RISE OF THE TOMB RAIDER (Pop-Up Slipcover)

BACK TO ALL GAMES

PLATFORM: Xbox One

EDITION: Standard

STUDIO: CRYSTAL DYNAMICS | SQUARE ENIX | EIDOS MONTREAL

RELEASE YEAR: 2015

CONDITION: Used

GRADE: Excellent

Square Enix Europe executive Phil Rogers revealed in August 2013 that a new Tomb Raider game was in development for the eighth generation of video game consoles. Microsoft announced the game during an E3 2014 press conference, with a scheduled late-2015 release. Later at Gamescom, the company said that Rise of the Tomb Raider was an exclusive for its Xbox series of video-game platforms, including Xbox 360 and Xbox One; according to Microsoft Studios executive Phil Spencer, this was a timed exclusive similar to Microsoft's deal with Capcom and Crytek on Dead Rising 3 and Ryse: Son of Rome (in which both were released for Windows). This sparked player outrage from players, who blamed franchise owner Square Enix for the decision. Microsoft's calling the game "exclusive on Xbox for holiday 2015" caused confusion among the gaming press and players. Rogers explained in 2015 that the Microsoft timed exclusivity was primarily due to the company's strong support for the 2013 reboot. Spencer also spoke on the exclusivity stating that he is a fan of Uncharted and that they needed something similar in their strategy. Crystal Dynamics head Darrell Gallagher said that the partnership was important in helping the team to deliver the best game they could. Rogers called the arrangement a "natural" evolution and a "tough" decision.

Rise of the Tomb Raider was released on November 10, 2015, and the Windows version was released on January 28, 2016. Microsoft Studios was the game's publisher for Xbox 360 and Xbox One. An 18-issue comic series, Tomb Raider, began publication in early 2014. Produced by Dark Horse Comics and written by Pratchett and Gail Simone, the comics bridged the gap between the 2013 reboot and Rise of the Tomb Raider and explained the absence of some secondary characters in the sequel. Microsoft released a Rise of the Tomb Raider Xbox One bundle, including an Xbox One console, a code for Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition and the game. A collector's edition included a 12-inch statue of Lara, a steelbook, a jade necklace and a replica of Lara's journal. A season pass included the base game, additional outfits, weapons and expedition cards, and access to downloadable content. GameStop preorders had exclusive access to the Holy Fire Card Pack, which can be used in the game's expeditions mode. Microsoft live-streamed a Survival Billboard marketing event on Twitch. Eight contestants standing in front of a Southwark Street billboard were subjected to different harsh weather conditions, which were voted by Twitch's viewers. The contestant enduring the weather longest received a "Tomb Raider-themed trip". Players could earn in-game rewards by participating (and interacting with) Twitch live-streaming in expedition mode.

The game was supported by downloadable content, and its first post-launch update was released on December 4, a month after the game's initial release. It introduced an endurance mode, with elements of a survival game as Lara hunts and crafts items while facing hidden dangers and environmental hazards. The first story add-on, Baba Yaga: The Temple of the Witch, was released on January 26, 2016 for Xbox One. Cold Darkness Awakened, the third DLC, introduced a horde mode in which Lara fights waves of infected enemies. A Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration edition was released for PlayStation 4 on October 11, 2016. The edition (developed by Nixxes Software and Crystal Dynamics) adds several new features, including a classic outfit inspired by Tomb Raider III; cooperative gameplay for endurance mode; Blood Ties, a combat-free mode in which Lara explores the Croft Manor; and Lara's Nightmare, in which players fight infected enemies in the manor. The DLC was free of charge to season-pass holders. To promote the 20 Year Celebration edition, the marketing team hung a jeep from the side of a building in Times Square. Blood Ties supported PlayStation VR when 20 Year Celebration was released, and Oculus Rift and HTC Vive were supported on December 6, 2017. Feral Interactive released the game for macOS and Linux in April 2018.

Rise of the Tomb Raider is a 2015 action-adventure game developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Microsoft Studios and Square Enix. The game is the eleventh main entry in the Tomb Raider series, the sequel to the 2013's Tomb Raider, and is the second installment in the Survivor trilogy. Its story follows Lara Croft as she ventures into Siberia in search of the legendary city of Kitezh while battling the paramilitary organization Trinity, which intends to uncover the city's promise of immortality. Lara must traverse the environment and combat enemies with firearms and stealth as she explores semi-open hubs. In these hubs she can raid challenge tombs to unlock new rewards, complete side missions, and scavenge for resources which can be used to craft useful materials.

