In 2013 the rebooted Tomb Raider was without question one of the games of that year and most certainly the best game from the series in a long time (as much as I loved Tomb Raider: Anniversary & Underworld).  It was billed as the rebirth of both Lara Croft and the Tomb Raider franchise and that was most certainly achieved with the latest Tomb Raider from Crystal Dynamics.  This Tomb Raider is Lara’s origins story; this is a young, raw and fairly naive Lara, far from the comparative of the back flipping Lara that we knew of from yesteryear.

We rewind back to Lara’s early years and she is on her first expedition on the Endurance ship, in the pursuit of finding the lost kingdom of Yamatai.  The Japanese answer to the great Atlantis, but as they enter Yamatai’s answer to the Bermuda Triangle, a vicious storm hits the endurance, leaving the everyone on board shipwrecked and deserted on an uncharted island.  Lara is separated from her crew and as she was on the brink of reuniting, Lara is captured and her first fight for survival begins.  It soon appears that the storm that left Lara and her crew shipwrecked on the island may be no mere coincidence and the islands sinister intentions slowly unravel.  Witness the story that delivers us the rebirth of Lara Croft in the new and improved glory of the PS4 and Xbox One exclusive, ‘The’ Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition.

Arguably the standout feature to this Definitive Edition is with the new and improved visuals, especially when it comes to the remodelled Lara Croft.  At quick glance it may be easy to forgive someone for not noticing all that much of a difference, but when you take a second glance and compare this Lara to the original release; the difference is in fact very noticeable.

To begin with Lara’s face is almost completely different; she has had the video game equivalent of a celebrity facial reconstruction.  If I’m honest, I don’t think there was anything wrong with Lara’s previous new looks , I for one loved her new image and I think it’s fair to say that the majority of the gaming community would likely agree.  So I guess the reason for Square Enix to make the change, is that this was possibly the one change that would make the most impact with the Definitive Edition.  It’s a change that fans of the reboot will notice; gamers alike should also notice the difference when watching one of the many comparison videos floating around the internet at the moment and ultimately it will get the gaming community talking.  Whether it be positive or negative, despite liking the original look of the rebooted Lara, there’s no doubting that I also really like the new look too.

The original rebooted Lara had amazing facial animation for the last generation console, and now it has been improved significantly with the Definitive Edition. During many moments in the original reboot, I loved taking a moment to admire the attention to detail that went into Lara’s facial expressions, whether it is the more tense or the most tranquillest of moments.  This for obviously reasons with the Definitive Edition being powered by the PS4 and Xbox One is even more of a joy to behold.  One of the most vicious of wars in the modern era is without question the highly heated and extremely passionate console wars, especially when a high end PC is thrown into the equation.  Now it would be rather silly of me to say that the PS3 or Xbox 360 could ever compare when questioning a cross platform game such as Tomb Raider.  For obvious reasons the PC has much more power when compared to its console counterparts, especially when the PC version had a certain standout trump card, this was the TressFX technology.

I won’t go and say that the new Definitive Edition for the PS4 and Xbox One is any better or worse than it’s juiced up PC counterpart, because I have never played the PC version.  But what I can say is going by the various comparison gameplay videos that I’ve seen on YouTube, give or take, the Definitive Edition has to be pretty darn close.  Especially that now it can also boast the impressive TressFX technology used in the PC version.

Basically what the purpose of TressFX is to make Lara Croft’s hair as realistic as a video game could currently make it.  This may sound like a minimal difference on paper, but when you see it in motion it looks fantastic.  Each strand of Lara’s hair will be moving in its own way, but yet in motion with her set of hair as a whole.  Individual stands of hair will react to Lara’s current predicament and environment.  Such as windspeed, sudden head movements, jumping through the air and landing in a heap on the floor, her hair will react to forces of gravity as realistically as you will currently find on the home console.  TressFX does a superb job in implementing real-time physics in the Definitive Edition (and of course the PC version).  I have no doubts that Square Enix will be using TressFX in various titles yet to be released, unless your name is Agent 47.

Games like Tomb Raider attempt to immerse the player into Lara’s story and her environment.  No matter how small, if even the smallest of details is not done to the highest quality it can be, the game could become less immersive then the developers and publishers would like.  The obvious standout visuals such as Lara Crofts presence and the amazing Yamatai Island will always be your eyes first point of call, but when you add all those well constructed so called ‘minor details’ into one package, it makes all the difference in any games overall immersiveness.   As well as Lara herself, the environments as a whole have been dramatically improved.  From simple worldly textures, to realistic shadow and lighting ambience.  The Definitive Edition is certainly not short of beautiful eye candy.

