Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration Reviews
The PS4 version isn’t quite the definitive edition, but the smoother frame rate and more responsive gameplay makes a great Tomb Raider even greater. The new Blood Ties mode is an interesting adventure that gives us time to go deeper into Lara’s back story, while the Lara’s Nightmare mode is a fun, fast-paced action challenge. Throw in the other extras and the enhanced, co-op friendly Endurance mode and you have a package to make the wait worthwhile. Sometimes being the second-best adventure of the year is more than good enough.
If you have yet to play Rise of the Tomb Raider, the 20 Year Celebration edition is a must have for anyone interested in Lara Croft's latest adventure.
PlayStation 4 owners can now experience one of the best Tomb Raider adventures ever made. Plus, they get some worthwhile content to boot. Not a bad deal for a year’s wait.
With a wealth of new content to enjoy, on top of the already excellent and expansive base game, Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration just about makes up for its late debut onto PS4.
Not just one of the greatest Croft games of all time but also one of the best adventure games of all time.
There’s a lot to like about Rise of the Tomb Raider if you ignore the rehashed story and average gunplay.
All in all this package escalates Rise of the Tomb Raider from a strong game to an excellent one. There were a few reservations as to how much gameplay you were getting for your money with the original, but this right here answers that with aplomb. There’s heaps to on top of the standard campaign and for the most part it’s of a good quality. The original faults remain, namely that Rise of the Tomb Raider lacks the original thinking of the reboot, but what is here is slick, polished fun. If you haven’t picked up Rise of the Tomb Raider yet then is without doubt the package to go for, but if you do already own it on a different platform then I’d recommend waiting for a sale to pick up the extras.
The game treats Lara like shit, threatening to freeze, drown, impale, burn, eat, or otherwise murder her at every turn.
In the end, this port of Rise of the Tomb Raider is as good as the game itself. The scope of the environments and presence of side tombs make the world feel ripe for exploration. The combination of stealth and combat works well, but shooting still feels a tad off. The inclusion of different extra modes and content gives you enough of a reason to return to the game after finishing the main campaign. The presentation is very solid, even if it falls a step below the original Xbox One iteration. If you've somehow never experienced this title before, the Switch 2 version is a good way to do so. Here's hoping that it doesn't take a new console release before Shadow of the Tomb Raider makes its way to a Nintendo platform.
Given that it kept me entertained and enthralled for a full weekend does say something about the quality on display here. Even if I've had my fill of this particular type of game for now. I'd be happy locking it away in a tomb, hoping that someone else may stumble upon it in the future one day and get some enjoyment out of it.
It is still hoped that Lara is isolated a bit more in her next quest, as minimal interaction with other characters is where Tomb Raider has worked best, but it has been necessary to shape her personality in this storyline. The rebooting isn't quite there yet, but Rise of the Tomb Raider is sure-fire proof that Crystal Dynamics is on the right track, as the essence of Tomb Raider is alive and kicking here, with plenty of promise for the future. The gameplay mechanics and Lara's determination are more or less solidified, barring an overreliance on the Survival Instincts feature, so now it's just a case of carrying that through into her next adventure and expanding on the already-great atmosphere, freedom and tomb raiding that has been applied in this chapter of Lara's story. There is certainly plenty of bang for the buck in this edition, ensuring PlayStation 4 owners are getting the best deal if they have held out to purchase it.
While I found myself a tad bit underwhelmed when playing through 'Rise of the Tomb Raider' last year, I'm thoroughly impressed with how much has been added to the game since then. Each piece of DLC has added something unique to the package, be it online co-op or an excuse to battle hordes of zombies. Some of it definitely meshes with the 'Tomb Raider' formula better than others, but the amount of variety is appreciated. There has never been a better time to experience Lara Croft's latest adventure, and the great writing found in 'Blood Ties' makes me excited for the next entry in the series.
Rise of the Tomb Raider is frustrating on one level because it’s so completely in thrall of the blockbuster system that you can feel the creative frustration on several levels through the game, from its storytelling through level design. That frustration has resulted in a blockbuster that almost breaks free of its limitations at times, and it’s certainly an enjoyable game. It’s just that it would be interesting to see what the developers could come up with if they had a more limited budget (and thus lower sales expectations, allowing them to go after a more specific audience with a more focused game).
The formulaic plot, and some immersion-breaking moments don’t take away too much from this being quite a fun adventure, with a ton to do and return to. Plus you can unlock pointy-boobs Lara from Tomb Raider.
Rise of the Tomb Raider remains an excellent game — one of the defining action-adventures of the previous decade, with Challenge Tombs that rival the best in the genre and a Siberian setting that still holds up visually and atmospherically. The 20 Year Celebration is the complete package: every mode, every outfit, every piece of DLC included at launch with no upselling. The Switch 2 port recommendation comes down to your situation. If you’re a Nintendo-primary player who hasn’t played ROTTR, $29.99 for the complete definitive edition of this game is money well spent — it’s a decade-old game that earns that price. If you own it on PC and regularly take advantage of Steam sales, the portability argument needs to carry a lot of weight to justify a repurchase. And if you’ve never played any of the Tomb Raider survivor trilogy, this is a fine place to play the middle entry — though starting with the 2013 reboot first is still the recommended sequence. Aspyr continues to make Tomb Raider accessible to new audiences on new hardware, and that’s a good thing for the franchise. Rise of the Tomb Raider on Switch 2 is the right game, on the right hardware, at a price that makes sense for the right buyer.
Rise of the Tomb Raider is a victim of the gaming industry’s changing trends. Eleven years ago, a AAA game like this might have felt fresher and more exciting. Nowadays, after years of market saturation and a broader shift in how AAA gaming is perceived, it simply doesn’t feel as entertaining as it once might have. Rise of the Tomb Raider ultimately comes across as a formulaic action adventure game, not bad by any means, but certainly not amazing either, saddled with a terrible and obnoxious depiction of one of gaming’s most iconic female protagonists.
Rise of the Tomb Raider on Switch 2 is a very solid port that delivers a stable and convenient handheld experience, offering the complete package without any major technical compromises.
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Having a game as high quality as this running smoothly on a handheld system absolutely blows my mind. Despite a few laggy menus and some clunky stealth mechanics, the brilliant visuals and fast loading speeds make this port incredibly impressive. It is the absolute complete package for action-adventure fans looking to explore on the go.
Rise of the Tomb Raider is slightly dated, but it manages to age quite well. There is an enjoyable story in here with plenty of action sequences to keep the player engaged, regardless of where they are in the world. Arguably, there are probably better places to play Lara’s second journey of the Survival trilogy, but there is nothing inherently wrong with choosing the Nintendo Switch 2 as the place to do it.
Rise of the Tomb Raider is the strongest entry in the Survivor trilogy, and nothing about this port changes that judgment. But the question is whether the Switch 2 is the right place to experience it. For first-timers, the case is straightforward: the price is reasonable, the DLC bundle is generous, and the portable factor is a nice cherry on top. For anyone who has already played this at 60fps on PlayStation or PC, this is an easy skip.