Tomb Raider: Legend

As loved as they are, I can safely say I genuinely hate the original three Tomb Raider games (sorry!); I played the remastered versions and completed 1, 2 and most of 3 before I couldn't take a single second more of Lara rolling dice after each input on whether she'll actually listen or not, that and the kayak nearly put me in a coma from rage!

That said, somehow, I adore this game! I was not expecting to have so much fun, lol. With the exception of sometimes not grabbing ropes, looking the wrong way when climbing or rarely jumping the wrong way, the controls are a complete breath of fresh air, as almost everything actually works correctly, I think this is the first Tomb Raider game that's fully playable, and actually fun.

Before I start! I had to add the trl.exe file to the "data execution prevention" in the advanced settings on Windows 10 to get it to run, so you might need to as well!

The levels are tight, fluid and nicely designed visually. You'll do a lot of platforming of course, which, again, is responsive. The platforming was interesting and satisfying, without having to worry about whether Lara would listen to your inputs or not, I was really able to embrace and enjoy exploring for the first time in this series so far. Some of the locations had me smiling as I was looking around due to the design.

There's a lot of secrets hidden around, so usually if you can see somewhere off the path that's accessible, it's worth a look! The secrets (called rewards here) control most of the unlockables such as costumes, extras and also a few upgrades. If you miss any rewards, you can replay the levels later, and can save your progress as soon as you find the ones you need instead of having to complete the level to keep the rewards, it's really accessible in that respect; great replay value. There are one or two secrets that I can admit I never would have found on my own if I'd live to 200, but you'll be able to find most of them if you're careful.

You have more combat here too, quite basic but harmless, very 2006 of course. There's various guns to find and most are useful and combat is entertaining, you do have a few tricks you can do but I didn't really use them. I did have some smaller issues here, there's a few leopards in the game which are just annoying and take too much damage, but they're very rare, and the lock-on function was supposed to work with an input, but it just did it automatically, and the input was unresponsive, it didn't affect the game.

With the exception of one, all the boss fights were engaging to play and figure out!

Puzzles are here and well designed; you have smaller platforming puzzles and your larger, set piece puzzles. A couple were very tricky but I was ultimately able to do all but one of them without a guide (the England level's ending, which ironically is my favourite level).

Finally, you have some vehicle sections, but they're mostly on-rails; you get to control the speed, your weapon, the horizontal position and it works; the music kicked ass too!

The storyline is pretty typical but also interesting, it tied in nicely to the level design and structure as it progresses, what helps is you have your friends and colleagues Zip and Alister on the radio along with you almost the entire way, and I really enjoyed the chemistry they had, a credit to the writing and great voice acting.
I have to say Lara's voice is just beautiful! I adore the way the voice actress (Keeley Hawes) delivers Lara's lines; all of Lara's previous actresses were great too, but I think this version is my favourite; never less than charming or a joy to listen to. At the end of the final boss fight, she absolutely kills that delivery; so badass! The one thing the original trilogy did right was Lara's character and that's carried on here, she's an icon for a reason!

A few downsides here however, perhaps it was too short; it took me 26h to complete the game 100%, so that's going back to get all of the collectables and completing the time trials for each level (I don't even usually 100% games but I was having too much fun). The levels being as streamlined as they are, do lend themselves well to the time trails, but again she does sometimes not grab the ropes which can piss you off, but this is such an improvement from before.

There are errors; like I said I had to add the trl.exe file to "data execution prevention" in the advanced system settings on Windows 10 to get it to run at all! Once I had done that I had no issues with the performance however.
Graphically there are a fair few errors too; I experienced some of the faces having a cracking effect. There's also a "Next Generation Content" option which is glitchy, apparently on the Kazakhstan level it can cause crashing so I turned it off. This option also makes it really hard to see underwater, lol.

Oh, and there's a couple of unlockable costumes that you can't actually use in the levels, only around Croft Manor, which makes them pretty useless and not actually unlocked! It would have been funny to use on certain levels and cutscenes! Otherwise there are some fantastic costumes, and some others you'll ask yourself why anybody would want that.

