A bit of caution for the narrative - this is TR Anniversary (released in 2007 by Crystal Dynamics) and not the TR Anniversary Edition, which was never released (it was originally developed by Core Design and was planned for release in 2006 as the celebration of 10th anniversary of the OG game). Then.. Tank controls pretty much reflect the real life movement and those gamers, who keep on complaining about them only wine about their own inability to be in full control of Lara's movement and the consequences of their own actions - as well as it is an admittal of their own over-reliance on automation, which is typical (aka ever-present) for all "modern" controls schemes. The classis "old-school" TR games (let's talk about the first three only - they are my favourites, including the respective expansions) did not push the players to "rush" through the levels and definitely did not guide them, as if afraid they may miss something. Quite the opposite - it was expected (and rather usual, frankly) to get stuck in a level for a few hours, days or even weeks by (e.g.) not being able to solve a puzzle or find a secret or beat a boss - or just be lost on where to go next - but once any player beat a level on their own, it was its own reward - and all those players could feel good about themselves. Most did, trust me. A personal note here - I didn't have to replay any of the LAU trilogy games a/o levels more than once or twice to get it 100% completed - except for time trials, which was a bothering mode of gameplay, as I'm not a speedrunner and not even a fan of this genre. Also, I think this particular mode was either a "modern gaming trend" addition for the less patient and less contemplative players, or forcing the franchise to become something it wasn't and should never have been. Anyhow, to me it translates to dumbed-down and "let us guide you by the hand" approach to game design for those LAU games. BTW the OG trilogy vs LAU - am I the only one who looked at the number of levels per each game & the average length of gameplay through a whole particular installment - and then looking at the prices of those games? LAU games cost me ~80EUR and provided some 2 days of "fun" and I think I still have the DVDs somewhere - while the OG trilogy of games (with exp.) cost me roughly the same and are on all my PCs ever-since I bought them - and I do know that I keep the CDs and boxes at my shelf in the best condition possible.

The originals and remastered feel a lot better to control than Anniversary, as the later has terrible physics and Lara feels like she's skating on ice. Also the jumping is almost entirely automated and there's no momentum or on-air mechanics. Basically, the game is a series of scripts, and all you have to do is press jump where the developers pre-established you should press jump.

I love Underworld and Legend, but Anniversary can't even hold a candle to either the original or Remastered. To me, it just fails to capture the atmosphere and magic of the original, and the gameplay and level design wasn't as satisfying to me in spite of its more "realistic" updates. Honestly, as a diehard fan since the late 90s when I was way too young to be playing these games, I have to say that the Remastered edition is the definitive way to play these games, since it has numerous tiny quality-of-life improvements, with the ability to toggle between the original and updated graphics and control schemes.

I platinumed the Tomb Raider Trilogy on PS3 (Legend, Anniversary, Underworld), they were really fun games, any difficulty spikes were USUALLY a case of Get Good, but sometimes like when you're in that one section of Anniversary where you have to ascend that really large room in the Lost Island The Great Pyramid and the flying enemies keep throwing blasts that make Lara stagger and fall off the platforms into the lava, it was really annoying.

Thanks to the Remastered trilogy, there's now only one TR game I haven't played, that being TR5: Chronicles. Prior to the Remastered trilogy, the only other TR game I hadn't played until a month ago was TR1 believe it or not. My first TR game was TR3 so it holds a special place in my heart and I have yet to play the Remastered version of it, but my all-time favorite TR game is TR4: The Last Revelation. I've heard there's an Easter egg in TR3 with coordinates and if you look up the coordinates, it's for Giza, Egypt where a large chunk of TR4 takes place. This is a potential hint that we may get a future remaster and considering TR I-III Remastered has sold well, I think we will...

For those who played Lara for years and are fluent in the way she moves, it's strange to watch your first step and see that even orientating yourself in the direction of the platform isn't intuitive. This gameplay had a huge learning curve, that I tend to forget since I learned to play it more than twenty years ago. I don't want to sound like a boomer, but our model of consumption had completely changed. What is outdated is not the gameplay itself, just the idea of accepting that we need time to master it, and not expect to finish it as soon as we started, and deliver a full game review three levels after the beginning.

