Tomb Raider: Legend Reviews

A turning point for the franchise—rebooting Lara with a modern look, smoother controls, and a more personal story. The platforming is fluid, the environments are well-paced, and the globe-trotting adventure hits all the classic notes: ancient tombs, lost artifacts, and cinematic action sequences. Mechanically, it holds up surprisingly well. Lara is more agile than ever, and her personality is less exaggerated, though still framed with stylized elegance and plenty of visual fanservice. Cutscenes and camera work frequently remind the player that this is not just a heroine—it’s a fantasy, and the game leans into it. It’s not overtly graphic, but it is designed to appeal. The plot follows Lara’s quest to recover a mythical sword tied to her mother’s disappearance. But what begins as a personal journey quickly becomes a flirtation with pagan mythologies. Arthurian legend, ancient deities, and spiritual relics are treated as sources of real, usable power. Lara doesn’t question these sources—she simply chases them. This isn’t respectful curiosity—it’s secular mysticism wrapped in action. Spiritually, Legend treats the divine as a puzzle to solve and a weapon to wield. There’s no reverence, no reflection—just tombs to raid and power to claim. It portrays ancient beliefs as morally neutral, and Lara as justified in wielding whatever she finds in pursuit of her own answers. The game doesn’t mock faith, but it trivializes the sacred. It treats myth as playground, not warning. And it does so beautifully, which is what makes it so easy to miss how empty it really is.

Such a great game...atmosphere, puzzles, combat, lara looks great too.

picked it up for under a dollar and as a fan of the tomb raider games, this one is pretty much up there as one of the best in the series

first off i only just found out that i can download games to D drive, i had C drive full to the brim and i've spent days trying to clean up, but you can "move" games to D drive through settings, and download to D when you start off. this is a good game, fun to play, puzzles that can be frustrating but still fun if you have the patience. i played for 9 hours though and then it froze and stayed frozen, so i've reinstalled and will try again and report back, but i spent days looking for solutions to it freezing with no joy, and cause i played for so long i couldn't get a refund.

i would 100% recommend this game, though if your going to buy it you should know that it has it's own pros and cons: PROS -great puzzles, not too hard and not too easy -beautiful level design -great character design -nice story -challenging boss fights, they/re not just about attacking the enemy until it dies -different atmosphere for every mission CONS -gun play is weak -in boss fights, the enemy repeats 3-4 dialogues rapidly which can get annoying -riding the bike can be frustrating -camera can sometimes glitch and start shaking I bought the game on summer sale, but it's definitely worth the original price too. (i actually have 15 hours of play time but it was mostly offline)

The best looking Lara Croft game ever. If you game is crashing and you get the error. Turn off NextGen Graphics!

fun game to play if you are bored, with good gameplay and levels but there is some glitches maybe it will ruin your experience but still such a fun game

Crystal Dynamics successfully revives the Tomb Raider franchise with Tomb Raider: Legend, blending classic elements with modern gameplay enhancements. The story begins with a flashback of Lara Croft and her mother, leading to a mystical adventure that deepens Lara's character. Released in 2006, Legend marked Crystal Dynamics' first entry in the series, following the poorly received The Angel of Darkness. The game features revamped controls, allowing for fluid movement and acrobatic maneuvers, alongside new mechanics like a magnetic grappling hook and improved swimming. Combat is more engaging, with a variety of moves and interactive environments that enhance the experience. However, the game is more linear than previous entries, lacking the interconnected levels and backtracking that fans expected. While the reliance on action and quick-time events felt excessive, the combat mechanics were surprisingly enjoyable, aided by a well-implemented auto-aim system. Lara Croft's character shines in Legend, exhibiting a range of emotions and a genuine love for adventure, making her more relatable than in recent titles. The return of support characters adds depth to the narrative, and the Croft Mansion serves as a puzzle-filled exploration area, adding further richness to the experience. Despite some technical issues on modern hardware, including visual bugs and crashes, Tomb Raider: Legend stands out as a visually stunning action-adventure game. While it may not fully capture the essence of the original series, it effectively balances exploration, storytelling, and action, making it a worthwhile revisit for fans and newcomers alike.

This has the best music in all of the legend trilogy. Lara has more dialogues which makes her more human than in anniversary where is mute for the most of the time. This game has some very janky controls and camera and the bike chase scenes are a punishing. The kazakhstan bike chase is broken in hard mode. Its almost impossible to do it. Had to replay till there again in hard mode and that level in easy. But overall its a really good game, might be the best out of the trilogy.

It's pretty fun. Not nearly as difficult as I remember it. Controls are smooth, and it looks good for its age. That being said, for me it crashes about half way through the game once you reach Kazakhstan - crashes with an error right at the beginning of the level.