Tomb Raider: Underworld was the last time we got to see what most people call Classic Lara, although technically this isn't the Classic timeline. It's the final game of the soft reboot that started with Legend in 2006. But this was also, at the time, the oldest Lara we'd ever seen. This was the furthest point we'd reached chronologically in Lara's life, the most advanced version of her we'd ever gotten to experience, and that made Underworld feel like such an important chapter in her story.
Coming from Legend, Underworld feels like such a shift in tone.
Legend was so action movie-ish. It was spectacular, loud and flashy. It felt like a big show announcing, "Lara is back." Everything was about showing off what Lara could do and making her feel larger than life.
Underworld feels much darker.
You can see it immediately in the presentation. You open the menu and you're greeted by this dark image of Croft Manor. Even the blue backgrounds and drawings in the menus have this almost Angel of Darkness quality to them. Angel of Darkness had such a depressed, moody and almost emo atmosphere compared to the games before it, and Underworld brings some of that feeling back in its own way.
The entire game is much more interested in isolation and silence. That feeling of being alone in these huge environments, with nothing but Lara and the world around her, is such an important part of Tomb Raider, and Underworld really leans into it. Legend had plenty of exploration and isolation too, but it also had a lot of life and energy around Lara. Underworld feels much more serious and solitary, and that gives it a very distinct identity.
And Lara's personal story is at the center of it.
After Legend, she desperately needed to find out what happened to her mother, and Underworld finally gives her those answers. But getting those answers comes at a cost, and you can feel how heavily everything weighs on her throughout the game. It's palpable. Lara remains incredibly confident and capable, but there is clearly something much more personal driving her forward.
The return of Natla was also such a great surprise.
After seeing her return in Anniversary and getting that new attitude and characterization, bringing her back for Underworld was incredibly welcome. She's such a great villain, and seeing her work together with Amanda, who we already knew from Legend, was something I really didn't expect. That whole combination makes for such an interesting dynamic.
And then there's the Doppelgänger.
She's back, but so much more developed this time. She's literally Lara's own flesh and blood clone, created by Natla, and she's somehow even more capable than Lara in some ways. I love her design so much, especially that beautiful red braid that gives her this strange combination of classic Lara and the modern Lara of this trilogy.
Looking back at it now, I can't help but wonder if that idea of Lara confronting a version of herself is something we're going to see reflected in Catalyst too.
The game is unfortunately a little infamous for being buggy and slightly clunky, but honestly, I don't think it's nearly as bad as people sometimes make it sound. It's absolutely playable, and I've never found the issues to be enough to ruin the experience for me. You can definitely tell, though, that this game needed more time in the oven.
The developers have talked about how difficult it was to get the game made with the amount of time they had, and you can feel that in certain areas. After Legend's success, it almost feels like the mentality was just, "Let's keep making Tomb Raider games, Lara is back, let's go." The ambition was clearly there, but the time wasn't always there to polish everything.
You can especially see that when you compare the main game to Lara's Shadow. The XBOX DLC had more time to refine Lara's movement and mechanics, and playing as the Doppelgänger with those improved mechanics makes the difference really obvious. Her movement feels so much more precise and refined.
But even with those shortcomings, Underworld is still such a great Tomb Raider game.
Lara herself possibly looks better here than she ever has. The outfits are insane. She looks like a god. She's incredibly strong, confident and completely sure of herself, but she still feels human. I think they struck a really beautiful balance with her character here.
And visually, the game is stunning.
The scenery feels darker, grungier, harsher and more realistic than Legend. Everything feels less forgiving. The environments are absolutely beautiful, the character models still look great, and Lara's face is gorgeous. The motion capture gives her movements such a beautiful physicality. Her acrobatics, climbing and animations all look fantastic.
There is so much beauty in this game.
I just wish it had had another year in the oven. I genuinely think more development time could have made a huge difference. There are so many ideas here that deserved even more polish, and the game occasionally feels like it's being held back by how quickly it had to be made.
But as it is, I still love coming back to it.
Underworld feels like a darker, more serious and more mature evolution of the Legend era. It has that classic Tomb Raider feeling of isolation, silence and exploration, while continuing the story that started in Legend and Anniversary.
And what's especially exciting now is that this is no longer the end of the road for this version of Lara. Tomb Raider: Catalyst is confirmed to continue from the Underworld timeline, and the Dark Horse comics have already given us a bridge between the games. Seeing Lara after Underworld, including her rebuilding Croft Manor, made that continuation feel even more real. The comics were such a good way of filling in that gap and showing us what happened to Lara between these chapters.
So now, after all these years, we're finally going forward with this version of Lara again.
I genuinely cannot wait to see what they do with her.
I just hope Catalyst blows me away.
Classic game. Classic Lara. I love coming back to this one.
