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Rise of the Tomb Raider 20 Yr Anniversary Edition |OT| Hello from the other side
- Thread starter Cornbread78
- Start date
Random thoughts after completing the campaign...
The game is at it's best when I'm solving puzzles in the optional tombs. The puzzles were creative, the tombs had great designs and the difficulty was adequate. My favorite tomb from the main game would the the one where you have to raise the water level like 4 times. I kind of stumbled onto the Baba Yaga DLC tomb and went ahead with it anyways, and that puzzle was awesome. Like, I got stuck for a bit.
The story is bad. Detrimentally bad. It mostly comes down to these characters and the plotting of events. We have Jonah, one of the stereotypes from the first game making a return and I don't care about him at all. When he reappears later in the game it is so very obvious that he is gonna get kidnapped. Then there's Konstanin, who only was one mode of operation: angry to the point of hilarity. Jacob, who literally acts and walks and talks like a prophetic character that when he is finally reveals to be the prophet I couldn't help but role my eyes. Ana, who was...okay, but the writing is not strong enough for her beats to have an impact. She betrayed the Crofts! She's dying! It all fell very flat. Finally Lara herself, so fixated on her father at the cost of her own character.
I played on Seasoned Raider because I loved how it handled health. No regen during battle and it adds incentive to scavenge compared to the first game. The shooting feels great but the AI...honestly it's just target practice. Way too easy to get headshots because they're so stationary.
This is not good game design:
I wish we had more diverse environments. Felt like there were only two main ones and all the snow/ice definitely overstayed its welcome. Soviet Installation, Lost City, Siberia...at the end of the day it's all snow/ice. The Geothermal Valley was a nice change of pace but then you spend way too much time there as well. In this regard, Tomb Raider 2013 won out with its forests and bunkers and beaches and whatnot.
The game I thought was surprisingly overwhelming with all the stuff you can scavenge. There comes a point where it's less about me seeking out the resources I need and more about me just pressing square whenever I can and RotTR crosses that line. I also thought that weapons were spread a bit to thin across the gears, resources, giant metal boxes, coins for the shop, and mission rewards. So I didn't feel too involved in the upgrading, it was more of a passive ehhh let's see what I can do now at a new base camp.
The traversal/platforming is great. And they kept adding new abilities at an decent pace to keep things fresh. It isn't challenging but with all the abilities Lara has it definitely in engaging.
The game is at it's best when I'm solving puzzles in the optional tombs. The puzzles were creative, the tombs had great designs and the difficulty was adequate. My favorite tomb from the main game would the the one where you have to raise the water level like 4 times. I kind of stumbled onto the Baba Yaga DLC tomb and went ahead with it anyways, and that puzzle was awesome. Like, I got stuck for a bit.
The story is bad. Detrimentally bad. It mostly comes down to these characters and the plotting of events. We have Jonah, one of the stereotypes from the first game making a return and I don't care about him at all. When he reappears later in the game it is so very obvious that he is gonna get kidnapped. Then there's Konstanin, who only was one mode of operation: angry to the point of hilarity. Jacob, who literally acts and walks and talks like a prophetic character that when he is finally reveals to be the prophet I couldn't help but role my eyes. Ana, who was...okay, but the writing is not strong enough for her beats to have an impact. She betrayed the Crofts! She's dying! It all fell very flat. Finally Lara herself, so fixated on her father at the cost of her own character.
I played on Seasoned Raider because I loved how it handled health. No regen during battle and it adds incentive to scavenge compared to the first game. The shooting feels great but the AI...honestly it's just target practice. Way too easy to get headshots because they're so stationary.
This is not good game design:
That is just shit scattered all over the place and I quickly stopped bothering (Tomb Raider 2013 had the same problem).
I wish we had more diverse environments. Felt like there were only two main ones and all the snow/ice definitely overstayed its welcome. Soviet Installation, Lost City, Siberia...at the end of the day it's all snow/ice. The Geothermal Valley was a nice change of pace but then you spend way too much time there as well. In this regard, Tomb Raider 2013 won out with its forests and bunkers and beaches and whatnot.
The game I thought was surprisingly overwhelming with all the stuff you can scavenge. There comes a point where it's less about me seeking out the resources I need and more about me just pressing square whenever I can and RotTR crosses that line. I also thought that weapons were spread a bit to thin across the gears, resources, giant metal boxes, coins for the shop, and mission rewards. So I didn't feel too involved in the upgrading, it was more of a passive ehhh let's see what I can do now at a new base camp.
