Game review: Rise of the Tomb Raider

A scene from the Xbox One video game, Rise of the Tomb Raider.

Put down your Pip-Boy and pick up Rise - you'll like what you see, writes Chris Schulz.

Lara Croft is dangling from an old Viking ship, frozen vertically into a giant ice wall. At the top of it is a room full of maps, weapons and treasure, but first she has to navigate her way along a rotten sail mast, jump on to a dangling anchor and smash it into an ice wall. She has to do it twice - three times if she drops into the icy water below.

That incredible sequence isn't even part of Croft's main mission in Rise of the Tomb Raider, the exquisite, daring and really quite dark sequel to 2013's well-rounded reboot. It's just one of the many side missions, which means Rise can take up to 30 hours to complete if you're taking part in every detour that comes Croft's way.

It's worth taking your time. Like those first three classic instalments on the PlayStation 1, there's still something special about a game focused around the female adventurer that lets you hunt through craggy ruins and ancient temples, zipline across stunning scenery, search every nook and cranny, then rewards you with secret doors, extra resources and buried treasure.

Beautifully paced and a delight to play, Rise is so good that it's easy to forget the snowy clifftops, bushy forests, flooded ruins and flowing rivers deliver some of the best sights seen on the Xbox One.

Picking up the action a year on, Rise finds Croft questioning her own motives and battling the crooked Trinity crowd while following in the footsteps of her father. From the game's opening scenes, she's struggling, staggering up a snowy mountainside shivering from the cold, and nearly taken out by an avalanche that represents the weight of expectation on her shoulders.

She's not just battling the past: in Rise, Croft faces everything from lumbering wolves, giant grizzly bears and masked Russian soldiers in the occasionally dodgy Call of Duty-style shoot out.

Mostly, though, Rise is a blast. It's a brave franchise that can take on the behemoth that is Fallout 4, but by choosing the same release date, developers Crystal Dynamics showed almost unbelievable confidence in this edition of Croft's 20-year adventuring career. They have every right to be proud.

If you get a chance to put down the Pip-Boy, pick up Rise. You might find you like it even more.

Game: Rise of the Tomb Raider
Platforms: Xbox One
Rating: R16
Verdict: Lara has never looked better.