Tomb Raider is a modern reboot of the Lara Croft: Tomb
Raider video game series that began on the PlayStation in 1996. This game tells the origins of young Lara
Croft as she learns to survive and not be a little girl.
In what
may be the worst opening to a video game ever, you are treated to Lara looking
into a mirror and then stuff goes bad.
Seriously, if you have seen any of the trailers, the opening is cut just
like that. It’s terrible! It was like the creators thought, “Just jump into the
action. Let’s not take forever to set up a story.”
Your
boat crashes on an island and you must find your crew mates. You soon fine that the island itself is
keeping you stranded. You find yourself battling the Solarii and Japanese samurai
warriors. During the story I did find myself caring for Lara, but I could care
less about any other character. The game does try to explain these characters,
but does a poor job of doing so.
I have
never enjoyed how other Tomb Raider games played, but this one is
enjoyable. At first Lara seems too
slippery to control, but you will get used to it. Lara can also make ridiculous
jumps! At times I was unsure how to progress because I knew I could not jump as
far as the game wanted me to; but yes, take that leap of faith.
Along
the way you find many weapons that can be upgraded during your adventure. Your
arsenal includes a bow, shotgun, handgun, and machine gun. You will always have
plenty of ammo. My personal favorite was the bow since you could get your
arrows back out of enemies. It also is needed to progress in several
puzzles.
The
game seems like it is a survival game, but do not be fooled like I was. It
starts as this, but quickly becomes, “kill hundreds of bad guys.” It begins to
feel much like Uncharted, but not as good.
The
game is also filled with quick-time events. These are the worst as the game
gives you a fraction of a second to press the Y or Δ button to save yourself.
It caught me off guard several times and was a cheap death.
The puzzles
in the game are quiet fun. I liked them because they did make you think, but
not frustratingly so. There was only one puzzle that I didn’t like only because
my timing was off. See, it was me that was the mistake; that’s how you design a
game! Good job Crystal Dynamics.
If you
get tired of just following the story, you are able to find collectables. In
each area there are documents, treasures, and optional tombs to find and
discover. Completing everything will get you extra XP and achievements.
At camp
sites scattered throughout the island you can upgrade you skills and weapons. You
will earn XP during missions and find salvage to use as money. This allows you
to use a melee attack, throw sand in enemies’ eyes, or making your weapons deal
more damage.
If
there is one amazing thing I must point out, it is that there are virtually no
loading screens. This may be because I bought the digital version on Xbox On
Demand, but it is remarkable. The only loading screens I saw were after I died
or used the teleporting feature to other campsites.
Overall,
Tomb Raider is not impressive, at first. It took some time to warm up to, but I
found myself enjoying the game as time went on. After about three hours I
didn’t want to stop playing. I give Tomb Raider for the Xbox 360 a 7.9 out of
10. It is also available on PlayStation 3 and PC via Steam.