The game was boring, unlike Tomb Raider 2013 & Rise

Shadow of Tomb Raider is a mild version of what Tomb Raider stands for.

Terrible controls and terrible climbing puzzles with worst stealth gameplay ever...

Soo.... after about 15 hours, I'm done with the game.

It was the first time I played it, and I was blown away. I can honestly say that it's now one of my top 3 favorite games of all time.

Yes, I've heard about negative feedback, disastrous review ratings and horror stories about constant crashes, exploding PCs, potatoes that suddenly turn into chips.

Personally, I had one crash after about 10 hours, while I played around with the photo mode.

Well, I also had a visual bug where Ellie walked through a bush and suddenly started flying for about 2 seconds, but that's really it.

Other than that, I was completely stunned. The scenery is AMAZING. So many gorgeous areas. The level design is outstanding. So many gorgeous nuances and details.

Graphics as a whole, just really well done, and then there are areas in the snow for example where it's almost photorealistic. Even in my first playthrough, I took tons of screenshots cause there was so much to see.

Voice acting is just great. The characters and their voices fit really well together.

Music is amazing, too. Sound effects are great.

The strongest part of the game is the story.

The writing, the characters and their biographies, how people interact and bond with each other, how the story unfolds, always packed with enough suspense to keep you interested, just perfect.

One thing that bothered me were the sometimes really wonky looking animations, especially for the horses and riding part. The controls there felt weird, too.

What else is to be said? Hmm. Partly you're walking in thin corridors, but there are also many areas where you've got freedom to explore.

Enemy AI is kinda dumb, so my usual arch enemy, the stealth parts, weren't much of an issue.

By playing you collect unlock points, which you can use to buy new skins for your characters, weapons, gear, or even unlock cheats for your next playthrough, like unlimited ammo, one hit melee kills, and many other things...

One odd thing to mention is crafting. For some upgrades, Joel is really "adding" parts to the guns, and then there are upgrades where he just takes a cloth, rubs the gun and then tadaa! -upgrade done- . uhm...?

Yeah well, overall i did enjoy the game a lot and i will replay it a few times, cause there are quite a lot collectables to find.

And then... sadly a very long wait for Part 2.

One of the best open world videogames I have ever played!! I never knew I needed a Mad Max game until I played this.

The ground comabt is familiar, sharing similarities with the Batman: Arkham and Assassin's Creed games, it is pared down a bit, but is functional, well implemented and feels very satisfying. There are infiltration levels, nothing as complex as the stealth segements of Batman or Shadow of Mordor, but still very well done and enjoyable.

However, the vehicle mechanisms, and in particular the car combat are where this game shines like a super nova... it is a total blast to race around the wasteland in your Magnum Opus, dispatching swift justice with a lead foot and a burst of nitro. the vehicle upgrades are fantastic, especially the thunderpoons, and loved I chasing down a convoy, taking out the escorts and then finishing off the lead vehicle.

The story is relatively straightforward, though it does have a few twists... but the delight is in being Max... despensing justice and growing a beard!

I cannot recommend this game highly enough!! Fan-tastic!