PixlBit

The Tomb Raider series has been around for quite a while at this point and Lara Croft has found herself in a variety of different adventures, all from the third person perspective. This time around, Lara is not featured in a titular Tomb Raider game, but rather a new co-op experience with a top-down view. While I wasn't sure what to think of the game before playing it, after just a short time, it was obvious that the team at Crystal Dynamics were on to something.

Though the game is truly meant to be a co-operative experience, players do have the ability to play solo and won't have to muddle through the quest with a computer-driven partner. While this mode functions well and creates a somewhat different experience for the player, both Chessa and myself played the game together and this review will focus on the game from a multiplayer perspective.

As stated, the latest Lara Croft adventure is no longer a mandatorily solo gig allowing a team of two to take on enemies and explore a new world as Lara and Totec. The two have been given complementary abilities that allow for traversal through this ancient world, as well as puzzle solving around every corner. The lengthy ten hour quest has players traversing a variety of different levels, some of which are completely linear and others that force exploration and investigation.

Each level in the game, regardless of its structure, all force players to get from a starting point to an ending point, and along the way, players must both defeat enemies and solve a variety of puzzles. In order for players to accomplish their goals, they are given a small arsenal of moves and weaponry. To start, Lara is given her iconic double pistols for attack purposes, while Totec, a 2,000 year old Mayan warrior, is equipped with a spear. What's unique about this set-up is that Totec's spear doubles as a mechanism for Lara to explore new heights.

When players are met with an obstacle that requires reaching a higher location, Lara can jump on Totec's spears which have been stuck in the wall. Additionally, if Totec is in the same general vacinity, Lara can jump on Totec's shield and be boosted up. Upon reaching that new height, Lara can send down a line to pull Totec up. This line also doubles as a tightrope which Totec can use to reach new locations, both high and low. These dynamics between the two players create some intriguing puzzles and challenges that couldn't exist without the unique movesets and equipment provided.

To enforce this concept, the game provides small side missions to earn new gear and health upgrades throughout the levels that strongly focus on using this assortment of skills in a unique way. Of course, these are not required, so players who prefer the action-oriented parts of the game more can completely avoid the majority of these more advanced puzzles and simply take aim and fire. This is not to say that all puzzles disappear, but the most complicated ones no longer become a concern.

Undoubtedly, what makes the game enjoyable is the co-operative concept that requires both players to interact constantly to succeed. Though the puzzles can often be a challenge, most of the game will see players collecting more advanced weaponry and attacking the deluge of enemies that constantly flood the playing field. As players approach the critical points in the level, more advanced enemies appear which include the occasional sub-boss and level boss. Both provide some ample challenge and typically require co-operative strategy to succeed.

In order to take some of the monotony out of the shooting experience, players are given a set of goals and subquests to accomplish throughout the mission, like collecting particular artifacts and destroying a certain number of items hanging around in the environment. Time goals are also in place, pushing players to finish the levels and finish them quickly to earn an even better score.

It's clear that Crystal Dynamics when to great lengths to keep both players constantly engaged in their goals and in their interaction throughout the level. Given the generally simple nature of the isometric/topdown shooter style of the game, these deeper goals, the co-operative gameplay, and the frequent mandatory and optional puzzles really do a great job of expanding the experience.

Unfortunately, regardless of the effort put forth, as the quite lengthy title pushes on, the gameplay can become tired due to the overall simple style of play. It's unlikely that players will revisit the title after completing the entire game, though achievement-oriented players might find themselves going back through to check all of the boxes for each mission's goal sets.

All-in-all, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light is a solid experiece that only wears thin in its later hours. Players looking for a unique and engaging co-operative title needn't look farther, though for the time being, players who don't have a local friend to play the game with may want to wait until the title's online multiplayer mode is unlocked as the single player experience doesn't prove to be nearly as interesting as the multi-faceted co-operative mode.