Downloadable add-ons for store-bought games are rarely ambitious. We see many new map or costume packs that offer a bit of variety for an older experience, but don’t often get content that makes significant changes to the original game’s formula. It is in this area that Lara’s Shadow—the second and final expansion pack for Tomb Raider: Underworld—breaks the mold a bit. Shadow includes a number of new features not found in previous entries of the series, and even grants you special powers that change up the feel of the platforming and combat. But are these changes for the better?
The biggest difference in this expansion is that you are not actually playing as Lara Croft. In Tomb Raider: Underworld, Lara had to battle a number of supernatural threats from Norse mythology, resulting in an evil version of the famed tomb raider being created. Lara’s Shadow takes place near the end of Underworld and shows you what the villainous Croft clone was up to while the real Lara was finishing her adventure.
As soon as the level begins, we are told about Dark Lara’s “shadow powers,” which allow her to slow down time, move much faster, and put a little extra “oomph” into her guns and fists. Hand-to-hand attacks have been implemented—a first for the series—and these moves end up being more fun to use than Lara’s guns ever were. You now have punch and kick buttons, and each can be combined with your “shadow power” to unleash a number of devastating attacks. While an improvement on what was available before, the combat still isn’t that compelling overall, and I found it best to just run past the bad guys as often as possible. You are only forced to fight twice in Lara’s Shadow, so those who prefer to explore more than brawl will be able to avoid most of the conflict.
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