Rise of the Tomb Raider – Xbox One

The Tomb Raider reboot from 2 years ago surprised me as much as anyone. I hadn’t really played Tomb Raider since the original 2 on the PS1 and after a number of not so good to pretty good sequels, I figured it was one of those franchises that would survive on its past games and name alone. I was happy to be proven wrong. The Tomb Raider reboot was one of the best gaming experiences I’ve ever had. I loved eveything about it and when I heard the sequel was coming, I knew I would preorder it without hesitation.
Taking place after the events of the previous Tomb Raider, Lara sets off on a quest to discover the truth about the myths around the world. This time, exploring Siberia for an ancient city that’s supposed to hold the key to immortality. Also after the same thing is an organization who will stop at nothing to uncover the secret for themselves. It’s a race to the finish with obstacles and adversaries in the form of ruthless henchmen, wild animals and treacherous terrain along the way.
Versatility and variety are key words to Rise of the Tomb Raider. Upgrading weapons and skills was a big part of the previous entry but it’s been enhanced even more this time around. Finer tuning with weapons allows you to really hone in on how you use each weapon, giving priority to each feature depending on your play style. Weapon customization has increased in new forms like poison tipped arrows and explosives. Each encounter with enemies is presented with more freedom than ever to allow the player to enagage in any style they choose. A full on stealth approach can be taken with as equal success as an aggressive one. Hiding in cover, behind objects, in brush, under water or in trees, stealth melee attacks rendering an enemy unconcious or kills from close or long distant range are all possible this time around. Using items like bottles to throw near and distract an enemy allows you choose how, when or if to even engage an enemy at all. Showcased at last years E3 was a much more aggressive fighting style for Lara when taking an all out attack apporoach. The combination of melee combat and guns blazing firefights had some concerned that this would be more of a shoot-em-up than the previous game but that was just one way to approach that situation. The developers put concerned fans minds at ease by assuring us that there will be even more tombs to raid that are even bigger than last time with more puzzles to be solved and more treasures to uncover. The Brawler, Hunter and Survivor skills have many more levels of customization again this time as well. Again, it’s all about tailoring Lara to your unique playing style. This also gives the game more replayability, allowing you to tackle the game from a different approach and having a different experience each time. This is what a true sequel should be. More of everything you love. That’s what Rise of the Tomb Raider is. If you liked the last one, you’ll love this.
I could only afford one new game this November and of all the great games coming, I knew Rise of the Tomb Raider would give me an experience that would satisfy me on more levels than the others. Action, adventure, exploration, exotic locations, shooting, fighting, stealth, customization, story and puzzle solving. It’s the total package of gameplay and an easy recommendation for fans of the series or newcomers looking for the total package.

I’m not sure how anyone could give this game 1 star. It’s impossible to put down. The controls, environment, graphics, puzzles, and everything else is pretty much perfect. I loved the last one but I’m having more fun with this one. If you liked the last one you’ll love this one. I hope this games receives a lot of support. Buy it! You won’t have any regrets.

The graphics are amazing, didn’t notice any problems with frame rates, very smooth experience overall, the story it’s one of the best in the series, but more importantly gameplay and survival skill are improved in every way compared to the last entry, so I think this is probably the BEST Tomb Raider of all time, or at least one of the better entries in the series, if you like Tomb Raider this is a must buy, and if you haven;t play them before, I think this a good game to start, any xbox one owner should at least give this game a try, 100% recommended.