Lara Croft GO Review

Developer: Square Enix
Price: $4.99
Version Reviewed: 1.0.47768
App Reviewed on: iPhone 5

Graphics / Sound Rating:
Game Controls Rating:
Gameplay Rating:
Re-use / Replay Value Rating:

Overall Rating:

When you start playing Lara Croft GO, you’ll feel this urge to go quickly. After all, it’s Lara Croft. You’ve spent years rushing through tombs with her, right? That’s probably the worst thing you could do while playing Lara Croft GO. It’s a turn-based puzzle game where you need to carefully plan each move and, often, many moves ahead. It works remarkably well.

Each level offers a grid based layout. You swipe to move Lara around, with her automatically climbing up things as and when an opportunity arises. In turn, if there are moving obstacles such as a circular saw, they move every time that she moves. The trick here is timing and planning ahead in a way that means you don’t get trapped or killed. Early levels introduce this concept relatively gradually, but you’ll soon find yourself having to scout ahead with a level before truly committing to something.

It’s a challenging game but an entertaining one. While not hugely long in length, Lara Croft GO does a good job of introducing new elements to pique your interest. Snakes and spier must be overcome, while you manipulate levers and pillars in order to get ahead. It’s rarely overwhelmingly presented but it’ll keep you on your toes.

Lara Croft GO is consistently quite delightful to look at with pastel themed visuals and some neat little tweaks, such as Lara’s ability to perform a handstand while climbing by throwing in an extra swipe. You can pick up new outfits too, providing you find sufficient relics along the way.

It’s a dramatic change of pace for the normally hyperactive Lara, but it’s a great one. Where the franchise once struggled with awkward controls, Lara Croft GO does a great job of providing an experience that works on a touch screen device.