Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light Mobile review: A dazzling co-op adventure dimmed by flaws

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light finally has a mobile version. The Tomb Raider franchise has been a staple in providing a mix of platforming, puzzle-solving, and combat in one place. I had the opportunity to try Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light on mobile. At first, I was excited to see how the developers brought the classic adventure to handheld devices.

Feral Interactive has previously brought The Lara Croft Collection on Nintendo Switch, which was a fantastic port.

That said, after playing through the game, I was left with a mixed bag of emotions. The title did feel like a Lara Croft Tomb Raider one, but it was not up to the mark as a mobile game. Keep reading this review to find out my thoughts on the mobile port and whether you should play it.

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Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light Mobile is a rollercoaster of triumphs and troubles

Gameplay and features

The game starts with Lara Croft and a group of mercenaries finding the Mirror of Smoke. However, trapped inside the artifact was Xolotl, the God of Darkness. He soon breaks free and starts wreaking havoc. The artifact also releases Totec, an ancient Mayan warrior and Guardian of Light. Realizing they share a common enemy, Lara and Totec team up to stop him.

This storyline was made clear to me in the first cutscene of the game. Unfortunately, it was the only cutscene I could watch in the Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light mobile version as the rest of them were stuck on the first frame for me. The only option was to skip them and continue with the gameplay.

I found myself stuck on the first frame of the cutscenes often (Image via Feral Interactive)

Players can opt to play this game as a single-player (Lara Croft) or in online multiplayer two-player co-op mode (Lara Croft and Totec). The game automatically syncs with your Google Drive to save data, which is a plus point.

The gameplay is filled with puzzles to solve and demons to slay. While the original storyline may seem short for players, Feral Interactive has added three DLC packs at no extra cost — All the trappings, Things that go boom, and Hazardous reunion.

I found the mechanics of grappling with a hook and throwing spears to make them into ladders interesting. However, there is a learning curve, especially when grappling and performing wall runs. I found myself struggling a lot with timing the position of the hook and also when to jump to run on the walls.

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light has many puzzles to solve (Image via Feral Interactive)

These mechanics work seamlessly on Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light PC but with only a small touchpad on mobile to target and jump, it does become hard. Feral Interactive offers a customizable Virtual Control Pad with two joystick styles to players, but UI still poses a challenge. The game also contains support for Gamepad and Keyboard & mouse.

Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light Mobile has its flaws and strengths

Moving a title from PC to mobile poses multiple challenges. The biggest issue I faced in the Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light mobile version was the camera placement. The fixed isometric camera can sometimes make platforming or combat situations feel awkward. Multiple times, I found myself playing Where's Waldo with Lara Croft.

The fixed camera sometimes made her invisible on screen, so I had to run to find an open space to fight enemies. But that, along with the stuck cutscenes, were my major issues with the game. The engaging gameplay often made me forget about these flaws, just to be reminded about them yet again by a pillar blocking the view.

Like in the image below, Lara Croft is on the ledge just under the health package. but she is not visible on screen due to camera placement.

The camera position often made the character invisible in Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light (Image via Feral Interactive)

One plus point is Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light is not resource-extensive, needing only Android 12 or later and 4GB of free space on your device. The developers do advise keeping at least 8GB free to avoid installation issues. I played this title on Google Pixel 7a with the latest Android, so it played without any stutter or lags.

The game also includes Russian and Brazilian Portuguese language support and up to 120 Hz of performance if your device supports that. Below is the list of supported devices if you are wondering about running the game:

Google Pixel 3 / 3 XL / 4 / 4 XL / 4a 5G / 5 / 6 / 6 Pro / 6a / 7 / 7 Pro / 7a / 8 / 8 Pro / 8a / 9 / 9 Pro / 9 Pro XL
Google Pixel Tablet
Honor 90
Huawei Honor 200 Lite
Lenovo Tab P11 Pro Gen 2
Motorola Edge 40 / 40 Neo / 50 Pro
Motorola Moto G100
Nothing Phone (1)
OnePlus 10 Pro 5G / 11 / 12 / 7 / 8 / 8T / 9
OnePlus Nord 2 5G / Nord 4
OnePlus Pad / Pad 2
OPPO Find X8 Pro
OPPO Reno4 Z 5G
REDMAGIC 9 Pro
Redmi 10 5G
Redmi Note 9T / 11 Pro+ 5G
Samsung Galaxy A32 5G / A33 5G / A34 5G / A54
Samsung Galaxy M53
Samsung Galaxy Note10 / Note10+ / Note20 5G
Samsung Galaxy S10 / S10+ / S10e / S20 / S20+ / S21 5G / S21 Ultra 5G / S22 / S22 Ultra / S22+ / S23 / S23 Ultra / S23+ / S24 / S24 Ultra / S24+
Samsung Galaxy Tab S6 / S7 / S8 / S8 Ultra / S8+ / S9
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold3 / Fold4
Sony Xperia 1 III / 1 IV
Sony Xperia 5 II
uleFone Armor 12S
Xiaomi 12 / 12T / 13T Pro / 13T
Xiaomi Pad 5
Xiaomi Poco F3 / F5 / F6 / M4 Pro / X3 Pro / X6 Pro
ZTE nubia Z70 Ultra

If your device is not listed here but supports the minimum requirements, it should run well too.

Conclusion

The Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light Mobile port delivers what a Tomb Raider game is supposed to be, with its cooperative gameplay, well-designed puzzles, and combat. The challenging level design offers a unique experience and adds to its replayability factor. These elements make it a fun and engaging game, especially for those who enjoy teamwork and strategic problem-solving.

Be that as it may, the mobile game has its drawbacks, particularly with unpolished controls and short campaigns. Additionally, the bugs in cutscenes and occasional camera issues can be frustrating. Despite these flaws, Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light remains a solid action-adventure game to play on mobile devices.