Tomb Raider is a brilliant and action-packed adventure that reboots the franchise with style.
THE GOOD
-Superb story
-Intense and thrilling cut scene events
-Stunning graphical presentation
-Solid platforming
THE BAD
-Lackluster multiplayer
-Slight flaws in the shooting mechanics
Currently the industry is over saturated with gritty male lead protagonists with hulking biceps and chiseled physiques. Heroes like Marcus Fenix, Master Chief, and Nathan Drake come to mind. These guys are great but, quite frankly, gamers are well overdue for a change in the popular formula and Lara Croft is the answer. This young brunette may seem inexperienced at first but she quickly establishes herself as a heroine that can definitely "hang with the boys" when it comes to action adventure.
Tomb Raider is essentially a reboot for the franchise and begins with Lara's origin story. Lara is a brilliant, ambitious archaeology graduate with highly convincing theories on the location of the lost kingdom of Yamatai. Her research is the reason why she finds herself aboard the Endurance in search for this ancient civilization. Unfortunately, when the captain plots a course for an island in the Dragon's Triangle, courtesy of Lara's intuitive hunch, the ship smacks headstrong into a sudden and brutal storm. Lara and the rest of the crew find themselves scattered and washed ashore with their shipping vessel completely destroyed. This is where our brave heroine's adventure begins. Not only is the island inhabited by ruthless terrorists but there is some unknown, almost supernatural, presence preventing anyone from leaving.
The story-telling in Tomb Raider is action-packed and well paced with many intense, edge of your seat moments. There are many cut-scene events that require you to act quickly in order to survive. Lara's transition from book-worm to full-on adventurer is exciting to watch and makes her a fantastic protagonist. The overarching theme of this tale isn't focused on raiding tombs for personal gain but more along the lines of survival; and she takes many hard knocks along the way. The amount of punishment Lara endures is excessive and a bit unrealistic but its sure entertaining to watch.
Tomb Raider is played from the third person perspective. The aggressive camera angles in the more dynamic scenes create many thrilling experiences. The environment is filled with many rock faces to climb, crevasses to jump over, and ropes to zip-line across. Solid platforming and controls make it extremely easy to navigate the lush landscape.
There are plenty of fun puzzles to tackle in this game. Most of them aren't brainteasers by any means but still require some thought to figure out. If you do get stumped, the LB button can be used to activate your survival instincts. While in this mode the background turns to shades of grey with important items accented in gold.
The developers created a stunningly beautiful island to explore. The rich detail in the character and level design is outstanding. There are plenty of artifacts, documents, and tombs to find along the way, which provide additional information and back story about the island and its unlucky inhabitants. The crisp scenery is complimented well by the harmonious musical score, which enhances the gameplay; especially in the more suspenseful moments. You also have the option to fast travel between previously visited locations, which comes in handy for those who enjoy collecting everything.
Tomb Raider is a fairly decent shooter. Gunning down fast moving targets at close range is a bit tricky, however. Also, the enemy AI could use a little touch up as well with enemies that sometimes don't react to being shot while crouched behind cover. Aside from that this game plays very similar to other third person shooters on the market. All the weapons at your disposal are fun to use in combat and there are a myriad of upgrades to unlock.
The single player campaign is an extraordinary work of art. Unfortunately, the multiplayer is sluggish and lackluster. Most of the team based games just really aren't that much fun to play and you can definitely tell that this aspect was a complete afterthought.
Tomb Raider is a fantastic reboot to the franchise. The story is captivating while the fast paced action keeps your heart pumping throughout the entire game. Lara Croft is an exceptional heroine and her development from novice to veteran is exciting to watch. Solid platforming mechanics and a shockingly beautiful environment makes exploration an absolute blast. The multiplayer may have missed the mark but the single player hits the bullseye. With the odds stacked against her, Lara Croft courageously gathers herself together and proves that she can be a survivor.