There's a fairly easy test here: When playing Tomb Raider 2013, did you think "This is fun but man I hate these obnoxious QTEs and wish there were more/better puzzle tombs"? If yes, you should buy Rise of the Tomb Raider. When playing TR2013, did you think "This was the worst decision I made since I tried to lick that opossum"? If so, don't buy Rise. If you never played TR2013, go buy that instead -- it gets down to like $5 these days on sales.

Rise of the Tomb Raider is an improved take on the 2013 game. As noted, the QTEs that plagued the first hours of TR2013 are gone, the pacing moves better and there's the usual improvements in tricks of the trade. The story is nothing special: Lara has found a lead on an artifact her father ruined his life and career trying to find and so now she plans to redeem his legacy by acquiring the Divine Source. The game is set mainly in Siberia with you traversing numerous forests, caves, lost settlements and abandoned Soviet installations under varying degrees of snow and ice. For the most part, game play is straight forward and you likely won't get stuck on what to do next for long; objects you can interact with are either splashed with white paint or glow when you use your Tomb Raider Spider-sense. Puzzles are better than in TR2013 but still nothing difficult -- I completed all with minimal issue and I'm pretty poor at physics puzzles. Combat in the game usually seems to favor stealth (you'll silently fire your bow a lot) but only in terms of killing enemies. It usually isn't practical or possible to sneak through and you'll be expected to bloody your hands often.

As a rollicking and action-filled archeological adventure, Rise of the Tomb Raider was a fun time. If you're hoping for real puzzlers and mind twisters, you'll likely be disappointed. Nothing about the game demands that you play it right now but (assuming you liked TR2013) you'll likely enjoy it when you get to it.

There's a fairly easy test here: When playing Tomb Raider 2013, did you think "This is fun but man I hate these obnoxious QTEs and wish there were more/better puzzle tombs"? If yes, you should buy Rise of the Tomb Raider. When playing TR2013, did you think "This was the worst decision I made since I tried to lick that opossum"? If so, don't buy Rise. If you never played TR2013, go buy that instead -- it gets down to like $5 these days on sales. Rise of the Tomb Raider is an improved take on the 2013 game. As noted, the QTEs that plagued the first hours of TR2013 are gone, the pacing moves better and there's the usual improvements in tricks of the trade. The story is nothing special: Lara has found a lead on an artifact her father ruined his life and career trying to find and so now she plans to redeem his legacy by acquiring the Divine Source. The game is set mainly in Siberia with you traversing numerous forests, caves, lost settlements and abandoned Soviet installations under varying degrees of snow and ice. For the most part, game play is straight forward and you likely won't get stuck on what to do next for long; objects you can interact with are either splashed with white paint or glow when you use your Tomb Raider Spider-sense. Puzzles are better than in TR2013 but still nothing difficult -- I completed all with minimal issue and I'm pretty poor at physics puzzles. Combat in the game usually seems to favor stealth (you'll silently fire your bow a lot) but only in terms of killing enemies. It usually isn't practical or possible to sneak through and you'll be expected to bloody your hands often. As a rollicking and action-filled archeological adventure, Rise of the Tomb Raider was a fun time. If you're hoping for real puzzlers and mind twisters, you'll likely be disappointed. Nothing about the game demands that you play it right now but (assuming you liked TR2013) you'll likely enjoy it when you get to it.