Lara Croft has a complicated history with Sony. Honestly, the release of Rise of the Tomb Raider PlayStation 4 editions was one of the most controversial moments in the mid-2010s gaming scene. You might remember the drama. Microsoft announced a timed exclusivity deal at Gamescom 2014, and the internet basically melted down. PlayStation fans felt betrayed. Lara started on the PS1, after all. But when the game finally landed on the PS4 a full year later, it wasn’t just a port. It was the "20 Year Celebration" edition, and it turned out to be the definitive way to play.
The game is gorgeous. Even now, looking back at the Siberian wilderness, the tech holds up. Crystal Dynamics pushed the Foundation engine to its limits. You have these massive, sprawling hubs like the Soviet Installation and Geothermal Valley. They aren't just empty spaces. They’re packed with Byzantine coins, hidden caves, and those intricate "Challenge Tombs" that the 2013 reboot was sorely lacking.
The Year-Long Wait for Rise of the Tomb Raider PlayStation 4
Waiting sucks. There is no other way to put it. While Xbox players were climbing icy cliffs in late 2015, PS4 owners were left checking their watches. But that delay had a massive silver lining. When the Rise of the Tomb Raider PlayStation 4 version launched in October 2016, it arrived as a massive bundle. You didn't just get the base game; you got every single piece of DLC, new outfits, and a whole new story chapter called Blood Ties.
Blood Ties is a bit of a trip. It’s mostly a "walking simulator" set inside Croft Manor. You aren't shooting mercenaries or dodging traps. Instead, you’re looking at old letters and childhood drawings. It’s quiet. It's grounded. It actually gives Lara some much-needed character depth regarding her father, Richard Croft, and her mother's disappearance. For many, this was the highlight of the PS4 package because it felt like a love letter to the franchise's history.
Then there was the "Lara’s Nightmare" mode. It turned Croft Manor into a zombie-infested gauntlet. It’s weirdly difficult. One minute you’re reading a diary entry about family heritage, and the next, you're blasting glowing skulls with a shotgun. It showed that Crystal Dynamics was willing to experiment with the tone.
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Technical Performance and Pro Enhancements
If you played this on a standard PS4 back in the day, you got a solid 1080p experience at 30 frames per second. It was stable. It looked great. But the real magic happened for the early adopters of the PS4 Pro. Rise of the Tomb Raider PlayStation 4 Pro support was a showcase feature for Sony’s mid-gen refresh. You had choices. That’s something we take for granted now, but in 2016, having a "High Frame Rate" mode that pushed toward 60fps or a "4K Enriched" mode was a big deal.
The 4K mode didn't always hit a native 3840x2160, but using checkerboard rendering, it looked incredibly sharp on a big screen. The textures on Lara’s parka—the way the snow clings to the fabric and then melts when she stands near a campfire—is still a benchmark for environmental detail.
Survival is More Than Just a Gimmick
The gameplay loop in Rise of the Tomb Raider PlayStation 4 is tighter than the first game. In the 2013 reboot, Lara felt a bit too much like a victim turned accidental Rambo. Here, she’s an aggressor. She’s searching for the Divine Source, an artifact promised to grant immortality. She’s hunting Trinity, the shadowy organization that’s been stalking her family for years.
The crafting system actually matters. You aren't just picking up "salvage" anymore. You need hardwood for arrows, hides for pouches, and herbs for healing. If you play on the "Survivor" or "Extreme Survivor" difficulty, the game changes. You can’t just tank bullets. You have to use poison arrows to thin out crowds or lure enemies toward explosive red barrels. It’s tactical. It’s brutal.
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One of the coolest additions to the PS4 version was the "Endurance Mode" co-op. You and a friend could spawn into a procedurally generated forest. You had to stay warm and stay fed. If your hunger meter hit zero, you died. If you froze, you died. It turned Tomb Raider into a legitimate survival-roguelike. It’s surprisingly addictive, mostly because the stakes feel real when you’re deep into a run and a leopard jumps you in the dark.
Addressing the Criticism: Is the Story Too Predictable?
Look, not everything is perfect. Some critics, like those at Eurogamer or IGN at the time, pointed out that the plot beats are a bit familiar. You have the obsessed villain (Konstantin), the mysterious local tribe (The Remnant), and the supernatural twist in the final act. It follows the "Uncharted" formula pretty closely.
Lara herself can also be a bit... intense. She spends a lot of the game whispering to herself or gasping in pain. It’s a specific stylistic choice. Some people love the grit; others find it a bit much after twenty hours. However, Camilla Luddington’s performance is objectively strong. She brings a vulnerability to Lara that wasn't there in the 90s era. This Lara is brilliant and capable, but she's also clearly traumatized.
VR Support and the 20 Year Celebration
We have to talk about the VR. The Rise of the Tomb Raider PlayStation 4 release included PSVR support for the Blood Ties chapter. By today's standards, it’s a bit blurry. The resolution on the original PSVR headset wasn't great. But being able to actually stand in the library of Croft Manor and look up at the towering shelves was a dream come true for long-time fans. It was a gimmick, sure, but a well-executed one.
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The "20 Year Celebration" also threw in classic skins. You could play the entire modern, hyper-realistic game as the low-poly "Pointy Lara" from 1996. Seeing that blocky character model interacting with high-fidelity snow physics is hilarious. It’s a self-aware nod to the fans who have been there since the beginning.
Why You Should Play It Now
Even with Shadow of the Tomb Raider closing out the trilogy, many fans consider Rise to be the sweet spot. It has the best balance of combat, exploration, and puzzles. The "Baba Yaga: The Temple of the Witch" DLC, which is included on the PS4 disc, is genuinely creepy. It uses hallucinogenic pollen to create some of the most surreal visuals in the series.
If you’re looking to pick this up in 2026, it’s usually incredibly cheap during PSN sales. It’s often bundled for under $10. For the amount of content you get—the main campaign, three major DLCs, the survival modes, and the VR experience—it’s arguably one of the best values on the platform.
Actionable Steps for New Players
To get the most out of your time with Lara in Siberia, keep these tips in mind:
- Prioritize the "Intuitive" Skill: Under the Survivor tree, get the skill that highlights collectibles through walls early. It saves you hours of wandering around aimlessly in the dark.
- Don't Ignore the Side Missions: The Remnant NPCs give you gear like the lockpick and the submachine gun suppressor. If you skip these, you’re making the game unnecessarily harder.
- Play the Tombs: Unlike the main path, the optional tombs actually require some brainpower. They also reward you with unique abilities, like the "Iron Grip," which makes climbing significantly faster.
- Adjust Your Settings on PS5: If you’re playing on a PlayStation 5, the game runs via backwards compatibility. Use the "High Frame Rate" mode. It locks to a buttery smooth 60fps, which makes the frantic combat encounters feel much more responsive than the original 30fps cap.
The Rise of the Tomb Raider PlayStation 4 experience is a rare case where a delayed release actually benefited the players. It forced the developers to pack the disc with everything they had. Whether you’re a trophy hunter looking for a challenging Platinum or just someone who wants to climb some mountains and shoot a bow, this game remains a high-water mark for the action-adventure genre. It’s gritty, it’s big, and honestly, it’s just a lot of fun.