This article discusses the Tomb Raider Remastered collection and the gameplay changes and innovations presented to the gamers.
Nearly thirty years have passed since the release of the first Tomb Raider, the one that is excruciatingly difficult to play on any platform or PC nowadays. It’s almost comforting to know that, at 28, it is old enough to be experiencing the same existential and financial traumas as the great majority of us who played it back in 1996.
Though Lara Croft may not require an introduction, her first three adventures—the kind where she steals artifacts, bothers wildlife, and pulls levers—were in risk of being forgotten artifacts of the same kind. Tomb Raider remastered brings back into play these three fantastic action-adventure-puzzle games along with their original expansions, which are classics of an adventure game genre that we still love today. This is the final iteration of these games, feeling simultaneously over 25 years old and entirely fresh.
We thought it would be fun to play through the original game again and evaluate how well it holds up in light of the release of Tomb Raider Remastered this month.
If you go back this far, the first thing you’ll notice is that control techniques have improved significantly. In fact, this is true of any game. I would want to express my sincere gratitude to all game developers who have enabled us to progress towards more seamless controls.
But if you get past it, the remainder of the game holds up surprisingly nicely. The amount of locations you visit alone makes the game worthwhile to play. At one point, you actually journey to Atlantis, and it does a fantastic job of showcasing the graphic power of the era with a nice blend of various colors and dangers to avoid.
Since Lara Croft is a gaming icon, a lot of people would undoubtedly be interested in the new Tomb Raider Remastered collection. One of the first widely known female characters, Lara inspired many both inside and outside of the gaming industry, inspiring films, TV shows, and other media in addition to the beloved game franchise. The original Tomb Raider video game from 1996, which is currently available in a remastered compilation with the second and third games, is where this tradition all began.
The expansions for the first game, Unfinished Business, the second, Gold Mask, and the third, The Lost Artifact, are all included in the Tomb Raider remastered 1-3 collection in addition to the original three games. As Lara Croft explores the globe, all of this content adds up to a ton of gameplay and gives gamers a comprehensive look at the franchise’s beginnings. Everyone will be able to test this enormous collection on the platform of their choice thanks to its release on all major platforms, including Steam, PlayStation, Xbox, and Nintendo Switch.
My wildest Indiana Jones dreams would be perfectly fulfilled in these small, jagged universes. There are moments when they are as silent as a tomb, with Lara’s sole sounds being her grunts as she gingerly navigates around old pillars or moves a stone block into position.
Five minutes later, though, she might be frantically escaping a crushing wall filled in spikes or firing her recognizable dual guns at dinosaurs. In thirty minutes, I’ll have behaved like a hero, an explorer, and a prodigy at solving puzzles. and a fool who may have made a tiny mistake in that final leap, sending Lara plummeting to her death. Once more.
But the extreme flatness of the terrain—which lacks all the lumps, bumps, and shading that we’re all accustomed to these days—combined with the high resolution of the terrain’s textures occasionally creates an uncanny valley effect, making the scenery look a little like Tomb Raider blended with the Lego formula
The initial Tomb Raider’s serene sense of seclusion is somewhat diminished by the enhanced lighting and draw distance of the updated visuals; the iconic T-Rex reveal is less impactful now because the scene is designed to resemble an outdoor jungle beneath ominous skies. When the dinosaur is strolling around a corner in an incredibly lush region somewhere in Peru rather than suddenly emerging from the darkness, it doesn’t have the same impact.
Overall, this remaster surprisingly successfully walks the fine line between flashy modernity and retro authenticity, with the repetitious tiled landscapes being instantly recognizable without being a total eyesore on contemporary screens. It’s easy to mistakenly think that newly added 3D foliage, spider webs, objects, light shafts, and other little elements that were either painted onto the ground, displayed as flat objects, or nonexistent at all had always been there.
As a fan of the Tomb Raider franchise, I think that this Tomb Raider remastered collection is more of a nostalgia factor rather than a complete overhaul. I really appreciate the modern controls that are a giant leap from the older titles. The seamless switching from old graphics to new ones is a neat touch that was borrowed directly from the Halo: The Master Chief Collection.
The feature of switching graphics never gets old and is a treat for older fans of the game. One of the most appreciated features that was added to the game is the indicator on the bottom when it comes to interactable objects, a feature missing in the older games. To top it all off, there are 3 different games in the Tomb Raider Remastered edition, so we have enough hours to kill. Special mention to the racial discrimination disclaimer and content trigger warning in the game.
Some of my personal thoughts on this Tomb Raider Remastered edition is that, the 1st game in the franchise can be completely skipped as back in 2007, Crystal Dynamics released Tomb Raider Anniversary, a complete remake of the first game that surpasses the original in every way from graphics to controls to cutscenes and storytelling.
As of now, the original game in the Tomb Raider Remastered edition is for die-hard fans purely for nostalgia’s sake. The remaining two games in this Tomb Raider Remastered collection are something worth experiencing.
My final thoughts on this collection are that I like the direction that Crystal Dynamics is headed toward with this Tomb Raider Remastered release. It seems like a hint of what the developers have in store for us regarding the Tomb Raider franchise. As a gamer who played all the Tomb Raider games, the only game that Tomb Raider needs revisiting is Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness. Before all of you get riled up, please let me explain why.
Angel of Darkness was one of the biggest leaps in terms of graphics and gameplay for the Tomb Raider franchise but Core Design, the original developer had a massive time crunch to release this game, so it was relatively buggy when it was released. This led to the studio being shut down and took a massive hit on the Tomb Raider franchise. If you look past the bugs in the game, a polished release of Angel of Darkness would arguably be the best reviewed game of the franchise in my opinion.
The main reason being the dark story full of twists and turns, a new playable character, and the introduction of small open worlds with RPG elements in the game. It was a perfect balance of innovation without sacrificing the original magic. I hope Crystal Dynamics looks at this overlooked gem of a Tomb Raider game and gives it the treatment it deserves.
For more coverage, check out other Gaming topics.
More E-Sports news:
Follow our dedicated E-Sports page for instant E-Sports news and updates