The traversal/platforming is great. And they kept adding new abilities at an decent pace to keep things fresh. It isn't challenging but with all the abilities Lara has it definitely in engaging.
allintospace
Member
Finished the collect-athon over the weekend, what a slog. I ended up gathering the final few with videos on YouTube just to get it done. What did surprise me were the little additional details and foliage in the PS4 version. The videos I watched on YouTube were from Xbox One runs and some areas I had double check where I was cause it looked quite different.
I also switched the character model to the Tomb Raider 2 with winter bomber jacket. Brings back the feels and that ponytail still flows well.
I also switched the character model to the Tomb Raider 2 with winter bomber jacket. Brings back the feels and that ponytail still flows well.
onemanasylum
Banned
Agree, the collectithon stuff was pure shit, I laugh at IGN saying uncharted needed more of that filler garbage. Game was a huge disappointment.
Yeah, the collecting in this game sucked. It would have been okay if it was only in Tombs and special areas, but this "scattered arround the whole map" thing needs to stop in all games. It's the only thing I can think of that I'd consider lazy development.
I think Shadow of Mordor is about the only game that did it right in the last couple years. Good amount and all of them were in spots that were reachable without any issue.
I think Shadow of Mordor is about the only game that did it right in the last couple years. Good amount and all of them were in spots that were reachable without any issue.
Finished the game, I liked a bit more the second half of it, besides I still didn't liked the fights cause of the terrible AI: 1 cover bad so that I can headshot them 2 just run in open field to reach me...
The game for me is a huge step back from the 2013. I liked the use of the Bow and its upgrades to give more options, but some of these just looked the same like the grappling hook and the bow rope to swing...
I already said that the AI is terrible?
I liked the optional tombs (did most of them) but these were actually very easy and short. I would like something more complex and integrated in the game, like in the original games.
The plot is terrible too, and I don't think you need an original one to make it good, but at least a decent writing for it and the characters!
Thx god Lara seems to had set the complex with her father at the end, at least I hope so.
Graphic and art it's top in most of the game considering is a third party game and cross platform.
The game for me is a huge step back from the 2013. I liked the use of the Bow and its upgrades to give more options, but some of these just looked the same like the grappling hook and the bow rope to swing...
I already said that the AI is terrible?
I liked the optional tombs (did most of them) but these were actually very easy and short. I would like something more complex and integrated in the game, like in the original games.
The plot is terrible too, and I don't think you need an original one to make it good, but at least a decent writing for it and the characters!
Thx god Lara seems to had set the complex with her father at the end, at least I hope so.
Graphic and art it's top in most of the game considering is a third party game and cross platform.
allintospace
Member
I didn't pay much attention to the father complex she had, but it did look to have come to a head. However when finishing the game I was more disappointed with how they are setting up
a continuation of the Trinity secret organisation
Ugh, yeah. Same here, I rolled my eyes at the end knowing we've got more of the same old shit coming. CD are going in completely the wrong direction for me, just doubling down on all the crap I didn't like.
Mind you, the type of Tomb Raider game I want is never going to get made.
My personal problem with her father is that her personality is all about her realtionship with him... or at least, it would have been interesting, but we just know so little about that... so all that "my father here, my father there" make it jsut annoying mostly... :\
I really, really liked the 2013 game, and I know it was not a masterpiece or something much more complex than this one, but I actually found it much more fun and pacing was way better. Maybe it's just my memories that are not so good... I just know I liked it...
Played the first 2 hours of this yesterday. I really liked TR 2013, and this really does look like more of the same, one action scene after another. I'll see if I end up as soured on the experience as most people in this thread by the time I finish it, but for now I'm enjoying it. I agree the story isn't super memorable or well crafted but I don't really mind, I can see what they are going for.
If I'm worried about anything it is the item collection. I get overwhelmed easily so I hope I'm able to ignore it or this game could turn into a very frustrating grind for me. The crafting system also seems more complicated than the one in TR 2013, and that doesn't exactly excite me.
If I'm worried about anything it is the item collection. I get overwhelmed easily so I hope I'm able to ignore it or this game could turn into a very frustrating grind for me. The crafting system also seems more complicated than the one in TR 2013, and that doesn't exactly excite me.
