Rise of the Tomb Raider is nearly upon us, and it's given off just enough hints of greatness to warrant excitement. From my hands-on time with it back at EGX 2015, I was happy to see it bring back some of that tough, semi-scrutable puzzle-solving of Tomb Raider, and the demo was full of cinematic gameplay moments (in which you could actually die) while not being flooded cheap quick-time events. The game will follow a young Lara Croft's continued growth into the legendary ass-kicking Tomb Raider she grows to become later in life (in the earlier games). With her latest outing due November 10th, 2015, what better time to reflect on all of Lara's adventures and misadventures up to this point in the series' long and volatile life? The history of Tomb Raider has been checkered, offering us some excellent refinements of the puzzles and challenges that made earlier games so great, but also taking Lara to strange and dreary places that are best left forgotten. Yet all throughout, the games have been consistent in delivering us bizarre supernatural plots and wonderfully problematic depictions of femininity that continue to divide people to this day. And for that, we love her. Here are all of Lara Croft's major outings (excluding the forgettable handheld and mobile releases), ranked from worst to best. Where will Rise of the Tomb Raider slot in? We have just over a week to find out...
Gamer, Researcher of strange things.
I'm a writer-editor hybrid whose writings on video games, technology and movies can be found across the internet. I've even ventured into the realm of current affairs on occasion but, unable to face reality, have retreated into expatiating on things on screens instead.
