Tomb Raider: Underworld happens to be the eighth title in the Tomb Raider franchise and the third by Crystal Dynamics – the creators of the Legacy of Kain series. Tomb Raider: Underworld also happens to be the best iteration of the classic formula since its inception back in 1996 when Lara Croft first began her occupation of an adventuring archeologist. Taking place after Tomb Raider: Legend (released in Spring 2006), Underworld commits a lot of it’s focus on its puzzle and platforming elements. If you’ve ever been one to fall in love with the duty of figuring out how to solve a grand puzzle, then you’re in for a thrilling ride with Underworld.

Players will start off Underworld in the midst of her burning mansion, the Croft Manor. Through this short tutorial, players will learn the basics of platforming, diving, jumping and much more. The real fun begins after this short segment as players will flash back to Lara’s hunt for treasure on the Mediterranean Sea. Plunging deep into the sea, players will dive off their boat with their scuba diving equipment and come to realization how beautiful of a game Crystal Dynamics has created. I’d dare say that the scuba diving moments are among the best I’ve ever experienced – but then again, not too many games have quality swimming sections either.

Without ruining the plot, the general concept of the storyline runs deep with Norse mythology and Lara’s search for answers about her mother and father. If you’ve played the demo that hit Xbox Live a few weeks ago, then you’ll be familiar with the second level of the game where Lara is seeking out Thor’s Hammer within ruins in Thailand.  Recurring characters such as Zip, Amanda Evert, Alister Fletch, and Jacqueline Natla appear throughout the game to give credence to Tomb Raider: Legend and the rest of the Tomb Raider franchise.

The controls have been steadily improved in comparison to the two previous Tomb Raider titles Crystal Dynamics has worked on. Of the gadgets, the grappling hook is hands down the most useful Lara has at her disposal. She can use it to connect to climb up walls, use it to swing across platforms, and even pull down barricades and doors with it. Though, the grappling hook is only accessible when there are sections provided for it, so don’t think you’ll be able to run into a room and shoot it at every door to pull it down. Players can also crouch and perform rolls to avoid fallen debris, objects or attacks. Through the d-pad, players can access their flashlight, health packs and weapons. Outside of that, the A button is your general action button to interact with items and objects within the environments.

Puzzles are the best asset that Underworld has to offer to its players since the combat isn’t the most enticing you’ll encounter this year – but then again, it didn’t need to be since the puzzles more then compensate the shortcomings in the combat. The puzzles this time around, in effort to avoid spoilers, are truly fantastic. Not only are they epic, but they give you a sense of accomplishment when you put the pieces together to solve them. In the first level alone, you’ll be asked to solve at least three major puzzles each with their own nuisances to overcome. Many of the puzzles have you retrieving items, activating switches by either a press of a button or putting weight on object, using your grappling gun to pull an object down, and much more. If you’re looking for extraordinary puzzles, Tomb Raider: Underworld presents a variety of them to crack and unravel. If you find the puzzles too hard, the PDA that Lara carries around has a Field Assistance feature to help players figure out how to solve a certain puzzle. Lara will tell them what she feels is the best option to go with and players can go off her hints to solve the puzzles.

As mentioned earlier, the combat this time around has been streamlined with players shooting and locking on with the triggers. Players can also execute melee attacks with the Y Button, but they aren’t going to be your best option to eliminate a target. With a small selection of weapons, such as the submachine gun, assault rifle, spear gun, shotgun, dual pistols, and a tranquilizer gun, Lara has enough firepower to take on a small army. Though fighting tigers, sharks, spiders and the Naga (lizardmen) isn’t as crave-worthy as it could’ve been. Lara can target more then one enemy at a time to assist herself with eliminating enemies as fast as possible. The game does the target locking for you though you can switch it on your own by the flick of the right thumb stick. Players can also slow down time via their adrenaline meter they build up through combat to execute more effective attacks and add more damage to their shots.

The last aspect that needs mentioning is the platforming – it’s solid for the most part. Climbing up poles, balancing across beams, sliding across ledges, swinging across fires, and much more can be found within Underworld. The only real problem with the platforming that players will encounter is when Lara freaks out at an edge and the game glitches on trying to figure out what to do. Lara’s feet would often spaz out and she often gets stuck against the edge kicking until I repeatedly pressed the Y or the B Button to escape the glitch. So beware of a few glitches that Crystal Dynamics missed that riddle Lara on what she’d like to do at particular moments where she has the option to drop down and hang onto the edge, leap to a safe alternative ledge, scale the wall and few other platforming options Lara usually can explore.

Overall, Tomb Raider: Underworld is an impressive game with beautiful environments, excellent platforming, and superb puzzles. It’s a title that you should add to your holiday wishlist if you’re looking for a heroine to call your own this winter.

Gameplay: 8.7
The only real hindrance of Underworld has to be the combat, but even then, you shouldn’t be picking up a Tomb Raider title based on its action sequences.

Graphics: 8.5
The water and character models are well done, but not every level received the same amount of detail such as the boat you’ll encounter on level one.

Sound: 8.0
For the most part, the voice-acting and sound effects are spot on with bringing realism to the chaotic world of Lara Croft.

Difficulty: Medium/Hard
To be honest, I died four times in the tutorial alone; this isn’t exactly for newcomers to the adventure genre.

Concept: 8.0
Crystal Dynamics has a vision for Lara Croft and the Tomb Raider series, and Underworld is a continuation of that with a focal point on puzzles and the entertainment of raiding tombs.

Overall: 8.5
The Xbox 360 version of Tomb Raider: Underworld is the way to go for those curious in purchasing the next installment in the series. Xbox Live will play host to two exclusive chapters via download content for Underworld in the form of “Beneath the Ashes” in December and “Lara’s Shadow” in January. Both of them will help extend the replay value of one of the best adventure titles on the Xbox 360 at this current moment. It’s recommended that you take a leap and begin your journey with Lara as she hunts for mythological treasure in Tomb Raider: Underworld.