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The Weird Forgotten Version of 2013’s Tomb Raider Game
When Tomb Raider was last rebooted in 2013, it was built primarily for the Xbox 360 and PS3 consoles, and the PC technology of the era. The game was a runaway smash hit and it spawned two sequels in short order — only for the series to languish for years before getting swept up in a complex deal between corporate juggernauts Embracer and Amazon.
New consoles came out shortly after the 2013 debut of Camilla Luddington’s new Lara Croft, and Square Enix wanted to capitalize on their existing content. To get players hyped for the sequels by spending money on the first game again, they produced Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition for the new PS4 and Xbox One hardware. It targeted 60 FPS at higher resolutions, and added in the TressFX hair effects from PC, as well as tweaked lighting, materials, physics…and an entirely new character model for Lara Croft.
I loved this remaster at the time, but looking back, it’s pretty darn weird. The additional moving trees do enhance several scenes, particularly the stormy moments in the early game. I like that Lara’s necklace is no longer glued to her neck, and that her arrows bounce around realistically in her quiver. And the lighting is more contrasty, with less of a foggy, hazy look.
