Info about Tomb Raider I-III Remastered Starring Lara Croft:

Official game description:
Discover Lara Croft’s Original Adventures, Lovingly Restored
------------------------------------------------------------
Play the Original Three Tomb Raider Adventures: For the first time ever, play the complete experience with all expansions and secret levels on modern platforms in this definitive collection.
Included Game Titles
--------------------
*   Tomb Raider I + Unfinished Business  
*   Tomb Raider II + Golden Mask  
*   Tomb Raider III + The Lost Artifact
Key Features
------------
**Solve Ancient Mysteries**: Uncover treasures of the ancient world by solving puzzles and unraveling mysteries lost to the ravages of time.  
**Globe-trotting Adventure**: Follow Lara Croft around the world and face off against deadly foes and dangerous myths.  
**Lovingly Restored**: Experience the classics boasting upgraded graphics, with the option to switch to the original polygon look at any time.

Release date: 13 Feb, 2024

Categories: Single-player Story, Puzzle Solving, Exploration, Platformer, Real-time Combat, Treasure Hunting


- Hardware Profile: No data
Feature extractions:
- Community Price: No data
- Playtime Metrics: No data
- Time-to-fun: No data
- Player Archetypes: No data


Below are summaries of things people say about the game per category.
Each point is assigned a weight that represents how often it is mentioned across all reviews.
What players like:
- Faithful, loving restoration of classics (weight 0.95): The Tomb Raider I-III Remastered collection is praised as a faithful and loving restoration of the original trilogy. Reviewers appreciate that the remasters capture the essence of the classic games while enhancing them for modern systems. Many call it the definitive way to experience Lara Croft's early adventures.
- Seamlessly switch graphics (weight 0.61): The ability to seamlessly switch between the remastered and original graphics is a standout feature. This allows players to appreciate the visual enhancements while also evoking nostalgia for the classic look. It also helps with navigation and spotting secrets.
- Modern and classic control options (weight 0.35): The remaster introduces modern control schemes as an alternative to the original tank controls. This caters to both veteran players who prefer the classic experience and newcomers who may find tank controls difficult to master. The modern controls are considered a welcome addition, though some still prefer the originals.
- Challenging, rewarding gameplay (weight 0.22): The game retains the challenging gameplay of the originals, with a focus on exploration, puzzles, and precise platforming. Overcoming these challenges provides a sense of accomplishment and makes the game engaging. The mix of gameplay elements is still captivating.
- Achievements and extra content (weight 0.16): The inclusion of achievements and extra content, such as DLC levels and New Game+, adds replay value and provides new challenges for players. The achievements are well-designed and encourage exploration and experimentation.
- High-quality localization (weight 0.09): The game includes a high-quality Russian localization, with pleasant voice acting. The game also has subtitles in multiple languages, including Brazilian Portuguese.
- Helpful and fun photo mode (weight 0.07): The photo mode is a great addition, allowing for creative screenshots and also serving a practical purpose for scouting ahead and finding solutions to puzzles.
- Updated character models and moves (weight 0.06): Lara's character model and those of her allies and enemies have been updated. Some of Lara's later moves have been backported to the first game, and her jump has been adjusted to match the sequels.
- Smooth performance on modern systems (weight 0.06): The game runs smoothly on modern systems, with high frame rates and stable performance. This ensures a pleasant gaming experience without technical issues.
- Specific improvements across titles (weight 0.05): Tomb Raider 2 has improved AI, sound design, and realistic ammunition placement. Tomb Raider 3 has better movement and balances the number of enemies. The updated Lara Croft character model looks better.
- Includes all games and expansions (weight 0.05): The collection includes all three games and their expansions, providing an enormous amount of playing hours. The inclusion of expansions that were previously hard to obtain is a plus.
- Specific improvements to Tomb Raider 1 (weight 0.04): The remaster adds a lighting engine to Tomb Raider 1, enhancing the visuals. The collection resolves the issues of playing the original Tomb Raider 1-3 on Steam.

