Rise of the Tomb Raider

[BIG EDD]

15 hours in and still loving it
Really not rushing through story mode and jumping back and fro camps when I unlock a new weapon upgrade.Excellent sequel

[Neon Ignition]

Just finished it and once again absolutely loved it. Can definitely see myself returning to it when the inevitable PC/PS4 Definitive Editions arrive. It's more of the same but it's so damned polished and addictive to play through, I really hope this finds long legs sales wise and the series continues as CD have nailed the style and tone and design. In the end I went for a 9/10 as that one point it takes a hit on is once again the Tombs themselves, there's so much more that could be done on that aspect but given the detail and scale of the game you have to wonder if they were once again pulled back so the game would work fine enough on last gen machines without compromise.

If Uncharted truly is ending with the fourth chapter, there's more than enough quality here to fill the void whether the new games please old fans or not. However, expand on the optional tombs and they'll have completely hit gold.

[Paddy]

Do you think with this game they are going in the right direction then?

I like that they don't lead you by the hand to the tombs and that you have to discover them, then work out the puzzles within them. Its a good aspect of the game for sure.

[EvilBoris]

I've played A few hours and have just explored and looked for tombs. I like that they have built more on the exploration and open world aspect of the last game , the level of linear scripted sequences is really cut back.

[Neon Ignition]

It feels like the right direction for the series, I don't think there's a big enough audience for an old school TR anymore given the budget these things require. The main thing with Rise is that it doesn't push the tombs aspect as much as expected. As an Unchartedesque game it has reached the point where it's a genuine challenger though. The open location/hub design is this series biggest strength and untapped potential though.

[Hartley Hare]

Just had my first hour and it's a great start but always been a huge fan of the games so possibly a little bias.

[BIG EDD]

Finished it yesterday,really enjoyed it.Now to mop up the remaining documents/relics

[SUMIRE]

Same, just finished it. A real quality game, one of my fave of this year. I might even buy the season pass it was so good!

[EvilBoris]

So I've played a chunk more now, it's really great.

I thought the first one was a bit overrated, the developers seem to have listened to the complaints about th first one. Gone are the vast majority of th QTEs and on rails sections that made up the bulk of the first game's story. Between the story missions you've got large hub areas to explore and hunt , find collectables and look for tombs. There must be 7+ of these revisitable areas in th game and each level has at least 2 tombs to find. These really remind me of the old games and the puzzle sections in The prince of Persia games.

It's really easy to go off and spend a few hours just roaming around looking for the tombs and then venturing inside to complete them. Overalls the game feels. Lot less linear without exploding into a full on open world game.

[Colin]

Well that post seals it, XBO will be bought today. Cheers bo selecta!

[Hartley Hare]

Colin, if I remember correctly, you really enjoy the uncharted series, this is very similar but has just enough elements to differentiate between but still play similar. You will not regret.

[Colin]

Yeah, I have Tomb Raider on PS4 mate. Just replayed it last weekend and still love it (apart from the QTE's), which is why I'm bursting to play this.

[Hartley Hare]

The new one is a real step forward. Loads of content and makes the first seem almost a demo. I have no doubts the one will be enjoyed over crimbo and the price of a set up is criminal these days.

[Colin]

Ok, so just taking a break from it to have food. I'm enjoying it, it's starting to ramp up a bit on the action front. To be honest I'm not sure it plays as well as the last one though, the control doesn't seem as tight. Camera is a bit wonky too. Good to see as mentioned they've reigned the QTE's in. Good looking game with again it's obvious influence, still not quite up to that influences standard though.

Real bonus I have the weekend to myself, I might (should) get through most of it.

[EvilBoris]

Just finished it and clocked 24 hours of game time, that's a pretty meaty game. I might even go for 100% now