You are my guide, my path-beater to the next incarnation.

I went to Target the other day and found this pretty little gem for $20.00.  I have been a Tomb Raider fan since its first release on PlayStation many years ago.  I own every other title out there.  But with the economy in shambles I have been tighter on my game budget.  So I waited to pick this one up. 

One of the first things I’ve noticed is that the controls take a while to get used to after playing Uncharted.  For some reasons it seems like Lara’s animations don’t transitions as well as Jakes.  I find myself thinking this game would have benefited from some additional polish.  Often times grabs don’t catch in the right place and collision detection isn’t up to snuff.  I’ve also seen a few creatures stuck in endless wall-crawling loops. 

I am also disappointed with the lack on any kind of traditional item system.  Just like the original game, Lara’s main guns have endless bullets.  However, all of her other guns are given to you from the get go and there is no need to find ammo.  I don’t mind scrambling for ammo, I think it adds a layer of realism to the game that is now missing.  I used to love the feeling of finding a new gun as well but now they are all open to you from the start which I feel was a great way for the previous games to offer you awards along the way.

Besides all of the problems the game does a great job of bringing back the mechanics that make the game great.  It has a lot of really clever climbing mechanics.  There are some areas where it gives away just enough of a hint of where you need to go to make you feel rewarded after each successful checkpoint.  That’s something else that amazes me; the check points area really great for a Tomb Raider game.  I also like the fact that this game is very light on the combat, considering it is not it’s strong point.  I couldn’t really see turning this into a Nathan Drake style shooter. 

I’m glad to see my favorite old franchise still has some legs on it and I hope that the rumored revitalization is kind to old fans of the series like me.

Rating – 7 out of 10