Although the original Tomb Raider trilogy is well known for its massive influence on the gaming industry, specifically in how it set the template for the action-adventure genre, they have also become renowned for being extremely difficult at times. While all three games are fairly manageable in how they play, there are a few specific areas that drastically ramp up the challenge. Whether it was through the enemy types, environmental hazards, or simply just the level being too difficult to navigate, there are definitely a handful of memorable areas that longtime fans will remember all too well because of how brutal they could be.

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It's fair to say that developers Core Design never shied away from testing the player's skills and intuitions with their Tomb Raider games, and with the brand new remastered trilogy, newcomers to the series will now have the chance to experience these tricky titles for themselves. When it comes to overall challenge though, these levels below from the first three games take the cake for being the most unforgiving, but also the most satisfying to complete.

6 Tomb Raider - NatIa's Mines

Full Of Brutally Difficult Platforming Sections

When it comes to platforming, NatIa's Mines in the first Tomb Raider game is without a doubt one of the hardest areas. To make her way through the dark and dreary mines, Lara must jump across plenty of dangerous gaps, which can be a little trickier than it sounds due to the clunky controls, while also having to deal with a few enemies along the way, who are always hiding in the most obscure of places.

There's also a gigantic lava pit that the player will need to try and avoid while leaping across the multiple platforms, meaning that if they make a slight slip-up, a Game Over screen will shortly follow. Pair this with random boulders that hurl themselves across the environment to catch Lara off guard, and it results in a pretty challenging area overall, full of nasty traps and surprises.

5 Tomb Raider 3 - Thames Wharf

A Simple Mistake Can Force The Player To Start From Scratch

Although there are plenty of obstacles and enemies in Thames Wharf that make it a very tricky area to navigate, all of this is made far worse because of how incredibly dark certain parts of the level can be. This means that missing a jump by a few inches is extremely easy, since it can be hard at times to figure out where Lara's actually going to move and land when she's flipping around.

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The level itself also features quite a few irritating enemy types who can slowly pick away at Lara's health, especially the crows, which can be difficult to spot since they make barely any noise. While venturing through Thames Warf, players will also need to watch out for the many trap rooms that are placed around the environment, so it's advised to take things slow to avoid getting skewered or burnt to a crisp.

The amount of verticality in this level does make it a tremendous amount of fun to run through on subsequent playthroughs, but that first time can definitely be an arduous challenge, especially for anyone who tries running straight to the end rather than taking their time.

4 Tomb Raider 3 - Lud's Gate

The Underwater Maze Is One Of The Most Brutal Areas In The Series' History

Lud's Gate is by far and away the longest level in Tomb Raider 3, and potentially, the entire trilogy, with it being packed full of shortcuts and secret items that players can get their hands on if they make the right choices. Because a lot of the doors in this level require specific switches to be pressed before they open, it can make it all too easy to move through an area, only to then have to go all the way back to try and find the correct one, which can be a hard task in and of itself because of how small and obscure they often are.

It also feels at times that the developers were intentionally doing all they could from a level design standpoint to make Lud's Gate as absurdly unforgiving as possible, with a prime example of this being the underwater maze, which is full of levers and doors that can be an absolute nightmare to find. There are also quite a few very difficult jumps scattered throughout the level which can easily lead to a death, especially when moving back and forth between the Sphinx. The immense challenge presented by Lud's Gate has actually made it somewhat of a popular level for speedrunners to see how fast they can complete it without dying, which just goes to show how difficult it can be for a newcomer who isn't aware of the layout or structure of the level before jumping into it.

3 Tomb Raider 2 - The Deck

Packed Full Of Dangerous Enemies And Obscure Key Items That Can Be Very Tricky To Find

Although The Deck isn't technically that big as an area, what makes the level so long is how much backtracking the player will need to do to find the necessary key items that are needed to progress. This level involves a lot of swimming, but because Lara can only hold her breath for so long, and the fact that there are deadly sharks roaming the waters, it makes actually getting between parts of the level very risky.

Just like with most levels in Tomb Raider 2, the entire area is also ridden with gung-ho enemies who will gladly charge at Lara while firing off their pistols and shotguns, and considering that they're always hiding behind a corner, they can easily get the jump on Lara if she's running around too quickly. So long as players carefully plan their journey, and react in time to the relentless enemies that are thrown Lara's way, they'll be able to complete The Deck in one piece, but this level is far from a walk in the park.

2 Tomb Raider 2 - 40 Fathoms

Lara Is Tasked With Navigating Her Way Through A Shark-Infested Ocean, And That's Just In The First Few Moments

40 Fathoms may be fairly short as a level when players know exactly where to go and what to do, but things aren't quite as easy on the first go around. The level begins by placing Lara in the middle of the ocean with seemingly no indication of where to go, forcing the player to quickly find a way to reach the surface before her stamina bar reaches zero. While doing this, Lara is also chased by ravenous flesh-hungry sharks which add a whole extra layer of intensity to the level, and this is all only in the first few minutes.

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Once Lara actually manages to get out of the water, she must then go through several time-sensitive puzzles while also steering clear of the trigger-happy soldiers who occasionally pop up from time to time. Because of how long and windy a lot of the routes are in 40 Fathoms, it means that making the occasional wrong turn and ending up in a completely different area is pretty much a given, so it's definitely not a bad idea to keep a map of the level to the side while going through it considering how easy it is to get lost.

1 Tomb Raider 3 - Lost City Of Tinnos

Features Plenty Of Deadly Traps, Tricky Platforming Sections, And Some Of The Toughest Enemies In The Series

During her pursuit of the R.X Tech scientist Mark Willard, Lara eventually comes across a mysterious lost Antarctic city that has seemingly been completely abandoned. The level starts in a giant icy cave where Lara must use multiple levers to slowly open up several doors to progress, but things soon become much more difficult when the 5 button puzzle appears, a puzzle so difficult that it's still not exactly clear how someone is supposed to figure it out without a guide.

Navigating through the cave and its many tight corridors can already take a lot of time and effort, but this isn't even mentioning the biggest hurdle of the level; the Tinnos Mutants. These terrifying creatures can take quite a bit of punishment before they're finally defeated, and because Lara encounters them on a terrifyingly narrow bridge, it means that their large swinging attacks can easily knock her off. The level also includes some of the scariest platforming sections in the entire franchise, one of the most infamous being a section where Lara must hop between invisible platforms that are being bombarded by flame traps, which gives a good idea of how brutal this level can be to complete.

Tomb Raider 1-3 Remastered Starring Lara Croft

Platform(s)

PC , PS5 , PS4 , Switch , Xbox Series X , Xbox Series S , Xbox One

Released

February 14, 2024

Developer(s)

Aspyr , Crystal Dynamics

Genre(s)

Action-Adventure