Lara's character build took a major leap forward, but the puzzles were too easy and Lara still lacks vulnerability.

User Rating: 7 | Tomb Raider: Underworld WII
I have played every Tomb Raider except TR1 and Anniversary. The game concepts are novel, interesting, challenging, and it doesn't hurt that Lara is easy on the eyes. Underworld took the TR graphics to a much greater level, and Lara's character model build is vastly improved.

PUZZLES. Too easy. Period. Puzzles should get harder as the game progresses, but they remain the same and some even seem easier.

GRAPHICS. Adding a wet and dirty look depending on your interaction with the environment was a great addition. I hope to see more progress and exploration of these types of progressive effects in terms of visible damage to Lara. If she takes a massive fall, but luckily survives, she really needs to show some effect of the error (e.g. limping, torn clothing, bleeding cuts and abrasions, bruising, etc.).

VULNERABILITY. A major psychological component of TR is that many players feel protective of Lara, and want to see her succeed and escape harm. However, this protective element will be more effectively tapped if the player sees the effects that his/her decisions are having on Lara. For instance, if Lara is hit by a spear trap, she needs to show the effect of the wound and a coordinating reduction in Lara's effectiveness. This would open doors to interesting challenges in gameplay. For example, if Lara's jump distance and movement speed were reduced as she took damage, then special bonuses located deep within a level would only be reachable by players who were careful or lucky enough to avoid harm, such that Lara can make the long leap or run thru the passageway before a gate closes. This innovation would also drastically increase replay value, because players now have definite goals based on their own performance and skill. I think the health bar should gradually recover (otherwise, less-experienced gamers will get discouraged), but Lara's movement should still not recover entirely from wounds taken during the level. Developers could even play with allowing Lara to wrap or splint sprained/broken limbs to restore some degree of capacity.

Lastly, Lara needs to get over her invincibility complex. Courage in spite of one's own fears is much more believable and rallies more sympathy from audiences, than does emotionally-detached protagonists that don't fear anything. Humans fear things, Lara is human, thus Lara should also fear things. Especially when she's facing perilous situations that will most likely result in her painful demise. Now that's worth watching!