Tomb Raider Review: Finally women can be proud of this leading lady

Every saga has its beginning and this is the story of Lara Croft's evolution.  For those gamers familiar with the  busty adventurer that killed tigers and armies of pirates, you will be in for a big surprise.



I must admit, Square-Enix did the Tomb Raider franchise right.  When all hope seemed lost, developers found a truth and knew what direction Tomb Raider must evolve in order to become a competitive franchise once again.  This time around Lara Croft is a 17-year-old that is full of knowledge, but has no survival skills.  Lara is cold, injured, and alone in a foreign land with people that are trying to kill or enslave her every second she lingers there.

This game is amazing in terms of survival.  It borrows a bit from games like Drake's Uncharted free roaming mechanics and Metal Gear Solid 3 hunting engine.  At one point you have to use a make shift bow and arrow to kill a deer or whatever animal you manage in order to eat. Amazing!

The puzzle solving is back, but it's no longer pushing blocks or pulling hidden switches.  Sometimes, you must judge the air currents in order send debris flying into burning hazards in order to clear an puzzle.  Upgrading and using the appropriate tool can be the difference between having an easy path or spending hours waiting for whim. Did I mention you get ROPE to use as a tool for some puzzles.  Rope! OMG, you have to see it in action to see what I mean.

The combat system is a welcoming improvement.  You can switch between bow & arrows, hand to hand, or you usual guns.  Combat is light years from anything I have ever played in a previous tomb raider game. An the enemies vary with different voice-over acting instead of clones.

Graphics and sound are perfect.  Lara isn't the slightly clothed jiggle fest you would expect. Instead she is completely clothed and still sexy.  The environment is designed to level of quality you would expect from a square-enix game.

I feel in love with Tomb Raider.  It's finally the game I hope it would be.  Every survivor has a story. Every saga has a beginning. Finally Tomb Raider is a leading lady girls can look up to. Sometimes you have start from the beginning in order to do the story right.  I hope there is more to come from the franchise.  I give Tomb Raider a 9.5 out of 10.



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