Ranking the Tomb Raider Series

[@Cakepiecookies]

This is why I love hearing other opinions other than my own. Especially on the games I think I hate the most. As much as AOD's controls felt like driving a bus which made gameplay frustrating and annoying for me, listening to your opinions on it reminded me why I actually finished it in the first place. I remember how excited I was each day to turn on my console and continue where I left off. For me my #1 is TR 2. Its the nostalgia (It was the first Tomb Raider game I played) , the moderate difficulty, relatively bug-less and just beautiful levels for the time. I loved the first 3 game's engine so much that I'm constantly on hunt for more fan-made levels.

[@SupplementalSense]

Yep, TR2 was my first as well. I think we build our standards off of our first experiences. I seem to compare them all to TR2.

[@Cakepiecookies]

@@SupplementalSense well said!

[@Jack_80]

i played the original tomb raider as a kid but still liked tr2 a little more. replaying them both on the recent remastered collection, they're both significantly more difficult than i remember. i have no idea how i was able to get through the first 2 tomb raider games so easily as a kid, it feels really tough to find your way now, especially in 2. tr3 was ridiculously hard even as a kid, and feels equally hard now. no matter which of the 3 locations i choose, i get stuck shortly into it. i definitely agree with him on shadow being the worst. the new ganes just got worse with each game. the first one was pretty good, rise was ok, and shadow sucked.

[@Cakepiecookies]

@@Jack_80 It's the same for me in a way. Even though I've played TR2 a million times over, I still forget things and get myself stuck! I think our brains just flush out all the details once we're finished playing - but I guess that's why I don't get bored replaying them! I never got through the reboot trilogy though (Rise. Shadow, etc). They just never sparked any excitement for me but maybe one day I'll try again. If they suck that much then at least I can say I tried lol

[@twntwn11]

Here's my rating that nobody asked for, 2 years too late: 12 - Shadow 11 - Rise 10 - TR 2013 9 - AOD 8 - Anniversary 7 - TR4 6 - Chronicles 5 - Underworld 4 - Legend 3 - TR2 2 - TR3 1 - TR1

[@princeofdarkness4711]

this entire franchise is lovely but holy hell does it have an identity crisis. First the original trilogy is Puzzle exploration, then there is Legends reboot trilogy which is just a Linear Puzzle adventure with acrobatics and fan service, and the newest recent reboot, a third person Shooter adventure. Likes what's next? Tomb Raider RTS?

[@2big4cheese35]

Well there is the Guardian of light and Temple of Osiris games, which are top down twinstick shooters. As someone who was born as the classic series ended and watched my dad play those, then grew up during the first CD trilogy and those were basically some of the first games I actually beat, it was really jarring see the series take such a drastic turn in the 2010s with those 2 games and the 2nd CD trilogy. Granted I did end up enjoying the 2013 game, but I wasn't anywhere near as excited for the next 2 games. The worst part is that I have no real clue what this means for the future of the series. Ideally, the best of all eras. Classic puzzle platforming, exploration, and lonely vibe of the og. the acrobatic abilitiy, ambience, and soundtrack of the legend trilogy, and the fidelity and set pieces of the newer games, hell, she can even keep the bow for utility and puzzle solving purposes (fire/rope arrows, etc) just let her have her damn 2 pistols. Like imagine a TR game thats heavily focused on actual tomb raiding and exploring, but she handles like a mix of max payne and neo from the matrix in combat, getting all crazy flippy dippy, but not just mindlessly shooting and jumping. Actually using her abilities to dodge, build up momemtum, run up a wall and kick some dude in the face (or whatever endangered species lara decides to further endanger) TL:DR: It very much has an identity crisis and I make myself sad trying to visualize what it really could be

[@Adam-y6s6e]

To be fair the original 5 was just as schizophrenic. 2 wanted to be an action shooter on top of the exploration. 3 tried to more successfully leverage both 1 and 2. 4 tried to kill Lara off, 5 wanted to be a tech noir action game on top of the other stuff. The attitude was as long as Lara Croft was the player character it didn't matter what the game was

[@Ralph-id3xg]

I think the hate for Shadow is out of proportions. I agree the game feels redundant, recycle pretty much everything from Rise and offer not much new stuff, or neither upgrade or evolved anything, but it was a well crafted game. I don't find anything really "bad" about Shadow, but everything, even the story, felt like Deja Vu. I still had a great time with it. AoD, I don't hate it, I enjoyed playing it, but the game was dated on its release, the story was confusing and the gameplay was problematic. I would love a remake though.

[@diego2817]

For us that played classic tomb Raiders, new tom raiders are just garbage for wider audiences, tomb raider classic are the real ones, new games are nothing to do with tomb raider

[@bokcgrievous9217]

@@diego2817 i played all i can agree but rise is one of the best n the first one on ps3 was ight

[@bipa3325]

I don't think the story in AoD is confusing at all

[@porgwarrior3566]

I like shadow of tomb raider because of the graphics

[@Ralph-id3xg]

@Bruno de Oliveira I mean ... if we are going to complaint about innacurate physics we have to go back to the first entry of the series... none of the games ever had a realistic physic, lara is a monkey.

[@PiotrekTarnowski]

My top 5: 1. Anniversary 2. Legend 3. Underworld 4. TR 1 5. TR 2 I really hate that scared, crying over everything young Lara in the last 3 games we've got. She was always like a female version of James Bond to me, and I really hope the devs are gonna bring back the unstoppable, brave, bad bitch Lara.

[@feliarana]

Video name should be "what I dislike in Tomb Rider games"

[@chrisgrobbelaar950]

Exactly 🤣🤣🤣

[@tannerworm]

Angel of darkness is my favorite to. Best story by far. Amazing places and maps. Great feel. Wish the 2nd half was not rushed and longer. 1st tomb raider with open world. The hall of seasons was my favorite place and setting. Wish there was a remake

[@madmandonna1]

One of the first things you say about underworld is that "it's functional", but then you place AoD first which is not functional at all. Really strange list. AoD has some great aspects to it, but when your games boob jiggle physics work better than your jump mechanic, then you know somethings gone wrong.

[@twntwn11]

Well said, AoD was and still is straight up unplayable for me. Underworld was annoying at most.

[@alexsm3882]

I know they say there are no wrong opinions, but holy shit.

[@iantodd9271]

Controversial or not, I preffered the older games pacing and isolation/adventure and discovery element, no sub quest/missions and no assassins' creed like effect of the recent ''open world'' games.

[@anonnymousperson]

Weird, Anniversary is my favourite TR game. Really surprised how you can put TR 2013 above it.

[@alecbona4549]

Anniversary felt like a giant slap in the face for me, honestly. Not hating on your opinion btw. It's nice that we all can have wildly different experiences with the same product

[@anonnymousperson]

@@alecbona4549 That's fair. Anniversary was the first TR game I played so that's probably why my expectations were not set beforehand. If you had played other TR games I could understand why it might hit differently.

[@alecbona4549]

@@anonnymousperson yeah that's also fair. I grew up playing these games and have played the first 3 several times over the years. Pretty much all of what made the first game so memorable was taken out of anniversary. It felt very jarring. Had they kept everything (mostly) and just updated the graphics and smoothed out the controls I would have been on board.