If you’ve played the original release of Tomb Raider (obviously not the 1996 version), then you may well notice instantly that the Definitive Edition is no different in terms of gameplay.  Which is not a bad thing of course, as the gameplay was already almost perfect and I have never experienced any problems during my three playthrough’s and the Definitive Edition thankfully is no exception.  In no time you’ll be climbing, jumping (often to your gruesome death) and gunning like a true Lara Croft explorer.

You’ll start off with more basic skills and equipment, but as you progress through the campaign, your skills and equipment will also advance.  You can earn in game XP via killing, hunting and finding the various goodies that there are to discover on the island of Yamatai.  Throughout the campaign you will come across many Base Camps, here you will be able to upgrade your skills and equipment; it will also act as a Fast Track location, which is very handy considering the size of the map.  By earning XP you have many upgradable skills available to you, such as increased damage intake, more accurate aiming, some very handy counter kills and more.

Your weapons on the other hand will be upgraded by scavenging the many crates that you will find, as well as your fallen victims and animals that you may successfully hunt.  You can upgrade the more obvious elements such as a improved recoil, larger magazine cartridges and so forth.  As you progress through the game you will acquire many weapons such as your trusty hand-guns, a shotgun, and assault rifle and of course your bow & arrow.  Some weapons may have more purpose then others, such as the shotgun, which can blast through certain destructible walls to access previously unreachable locations.

Other then your pick axe which can be used for climbing, opening crates and lethal counter moves, none is possibly more important than your trusty bow & arrow.  The bow and arrow comes in handy for stealth kills, but later in the game you will upgrade to fire arrows and a very handy rope arrows.  Other then brutal kills the fire arrows can be used to access certain areas and will be very useful when solving certain puzzles.  The rope arrows can be used to yank enemies off ledges, pull down structures and even access certain doors.  While all the weapons in Tomb Raider offer a great satisfaction and usefulness, none are arguably more important than the ye ole faithful shotgun and bow & arrow.

While the Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition is an improved version of the game that we know and love, other than the fantastic new visuals, I was hoping for some other new improvements in this version.  One of the few criticisms with the original release was that the game never featured enough tombs to raid, something that was of course symbolic throughout the series with previous instalments.  I felt that the Definitive Edition would have been the perfect opportunity to feature a few extra new tombs (other than the one released as DLC).  Speaking of DLC, the Definitive Edition does come with a wealth of previously released DLC that includes six outfits to be used in the singleplayer campaign (Aviatrix, Guerrilla, Demolition, Sure-Shot, Hunter and Mountaineer outfits), the Tomb Raider Adventure Pack (which includes three weapon and two skill upgrades) and the Tomb of the Lost Adventurer to be used in the singleplayer.

You will also get a whole host of multiplayer DLC that includes: 1939 Multiplayer Map Pack – Which includes Wartime Bunker and Forest Meadow maps.  The Caves and Cliffs Multiplayer Map Pack – which includes Cliff Shantytown and Burning Village maps, Shanty Town Multiplayer Map Pack and the Shipwrecked Multiplayer Map Pack – which includes the Lost Fleet and Himiko’s Cradle maps.  In addition you will also get the multiplayer characters the Fisherman, Scavenger Bandit, Scavenger Executioner and the Scavenger Scout.  You will also acquire the weapons used by Hitman: Absolutions Agent 47 with the iconic Silverballer,  Agency SPS, JAGD P22G, HX AP-15, M590 12ga  and the STG 58 Elite.

 

The Definitive Edition also includes some new voice command controls, exclusive to the PS4 and Xbox One.  The voice commands are very basic which will allow you to open and close a map, and by saying a weapons name will be an alternative switch to using the traditional D-Pad.  Though the novelty of the voice commands did quickly wear thin and I soon reverted back to the traditional methods.  In most part the voice commands work fine, but they can also be a little temperamental.