Common complaints:
- Clunky, imprecise control schemes (weight 0.33): Both modern and tank controls are criticized. Modern controls are clunky, unresponsive, and poorly implemented, leading to frustration in platforming and combat. Tank controls feel outdated and difficult for new players, hindering movement and camera control. Many reviewers recommend sticking to the original control scheme.
- Inconsistent, overly dark lighting (weight 0.24): The remastered graphics, particularly the lighting, are frequently criticized for being too dark, inconsistent, and obscuring important details. This makes navigation and puzzle-solving difficult, forcing players to switch to the original graphics for better visibility. The lack of brightness settings exacerbates this issue.
- Lazy, minimal remaster effort (weight 0.14): The remaster is seen as a minimal effort, primarily a graphical update with AI-upscaled textures that are sometimes poorly implemented. Reviewers feel it doesn't address core gameplay issues, bugs, or add significant enhancements, making it feel like a cash grab and not worth the price. The cutscenes also suffer from poor AI upscaling.
- Brutally difficult, unforgiving gameplay (weight 0.13): The game is considered brutally difficult, requiring precise movements and pixel-perfect jumps. The level design relies on trial-and-error, leading to frequent deaths and save-scumming. Tomb Raider 3 is specifically called out for unfair difficulty and confusing level design.
- Missing key modern features (weight 0.1): The game lacks modern features like autosaving and level select, which were present in some original versions. The manual save system is cumbersome and prone to errors, potentially leading to loss of progress or soft-locking the game. The menu navigation is also outdated and inconvenient.
- Specific game installments criticized (weight 0.1): Tomb Raider 2 is criticized for excessive human enemies, diminishing the tomb raiding atmosphere. Tomb Raider 3 is called out for confusing level design, frustrating enemies, and difficulty spikes. Some reviewers find the early games tedious and repetitive by modern standards.
- Clunky, unrefined combat mechanics (weight 0.04): Combat is often described as clunky, especially in the first and second games. Enemies have poor AI, and the gunplay is boring. The combat mechanics suffer from the bad controls, making encounters frustrating.
- Erratic, uncontrollable camera system (weight 0.04): The camera system is frequently criticized for being erratic, uncontrollable, and clipping through walls. This makes navigation and combat difficult, especially in tight spaces. The camera often fails to provide a clear view of the surroundings.
- Inconsistent framerate options (weight 0.04): The original graphics are locked at 30fps, while the remastered graphics run at 60fps. This inconsistency can be jarring for players switching between the two modes. There is no option to unlock the framerate for the original graphics.
- Missing graphics settings, level select (weight 0.03): Reviewers desire more graphical settings, such as resolution options and anti-aliasing. The lack of a level selection menu is also a common complaint. Some levels are considered too difficult or complicated, requiring walkthroughs.
- General reviewer dissatisfaction (weight 0.02): These points are too vague and subjective to be useful. They express general dissatisfaction without providing specific details or constructive feedback.
- Tomb Raider 3 specific issues (weight 0.02): These points focus on specific issues within Tomb Raider 3, such as nerfed weapons and unclear puzzles. While specific, they are limited in scope and don't represent widespread concerns across the entire collection.

Gameplay feedback:
- Tank controls versus modern controls (weight 0.12): The game offers both original "tank controls" and a modern control scheme, and players can switch between them. Tank controls are integral to the game's feel, while modern controls offer a more accessible experience. Some reviewers recommend tank controls for the complete experience.
- Grid-based level design (weight 0.11): The game features grid-based level design with precise jumps and spatial puzzles.  The levels are designed around the classic control scheme, requiring players to calculate jumps and solve puzzles to progress. The original Tomb Raider trilogy emphasizes a sense of isolation in tombs and figuring out how to progress while being on alert for enemies.
- Switchable graphics (weight 0.07): The remaster allows players to switch between the old and new graphics modes to compare textures. Pressing F1 toggles between original and remake graphics. This feature allows players to appreciate the updated visuals while still having the option to experience the game in its original form.
- Lack of hand-holding (weight 0.06): The game does not provide much guidance, requiring players to figure things out independently through exploration and trial and error. There is no map or objective arrow, encouraging players to explore and solve puzzles without explicit instructions. This can be overwhelming for some players, but rewarding for those who enjoy a challenge.
- TR2 action focus (weight 0.03): Tomb Raider 2 has an over reliance on action and more humanoid enemies. TR2 has very few explorations, but a lot of battles. In Tomb Raider 2, there are more human enemies.
- Play as Lara Croft (weight 0.03): The player controls Lara Croft, an English archaeologist/adventurer/treasure hunter, in pursuit of a different historical artifact in each game. The game is a puzzle-platformer where you play as Lara Croft, traveling the world to prevent villains from getting artifacts. The collection includes the first three classic Tomb Raider titles, remastered and slightly updated.
- Puzzle-solving and exploration (weight 0.02): The game involves finding details for mechanisms, keys for locks, and levers for opening passages. The puzzles are still cryptic, requiring players to flip random levers and push giant stone blocks. The games are based on exploration, puzzle-solving, and finding keys to progress.
- Movement limitations (weight 0.02): Moving sideways or jumping backward is only possible with a weapon drawn, requiring a button hold. Players can run around enemies, and auto-aim assists in combat, though this tactic is situational.
- Vehicles and diverse locations (weight 0.02): Starting with the second game, players are given vehicles, making the locations larger and more diverse. The gameplay remains consistent from the first to the third game. In the third game, players can choose which locations they want to play through.
- TR1 gameplay focus (weight 0.02): The remaster adds mid-air and underwater turning in TR1. In TR1, the focus is on platforming, with battles gradually increasing in difficulty. In TR1, most of the scenes are indoors, with many traps and dangers.
- TR3 gameplay additions (weight 0.02): A roll move was added in TR3. The game includes new music in TR3. TR3 has a lot of exploring, backtracking, and puzzles, with fewer battles and less platforming.
- Save crystal changes (weight 0.01): The limited "save crystals" mechanic in Tomb Raider 3 was dropped, instead allowing unlimited saves, and keeping the crystals as optional collectables. Tomb Raider 3's collectible save crystals don't serve any purpose other than an achievement for collecting all of them.

