RATH'S REVIEWS: Shadow of the Tomb Raider

The rebooted Tomb Raider series is one that has excelled greatly at crafting memorable, fun experiences. Just use Rise of the Tomb Raider as a prime example of a game that took a lot of great mechanics from other games and gelled them into a worthwhile package. It has been so successful that it's even spawned a rebooted film (franchise?) with the surprisingly decent Tomb Raider film earlier this year.

Unsurprisingly though, and maybe even a bit ironically, this Tomb Raider series (and particularly this installment) feels like it's living in the shadow of another, highly-similar, top-tier franchise. Not only did this game come right at the beginning of one of the busiest gaming seasons in recent memory, sandwiched between Spider-Man and the slew of Forza Horizon 4, Assassins Creed Odyssey, Black Ops 4, and Red Dead 2, but it also felt like it had minimal marketing. Perhaps I just missed out on a lot of it, but it felt like the hype train for this one was substantially lower than the previous sequel, almost by the choice of the developer. That could all be in my head, but it lead me to entering the game with fairly low expectations (for really no good reason since the others were great) and it had been a long time - late 2015 - since I played the last one.

What it feels like starting a hike in Colorado

That may have almost helped the game in my eyes because I felt like I quickly fell in love with the series all over again thanks to a dark journey of Lara's psyche, some very solid gameplay and puzzling, and an atmospheric journey through the jungle.

Not comparing this game to the Uncharted series is difficult and it almost goes without saying that as wonderful as Tomb Raider has been these last several iterations, they still don't hold a candle to most of the Uncharted games. Perhaps that's personal opinion, but to get direct comparisons out of the way early, I've always felt the stories and locales of the Uncharted series are a little more grand (and varied), the characters a little better written, the technical prowess nearly untouchable, and just the general fun of gameplay a degree or two higher. Despite that though, there's still more than enough room for both series to thrive.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider has both a forgettable and memorable story. I'll remember the journey we had with Lara for quite some time as it goes to deep, dark places of why she pursues these treasures. The more the game explored about her, the better it was even when it decides to have us go back and play as a very young Lara. The story around that however? I honestly couldn't really tell you what was going on and what my motivation was half the time. I find that many games have this issue without a strong core narrative and while elements of her story are wonderful, not knowing why I'm really there at all times means you're really just "playing" through the game. Luckily, all of the voice work is continuously great for this series and Lara continues to be an immensely likable character far past the DD-small waist origins of her gaming persona.

Don't want to fall on this one...

This. Scene. Is. Cool. AF.

Shadow represents a small departure from the series norms in terms of gameplay too, that I found welcomed but uneven. It still has an "open world" similar to the way God of War and Rise of the Tomb Raider did previously. I enjoy these kind of "half" open worlds where there game requires you to move through them, most of the paths are fairly linear, but there are secrets to be found all around. Shadow packs a surprising amount of content into the nooks and crannies of the map's edges and that was sincerely my favorite part of the game; exploring the map, finding new paths, and finding each path's "endgame" be that tomb, catacomb, etc. This entry in the series is far more focused on platforming than the gunplay combat it also sports, so much so that I'd say the split is probably 70/30 in terms of platforming/combat gameplay. Previous Tomb Raider games felt more like 50/50, perhaps with even a larger focus on combat. It's a welcome change as the platforming is tremendously fun and the developers of this series are experts putting traps and puzzles into the environment. In fact, if there's an area where Shadow may surpass the Uncharted series, it's with the actual raiding of Challenge Tombs, a completely optional but highly rewarding group of side quests. Challenge Tombs aren't new to this franchise, but they're still an absolute blast to find them, work your way along the path to the actual tomb, and figure out the grand puzzles to unlock a particular skill. I found all of them again this time around and they continue to be the highlight of the series.

"Look! I'm a stalactite!"

