times. However, it's interesting to note that - for some reason - the load times get much better as the game progresses. There are fewer cut points except for level changes. I'm glad I was patient because it really paid off in enjoying a challenging and epic game.
I will now go back and try more Tomb Raider games. I'm certainly looking for to the new game Legends coming out later this year. I encourage all adventure fans to try this game and for the Tomb Raider purists who gave up on it, I encourage you to revisit this exceptional game.