Tomb Raider has seen a resurgence in popularity as of late thanks to its rebooted series of games and constant DLC and updates. Drawing comparisons to the Uncharted series, its focus on exploration and sandbox-like missions allow for plenty of freedom seldom seen today.
With that in mind, plenty of gameplay styles exist for players to try. From going in guns-blazing to using stealth, players are always able to try new strategies to overcome challenges. Achievements are available for the most hardcore to pursue, some of them testing the most hardcore player’s patience and skill. These are the toughest ones.
Updated November 22, 2021 By Ben Jessey: Rise Of The Tomb Raider is among the best entries in the long-running series. It’s such an absorbing and addicting adventure that once it comes to a close, you probably want more. And a good way to spend time after the credits roll is to try to earn all of the Xbox or Steam achievements.
Unfortunately, that’s easier said than done as plenty of the achievements in the game are very difficult to win. So many of them, in fact, that our original version of this list left a few of the hardest out, but we’ve added them now.
13 These Belong In A Museum (15 Gamerscore)
One of the most interesting aspects of the Expedition Mode is the cards. These things help add a bit of variety to the mode as well as differentiate it from the story. But gathering 300 of them for the These Belong In A Museum achievement can be a time-consuming pain.
At least there are plenty of ways to earn credits to buy cards, from doing challenges to completing tombs to collecting relics. And you gain more than just gamerscore by grabbing this achievement, as you’ll also end up with many useful cards.
12 Chemical Warfare (15 Gamerscore)
During Rise Of The Tomb Raider, one of the deadliest weapons in Lara’s arsenal is the poison arrow. Anyone hit by the gas it unleashes will die instantly. Yet, getting five people at once with the poisonous cloud is tricky, but you need to do so to acquire the Chemical Warfare achievement.
It’s difficult because enemies rarely stand together in groups, so there aren’t even many opportunities to attempt it. You may have a chance on the way to Acropolis, though.
11 Laying Down The Law (15 Gamerscore)
This achievement tasks you with killing six enemies with the revolver without reloading. It’s doesn’t sound too hard until you realize that there are only seven shots in the gun, and the only way to get one-hit kills is with headshots. Therefore, you must have good aim to stand a chance at earning this one.
Plus, the ability to keep your composure under pressure will likely be important, too. After all, the revolver is hardly a stealthy weapon, so once you kill one person, more will probably be on their way. When this happens, you’ll need to keep your nerve and pick them off.
10 Way To Go (15 Gamerscore)
Out of all the achievements in the game, this is one of the most time-consuming. To get Way to Go, the player needs to complete every Score Attack level with a bronze score or better.
The problem is the achievement’s description is wrong. You need to complete 29 levels with a Bronze rating, but there are only 27 non-DLC missions you can do. Replaying chapter missions will count for the rest, but otherwise, just play every mission and you should complete the requirements in no time. It is just a time sink with little challenge involved.
9 Skillful Raider (20 Gamerscore)
Much of the game revolves around finding artifacts in tombs and being a general badass, so players will frequently find themselves up against hidden traps protecting various interactives.
This achievement takes it to a new level, requiring players to open 5 Codices or Sarcophagi without getting hit by a trap. The best way to do this safely is to play defensive and watch your surroundings. Each trap can be shot at with a bow, so run an infinite arrow card in the endurance mission to make this challenge a little easier. Once you get 5, the achievement will pop up and you’re done.
8 Great Haul (50 Gamerscore)
For this endurance challenge, players must find a way to collect 10 artifacts in 10 days and extract before the eleventh day is over.
11 days is a couple of hours in real-time, so the best advice here is to make the most out of your time. Most of the artifacts can be found in your first tomb and won’t be too hard to find. Do not neglect your hunger, warmth, and general safety to unlock this achievement. You can run whatever cards necessary to finish this, so if you struggle with a particular mechanic run a card to alleviate that frustration.
7 Master And Apprentice (50 Gamerscore)
This endurance challenge can be done in co-op, but that is where the benefits end. Master and Apprentice is similar to Great Haul but is somewhat harder to pull off.
The group must find a way to collect 20 Artifacts and extract by the end of the eleventh day. The best thing you can do is to use cards to make your life easier, the same as before. You can even do both challenges at the same time to kill two birds with one stone. Ultimately, just coordinate with your friend and play the game somewhat quickly to get all of the artifacts.
6 Witch Trials (20 Gamerscore)
Introduced in the “Baba Yaga” DLC, you must complete both Score Attack missions with a gold score rating. In other words, hit a 32,000 score or higher on both missions.
Focus on getting large bonuses from negative cards to make achieving this score somewhat easier. One of the missions lacks any enemies, so stacking negative cards there can be a massive boon instead of a crippling detriment. The second level doesn’t require too many negative cards to get a large score multiplier. Keep your combo as high as you can for as long as you can to unlock the Witch Trials achievement.
5 Golden Child (25 Gamerscore)
To earn the Golden Child achievement, you need to get a gold score on every Score Attack level in the game. However, you’re playing as one of gaming’s best female protagonists, so there’s no need to be intimidated. Most Score missions boil down to puzzles in a tomb or killing everyone.
Puzzles are the easiest since there are few enemies to deal with, leaving only traps and the riddle itself. Learn the solution before heading in and set cards that don’t matter much for it, like limited ammo or limited healing. For the other mission types, it boils down to preference. The easiest method is, again, stacking as many negative cards as you can handle to maintain a high score. If you can get gold on Copper Mill, the hardest part is done.
4 Ultimate Survivor (40 Gamerscore)
Getting high medals in Score Attack is hard enough, but at least the cards obtained can help. What about playing the whole campaign in Survival?
Welcome to Ultimate Survivor, which requires the player to complete the entire campaign on Survivor difficulty. There are some exploits on getting this by just beating the last level on Survivor, but that is practically cheating. The best thing you can do is play cautiously, focusing on scavenging ammo and maintaining stealth through most combat encounters.
3 No Stone Unturned (40 Gamerscore)
No Stone Unturned is a simple achievement on paper. You need to simply complete what is one of the best games in the series. All of it. 100% of the game must be finished.
This means clearing every tomb, finishing every story mission, challenge, and collect everything. While daunting at first, this isn’t that bad to do. No difficulty is required for the campaign, and plenty of guides exist on where all of the collectibles and tombs are. Don’t try to get this achievement done in one day to prevent burnout from occurring, and you should be fine.
2 Untouchable (25 Gamerscore)
“Git Gud” is a common phrase within the Dark Souls community, making fun of generic advice like “just don’t get hit” or “just don’t die!”
Untouchable requires players to “git gud” by not taking a single point of damage for 5 replayable levels. Any campaign and tomb level counts, allowing you to somewhat pick your poison. Tombs are arguably the easiest to do, so just focus on learning the puzzles for those levels and prevent unnecessary damage to yourself from falling or traps.
1 Extreme Survivor (50 Gamerscore)
Beating the entire game on the hardest difficulty just wasn’t enough challenge for some. Thankfully, Square Enix added an even harder variant of Survivor called Extreme Survivor players can try.
Those who beat the entire game with this difficulty setting will unlock the Extreme Survivor achievement. Very few have gotten this painstaking achievement, but those that have, recommend for players to use stealth and take their time. Plus, make sure to upgrade the best skills in the game. Compared to normal Survivor, Extreme Survivor only allows players to save at campfires. Because of this, save every chance the game gives you to minimize mistakes.
NEXT: Uncharted: The Best Puzzles From The Series
