Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Starring Lara Croft

87%
Game Brain Score Based on 4,253 reviews
  • graphics
  • gameplay
  • stability
Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Starring Lara Croft Game Cover
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"Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Starring Lara Croft" is a definitive collection of the original Tomb Raider adventures, including all expansions and secret levels. This remastered version offers upgraded graphics and the option to switch to the original polygon look. Join Lara Croft in her globe-trotting adventures, solving ancient mysteries and facing dangerous foes.

  • PC
  • Steam Deck
  • Windows
  • Xbox One
  • Xbox Series X|S
  • Xbox
Genres & TagsPlay Modes

Reviews

87%
Audience ScoreBased on 4,253 reviews
graphics479 positive mentions
stability110 negative mentions
  • Faithful remaster of the original games with improved graphics and textures.
  • Ability to switch between old and new graphics on the fly enhances the nostalgic experience.
  • Includes all expansions and a plethora of achievements, adding replayability.
  • Modern controls are poorly implemented, leading to frustrating gameplay experiences.
  • Camera issues in tight spaces can make navigation difficult and disorienting.
  • Some items, like keys, are hard to see in the remastered graphics, requiring frequent toggling to classic mode.
  • graphics1,929 mentions

    The remastered graphics of the Tomb Raider trilogy have received widespread praise for their significant improvements over the original visuals, enhancing textures, lighting, and character models while maintaining the nostalgic charm of the classic games. Players appreciate the ability to switch between remastered and original graphics on the fly, although some have noted that the new graphics can be too dark, making it difficult to spot key items, which often necessitates reverting to the classic mode. Overall, the remaster is seen as a faithful update that successfully modernizes the visuals while preserving the essence of the original titles.

    • “I love it when they make it so you can switch to the old graphics on the fly.”
    • “The graphics look so good and don't take away from the classic Tomb Raider vibe, and the fact you can switch between the two graphic types is so cool (and helpful).”
    • “The ability to switch back to old graphics any time at the touch of a button sold me.”
    • “And I had to play in the old graphics style because the new visuals were so dark you can’t see anything.”
    • “It really defeats the purpose of having updated graphics if you're having to switch back to navigate certain parts of the game.”
    • “My main criticism is the lighting issues in so many levels, especially in Tomb Raider 1 where flares aren't a thing and the only way to make certain parts playable is to switch to the original graphics.”
  • gameplay360 mentions

    The gameplay in the remastered Tomb Raider collection remains largely faithful to the original titles, preserving the classic mechanics, puzzles, and level designs while enhancing the graphics. Players can toggle between modern and classic controls, though some find the modern controls less intuitive and potentially frustrating. Overall, the remaster offers a nostalgic experience for fans, with minor quality-of-life improvements but no significant changes to the core gameplay that defined the series.

    • “The remaster preserves the original gameplay, puzzles, and level design, while improving the graphics and adding new features.”
    • “This remaster is everything that the classic fans ever wanted, same gameplay and level design but with redone textures, models and lighting, as well as having the expansions for each game, all into one package.”
    • “The gameplay, with its focus on exploration and puzzles, is so refreshing.”
    • “Yet, despite these graphical upgrades, the core gameplay experience remains firmly rooted in the past.”
    • “The modern controls might have some niche uses, but they fundamentally muck up how these games are meant to be played overall; not being able to back-step or side/back-jump actually makes this game a lot more finicky to traverse, which makes the main gameplay loop worse.”
    • “Newcomers without any emotional attachment to them, however, will find the visuals dated (even with the remaster) and the gameplay probably quite frustrating because of a mix of precision-based platforming and tricky old-school controls.”
  • stability132 mentions

    The remastered version of the game generally runs well and is optimized for various systems, but it retains many of the original's bugs and glitches, including some game-breaking issues that can softlock players. While minor graphical glitches and camera problems, particularly with modern controls, have been reported, most players have had a smooth experience overall. Some achievements are also buggy, but many of the issues have been addressed through patches, leaving room for further improvements.

    • “Looks great, runs great on the Steam Deck, very faithful and in-good-faith remaster.”
    • “The remaster effort is astounding, it's probably the best retro conversion I've ever seen, it looks and runs great and it's fully featured.”
    • “This remaster is beautiful and runs great!”
    • “It turns out there are known game-breaking glitches in this level which will cause it to softlock and make it impossible to finish the level.”
    • “It seems like a missed opportunity, as a new player would have no way of knowing about these glitches and could easily fall foul to them.”
    • “The modern controls are awful and incredibly buggy, especially the camera which frequently gets stuck in places leading to player death.”
  • music128 mentions

    The music in the remastered Tomb Raider games has received mixed reviews, with many praising the nostalgic and beautifully remastered soundtracks that evoke strong memories from the original titles. However, some players expressed disappointment over the music's inconsistency, noting that it often cuts off unexpectedly and lacks the continuous play that modern games offer. Overall, while the iconic scores are celebrated, there are calls for more modern soundtracks and improved audio integration within the gameplay.

