Following leaks, Microsoft on Wednesday officially announced details about Rise of the Tomb Raider‘s DLC campaign, while it also revealed some new modes and confirmed the game will offer microtransactions.
First, the $30 Rise of the Tomb Raider DLC will include the following:
- Endurance Mode — “Survive the extreme conditions of Endurance Mode.”
- Baba Yaga: The Temple of the Witch — “Explore a new tomb that house an ancient terror.”
- Cold Darkness Awakened — “Combat waves of infected predators.”
- In-game content — “A steady stream of outfits, weapons, and Expedition Cards” that will be available at launch and continuing for more than four months.
Rise of the Tomb Raider does not have a traditional multiplayer mode, but players will be able to “extend the single-player campaign” through some additional modes. These are outlined below, with descriptions courtesy of Crystal Dynamics creative director Noah Hughes.
- Score Attack — Lets you replay levels from the game with a new set of rules, as you race the clock to post the best time and earn medals. Chain together attacks, movements, and collectibles to keep your multiplier high.
- Remnant Resistance — Lets you replay Hub spaces with a new set of goals. You can craft your own missions by choosing the objectives, enemies, and more. Once you’ve mastered the mission, challenge your friends and the community to beat your high score. You can include the Expedition Cards you want featured, and others can use these Cards even if they don’t have them in their collection.
- Chapter Replay — Lets you keep the skills and equipment that you acquired on your first play-through.
Expedition Cards also let players “craft missions and challenge your friends to reach the top of the leaderboards,” Hughes said. You can earn these through gameplay or you can buy them with real-world money. Specific pricing details, however, were not announced. The 2013 Tomb Raider reboot also included quite a few microtransactions.
Here’s a more in-depth explanation of how Expedition Cards work in Rise of the Tomb Raider, as explained by Hughes.
“In Rise of the Tomb Raider, you’ll earn credits by completing challenges and exploring the world. These credits can be used to purchase Expedition Card packs. When used, Expedition Cards become modifiers in game modes outside of the single player campaign. Some Cards are humorous, such as Big Head Mode, while others can increase the challenge or give you special advantages.
“There are two types of Expedition Cards: Foil and Common. A Foil Card will give Lara the strongest or strangest variations and can be used as many times as you wish. A Common Card is only used once, and you’ll need to earn more credits to buy it back.”
Expedition Cards offer “hundreds” of ways to customize Rise of the Tomb Raider, Hughes said. “You can also set up challenges for your friends to see if they can beat your scores with the same card setup,” he explained. “We’ll have about 300 cards available at launch, and more will be added in the weeks that follow.”
In addition to the standard $60 Rise of the Tomb Raider, Microsoft will offer a $90 Deluxe version of the game that comes with the base game, the DLC pass, and access to the Remnant Resistance Pack. This itself includes a new “Remnant Outfit” for Lara, which is a collection of animal skins and ancient Byzantine armor. Using this outfit, Lara can bandage herself without using resources.
The Remnant Resistance Pack also include the Moon Shadow Handgun Skin and the Bullet Resistance Foil Card, which offers extra resistance to gunfire. It is also available for all Xbox One digital preorders.
The Rise of the Tomb Raider release date has been confirmed as November 10 for Xbox One and Xbox 360, with PC and PlayStation 4 versions landing in 2016. For more on the game, check out GameSpot’s recent preview,“Like Father, Like Daughter.”
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