For instance when I was listening to one of the many diaries that you can find in the game, they would close halfway through the dialogue.  I’m not sure if I had said something to trigger without realising or if the console had assumed I had said something when I didn’t, but documents would close prematurely more often that I would want.  But as an added bonus when listening to dialogue or if a character contacts you through the walkie-talkie, the sound would come through the DualShock 4 controller, as well as the TV.  Which is a nice little touch that some will appreciate, as it adds a little more immersiveness to the tale that’s being told.

You can have a game that boasts all the stunning visuals it wants, but without the substance of a well told story and gameplay mechanic, all the prettiest eye candy in the world will start to wear thin.  Thankfully Tomb Raider has a superb story to tell, which is elevated by a talented cast of voice actors and a wonderful soundtrack from British Academy Award winning composer Jason Graves (Dead Space series to name a few).  As with any well supported official soundtrack, the music throughout the tale of Tomb Raider is perhaps as good as you will ever find it in any recent video game.  We have been incredibly lucky throughout 2013 with fantastic soundtracks for games such as The Last of Us, Assassins Creed IV: Black Flag and Tomb Raider, which of course carried over to the Definitive Edition.

One of Tomb Raider: Definitive Editions most powerful tools (other than fluid gameplay and stunning visuals) is its compelling story that it has to tell.  But if you have a flat sounding talentless voice cast, the story would have as much conviction as trying to get a paper-cut from a wet Chevy Chase cardboard cut-out.  The beautiful and talented actress that is Camilla Luddington (Grey’s Anatomy, True Blood, and Californication) does an amazing job in voicing Lara.  Her passion for the project seeps through as you feel every moment of fear, relief and joy with Lara Croft.  I’d go out on a limb to say that Camilla’s performance as Lara is most certainly among the best that I have witnessed in recent times.  Camilla has certainly set a new standard in how voice acting is done in the video game medium and other actors/actresses should certainly sit up and take note of her amazing performance in Tomb Raider.

Depending on the kind of gamer that you are, will all depend on how much you will get in return from Tomb Raider.  If you’re the kind of gamer that flies through a game on the lower difficulty settings and does not hunt for treasures, then you are likely to finish Tomb Raider: Definite Edition in perhaps 8 – 10 hours. But if you are the kind of gamer that likes to challenge yourself on a higher difficulty and has a fondness for treasure hunting, then you could easily get at least 15 hours out of Tomb Raider.

The island of Yamatai is an open playground that you are free to explore, but some areas may not be accessible during your first attempts.  Only when you acquire certain upgrades, will you then be able to reach the previously unreachable.  This factor alone creates a decent amount of replay value in Tomb Raider, not to mention achieving all the upgrades for you weapons and skills, in which I doubt even the most skilled of gamers, will get them all on their first playthrough.  Though once you’ve gained all the upgrades, raided all the tombs and found all the treasures, there may not be a great deal to pull you back once all this is achieved.

Once it is all said and done, if you want to get the maximum out of Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition, you are left with the somewhat questionable multiplayer.  Don’t get me wrong, Tomb Raiders multiplayer isn’t all that bad, the best way that I can put this, is that it feels a little bit…meh!  You might really end up liking its multiplayer, but if you like multiplayer of this variety and own a PS3, games such as Uncharted 3 offers a far greater option.  If you own neither and are exclusively a PS4 or Xbox One owner, then you might find some comforting joy in Tomb Raiders multiplayer, just don’t go expecting any fireworks.

In 2013 Tomb Raider was easily one of the year’s major highlights; it truly was a rebirth for the franchise.  The Definitive Edition is more of the same and may not offer enough attraction for all gamers, let alone warrant forking out more of your hard earned cash after you may have played the original release to death.  In truth whether you decide to purchase the Definitive Edition or not, purely relies on the gamer at hand, and I can only really speak for myself.  Despite playing through Tomb Raider once each via the PS3 and Xbox 360, I simply could not wait to playthrough the Definitive Edition.

Yes I would be treading over old ground, but this was a better version of the game that I love, so why wouldn’t I look forward to playing it?  Having improved visuals not only make the game easier on the eye, it also makes the game more immersive.  After all, it’s easier to believe a games tale when its world looks that little more life-like and with a title that tells such a powerful story as Tomb Raider, the game that you love just got better in more ways than one.  So whether you a gamer revisiting the island of Yamatai, or if you are a gamer new to this reborn series, the hint is really in the title of this superb game.  This edition of Tomb Raider really is The Definitive Edition.

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