Crystal Dynamics has a good reason for why its next, artifact-scavenging game is called Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, and not something with “Tomb Raider” in the title: this is unlike any other Tomb Raider game to date. According to Crystal Dynamics’ brand director Karl Stewart, “For us, this in between our pillar releases… the reason for calling it Lara Croft and not calling it Tomb Raider is to avoid confusion. We see Tomb Raider as being our big, epic adventure. And this is a great opportunity for Lara Croft fans to try new things.” Different is an understatement; this downloadable-only game uses twin-stick shooter mechanics and bears a stronger resemblance to Too Human than Uncharted 2.
But it’s not all new. The setting and setup aren’t too different: Lara explores the Temple of Light, finds an ancient, powerful artifact (the Mirror of Smoke), and gets attacked by mercenaries. But it turns out the mirror was holding in an evil being called Xolotl, who’d been trapped by the titular Guardian of Light, Totec. Xolotl nabs the mirror, and to make a long story short, Lara teams up with Totec to get it back and re-imprison the evil lord. The temple, with its myriad traps and puzzles will probably feel familiar, but your ability to team up with another player changes things drastically.