I think there was too many weapons/unlocks etc - its like an explosion of stuff everywhere; the whole map is covered in icons of crap to collect, there are multiple versions of every gun to unlock/build at base camp, there are loads of skills to learn (the vast majority utterly pointless)......maybe some people like this amount of nonsense layered over everything but for me it just came across as a huge lack of focus and direction. Shotguns are good right? HAVE 5 OF THEM! You like hitting guys in the head with your axe right? HAVE LOTS OF SKILLS TO DO IT 10 DIFFERENT WAYS!
More is not always better, but its seems CD can't quite grasp that. More shooting does not a better game make, more enemies does not make for a better combat encounter. I would have much preferred if they had trimmed some of this stuff out and tightened up the experience a little but the whole game is indicative of 'throw everything onto the screen'.
A little restraint would go a long way to improving the game.
Turnstyle
Member
I finished this recently, thanks to the sale on PSN.
I've played pretty much every mainline Tomb Raider game to date, and was a bit sore when Rise got timed Xbox exclusivity. I also found the way that the game was released on PS4 highly cynical, with the shots of the original Playstation box art and the Playstation exclusive skins. I don't think you can go to Xbox for a year, and then fall back on nostalgia with the Playstation crowd. Seemed like having your cake and eating it to me.
Having said that, being able to buy the game for just over £20, with all DLC included off the bat was pretty sweet, and maybe worth the wait?
In terms of the gameplay, it really did feel like an extension of the 2013 reboot to me, for better and worse. I'm never really sold on crafting mechanics, and the sheer volume of upgradeable weapons, items, skills etc was overkill. However, I did like the Metroid style system of having paths blocked until you got the right equipment - it gave me a reason to travel back to earlier areas to see what I missed. Yes, in theory the collectables are also an incentive to go back, but not enough for me. There's just so many of them that I really couldn't be bothered.
While my favourite aspect of Tomb Raider games is one that has been sorely lacking in recent years, exploration, I'm not one of these people who hates gunplay. Its been there since the first game and I'm happy to have it in moderation. I feel like Rise really leaned on it too heavily though, especially in the second half. Walking into an area and seeing a series of waist high walls tells you exactly what you're going to get, and Rise had plenty of these moments. I did appreciate the stealth element, and used that wherever I could, but at times it was impossible to avoid becoming embroiled in a firefight with 20 goons. I found this particularly egregious at the end, where the game basically
For me, the best part was the optional tombs. These felt very classic Tomb Raider, and even though they felt more substantial in Rise than the 2013 reboot, they were so slight and over way too quickly, just presenting you with a single puzzle to claim the collectable. There was a moment in one of them (Cistern, I think?) where I was really enjoying working out the solution and exploring, but it lasted just a few minutes. I want more of that! A whole game in fact!
I also miss the long stretches of isolation of the original games. There was always a real intimidating sense of being alone, especially when you were underground in a cavernous tomb, surrounded by skeletons and huge ancient contraptions. I'd love for them to bring that feel back. You got it in the optional tombs, but you were never down there for long.
Also, and I think others have mentioned it, I didn't like Lara's audio in this one. The VA just sounded so, so tired. I always felt like they must have phoned her at 3am and asked her to do the lines down the phone. The story was nothing great, but to be fair, I don't play Tomb Raider games for the story.
I've got some DLC to tackle yet - have done the Croft Mansion one, but nothing else, so I'll take a look at those soon. My world though will forever be littered with collectables, because picking all that stuff up seems nearly redundant. There's a famous observation about Bill Gates that he's so rich that picking up a penny literally wouldn't be worth his time. That's pretty much how I feel when presented with all the collectables in this game.
I've played pretty much every mainline Tomb Raider game to date, and was a bit sore when Rise got timed Xbox exclusivity. I also found the way that the game was released on PS4 highly cynical, with the shots of the original Playstation box art and the Playstation exclusive skins. I don't think you can go to Xbox for a year, and then fall back on nostalgia with the Playstation crowd. Seemed like having your cake and eating it to me.
Having said that, being able to buy the game for just over £20, with all DLC included off the bat was pretty sweet, and maybe worth the wait?