Overall, I just can't really fault the game much at all; I really enjoyed it. It's issues are small and it's the Tomb Raider game I always wanted, it's entertaining, comforting, slick, challenging in the right way, a fun vibe all the way through, I was not expecting it but I really do recommend it!

8/10

I remember playing this back on console when it first came out and I believe it was enjoyable for that time. I decided to pick it up on PC after replaying the classics (now all remastered) and I'm glad it was on sale for 97 cents cause damn.. This game is jank. Kept crashing in Kazakhstan. I finally found out why via Google search. Up to Kazakhstan, Next Gen stops working for some reason so you have to turn it off. Any of the mounted guns or energy ray things have extremely high sensitivity movement making them insanely frustrating to use. I finally had to change the joystick to mouse movement and turn the sensitivity down just to beat the boss is Kazakhstan. I made it to England (level 6, I think) and as I was heading down a bunch of decaying stair cases, the shaking of the screen was so bad it was clearly glitching. I died numerous times trying everything just to get passed that part. Finally, I did. Thanks to the auto save. I don't know what the deal was with that. Then, as I was getting towards the end of England I just realized I was tired of the jank. The controls are just bad. The jumping is not reliable at all. It's a gamble every single time you go through a platforming section. Eventually, she'll get there. But man if you don't die 20 times getting there first.. Call it operator error but Core Design Tomb Raider games were absolutely killing it with the controls in the originals. If I missed a platforming section or a specific jump, I knew it was because I messed up. Not the game. The grid system made it so you were always comfortable with your movements and jumps.
Now, if you're able to look passed all that and want to try it out anyways. Go for it! 97 cents isn't a bad price for a gamble. Just know, this is a generic shooter starring Lara Croft. Not a true Tomb Raider experience like the originals. I will say tho, Lara has some decent lines in this game. She's witty and can be pretty likable. So, eh. I'd give it like a 5.
Doesnt truly feel like Tomb Raider.
Controls are jank af.
Probably plays better on console.
But, Lara is decently likeable.
The level design is hit and miss. Some levels have tombs, some don't.
I recommend it for like 5 bucks or less.

very good

Played this back on ps3, was very fun. Is still fun with controller.

Solid game although controls are garbage it was fun and quite challenging.

It's a combination of the classic series (i.e. the only true Tomb Raider) with modern graphics and controls. For me, this is the best of all parts, playing TR Legends is always enjoyable.

Janky Fun.

Some levels and puzzles are well designed. You look around the area until the uh-huh moment clicks.

The camera and controller can be frustrating. Dying can equal trying to side jump to a ledge and jumping 1000 feet in a different direction to your death.

First Tomb Raider game I can remember playing and watching. MY Lara Croft. Title speaks for itself. Legend.

Hey the first playable game in this franchise!

If there is a game that saved this series it is definitely this one.

"Do you remember it? I touched it, and it touched me back." - Amanda Evert

happy 19th birthday trl, good game

I know I am like 20 years late on playing this title. However, experiencing the new generation of Tomb Raider titles made me want to try to older titles out since I have only recently become a fan of this franchise since the first title in the new generation. Tomb Raider Legends camera is atrocious. On top of that the motorcycle levels were a big miss. While fun, getting automatically shot by enemies makes these levels almost unplayable on Tomb Raider difficulty; especially the Kazakstan motocycle section. I toughed it out and beat the game but the replay value for collectible hunting is essentially zero for me due to these issues. The game is beautiful, the cutscenes are interesting to watch, the characters are appealing, and the story is fun and engaging; albeit predictable. However, the motorcycle sections and the camera put a huge damper on this title.

game is awesome on steam deck but when I try to enter the last level it crashes, reinstalling did not help

Tomb Raider: Legend

Overall impression

In the not so distant 2010s, my older brother introduced me to the Tomb Raider series of games, and the Legend part became a starting point for me in the series. The process of introduction looked like this: he played, and I watched :).
My attempts at the game, at that time, usually ended very quickly due to a lack of understanding of the English language. But this time, everything was different. And despite the fact that the game was released in the distant 2006, the presence of object physics and detailed parkour mechanics made the game unique for its time. Considering that the first part of Assassin`s Creed was released a year later in 2007.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3452071173

What DID I like?