[@anonnymousperson]

@@alecbona4549 Yeah, agreed. Having gone back and played the first two original games I can see just how incredibly different the gameplay is between that and Anniversary. Feels like a very different design philosophy so I totally get why you'd feel that. Maybe that's why Seth ranked it there. Hope the recent remaster is more what you were looking for.

[@alecbona4549]

@@anonnymousperson I bought the remasters but haven't played them yet. Working through a bunch of others games first and with FF Rebirth about to release I'll be busy with that as well. Lol

[@SuperBartles]

TR3 Beautiful graphics Best music - and not all the time! Best sound effects Best voice actors, including best Lara Best story (according to me) Best cutscenes My favourite locations: Area 51!! - even London is made to seem atmospheric Excellent weapons

[@monsterhighstopmotion]

Hahaha I find it really funny that you don't like Shadow, it's the one I enjoyed the most out of the reboot games, my least favourite TR game is probably TR 2013. I also do agree that AOD deserved so much better, I wish core design had had the time to fully finish and tweak the game cause even as it is, it's in my top 3, the vibe of that game is just incredible and it has an atmosphere no other TR game has, it also feels weirdly nostalgic to me because the game is set in early 2000's Europe, basically when and where i grew up, so it's like going back in time to my childhood vibe, I'm sure I sound insane tho lmao My favourite TR game is probably either TR2 or TR1 though.

[@realblush]

The moment when you realize the entire list is a shitpost and not to be taken seriously lmfao

[@Adam-y6s6e]

With each entry from the worst not being Angel I was telling myself that some madman is actually going to put it first. Couldn't quite believe he did but then he's getting clicks and comments so Oorah for him I guess

[@Shepherd492]

I really hope AoD gets a remaster now that they've revisited 1-3. The bad parts are, for the most part, exactly the kinds of things that can be cleaned up with a thoughtful return to the title.

[@SynthLizard8]

The worst thing about the modern Tomb Raider trilogy is that they truned her in to a Rambo-like with her bow which is hilarious since I hardly EVER used the bow for combat because you know what's more effective for stealth and combat then a bow? a gun with a silencer! it's soo absurd and to top it off they never gave back her dual pistolas!

[@SynthLizard8]

@user-yl7mr3ck5l The comparison is lost on me, Red Dead Redemption 2?

[@everilliem3292]

Did you really copy paste this on multiple videos, god damn mate.

[@labrynna87]

The Legend/Anniversary/Underworld Lara is my favorite incarnation of her. I like how she's sassy all the time and just seems to be above everybody else - and knows it. (And in German she does sounds dangerous when she's suppossed to do so.) However, I have to admit that I only played "Angel of Darkness" from the older games. Therefore, I don't know "original Lara" very well. Maybe I would like her better if I would, dunno. But I can say for sure that I absolutely HATE how the reboot trilogy changed Lara. For me, she's not "more human than before", as most fans say, but a whiny, self absorbed b.... I skipped playing "Shadow of the Tomb Raider" because I just can't stand Lara anymore. (I think showing her more vulnerable and whiny in TR 2013 could have been a great idea if they would have showed her transformation from "regular girl who is thrown into a traumatizing situation" to the badass girlboss she was in previous games (at least a little!).)

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

Legend Lara was sassy (although in a way utterly dissimilar from classic Lara), but Anniversary and Underworld Lara had none of that and were pretty serious all the time

[@labrynna87]

Yeah, I guess you're right. It's been quite a long time since I played those games, and it's possible some of it became a mish-mash in my head over the years. ^^" But my favorite Lara moment is definitely from Legend: It's in the first level, when the mercenaries block Lara from entering the temple, and then you hear them scream in agony, and Lara is just "Tod durch Blödheit ist besonders schmerzhaft." (I don't know what she says in English, but her German line translates to "Death by being dumb is especially painful.") I fell in love with her in that exact moment.

[@Shadowyn717]

Sorry, but I have to kind of agree with a lot of other comments here. Your personal opinion and enjoyment of any game is purely subjective, and everyone is entitled to their own opinion, of course... But putting Shadow as the worst - and hammering it so severely - was already suspect (to me), but having AoD as 'the best'... Sir, please... This is your ranking and your own choices, which is perfectly fine. I just find some of those choices quite difficult to grasp.

[@D1st0rt10n_]

Yeah, don’t get me wrong, I love AoD. It’s still one of my guilty pleasures to this day…. But to put it in first place was almost illegal XD

[@DeCapitanOG]

He's probably not a zoomer, so he has actually perspective and standards.

[@CozyGlow625]

Yes, so if you state that opinion is subjective, why are you complaining about his placements?

[@YourFavRoadhog]

Fun fact: the valley in tr 1 was supposed to be day time! But since the hardware back then wasn't so strong, the sky had to be black instead of blue. Because of limitations

[@stephanryll2133]

1. Tomb Raider 1 2. Shadow of the Tomb Raider 3. Tomb Raider Angel of Darkness 4. Tomb Raider 2 5. Tomb Raider 5: Chronicles 6. Rise of the Tomb Raider 7. Tomb Raider 2013 8. Tomb Raider 3 9. Tomb Raider Underworld 10. Tomb Raider 4: The Last Revelation 11. Tomb Raider Anniversary 12. Tomb Raider Legend

[@stephanryll2133]

I liked you putting Angel of Darkness on 1. I love that game too.

[@raphaeltouron9149]

My personal ranking: 17.Chronicles 16.Angel of Darkness 15.Tomb Raider 2013 14.Tomb Raider Gameboy Color 13.The Curse of the Sword 12.Legend 11.The Guardian of Light 10.Prophecy 9.Temple of Osiris 8.Rise of the Tomb Raider 7.Underworld 6.Shadow of the Tomb Raider 5.Anniversary 4.Tomb Raider II 3.Tomb Raider 2.Tomb Raider III 1.The Last Revelation

[@user-fu7zf4ck9z]

Worst to Best: 12. Angel of Darkness 11. 2013 10. Rise 9. Underworld 8. Shadow 7. Chronicles 6. TRII 5. Legend 4. TRLR 3. TRIII 2. Anniversary 1. TR 1996

[@ysffffb]

Shit list did u just really rank shadow above rise?

[@user-fu7zf4ck9z]

@@ysffffb That shouldn't be controversial at all. Shadow repeats the theme from Last revelation (Lara's meddling in tombs has consequences) and its locations (Peru mainly) are reminiscent of I, III, and Legend. It's not that much more enjoyable than Rise, so the difference between them isn't huge, but I do think Shadow is the superior "Tomb Raider" game in the tomb raiding aspect.

[@ysffffb]

@@user-fu7zf4ck9z but the story is hot garbage

[@user-fu7zf4ck9z]

@@ysffffb Rise isn’t better imo. All the survivor trilogy games have weak story lines if you ask me. They also have way too many shooting passages/gun enemies (a problem in TR2 as well) and not enough TOMBS

[@zoli1991]

Angel of bleeepin' Darkness !? Whaaat !? 😮 By the third and second entry I started thinking about that by then you have mentioned all of the classic entries.. started thinking about what could you have missed, then baaang, and my insides just started screaming "WHAAAT !? No!.. It can't be.."

