Tomb Raider (2013) Game of the Year Edition: Walkthrough & Tips

A spoiler-light guide to the 2013 Tomb Raider reboot: skills and upgrade priorities, the gear that opens new areas, combat and stealth, the optional tombs, collectibles and 100% completion, the Game of the Year extras, and PC settings.

Researched September 2026 — this is a finished single-player game; the base game launched March 4, 2013, and the Steam GOTY version (January 2014) includes the Tomb of the Lost Adventurer and six single-player outfits. The remake Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis releases February 12, 2027. Live games change; check the linked sources if something differs.

What It Is

Tomb Raider (Crystal Dynamics, 2013) reboots Lara Croft as a young archaeologist shipwrecked on Yamatai, an island in the Dragon's Triangle ruled by a cult called the Solarii Brotherhood. It's a cinematic action-adventure with light open hubs: you travel between areas via base camps, upgrade Lara and her gear, and come back later to explore spots you couldn't reach before.

The Game of the Year Edition on Steam adds the Tomb of the Lost Adventurer optional tomb and six single-player outfits to the base game. It's the first game of the "Survivor" trilogy, followed by Rise of the Tomb Raider and Shadow of the Tomb Raider.

Quick Start

Use Survival Instinct constantly. It highlights interactable objects, salvage, collectibles and enemies. It's the single most useful button in the game.
Loot everything. Salvage from crates, bodies and animals pays for weapon upgrades.
Spend skill points at base camps. Early Survivor skills that show more salvage and collectibles are worth taking first.
Don't worry about missables. After the story you can fast-travel back to every area and pick up whatever you missed.
The bow is your best weapon. It's silent, strong, and the upgrades turn it into a monster.
Upgrade the bow and the pistol first, then the shotgun and rifle as you unlock them.
Enemies flank and throw dynamite. Move between cover, and shoot dynamite back or dodge away.
Optional tombs are short and rewarding. Do them when you see the "Tomb nearby" notice.

Skills

Skill points come from experience (combat, hunting, exploration, collectibles). Skills unlock in three trees:

Tree	Focus	Early picks
Survivor	Exploration and loot	Skills that reveal salvage, animals and collectibles on Survival Instinct; extra salvage from crates
Hunter	Ranged combat and stealth	Arrow and ammo capacity; bonus salvage from kills
Brawler	Close combat and toughness	Dodge counters and finishers; extra durability

Priority order most players like:

Survivor skills that reveal loot and salvage — they pay for everything else.
Hunter capacity skills — more arrows and ammo.
Brawler dodge-counter and finisher skills — they make close-range fights much safer.

Weapons and Upgrades

Lara has four weapon types, each upgraded at base camps with salvage and improved with weapon parts found as you progress. Collecting enough parts unlocks a better version of the weapon.

Weapon	Role	Key upgrades
Bow	Silent kills, fire arrows, rope arrows	Draw speed, damage, fire and napalm arrows
Pistol	Backup, reliable	Magazine, damage, rate of fire
Rifle	Mid range; later a grenade launcher attachment	Recoil, damage, grenade launcher
Shotgun	Close range, blows open barricades	Damage, rate of fire

Tools (the climbing axe and later gear) also get upgrades, like faster rope climbing.

Gear That Opens Areas

Tomb Raider uses Metroid-style gating: some areas are blocked until you have the right tool. You get these through the story:

Gear	Opens
Climbing Axe	Climbing axe walls; prying open doors and crates
Rope Arrows	Pulling objects, creating ziplines to specific anchors
Shotgun	Blasting open wooden barricades
Rope Ascender	Pulling heavy objects and climbing ropes back up
Fire Arrows / Napalm	Burning rope barriers and cloth obstacles
Grenade Launcher (rifle)	Breaking reinforced walls

If a door or path won't open, note it and come back later. The map marks many of these with icons.

Story Areas at a Glance (Spoiler-Light)

The game moves through a string of areas, roughly:

The opening escape and Coastal Forest — tutorial for hunting, the bow and camps.
Mountain Temple and Mountain Village — first real combat and your first optional tomb.
Base Approach and Mountain Base — the radio tower climb.
Geothermal Caverns and Shantytown — the Solarii's shantytown and Himiko's lore deepening.
Summit Forest, Shipwreck Beach and the research base — the wreck of the Endurance, more crew, more tombs.
The final push — storming the Solarii fortress to stop the ritual, then the climax at the summit.

