Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Starring Lara Croft Reviews

The Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered collection is pure nostalgia done right. They kept the classic feel but gave the graphics a nice facelift, making the games look sharper while still keeping that old-school vibe. It’s awesome to relive Lara’s original adventures with better controls and smoother gameplay. The puzzles are just as challenging as I remember, and the level design is still top-notch. If you grew up with these games, it’s a blast from the past that holds up surprisingly well. And if you’re new to the classics, this is the perfect way to experience where it all started. It’s a solid remaster that respects the originals without overdoing it. Definitely worth checking out for any Tomb Raider fan.

Tomb Raider I-III Remastered serves as a remaster of the first 3 classic Tomb Raider games, puzzle-platformers where you play as archaeologist adventurer Lara Croft as she travels the world, preventing villains from getting artifacts of power. In this title, you have access to all 3 games and their expansions (4-6 levels each). You can also visit Lara's home 3 different times, one for each game where you can just walk around or do some training. Due to their length, this 3-in-1 title will take quite a while to go through, but it will be a fun experience. In my opinion, this game is exactly how remasters should be. There's a significant change in graphics, but not too much that it loses the vibe of the game. Examples are HD textures (some incorporate real-world images of the inspiration), new character and item models, and better lighting. In fact, there are some additions to the world like foliage and holes in the ceilings to make the lighting realistic. You can also switch between the classic and remastered graphics anytime by pressing F1, allowing you to compare them easily. There's also a photo mode you can access by pressing F3. If there's one thing that deters new TR fans from playing the old ones, it's the controls. They can be sluggish and clunky, but the remaster takes care of that as well. It's far smoother, comparable to the Legend games, only a bit more complicated. Like how there are standing jumps and long jumps, which you must learn so you can land jumps and not over/undershoot them. Due to the nature of the game, there's not much storytelling other than "go here, find artifact, get out". There are some FMV cutscenes and in-game cutscenes, which happen more often in later titles, but that's it. In the expansions however, there isn't any. But then again, the main appeal of this game should be exploring different locales, so the story kinda takes a backseat in the classic TR games. If you're expecting a story-heavy title like the Survivor games, you won't find it here. While I really like the remaster, there are also some flaws I must point out. One is during the FMV cutscenes. If you use the remastered graphics, which are basically less pixelated versions, the audio almost always lags. And if you play the classic graphics, there seems to be an FPS cap since the game runs kinda laggy. And lastly, because the devs use AI and retouching to help enhance the old textures some of them can be kinda smudgy or unclear. If you're a Tomb Raider fan who wishes to experience Lara's classic adventures, but the old graphics and sluggish controls are putting you off, now there is no better time to experience those. Play Tomb Raider I-III Remastered, as well as the IV-VI so you can live the modernized version of a classic experience. Personally, I think TR3 is my favorite here, followed by 1, and 2 at the last place. Don't forget to keep an eye out for secrets, especially since in 2's expansion and 3 you'll get bonus levels.

Highly biased, but I like it :) TL;DR: game okay, mostly enjoyable through the big, bright pink nostalgia glasses, faithful 1:1 remaster with visual and control improvements, albeit upscaled majorly with the use of AI. __________________________________________ I am drawn to this trilogy (as well as the upcoming one, despite its... setbacks) mostly, or maybe even exclusively because I had grown with these games, I played them when I was a little boo boo baby, crying over messing up a jump and meeting my untimely demise. Yeah, sure it has tank controls, and at first I was turned off by the modernized controls until I figured that having more movement is actually good and gives it a somewhat fun way of beating the games again. But I feel like that's the one and only appealing aspect of the remasters for those who may have never even touched the series. It doesn't hold your hand, and while for some it's a good thing, for others it may get overwhelming. Decently challenging, sometimes not very intuitive — par for the course for a game in the nineties. This series was groundbreaking and pushing the possibilities of 3D gaming way back when, and nowadays there is little interest in indulging those games that have become the foundation of what we have today. An overly dramatic phrasing on my part, I don't mean it in a bad way. Old games are old games! There's nothing inherently bad in cashing in on nostalgia, and hell, I'd throw in my measly thirty dollars for three games, I'm that weak! And I had a blast playing and replaying it, [i]who cares[/i]? As for the visual, here's where I come in with a bit of a conundrum. I love it, and at the same time I am very hesitant about the usage of AI upscaling. I also understand that we are talking 70+ levels, now with a skybox, for once, from the games that came out nearly 30 years ago. Sometimes it looks quite alright, sometimes... it still reminds you that AI played a major part in bringing you the visuals that you see in the levels. As an artist myself, I cannot overlook this entirely. [i]Personally[/i] for me — it's a turn off. But the nostalgia persists. For a game that had become so iconic off the backs of its overworked, stressed developers, I am surprised that it's still going despite so many wrong turns taken. TR1 was developed in one and a half year, and the subsequent success has led the producers and the publisher to force annual releases, pushing TR2 and TR3 out in under 8 months each. An unreasonably short amount of time with many setbacks, changes and strain put on the team. Now, a year after the release of this trilogy, we are promised to have yet another trilogy remastered, so soon? Rings a few nasty little bells, is all. But I digress, this collection is okay. Playable, looks alright, and is a good little throwback, complete with bonus levels included.

It really is the best way today to play these games. If you play with tank controls and the modern graphics there is a simple pleasure to be had. With so many new games being cinematic rails it is nice the play a very gamey game. I wouldn't try to mainline all 6 TR games in a row though.

The great classics of the past with the buttery smooth playability of today. Perfection.

An incredible remaster and the best way to play the original trilogy of games. I think these games have something even for someone who doesn't have any nostalgia for them. Also, even if you don't like the new visuals, you can still play with the old ones. The modern control scheme left a bad taste in my mouth and I quickly switched to the original tank controls but, like the visuals, that's all preference.

Here was I, a couple of months ago, highly skeptical when I saw the announcement. I've witnessed plenty of remasters/definitive editions completely and utterly miss the mark, shameless cash grabs with no love or effort. But let me tell you something. As a long-time fan of Tomb Raider, I have never been more glad to be wrong. [b]This truly is the definitive way to play three classic PS1-era games on PC. No contest.[/b] Are they perfect? No. Is the remaster perfect? Still no. There's a laundry list of problems, from minor annoyances to game-breaking bugs. But, honestly, none of that matters. What they are is fun. Challenging, rewarding, a bit outdated, sometimes even a bit too cryptic, sure, but fun. [spoiler]we still don't talk about london btw[/spoiler]

Tomb Raider 2 was the first game I bought for the Playstation back in 1997. It was amazing then and the remastered version is even better! Tomb Raiders 2 and 3 are still among my favorite games of all time, and playing them with updated graphics has been extremely satisfying and enjoyable. This game allows you to switch between the original graphics and modern graphics with a press of a button, a feature I actually used many, many times - I loved comparing the graphics. The 3 expansion packs are included - I had never played them before! It was all around wonderful - and I got to play them all on the Steam Deck! I can't wait to play Tomb Raiders 4 and 5 remastered as well. The 5 original games are far superior to any that came later.

They really nailed the remaster! They decided to upgrade the original engine, so everything will feel familiar if you played the original games, but looks way better. New players have the option to choose "modernized" controls.

Whew! 70 hours, huh? Playing the original series for the first time was a lot of fun, and I'm looking forward to playing 4-6 at some point. Out of the three, TR1 is my fav, and I can see myself playing it again.