Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered Review Summary

A superb remaster with excellent graphics and switchable classic visuals, but unplayable controls and a buggy, rushed Angel of Darkness still make it best for devoted Tomb Raider fans.

Excellent remaster quality and preservation: The remasters are widely praised for their high quality, care, and preservation of the original games. Reviewers appreciate the effort by Aspyr and Saber, considering it a worthy and excellent remaster.

Graphics upgrades are excellent: The updated graphics are frequently praised as nice, top-notch, and visually pleasant. They make the games a visual treat while preserving the original mood.

TR4 and TR5 remasters impress: The remasters of Tomb Raider 4 and 5 are specifically highlighted as amazing and very good. Reviewers note significant improvements in these entries.

Improved modern controls enhance gameplay: The addition of modern controls is highly valued, making the games more playable and enjoyable. Many reviewers find the controls much better than the original tank controls.

Angel of Darkness vastly improved: The Angel of Darkness remaster is seen as well-rounded and vastly improved, with restored content and much-needed care. It is considered memorable despite its troubled development.

Controls make game unplayable: Many reviewers find the controls wildly unresponsive, uncomfortable, and completely unplayable, especially in the retro control scheme. This issue is frequently cited as a major flaw that ruins the experience.

TR6 control issues persist: Tomb Raider 6 (Angel of Darkness) suffers from clunky, unresponsive controls that feel worse than previous entries. Problems include reduced jump power, awkward camera angles, and frustrating modern control implementation.

Angel of Darkness buggy and rushed: Angel of Darkness is widely described as a janky, glitchy, and unfinished game with numerous bugs, plot holes, and cut content. Players feel it was released in a rushed state with poor optimization and disappointing visual changes.

TR5 short and forgettable: Tomb Raider 5 (Chronicles) is criticized for being short, with a forgettable setting, weak level design, and a story that feels disjointed and uninspired. Many note it brings nothing new to the series.

Remaster visual improvements lacking: The remaster of Angel of Darkness (TR6) is seen as a failed effort, with visuals that are barely improved or even worse than the original. Character models and locations remain largely unchanged with minimal texture upgrades.

Remastered Classic Tomb Raider Collection: The package remasters the original Tomb Raider games, specifically covering Tomb Raider 4, 5, and 6 including Angel of Darkness, as well as the first six titles. It allows players to revisit classic PS1-era adventures with updated graphics.

Switchable Classic and Modern Graphics: Players can toggle between the original retro visuals and the remastered graphics at any time, even mid-play, via a single button press. This feature lets users experience the game with either the classic look or the updated visual style.

Dual Control Schemes Available: The game offers both the original tank controls and a modern control scheme, with the option to switch between them. This accommodates both veterans who prefer the classic feel and newcomers who want more contemporary controls.

Puzzle-Solving Core Gameplay: Puzzle-solving is a core mechanic, with intelligent puzzles and old-school design. The gameplay focuses on strategic puzzling action and exploration.

Angel of Darkness Improvements and Quicksave: The remaster of Angel of Darkness includes retouched controls and modern control options, making it slightly better than the original. It also adds a quicksave feature for convenience.

Stable performance on modern PC: Many users report the game runs perfectly on modern PCs with stable performance. No crashes or loading time issues are common.

Crashes during level transitions: The game crashes during level transitions and when loading certain saves. Quick save and quick load can also crash during specific missions.

Good optimization on old hardware: The game is well-optimized and runs on old laptops. It takes only 3% CPU and ~500MB RAM on Linux, and can be played alongside other tasks.

Poor performance on modern hardware: Even high-end GPUs like the RTX 4090 cannot maintain a stable 60 FPS. Some players find the game unplayable on modern machines.

Cutscene stuttering and pauses: Many cutscenes suffer from stutter and freezing, making them unwatchable. Characters' lips continue moving after dialogue ends, and the game briefly stutters.

Recommended for Tomb Raider fans: Many reviewers recommend the remaster specifically for fans of the classic Tomb Raider series, those who grew up with the originals, or those who love the Lara Croft brand. It is repeatedly described as a must-have for nostalgic players and longtime followers of the franchise.

