Best Games of 2015: Rise of the Tomb Raider

Xbox One fans were treated to an amazing sequel to an already stellar reboot. Rise of the Tomb Raider devs basically looked at the first game as a bunch of dials, and turned them all up to 11 for the sequel.

The keyword for the sequel is "more." More equipment to collect and upgrade, more tombs to explore, more puzzles to solve, and more locations to visit.

This time, Lara isn't stranded in a remote location by accident, she's trying to finish her father's research, which revolves around finding the fountain of youth. But her exploits still lead her to a ton of dangerous, life-threatening situations, that will make her unleash her survival instincts once again.

Combat feels a lot tighter this time around, and certainly full of variety. With Lara's ability to craft makeshift bombs on the fly, the tight gunplay, or even just sticking to her tried and true bow, disposing of enemies feels very visceral.

Then there are the explorable hub worlds, littered with side missions, hidden items and secret locations, that are just waiting to be explored at your liesure. The game never forces you to do so, but given how fantastic these locations are, you'd be doing yourself a disservice if you skipped out.

Oh and since it's a Tomb Raider game, expect to get sidetracked in a slew of new tombs, much more than in the previous game.

Check out our Review