Performance notes:
- Excellent and smooth performance (weight 0.05): The remaster generally exhibits excellent performance, achieving high and stable frame rates (60-120fps) on various devices like PC and Steam Deck. Players report smooth gameplay, optimized power consumption, and good image quality, contributing to an enhanced experience.
- Original graphics have low FPS (weight 0.03): The original graphics mode is often locked at lower frame rates (20-30fps), leading to a less smooth experience compared to the remastered visuals. This discrepancy in performance can be jarring for players switching between the two modes.
- Minor graphical issues remain (weight 0.01): While the remaster improves textures and lighting, some players have noticed minor graphical issues. These include slight stuttering due to rendering and overly dark areas with HD textures, which can detract from the visual experience.
- Improved controls and responsiveness (weight 0.01): Players report improvements to keyboard controls and the absence of controller lag. These enhancements contribute to a more responsive and enjoyable control experience.
- Occasional environment bugs (weight 0): Some players have encountered environment bugs, such as disappearing textures and doors closing unexpectedly. These glitches can disrupt gameplay and immersion.
- Great on Steam Deck (weight 0): The game is well-suited for the Steam Deck, offering a positive experience on the handheld device. However, this point lacks specific details.
- F1 simulates 90s performance (weight 0): One review mentions that pressing F1 reduces the frame rate to simulate the performance of a late 90s computer. This is a niche feature and not a widespread concern.

Recommendations:
- Highly recommended for all players (weight 0.48): The remasters are highly recommended for both nostalgic fans and newcomers, offering a definitive way to experience the classic Tomb Raider trilogy. Reviewers praise the collection's faithfulness to the originals, enhanced graphics, and inclusion of expansion content, making it a worthwhile purchase, especially for those interested in adventure, puzzles, and a challenging retro experience.
- Eagerly awaiting future remasters (weight 0.33): Reviewers express excitement and anticipation for potential remasters of Tomb Raider IV-VI, indicating a strong desire to see the entire classic series updated. This suggests a positive reception to the current remasters and a hope for continued support of the franchise.
- Outdated mechanics may deter newcomers (weight 0.09): Some reviews caution that the game's 90s design, including tank controls and challenging gameplay, may not appeal to modern players. These reviewers suggest that the remasters are best suited for nostalgic fans or those willing to adapt to an outdated play style, and recommend that new players proceed with caution.
- Consider purchasing on sale (weight 0.05): Several reviewers suggest waiting for a sale before purchasing the game, indicating that while the remasters are enjoyable, the full price may not be justified. This recommendation implies that the game is worth playing, but the value proposition is better at a discounted price.

Other player notes:
- Classic "tank" controls divisive (weight 0.07): The original "tank controls" are a key element of the classic Tomb Raider experience, and opinions vary on whether they are a gift or a curse. Some players find modern controls unnatural and recommend trying the original controls first, while others may find them daunting.
- Includes expansions and bonus levels (weight 0.05): The collection includes the first three Tomb Raider games along with their respective expansion levels, providing a substantial amount of content. These expansions were previously unavailable on console versions, adding value for players who missed them originally.
- Significant playtime and achievements (weight 0.04): The game offers a substantial amount of content, with each game taking around 30 hours to complete, resulting in a 70-100+ hour adventure overall. Some players are buying the game specifically to unlock the large number of achievements, which they find challenging and interesting.
- Switchable graphics: new vs. original (weight 0.02): Players can switch between the updated graphics and the original pixelated graphics, allowing them to experience the game in its original form or with a modern visual presentation. The new graphics run at 60FPS, while the old graphics run at 30FPS.
- Missing basic quality-of-life features (weight 0.01): The game lacks some basic quality-of-life features, such as brightness settings and an in-game option to quit. Additionally, there is no level select feature, requiring players to rely on manual saves at the beginning of each level.
- Original bugs and cheats remain (weight 0.01): The remastered version retains the original bugs and cheat codes from the classic games. Players can still use these cheat codes, but they may need to switch to tank controls temporarily to activate them.
- Photo mode and Lara's mansion (weight 0.01): The game includes a photo mode that allows players to pose and customize Lara for screenshots. Also, Lara's mansion can be explored, where you can train and complete an obstacle course.
- Varied and creative achievements (weight 0.01): The game features a varied trophy/achievement list with creative and completion-based challenges for achievement hunters.

Emotions:
- satisfaction (weight 0.38): Emotion: satisfaction
- nostalgia (weight 0.19): Emotion: nostalgia
- excitement (weight 0.16): Emotion: excitement
- disappointment (weight 0.04): Emotion: disappointment
- frustration (weight 0.08): Emotion: frustration
- joy (weight 0.1): Emotion: joy}