There's just something about it that holds up forever, I dunno. a combination of massive intricate levels and tank-controlled exploration just makes the world seem so solid and physical. Lara's climbing toolset is just perfect and endlessly replayable. Every game in the classic series (except for 5, kinda) felt very fresh and different in tone. Just the addition of a couple new maneuvers each game had huge ramifications for the complexity of level design, but still felt totally natural to the game before it
These are some of the most satisfying retro games ever to not only complete but gain mastery of and I wish I could get more people to believe me, haha. I've seen a lot of pushback recently like "Tomb Raider was never good people just wanted triangle tits" or w/e and that's just wrong, sorry. It also had to be a good game, and it was wildly innovative and influential, even before Lara was a media icon or something.
anyway,
