3 best moments from the first Shadow of the Tomb Raider trailer
By Buckie Wells
Lara Croft returns once again in the third installment of her rebooted franchise. Here are the best moments from Shadow of the Tomb Raider’s first full trailer.
Whether you prefer Angelina Jolie or Alicia Vikander as a live-action Lara Croft, the best version of the character remains in the video games. Though the character enjoys a very long history and several iterations, her popularity resurged thanks to her 2013 video game reboot.
After a sequel in 2015, we’ve arrived at Shadow of the Tomb Raider — the third installment in the new franchise that sees a younger, more robust version of the character come into her own. Driven by excellent game mechanics and a refreshing narrative that stays true to everything we love about Lara Croft, there’s a lot of anticipation for Shadow of the Tomb Raider.
But if you’re asking yourself how many tombs can be raided, it’s more about Lara Croft’s evolution. In the first game, she needed to survive at all costs. In the second game, Rise of the Tomb Raider, Croft faced a cult and committed to protecting special artifacts from falling into the wrong hands.
Now, she’s questioning who she’s become. Before we dive into the three best moments, let’s check out the first official trailer for Shadow of the Tomb Raider again:
Lara Croft goes full action hero
This trailer is cut perfectly to showcase Lara Croft’s growth as a person and a survivor. The mechanic of the games consider some of her strengths of the “brawler” variant, but this trailer makes her a pure killer. Her stealth rivals that of Batman’s and her reckless bravery channels a lot of Mission: Impossible.
Lara Croft asks herself the million dollar question
Once again channeling another huge franchise, Lara Croft evokes the same tone behind the first Rogue One: A Star Wars Story‘s first teaser, in which the main heroine finds herself at a crossroads. This time, Lara provides her own narration when she asks, “What will I become?”
Lara isn’t afraid to kill anyone. In this trailer, she’s not afraid to do it up close. Instead of using a bow and arrow, Lara makes sure this kill is personal. Because it takes a lot of guts to do that, the person she saves is just as afraid as before, which means Lara might not be the hero she wants to be.
The setting
In just under three minutes, this trailer gives us a rather cinematic look at the jungle Lara treks through and the villains she’ll face. We see the sprawling landscapes and the mountains we’ll climb. The worldbuilding is an important facet of the game since it’s up to the player to explore it.
As we can see, the game takes place in Latin America as Lara searches for a Mayan relic. While battling Trinity, she inadvertently sets off an apocalyptic chain reaction. So, hopefully, this game will build a beautiful world for us to play in and subsequently destroy.
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What are you looking for to most in Shadow of the Tomb Raider? Let us know in the comments below! Shadow of the Tomb Raider hits shelves on Sept. 14, 2018 for Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.