In terms of the gameplay, it really did feel like an extension of the 2013 reboot to me, for better and worse. I'm never really sold on crafting mechanics, and the sheer volume of upgradeable weapons, items, skills etc was overkill. However, I did like the Metroid style system of having paths blocked until you got the right equipment - it gave me a reason to travel back to earlier areas to see what I missed. Yes, in theory the collectables are also an incentive to go back, but not enough for me. There's just so many of them that I really couldn't be bothered.
While my favourite aspect of Tomb Raider games is one that has been sorely lacking in recent years, exploration, I'm not one of these people who hates gunplay. Its been there since the first game and I'm happy to have it in moderation. I feel like Rise really leaned on it too heavily though, especially in the second half. Walking into an area and seeing a series of waist high walls tells you exactly what you're going to get, and Rise had plenty of these moments. I did appreciate the stealth element, and used that wherever I could, but at times it was impossible to avoid becoming embroiled in a firefight with 20 goons. I found this particularly egregious at the end, where the game basically
chucks a load of dudes at you and gives you busy work, insisting that you kill them all before you progress. It reminded me of The Order in this way. I wish developers realised that the finale of a game doesn't have to rely on a massive body count.
For me, the best part was the optional tombs. These felt very classic Tomb Raider, and even though they felt more substantial in Rise than the 2013 reboot, they were so slight and over way too quickly, just presenting you with a single puzzle to claim the collectable. There was a moment in one of them (Cistern, I think?) where I was really enjoying working out the solution and exploring, but it lasted just a few minutes. I want more of that! A whole game in fact!
I also miss the long stretches of isolation of the original games. There was always a real intimidating sense of being alone, especially when you were underground in a cavernous tomb, surrounded by skeletons and huge ancient contraptions. I'd love for them to bring that feel back. You got it in the optional tombs, but you were never down there for long.
Also, and I think others have mentioned it, I didn't like Lara's audio in this one. The VA just sounded so, so tired. I always felt like they must have phoned her at 3am and asked her to do the lines down the phone. The story was nothing great, but to be fair, I don't play Tomb Raider games for the story.
I've got some DLC to tackle yet - have done the Croft Mansion one, but nothing else, so I'll take a look at those soon. My world though will forever be littered with collectables, because picking all that stuff up seems nearly redundant. There's a famous observation about Bill Gates that he's so rich that picking up a penny literally wouldn't be worth his time. That's pretty much how I feel when presented with all the collectables in this game.
allintospace
Member
Some of the melee attacks with the axe were unnecessarily bloody and brutal and that's not Lara Croft in my mind. I don't know what demographic they aimed for but I don't feel part of it.
Not even finished RotTR but as far as I am the story is garbage. Can't imagine these guys delivered something excellent as the Soul Reaver trilogy back then. Have all the good writers left the studio? Even TR 2013 had a way more interesting story than its sequel.
And why including THAT many audio logs, that aren't nearly as interesting than those in TR 2013, without the possibility to hear them while keep playing is beyond me.
And why including THAT many audio logs, that aren't nearly as interesting than those in TR 2013, without the possibility to hear them while keep playing is beyond me.
Soul Reaver (and the Legacy of Kain series at large) was Amy Hennig written/directed before she left for Naughty Dog and Uncharted. So yeah...
allintospace
Member
I don't mind audio logs and written notes in principle, but your investment in them is heavily tied to the plot of the game, which in this case is trash. A Tomb Raider could be genuinely infomative and even educational to an extent with regards to area and civilisations Lara is exploring. Something that could be genuinely unique to the series but also lost on most.
Got this in the PSN Christmas sale so been giving it some attention lately.
I've just recovered
and returned back to Geothermal Valley.
Now, I really quite liked TR2013, and so far I feel this game falls short in pretty much every aspect of its predecessor, which I feel is a popular sentiment throughout this thread.
Lara's survival story/adventure was much more compelling than this forgettable, cliched narrative. The characters/villains are drab, locations aren't as memorable and boy, the audio collectibles are too plentiful and basically pointless anyway with no 'listen on the move' mechanic. I think I listened to two before not bothering again.
Only done a few tombs so far but they are undoubtedly the best feature of the game. TR2013 left me wanting more so at least Crystal Dynamics have delivered on that front.
