Report an error
Platform 360, PS3, Win Publisher Square Enix Developer Crystal Dynamics Release Date 03/05/2013

Review

Review
215 Comments
9.0

Tomb Raider review: the descent

By Philip Kollar on Feb 25, 2013 02.25.13

It's not long before all pretenses of Lara's weaknesses fall away and she's running through a village of enemies, guns blazing and screaming for blood Tomb Raider introduces a younger version of series heroine Lara Croft as an archaeology-obsessed young woman bound for a group of stormy islands known as the Dragon's Triangle. When her ship crashes, separating Lara from the surviving crew, she's forced to explore, survive and uncover the mystery of the island's strange, hostile inhabitants. While Tomb Raider starts with Lara's journey from regular person to "survivor," most of that transformation takes place in the narrow first few hours. As Lara pushed through narrow caves, crawled along ledges, killed her first animal and scavenged for parts with often minimal input from me, I...

Features

Latest Forum Activity View all posts

Latest News

News
61 Comments

Three for three: How AMD won the war for the heart of next-gen consoles

By Dave Tach on Jun 15, 2013 06.15.13

The era of speculation is over. We now know the details of all new next-gen consoles. Post-E3 2013, all of the major players have revealed the platforms, the games and the hardware that will power console gaming for the next several years. Sitting at the heart of the consoles are three related cores built with AMD technology. The company went three for three. This was no accident. According to representatives from AMD that Polygon spoke with during E3 2013, this was the result of a multi-year, companywide effort. In our conversations, we learned how AMD did it, how the company wants to help developers make better games and how it's trying to define the future of gaming. It all began with a plan, Matt Skynner, AMD's corporate vice president and general manager, told Polygon. "When...

News
11 Comments

Tomb Raider DLC bundled into packs, Tomb of the Lost Adventurer now available in NA

By Alexa Ray Corriea on Jun 05, 2013 06.05.13

Crystal Dynamics is bundling all downloadable content released for Tomb Raider into three neat single-player and multiplayer-specific packs, according to a post on the official Tomb Raider Tumblr. The Online Survival Pack adds six weapons from action-adventure stealth game Hitman: Absolution and four playable characters to Tomb Raider's multiplayer arsenal, and costs $6.99 (560 Microsoft Points). Characters include the Scavenger Scout, Scavenger Executioner, Scavenger Bandit and Fisherman, and weapons include a Silverballer, Agency SPS 12, HX AP-15, JAGD P22G, M590 12ga and STG 58 Eline. The Tomb Raider Adventure Pack features upgrades and accoutrements for Lara for use in single-player, and also costs $6.99 (560 Microsoft Points). Buyers can snag the Pistol Burst and Pistol Silencer...

News
3 Comments

Tomb Raider's Shipwrecked DLC released today with two new maps

By Dave Tach on May 07, 2013 05.07.13

Tomb Raider's downloadable content expanded today with two new multiplayer maps available in the Shipwrecked Multiplayer Map Pack, according to a post on the game's official blog. The maps include Lost Fleet, which turns a beached ship into a battleground, and Himiko's Cradle, which takes place on a mountaintop shrine. The DLC is available for $3.99 on PlayStation 3 and Windows PC and 320 Microsoft Points on Xbox 360. Tomb Raider's previous DLC, the 1939 Multiplayer Map Pack, added two more multiplayer maps for the same price early last month. Tomb Raider was released March 5 on Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Windows PC. For more on the game, you can read Polygon's review and learn about how senior designer Jonathan Hamel tried to bring "emotional synchronization" to Crystal Dynamics'...

News
1 Comment

Japan Review Check: Game & Wario, Dragon's Dogma, Tomb Raider

By Kevin Gifford on Apr 17, 2013 04.17.13

A quick look at the highlights among the games coming out in Japan this coming week, courtesy the review pages of Famitsu magazine: Game & Wario (8/8/7/8, 31 out of 40 points): This Wii U minigame complication came out on March 28, but — as with a lot of WiiU titles — Famitsu didn't publish their review until pretty well after the game hit stores. One wonders if that has anything to do with the general disappointment that seeps through most of the reviewers' text blurbs. "Only four out of the 16 games included are multiplayer," wrote editor Atsuhiro Fujiwara, "which may not feel like enough for some people. However, each game gets harder and offers up new gimmicks the more you get into them, so it's all pretty enjoyably. The game where you have to draw pictures based on topics...

