Lara Croft has seen some weird stuff. We’re talking dinosaurs in Peru and literal soul-sucking artifacts in Siberia. But honestly? Nothing in the reboot trilogy quite matches the fever dream energy of Shadow of the Tomb Raider: The Nightmare. It’s the fifteenth DLC pack released for the 2018 title, and even years later, it feels like a bizarre outlier in the "Survivor" timeline.
You remember the vibe of Shadow. It was heavy. It was dark. It was Lara coming to terms with the fact that her obsession with Trinity basically triggered a Mayan apocalypse. Then, the developers at Eidos-Montréal decided to take that guilt and turn it into a literal ghost story.
Facing the literal ghosts of Croft Manor
Most players expected more jungle exploration. Instead, the "Path of Fear" mission starts with Lara encountering a series of cryptic clues in San Juan that lead her into a hallucinatory version of her own childhood home. It’s a trip.
You aren't just shooting mercenaries here. You’re navigating a psychological landscape where the walls of Croft Manor are literally decaying and shifting around you. It’s a clever nod to the "Blood Ties" DLC from Rise of the Tomb Raider, but way more sinister. The game forces you to confront the people she’s lost—not as sentimental memories, but as nagging, accusatory shadows. It’s effective because it taps into the core of Lara’s character: her trauma.
If you’ve played the main campaign, you know Lara is a bit of a disaster, emotionally speaking. The Nightmare doesn't shy away from that. It basically says, "Hey, you know all those people you've killed and the friends you've let down? Let's go talk to them."
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The Howl of the Monkey Gods Challenge Tomb
Once you get past the trippy narrative setup, you hit the meat of the content: the challenge tomb. It’s called Howl of the Monkey Gods, and it’s arguably one of the better-designed puzzles in the post-launch lineup.
The scale is massive. You’re dealing with giant, swinging pendulums and lethal traps that feel a bit more "classic" than the physics puzzles found in the base game. It’s loud, too. The sound design uses these low-frequency growls and mechanical groans that keep you on edge while you're trying to time your jumps.
A lot of people complained that Shadow was too easy on the platforming. This tomb disagrees. One mistimed grapple and Lara is toast. It requires a level of precision that reminds you why the series was famous for making players hold their breath during a simple jump.
New gear for the apocalypse
Of course, it’s a Tomb Raider DLC, so you get loot. Completing the mission unlocks the Fear Incarnate outfit. It’s a bit bulky—thick hides and bones—but it looks cool in the muddy environments of Paititi.
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More importantly, you get the The Grip of Fear weapon. It’s a secondary axe that focuses on knockback. If you’re playing on the "Deadly Obsession" difficulty, having a tool that gives you a bit of breathing room during those frantic melee scrambles is a godsend. There’s also the White Breath skill, which creates a cloud of hallucinogenic vapor when you use a fear arrow, making enemies turn on each other in a chaotic, coughing mess.
Why this DLC actually matters for the lore
Look, most DLC is fluff. You play it once, you get the trophy, you delete the game. But Shadow of the Tomb Raider: The Nightmare tries to do something different by bridging the gap between the "Reboot Lara" and the "Classic Lara."
By the end of the 2018 game, Lara is supposed to be the "Tomb Raider." But what does that mean? The Nightmare suggests that being the Tomb Raider isn't just about the gear; it's about the mental fortitude to face your own failures. It’s a bridge. It’s the moment she stops running from the ghosts of her parents and starts running toward her own destiny.
The inclusion of Uchu and the other Paititi rebels in the narrative also helps ground the experience. It makes the world feel inhabited, rather than just a series of rooms for Lara to blow up.
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Technical hiccups and the Paititi problem
It wasn't all perfect, obviously. If you’re playing the Definitive Edition now, the transition into the DLC missions can feel a bit clunky. Since these were originally released as monthly "drops," they don't always flow perfectly with the main quest’s pacing.
There’s also the issue of the "forced" costumes in Paititi. You spend half the game locked into local tribal gear for "stealth" reasons, which means you can’t even see your fancy new DLC outfits for a huge chunk of the playtime. It’s a frustrating design choice that the community has been vocal about since launch. Luckily, if you’re playing the PC version, there are mods to bypass the outfit restriction, which I highly recommend if you want to actually see the Fear Incarnate gear you worked for.
Is it worth a replay?
Honestly, yeah. Especially if you skipped the season pass back in the day. The "Nightmare" mission offers a tonal shift that the rest of the game lacks. It’s spooky, it’s personal, and the tomb itself is a genuine challenge.
If you're going back into the game, try to play this mission right after the "Cenote" section. The horror vibes of the Cenote—with those terrifying creatures—transition perfectly into the psychological horror of Lara’s nightmare. It makes the whole experience feel like a cohesive descent into madness before the final act of the game kicks off.
Next steps for your playthrough:
To get the most out of this content, make sure you have the Definitive Edition installed, as it integrates all seven DLC tombs directly into the world map. Navigate to the San Juan region to trigger the "Path of Fear" questline. If you're looking for a challenge, attempt the Howl of the Monkey Gods in "Score Attack" mode from the main menu; it forces you to master the movement mechanics in a way the story mode never does. Finally, equip the White Breath skill early—it’s the most effective crowd control tool in Lara’s arsenal for the late-game Trinity encounters.