Tomb Raider I-III Remastered, starring the original braided hair and tank top-wearing action adventure female icon, Lara Croft, is back with upgraded graphics! Read our review to see what it did well, what it didn't do well, and if it's worth buying.
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Review Overview
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Pros & Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
 Faithful to the End Graphics Upgrade is a Clear Improvement |
…Maybe Too Faithful New Graphics Get Way Too Dark |
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Overall - 74/100
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered is the complete and improved package of Lara Croft’s adventures around the world. It is 100% a faithful remaster of the game down to the last detail just with upgraded graphics and a modern control scheme that’s better for the newer players. However, it’s also faithful to a fault. The lack of quality of life (QoL) improvements may irk new players to try this game out, as this game is definitely just how I remembered it.
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Story - 5/10
The story of the original Tomb Raider trilogy isn’t all that complex or deep. Lara Croft is originally portrayed as an English archaeologist with a very dangerous hobby of treasure hunting and tomb raiding. This was completely untouched as most of the details are in the game, and honestly the game was never really big on its own story other than building Lara’s reputation.
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Gameplay - 8/10
This is the point of contention for this review. The gameplay is completely the same with some altered controls, but since it still plays like the original games, it feels like you’re listening to a broken record just playing the same song. Sure, it’s a game that built a generation of action adventure puzzle platformers after it, but as a 2024 remaster it could’ve had that extra love and care to play a bit smoother and without the jank.
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Visuals - 8/10
The main improvement of the trilogy is the graphical overhaul and upgrade of the games. It definitely elevates the game’s in-game aesthetic, but there are a couple of issues that I have with it. The cutscenes were untouched, so all of them are still the same 1990’s pre-rendered stuff, which is both a good and bad thing for me. Lastly, the new graphical overhaul makes the game way too dark, that I have to use the 90’s filter to brighten the game up and see where I’m going.
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Audio - 6/10
While inherently the game should still be the same as before in this remaster, it’s improved by that you could hear more of it now as opposed to about 20 years ago. The music still gives you that creepy temple and ruins vibe, and the bats, wolves, and other dangerous creatures still have the dated sound bites that they have. The audio design wasn’t entirely the highlight to focus on back then, but it definitely helps that it sets the mood right for exploring deadly ruins and tombs.
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Value for Money - 10/10
For the price of $30, it’s the complete Lara Croft experience with three of her original games, plus the additional stuff. The value for money is crazy in this one, as you could experience the original trilogy with completely overhauled graphics for a better experience. There's also a ton of achievements for the completionists out there, as it has more than 250 trophies in the game to be collected. However, the controls will be clunky for those who’ve never played the original games, and it might be a deal breaker for them.
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Review: Let's Move On From the Past
The Tomb Raider original trilogy was one of the origins of my affinity to action adventure games like Uncharted, Jak and Daxter, Spider-Man, and more. Something about treasure hunting and discovery always made it more interesting than it already is and I’m glad to find out that I still like the game after all these years.
Being the indoctrinated gamer that I am, I immediately switched to the modern control scheme where I could freely move around as opposed to the original where you could only move forward to where you’re facing. It took a while to get used to Tomb Raider’s movement and camera again but after I got the hang of it, I once again fell right back in the Tomb Raider groove. Admittedly, the combat is still very much dated, it really just consists of you pulling the pistols out and spamming the shoot button for the most part.
With regards to movement, they updated certain mechanics that were in Tomb Raider 2 onwards to be in Tomb Raider 1 as well. Specifically, the jump twist where you press the roll button while in the air was not present in the first Tomb Raider game. Saving is now possible anywhere in the game as this wasn’t present in the older versions of the game.
The graphics are clearly better than the original counterpart, but I found that the new graphics make the game really dark to the point where I can’t really see where I’m going. The 90’s filter makes the game a little brighter which I used to my advantage to brighten up the place. The music is still as melancholic as I remember them, and it might just be the nostalgia speaking, but I swear that they sound even better now.
