Tomb Raider: Underworld

Nothing truly revolutionary here, but in many ways it's the finest Tomb Raider to date. [Christmas 2008, p.70]

In tone, Underworld hits the target dead center, delivering the perfect mix of isolation and discovery with larger dramatic encounters. No modern cities mar Lara’s excursion this time – this is tomb raiding from beginning to end. Remarkable visuals sell the experience, and a moving score deepens your involvement. The formula behind the game is ready for some fresh ideas, but as a wrap up of old ideas, Underworld hits the sweet spot.

In conclusion, Tomb Raider Underworld is what the series has been missing and although it may not the standout game of the year, it's definitely one of the better ones and it's good to see.

Despite its failure to move the series forward, Underworld is still fundamentally an incredibly enjoyable experience and a real return to captivating tomb raiding on a grand scale. It might be the same Lara we’ve enjoyed over the years but there’s no denying the lady’s still got style.

Tomb Raider Underworld was far more enjoyable than I ever thought it would be. The expansive environments, solid platforming sequences, challenging puzzles, and adventure-filled storyline should appeal to anyone who loved the Prince of Persia games and Uncharted: Drake's Fortune. Disappointingly, combat is fairly mediocre, and a lot of technical inconsistencies are troublesome. Nevertheless, Underworld is a very good game.

Overall Clumsy combat, but enough quality puzzling to thrill lapsed fans.

Crystal Dynamics has revived the core values of the original Tomb Raider games and reminded fans what drew them to the series in the first place. It’s an enticingly open action-adventure game with a seriously sexy lead.

While it doesn’t propel the series forward to new heights, Underground is certainly an exciting and challenging Tomb Raider game worthy of Lady Croft’s sizeable talents.

Tomb Raider Underworld is a fantastic proposal for fans of puzzles and platform gaming. Sadly its camera and control issues let down its many virtues. Nevertheless the new adventure of Lara Croft is brief but intense, and has plenty of good puzzles and great environments.

Running around robbing ancient artefacts, desecrating temples and cracking intense puzzles is just as satisfying as ever, and feels like vintage Tomb Raider through and through. [Dec 2008, p.92]

A visually stunning, epic adventure that continues Crystal Dynamics' excellent run. We reckon it's the best completely original Tomb Raider (Anniversary was, of course, a remake) we've had in years, and is only let down by the odd control quirk and camera issue.

Epic without ever pushing boundaries for the series, Tomb Raider: Underworld is a game that fans of the franchise will no doubt relish.

Like her previous two games, Underworld is a welcome, if slightly flawed, addition to the franchise.

It’s no longer a culturally significant event, and even Lara’s charms are beginning to lose their edge. But make no mistake, it warms our hearts to see Lara back doing what she does best. [Christmas 2008, p.98]

I really did enjoy the experience, as unchallenging as it felt (whether because the puzzles rarely required timing threatening death beyond falling, because the enemies even have visible health bars or due to the friendly checkpoint system) but felt that it was too quick to get through to justify a full £40 purchase.

Okay, the new Tomb Raider adventure is not really innovative. But Lara has never looked so good before. The gameplay is smooth and the puzzles are great. But the stupid motorcycle trips, the camera and the senseless gadgets are fun-killers.

If you've ever played a Tomb Raider game, you know what you're in for and whether it's for you. [Jan 2009, p.78]

This should be a much slicker product. Still, it’s good fun for the most part, and at the end of the day that’s why we play, right?

Tomb Raider: Underworld continues in the vein of the last three Tomb Raider games giving you more of the same with a few minor improvements.

Then again, perhaps the short play-time is a blessing in disguise: it helps spare you from a really long adventure where you have to suffer with that camera.

Long time Tomb Raider players will definitely enjoy Underworld, but it has both its minor and major flaws. The frustrating camera, the sometimes outdated gameplay, and the short main storyline make for a less-then-perfect experience. Thus, Underworld doesn’t live up to its expectations, but is absolutely worth a try.

Underworld is an incredibly abrupt experience, so much so that it makes me question whether content was removed from the complete game to be made available later as the previously announced downloadable content. Six levels in (seven if you count the prologue), the game just...ends. Sure, the last level is a cool showpiece, but it lacks any sense of built-up narrative and even a final boss -- simply a closing cut-scene that wraps up most of the loose ends all too handily.

An opaque plot, tacked-on combat and distracting camera issues prevent it from competing with the top tier holiday titles, but Underworld gets enough right to make for a modest success.

Tomb Raider: Underworld is ambiguous, offering the best and the worst elements of the series. The camera is awful and there are quite a few bugs. It lacks polish, but still manages to be a good Lara Croft adventure…. And she's as beautiful and agile as ever.