Besides the graphics which look photo -realistic in some places, the physics it's also totally new. As I already mentioned, Lara can now use her both hands doing different things at the same time, She can carry objects with one hand, while with the other she can shoot enemies. You can now shoot even while hanging on the rocks, or ladders. There were discussions before the release of the game regarding the weather changes in the game. Although there were quite amazing the commentaries of the developers, in the game it doesn't look so spectacular. There is a minimal impact to the whole environment while raining, and for an unexperienced player it will remain unnoticed. I'm talking about how Lara reacts to this weather changes. If you perform some exaggerated moves, there might a chance of almost losing grip from a wet ledge. But this happens rarely and a simple 'Use" key button will help her regaining the control. For the first time dead bodies will remain visually active until you will end the level, unlike previous versions when every dead opponent or monster would have disappeared after a while.

Lara can throw objects, pick up poles, ride the bike and shoot the enemy. But this time she can also melee attack. Several moves have been recorded for this ability, but somehow the game looks poor at this point. This is sure a step forward in making Lara extremely pro-active, but probably all the melee attacks features have been implemented in the last steps of development making it feel unfinished. But at least she can again ride bikes. And this time even better. Unfortunately she has no more that expensive Ducati, but a futuristic two wheels vehicle that can run on almost any surface. In this way the developers could give it a much more important meaning in the whole gameplay, even as a key object for puzzles.

Without it, Lara has no chance in completely some of them. Even the grapling hook has a much more important meaning than just helping you escalate high walls, but it can also be used as an interaction tool providing new methods in moving objects aside. The interactive cutscenes have been replaced by slow motion moments when the player has the freedom to make the right decision in order to evade the situation. So instead of that annoying instant actions, you get total freedom in making the right decision.

Coming to the most prolific and most loved side of the Tomb Raider series puzzles. This time Crystal Dynamics decided to a more casual puzzles system, but not necessarily easy, but a system that tends to be more natural. You feel that the solution to the puzzles cannot be more logical than that. Forget about hard-core puzzles where most of the time the solution was forced to be more difficult by using long distanced from one objective point to another or by using low-end textures that would have no visual hint to whatsoever use. Everything is smooth and clear and funny. And it creates that atmosphere that makes the gameplay flow, like a Sunday movie, but extremely catchy. You wake up actually ending the game without knowing it. It doesn't have dead moments, where you can feel like reaching a dead end, or an endless loop.

Probably the fighting moments with the thralls makes you thing that it would have been much better if there weren't there spoiling your pleasure of exploring the environment. The levels architecture in some places is quite huge especially on the vertical, and even if you fall for three or four times, the fifth time you will try to climb that objective with the same pleasure. I felt in some places a sense of virtual freedom because of the liberty you have in getting almost everywhere, even in the most unnatural places.

Conclusion

Tomb Raider: Underworld is a complete adventure experience. While older Tomb Raider games were providing either puzzles, or shooting, or exploring, now Underworld offers all of these features, perfectly balanced to provide the best Lara game.