They also messed up Lara's appearance, why change it so drastically/noticeably? I feel it subtracts from the the Lara we connected with throughout her origins/survival story, just doesn't seem right for the character. And god Lara's VA work is painful at times, trying way too hard.
I was searching every area extensively for all collectibles but now I'm just eager to finish the story and see how it all pans out.
I've just recovered
the atlas
Now, I really quite liked TR2013, and so far I feel this game falls short in pretty much every aspect of its predecessor, which I feel is a popular sentiment throughout this thread.
Lara's survival story/adventure was much more compelling than this forgettable, cliched narrative. The characters/villains are drab, locations aren't as memorable and boy, the audio collectibles are too plentiful and basically pointless anyway with no 'listen on the move' mechanic. I think I listened to two before not bothering again.
Only done a few tombs so far but they are undoubtedly the best feature of the game. TR2013 left me wanting more so at least Crystal Dynamics have delivered on that front.
They also messed up Lara's appearance, why change it so drastically/noticeably? I feel it subtracts from the the Lara we connected with throughout her origins/survival story, just doesn't seem right for the character. And god Lara's VA work is painful at times, trying way too hard.
I was searching every area extensively for all collectibles but now I'm just eager to finish the story and see how it all pans out.
Pancake Mix
Copied someone else's pancake recipe
Going to have to disagree there in the sense that all that stuff is not designed for most people to collect. Think of it like DK64.
If you're going for a platinum, sure, but most of that stuff is extra and provides some interest points while you're walking, as the game is quasi non-linear in an almost Metroidvania way.
It's not like Uncharted (especially pre-UC4) where there's not a lot of shit around because the game is entirely linear, TR2013 and ROTTR are designed for the most dedicated players to go back and collect extra stuff. I never bothered with most of those collectables, nor do most, but I wouldn't say not caring enough to bother about entirely optional content is a big deal, unless you need to platinum every game you unlock, or if the amount of stuff becomes overwhelming for you.
Really liked TR2013. So i started Rise a few days ago. I'm done for now. Might play it on PC in 5-10years just to Gawk at it in 8K on an affordable system.but otherwise i'm done.
Gameplay wise Rise is basically a full blown ARPG. It has all the busywork of an RPG but none of the scope. It feels like being stuck in the hinterlands or on Taris for hours, knowing that it will never open up. To that end Combat is as poorly balanced as an RPG. Enemies are simple and too easy to stealth kill, yet as a shooter they are too bulletspongy to be fun. The set pieces also feel much more like a walking simulator then the first game.
Story wise the first game isnt anything to write home about, but it has great pacing, a solid payoff (leaving the island) and the supporting characters while often one note tend to tether Lara to her humanity.
In Rise thats all out the window. Jonah makes a brief apperance as "Wet Blanket man" but most of the writing makes lara and Jonah feel like they are the Pablo and Nicki of a russian Lost knockoff. Rather then the action heroes of their own story. Worst of all Sam. Lara's best friend and tv producer didnt make an apperance.
Perhaps thats what i wanted. Lara Croft vs Tombs in the veign of Man vs Wild rather then a shadowy paramilitary organisation without any real motivation
Gameplay wise Rise is basically a full blown ARPG. It has all the busywork of an RPG but none of the scope. It feels like being stuck in the hinterlands or on Taris for hours, knowing that it will never open up. To that end Combat is as poorly balanced as an RPG. Enemies are simple and too easy to stealth kill, yet as a shooter they are too bulletspongy to be fun. The set pieces also feel much more like a walking simulator then the first game.
Story wise the first game isnt anything to write home about, but it has great pacing, a solid payoff (leaving the island) and the supporting characters while often one note tend to tether Lara to her humanity.
In Rise thats all out the window. Jonah makes a brief apperance as "Wet Blanket man" but most of the writing makes lara and Jonah feel like they are the Pablo and Nicki of a russian Lost knockoff. Rather then the action heroes of their own story. Worst of all Sam. Lara's best friend and tv producer didnt make an apperance.
Perhaps thats what i wanted. Lara Croft vs Tombs in the veign of Man vs Wild rather then a shadowy paramilitary organisation without any real motivation
VanCityGamer
Member
This game was simply incredible. Even better than TR 2013. My favorite game of 2016. Basically wouldn't change anything about it; perhaps just fewer collectibles.
Gorgeous environments to explore, great challenge tombs, wonderful set pieces, excellent combat, superb pacing.