[@Tirrexnaj]

Shadow is far from being the worst tomb raider

[@markaitkenguitar]

Your editing makes the best case for Angel of Darkness I’ve ever seen. Thank you for shitting on the latest trilogy. It’s not just nostalgia - the original is the best by a country mile. Thanks!

[@simonduran9376]

No matter what Tomb Raider game anyone likes or dislikes, I think all the fans can agree that the worst Tomb Raider game of all time is the PS2 port of Underworld.

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

PS2 TRU is genuinely fascinating lmao

[@ScoutOnly]

Personally, Underworld and Legend are my most favorite games of the franchise, taking spots number 1 and 2 respectively. Both Underworld and Legend had level design based on mythology and they both made it educational and interesting at the same time. The design and the writing of the England level in Legend is phenomenal. Also I love the retconned background of Lara's mom that's portrayed in Legend and I think Underworld is a perfect continuation of that story. And I don't think Lara's voice actress for Legend was that soft, let's not forget Legend's ending cinematic.

[@lonestar6709]

Here's mine.... 1: Tomb Raider/Anniversary. _One of the most important video games ever made. A legend is born._ 2: Tomb Raider Legend. _Core Design had condemned Lara Croft to Hell. Legend was a phoenix from the ashes._ 3: Shadow of the Tomb Raider. _Go boil your bottoms, haters. I disagree wholesale, with this vitriol towards SOTT. Great tombs and the most badass Lara Croft in years. One with the jungle._ 4: Tomb Raider 3. _Great world-hopping adventure. Ease up on the difficulty though._ 5: Rise of the Tomb Raider. _Love the snowy setting. Action packed, with graphics that make Uncharted 4 look like Uncharted 1._ 6: TR Underworld. _Too short, I agree. But Lara is beyond badass in this game. The sexiest, flexiest, classic Lara, that we all want back._ 7: Tomb Raider 2. _Half brilliant. Half awful. Worst enemy placement I've ever seen. Temple of Xian is awesome though. A game of two halves for me._ 8: Tomb Raider Last Revelation. _Great Egypt setting. 3rd act, is beyond awful, though._ 9: TR 2013. _Excellent game. Bad Tomb Raider game. We're supposed to be moving away from those hacks, Naughty Dog, not closer!_ 10: TR Chronicles. _Bah! Could have been great. But rushed out, with no care. The beginning of the end, for Core Design._ 11: TR AOD. _Broken, unfinished, and frustrating. And Lara is impossibly unlikable. For all its glimpses of brilliance, this is an insult to Tomb Raider, and one of the worst AAA releases in history._ There it is.

[@filippetrovic845]

So much better list than this troll made into video.

[@fzfxfcf]

Anniversary and legend the best. Agree

[@nico.delmundo]

I disagree with most of your points, but i respect the passion and love of the series. I gave a liike

[@Daniboy480]

This is a really fair list and I also absolutely love AOD for the same reasons. One part that I completely disagree is the hate against Keeley Hawes. There is something so exciting about her presence. Every single cutscene in the LAU trilogy is amazing because Keeley’s Lara is just mesmerizing. I always found Legend Lara to be the best depiction of the character, despite the game’s flaws. It bothered me that her character got progressively worse with anniversary and underworld. Keeley Hawes sounds so damn mature and eloquent and it just fits Lara beautifully. The WHERE IS MY MOTHER in Legend still gives me chills. Maybe it’s because Legend was my first experience with Lara but that character holds a special place in my heart. Keeley is still my favourite voice actress for Lara.

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

I do get and respect that ☺

[@emersonlee5146]

You are entitled to your tastes and don't let me ruin any of the games for you but the pros and cons of each game that you point out are so nitpicky that some of the things you mentioned I never even noticed in 20 hours of gameplay for each. You criticize Legend for being too dumbed down but put TR 2013 high up on your list even though it has objectively far less depth to its core gameplay compared to Underworld and had the most watered down puzzles of all the TR games. You said the combat controls for 2013 are some of the best you ever experienced. Its got pretty similar feel and controls compared to like 90% of more triple A third person shooters. If that game counts as a great third person shooter then Watch Dogs is an S+ ranked third person shooter lol. I agree that Angel of Darkness is the most underrated title but in the video you don't hold it to the same standard you held the other games and so the list feels like a bunch of hyperbolic statements and double standards. You praise 2013 for great controls but then Angel of Darkness which had universally agreed on poor controls gets a pass? What about all the bugs and unfinished levels? You say Underworld has a bad camera but Angel of Darkness gets a pass? Tomb Raider II gets kudos for being hard and long yet an easy as heck game like Rise is like top 5? Underworld is fundamentally not how to make a TR game? Bruh its literally like a response to critics who said Legends tombs were lacking in challenge and too linear. Underworld had the deepest climbing and acrobatic move set of any TR game up to that point. Its more open tombs and locations were more in line with the design philosophy of the OG TR games though yeah the copy and paste second ship level was trash. Anyways you don't have to agree or see eye to eye with me. I actually don't dislike a single Tomb Raider game but I just really think this ranking lacks a lot of consistency. It's like impossible to tell what your standards are for a good TR game.

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

With a list like this its probably impossible to not contradict yourself along the way. Like a higher entry might have something worse than a lower entry but it's OTHER aspects are good enough to elevate it above

[@AlbumLeViola]

Lmfao I agree with u. This guy acts like he creates the most objective list 💩🙄😂🤣

[@nomiscoopplays7921]

It makes me sad when I think about whag AOD - and it's scrapped sequels - could have been. It had the best story, best atmosphere, best version of Lara and the score was brilliant. It just wasn't finished when it was released and the controls were a bit of a nightmare. I would love a remake of this game with it's story being finished off as originally intended.

[@eldeividof]

Imagine disliking almost EVERY game and then putting fckn AoD on top.

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

I only dislike Last Revelation, Legend, Anniversary, Underworld and Shadow. For the others, just because I pointed out their flaws doesn't mean I dislike them. Infact I even said at a certain point that going forward these are the good ones

[@LittleAngryCarrots]

The tomb raider reboot series is such a weird state of Lara..like…is she aware she’s in a video game and that’s the reason of her attitude or something? lol

[@dalmatianssajak]

I’m not a fan of the new Trilogy. I love the old games though, but I feel these three don’t get enough love: 1. Anniversary 2. Underworld 3. Legend They are, in my opinion, just as good as the first games

[@MarceloZ2]

I wholeheartedly disagree with you on the three pre-reboot Tomb Raider games (Legend, Anniversary and Underworld). While yes, the traversal was indeed streamlined in this games and yes, the color palette is worse than the originals (curse the grey/sepia wave of games of the seventh generation, my god), I think there's *a lot* to like in these three games. The family issues trope is way more well executed in Legend and Underworld than in both the Angelina movies and the Reboot games, I think this was an established fact, and while not as complex to explore as the earlier Core Design games, the scenery of those three games, especially Legend, were pretty damn creative and varied. One of my favorite levels in te entire franchise is Nepal, in the end third of Legend. It's so beautiful, when you get out of the ice mountain and see the temple in the distance, and then you have to make your way to it, it's very cool. And while I understand why people don't like Alistair and especially Zip, I quite enjoy them to fill the quietness of the levels (although Zip can get a bit annoying with his overreactions to the action sequences), so much so that I missed them in Anniversary and the complete silence in some levels was a bit boring. All in all, I think they're pretty good games, and while not *the best* of the franchise, I woukd rank them pretty high up there, especially Legend, which is arguably the better of the three.