• Nice parkour mechanics.
  
• Simple puzzles.
  
• Plot with an interesting ending.
  
• QTE events that add variety to the standart gameplay.
  
• A variety of locations for short game. Starting from the ruins of a crypt/temple and ending with city skyscrapers and their halls/rooms.
  
• The ability to replay locations in search of awards and medals to unlock additional content.
  

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3454531044

What I DIDN'T like?

• New Generation Content - because of which the game will crash during loading. I advise you never to enable it.
  
• The aimed shooting mode on the spot has a bigger spread of bullets than the target lock mode while actively moving in any direction.
  
[*] Lara Croft, according to this part, is a super soldier who is able to simply destroy hordes of enemies to achieve her goal. Okay, if the game mainly focused on puzzles, and only in some moments there would be such action, but no.

Conclusion

Tomb Raider: Legend, despite the cartoonish graphics and old release date, is an interesting representative of the arcade genre of games. While playing the game at an average level of difficulty, I only encountered parkour mechanics problems a few times and that's it. In everything else, it was a great and enjoyable experience of playing the game and further getting to know the lore of the character Lara Croft.

Tomb Raider: Legend is a solid entry in the series but doesn't fully live up to its potential. The game introduces smoother controls and a more fluid combat system compared to earlier titles, which is a plus. Lara's character is well-voiced, and the environments are gorgeous, offering a nice variety of locations. However, the level design can feel repetitive at times, and the puzzles, while interesting, don’t offer much of a challenge. The story is pretty standard and doesn't bring anything fresh to the table. Some platforming sections can be frustrating with imprecise jumps. Overall, it's an enjoyable action-adventure, but it doesn't innovate as much as it could.

Great wee game lara croft hubba hubba controls like poo but its fine story is fine that one bike level made me wanna jump out my window with a hdmi tied around my neck

obligée d'alterner entre manette et souris/clavier parce que le jeu n'est adapté ni pour l'un ni pour l'autre mais à part ça c'est cool + je m'attendais pas à faire passer le CACES à Lara Croft

good

if you ignore the random glitchs (her hair stretching out occasionally is my favourite) or the game freezing at certain places or The bad dialogue then this game is 10/10.

Crashes on the menu to desktop. Nope.

good game. just got tired of fighting the camera so i didnt finish it

WHERE. IS. MY. MOTHER.

I got this game because it was one of my favorites from my childhood. It's incredibly buggy and at times, almost unplayable. Especially the King Arthur's Tomb level. I somehow managed to finish the game, but was more frustrated with the game not being playable on the pc than trying to remember the solutions to puzzles in a game I haven't played in years.

childhood favorite as well as an all around banger of a game, tomb raider is indeed legendary. Glad its on PC!

It's better than the NEXT one ('Anniversary') in a lot of aspects: graphics, sounds, level design, story, voices...
But they did a weird thing in this one: Lara can now use lots of different weapons like full auto rifles, shotguns, grenades... I guess this game came out during the CoD craze?
I think it's still worth to play it: you get to see more of Lara's childhood and important events.