The problem here is Crystal Dynamics the one that made Anniversary didn’t know what Core had in mind they just kind of put their own spin on it.

I agree with your recommendation. Anniversary first, then remaster, then original. I'm usually one to endorse the original, uber alles. But Tomb Raider is an exception where I do think it has aged poorly, mostly because the awkward controls and platforming just make for needless frustration. Remaster lets you have the original levels without that frustration, plus a lot easier on the eyes.

Remastered is definitely the best. As a fan I of course did try to play anniversary but omg the controls were really tough(remember that pole trap on that Egypt level, jumping from pole to pole while there's blades and closing doors😂, I literally tried to get past it a hundred times and gave up)

Good video I would recommend try to make your audio for your voice alittle bit just alittle bit louder you sound abit soft. Could just be my own headphones being messed up so you can take my comment with a grain of salt

Oh, and why are comments turned of for the review of Remastered? Comments are important. I'll write it here though. Tank controls takes some time to get used to, but once you are used to them, they work quite fine, especially for platforming. The great thing about them is that they leave out all of the guesswork. They are very consistent, so if you see a jump, you will quite quickly be able to tell if it is possible to take that jump before you try. Second comment I wanted to make was regarding the level design. I hate how handholdy modern games are, and really appreciate that the developer assumes that the player is able to think for themselves. It has been ages since I played Tomb Raider I, and replaying it has been a blast. At several points I've felt so clever for finding something that I assumed was a secret, only to be surprised that you are actually meant to do that to progress. It is pretty humbling, but also very fun.

The modern controls do feel nice to use at times, but they do come with a few limitations, such as somersaults and backflips requiring you to have a weapon drawn when you start the manoeuvre, also grabbing ledges below you is far more difficult than before as either need to roll from a specific distance as backing away with modern controls requires a gun to be drawn but putting your guns away to grab the ledge takes too much time for her to actually grab it most of the time.

I played all three versions and i have to say my favourite way is the remastered graphics with the tank controls! Starting the remastered i tried using the modernised controls but it just felt soooo wrong! Not being able to do the side and backwards flips was like a sacrilege lol I instantly switched to the tank controls and it was SO HARD to get used to!!! It was a real torture, but as soon as i got the hand of it just came naturally! Actually playing another game in-between i tried to move the characters with the arrow keys and not the analogue stick!!!! I really hope they gonna remake the later games as well!!! A Legends remake would be a dream comw true!!!!

Tomb Raider: Legend was the game that got me hooked on the franchise, and as such it will ALWAYS hold a special place in my heart. I've always had a mad respect for the Classics however, as without them, we wouldn't even have LAU Lara Croft. I always wanted to play them, but since I had no way of playing them, I couldn't. So, when the Remasters came out, it was a MAJOR blessing for me! With that said, I do still love Legend. Easily. But as of right now, the og is just better. The tank controls are a little difficult to get used to, but the game it literally built for them. And Lara is so hard to control in combat with the modern controls, resulting in so much loss of health or even straight up deaths when I play (with that said, I've give them another shot if they'd make it where she can do all the side flips without weapons drawn and maybe the acrobatic flips and moving backwards while shooting mechanic that the LAU trilogy has). I love the explorative nature of the games, rather than the linear path with a few secrets here and there to find. I think overall, Anniversary was decent, but admittedly, it's my least favorite TR game (next to the Rebooted wannabe Lara Croft games). And when you compare it to the original, it was wwaayyy dumbed down. The levels were so much smaller, the color pallet extremely diluted and dull. I'm not a big fan of horror, so I do prefer Anniversary's design of Atlantis, but even those levels weren't nearly as expansive, and to be quite honest, they were more obnoxious with the whole small-platforms but Lara keeps wanting to lock onto targets in the distance instead of the enemies actively attacking her thing. I think overall, the Remasters are definitely the way to go, but that's just my humble opinion 😶‍🌫

Good comparison for all 3 games however lets don’t forget that original game was released 1996 and anniversary 2007 so there is technical limitations back in 1996. Also one is Remake other is Remastered. For me personally anniversary was bit fresh air and you could see how bigger team of development team paid off and also what would be the original game ideally that being said the creator of Lara was in the development of Anniversary. For the remastered I would say that it’s my personal best and for me is how is supposed to be done not more not less and it’s been done like a reward for longtime fans ported to modern consoles I bit polished but not over the top and keep the original vibe. Also with the new controls to be easy for the new players because now days game needs to do most of the job for the players. Old gen playing we grow up with this kind of games and it was fun easy to control and think. I a big fan of the original games but here is coming the problem with console not accessible for everyone this day is kind of vintage and on now days tellys looks like Minecraft hah. Anyways again good comparison 😊

Anniversary Lara in the thumbnail looks hot!