[@SDjilliaRE]

I really liked Legend, despite agreeing that it's very cartoony. I honestly found that aspect a lot of fun. But that quality was lost going into Anniversary and Underworld imo. It felt like both games greatly detracted from where Legend was headed. I think fighting Core for Anniversary was a right move commercially, but a terrible move for the games themselves.

[@MarceloZ2]

@@SDjilliaRE I'm replaying the three right now, finished Legend and I'm in Anniversary right now, and I kinda disagree. I think Anniversary does a good job of tying the OG in this timeline (albeit with some absences) and Underworld... It's more complicated, because conclusions are very easy to fumble, and Underworld did fumble in some aspects, but I am in the team that thinks that Underworld has more good things going for it than bad things. That all being said, I just wish that Anniversary had a little more connection with Legend. Maybe a new Bolivia stage, that they would write to somehow fit in the first game plot, that gave us more context on what Lara and Amanda were doing there, and maybe changing POV from Lara to Amanda for us to see in more detail what is only implied in Legend: that the artifact she collected that day corrupted her and made her believe that Lara betrayed her. I don't know, I'm no game developer, and I'm just rambling at this point.

[@SDjilliaRE]

@@MarceloZ2 That might've helped. It just felt like Anniversary overtook the Legend plot when it came to Underworld and the merger of the two was really unsatisfying imo.

[@happyandblessed5640]

Tomb Raider Two was my favourite. My Dad loved it too. I'm glad it's high on the list. Being chased by the Mafia was exciting, and you never knew what was going to happen next. Blowing up the building was cool too. Great game! Great research, Subscribed.

[@dust2k13]

The story of "Shadow of the Tomb Raider" was a real letdown to me as well. On one hand it was full of daddy issues but at the same time it didn't really deliver anything that would help Laras development. The whole Paititi-thing as a reason why Richard Croft was killed felt rushed and undeliberated. And having Lara running into the Trinity cult leader just by accident (as far as I recall) was just kinda weird. Also I feel like the writers definietly played down the importance of Trinity in this one. The story was just really weird ...

[@Bricks56]

The lady in Shadow of TR is not Lara Croft

[@mimakirigoe1668]

okay but actually whats the point and click game at 5:02 , im genuinely interested and want to know more lmaoo

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

Broken Sword: Smoking Mirror - Sequel to Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars :)

[@mimakirigoe1668]

@@SethMcKenzieTV thank you !!

[@strawberrysoda4395]

You chewed Shadow Of The Tomb Raider so hard i was like yesssss drag ittttt

[@tacticaljunk1608]

Halfway through I was like "I guess he forgot Angel of Darkness." Boy imagine my surprise.

[@Leonard_Wolf_2056]

AOD as number one? Really? It's an unfinished, janky buggy mess which caused the death of tomb raider. It caused Eidos to take the control from core and give it to crystal. And the only "good" things are either broken or in concept. The soundtrack is good but it can't carry a game. The story feels rushed and unfinished and a story can't carry a game. The most important things in tomb raider are the level design and Lara's movement control. Levels are ehh and controls are wonky and unresponsive. I know this is all your opinion as opposed to trying to rank them objectively but... Still.

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

Why do you have AoD Lara as your profile pic if you dislike AoD so much? lol

[@lonestar6709]

@@SethMcKenzieTV I must say, I agree. Strange thumbnail to have.

[@Leonard_Wolf_2056]

@@SethMcKenzieTV because she is the hottest in AoD. Her being hottest there does not quality aod as being the best tomb raider game.

[@Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm63]

Are you 10 years old..? “She’s the hottest in AOD” 💀

[@ghostdogss]

Tomb Raider was dead before they released AoD, especially considering how rushed Chronicles and AoD were. Eidos already made up their mind after TR4 and no matter how completed AoD would've been they still would've chosen a different route that would make them more money rather than focus on the artistic side of if all.

[@kikayei]

Tomb Raider 1 will always have a special place in my gaming heart. The musical score was especially memorable and fitted well with the game. Ha, the first time I encountered the T-Rex, I immediately turned around and cried out “RUN AWAY, RUN AWAY”. I wish they gave us the option to use the original music in TR: Anniversary like Capcom did with Resident Evil 2 Remake.

[@urbanmusiq]

Though your ranking of games is drastically different from mine, I absolutely love your content! It made mention of almost everything I love and hate about each TR game! Gave me some good nostalgia! 🤩Keep up the awesome work! 💪🏽😎

[@0oRich0o]

Lara's accent in Shadow of the Tomb Raider was so bad. I kept picturing a Californian who moved to Surrey and picked a bit of the accent up.

[@Thagomizer]

I love AOD. It's so underrated. It's also really hard for me to rank, though, since it is simultaneously the best and worst Tomb Raider game in so many ways.

[@stafdhaese]

Shadow was indeed the worst of the new series

[@jamesb8757]

Nah

[@austinv4923]

@@jamesb8757 Yeah. Shadow had nothing on Rise or the Reboot

[@shoogamoogaman]

Was genuinely confused as to whether I was watching a tomb raider ranking video at first because the first 1/4 of the video is just shitting on Shadow 😂

[@MR04B]

11:59 have you ever seen a cutscene of Tomb Raider I ?

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

I get you but she did harden in subsequent games XD

[@soph8426]

now though i get why you might not like shadow otbr but the fact you didn’t like how lara doesn’t go quick on the traverse climbing or wall or rock climbing is a bit stupid. lara is strong yes but she is a human so her doing flips and and these big cool tricks but all of that is a bit unrealistic … it’s 100% more realistic and i’d prefer lara taking it slow when rock climbing because your now going to be super speedy.

[@ps4games164]

Legend is the best. Awesome graphics for its time, Lara is much more herself, awesome soundtrack, lots of action, nice level design and awesome atmosphere. The main problem of the next TRs is the lack of Lara herself and the existence of Jonah and others who are put there just to ruin the games. AOD is the worst. No tombs. The controls and animations are horribly outdated, silent levels and the game suffering from severe bugs. At least Lara's face is the best ever made.

[@mrmohamedramadan6]

I loved all three remake games. I feel like Tomb Raider 2013 got unjust treatment in your review. It was great. Rise of the Tomb Raider was a bit better, but 2013's story is the best out of the three. Shadow had a story I didn't care that much for, but was okay. All three are worth playing and owning.

[@BL-mf3jp]

I love your profile picture. Mario 64's final boss is such a gorgeous arena.

[@mrmohamedramadan6]

@@BL-mf3jp It is actually a screenshot of me playing N64 on a custom firmware PSP when I was younger.

[@BL-mf3jp]

@@mrmohamedramadan6 oh, cool!

