Tomb Raider needs to go back to it’s classic roots

The latest Tomb Raider games (the Survivor trilogy) are indeed the most cinematic experiences you can get for a Tomb Raider game. Equipped with all of the modern day bells and whistles, this trilogy has stood the test of time as the games have come and gone. However, there are essential aspects to the more classic Tomb Raider games that keeps the Survivor trilogy from greatness. Those are, the fear of the unknown, mythology, and TOMBS.

Tomb Raider 3 "Antarctica"

Fear of the Unknown

An important story element that classic Tomb Raider games mastered was the fear of the unknown. Games such as Tomb Raider 3 for example dropped you into levels with very little exposition. Even if you did get exposition, there weren't any map markers to guide you to a specific goal. Instead, you had to roam around facing off whatever was thrown at you in the Tomb/level and figure out where to go from here. Although this can be reduced down to something as simple as bad game design. It's no doubt that exploration played a key role in the level designs.

Take the level "Antarctica" from Tomb Raider 3. In the level you aren't given any sense of direction as there is practically no HUD. The game forces you to rely on knowledge you have learned playing through the game. It also doesn't help with the creepy atmosphere and random scientists that sneak up on you throughout the level. This level does feature small tunnel passageways that do provide the claustrophobic nature of more prominent tomb levels.

Tomb Raider 1 "Atlantis"

Mythology

The classic Tomb Raider games weren't afraid to go into a more mythological route when it comes to creatures. They featured mythology that ranged from pseudoscience to something impossible and the story didn't shy away from that. The stories themselves took themselves seriously and that's what made for some good mythological creatures.

In a Tomb Raider 3 expansion pack, the mission "Sleeping with the fishes" comes to mind. In the mission, humans were captured and had experiments conducted on them. Although, this is entirely fictional, the game took that notion very seriously with the main villainess being comically evil. With this mission being primarily underwater, the experiments undertaken there used captive humans to turn them into mutant fish. Something similar to 'The Creature from the Black Lagoon.' These mutated fish humanoids did provide some well earned jump scares and eeriness to the overall level.

(Side note: Sleeping with the fishes is an idiom meaning, 'to have your corpse disposed into a body of water.')

Tomb Raider Anniversary

TOMB Raider

An essential aspect that, while not gone, has certainly been dulled down to it's most simple form. The inclusion of tombs in the Survivor trilogy has sadly been reduced to glorified upgrades. You go into a tomb to fetch an upgrade for something like your weapon or a new tool. While this is a neat mechanic, the former tombs provided something more than that. They provided an actual atmosphere and intrigue to these tombs, it's in the name 'Tomb' Raider after all. In the beginning of Shadow of the Tomb Raider (the third game in the Survivor trilogy), you aren't met with a creepy tomb that calls for exploration. Instead, you are flashed intense action scenes that overload your senses with attention. While it is an effective tool to quickly engage your audience, the classic subtle cutscenes of Lara stumbling into a tomb were more appropriate.

There also is an argument that Lara needs to be shifted back into her more archeological self. Although, that is important, Lara was always subjected to action and violence even in the classic games. Without the intense action and dual-wielding pistols, the games would just be reduced to walking simulators.

I guess, over time, the Tomb Raider games needed to change their approach to the formula. Having seen and played through this shake up of formula, I still prefer the classic aesthetic and approach of the old Tomb Raider games.