More of the same, please.
Gorgeous environments to explore, great challenge tombs, wonderful set pieces, excellent combat, superb pacing.
More of the same, please.
I don't want to believe this. I have a PRO and started playing the game today. Yes, it freezes.. one time it shown a checkerboard pattern on screen when it did.
It only does it to me using 4K mode.. so far anyways.
Its a widespread issue.. just visit the official forum or Sony PlayStation forum and look up the game.
Out of the 20 or so games I played on the PRO no other game does this!
I've read people exchanging their PRO and that fixed it.. I think this is where the hardware assumptions come from. but it still could be corrupt data.. which is the code(CE-34878-0) PS4 gives me when it happens. The 1.06 update on some PRO's I believe is getting corrupted. Perhaps their is a small difference in PRO model units and SquareEnix didn't foresee.
capylikesgames
Banned
Game crashed on me during the final cutscene, which was disappointing. Tried it twice, and came to the conclusion that it was an error with the game itself. Had to look it up on Youtube because it's late, and I didn't want to bother fixing whatever issue was causing it. Ending felt incredibly rushed, but it is what it is. I'll look into solutions tomorrow before I play through the Baba Yaga DLC. Definitely not done with it, since I want to try out the other extras that came with the 25th Anniversary Edition.
That said, I really enjoyed this game! I think it shines during the platforming and puzzle sections. Though the platforming itself is a bit handhold-y, I think its complex enough at points that it still manages to stay entertaining. Meanwhile, the tombs I explored had some legitimately engaging puzzles. I wish Lara wouldn't spoil the answers (there's probably an option for this that I should've disabled), because they were all incredibly reasonable. Props to the designers, they did great!
Only complaint I have about the gameplay is the combat, and even then it isn't all that bad. The guns feel nice, though I found myself using the bow and arrow most of the time. My main issue is with bigger fights; this is my fault for playing on normal, but they felt a bit lackluster. It kind of feels like the enemies were designed around analog aim, because it was really easy to mow through them with my Steam Controller. That said, I know I should've chosen a higher difficulty, and plan to do a second playthrough down the road.
The story was whatever. I feel coming off of TR13, it could've been great, but they decided to play it really safe instead. Predictable around every corner. Not enough to bog down the game itself, though. The environments and the artstyle, on the other hand, were enthralling. The game itself is lovely running on my GTX 1060. I manually configured it to PS4 equivalent settings, and managed to get a consistent 60fps on the DX12 renderer without losing any visual flair. Props to Crystal Dynamics for creating such a gorgeous game!
Overall, my time with the main story was a ton of fun. The game mixed it up often enough to keep me curious (which is impressive considering its length), and mostly did things right. Especially coming off of 13, it improved on its gameplay in every way, and I feel that was an important thing for the devs to achieve here. Game isn't perfect, but not a bad installment at all. Definitely worth playing if you have access to something that can run it; a ton of fun, and a fantastic showcase of modern visuals.
That said, I really enjoyed this game! I think it shines during the platforming and puzzle sections. Though the platforming itself is a bit handhold-y, I think its complex enough at points that it still manages to stay entertaining. Meanwhile, the tombs I explored had some legitimately engaging puzzles. I wish Lara wouldn't spoil the answers (there's probably an option for this that I should've disabled), because they were all incredibly reasonable. Props to the designers, they did great!
Only complaint I have about the gameplay is the combat, and even then it isn't all that bad. The guns feel nice, though I found myself using the bow and arrow most of the time. My main issue is with bigger fights; this is my fault for playing on normal, but they felt a bit lackluster. It kind of feels like the enemies were designed around analog aim, because it was really easy to mow through them with my Steam Controller. That said, I know I should've chosen a higher difficulty, and plan to do a second playthrough down the road.
The story was whatever. I feel coming off of TR13, it could've been great, but they decided to play it really safe instead. Predictable around every corner. Not enough to bog down the game itself, though. The environments and the artstyle, on the other hand, were enthralling. The game itself is lovely running on my GTX 1060. I manually configured it to PS4 equivalent settings, and managed to get a consistent 60fps on the DX12 renderer without losing any visual flair. Props to Crystal Dynamics for creating such a gorgeous game!
