Tomb Raider Review Recap

Tomb Raider fans, it's now one week until launch, and the embargo preventing games journalists from posting reviews has at last been lifted. From what I've seen so far, most reviews range from positive to absolutely glowing. Here's a quick recap of what I've read. I will be adding to this list in the coming days.

Congratulations to the developers for such a strong showing right out of the gate. Can't wait to play it!

• Clueless Gamer - "Conan O'Brien Reviews Tomb Raiderquot; (???)
• AusGamer - "Tomb Raider Review" (9/10)
• CNET - "Tomb Raider: An icon, reborn"
• Computer and Video Games (CVG) - "Tomb Raider review: Killer reboot gets (almost) everything right" (9/10)
• Destructoid - "Cream of the Croft" (8.5/10)
• Digital Spy - "Test: Tomb Raider sur PS3, Xbox 360 et PC" (4.5/5)
• Edge - "Tomb Raider review" (8/10)
• The Escapist/Zero Punctuation - Video Review
• EGM - "EGM Review: Tomb Raider" (8/10)
• Entertainment Weekly - "Lara Croft channels her inner Katniss in bold 'Tomb Raider' reboot" (A-)
• The Escapist - "Tomb Raider Review - An Icon Reborn" (5/5)
• 4Players.de - "Test: Tomb Raiderquot; (75/100)
• Gameblog.fr - "Tomb Raider Review - An Icon Reborn" (5/5)
• Game Informer - "Tomb Raider: Old Name, Remarkable New Series" (9.25/10)
• Gamespot - "Tomb Raider Review" (8.5/10)
• Games Radar - "Tomb Raider Review: Lara Croft's latest adventure is easily her best" (4.5/5)
• GameTrailers - Written review/Video review (8.5/10)
• Globe and Mail - "Tomb Raider’ finds gold in Lara Croft’s origin story" (8.5/10)
• The Guardian - "Tomb Raider – review" (4/5)
• Huffington Post UK - Tomb Raider Review: Lara Croft Finds A Golden Treasure In The Dark
• IGN Written - "A New Dawn for Lara" (9.1/10)
• IGN Video - Mix'd Reviews : Tomb Raider (2013) (video summary of several publications' individual reviews)
• Kotaku - "Tomb Raider: The Kotaku Review"/Video: "Why the New Tomb Raider Works"
• Machinima/Inside Gaming - Video Review (predominantly negative)
• The Mary Sue - "Lara Croft is Dead. Long Live Lara Croft: Reflections on TOMB RAIDER."
• Metro - "The Diluting of Tomb Raider"
• Official PlayStation Magazine UK - "Tomb Raider PS3 review – Uncharted territory a far cry from series' roots" (8/10)
• Official Xbox Magazine - "Tomb Raider Review" (8.5/10)
• Penny Arcade - "Not that kind of Croft: PAR reviews Tomb Raider"
• Polygon - "Tomb Raider Review: The Descent" (9/10)
• Tech Hive - "Review: Tomb Raider delivers gritty, gorgeous adventure" (4.5/5)
• The Telegraph - "Tomb Raider Review (5/5)
• Venture Beat - "Tomb Raider hurts so good (review)" (88/100)
• Well-Rendered - "Tomb Raider: The Verdict"

GameTrailers Tomb Raider Retrospective

In the run-up to the new Tomb Raider's release, GameTrailers.com has launched a fun look back at the series. Part one, below, covers the development of the first three games and Lara Croft's rise to pop-culture stardom.

GT Retrospectives

GT Retrospectives

GT Retrospectives

Tomb Raider Valentine's Day Give-Away Winners

Thanks to everyone who participated in my Tomb Raider Valentine's Day Give-Away. The random number gods have spoken and the results are in! Drum roll please....

The three TOMB RAIDER games go to Andrew and Danielle from the U.S. and Brandon from Canada.

Joshua from the U.S. and A.T. from Canada won the "TOMB RAIDER: Day One" posters.

The "TOMB RAIDER: Crossroads" posters go to 1LaraCroft (don't know his or her real name yet) and Helen, both of whom live in the U.K.

Emma from the U.K. and David from the U.S. won the Jenn Croft cosplay posters, and Sarah R. from the U.S. got the Women of Geekdom calendar.

I have emailed all the winners and they have 7 days to respond. If I don't hear back from everyone by February 22, alternate winners for any unclaimed prize(s) will be chosen.

Once again, I want to congratulate all the winners, and thank everyone for participating. Thanks also to Crystal Dynamics for the Tomb Raider concept art posters, Adam Jay for the Jenn Croft posters, and fellow fan John D. for the awesome calendar.

Tomb Raider Valentine's Day Give-Away

According to my TOMB RAIDER countdown clock, it's only 30 days until the new game comes out and 12 days until Valentine's Day, the birthday of our heroine, Lara Croft. Sounds like the perfect time to give away some swag, no?

WEBSITE COUNTDOWN WIDGET

This contest is simple. No creativity required. Just fill out the form below, let me know which prizes you're interested in, read and agree to the rules, and tell me what you're most looking forward to about the new TOMB RAIDER—either in a comment below, on our Facebook page, or in a tweet (@Stellalune).

The contest finishes February 14, Lara's birthday, at midnight EST. (That's 4:59 a.m. GMT on the 15th.) On or around February 15, I'll fire up the random number generator to pick 10 winners. If you're lucky, you'll receive one of the fabulous prizes listed below. Easy peasy!

One of six Lara Croft posters:
Limited Edition "TOMB RAIDER: Day One" posters signed on the back by the dev team at Crystal Dynamics. There are only 200 of these, and I've got two of them to share.

Limited Edition "TOMB RAIDER: Crossroads" posters. Again two of only 200, signed on the back by the developers.

Two "Lara Croft Disheveled" posters featuring cosplayer extraordinaire Jenn Croft photographed by Adam Jay of Superhero Photography.

A copy of The Women of Geekdom 2013 Calendar, featuring 11 gorgeous geeks cosplaying iconic characters from gaming, comics, movies and television, including Misti Dawn as Lara Croft. A portion of the profits from the project go to The Wayne Foundation, a charity devoted to combating the exploitation and trafficking of children.

One of three copies of the new TOMB RAIDER, for the system of your choice. (IMPORTANT: The PC download version is for any region; the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions are North American/NTSC format only.)

This contest ended Thursday, February 14, 2013, at 11:59 p.m. EST (4:59 a.m. GMT). Winners will be announced soon.

Special thanks to Crystal Dynamics for providing the Tomb Raider concept art posters, to Adam Jay for the Jenn Croft posters, and to fellow fan John D. for his gracious donation of the calendar.