Fancy a world tour that spans the mysterious Egyptian crypts, to the backstreets of Rome and Paris? Then if you’re a fan of the OG of adventure games you could be in for a treat.
Lara Croft is quite possibly one of gaming’s most famous characters. Her story began in 1996 with the critically acclaimed Tomb Raider on the PS1. She is arguably the most iconic, trailblazing queen of gaming (she’s certainly in the conversation) and has featured in over 15 games.
As a British Archaeologist, Lara’s adventures generally span across the continent exploring caves, pyramids, and other areas of interest where often ancient, powerful artifacts are at the heart of Lara’s adventures.
Developers Aspyr (of the recently released & remastered Tomb Raider I-II-II collection) return for another throw of the dice as they tackle Core Design’s original releases that see Lara’s next three excursions also receive the remaster treatment. This release covers the PS1 & PS2 releases of Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation, Tomb Raider Chronicles, and lastly Tomb Raider: Angel Of Darkness. These releases were mostly panned at the time, particularly Chronicles and Angel of Darkness. I seem to recall Angel Of Darkness being received as quite possibly the worst Tomb Raider release of all time.
This includes some crisp 4k resolution, 60 fps updates to environments, textures, character models, etc. Lara’s animations have been nicely improved with eye movements and the famed ponytail bouncing around as she runs, jumps, shoots and explores. The collection of titles still retain that charm and intrigue of the original releases way back in the early noughties. From not knowing what dangers lurked around the corner or which beast would stand between you and some highly revered artifact, rich in lore.
Purists can switch between modern and classic resolution settings and graphical outputs, likewise the control options in the form of a tank/modern way of handling Lara.
When switching between these modes, the games have aged poorly. In classic, Lara feels very clunky, with the response inputs considerably off. The shooting and aiming mechanics also miss the mark. With no auto assist, it’s easy to shoot into the air whilst a dog, tiger, or any other beast is lunging towards you. (Don’t get me started on some of the horrible, awkward camera angles which make playthroughs incredibly frustrating).
Concerning those classic versions, they are obviously from a time that had different technological limits and I appreciate that what once worked and played so well back then doesn’t mean it can remain as fun and enjoyable two and a half decades later.
Switch it over to modern, however, and Lara feels just that. Less janky with controls that are considerably more responsive. Lara’s reactions flow better and whilst the shooting still feels off, it is somewhat more bearable by the cleaner, crisper model textures and increased visual outputs/general improvement of mechanics.
Lighting has had some much needed polish and camera angles are neatly improved as players can control the angles and general direction of view.
Further features and improvements include a photo mode, which has implemented a settings adjuster, lending itself for players to tinker with zoom and depth of field views. For returning players & speed runners, a welcome addition is the option to skip cut scenes altogether.
For me personally, out of the three titles on offer here, The Last Revelation is considerably ahead of the pack in terms of enjoyment of the story and level designs with the puzzles and trials. Chronicles offers some fun whilst being a mish mash of revisiting the past and Angel Of Darkness has a strong tale to tell but the execution is poorly applied (this is more an issue with the original game and not the fault of Aspyr).
These games offer little difference to the first three in the franchise. Players will shoot their pistols, jump between floor panels, attempt daring leaps of faith and spend endless amounts of time trying to crack puzzles whilst clocking in high levels of stamina depletion.
The trilogy of games on offer with this release packs a lot of content, puzzles, and all to keep players busy. For newcomers though, be warned! Outside of the tutorials seen in the opening level across all three games, these games require patience with plenty of trial and error. Tomb Raider IV-VI remastered won’t hold your hand and nor should it.
– SPOILERS BELOW –
Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation is solely based in Egypt and revolves around the Egyptian god “Set”. Exploring the tombs and crypts, Lara raids the tomb of “Set” to obtain an amulet only to find that in doing so, she unwittingly unleashes the evil deity into the world. Spread across 35 levels (also including the times bonus content), The Last Revelation is a lengthy experience.
Tomb Raider Chronicles follows on from the Last Revelation and sees players take a trip down memory lane as Lara is assumed dead and in the form of flashbacks, companions at her memorial service recall the old days that see players explore Rome for the philosopher’s stone. Go diving into russian waters to find the spear of destiny, a stealth-like mission off the Irish Isles as Lara follows family priest Father Dunstan and finally to New York to retrieve the Iris artefact.
Tomb Raider: Angel Of Darkness The game kicks off in Paris with Lara in conversation with her old mentor Werner Von Croy, who has been asked by the client Eckhardt to help him track down an old 14th Century painting. Having suffered a past betrayal, Lara is understandably anxious and soon an argument ensues which coincides with the brutal shooting of her old mentor Von Croy.
Framed for his murder, the game follows Lara’s desperate escape from the law, and her subsequent pursuit of the shady Eckhardt character and his plot to awaken the long dead Nephilim race.
All releases come with the original voice over works and audio files. Due to constraints of technology/game engine back in its day, the games don’t have sound issues but do have just one sound channel, this impacts dialogue, backing music, and ambience.
Playthroughs can also be enjoyed at your leisure as a save anywhere feature is implemented (thank god), useful for when you’ve gotten past that difficult part leaping over spikes, blades, flames of hell, only to walk off a ledge and fall to your death…(I haven’t done that honest…okay, maybe I have)!
To summarise, I felt the Tomb Raider IV-VI collection is a mixed bag. Players see Lara near her best and at times (yes I’m looking at you Angel Of Darkness) at her absolute worst. For a further breakdown of the game please see the review box below.
Review code was supplied for the PS5 by Sandbox Strategies.