    • “The iconic musical scores were truly beautiful as I remembered them being as well.”
    • “And oh, did I mention that the orchestral music written by Nathan McCree is still absolutely stellar?”
    • “These are the real Tomb Raider games, which will immerse you into their beautiful and mysterious atmosphere accompanied by the most beautiful music.”
    • “Music cuts off in the menu (really? Whose idea was it?).”
    • “Environments feel boring and uninteresting, the music feels incredibly slapped on and just doesn't fit the game at all when in the midst of caves.”
    • “There are little to no sounds, no music really, just Lara's footsteps and her grunting for the most part.”
  • story113 mentions

    The story of the Tomb Raider series, particularly in the first three games, is often described as engaging and nostalgic, weaving tales of ancient mysteries and artifacts, though it lacks the depth found in modern narratives. While the remastered versions maintain the charm of the originals, they also reveal the limitations of their time, such as minimal storytelling detail and janky controls. Overall, players appreciate the exploration and problem-solving aspects tied to the story, even if some find the narrative less compelling compared to contemporary gaming standards.

    • “The engaging storylines of Tomb Raider I-III are as captivating as ever, weaving tales of ancient mysteries, mythological artifacts, and sinister adversaries.”
    • “With its stunning visuals, refined gameplay, and captivating storytelling, this remastered collection is a must-have for anyone with a penchant for exploration, puzzle-solving, and daring escapades in the vein of gaming's most iconic archaeologist.”
    • “The narrative starts to shape into a proper story, a huge bonus and improvement compared to the first entry for anyone who likes proper storytelling being a part of their games.”
    • “While the first game is a classic and a stepping stone of the Tomb Raider franchise, its story lacks the details of the latter installments, making it a less-than-ideal story-based game today.”
    • “The story is also worse this time around, feeling a little disjointed from the whole.”
    • “This one is among the weakest in the series, with a pretty forgettable story.”
  • atmosphere86 mentions

    The atmosphere of the remastered Tomb Raider games has been praised for its ability to evoke nostalgia while incorporating modern graphical enhancements. Many reviewers noted that the remaster successfully retains the original's sense of isolation, adventure, and mystery, although some expressed concerns about how changes in lighting and controls could disrupt the intended ambiance. Overall, the remastered visuals and soundtracks enrich the experience, maintaining the captivating atmosphere that has defined the series since its inception.

    • “The atmosphere and level design are top notch, and Aspyr did such a fantastic job at keeping the style of the originals while adding a fresh coat of paint.”
    • “The games are not like modern games; they don't hold your hand, and you are in for a great, challenging adventure full of puzzles and with an atmosphere so great I can't put it into words.”
    • “These are the real Tomb Raider games, which will immerse you into their beautiful and mysterious atmosphere accompanied by the most beautiful music.”
    • “Ai upscaled textures, missing textures, misaligned textures, tiny/near invisible key items rotated in a way that barely telegraphs what the item actually is to the player, bad modern controls, major lighting changes that ruin the feel and atmosphere the original games give, changes to the geometry for the sake of 'adding detail' that doesn't really make sense to the original level design, weird sound reverb, a terrible camera system that flies around and gives pretty awful angles forcing you to toggle back to original to see properly, etc.”
    • “The games feature a different visual style than they used to have, but I can't really say that the change is for the better; some of the atmosphere has been lost in the translation.”
    • “And that happens with the lighting in a couple instances, where the lighting does miss the mark widely, entirely changing the atmosphere.”
  • optimization61 mentions

    The optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players experiencing smooth performance at high frame rates, while others report significant stuttering issues, even on high-end systems. Many users appreciate the visual enhancements and the ability to switch between old and new graphics, but some criticize the control settings and the need for manual adjustments in graphics settings. Overall, while the remastered collection shows promise in terms of performance, inconsistencies remain that affect the gameplay experience for certain users.