Overall, my time with the main story was a ton of fun. The game mixed it up often enough to keep me curious (which is impressive considering its length), and mostly did things right. Especially coming off of 13, it improved on its gameplay in every way, and I feel that was an important thing for the devs to achieve here. Game isn't perfect, but not a bad installment at all. Definitely worth playing if you have access to something that can run it; a ton of fun, and a fantastic showcase of modern visuals.
Definitely could have been great. For a Tomb Raider game, Lara is well designed and she stays, although questioned several times by other characters, true to her motive. She is dedicated to her ambition and focused on her goal, empathic, righteous and helpful (a few edges would have been nice, though. She's being portrayed almost without any flaws). Yet they managed to write such an unoriginal plot, with the occasional bad guys chasing after the same as she does, you probably have seen a hundred times. Adding these Geothermal Valley folks protecting the secret seems like from a video game writing handbook on 'how to add gameplay elements and incorporate them with the story'. Nothing wrong with adding NPCs and even a whole tribe. But doing some superficial tasks in MMO style for them doesn't enrich the experience nor does it add much to sympathize with them.
For the next installment, I hope they go less conservative and focus more on story telling, now that they seem to have found their perspective of gameplay mechanics.
CyberChulo
Member
All I can says is that getting another system worked for me. Haven't had that issue again, and I replay this game a lot.
Are you always running in the 4K mode?
Finished this yesterday and broadly enjoyed it. I do think these games have a bit of a tone problem though.
Lara is either on the brink of collapsing from the pressure and hazardous environment or slaughtering mercenaries whilst shouting like she's trying to get the school netball team fired up.
Part of my issue I guess is with the voice-acting, which is...not great.
I hope the next game gives her a bit more agency with what's happening around her, rather than her stumbling into things with everything that happens to her being a terrible accident.
I was longing for the game to give her two pistols and have her pop a t-rex.
Lara is either on the brink of collapsing from the pressure and hazardous environment or slaughtering mercenaries whilst shouting like she's trying to get the school netball team fired up.
Part of my issue I guess is with the voice-acting, which is...not great.
I hope the next game gives her a bit more agency with what's happening around her, rather than her stumbling into things with everything that happens to her being a terrible accident.
I was longing for the game to give her two pistols and have her pop a t-rex.
Happened to me too!
The 2 have nothing to do with each other. Rise of the Tomb Raider was an awesome game, yet this collecting stuff was the worst part of it. It doesn't automatically mean that the game was straight up garbage.
Besides, if people like these things, why is it the most hated thing in the Achievement/Trophy community? Why is the %-age so low on these Achievements/Trophies? Are we somehow not allowed to critisize bad parts of otherwise awesome games anymore?
So, there I was, shooting my fire arrow into the last cloth banner in The Lost City to finish up the collectibles/challenges and get that sweet 100%, when the trophy doesn't pop.
Turns out, I completely overlooked that you could revisit the Syria area at the beginning of the game. Had a bunch of stuff still not collected/completed, of course.
Turns out, I completely overlooked that you could revisit the Syria area at the beginning of the game. Had a bunch of stuff still not collected/completed, of course.
So I got my Pro over the weekend and loaded up the demo for this. Now, I had played through this game twice on Xbox One and all the dlc and absolutely loved it. I tried the demo as a curiosity to see how it runs, and I was fucking blown away!
4K mode, supersampled on my 1080p, looks just incredible. Might be the best looking game I've seen on it so far. I can't believe the clarity that it has now. So I went ahead and bought the game again now on PSN right before it went off sale. I've already put quite a few hours into it and it's such a joy. This really is one of my favorite games.
4K mode, supersampled on my 1080p, looks just incredible. Might be the best looking game I've seen on it so far. I can't believe the clarity that it has now. So I went ahead and bought the game again now on PSN right before it went off sale. I've already put quite a few hours into it and it's such a joy. This really is one of my favorite games.
StrongBlackVine
Banned
I see Crystal Dynamics studied Ubisoft open world design very well.
So I finally finished the game yesterday and...
Well, that sums up my impressions pretty much perfectly. It gets really boring and cliché in every possible ways towards the end and it drags longer than it should.
It's even more disappointing when I think about the fact that I waited over a year to play this on the Pro and enjoy the "definitive" edition.
Haribokart
Banned
Mossybrew
Member
Yeah, finished the game myself this weekend and the story was just painfully bad. Like, no thought or inspiration at all went into this, just the most generic possible skeleton to hang some action on.
