10 Critically-Acclaimed 2013 Video Games (With Major Gameplay Flaws)

8. Unnecessary Padding - Tomb Raider

The reboot of the Tomb Raider franchise came as a bit of a surprise. Sure, it looked nice, but naysayers and skeptics had their doubts at the ready, prepared for a disaster. Lara Croft came back with a bang though, as Tomb Raider proved to be one of the most brutally satisfying games of 2013, scoring many game of the year nominations. A third person shooter scheme similar to the Uncharted franchise she inspired seemed to suit Lara, and this origin story showed us a new side of her, one we had been missing all these years. It is becoming more and more important for AAA games to offer some sort of longevity to justify their price tags and to keep us playing, and for this reason Tomb Raider's gameplay stumbles. There are a plethora of things to do on the island of Yamatai, but they are not as useful as you might think. There are quotas of salvage to collect, lamps to light, GPS caches, and more. It's not so much that these lack importance, there is just no real reason to really go out of your way for them. So unless you are a completionist, this padding for the game will seem a tad unnecessary. Another seemingly useless addition is hunting: Lara is seen hunting deer towards the beginning of the game, an action she performs in a bid for food. Although hunting remains a performable task throughout the game, once again there is no real reason to do it. The story would have you think that Lara needs food to survive, but you no longer need to hunt for her after this scene. This wouldn't be a big deal if the game didn't actively make an argument for its own dissonance by adding an element that brings attention to it.