Given how big the Tomb Raider franchise is, it’s a little odd how often the rights to it have been passed around. Each time it changes hands, it feels like it takes the new custodians time to figure out what they want to do with it. Since Embracer picked up the Tomb Raider rights from Square Enix in 2022, the company has mostly been focused on getting the older games out on modern platforms. This is all leading up to the release of Tomb Raider: Catalyst in 2027, which will be the first completely new entry since Shadow of the Tomb Raider in 2018. The latest effort is this Nintendo Switch 2 port of Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration, the second in what is apparently known as the Survivor trilogy.
Rise of the Tomb Raider first launched as a timed exclusive for the Xbox 360 and Xbox One back in November 2025. After a release on Windows PCs in January 2016, Rise of the Tomb Raider received a PlayStation 4 version in October 2016, with all of the DLC packs up to that point included. Playing off the franchise’s 20th anniversary that same month, this edition was given the subtitle 20 Year Celebration. That this Switch 2 version carries the same name tells you more or less what you can expect with this port, both in terms of what it includes and how it performs. That means you get all of the DLC, which one would expect, and a fairly reliable 30 frames per second framerate at 1080p. In terms of graphical detail, it’s similar to the base PlayStation 4 version.
There were probably ways to make this run better than it does, but it gets the job done in a more satisfactory manner than the previous Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition Switch 2 port did. In terms of new additions, you get HD Rumble, some gyro support (bizarrely not for aiming but for examining treasures), and Joy-Con 2 Mouse support. With how the game performs and the few new features, I can understand not wanting to stick a new subtitle on it. On the other hand, it’s really weird that it’s called a 20 Year Celebration in 2026. Are we celebrating Tomb Raider Legend? Hey, where is that trilogy anyway? Well, it’s just a name. I’m not going to get too worked up about it.
The Tomb Raider Survivor trilogy isn’t every Tomb Raider fan’s cup of tea, but Rise is generally regarded as its high point, no matter how you feel about the whole thing. Lessons were learned from the first release, but there was enough gas left in the basic concept that it still felt relatively fresh. Lara’s more seasoned in this one after her experience in Yamatai, but she’s still dealing with the fallout from that whole mess. Towards that end, she starts chasing down her late father’s final obsession, and as you might expect, things get out of hand pretty quickly. Not much of a game if it all went smoothly, I suppose.
In the broad sense, it all proceeds similarly to how things went in Tomb Raider (2013). You move from one hub-style area to the next, following the story while engaging in whatever side quests you feel like taking on. There’s a little bit of everything in this stew pot. Action, stealth, exploration, puzzles, light survival mechanics, crafting, leveling up, filling out skill trees, and even a little platforming as a treat. Pretty much all of that is improved from the previous game, and there are thankfully far fewer QTE bits. Still not zero. Shame. Beyond the main campaign, there are a handful of modes under the Expeditions option in the main menu to sink some time into. These really add a lot to the game, particularly the Score Attack and Remnant Resistance modes. The former is what it sounds like, while the latter lets you make custom scenarios and share them with other players.
For a game that’s over a decade old, Rise of the Tomb Raider still looks and plays quite well. You can still catch a strong whiff of Uncharted 2: Among Thieves from it, but I don’t really think that’s the worst thing in the world when it’s done this well. The art direction is really strong, the story takes you to a lot of interesting locations, and there are a lot of cool set pieces. At the same time, the gameplay manages to be engaging while also quite smooth. There are a lot of ways to tweak the difficulty, especially as you unlock things in the Expeditions mode, so you can make this as easy or hard on yourself as you prefer. It’s an enjoyable game either way.
If you’re planning on playing mainly in docked mode and have the option of one of the more powerful platforms, I’d probably recommend doing so. With that said, if all you have is a Switch 2, then this is a perfectly decent way to play Rise of the Tomb Raider. My nitpicks are few, really. It would have been nice to at least have a 40 frames per second option if 60 wasn’t doable. I wish there was an option for gyro aiming. It’s odd that the gyro sensor is supported but not usable for that purpose. Apart from that, I don’t have much to gripe about. As much as I love the original Tomb Raider games, I also appreciate the different kind of experience the Survivor trilogy offers. This is that style at its best, and having a good handheld way to dig into its world is awesome.
Provided you played and enjoyed Tomb Raider (2013) on Nintendo Switch 2, you’ll definitely want to check out Rise of the Tomb Raider: 20 Year Celebration. It’s both a better game and a better port, basically one-upping everything that game did in every possible way. The only thing to keep in mind here is that this is closer to the base PlayStation 4 version of the game performance-wise, rather than later versions, which was likely a necessary sacrifice to keep it looking as good as it does even in handheld mode. I’m not sure what Lara Croft’s future looks like, but I’m enjoying these revisits to her past. We’ll meet back here for the inevitable Switch 2 release of Shadow of the Tomb Raider whenever that comes.
Version Tested: Nintendo Switch 2
Review Copy Provided by Aspyr
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