The Lara of this Tomb Raider isn't the steely heroine from previous games, but a frightened and injured young woman who is very reluctant to kill people, but slowly builds her resolve in order to rescue her captured friends. To reach that end, gamers can make use of a variety of upgradeable weapons and tools, including torches, a bow, an ax, and a host of guns. The action mostly takes place in open, multi-path locations, with players using newly acquired tools to access loot and treasure maps in previously unavailable areas. The open layout also lends itself to multiplayer action, which pits groups of survivors against groups of scavengers in a variety of modes across five trap-filled maps.

In the "Definitive Version" the developers have added numerious technical upgrades to take full advantage of the xbox One hardware. A new character model was created, the PC's TRESS FX hair simulating technology is included, and shader, lighting, and textures have all been improved upon. On the game disc users will find a digital version of the Dark Horse Tomb Raider comic book, a mini-art book from Brady Games, the "Final Hours" developer videos, and all of the downloadable content previously released for last generation consoles.