Yes, I fully believe in that number.
Everyone gets a favorite game, a game that is absolutely perfect to them. I believe only a single game can be a 10/10 to a person, as that implies it's perfect to them. Tomb Raider is my perfect game, and it sure took a while to find one. Well now that you're aware this review will be far more personal than most I write, we can dive right in.
This Tomb Raider is a complete reboot of the series. Gone is the exaggerated comic-book Lara Croft, and in comes a more grounded character. This new Lara has also brought a massive shift in tone for the series. This tale is darker, more brutal, and has consequences for the characters involved. The entire overall story has a great sense of mystery and atmosphere on the hidden island of Yamatai. Lara and the crew onboard the research vessel Endurance crash onto this island via an unexpected storm.
Yamatai is itself inhabited by a cult named the Solarii, and they are as deranged as you'd expect island stowaways to be. The areas you travel through each have their own creepy feeling to them; whether it's an ancient tomb or a location the Solarii have decided to make their own. Creepy is actually a great way to describe all of Yamatai, as the entire island is laden with foreboding. It contrasts well with how beautiful the island can be, never letting you feel completely comfortable on this island.
The only sense of comfort the game will let you manage is in your fellow survivors. Each one of them has their only little stories you can discover in the game; and they all can prove to be compelling in ways their own. As interesting as your ship's captain Roth or Lara's best friend Sam can be, it is Miss Croft that is the undeniable star of the show.
When you crash onto this island, Lara is as afraid as any normal person has the right to be. However, over the course of the game she turns from a scared person into a hardened survivor. This happens in a perfectly paced way during the course of the adventure. It's so beautifully executed it is my favorite origin story ever. Coming from a man who loves the hell out of an origin story.
The story, setting, and characters are phenomenal, but the gameplay shines brightly as well. It runs off the age-old trifecta of combat, platforming, and puzzles; but does it so damn well.
The combat seems pretty typical at a glance, just another third-person cover-based shooter. While that may be true enough, it excels at doing just that. The cover system is without a doubt the best I've yet experienced in a video game. It reacts to where you are, if you're near enough to cover; Lara will know to take cover there. It works because it never fails; even though it's automatic it never lets you down. You only need to worry about the shooting and making it the actual cover. The fights themselves have a constant frantic pace to them due to some smart enemy tactics. You'll constantly be pushed out of cover by either Molotov cocktails or a melee enemy. It makes Lara feel like a fighter on the move, and it feels absolutely fantastic.
Stealth is usually an option for most encounters, as well. It's rather simplified, but it proves to be a fun contrast to all the shooting. That said, the actual shooting never grows tired at all, thanks to some great enemy variety and placement. Most encounters won't be with more than a few Solarii, always leaving you ready for more.
The platforming works well into exploring Yamatai. The game has some pretty good sized hub areas, and even the smaller areas contain lots to find and collect. The climbing and clambering over these areas is immensely satisfying. Though the traversal can be pretty easy at times, it never ceases to be fun either during open or more linear areas.
A good part of the game is also made up of the puzzles. They don't show up as often as an older Tomb Raider, and when they do they're different than what you might expect. All of them are physics-based, so no longer does Lara need to find that hidden green key to unlock a door. The ones on the main path can be pretty entertaining to solve, but the ones in the so-called optional tombs is where the true fun can be had. Just little rooms with one-off puzzles, they prove to be excellent pieces of side content.
As the game continues moving itself along towards the fantastic ending and final levels, Lara is constantly progressing herself. There's an experience point system in the game, and it works amazingly in conjunction with the narrative. As Lara learns to become a fighter in the story, you will upgrade her skills to make the feeling come through in the gameplay as well. Each skill helps tell the tale of an ordinary university student becoming a true survivor. Included, as well, is an upgrade system for weapons. Using the "salvage" you collect, Lara can upgrade one of her four weapons. Salvage upgrades weapons in cool ways, cosmetically reflected and believable extensions of the weapons. It's never explained how Miss Croft learned to be an expert craftsman, but we can chock that one up to artistic convention.
The pacing in the game is flawless. As soon as you think you might tire of something, the game throws a wrench in the works to switch it up. You keeping getting new types of gear right up until the final levels of the game, so you have always have a new tool to look forward to messing around with. You can even take these new toys back to old areas to uncover new secrets. The game lets you explore to your heart's content, but there will always be that allure of a new segment of the campaign.
As for presentation, it's absolutely stellar. The graphics themselves are quite great, and work wonders to sell you on believing in Yamatai. There's a lot of variety to the locations in the game, but they all look amazing. The characters also pack detail, with convincing facial expressions. The true showcase for the power of the engine, though, is the big set-piece moments. These pull a page from Uncharted, but manage to out-do even the moments from those games. Tomb Raider's graphics fire on all cylinders.
The writing is also great, with each character definitely having his or her personality well-defined. Camilla Luddington as Lara Croft puts on an absolutely phenomenal performance as she sells you without question on the character's arc. Robin Atkin Downes is another standout as Conrad Roth, but the side characters and villains are each memorable in their own right and come across as believable and sympathetic.
Another strong point in presentation is the wonderful music by Jason Graves, of Dead Space fame. He delivers a score that can be unsettling, action-packed, dramatic, or even heroic. It all manages to feel like the same sound, and is so good I recommend listening to it outside of the game itself.
Aside from the exemplary single-player content, there is also a multiplayer component. While not as polished as the campaign, the multiplayer is definitely a world of fun. It has much lighter offerings than other games that have a bigger focus on multiplayer, but as the first step of Tomb Raider multiplayer it leaves plenty to look into. It has a leveling system, and the usual array of game modes like team deathmatch or zone control. The core combat is so fun that it translates well to a multiplayer setting, especially with maps utilizing plenty of verticality. It may not capture the attention of everybody, but it maintains my interest for long periods of play. I just can't wait to see what it looks like completely blown-out in a sequel.
Tomb Raider was a complete surprise to me. I initially had high expectations when it was unveiled, but then it looked worse and worse with an abysmal marketing campaign. Despite that I gave it a try, much to my delight. The game is absolutely perfect to me, it excels in every area. It speaks to me for what I want from a game, and I'm proud to have finally found my favorite game: Tomb Raider.