There aren’t that many linear action adventure games anymore these days, but this genre taught me to like the concept of "less is more." Games get bigger open worlds to explore, massive conflicts to end, and even more gigantic mechanics, but at the end of the day, we have to appreciate what the old games had, which was janky movement, simple objectives, and most of all, iconic characters like Lara Croft.
Pros of Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered
| Things Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Got Right |
|---|
|
Faithful to the End Graphics Upgrade is a Clear Improvement |
Faithful to the End
Every little thing that you remember from the old game is still in the remake. It feels exactly like the same game (with some clear improvements of course) and doesn’t diminish its quality. It even has the option to change the graphics to the original polygons for that authentic 90’s feel just so you could appreciate the game’s former glory. The new QoL additions like the new modern movement option, the action indicators, and the ledge grabbing make the game way better than the original but stays faithful to the OG design of the game.
Graphics Upgrade is a Clear Improvement
It’s clear that the graphics upgrade is a massive change to the original trilogy. The difference is night and day in terms of in-game graphics, and seeing the intricate details in the different settings and places that you visit is always a great thing for a video game.
Cons of Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered
| Things That Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Can Improve |
|---|
|
…Maybe Too Faithful New Graphics Get Way Too Dark |
…Maybe Too Faithful
So while they introduced a new control scheme, the jankiness of the controls are definitely felt. Moving around feels clunky and finding the perfect spot to grab a ledge took me a while to get used to again. Additionally, the camera is still a pain to deal with, and definitely led me to some of my deaths in the game. They already improved the movement compared to the original movement scheme, with more changes and QoL additions to climbing and shooting they could’ve had a way better experience than what was originally offered already.
New Graphics Get Way Too Dark
There are times when the new graphics get way too dark that I can’t see where I’m going anymore. While this may point to the game having realistic lighting in ruins, caves, and temples, using the 90’s filter is probably not the intended way to find wherever you’re going.
Is Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Worth It?
A Game for the Faithful Fans, Hard Sell to New Players
While you are getting three games for the low price of $30 as well as a date with English archaeologist Lara Croft, it’s definitely a game for the fans of the original trilogy rather than an attempt to hook new people in. Yes, the original games are great, but let’s not kid ourselves by saying the controls are amazing either, they definitely needed to improve those if they wanted a newer demographic to try these games out. There are a LOT of trophies to get, and it will take a while for completionists to 100% complete all three games. All in all, it’s a completely faithful remaster, but definitely could’ve had more QoL improvements to hook newer gamers in.
| Digital Storefronts | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Steam |
 Epic |
 GoG |
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 Playstation |
 Xbox |
 Switch |
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| Price | $29.99 | ||||
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Overview & Premise
Tomb Raider 1-3 is a compilation of three games and their expansions all in one, where Lara Croft, the fearless archaeologist, goes on dozens of dangerous missions in search of ancient relics from different mythologies across all the seven continents.
● Tomb Raider I takes place in Peru, Greece, Egypt, and Atlantis.
● Tomb Raider II takes place in China, Venice, an Oil Rig in the middle of the Ocean, Tibet, and England
● Tomb Raider III takes place in India, the South Pacific Islands, Nevada, London, and Antarctica
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered FAQ
How Many Achievements or Trophies Are in Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered?
The game has a total of 269 achievements and trophies spread throughout 3 different titles.
How Do I Switch to Modern Controls in Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered?
Bring up the Menu by pressing the Pause button (Touchpad in PS5) and move to the Controls section. You will have the option to change several different things, but specifically you can change between "Tank" controls which are the original controls and "Modern" controls which move similar to third person action adventure games today.
Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Starring Lara Croft Product Information
 | |
| Title | TOMB RAIDER 1-3 REMASTERED STARRING LARA CROFT |
|---|---|
| Release Date | February 14, 2024 |
| Developer | Aspyr, Crystal Dynamics |
| Publisher | Aspyr |
| Supported Platforms | PC(Steam, EGS, GoG), PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch |
| Genre | Action, Adventure, Puzzle |
| Number of Players | 1 |
| Rating | ESRB M 17+ |
| Official Website | Tomb Raider Official Website |
