The well-acclaimed, popular original video game series Tomb Raider, which consists of three successive entries, presents a pattern of comparison between the individual games. Each one stands out on its own merits but also shares similarities and some level of continuity with the previous entries in the trilogy. This unique formula has made the series celebrated within video game history, and Tomb Raider I-III Remastered further improves upon this with its care for the series captured within the modern era.
These games have a unique charm that has captured a wide audience of fans ever since the original was released on October 25, 1996. In the trilogy, you play as Lara Croft, an accomplished female explorer with a high level of expertise in her field, one that requires lots of courage and determination.
Visuals
My favorite part about this game definitely has to be the visuals. Every single texture has been taken care of with great attention to detail where you can freely switch between the looks of the older, retro Tomb Raider design to the newer, modern style with just the press of a button. On top of that, the modern visuals just look absolutely amazing. It stuns me how there’s so much to explore in this game, and the developers managed to work upon that pre-existing foundation in its entirety to bring it to a present-day, remastered look in terms of graphics.
Each room you enter is practically covered from head to toe with a large assortment of details, such as engraved symbols on walls, various layers of rock, pathways leading to and fro many different places, etc. Some rooms are also specifically designed for the player to pay caution to with the inclusion of traps. Among those hazards, there can be wild animals that may serve as obstacles in your way, such as dogs, bats, tigers, and even, at times, people. Some creatures you encounter will also appear as bosses who will test your knowledge and prowess of the game in a skillful battle to see who comes out on top.
Despite all this, the games themselves are not as difficult for a beginner as one might think. You can easily get used to playing with the right practice and time dedicated through beating the various tasks, puzzles, and enemies left for you to face. The exploration can also be quite relaxing and inviting as each area you enter feels different from the rest, and after a while, you might find yourself feeling hooked to the game where your attention to each area increases, and you become more and more engrossed by the multiple levels.
Below is a simple comparison between the two looks of the game that you can freely switch between.
The areas laid out for the player in each game are truly diverse. The first game mainly takes place in Peru, but past that, there are so many locations you can explore, inclusive of the other two games. This is where the remastered practically becomes any Tomb Raider fan’s best dream.
There is also an optional tutorial level referred to as “Lara’s Home” that allows the player to test out the controls within the comfort of the protagonist’s household before trying out the original games for themselves.
Lara holds many items throughout the games like her iconic dual pistols, shotgun and other weapons as well as survival gear such as flares, “medi” packs, and a compass. These are just a few of the plethora she can have in-game as the player progresses further, so you can trust that there will always be something more to collect and utilize in your survival.
Technical
The game’s start and pause menu is left iconic with its retro look and feel. You can select your sound settings, controls, view in-game statistics, and more. The modern controls in comparison to the tank controls of the past are actually very beginner friendly, and serve as a great option for those willing to try it out during their gameplay.
There are also many new features for past players of the game to look forward to. Some examples include more save slots compared to the original, accessible subtitles, as well as boss health bars, action indicators (toggleable) and a photo mode. These features were not present in the original trilogy but are readily available here. The adapted cutscenes also feature realistic mouth movement now when characters talk compared to the originals.
The Switch version delivers a 1080p native resolution in docked mode at 60fps, with 720p at 60fps in portable mode. A huge plus here is that this is about double the framerate as that of the original, and runs smooth throughout with only the very rare, occasional minor dip in framerate that shouldn’t even be considered that strongly as you might just bat an eye and miss it entirely.
Criticisms
My only main criticisms about the remaster are in regards to the controls as well as a few optimization issues. The modern controls at times feel a bit clunky, but in terms of accessibility for things such as controller bindings, the game turns out quite well.
As for the optimization issues, the game at times feels a bit… off… when the rare frame drop happens, at least from the perspective of the Nintendo Switch (other platforms may vary). There is also a particularly glaring issue with the opening cutscene for the third game specifically being very laggy in its framerate for whatever reason. A simple patch in the future could fix all of these, however, making them rather miniscule problems in general.
All of these criticisms are so minor that it certainly does not affect the rest of the game at all. They are very slight issues that do not need to be taken into much consideration, but still needed to be mentioned for the sole reason of them existing.
Conclusion
To sum things up, I would say that this remaster was extremely well done with the attention to detail and the overall love paid off to the Tomb Raider franchise and its fans in order to produce this as its masterpiece. It’s a welcome improvement that both new and old players can find something to enjoy, and what returning players can come back to in order to fall in love with the series once again.
The nostalgia is there, and the features of the original trilogy are all placed into this neatly designed package, waiting for you as the player to explore its contents. I would rate the game very highly because of all of its positive factors and more, thus serving as my final take for the game.
Tomb Raider I-III remastered is out now for the Nintendo Switch. It is available for purchase on the Nintendo eShop.
The Review
Superb