[@emilykeepsmiling9465]

I totally agree with you. TR 2013 was an amazing story and was really believable, that this is how she starts to become The Tomb Raider. Rise was incredible and improved pretty much everything from TR. Maybe a little too much forced walking when playing through the story, but the story itself was so good it distracted from that pretty well. Sigh. And then there's Shadow. I thought the story was awful and completely confusing. It made me actively dislike Lara. Worth playing, but I waited quite a while after its release until the price came down and I'm so glad I did.

[@VisionEffectable]

It's incredible how many people don't know what it means "personal opinion". BTW great way to see the Tomb Raider series. I'm playing the chapters that i miss during the release era and 'm really enjoying all of them.

[@midnightwolf6926]

Contradicting your own list: 1. TRIII: simply because of the puzzles, traps, level designs, and work that players need to make to set them up to succeed. First of it’s kind of gameplay to choose own level design. Played it in late 90s and retracted in late tweens. 2. TRII: Fight to Survive gameplay. First time to use vehicles in game. Level designs were fun. 3. TRI: The path that laid it all out. The prodigious game. Puzzles were amazing and difficult. Enemies were a jump scare and none of the nonsense check points except for save crystals. Players had to choose wisely how to complete levels. Art work were well developed. 4. TROAD: Game was shaky at best. It had Ana amazing storyline that I Wished Crystal Dynamics set up for a sequel! At best it was a fun game for the challenges and puzzles. At worse, the way how Lara easily died to the low interest of interacting with NPCs. To the Last surprise on Game. Camera angles def. Sucked!!! It would fare far less in superiority only if Square Equinox didn’t Suck so badly at d eloping TR F- games! 5. TRLRV: OMFG!!! Angles were a complete challenge!!! Took me well into a Year once the game released to beat the game. Cheated into beating the game by reading Game Walkthroughs. Made my head hurt!!! Puzzles were a challenge so that redeems itself. Open world game play was decent. Fun ways to Kill Lara and not feel bad about watching her Miss the Mark succeeds in keeping this game in it’s spot. 6. TRC: Worse game in the Classics. Too easily to beat. Lack of depth. Never should’ve returned the infamous NPCs of Pierre & Larson. Enemies weren’t well put together. Boring levels. Cheap Puzzles. Need I say more??? 7. TRL/TRA: Agreeing with the Vid Creator that gameplay was a cheap knock off and most assuredly a child plaything. Puzzles were lacking. Boring characters. In game fighting was a Chore!!! 8. Underworld: At least this game had challenging puzzles but nothing more to add to substance. Enemies from start were a chore. Expected lot more with the Kraken. Storyline was a Borish. 9. Rise of Tomb Raider 10. TR2013/SHADOW OF TR

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

Interesting perspective, thanks for the comment :)

[@kingajugowiec2868]

My ranking is: 12. Tomb Raider 2013 11. Rise of the Tomb Raider 10. Shadow of the Tomb Raider 9. Underworld 8. Angel of Darkness 7. Chronicles 6. The Last Revelation 5. Legend 4. 1 3. Anniversary 2. 2 1. 3

[@notcancelledanymoreraff]

I now just have to defend anniversary. Only to say that it‘s the first Tomb Raider i‘ve ever played is not argument enough, so i have to bring up the best things: 1. The edge shimmieng (i‘m german, i can‘t spell this word properly) is not so annoying and boring, i think it‘s pretty fun and more realistic than TR1 plattforming 2. It has smoother controlls than TR1 and even Legend, the classics controls felt very robotic and not human, it really felt like you‘re not in the real world and it was constantly breaking the 4th wall with it. Also the classic controls sucked. I‘m sorry if i will recive hate mail from 30 year old ppl, but i‘m just telling the truth. But Anniversary felt like you have more control over Lara and it felt more realistic and also i felt more connected to Lara with it 3. The T-Rex introduction was not that bad, sure the T-Rex jumpscare was pretty funny but c‘mon, a quick time event isn‘t that bad 4. The redesigning was very lovely, ntgl. Of course it didn‘t feel like the original did, but it perfectly transfered the old leveldesigning into the modern generation. But the colors of the level suck, i have to agree, they could‘ve brought more colors So yeah, that was all i have to say (this was the longest comment i‘ve ever wrote yay🥳). Thank you for reading and have fun bullying me in the reply section.

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

I'm not gonna bully for you having an opinion, that's fair enough, I just disagree :)

[@xavevoncroy]

To me, it's really impossible to rank the games from the classic era. What I love about them is that it had a diversity of experiences. TR3 and TR4 for example are so good in their own way, each one being the opposite of the other. TR3 is an action-packed globe-trotting fun adventure, with a plot that is convenient and useful rather than compelling for itself, and TR4 is a more consistant claustrophobic adventure set only in Egypt, with a deeper and thicker storyline and more character development. Both represent the two different ways of making a Tomb Raider adventure. TR4 is so great and engaging compared to TR3, and TR3 is so refreshing and fun when compared to TR4. In fact, playing the complete series chronologically is an experience better than the sum of its parts: TR1 has a fair balance between adventure and mystery. TR2 moves the cursor more towards "colorful adventure", and TR3 moves it even further. And when you expected the next one to go another step further in that direction (if it was even possible), TR4 does the complete opposite, choosing to go full "atmospheric", and you enjoy this new mature tone even more because of the contrast with the light-hearted tone that came before. And after that, we have the gritty, moody Chronicles that paves to way to Angel of Darkness, which is an unexpected third way of doing a Tomb Raider game, again completely different from what came before: gritty, gothic, Lovecraftian, filled with urbain fantasy horror, and with European folklore replacing the various ethnic cultures (which Chronicle had already started). I just love how the series keep experimenting new tones, and makes sure not to do twice the same thing. I find it more interesting to consider the series as a whole, rather than ranking them as multiple stand-alone products.

[@QueAwkwardNoises]

The shock of seeing Angel of darkness at number one 😱 Definitely my favourite as well, for a lot of the same reasons

[@TheTombPortable]

The Angel of Darkness was the first game where I experienced a bit of emptiness on the inside after finishing it. That alone proves to me how good of a game it actually was when you look past all the clunkiness.

[@dust2k13]

14:43 thank you!!!! Finally I found somebody who agrees with me that the TR1 remake just wasn't good.

[@zerofabio6916]

it was NOT, it was a bad reimagining.

[@migo5205]

I remember the first steps in the cave in TR1, it was magic. Honestly i really love the look of the new Lara. But looking back, i wish she would be as badass as she was before, a stronger personality. In my opinion the new games look really awesome when it comes to graphics and world design. I hope Lara will go more back to the roots but i am afraid she will be even more polished for "modern audience". Thanks for your rating, it was inspiring but showed me some new perspectives.

