Crystal Dynamics has been pretty quiet about Tomb Raider lately, outside of the recent remake collections. The rumors of Lara’s Legend trilogy getting collected have quelled fans a little bit, but many are curious about this iconic character’s newest adventure. With Amazon now confirming the Sophie Turner TV series, something’s got to give, right?
Until Crystal Dynamics says anything, all fans can do is assume what Lara Croft’s next adventure is going to be like. Luckily, as a casual fan who has enjoyed some of the more recent games of this character, I have some thoughts on what could be done.
With the next Tomb Raider looking like another reboot, I think it needs to take a look at the most recent trilogies and combine their biggest strengths. If Crystal Dynamics can take Lara’s upbeat personality from the Legend Trilogy and stick it with the gameplay of those excellent Survivor games, we could have a perfect Tomb Raider game.
Legendary
A common complaint fans had with the Survivor trilogy is that Lara felt like a passive or reactive character whose only traits were “resilient” and “strong.” She always felt like someone waiting for the next bad thing to happen, occasionally commenting on scriptures and caves to give her some personality. It might make some sense to start her off like this in Tomb Raider (2011), but her remaining this way in Rise of the Tomb Raider and Shadow of the Tomb Raider was disappointing.
Maybe they didn’t want to make her a quip machine like Nathan Drake, but the lack of humor in the blockbuster series of games just made Lara Croft feel dull. I know not everyone likes jokes in their entertainment, but having her stay the same stoic character who doesn’t seem to enjoy her adventures is frustrating. Honestly, if the gameplay wasn’t fun, I wouldn’t have finished this trilogy.
Luckily, the version of Lara seen in Legend, Anniversary, and Underworld is a lot more fun, while having her own demons. Sure, Lara is still haunted by her mother’s supposed death in a plane crash, but she still thinks raiding tombs is a fun thing to do. It’s actually pretty humorous hearing her two assistants being terrified of her stunts, like getting through spiked walls or jumping across huge pits, while she just brushes them off.
Some fans also prefer this version of Lara since she’s a lot sexier, but I’m 50/50 on that. Lara can be quippy and fun without being overly sexualized. And I say this as your typical Marvel Rivals gooner.
I Will Survive
The “Legend” trilogy has actually aged pretty decently, with fun platforming sections and puzzles. Even the combat isn’t half-bad, though it can feel a bit mindless, shooting and jumping around to kill thugs. While this type of combat feels more original and Tomb Raider-like, I do think adapting that somewhat typical action-adventure gameplay from the Survivor trilogy might be the way to go.
As good as the Legend trilogy feels, some of its more classic mechanics can be annoying for modern gamers. Lara can die if you time a jump poorly, which is realistic but isn’t fun. The shooting can also feel automatic and lazy, even if it is cool seeing Lara dual-wield these guns.
Lara’s Survivor trilogy felt like a modern evolution of the Tomb Raider formula. The focus on exploration and crafting just felt right for this character. Admittedly, the gun combat and big set-pieces were clearly inspired by Uncharted, a series filled with blockbuster movie scenes and massive shootouts. But to counter that, Uncharted was clearly inspired by Tomb Raider.
This isn’t a secret, as Naughty Dog jokingly called the first game Dude Raider during its development.
If we’re being honest, Lara was stealing ancient treasures and going around the world while Nathan Drake was still in diapers. She’s a PS1 legend, while Nate is a PS3 icon, so Lara can take some of those set-pieces and shooting for herself. Besides, third-person shooting is all stolen from Resident Evil 4 anyway, so no one’s going to make that feel original anymore.
But like I mentioned earlier, the Tomb Raider: Survivor trilogy has some incredibly satisfying gameplay. Shooting guns feels good, using spears to hook onto ledges for platforming is great, and even finding resources in the ground activates a part in my brain that goes “heh, neat.” If only these games had more memorable stories, as “evil terrorist organization/corporation killed my dad” is a pretty dull plot thread to follow for these games.
Two Big Ideas, One Lara Croft
Combining Lara’s more fun personality with that satisfying, if somewhat standard, action-adventure gameplay is the way to go. The success of those remake collections shows that fans are ready for a fun Lara Croft to return in this new Tomb Raider game. Story was never this franchise’s strong suit, but we wouldn’t mind if this reboot was able to give us a plot we can sink our teeth into.
Hopefully, we get that rumored Legend trilogy collection soon, so that all of these classic titles can be preserved. They all deserve to stay around and give fans an idea of how Lara has evolved over the years. If this new Tomb Raider game does have these aspects, fans might love it, and we could get a truly perfect entry in this long-running series.
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