The final game in the Tomb Raider reboot trilogy that started in 2013 ends at it begin; an outstanding third-person action game that provides a new flavor to the decades old Lara Croft story.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider brings more of a human, emotional side that delves into Lara’s past while trying to save the future. It would be wise for anyone playing Shadow to get a brief history lesson on the first two games prior to playing, as there is very little connecting of the story between them and this game in order for the story to ‘hit’ as hard as I believe it was intended.
The controls and gameplay felt the same as the previous two; nothing felt clunky, the gunplay felt solid, and while the platforming was repetitive, it was never boring. White paint made the forward progress painfully obvious, but it wasn’t blatant enough to stand out like a sore thumb. The reloading and weapon switching system was a little awkward at first, since the weapon wheel relied on both the d-pad, an analog stick, and the right trigger/sholder buttons.
The pacing of the game’s story didn’t have any ‘slow’ moments aside from the 2-3 areas that provide an ‘open world’ experience to do upgrades, side missions, and other things off the golden path. Nothing against Crystal Dynamics, but the story personally had me hooked bad enough to where I wasn’t interested in the side content, as the rewards were various costumes, currency, and other items that led to upgrades I didn’t find all that fulfilling.
The music and the environments are superbly done; the South American music of whistles, drums, and tribal influence match the visuals of Cozumel, San Juan, and Peru wonderfully. Even while typing this and watching the end credits crawl, I’m still doing the head nodding and bobbing with the drum sets and the woodwinds.
All in all, if you’ve played the first two games, this is a solid weekend game that will close the book on Lara’s story that will leave fans satisfied. If you’re a fan of the earlier games, stick around for the after-credits scene, as you may smile from ear to ear in nostalgia.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider brings more of a human, emotional side that delves into Lara’s past while trying to save the future. It would be wise for anyone playing Shadow to get a brief history lesson on the first two games prior to playing, as there is very little connecting of the story between them and this game in order for the story to ‘hit’ as hard as I believe it was intended.
The controls and gameplay felt the same as the previous two; nothing felt clunky, the gunplay felt solid, and while the platforming was repetitive, it was never boring. White paint made the forward progress painfully obvious, but it wasn’t blatant enough to stand out like a sore thumb. The reloading and weapon switching system was a little awkward at first, since the weapon wheel relied on both the d-pad, an analog stick, and the right trigger/sholder buttons.
The pacing of the game’s story didn’t have any ‘slow’ moments aside from the 2-3 areas that provide an ‘open world’ experience to do upgrades, side missions, and other things off the golden path. Nothing against Crystal Dynamics, but the story personally had me hooked bad enough to where I wasn’t interested in the side content, as the rewards were various costumes, currency, and other items that led to upgrades I didn’t find all that fulfilling.
The music and the environments are superbly done; the South American music of whistles, drums, and tribal influence match the visuals of Cozumel, San Juan, and Peru wonderfully. Even while typing this and watching the end credits crawl, I’m still doing the head nodding and bobbing with the drum sets and the woodwinds.
All in all, if you’ve played the first two games, this is a solid weekend game that will close the book on Lara’s story that will leave fans satisfied. If you’re a fan of the earlier games, stick around for the after-credits scene, as you may smile from ear to ear in nostalgia.