Development of Rise of the Tomb Raider closely followed the conclusion of development of the 2013 reboot. Player feedback was considered during development, with the team reducing the number of quick time events and introducing more puzzles and challenge tombs. The team traveled to several locations in Turkey, including Cappadocia, Istanbul and Ephesus, to design Kitezh. Rhianna Pratchett returned as the game's writer while Bobby Tahouri replaced Jason Graves as the game's composer. Camilla Luddington returned to provide voice and motion-capture work for Lara. Powered by the Foundation engine, the game was also developed by Eidos-Montréal and Nixxes Software.

Rise of the Tomb Raider was announced at E3 2014 by Microsoft Studios. The game was revealed to be a timed exclusive for Xbox 360 and Xbox One at Gamescom the same year, which sparked criticism from the gaming press and community. It was released for Xbox 360 and Xbox One in November 2015. A Windows version was released in January 2016, and a PlayStation 4 version in October.

Rise of the Tomb Raider received acclaim from critics, who praised its graphics, gameplay, characterization, and abundance of content, but some felt that the game did not take enough risks. It had sold 11.8 million units by November 2021. A sequel, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, was released in September 2018.

Rise of the Tomb Raider is a third-person action-adventure game in which players control Lara Croft, who is on a quest to discover the legendary city of Kitezh. Combat is a major gameplay mechanic; Lara has a large variety of weapons at her disposal (including assault rifles, shotguns, and pistols), some of which have an alternate firing mode. Players may also utilize stealth to progress through portions of the game, using bows and arrows to take out enemies, creating distractions to draw enemy attention away from Lara, or hiding in bushes to evade enemies. Lara can use the environment to fight enemies, shooting explosive barrels, tearing down rope-wrapped structures with rope arrows, or ambushing enemies from high ground. She can also use her ice axe and combat knife to engage in melee combat with enemies. Completing objectives and side content and eliminating enemies give players experience points (XP). When players collect sufficient XP they level up, receiving a skill point, which can be spent on the game's three skill trees: Brawler, Hunter and Survivor. Brawler enhances Lara's efficiency with weapons, giving her abilities such as retrieving arrows from corpses and a steady aim, as well as boosting her resilience against attack and unlocks new combat skills, such as dodge kill. Hunter gives her an advantage when dealing with the environments and animals. Survivor covers a wide range of skills such as creating incendiary bombs and setting booby traps. Lara learns new languages, enabling her to discover relics (such as coins) which can be traded for new equipment.

The game has semi-open hubs for players to explore. In the hubs are items for Lara to collect, including crafting materials and survival caches. These items and collectibles such as relics and documents can be revealed to players using Survival Instinct, a vision mode which highlights items of interest. By collecting the materials, players can craft items with the game's crafting menu; Lara can craft ammunition, poisoned arrows (using death-cap mushrooms), and Molotov cocktails and hand grenades from cans and bottles. The open areas are filled with wildlife, which can be hunted to collect more resources. Players can discover and explore challenge tombs for new skills and outfits. Lara's outfit, which affects her combat performance, can be changed at base camps. The camps allow Lara to change her weapon loadouts, and are fast travel points which allow players to explore a previously-searched area. The game has side missions and challenges which may give players new equipment, and players navigate intricate environments to progress. Lara can use her ice axe to climb certain surfaces (such as cliffs and glaciers) and her rope arrows to create ziplines to access difficult-to-reach areas, and can climb trees and swim. Players solve puzzles during the game, in its main campaign and optional content. The puzzles, based on in-game physics, often connect; players must solve connecting puzzles to solve a larger one.

Unlike the 2013 Tomb Raider reboot, Rise of the Tomb Raider lacks a multiplayer mode. It introduces Expeditions, which allow players to replay the game with new constraints and requirements. The game has four modes: Chapter Replay, Chapter Replay Elite, Score Attack, and Remnant Resistance. Chapter Replay and Chapter Replay Elite allow players to replay any level, and Elite allows them to bring already-acquired skills and weapons to the level. Score Attack introduces score combo chains to the game. Remnant Resistance allows players to create custom scenarios, which can be shared with other players. By completing Expeditions, players earn credits which can then be used to purchase digital collectible cards to modify the gameplay. Common cards may be used only once, and foil cards can be used repeatedly. The cards can also be purchased in microtransactions.

