Does anyone know how to use health-upgrades that we get as rewards?

Question

I'm currently playing Tomb Raider - Guardian of Light. In the game we receive health-upgrades and ammo-upgrades as rewards. Now there are two ways this can happen:

1. Lara reaches a difficult-to-reach place and finally gets the pick-up reward. Here the result is instantaneous. We can immediately see the health bar increase.

2. Lara completes a level bonus objective (like enter spider tomb in 5 minutes or collect 10 skulls in the level) and the health-upgrade seems to be added to the inventory.

The question is, for step 2, how do we use that health-upgrade?
The upgrade remains in inventory and nothing happens when we click it. I thought the upgrade was automatically applied after the level. But in the next level I see my health-bar exactly the same as previous level end.

Any ideas?

Answer 1

The health and ammo bar actually increase immediately on completing an objective.

For example you need to complete a trap in 1 minute and you'll get a reward of a health upgrade.

• The second you complete it you health bar increases instantly. If you are new to the game you would probably be concentrating on the puzzle rather than the health bar.

• There is no animation highlighting that your health increased. The bar increases instantly and then there is animation that just highlight the health bar (we should be highlighting the increase not only the bar).

• The increments themselves are quite little which again makes it easy for beginners to miss noticing them.

• Combine this with the fact that the upgrades exist in your inventory screen. I'm more used to the idea that if its in my inventory I can use it. If the health upgrade has already been applied it makes more sense to me to not have them as part of what appears to be a kind of inventory screen.

Due to these points I was confused for sometime about the upgrades. Now just because I mentioned the points above doesn't mean I don't like the game. I'm merely answering my question. Also, Tomb Raider series have always been a good and I still continue to replay some games.

Hope this helps all who are new to the game. Happy gaming!