I hate LAU and Survivor Lara, but just look at Anniversary Lara. She is absolutely beautiful

I'm honestly quite impressed they managed to improve the game's visuals to the extent that they did in Remastered, given it's still the original 1996 game engine and levels. While still bottlenecked by that limitation, it is night and day compared to the original. (Although you seem to be playing the original with Bilinear filtering off. It does look a little better with that on, as it removes pixelation.)

Customise the controls for remaster. I have the action and shoot button set to right trigger. The old controls are very reliable once you get used to them. I'm not a fan of modern controls. TR Anniversary controls are great for combat and moving around until you need to jump and grab onto things - very unreliable. Also, I think you mean *equipping not equipting. It's not a real word. Interesting video nonetheless.

Remastered and it’s not even a question. The quintessential version of playing the TR Trilogy !

Original hands down. Nothing can beat the creepy liminal feel of the first 3. Absolutely amazing games.

I find the conclusion to be a bit odd. There is little reason to get the original anymore, as it is practically bundled with Remastered. You can switch between modern and old graphics by the klick of a button, and you can even use the "modern" control scheme while playing with the original graphics. Not to mention the fact that Remastered includes Tomb Raider II and III as well, both in their modernized and old school flavors.

I guess someone mentioned this already, but as a bit of constructve criticism, either your compressor or your equalizer are acting up and every other sentence once you start talking the volume of your voice is too lowered and it takes some seconds to ramp up and not be muffled by the music. I f you manage to make it more consistent across the board it will be easier to listen to and easier to understand what you are saying.

One thing is important to note, in the original Tomb Raider, if you miss a jump it's because YOU fucked up. I'm really tired of people blaming the game. In the modern games, Lara is basically a magnet. Jump in the general direction and she'll automatically go where the game wants her to go. In the originals, YOU controlled Lara. If you suck at the controls, get better.

"Normal controls" lmao 🤣

Uh... it seems it's like the first time you played those 3 games... Are you sure you should be making videos like this?

dequipt, lol you mean unequip?

Anniversary is a disgrace IMO, too easy, boring… All looks, no substance! You should work on learning how to use the tank controls properly! I grew up using them so I’m pretty good (I still die 24652247 times per level 😂) and once you mastered them, you’ll never use the modern controls again, trust me!

I feel modern control weird now that I've been playing on tank control the whole time. Quit the series ever since they gave up on tank control and classic timeline. Remastered is a huge comeback to me.

Easy remaster! Lol anniversary was sub par at best....and a dumpster fire at the very least....i remember being so excited just to get more and more disappointed the further i got....never even beat it and i remember i rented it at the time and had rented it for a week just to be so disappointed i returned it in 1-2 days....sorry the og tr is the best....i dont even like crystal dynamics versions...

I love the original game and anniversary too. I only don't like the new triology. For me the new games lost the identity of the classic Tomb Raider games. And the torture porn of Tomb Raider 2013 is very cringe in my opinion.

I also prefer Anniversary and Legend to the originals, but even they're looking a bit dated now. I wouldn't mind another remake of this game using the Shadow of Tomb Raider graphics...

dude you are a noob, your footage of playing the original game is cringe lol, once you master the tank controls and realise is part of the grid system of the game its the only way to play it, i nearly lost my mind when the trailers for anniversary hit back in the day, even though it looks beautiful i was so disappointed playing it, the levels were convoluted and tedious, scripted scenes were awful, Lara feeling guilty that she killed larson was pathetic, so many bad decisions, the best part of it was her mansion sadly, they will never recapture the magic of the 1996 original, and thats why i bought and am currently playing the remastered version, its a joy for people that loved the original game

some elements in the anniversary are better. such as those traps in obelisk of khamoon

Been playing them on the steam deck They hold up great!