Main characters include Conrad Roth (Lara's mentor), Samantha "Sam" Nishimura (her friend), Dr. James Whitman, Joslyn Reyes, Jonah Maiava, Angus "Grim" Grimaldi and Alex Weiss, plus the Solarii leader Mathias. The island's legend centers on Himiko, the Sun Queen.

Combat and Stealth

Stay in cover. Lara crouches behind cover automatically. Move between cover with the right timing.
Headshots with the bow take down most enemies instantly.
Stealth kills are available when you sneak up on unaware enemies; Hunter skills improve them.
Dodge counter (Brawler) lets you dodge a melee enemy and stab them. It's a lifesaver against shield and melee enemies.
Fire arrows set enemies and flammable objects alight.
Shoot explosive barrels and lanterns near groups.
Shielded enemies need flanking, fire, or a shotgun blast; aim for exposed legs and heads.
Enemy dynamite can be shot in their hands.

Optional Tombs

The optional challenge tombs are short puzzles based on physics, fire, wind and water. Each ends with a treasure chest that rewards XP and salvage and reveals collectibles in that area on your map.

Tombs include Hall of Ascension, Well of Tears, Chamber of Judgment, Stormguard Sanctuary and Tomb of the Unworthy, plus the GOTY Edition's Tomb of the Lost Adventurer.

Tomb tips:

Use Survival Instinct to highlight the key objects.
Most puzzles are about weight (counterweights, pulling objects with rope arrows), fire (burning obstacles) or wind (timing jumps with gusts).
If you're stuck, look at what moves. Tombs rarely require precise timing.

Collectibles and 100%

Collectible types:

Type	Notes
Documents	Journals and notes from the crew, the Solarii and the island's history
Relics	Examinable artifacts; rotating some reveals hidden details
GPS Caches	Hidden geocaches
Treasure Maps	Mark collectibles in an area
Challenges	Area-specific tasks (for example destroying or collecting a set of objects)
Optional tombs	Each gives a treasure map

How to get 100%:

Finish the story; you can explore every area afterward.
Use fast travel between base camps.
Find each area's treasure map (often in the optional tomb) to show what's left.
Buy Survivor skills that reveal collectibles on Survival Instinct.

There's no true point of no return that locks collectibles away permanently; you can clean up after the credits.

Achievements Tips

Many achievements track collectibles, challenges, and tombs — play them as you go and clean up after the story.
Some achievements ask for specific kills (headshots, dodge-counters, kills with specific weapons); they come naturally.
Multiplayer achievements need online matches, and the multiplayer population is very small today. Organize with friends or the community if you're hunting them.

Multiplayer

Multiplayer pits Lara's shipmates (Survivors) against the island's Scavengers across modes such as Team Deathmatch, Rescue and Cry for Help. Map packs included Caves & Cliffs, 1939 and Shipwrecked. In 2026 finding matches is difficult; treat it as a curiosity.

PC Settings

TressFX Hair gives Lara realistic hair physics but costs performance on older GPUs. Turn it off if frame rate dips.
SSAO and shadows are the next biggest performance costs.
Frame rate — the game runs well on modern hardware; V-Sync or a frame cap reduces stutter.
Controller support is excellent if you prefer a gamepad.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

Hoarding salvage. Spend it on weapon upgrades at every camp.
Skipping Survivor skills. Less salvage means weaker weapons for the whole game.
Fighting in the open. Enemies with rifles and dynamite will punish you.
Chasing collectibles before you have the gear. Come back later.
Ignoring optional tombs. Their rewards help, and they're the best puzzles in the game.

Advanced Tips

Upgrade the bow early and use it on Hard — silent headshots avoid long firefights.
Use fire arrows on groups in cover; they flush enemies out.
Take Brawler dodge-counter skills for Hard difficulty.
Hunt animals for XP and salvage early.
Fast travel after the story to finish every area's collectibles and challenges.

FAQ

What's included in the Game of the Year Edition? The base game, the Tomb of the Lost Adventurer, and six single-player outfits.

Can you go back after finishing the story? Yes. After the credits, you can fast travel between base camps and explore every area for collectibles.

How long is Tomb Raider 2013? The story is around 10-15 hours for most players; 100% takes longer.

Are there missable collectibles? No permanently missable collectibles. Everything can be cleaned up after the story.

Is multiplayer still active? Barely. Expect empty lobbies; play with friends.

Is there a newer version or remake? Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, a reimagining of the original 1996 game, releases February 12, 2027, and Tomb Raider: Catalyst is set for 2027. Neither replaces the 2013 reboot, which stands as the start of the Survivor trilogy.