---{ Graphics }---
☐ You forget what reality is
☐ Beautiful
☐ Good
☑ Decent
☐ Bad
☐ Don‘t look too long at it
☐ MS-DOS

---{ Gameplay }---
☐ Very good
☑ Good
☐ It's just gameplay
☐ Mehh
☐ Watch paint dry instead
☐ Just don't

---{ Audio }---
☐ Eargasm
☐ Very good
☑ Good
☐ Not too bad
☐ Bad
☐ I'm now deaf

---{ Audience }---
☐ Kids
☑ Teens
☑ Adults
☐ Grandma

---{ PC Requirements }---
☐ Check if you can run paint
☑ Potato
☐ Decent
☐ Fast
☐ Rich boi
☐ Ask NASA if they have a spare computer

---{ Game Size }---
☐ Floppy Disk
☑ Old Fashioned
☐ Workable
☐ Big
☐ Will eat 15% of your 1TB hard drive
☐ You will want an entire hard drive to hold it
☐ You will need to invest in a black hole to hold all the data

---{ Difficulty }---
☐ Just press 'W'
☑ Easy
☐ Easy to learn / Hard to master
☐ Significant brain usage
☐ Difficult
☐ Dark Souls

---{ Grind }---
☐ Nothing to grind
☐ Only if u care about leaderboards/ranks
☑ Isn't necessary to progress
☐ Average grind level
☐ Too much grind
☐ You'll need a second life for grinding

---{ Story }---
☐ No Story
☐ Some lore
☐ Average
☑ Good
☐ Lovely
☐ It'll replace your life

---{ Game Time }---
☐ Long enough for a cup of coffee
☐ Short
☑ Average
☐ Long
☐ To infinity and beyond

---{ Price }---
☐ It's free!
☐ Worth the price
☑ If it's on sale
☐ If u have some spare money left
☐ Not recommended
☐ You could also just burn your money

---{ Bugs }---
☐ Never heard of
☑ Minor bugs
☐ Can get annoying
☐ ARK: Survival Evolved
☐ The game itself is a big terrarium for bugs

---{ ? / 10 }---
☐ 1
☐ 2
☐ 3
☐ 4
☐ 5
☑ 6
☐ 7
☐ 8
☐ 9
☐ 10

The game is still a joy all these years later. It's honestly a lot of nostalgia for me playing it but it still has its charm when it comes to encounter design, overall characters, puzzles etc. The game still manages to make you think about what to do and how to do it. The story is a bit goofy overall but it does that in a good way and still makes it enjoyable. It's very short at around 3.5 hours but if you get it for cheap then it's definetly worth it especially if you enjoy the tomb raider games. Sometimes theres glitches or Lara just not jumping where you want or grabbing what you want but man this game came out nearly 20 years ago and it got ported from consoles so I understand.

7 / 10

controles pessimos

The beginning of a new era for our beloved heroine, Lara Croft. I remember back in 2006 when this came out, begging my mom and dad for this game on my Playstation 2 for Christmas. Good times. Let me start by saying that this is the game that got me REALLY into Tomb Raider. I played 2 and 3 prior, but I was too young to really comprehend what I was supposed to do, and so comes the first real gripe with this game. The linearity. This game is so simple, I can walk through it in about 3 and a half hours now. It took a bit longer when I was younger, but never longer than 7-8 hours. You would have to have your eyes closed to not know where to go in this game, as everything always follows a straight path forward. You will never be left in the dark and where to go and what to do, and that takes away from a lot of the charm of a Tomb Raider game. Really exploring your surroundings, having to find many keys and levers to progress. Progression is handed to you in this game. That doesn't mean this game isn't fun and enjoyable, it's just not challenging like I would want a Tomb Raider to be. It has major replayability with collecting all secrets to unlock outfits, concept art, and completing time trials. It's a fast paced action adventure that plays out like a long movie, and it achieves that just fine. The story is about Lara looking for her long lost mother, who mysteriously vanished in the Himalayas when a plan crash left Lara and her mother stranded. She touched a sword in stone and was gone, poof. The story is compelling enough, but it takes away from Lara's no nonsense and straightforward attitude, giving her unneeded depth. It's fine, but not what i'm here for. The graphics are mixed for me. Next gen has aged pretty well, Lara's character model is pretty cute, and overall textures are pretty good. Shadows are funky with a mind of their own sometimes, like Lara's shadow will go completely missing and only revealing her pistols and boots as a shadow is pretty funny. Water effects are also a highlight, specifically in Ghana. Next gen has aged pretty well overall, but that's where you will run into problems. The game does not like to play past chapter 5 for me in next gen, so I have to revert to old gen graphics every time I want to play this game and then switch back to next gen graphics when I am done with Kazakhstan, which is kind of annoying. Old gen graphics are old, and being limited by resolution, offers flat lighting and flatter textures, but your game will never crash when you are in this mode. The music, like the whole of LAU trilogy, is nothing to write home about, but it's fine. Keeley Hawes does a fine job as Lara Croft, her voice a bit warm toned and more motherly than in previous games.