[@jackadder4014]

I completely disagree with your list mate. But you make some exceptionally good points throughout. So fair play, you've got a new subscriber. Keep the TR content coming. Love it! :)

[@toprak3479]

Happy to hear someone praising Angel of Darkness's GOD TIER score

[@xman777b]

finally a YT gaming channel, who actually thinks for himself (instead of subscribing to group think/collectivism). Refreshing. Also, thanks for putting AOD on my radar

[@xknightreaper12]

Honestly I can understand why people don't like the remakes like 2013 and newer games but personally that's some of the most fun I've ever had in the entire series rise of the tomb Raider is one of my favorite video games ever and I will say AoD is VERY underrated it does have tons and tons of problems BUT the story is what kept me coming back the controls were absolutely abysmal but if they remake the game or something I will have no problem with playing it again but overall this was a fantastic list I disagree with a few placements but overall I really enjoyed this video and you earned a new subscriber

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

Thanks dude 😁

[@xknightreaper12]

@@SethMcKenzieTV no problem bro!

[@wrestling46nerd]

Each to their own , I would put TR2 as number 1 because imo that's the game that truly got me into the series, I love the original but the second I had so much fun with and had so many locations that I loved.

[@rawbin4301]

I understand all of your reasoning, but putting AoD as first in such an otherwise well-reasoned video is straight up trolling 😁. Following your own arguments, you can't put a game 1st just based on potential. And I personally disagree with Anniversary, it's such a great game and expansion on TR1

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

I didn't put it as #1 for it's potential, I love the game in it's current form tbh Anniversary is a scaled down contraction of TR1

[@ilovelctr]

@@SethMcKenzieTV I guess ironically my favourites would be TR1 and TRA. While I agree TRA is generally a contraction of TR1, but some of the redesigns are stunning. I particularly like St. Francis' Folly and all the Egyptian levels, and Croft Manor is a huge improvement over that in Legend, which is laughably the only entertaining level in Legend for me.

[@Tzeeensh]

Angel of Darkness wasn't "divisive", it simply was bad. It's the equivalent of DMC2 for the series. Ugly and edgy.

[@thebeardofpepe]

The latest generation tomb raiders are just plain boring. Perfect case of Style over substance. I literally never felt a single ounce of fear or risk whatsoever. The entire game is easy af and nearly a cruise control experience.

[@rbguerreiro2466]

They are very basic, boring games. You shoot waves of enemies with a cover system, you follow it up with basic "platforming" where your path is highlighted by white ledges and she autograbs everything, and then on to more shooting waves of enemies. Ah yes, and you level up something, because now that's mandatory in all AAA games.

[@Thrillseeker8922]

Sorry, but Angel of Darkness is dogshit. How can you put it at number one ahead of the classics? It's almost insulting. The controls are a nightmare, the levels are half finished, the story is full of plot holes and loose ends. It's a catastrophe of a video game.

[@Synthia17]

Would never put AoD at the top but also strongly disagree with universal hate for it, this game was just unfinished and it saddens me to this day cause at the time it was the most unique take on the series and I still remember using a program called pizza to noclip through walls and explore the cut content that's still in the game. Truly wasted potential that one. I did also enjoy anniversary a lot as well, the most out of that trilogy because I found it actually pretty faithful to the original which is quite rare to see. Usually you get reboots and not remakes, though I do agree with those games being the "tomb raider light" of the series. TR2 will always have a special place for me out of all, it was my first tomb raider game and I will cherish that even though it was, at the time, a horror show for the kid me :)

[@doomraven0]

Angel of Darkness is the only answer for worst game. It is legitimately broken which trumps boring or annoying any day. Saying it is number one is a stupid hot take akin to saying The Godfather part 3 is the best of the trilogy. Angel of Darkness had great potential but it is a terrible game with wretched controls. The game doesn't work.

[@militariacollectablesbelgium]

Why is it nr1 on the list? Serious? This dude is crazy man. Top 5: 1: tomb raider 2 2: tomb raider the last revelation 3: tomb raider 1 4: tomb raider 3 5: tomb raider chronicles Last: angel of darkness ps2

[@ian10064]

For me it’s all about TR1, such atmosphere and it wasn’t living up to any reputation. The greatest horror platformer of the mid/late 90’s for sure! 🤪😅

[@nawakcompany4689]

1. Tomb Raider 3 2. Tomb Raider 4 3. Tomb Raider 2 4. Tomb Raider 1 5. Tomb Raider Angel Of Darkness 6. Tomb Raider Legend 7. Shadow of the Tomb Raider 8. Tomb Raider Reboot 9. Tomb Raider 5 10. Rise of the Tomb Raider ( But best coop online game ) 11. Tomb Raider Anniversary 12. Tomb Raider Underworld

[@retroblasting]

I'll always salute a brave opinion, honestly conveyed. For me personally, as a lifelong TR fan since 1996, and someone who loves the story as the #1 element of any game, I'd say that from best to worst, it would be TR1, TRA, TR2, TR_2013, ROTR, TR4:LR, TR:AOD, TR:C, TR:L, TR:U, TR3, SOTR. Admittedly, very little can top the search for Atlantis for some reason in my mind, with the TR2 plot being such a "Temple of Doom" style perfect follow up. That said, I really enjoyed the 2013 reboot game from a suspense perspective, though I agree it doesn't feel much like a Tomb Raider game, that's a fact. And there's no arguing that Angel has the very best score. It's on constant rotation in my playlist.

[@Halbmond]

I chuckled when you criticized the hammy acting and cliche dialog of TR (2013). That’s been true for every TR ever. Remember skateboard dude in TR1????

[@randomguy3034]

TL/DR I like TR games... TR: I really liked the first one. The first half was kind of boring but the later levels were quite fun. I liked almost every level (even bloody body part walls atlantis). It had a good ost as well. The first time I played it went well. I didnt die once and I never looked anything up. It was a nice experience.......7/10 TR2: This game improved on storytelling, arsenal, level design, and arguably the ost. The first level was rough for new players and the maria doria had....questionable design. Still, it was (imo) a nice step up to TR1..............8/10 TR3: They certainly stepped up the graphics, locations, open maps, and weapon choices. Oddly enough this game has some PHENOMENAL level design but it also has some of the worst designs in the entire series. Area 51 and the london levels are among my favorite...though many people seem to hate London because of the train station. Honestly? Nevada and London were not hard. Sorry, they weren't...not even a little. Antarctica on the other hand? Jesus wept....8/10 TRLR: Im sorry....I wanted to like this game. I really did. I get that the team was burnt out though. The new graphic engine was nice, the atmosphere was spot on, and the level design (mostly) was really good. But the game was so....damn....boring. over 30 levels of meh and maybe 3 of them were really good. Im too biased on this one. 4/10 Chronicles....cool in concept but short, buggy, corrupted, lazy, there are several game breaking bugs in this abnormally short cash grab. They didnt even bother looking at previous titles to remember Larson and French Du Baggett were both dead...In their defense, core was freaking tired of making TR. I did like the Teen Lara levels........3/10 AOD.....The Louve was the only good part of this game. Again, cool concept.....terrible game. 3/10 Legend: My bias is showing because I loved it. She acted up at times, her inventory was destroyed, she was characterized finally, AI were kinda meh, forced driving sequences, QTE....fuck off 2005 games. Still, I loved collecting stuff, the gameplay, shootouts, Laras one liners "I simplified your payroll", and doing speed runs. I liked the OST too. 7/10 Anniversary: Legend but with better controls (manual mode). It had fewer collections, fewer outfits (yes I liked collecting them), some levels were redesigned quite well while others were neutered beyond recognition. The inventory was nostalgic. The boss fights were bad, though Kold being killed by sk8er boy made sense if you know their lore....I loved the OST though. The original is just better.........6.5/10 Underworld: They did some TR3 stuff. Some levels like New Mexico and Coastal were incredible in design but other levels were just horrible and the game as a whole was too short (even with DLC). My gameplay experience wasnt bad though they sped up some animations. Id say Lara is....spastic at times. I actually didn't mind the story of this series. Had the levels been longer and more fluid with more weapon choices, levels and design choices....I would have absolutely loved this game........6.5/10 TR 2013.......meh 5/10. 100 million dollar cutscene..... Rise: You know what? I actually really liked rise. Maybe Im just a hater of the 2013 game but for some reason I just really liked Rise. There were plenty of collections, areas to explore, the graphics were good, the fighting sequences and movement were nice.... Maybe I really am biased or just a hater of new stuff but I overall really liked Rise 8/10 Shadow: Yup....I keep my copy in the shadows of my closet. Where it belongs......?/%)(^

