Piece of Cake: February 2016

Well, it has been quite a bit since I posted anything, and I appreciate all of the patience you guys have. But you're not hear to read my apologies, so here we go with Piece of Cake's FIRST video game review of 2016!

T O M B R A I D E R

D E F I N I T I V E E D I T I O N

Video game reviews are blue, so don't worry about the sudden color change.

Lara Croft is a 21 year old archaeologist who is looking for the lost island of Yamatai, an ancient kingdom off the coast of Japan in an ocean liner, the Endurance. The crew includes:

Captain of the ship: Conrad Roth

His first mate:Angus Grimaldi, aka called Grim

Head Archaeologist: Dr. James Whitman

Lara's Best Friend: Samantha Nishimura

Joslin Reyes

Jonah Maiava

Everything's going dandy until the crew gets into a dispute about which way to go to get to Yamatai. Whitman wants to go in the typical way that past archaeologists have gone, but Lara begs

to differ. She has studied ancient texts and is suggesting a different route, the way into the Dragon's Triangle, more dangerous than the Bermuda Triangle.

She wants to go that way because no ship has ever returned, and there's legends of Himiko being able to control the storms of Yamatai. Roth agrees. He was a good friend of Lara's father, and loves Lara like a daughter. Plus, Lara has a point, even though it is a far stretch.

They head into the storm and are shipwrecked. Here, Lara is separated from the rest of the crew. And this is where the adventure begins. I'll get straight to it, you have to destroy the body that is holding the soul of Himiko in order to stop the storms so you can escape the island.

Play through a hostile environment filled with wolves, the Solarii (Himiko's bodygaurds), and the other survivors on the island trying to revive Himiko. Upgrade your weapons! Your bow and arrows, pistol, World War 2 Assault Rifle with a Grenade Launcher attached, and Pump Action Shotgun are all ideal tools for your survival, and you'll need every last one of them.
Make sure you wisely upgrade your Brawler Skills, Hunting Skills, and your Survival Skills, as they will come in handy when coming into contact with the other survivors of the island. I'd

say that you HEAVILY upgrade your Brawler and Survival Skills. The Hunting Skills will come in handy when you need a better stability when aiming your bow and other weapons.
But definitely make sure that you are strong Melee wise, as you'll get into a lot of Melee brawls, and if you're underprepared, you're going to have a lot of frustrating episodes where you can't get past those one or two levels that shouldn't be that difficult.
This is truly a great game, and I'd recommend it for anyone who's looking for a good adventure that nicely balances puzzles, battles, and discovery to make a vast open world that is worth exploring after the primary story is done.

Ratings:
Story-line: 9/10 Arrows- The story is engaging and interesting. I definitely had a blast walking through it with Lara. And the fact that Himiko and Yamatai are real places is really satisfying, because it feels like you're actually solving an archaeological mystery! The only thing is that you try to get rescued twice, and both attempts fail. It's really aggravating especially when you had to climb up so many hillsides and rocks to get to that one blasted tower just to have it destroyed, and then you get ambushed by a bunch of bozos with arrows and rifles! But other than that, it's an awesome story. It has a real satisfying ending, too, which is always a plus.
Graphics: 8.5/10 Shotgun Casings- I know there's a lotta folks out there that are in for the graphics. Personally, I just want a quality game. But for you graphics fanatics, this game has stunning visuals. The people look almost real, and the different environments can be haunting if you stay in them too long without a torch. When you come out looking out across the island at the different mountains and valleys, it truly is breathtaking. Soak it all in, because in a few moments, you'll be getting shot at again.
Overall: 9/10- Do the average of the previous two ratings and round up because 5 and up, bump it up! I keep saying this, but I really enjoyed this game. Everything about it was so satisfying and welcoming. I can't wait to play RISE OF THE TOMB RAIDER. Apparently, it was better than this one. So definitely looking forward to another adventure with our beloved and beautiful Lara Croft.

T O M B R A I D E R

D E F I N I T I V E E D I T I O N