If Uncharted rose to fame with weapons it stole from washed-out Tomb Raider (before its reboot), Shadow of the Tomb Raider grabs them back, making it visually and gameplaywise the most essential action-adventure you can imagine. It not only builds upon the series legacy, it goes to its roots and successfully brings back the exploration that we were busy not to even notice was missing while tackling through many exciting action set pieces of the previous games. Doing so, Shadow of the Tomb Raider is the most poignant entry in the long series since the very first game.

There is a noticeable emphasis on the narrative. Although Shadow of the Tomb Raider modifies what we've grown accustomed to within the franchise, the change of pace is welcomed. You'll find pockets of open-world to explore, with tons of side-quests and interactions with NPCs. Don't expect guns-a-blazin', but do expect getting more than you bargained for from this Tomb Raider experience.

Some of the physics could have been better, but overall, it’s going to probably be one of the most beautiful games in 2018. It would be interesting to see where the story goes from here. Shadow of the Tomb Raider is the highlight of the series, and topping it will be difficult.

Despite some frame-rate stutters, slight audio-visual desyncs, and the occasional bad texture rendering, Shadow of the Tomb Raider is eerie, challenging, thoughtful, compelling, and downright fun.

The new Tomb Raider shows Lara Croft as an empty character that has nothing inside.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider doesn't have much to offer compared to the recent games. However, if you are a fan of the Tomb Raider series, you will enjoy it.

Tomb Raider was personal because it was personal. But now it’s come full circle to yet another vapid videogame character muddling through bad writing, rote familiar gameplay, and fewer features than the last time. Wake me when the next reboot is here.