Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered review: Lara Croft nostalgia is back - but what else?

Nostalgia can be an incredibly funny thing when it comes to video games.

Revisiting games from yesteryear can really spark a strong dose of it, or it can leave players feeling their formerly favourite games just haven't held up, or are less fun than they remember.

Tomb Raider I-III Remastered was a remaster trilogy of some of the most iconic Lara Croft entries to date and was incredibly faithful to the original games, with better graphics that could be toggled on and off, modernised controls alongside the original ones (which were still tricky to use), a photo mode and all the bonus content from each title.

Developer Aspyr and Crystal Dynamics have teamed up once again for Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered and it's what you'd expect with a handful of new features - the remasters are faithful to the original games in the same way as before.

But for two games in this bundle (Chronicles and Angel of Darkness) that are nowhere near as beloved as the original trio or the fourth entry, that sense of nostalgia, apart from among diehard fans no doubt, feels as though it's waning.

Lara Croft is back in Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered / Screenshot from Aspyr & Crystal Dynamics

Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered consists of The Last Revelation, Chronicles and Angel of Darkness.

Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation first released in 1999 where Croft discovers the lost tomb of the Egyptian God Set, unwittingly unleashing him and fulfilling an ancient prophecy - one that plunges mankind into darkness.

After that came Tomb Raider: Chronicles, the last game in the series that released on the PS1 in 2000, which follows the events of the fourth where Croft is buried in an Egyptian tomb and presumed dead.

The sixth entry was Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness, a 2003 PS2 entry, where Croft is accused of murder and becomes a fugitive on the run while uncovering a sinister conspiracy and searching for ancient artefacts.

There are a few quality of life updates in this remaster trilogy / Screenshot from Aspyr & Crystal Dynamics

As before, Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered features updated graphics that can be toggled on and off, more modern controls, a photo mode and bonus content for all three games.

But this time around there's also a new FlyBy Camera Maker and a number of new animations along with a few new quality of life features, including an on-screen ammo counter and the option to skip cutscenes if players want to get stuck straight into the action.

The original cheat codes are back too.

Once again, modern controls can feel very much at odds with how the levels are designed with them feeling simply unresponsive in some cases, especially with Angel of Darkness, which stays true to the original at least.

It can feel infuriating for those who did not play these games when they first came out or are used to more modern day action adventure games as a lot of patience is required.

The controls in Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered feel simply unresponsive at times / Screenshot from Aspyr & Crystal Dynamics

For those that played and enjoyed Tomb Raider IV-VI, this is a bundle for those fans who will no doubt be pleased Aspyr continues to do a faithful job of remastering the early Tomb Raider titles.

Gamers that picked up the first trilogy to see what it was all about and loved it will likely enjoy these too - for the most part.

Nostalgia seems to be what's really aimed at in these remasters and while that's been largely nailed here, the playability of them doesn't really hold up and the nostalgia element wanes to a certain degree with the fifth and sixth entries not exactly among the best in the Tomb Raider series.

6/10

Elsewhere, check out indy100's review of Avowed and our first look at PGA Tour 2K25.

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