[@Swayeee]

I assumed this was an April's fools day video when you put AOD #1. The game is so broken that I couldn't finish it. Kept running in to game-breaking bugs. It had potential but it wasn't even close to being finished.

[@ArkaynAdrian]

I wish Angel of Darkness was given the time and resources to be done right. Not just cause it had everything to be a proper TR game like before but also so it didn't get sold off to the Yanks to then Jolie meets Uncharted bastardise it. I hope the 1-3 remaster does well and we get a finishing of AOD with the 4 and 5 remaster. P.S. I thought 4 was mostly rad - I think cause Egypt, tombs and atmostphere - that and young me wanted to cry at the end.

[@gamernaut8864]

Angel of Darkness at number 1 is awesomely controversial! I've always wanted to play through this one but I think maybe all the critical bashing has made me prejudice towards it. But I've always considered myself an "underdog" gamer, and you have inspired me to revisit this unloved and underrated iteration. Thank you!

[@redknight4805]

From worst to the best: 12. TR 2013 - Because story is crap, reboot Lara is insufferable, tombs are optional and Lara can't even swim. Regenerative health, dumbed down puzzles, teleporting ammo and all the other generic staples of AAA industry. 11. Shadow of Tomb raider - Because it's the same game as TR 2013, but at least Lara can swim this time. 10. Rise of TR - it's still a very flawed game in exactly the same way as the whole reboot trilogy, but the best in terms of gameplay. 9. Angel of Darkness - because of bugs, because I am forced to play as some douche bag with a goatee in a Tomb Raider game and because rpg mechanics prevent free exploration - railroading you to take a very specific path. 8. Chronicles - In terms of gameplay it's right up there with the first 4 games - in some areas even better, but there is no real story. It feels like random levels put together with Winston telling stories about Lara. 7. Revelation - Possibly one of the best TR game in terms of gameplay, but I just can't forgive the devs for making me believe they killed Lara in the end - leaving the story on a cliffhanger for the next few years - only to deliver Angel of Darkness where I am forced to play as some douche bag with a goatee... 6. Legend - Because it's fun, even if very dumbed down in comparison to Core Design TR. 5. Underworld - Because it's like Legend, but with more puzzles. 4. Anniversary - Because it was the most Core Design Lara made by Crystal Dynamics. Even the classic theme was there. 3. TR1 - because of graphics and because you can't do some things you can do in TR2 and TR3. 2. TR2 - Because it was more developed and polished version of TR1 - even if a bit more actiony. 1. TR3 - Some small gripes with that London area you mentioned, but overall it was the pinnacle of the classic Lara.

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

Great comment 😁

[@redknight4805]

@@SethMcKenzieTV Thank you :) We might not share the list, but at least we understand why we feel the way we do about the order. And it's refreshing to see that kind of attitude on the internet.

[@stephenpatoine6858]

I watched all of this for AOD to be first?

[@sleepeasy3343]

Ikr, I thought the same. Also shocked at Chronicles being number 5. That game was also a buggy mess.

[@stefanogarbuglia]

​@@sleepeasy3343the logic was mostly "I must seem edgy and elitist as most as possible"

[@ligiainchains]

best game out of the franchise despite its flaws, solos the whole where is my mommy sexist trilogy and the absolute trash reboot that came in 2013

[@hernanlazzaroni1041]

Mostly disagree. But I like and get your points! Favourite: TOMB RAIDER: LAST REVELATION. First game I ever played on the PS1 and it was sooooo hard and it took me almost two months, I even quit for a while- but the atmosphere of the tombs was so amazing, and I guess the difficulty of it actually made me love it so much. Second favourite: TR2. Angel of darkness could have easily been the BEST. WORST: UNDERWORLD for the PS2.

[@strawberrysoda4395]

Before I start commenting on the ranking itself I just wanna say how it goes beyond me how some fans defends the Crystal Dynamics games like their life depends on it refusing to listen other peoples opinion and just saying “if you wanna play old style tomb raider game just go back and play the old ones” like?? If the new ones exists is because the old ones are there, and for who sticks from the beginning is tiring to see how bad the games are ripped to shreds as the time goes by. This said, I kind of agree with everything you said (I love how you chewed up Shadow and TrAoD is my favorite game too). For Legend actually was one my firsts game so I’m emotionally bond to that but I recognize that is just a watered down tomb raider game, and underworld has its problems but sometimes I like to go back to that too. I hate the last trilogy but Rise of The Tomb Raider gave me good moments too and I replayed that recently (2013 and Shadow already aged terribly and the plot and Lara herself is one of the worst thing the franchise has ever been trough)

[@doemis8573]

Tomb raider 1 was so awful. I played it on pc, when it came out and while the game looked beautiful with glide, the constant trial and error was frustrating as hell. The only thing it achieved, was to artificially prolong the game, just like the old disney console games did. I'm looking at you, aladdin and lion king. To this day, i don't understand, why people are so obsessed with the first game. Then again, i don't understand the obsession with GTA 5 either, so what do i know.

[@AdamDawson3]

TR1 is the hardest of the original trilogy

[@thehound1359]

I finished shadow recently and then started playing Tomb Raider 2013 definite edition again. Its soooo much better than shadow.

[@DarthTingleBinks]

Maybe it's because I'm a newer fan, or maybe it's because I simply value story above all else, but I prefer the versions of Lara from the Crystal Dynamics games. The games themselves do rely too much on the family backstory, but I do think they change it up enough to make it interesting each time. I also just tend to prefer the creator led projects over anything else, so knowing that Lara's creator was heavily involved with the Legend trilogy automatically makes that Lara my favorite.