Overall, Tomb Raider Legend is a fun game that brings back a lot of nostalgia for me, yet maybe has aged the worse out of the three in this trilogy. It's very linear, and buggy on next gen graphics unless you follow forum mods. Even then, it's hit or miss. I still really enjoy this game for what it is, but it ranks the lowest of the trilogy for me.

Graphics: (next gen) 8.5/10 (old gen) 6/10
Gameplay: 7/10
Music: 7/10
Replayability: 7.5/10

Overall: 7.2/10

This is an incredible game, a real Tomb Raider game. Not that shit they made and called "The Survivor Trilogy" this is the real deal. The only thing more OG than this is the actual original CORE games.

Lara is actually beautiful in this game, no mods required, and an actual badass who does NOT whine and moan every three seconds. There's an actual story and it's just as serious as it needs to be while still being fun and a little goofy.

The levels are all amazing and the gameplay is simple and fun. Doesn't get much better than this.

Badass Lara <3

Tomb Raider Legend is the second reboot of the franchise and considerably better than Last Revelation, Chronicles and Angel of Darkness!
Well-crafted plot, Lara less superhuman and more just "human", having a team, different gameplay and very enjoyable to play!
The game worked really well on my PC!
It's worth buying, especially on sale!

Tomb Raider: Legend (2006) was a major revitalization of the franchise, bringing modern mechanics and improved visuals. On Steam, it holds a “Very Positive” rating, with players praising its engaging story and adventurous gameplay.

Pros:

✔ Engaging Storyline – A compelling plot with well-developed characters.
✔ Diverse Environments – Exotic locations with varied level designs.
✔ Improved Controls – More responsive and fluid compared to older titles.

Cons:

✖ Short Length – Some players feel the game is too brief.
✖ Simplistic Combat – Gunplay lacks depth and challenge.
✖ Technical Issues – The game has bugs and compatibility issues with newer hardware, leading to crashes, particularly when using modern graphics cards.

Overall, Tomb Raider: Legend remains a solid action-adventure title, though players may need to tweak settings or use fan-made fixes for a smoother experience.

Played this on the OG Xbox back in the 2007. Even in 2025 its still just as good as it was back then. Just no triangle boobies

I’ve been on a TR kick since the 6 remasters came out so I decided to continue on and play this one again for the first time since it’s initial release. Absolutely fantastic game and one of the best in the series. WHY don’t they make games like this anymore???? If you are a TR fan you need to play this game if you haven’t already. Played perfect on the Steamdeck but there are some very minor graphical glitches during cut scenes and in a couple of levels, nothing game breaking.

over all good game. some physics are a little wonky and camera isn't the best, not the worst but i do fight with it from time to time. i wish i could remember if these issues were there on the ps2 version.

really good game!! puzzle not too hard, the story is nice, and basically i realized that amanda is just sam in another universe whereas amanda turn out to be evil after the possesion (and lara cant save her when shes drowned) and sam being damsel in distress lara could save and succeed and didnt turn out evil.

and i know abt the og storyline where in tr13 sam is supposed to be dead and eventually himiko possesed her and maybe will turn out to be amanda 2.0 lol, i mean thats just uhhh did they think to just be making the same old storylines with a little bit of tweak and different character? well im glad the playtesters outcry abt that tho :)

and ive been thinking thats the reason why sam is absent from the newest 2 game (rise and shadow), maybe they thought abt making her a villain in those, and bcs of the outcry they just scrapped the idea altogether and just like pretend that she didnt even survive the first game..... ok i'll stop


oh wait and i just wanna say one more thing that the game itself crash and basically unplayable in certain level if u turn on the next gen graphics content or some sort, so if theres crash, force close it then play the game without that thing on, it'll become okay again


also... steam overlay doesnt works so cant take screenshots.. lara would say, "bollocks!"

