Tomb Raider 1 - 3 Remastered PC Collector's Edition - Was It Worth It?

I am not one to normally buy (what I call) over the top and oversized collector's editions, but Tomb Raider 1 (1996) is my most favourite game of all time and I could not resist purchasing the collector's edition of the first three remastered games in the series.

I purchased the Collector's Edition from the Tomb Raider Gear Store and it was imported from the United States to Scotland. I saved some money from buying it directly from Limited Run as when I bought it the store offered 3 different shipping options and I was able to use the code CROFT20 (a widely offered code) for a discount offer.

After a year and a half of waiting it finally arrived.

Do I regret spending money for such a big collector's edition? The answer kind of is yes and no at the same time.

Below I have photographed the various parts and trinkets that come with the collector's edition and I will detail my impressions.

I do like having a physical collection but I am not the kind of person that wants to 'display' my physical media collection as I am happy enough to have my stuff in drawers etc hidden away, but within easy reach. The only real display section is my Tomb Raider section as the original Core Design Tomb games are very meaningful to me.

On the shelf with TR 1 - 3 Remastered collectors box I also have the Legend era of Tomb Raider on that shelf, but below the shelf and on top of my bookcase I have a section devoted to the Core Design developed Tomb Raiders but only from Tomb Raider II - VI. This is because the first Tomb Raider is my favourite and I have another section on a different shelf dedicated to variants of the first Tomb Raider game.

Here the bottom shelf has the deluxe PAL versions of the Remasters and the original PAL games on PlayStation and Dreamcast in chronological order. The Japanese versions of TR 2, 3 and 4 are also there.

Here is a separate shelf with my versions of Tomb Raider I. Saturn version was the very first version I played. The PC, PlayStation and NGage versions are also there. The shelf includes a custom cover for the fan version of PC only Unfinished Business that was ported for the PS1, which can be played on chipped PS1 consoles or through PC. I also have the Scion in this section which is the artefact of the first Tomb Raider. I very nearly never bought the Scion as it is actually based on the version in the Tomb Raider Reloaded game (which I have never played) and not quite the original design, but then I saw it on sale and I thought I might as well buy it as it is probably the closest we are going to get to an official release of the original.

You may find it funny, but a big reason I wanted the Collector's Edition was because of the design of the outer box. I like the minimalist design where we just have the title of the game and three Roman numerals taking center stage. The ancient symbols surrounding the box make it feel like the box is something you would find in an old temple and carved into the stone walls. The symbols are writing the would find in Peru levels of the game such as The Tomb of Qualopec. 

I was hoping the quality of the cardboard box would have been higher similar to board game quality as it feels like the design has just been painted onto a parcel box.

I have hoping that Tomb Raider VI - VI Remastered Collector's Edition would have a similar cover, but maybe with Egyptian Hieroglyphs instead in reference to Tomb Raider IV: The Last Revelation. Sadly, the cover of the collectors edition for VI - VI was disappointing as it just seems to be a picture of Lara Croft from Tomb Raider VI: The Angel of Darkness - I do think it is a nice render, but I was hoping for a similar image to the I - III collector's edition.

Tomb Raider IV - VI Collector's Edition

Back to the I - 3 Collector's Edition - I bought the PC version as I was intrigued that the game came on a USB stick rather than a disc like the console versions, if anything I thought it would be nice to have an official USB that came with the game and had the Tomb Raider Logo on it. I was surprised when I plugged it into my PC as I did not have to install it and it ran straight from the USB, although it had a slow start up and it was also slow when transitioning between games in the menu. I copied the files to my PC and this seemed to fix the issue.

Another reason I wanted the Collector's Edition was to have a physical version of the soundtrack for the first three games - I have always wished that an official CD was released for the original games and now I have the chance to own one. The first Tomb Raider music was some of the first music I heard in videogames where I was wowed that the music could sound like it came from real instruments.

Overall, I am happy with the soundtrack, but there are a few strange decisions - the CD starts rather out of order with certain ambient sounds rather and has some missing tracks, but they can easily be found online or you can buy Nathan McCree's Tomb Raider Suite album from The Tomb Raider Suite shop or find it on streaming services.

The box also included mini figures of Lara Croft based on her three games and they were presented in these small boxes that were based on the original American PC trapezoid releases. In the picture here is what they look like closed. Posters for the games were also included for each game: Tomb Raider Gold (known as Unfinished Business outside America), TR II and TR III. I do not care about posters so I kept them sealed.

The above picture shows what they look like when the front flap is lifted. The TR 1 figure seems to be squint. I do not really care about figures, but I thought because of the size they look kind of cute, but I do not plan on taking them out of the boxes and displaying them. Some people were complaining that the faces look bad - I kind of agree, but the figures are so small it does not matter that much to me.

Normally trading cards is something I have not cared about since I used to collect them as a child, but I quite like these ones in the picture above as they are the remastered versions of the loading screens in the first three games that are presented before certain levels within the game and I think from an art perspective that they look quite nice.

The box also came with a Steelbook which looks nice, but perhaps is not as good as the deluxe Steelbook version which has some gold elements and feels a little more premium than the one in the collector's edition and because of the price you would think that would be the other way around. I have a few Steelbooks now for various games, but I have never been a huge fan of them - I guess it is nice to have one at least.

When you open the Steelbook it has a nice picture of Lara in the Antarctica from Tomb Raider III, I actually prefer the insert picture of the collector's edition over the deluxe one which is also a nice looking picture of Lara on the Great Wall of China from Tomb Raider II.

The Exploration Map book contains a layout of each level in an isometric view which I was also fascinated with when I was young. I actually have one of these already as it came with the deluxe version but it is nice to have a back up version.

Finally, the main reason many people wanted the collector's edition was for the Shadowbox of Lara's iconic dual pistols with a pixelated look to it to honour the early 3D era when Tomb Raider was at its most popular in UK pop culture.

While I read a number of comments that were hugely excited about the shadowbox I could not help feel a little disappointed. I would much rather the shadowbox have contained one of the artefacts that you find in the games such as the Scion or the Dagger of Xian etc. Knowing that the shadow box was probably the reason for the size of the collector's edition box and likely the main reason for the high cost, I still decided to buy the collector's edition for the other items included.

Overall, was it worth buying the Collector's Edition to me personally?

Let me break it down by item:

1. Outer Box: Yes
2. USB Stick: Yes
3. Soundtrack: Yes
4. Posters: No
5. Mini Figures: Maybe
6. Trading Cards: Maybe
7. Steelbook: Maybe
8. Map Book: Yes
9. Shadowbox: No

Yes: 4 items                                  No: 2 items                          Maybe: 3 items

That looks like a mostly yes, but I would have been okay without the Shadowbox (which is probably the most expensive item of the collection) and the posters.

The Mini Figures, Trading Cards and Steelbook were not an essential need for me either, but they have their charms.

The Outer box design, the USB stick (with the game on it), Soundtrack and Exploration Map book were the main reasons I wanted the Collector's Edition, so if we eliminate the Mini Figures, Trading Cards, Steelbook, Posters and the Shadowbox then maybe I could have bought the Collector's Edition at a cheaper price.