Not many game franchises manage to ascend to the status of ‘iconic’, but Tomb Raider is undoubtedly one of them. Despite the original trilogy being released for multiple platforms, Lara Croft quickly became synonymous with the PS1, standing toe-to-toe with Crash Bandicoot as one of the console’s mascots. Since then, of course, Lara has been practically everywhere, yet 2024 marks the first occasion the original trilogy has been fully revamped for modern audiences via Tomb Raider I-III Remastered.

We say ‘revamped’, but these are the same games you know and love from the late ‘90s, albeit with the additional expansions included for the first time on console. What developer Aspyr has done here, however, is give all three titles a much-needed lick of paint, boosting the visuals significantly while adding in an optional modern control scheme for those who might not get on with the ageing ‘tank’ controls — more on that later. Smaller additions include a surprisingly robust photo mode and health bars for boss encounters.

First up, the visuals. This is the biggest change that’s been made to the trilogy, and goodness, is it a welcome one. What’s great is that you can flip between the OG graphics and the modern remaster at the touch of a button, much like 343 Industries’ Halo: Anniversary and Lizardcube's Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap. When you cast your eyes on the revamped graphics for the first time, you’d be forgiven for thinking that this is how the games have always looked, but flipping back to the original style demonstrates just how much of an upgrade the compilation has received.

Everything’s been given a touch-up, including character models, environmental assets, textures, lighting, and menu screens. Not only that, but the new visuals also come with an upgraded frame rate, allowing all three games to run at a silky smooth 60fps, while flipping back to the OG graphics halves this. We’re especially appreciative of the frame rate boost, as it makes the somewhat archaic gameplay feel more manageable and fresh.

Granted, the visual upgrade doesn’t always work in the games’ favour; there are some areas where the revamped lighting makes environments appear darker than the original releases, while others come across much brighter. The darker areas can make navigation trickier than it needs to be, and we found that switching back to the original visuals helped us find our way. Had we been unable to do this, we might have had to resort to some glances at a YouTube walkthrough. It's not ideal and perhaps a bit more consistency across old and new would have been beneficial.