News
24 Comments

Tomb Raider's 'Western' Steam version getting Japanese language support with $30 DLC

By Dave Tach on Apr 12, 2013 04.12.13

When Tomb Raider is released April 25 in Japan, players can add Japanese language support to the "Western" Steam version of the game for $30 with the Japanese Language Pack downloadable content, according to a post on Square Enix's Japanese website. A Google translation of the website reveals that the DLC will add support for Japanese audio and subtitles to the "Western version" of Tomb Raider that was released for Windows PC on Steam earlier this year in North America and Europe. Those who purchase the Japanese Language Pack and the Shanty Town multiplayer DLC between April 25 and May 2 will receive the Hitman: Absolution Weapons Pack 2, a multiplayer bundle of three weapons. That DLC is available in North America on Steam for $1.99. According to Tomb Raider's North American Steam...

News
9 Comments

2 images

Tomb Raider's 1939 map pack now available, Caves and Cliffs DLC no longer 360-exclusive

By Samit Sarkar on Apr 02, 2013 04.02.13

News
41 Comments

Sleeping Dogs, Hitman: Absolution, Tomb Raider all million-sellers, but miss sales targets

By Samit Sarkar on Mar 26, 2013 03.26.13

Square Enix's three most recent launches of major console titles — Sleeping Dogs, Hitman: Absolution and Tomb Raider — all sold at least a million copies, but missed the company's sales targets, it said today in a presentation to investors. Each title received critical acclaim, but sales in North America and Europe — although by no means poor — did not meet the publisher's expectations for its 2013 fiscal year, which ends March 31. As a result, the company expects to report a $105 million loss for the year. Square Enix launched Sleeping Dogs in August 2012 and has sold approximately 1.75 million copies of United Front Games' open-world crime thriller. Since Hitman: Absolution's release in November 2012, Square Enix has sold about 3.6 million units. And Tomb Raider, which...

News
9 Comments

Lara Croft's reinvention was to make her less of an 'untouchable ice queen,' says writer

By Alexa Ray Corriea on Mar 22, 2013 03.22.13

The reinvention of Lara Croft drew on previous incarnations of the character, as the team wanted to create a Lara still connected to her "badass" roots but distanced from the femme fatale persona, Tomb Raider writer Rhianna Pratchett said in a video during a panel at PAX East today. "We wanted to keep the traits players associate with Lara, but rewind to point where they were deep below the surface," Pratchett explained. "She's not conscious of what she's capable of doing. The game brings the traits to the surface." Pratchett said that Lara's reputation as an "untouchable ice queen" was something she wanted to overcome. "I wanted to explore the humanity behind that, her sense of empathy, her friendships, what makes her tick as a person," she said. "She has a sort of playgirl...

News
29 Comments

Female characters 'scrutinized more' than male counterparts, writer Rhianna Pratchett says

By Megan Farokhmanesh on Mar 20, 2013 03.20.13

Female characters bear an extra weight in the gaming world because they're sometimes expected to hold "a banner" for their gender, Tomb Raider scriptwriter Rhianna Pratchett said during a recent interview. Speaking with Kill Screen, Pratchett told the publication that there is a need for female characters, but also those of different ethnicities, ages, sexual orientation, ability and so forth. "We are very narrow when it comes to our characters," Pratchett said. "But also you've got a situation where female characters do get scrutinized more than male characters do, and in some ways can be seen as holding a banner up for female characters. A lot gets heaped on their shoulders. Lara Croft gets a lot more scrutiny than Nathan Drake [of Uncharted] does, as a female. Nobody talks about...

News
24 Comments

Tomb Raider DLC will be designed entirely for multiplayer

By Emily Gera on Mar 20, 2013 03.20.13

Tomb Raider's DLC releases will be designed entirely for multiplayer, based on Crystal Dynamics' current development plans for the title, director Noah Hughes and global brand director Karl Stewart revealed in a Reddit AMA. "Currently there are no plans regarding single-player DLC," said Hughes when asked about upcoming DLC for the game. "Now that Lara is more experienced, we are excited to take her on new adventures that challenge her new strength and confidence. It is important that even as Lara grows as a character, so do the challenges she must face." Stewart later added the studio is not planning to offer any new single-player content for Tomb Raider, stating: "There are currently no plans in place for any single-player expansions. All of our DLC is based around the multiplayer...

Tomb Raider (2013) Releases
North America
  • Xbox 360
    • Released 03/05/2013
    • Publisher Square Enix
    • Developer Crystal Dynamics
    • Score 9.0
  • PlayStation 3
    • Released 03/05/2013
    • Publisher Square Enix
    • Developer Crystal Dynamics
    • Score 9.0
  • Windows
    • Released 03/05/2013
    • Publisher Square Enix
    • Developer Crystal Dynamics
    • Score 9.0
tracking_pixel_5353_tracker