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A delightfully gritty and painstaking reboot

*Note: I have not finished the game yet at the time of writing this review, but have completed a majority of it.*

Reboots/remakes don't usually get much positive remarks and criticisms when done (why try to fix what's already perfect, right?) but Tomb Raider not only changes the franchise's name, it does it with a bang. Lara Croft transforms from that sexy Indiana Jones-esque character of video gaming to a much more defined and humanized hero of this century. The amount of abuse and torment Lara traverses through is incredibly high in this game and many times, you'll find yourself wondering just how much pain can this girl endure. The gameplay is incredibly well-done and combat is fun, intense, and challenging, although I did have some problems with the enemy AI just standing there, not doing anything during a firefight. The game has a nice, open world to explore and has a decent leveling system where you can spend skill points on various upgrades.
Tomb Raider is a cinematic wonderment. While I never played Uncharted due to the lack of a PS3 (playing this on a PC), I have to say that I do see a lot of borrowed elements of it, but Uncharted also borrowed a lot from the original Tomb Raider games as well, so easy come, easy go. While the QTE's aren't really refreshing or exciting, and it does get a tad bit annoying at times, I do enjoy watching the explosive actions occurring on screen and how Lara improvises her surroundings to escape many of these situations.
At first, you face only humans and animals, dealing grueling and bloody damage to them with your guns or bow/arrow, sneaking around and shooting at them, but the game does go back to its roots by introducing an even more challenging enemy type later in the game. There are tombs in the game and all of them require some puzzle-solving to traverse, but it's not as hard as you think thanks to the Survival Instinct mode Lara can use (think Batman's Detective Mode in Arkham City).
All-in-all, Tomb Raider is a wonderful and exciting reboot to the beloved franchise and while the older games will still hold a place in video game history, this new one holds its own as both a gaming and cinematic masterpiece.

  • It is a great game.