Melchiah
Member
"I wish you could see the view from my tent, Lara..." =D
Neolombax
Member
Just finished the game last weekend and was quite honestly disappointed with it. I went in with so much anticipation. The best part of the game were the optional tombs. the graphics were great although movement was a bit janky I thought.
I found myself not caring about the story...at all! Who thought it would be a great idea to give Lara that many options for guns? I mean, she's a tomb raider, not a one (wo)man army. They should honestly stick to the system in TR2013 where one weapon class had only 1 weapon and you'd continue upgrading it. By the end of it, I was getting annoyed that Lara screamed and sighed so much through out the game.
I found myself not caring about the story...at all! Who thought it would be a great idea to give Lara that many options for guns? I mean, she's a tomb raider, not a one (wo)man army. They should honestly stick to the system in TR2013 where one weapon class had only 1 weapon and you'd continue upgrading it. By the end of it, I was getting annoyed that Lara screamed and sighed so much through out the game.
Agent_Tiro
Member
I thoroughly enjoyed the reboot when I played through it on PS4 and I was expecting more of the same but more refined experience.
What I actually got was more combat, more abilities, more weapons, more upgrades and more collectibles. To the point that the abilities became pointless to me, I stopped caring about upgrading weapons and stuck with a bow for most encounters.
This game is at its best when you are traversing the areas, climbing and solving puzzles. The hidden tombs are the best part of this game. I just wish they would go back to the original tomb raider philosophy. Exploration, puzzle solving and only the occassional gunfight.
With so much to do I found myself not wanting to spend umpteen hours backtracking through areas to solve a puzzle I had seen 10 hours earlier but was missing equipment to complete it.
I will give Croft manor a try and see what that is like but I'm glad I didn't pay full price for this, and even more glad I didn't buy an X1 to play this when it first came out.
What I actually got was more combat, more abilities, more weapons, more upgrades and more collectibles. To the point that the abilities became pointless to me, I stopped caring about upgrading weapons and stuck with a bow for most encounters.
This game is at its best when you are traversing the areas, climbing and solving puzzles. The hidden tombs are the best part of this game. I just wish they would go back to the original tomb raider philosophy. Exploration, puzzle solving and only the occassional gunfight.
With so much to do I found myself not wanting to spend umpteen hours backtracking through areas to solve a puzzle I had seen 10 hours earlier but was missing equipment to complete it.
I will give Croft manor a try and see what that is like but I'm glad I didn't pay full price for this, and even more glad I didn't buy an X1 to play this when it first came out.
NeoRaider
Member
There is no more combat in this game compared to reboot from 2013. There are also less cinematic parts and QTEs.
Also you seem to have forgotten more and better done tombs and puzzles??
pinballsummer
Member
Finished the campaign last week. I didn't care about the story at all - the theme just did not interest me in the least. That said - LOVED the gameplay and graphics.
Currently working on 100%ing it, but having second thoughts. Navigating the map is SUCH A CHORE that I'm really wishing they would have added a 'Fast Travel from Anywhere!' feature as a reward for completing the campaign. Instead I'm going from basecamp to nearest basecamp, then 45 minutes pressing L-stick over and over until I find my target: rinse & repeat. I've had to give up on so many things 'for now' after trying to get to the top of some mountain that I can't for the life of me find out how to reach.
It should not be this much of a struggle. Anyone have any tips? Otherwise, I'm giving it a couple more hours and calling it a day. I'm at 84% and it's taking about 1.5 hours for each percent increase at this point. I'm not spending 30 more hours on this game!
Currently working on 100%ing it, but having second thoughts. Navigating the map is SUCH A CHORE that I'm really wishing they would have added a 'Fast Travel from Anywhere!' feature as a reward for completing the campaign. Instead I'm going from basecamp to nearest basecamp, then 45 minutes pressing L-stick over and over until I find my target: rinse & repeat. I've had to give up on so many things 'for now' after trying to get to the top of some mountain that I can't for the life of me find out how to reach.
It should not be this much of a struggle. Anyone have any tips? Otherwise, I'm giving it a couple more hours and calling it a day. I'm at 84% and it's taking about 1.5 hours for each percent increase at this point. I'm not spending 30 more hours on this game!