    • “The games run smoothly on current systems, and the ability to swap back to the old graphics on the fly is fantastic!”
    • “Overall, the modern controls allow new players to not feel alienated by clunky tank inputs, the visual overhauls on the games are lovely and transformative while respecting the original vision, performance on my rig has never dropped below 4k 120fps, the original score is untouched, the cutscenes are AI upscaled as best as they can be for modern displays, and these three classics are finally easily accessible on modern platforms.”
    • “These remasters are absolutely phenomenal in terms of quality and performance.”
    • “Refunded, stutters like crazy on a high-end PC and it's completely unplayable considering you have to be accurate with moving Lara into position for the most part. I mean, the controls I can live with, but when it stutters and you're taking a jump, it's impossible... just makes the game highly irritating. I played the original, and there's still no patch to fix the performance. Not recommended at this point.”
    • “The only criticism I can give of the game is that the modern control settings are a little poorly optimized in certain areas in levels where the camera will want to fight with you, not unlike the PS2 era games.”
    • “Additionally, the performance is weird - I get constant framerate drops, even on a Ryzen 7950X3D and an RTX 4090!”
  • replayability43 mentions

    The game's replayability is significantly enhanced by a wealth of achievements and new game+ modes, encouraging players to explore different playstyles and tackle challenges in varied ways. The updated graphics and modern controls also contribute to a more enjoyable experience, making the games feel fresh and accessible. Overall, players find that the combination of achievements and level design offers substantial replay value, keeping them engaged for hours.

    • “Achievements are a feast to my soul, giving the game more replayability, including also the new game+ function which brings an even more hardcore experience for those with the guts and the will to go through the games with a difficulty increase.”
    • “This trilogy already had high replayability, but now it just reached a new level.”
    • “There's also a ton of achievements and new game+ modes for replayability.”
    • “The different achievements also need you to play the game differently, which gives the different titles replayability.”
    • “They added plenty of replayability to keep you coming back for more.”
  • humor29 mentions

    The humor in the game is highlighted by its nostalgic quirks, such as the amusing contrast between old and remastered graphics, which includes funny texture errors and invisible walls. Players find joy in the wacky animations during cutscenes and the absurdity of certain achievements, while the developers' self-aware disclaimers and the addition of "modern controls" as a joke add to the comedic experience. Overall, the game successfully blends humor with nostalgia, making it a delightful experience for players.

    • “It's funny, because you can switch back to OG and see that texture is there, then you switch to remastered - invisible wall, haha.”
    • “In-game cutscenes are a joy to watch, as the old animations are still present, even with the new graphics, resulting in wacky but funny hand placements and head bobbing.”
    • “And holy moly there's 269 achievements like beating any of the games with only Lara's pistols, getting 'unreachable' pickups using freaking corner bug, some of them are just hilarious, I love it!”
  • grinding22 mentions

    Players express that grinding in the game can feel excessively tedious, often requiring significant time investment to progress. While improvements to the save system have made the experience less punishing, many still find the overall gameplay repetitive and frustrating, particularly for new players adjusting to the controls. Despite these challenges, some players appreciate the remaster for its ability to run the original games without compatibility issues.

    • “When new gamer generations were praising the 'difficulty' of soulslikes after decades of handholding, Tomb Raider was already there to punish you for any mistake and rub it in, with no grinding or self-imposed challenges to boot.”
    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “While the remaster is aimed at old players like me, the modern controls leave a lot to be desired; the camera remains as tedious as ever, they didn't improve anything.”
    • “It is not a bad game, and it has its enjoyable moments, despite some of its dull and tedious parts, but it never managed to reach the heights of TR1.”
  • monetization14 mentions

    The monetization aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with some users labeling it a "lazy cash grab" due to perceived minimal effort and lack of engaging content. However, others note that the developers have promised upcoming updates, suggesting that the game may not be solely focused on profit. Overall, there is a sentiment that the game lacks the depth and creativity expected from modern titles, despite the absence of ads or microtransactions.

    • “In all honesty, I can't recommend this lazy retexture cash grab.”
    • “Seems to be nothing more than a lazy, cynical cash grab with no effort applied, and certainly doesn't deserve your money.”
    • “We're in an age where all games are safe & familiar, hand-holding weak, microtransaction cash grabs and not actually created for fun and storytelling anymore.”
  • emotional10 mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game is highlighted by a deep appreciation for the character of Lara, with many praising her best incarnation yet and the artistry behind her design. However, newcomers may struggle to connect emotionally due to dated visuals and frustrating gameplay mechanics, which can detract from the overall experience. Despite some flaws, players express a strong sense of joy and nostalgia, underscoring the game's impact on long-time fans.

    • “And it's not just about new assets and visuals: this is the best Lara model/incarnation ever made, so my heartfelt thanks to the artists who brought her to life again.”
    • “I can't express how happy this made me feel.”
    • “Newcomers without any emotional attachment to them, however, will find the visuals dated (even with the remaster) and the gameplay probably quite frustrating because of a mix of precision-based platforming and tricky old-school controls.”
  • character development1 mentions

    Reviews indicate that while there are criticisms regarding character design, the overall character development remains a point of discussion, suggesting a divide in player opinions on the effectiveness and depth of character portrayal.

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Play time

24hMedian play time
35hAverage play time
6-70hSpent by most gamers
*Based on 16 analyzed playthroughs

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