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

If you value story above anything else then you'll love Angel of Darkness :)

[@DarthTingleBinks]

@@SethMcKenzieTV I have yet to actually finish the game because it and my PS2 were sitting in storage for a while, but it technically was my first ever Tomb Raider game. I've had it since I was very young. Though I was born like a month after it came out, so I've probably had it since maybe 2009 or 2010. I could never really get into it initially because of the controls and because I could never figure out how to save. But a couple years ago I remembered the select button existed. That definitely made things more tolerable, and allowed me to tolerate the many unpolished aspects of the game. But I still have yet to actually complete the game. I plan on completely restarting after the TR1, 2, and 3 Remasters come out. I have those for the original Playstation, which will run on my PS2, but I'm not sure I could grow accustomed to the tank controls, and just hearing about the save crystals makes me sick to my stomach (not literally). Overall, though, from what I have played of it, I do really enjoy the game. But my memory of all the specifics is a bit foggy. I do of course know the entire story, including all the twists, but knowing how a story plays out and experiencing it firsthand are two different things entirely.

[@quentinhirschfeld9382]

@@DarthTingleBinks If you believe story matters more than gameplay and level design, it means you don't like videogames for what they are or should be. The reboot story was extremely bad (honestly took the worst of B movies, especially 2013, although it had a certain charm) and cheesy because (unlike the old ones) didn't had the decency to took himself un-seriously. I'm still fond to that game and would replay it any time, but it wasn't a great TR.

[@DarthTingleBinks]

@@quentinhirschfeld9382 I don't think story matters more, I just personally value story. But that doesn't mean I'll play a game with a great story that runs and plays horribly, because I won't. Every part of a game matters, but the game plays well, I won't be thinking about how well it play, I'll be thinking about how well the story was put together. And level design can be important, but even so, I never think about it at all. Even when it's bad. It never comes to mind, because it's simply not what I care about. But that doesn't mean I think it doesn't matter.

[@Ty-wf6mg]

It’s wild. Everyone has their own take on the tomb raider series. The 2013 has to be my favorite. And shadow was the weakest of the trilogy but still a great tomb raider game.

[@emilianoestevarena5071]

My list: 12.- Chronicles: it feels too disjointed to get hooked in the game in the first place. It would have been better as a series of expansion packs. 11.- Anniversary: they simply ruined the story and Natla's character, alongside half of levels and the fun bits of TR I. 10.- Shadow: It's way too linear, and traversal and exploration are replaced by an excess of tight spaces, plus the story is a cheap copy of The Last Revelation. 9.- TR 2013: I loved the traversal and the open world feel, but it has too much combat. 8.- TR II: It has the best level of the series (floating islands,) but the pacing of the first half is pretty offsetting. Levels feel too repetitive until you get to the monastery. 7.- TR III: It has a lot of gameplay variability, but it falls flat in pacing due to obscure level design. 6.- Legend: This game is fun in all aspects, but it doesn't have an overall great feel. 5.- Rise of the Tomb Raider: It has the best sound of the series, a feeling of exploration that no other game in the series manages, and the best looking tombs as wells. 4.- Last Revelation: I like the overall feel of atonement of the game, but level design sometimes gets too obscure. 3.- Underworld: platforming in Underworld is truly fun, the downside is that the game falls flat after getting Thor's hammer. Plus, they make Natla great again. 2.- AOD: in spite of control performance, it has the best and most complete control scheme of the series, and the highest gameplay variability. 1.- TR 1: perfect level design and combat variability, with the deepest story of all the series.

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

Good list :D

[@Nothing_Israel]

Tomb Raider 3 was the only TR game that I did not finish (though I never played Anniversary due to console limitations during its release) - as I remember it being extremely hard compared to the previous games.

[@twntwn11]

TR3 was my introduktion to the series and when I played TR1 right after Icouldnt believe how easy it was. TR3 is like a bootcamp 😭

[@bepisgrandmaster]

i am very tired of seeing people crap on shadow, actually i found it a surprising return to the tomb raider formula of tomb exploring and loved the way they let us explore the manor as a young lara, i actually also think the music was the best of the reboot

[@Gergo849]

I thought I am the only one whose favorite is Angel of Darkness! Nice!

[@SethMcKenzieTV]

There is secretly quite a lot of us :)

[@IQSim]

@@SethMcKenzieTV AoD has so many flaws but it genuinely has the best story, the most interesting characters and the best soundtrack. It's such a shame that it could never live up to its potential.

[@robpreston712]

Finally! A bit of appreciation for Chronicles! Yes there are many problems but it's creative, unpredictable and not boring.

[@emilykeepsmiling9465]

I'm delighted you started with Shadow at the bottom, I honestly couldn't agree more. The accent is disgraceful and bugged the hell out of me. Did anyone else notice she was saying "mum" (British) but the subtitles said "mom" (American)....I mean wtf?! The traversal was ridiculously slow and all the stupid cut scenes during simple movement (going through gaps etc) was just torturous. And the story...just no. I really disliked the character of Lara and honestly wasn't sure I actually wanted her to win, she was only JUST the lesser of 2 evils. This game honestly broke my heart.

[@ysffffb]

Of course you are emily

[@emilykeepsmiling9465]

@@ysffffb of course I am what? Delighted to get your reply, well yes of course 😁 but other than that I'm afraid you lost me lol

[@reverendmelvin7983]

Man put Angel of Darkness at no.1. Think I pretty much disagreed with every one.

[@ghostdogss]

Hats off to you, only a true Tomb Raider fan would put AoD at the number one spot lol.

[@alicaramba7680]

He was wrong about story though. Its ending in which was revealed Nephilim was behind many characters including Kurtis clearly was made for 'reveal' effect only and it ruined whole story. And those tank controls and horrible animations, c'mon, he pointed out the same things for Shadow. And there are parts which look worse than PS1 games. It had premise, it had style, but you can't judge game only by that. Couldn't finish it without save from internet since it crashed at the same spot a few times. Oh, yeah, it introduced RPG elements and those were a big joke (now I feel stronger). My list would be: 1. TR2, 2. TR 2013, 3. TR Chronicles. Haven't played TR1. Arguably the worst was Underworld, I hated that game from the very first level and didn't finish.

[@sjc7336]

I know this was posted a few years ago but I just wanted to say that I absolutely loved this video! Great explanations of your views and I enjoyed the amount of passion that went into making this. I have always had similar thoughts about the LAU trilogoy and calling it Tomb Raider light for kids made me laugh along with many other moments of your delivery 🤣 Also glad to see the AoD love and appreciation of its musical score. 🎵

[@andremedeiros2181]

Let's go angel of darkness ❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥❤️‍🔥

[@Truewooper]

Glad to know I am not the only one who loves that game.

[@ligiainchains]

@@Truewooperthe best despite its flaws

[@Truewooper]

@@ligiainchains True I was recently looking into some mods that are supposed to clean up the game. No idea if they work though.

[@zoranvelic7228]

So glad for AOD appreciation! Atmosphere, music, story, level design- all top notch! The last revelation is one I adore..up until Cairo (when puzzles get too obscure, not unlike Tr3, to be fair), I think it' s the best TR offers in sense of diversity of puzzles, complexity of level design, beautiful visuals, and being set in Egypt with many supernatural things going on - makes for perfect TR setting. LAU trilogy was..ok, but the magic was gone. Like a fast food version of Lara. Reboot trilogy has nothing to do with TR, minus the name and surname of the main protagonist. Good games, but AWFUL Tomb Raiders. At least we have a new remastered games coming! Core design, we miss u ❤