Positive but unspecific recommendations: Several clusters contain only generic positive recommendations such as 'Recommended' or 'Totally recommended' without detailed reasons. These reflect overall satisfaction but lack specific gameplay feedback.

Wait for a sale: Multiple reviewers advise buying this remaster only on sale rather than at full price, as the value proposition is weaker at full cost. The recommendation is consistent: get it discounted if you are interested.

Not for first-time players: Some reviewers specifically caution that this remaster is not recommended for first-time players or newcomers to the Tomb Raider franchise. It is seen as better suited to those with nostalgia or prior experience with the original games.

Great remaster quality praised: Feedback on the remaster pack is very positive, with reviewers calling these great remasters that are better than the previous batch. The remaster is recommended without hesitation.

Community fair range: $10.00 - $20.00.

Game completion: 38.0h.

Story completion: 38.0h.

The collection's fun is gated behind a rough onboarding: unclear controls and frustrating tutorials create early friction, though some players say it may become alright after getting past the tutorial and using modern quality-of-life features.

Friction: No clear control prompts; Unclear objectives and navigation; Frustrating tutorial; Long tutorial section; Need for external guides.

Unlock drivers: Modern controls; Action indicators; Photo mode for scoping maps; Toggling modern and retro graphics.

Nostalgic Classic Tomb Raider Veteran: Replays the classics, often with tank controls, and values original level design and preservation. Motivation: Relive the classic Tomb Raider games and support a faithful, convenient remaster of the originals. Stance: buy.

Modern-Controls Newcomer: Uses modern controls, action indicators, photo mode, and graphical toggles to focus on puzzles and exploration. Motivation: Experience classic Tomb Raider for the first time with modern controls and quality-of-life improvements. Stance: buy.

Achievement Hunter Completionist: Pursues NG+ runs, achievement hunting, level-skip unlock methods, and repeated attempts for full completion. Motivation: Complete all achievements, reach 100%, and master NG+ challenges. Stance: buy.

The Windows 12-15GB VRAM cohort reports negative performance with stuttering and freezing, while the <8GB VRAM cohort is positive despite a frame-rate reporting issue and the 8-11GB VRAM cohort is mixed due to crashes and game-breaking bugs.

Windows <8GB VRAM: positive. A recommended report notes that the overlay counter shows 75 FPS while the on-screen frame rate appears to be 30 FPS.

Windows 12-15GB VRAM: negative. A non-recommended report describes stuttering and freezing that makes cutscenes unwatchable.

Windows 8-11GB VRAM: mixed. A recommended report describes the game as a crash fest and mentions game-breaking bugs requiring patches.

Steam Deck: Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered generally works on Steam Deck out of the box: several reviewers confirm it launches without external launchers, runs well on Linux/Proton, and has low hardware demands with native gamepad support. The main friction is erratic and laggy controls on the Deck (wooden response, input lag, Lara acting unexpectedly), plus isolated cutscene face glitches and an inconsistency between the displayed FPS counter and the actual frame rate. The default 30 FPS cap requires a manual setting toggle to remove. No mandatory Proton Experimental switch or touchscreen launcher navigation was observed.

Linux and Proton: The available Linux/Proton evidence is positive. Users report that the game works well on Linux with Proton 10, runs efficiently on a main Linux machine, and is playable on Steam Deck without jumping through hoops. The remaining negative reviews are generic controls and input-lag complaints that are not tied to Linux or Proton, so they do not indicate Linux compatibility friction.

Collection covers Tomb Raider IV-VI: The bundle includes Tomb Raider IV, V, and VI (Angel of Darkness). It is a remastered collection of the last three classic Eidos-era Tomb Raider games.

Angel of Darkness improvements: The remaster fixes many bugs and incompleteness of the original Angel of Darkness. It restores cut content, missing features, and weapons.

Preserves classic games on modern platforms: The collection makes classic Tomb Raider games available on modern platforms. It allows new players to experience the old games.

Remaster vs remake distinction: Reviewers clarify that this is a remaster, not a full remake. It preserves the original games with updated visuals and quality-of-life improvements.

Developed by Aspyr: Aspyr is the developer and publisher behind the remaster. Reviewers note Aspyr's solid work on the remaster.