Combat, such as stealth and melee/shooting continue to be well done, but it's here where the game feels like it hasn't taken enough steps forward. Melee feels a bit clunky and the gunplay is so disproportionate this time around that I found it hard for me to really get in to any of the gun upgrades/purchasing outside of just having a really strong weapon in each slot. That balance of the game is thrown off even more by having several segments of a TON of enemies that become stressful (in a good way), but almost feel so different than before you question if you're playing the same game. And the ending/climax focuses heavily on gunplay too to where it feels like it should have been a more challenging platforming aspect given the entire game's tendencies. It's honestly not the biggest deal in the world, but despite how much I enjoyed the platforming elements, I think the combat could have been balanced better.

"Sharkbait! Ooo Ha Ha!"

Shadow often looks incredible and has an immense sense of atmosphere. Yes, the usual vistas of jungles and cliffs look daunting, but a lot of times, the game's more intimate moments are more striking. During several of the game's many swimming moments, Lara often had to fit through small cracks in the floor or wall as she was running out of breath. These are consistently tense, but the first time I did it I was downright panting by the end of it. The camera comes tight, you can hear her heart pounding as she scrambles through what could be her underwater grave, and at the last moment it lets up. There are a handful of truly impactful moments like this throughout the game and while the game overall doesn't contain many setpieces, it's these quieter ones that set it apart a bit. The music and sound effects in the game are also strong, even great, depending on the scene it's in.

Even after much praise and thoroughly enjoying the game, however, there's still some unspoken element of Shadow of the Tomb Raider that feels phoned in. It's clear the developers worked hard on this title, but I worry that this one was done merely to complete a trilogy vs. pushing the series further. There's very little that differentiates itself from its predecessors in terms of gameplay elements and those were games that came out several years ago. This is currently one of my favorite series of gaming so I'd hate to see this successful re-imagining become obsolete by its own hand of simply not doing enough. With Shadow, we're given a really fun game to play and explore, but it all feels a bit short. Before I knew it, the campaign was over, I'd spent a couple extra hours to explore the map and find what I wanted to, and then there was nothing to do. In a busy gaming season like this it was a mild blessing (for me) but also a dangerous one for a series/game that I'm not sure people were all that excited about from lack of coverage (or too many other AAA games coming soon). Early sales indicate that perhaps a different release window -- summer is WIDE open people! -- and adding some additional content may have been a good move. For the sake of seeing more of this series, I truly hope that sales can round back out, perhaps with some Black Friday offers, and the gaming community can make the time to experience what is a very enjoyable continuation of a very strong series. Should this story continue however, the developers will need to challenge themselves on how to keep their gameplay relevant.

Insanely atmospheric and creepy. Felt like I was in a better version of The Nun

Of course, this is all to say that while Shadow may feel like a small step down from the series high of Rise, it's still a damn fine game in more ways than one. Whether it be Nathan Drake or Lara Croft, there's still something so satisfying about defying death as you swing through the jungle, fight off local tribes, find treasures, and escape peril at every turn. It's an adventure game through and through, and we deserve to have more of this far better Lara Croft in our lives.

CONS

While the different-than-normal balance between platforming and combat is admirable, it suffers due to high-combat moments that really throw it off
Doesn't push the envelope forward for this series in many ways
Feels a tad shorter than it should, even with extra (and worthwhile) side objectives
The story - outside of Lara's personal journey - is hard to track and nothing special
Slightly in danger of becoming obsolete by launching in a hyper-competitive gaming season without a game-changing value-add element
Upgrade elements seem to have minimal impact with the smaller focus on combat

PROS

Lara's personal journey is dark and insightful, leading to some of the game's best moments
Stellar voice acting and performances
Higher focus on platforming this time around leads to some fun exploration sessions
Well designed "open" world with lots of room to explore
Gorgeous game with an impeccable sense of building atmospheric tension. Some wonderfully claustrophobic moments to behold
Good controls and overall gameplay. Combat is similar to most 3rd person shooters and responsive while platforming is logical and often free of frustrations
Sound design and editing
Handful of great setpieces
Challenge Tombs are still the highlight of this series and the thing they are industry "best" at. I loved each one this time around and finding a new one is exciting