A year after the events of Tomb Raider, archaeologist Lara Croft is struggling to explain her experience of the supernatural on Yamatai and is experiencing PTSD. Looking for answers, she turns to her late father Lord Croft's research on the lost city of Kitezh and the promise of immortality. Ana, Lord Croft's partner, warns Lara that her father's obsession drove him to ruin and suicide. Lara ignores her and organizes an expedition to the Forgotten Cities in northwestern Syria, hoping to uncover the tomb of the Prophet of Constantinople, a key figure in the Kitezh legend. The tomb is empty, and Lara is interrupted by Trinity - an ancient order of knights turned paramilitary organization investigating the supernatural - and their task force leader, Konstantin. As she flees, Lara discovers a symbol etched into the tomb, which she links to a book on Russian religious history in her father's study at Croft Manor. She learns of an artifact called the Divine Source, said to be capable of granting immortality. After arguing with her friend Jonah Maiava regarding the artifact's existence, a Trinity assassin infiltrates the manor and steals the book, prompting the two to go to Siberia.

In Siberia, Lara and Jonah are separated by an avalanche. Continuing alone, Lara discovers that Trinity has made a Soviet-era installation a base of operations in their search for Kitezh. She is caught trying to retrieve the book and is imprisoned with Ana. Konstantin slowly strangles Ana in an attempt to force Lara into revealing what she knows. Upon realizing Lara does not know the whereabouts of the source, Ana reveals herself as a Trinity agent and that Konstantin is her brother. She asks Lara to join Trinity, but she refuses and is taken to the Gulag cells, where she meets a man named Jacob. Together they escape the Gulag with Trinity in pursuit. During the chase, Lara is incapacitated and nearly drowns, but Jacob saves her, and she later agrees to aid him and his people in repelling Trinity.

Upon reaching a valley of hot springs, Lara discovers that Jacob is the leader of its inhabitants, the Remnants, and that they are descendants of the Prophet's followers. Trinity repeatedly attacks the Remnant, justifying the slaughter as God's will. However, Lara discovers that Ana suffers a terminal illness and is seeking the Divine Source to cure herself. Jacob warns Lara that the Divine Source is real but not what she expects it to be. Lara remains undeterred and sets out to find the Atlas, an artifact that shows the way to Kitezh. Sofia, Jacob's daughter, warns Lara of the Deathless Ones, the immortal guardians of Kitezh. Lara finds the Atlas located in the archives beneath the ruins of a Cathedral, and is later reunited with Jonah, who was found by the Remnant and brought to the valley. After Lara discovers the path to Kitezh, Trinity forces return to the valley, take the Atlas and capture Jonah. Lara returns to the Gulag to find Jonah, but Konstantin mortally wounds him. Lara brings Jonah to Jacob, who heals him. Upon witnessing Jonah's rapid recovery, Lara realizes that Jacob is the Prophet, given immortality by the Divine Source.

With Trinity advancing on the glacier looming over Kitezh, Lara is forced to enter the city on a dangerous path. Reading journals written by a Trinity agent, Lara realizes the truth of Jacob's warning: the Divine Source bestows immortality to any who look upon it at the cost of their soul, which is stored in the Source to prevent their death. Trinity breaks through the ice and enters the chamber that houses the Divine Source. With aid from Sofia and the Remnant, Lara battles her way through Trinity towards the chamber. Konstantin ambushes Lara, but she mortally wounds him. Before he dies, Konstantin reveals that Lara's father did not commit suicide but was assassinated by Trinity. Lara enters the chamber but Ana has already retrieved the Divine Source. Jacob and Lara try to reason with Ana to no avail. As the Deathless Ones close in, Ana activates the Divine Source but is overwhelmed by its power, giving Lara a chance to pick it up and smash it to pieces, causing the Deathless Ones to perish. Jacob's immortality is lost, but he is happy his time has finally come. He assures Lara she has made a difference and peacefully disintegrates.

Two weeks later, at Croft Manor, Lara and Jonah overlook their next expedition. Lara vows to investigate more of the world's mysteries and thwart Trinity's plans. In a post-credits scene, two weeks before Lara and Jonah leave Siberia, Lara asks Ana if she killed her father. Ana denies it, admitting that Trinity gave her the order, but she couldn't kill him because she loved him. Before she can reveal anything else, she is killed by a sniper, who asks his unseen superior about killing Lara and is ordered to stand down for the time being.

If the player reloads their save file after finishing the game, Lara is seen telling Sofia about Jacob's passing.

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