Please Add Steam Achievements.

rispekt aloooo

I love this game and i'm so glad i finally got it permanently.

This is one of the best TR game for sure. Even though wonky camera problems and bugs (in particular reaches to peak on level 6 England and to be honest some parts were not playable and i had to reload the last checkpoint), this game has a unique experience and wonderful landscapes. I can easily say this one is timeless. Almost after 20 years that it first published, it brought me back to it again and again. Additionally, i was so happy to launch it with zero problem at the beginning. I was expecting problems because i couldn't have smooth launching on angel of darkness and it was so frustrating to had to change many settings even before start to play.

It's a good game

this forged my taste in women.

Fun game!

0/10 fatal error all time

Ojala este puto juego me entierre

I quite liked this. Interesting spin on Lara Croft. Just wish the game was a bit longer. Unfortunately it is way more simplified than classic Tomb Raider series in terms of puzzles and fights. Would still recommend it if you want short action adventrue.

Rating: 3/5

one of the best games i played

Turn on V-sync in the optional launch menu. Then set the game to 60hz. That will make everything work much better (and make the motorcycle parts actually beatable on Hard)

Ah, back when games were games instead of half baked live services lousy with loot boxes, micro transactions, and season passes. Tomb Raider Legend was the first Tomb Raider I ever played when it released back in 2006 and it left a lasting impression. The gameplay was fun, the graphics were impressive, the soundtrack was a banger, and perhaps most importantly, Lara Croft was allowed to be herself. She was witty, charming, cool headed, acrobatic, smart, and badass. This means that she and the game itself, was allowed to be cheesy, over the top, and pulpy. Imbuing the game with vibes of good old fashioned escapism. But how does it hold up playing it all these years later? Well, let's start with the story.

The plot is somewhat hard to follow at times, leaving me occasionally wondering why I was in a certain part of the world all of a sudden but it's mostly good in providing some context in regard to Lara's past, and how certain events shaped her into who she is now. It also provides opportunities to see her in different situations, environments, and even how she interacts with people other than shooting them. It's not amazing stuff but it's sufficient in providing an overall feeling of being on a globe trotting adventure. That's good enough for me. What about the gameplay?

The gameplay can be a bit frustrating at times. Lara doesn't have the best aim in the world, especially while jumping about and unless you like being shot, you're gonna be doing a lot of that. Although when you jump off a guy's head the game goes into slow mo which is always fun and satisfying. What's NOT fun or satisfying is when you fall through the floor or glitch into a never ending falling animation or don't know how to beat a boss because there's no feedback that you're doing anything at all, etc. These don't happen too frequently though, and most of the time the checkpoints are pretty forgiving so, it's not game breaking. What about graphics?

The game still looks pretty good for it's age. Especially with certain environments. Lara's character model looks exactly like the character should. She's got that 90's Bond thing going on. No matter where she is, or what she's been through, her hair, makeup, and outfit look perfect. She can save the world and look damn good doing it. That's the real Lara Croft. What about the soundtrack?

Honestly I could listen to it while doing the dishes and feel like I was in an ancient temple in Bolivia. It's got just the right mixture of mystery, action, magic, and a surprising amount of sentimentality. So, does it hold up all these years later?

I'm happy to say that despite a level involving Lara on a motorcycle being shot at by approximately 98 generic bad guys and another featuring a giant eel that just won't DIE in a gimmicky boss fight... Yes. I still think it's a lot of fun. Worthy of being on a list of the best in the series and a great example of a time when video games could be video games. Content to be played, beaten, and then played again years later to remind us of simpler times. 8/10