Tomb Raider/YMMV


 * Acceptable Targets: Being a UK-developed game, the main villain and all but one of her henchmen are loud, brash Americans. The other is a Frenchman who keeps running away.
 * Alas, Poor Scrappy:
 * Also, in the comics,
 * Alternate Character Interpretation: The debate over Lara's effect on female video game characters will probably never be settled. Some say she was a pioneer in an era when female main characters (especially in action games) were exceedingly rare. Others say she did more harm than good through her over-sexualization.
 * There's also several interpretations of the character of Lara herself, and whether she's borderline sociopath with no respect for the places she raids, or if she's just a Jerk with a Heart of Gold and Anti-Hero.
 * Broken Base: The fanbase was incredibly divided upon the release of Angel of Darkness. Then Legend was released. The fanbase has never been the same.
 * Crowning Music of Awesome: Pick a game; soundtracks are the one thing that remains consistently brilliant throughout the series.
 * Dork Age: Definitely had one, but where it was varies a lot from person to person.
 * Draco in Leather Pants: Larson, specifically the new and improved "sexy" Larson from Anniversary.
 * Ensemble Darkhorse: Lara's Doppelganger became very popular with the fanbase after Underworld.
 * Estrogen Brigade: Kurtis Trent, and more recently Anniversary!Larson.
 * Evil Is Sexy:  dresses somewhat skankier than Lara, although apparently not enough for Zip to tell them apart. Also, Amanda Evert really seems into black leather.
 * Fan-Preferred Couple: Would you believe ? At least it's the one that acquires most fanart.
 * There's quite a bit of Lara/Amanda as well.
 * First Installment Wins: Ask a casual player what they remember about Tomb Raider. It'll be the T. Rex.
 * Fridge Brilliance: How can snow be so deep in the caves at the beginning of the first game? If the bats are any indication, the cave levels are filled with guano.
 * Genius Bonus: The Scion in Anniversary resembles the Antikythera Mechanism, but with triad look instead of quad.
 * The giant stone ball in the "Sanctuary of the Scion" level in Anniversary resembles Prehistoric Stone Balls in Peru.
 * Hell Is That Noise:
 * The creepy, raspy breathing of the mummies and Atlanteans from the first game.
 * In the PC version the Atlantis levels are accompanied by a heartbeat sound effect, and muffled roaring sounds.
 * The rattling and moaning of Lara's butler in Tomb Raider 3. This troper always shut him in the freezer so he wouldn't scare her.
 * The eerie ambient background soundtracks used in the early games can be this - especially the unbelievably creepy one heard prominently in the Tomb Raider II level "Floating Islands".
 * Misblamed: Despite what some may say otherwise, Core Design are not entirely to blame for the failure of Angel of Darkness...
 * Most Annoying Sound: "Ah-ha!"
 * "No."
 * Narm: Lara's drowning animation in three. Once the Oxygen Meter hits the bottom, she promptly goes into a random spastic flail. Said flail lasts roughly five seconds, give or take. Meaning she had five seconds of air left that apparently was held in reserve simply for a spastic flailing drowning scene. A drama queen to the end.
 * Some of the dialogue can fall under this trope.
 * Narm Charm: Again, some of the dialogue.
 * Nightmare Fuel: Anything involving the Atlanteans.
 * Player Punch: death at the beginning of Angel of Darkness. From the same game, there's also the apparent demise of
 * Rated "M" for Money: Apparently, the new Tomb Raider game to be released later this year will be rated "M". The focus appears to be shifted to a Resident Evil - type survival-horror, as opposed to the puzzle-based platforming action-adventure formula which was a big part of the earlier TR games' success.
 * Seinfeld Is Unfunny: As with many games from this era, it's easy to take for granted just how revolutionary a game like this was back in 1996, and how it influenced numerous adventure games afterwards.
 * Sequelitis: Became a posterchild for it after Angel of Darkness, but is recovering.
 * Spiritual Licensee: Relic Hunter.
 * That One Boss: Third ledge above the lava, "Great Pyramid", Anniversary.
 * The One-Winged Angel form of from Angel of Darkness. The controls are a bit messed up, and the game gives you no hint about what the hell you're supposed to do. Made worse by the fact that you have to fight the two hardest bosses in the game  with Kurtis, who is only armed with a wimpy pistol and a few clips of ammo. Lara has all the nice weapons and tons of ammo, but doesn't really need it.
 * They Changed It, Now It Sucks: Several fans of the Core Design games were not happy with Crystal Dynamics' Continuity Reboot and the subsequent drastic changes to Lara's personality and backstory. In addition, some feel this way about the second Continuity Reboot.
 * Unkempt Beauty: Lara in the 2012 reboot, from all the footage revealed so far; even with--or maybe because of--those layers of grime, blood, and God knows what else, she looks stunning. Might be because of the Determinator vibe coming off of her rather than her superficial appearance, though.
 * Video Game Movies Suck: Either one or both of the Angelina Jolie-starred Tomb Raider films, depending on who you ask.