Since theTomb Raiderseries began in 1996, Lara Croft has remained a staple within gaming, and she has gone on to have widespread pop-cultural relevance. Her adventures around the globe have inspired blockbuster films and countless games, thoughLara has been re-imaginedin quite a few ways. At times, she is an inexperienced explorer getting her footing, and at other times, she is a seasoned treasure hunter and sharpshooter.
With a newTomb Raidergame on the way from Crystal Dynamics, Lara should retain the grittiness she gained inShadow of the Tomb Raider. After the countless adventures she has been on, there is no reason for Lara to be inexperienced once again. Fortunately, reports suggest the upcoming game may be going in that direction.
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A New Tomb Raider Game Is on the Way
It has been a few years since the lastTomb Raidergame,Shadow of the Tomb Raider, was released. The game was an expensive production, but it resulted in a cinematic and sometimes terrifying experience that took Lara deep into the jungles of South America.
During the “The State of Unreal” livestream in April 2020, Crystal Dynamics revealed that it is working on aTomb Raidertitle usingUnreal Engine 5. Not many details were shared about the upcoming game, though the studio did claim that it strives to provide a high-quality cinematic action/adventure experience with the next game.
According to industry insider Colin Moriarty, the game is internally known asProject Jawbreaker, and Crystal Dynamics is currently looking to cast Lara’s role. Moriarty claims the upcoming game is set in a modern world shaken by a mysterious cataclysm, and while the game is grounded, there are fantastical elements. Moriarty claims he has also read the game’s audition script, and it describes Lara as at “the top of her game.” This Lara has “fully let go of her childhood and embraced a life of adventure and purpose.”
The Gritty Lara Croft of Shadow of the Tomb Raider
With theTomb Raider Survivor Trilogy, its developer sought to reboot Lara’s story, illustrating how she turns from an average woman with a lust for an adventure into a seasoned traveler able to defend herself against large criminal organizations. The retold story begins with 2013’sTomb Raider, which features a relatively naive Lara with few skills and reluctance to draw blood from others. During her first expedition, her ship is hit by a storm, causing her to become stranded on the Japanese Yamatai island. There, she discovers that she is not alone and that she will have to learn to be ruthless if she will survive the harsh environment and the dangers that lurk.
In the sequel,Rise of the Tomb Raider, Lara is a lot more experienced, and she takes everything she has learned to Siberia where she faces Trinity. There is a plethora of weapons available, and Lara can grow scarily proficient with all of them. She can also use stealth to take out enemies before they even know that she is around, turning her into a deadly ghost. The smooth, fast-paced gameplay has made the title a favorite among fans, although some have complained that the snowy environments do get repetitive at times.
WithShadow of the Tomb Raider, which caps off theSurvivor Trilogy, Lara has a wealth of experience in her pocket, and she has become a seasoned killer. The stakes are higher than ever, as she has accidentally set off the apocalypse, and she must now do everything in her power to stop the suffering that is about to come, even if Trinity stands in her way. During this adventure, Lara is aware of her capabilities, and she does not hesitate to eliminate anyone who tries to stop her. This is seen in the gameplay, which hasLara executing brutal kills on her enemies. She is also far more willing to play mind games on her enemies and makes use of more complex forms of stealth, as well as poisoned arrows that confuse foes and turn them against each other.
When comparing Lara at the start of the trilogy and the end, the contrast is startling. She is a woman who has been through a lot, and she now feels like she has the weight of the world on her shoulders. While she may have had romantic ideas about hunting relics at first, she has a deeper appreciation for what these items mean to the cultures they belong to. She is also no longer a stranger to violence, death, and murder, and she has learned how to become ruthless when dealing with enemies.
Gritty Lara Should Make a Return
Some ofLara’s actions inShadow of the Tomb Raiderare shocking, but they also illustrate that she has grown. All the violence she has been exposed to has hardened her and turned her into a savage survivor. In many ways, this growth arc is necessary for Lara because as her story progresses, the dangers she faces also grow greater and darker. Though this Lara has lost much of her innocence and childhood, it should be the version of Lara that remains.
For the next game to regress Lara and make her less gritty would feel like an unnecessary step backward. Instead, the game should embrace Lara as she currently is and throw her into evermore daunting missions. If early reports are true, the game may be going in that direction. Moriarty claims that in thenewTomb Raidergame, Lara will no longer be a “young, inexperienced woman dealing with matters of legacy and familial reckoning.” Hopefully, this translates to fast-paced action sequences and even more brutal stealth moves.
It seems that the upcomingTomb Raideris still far off if Lara has yet to be cast. However,Crystal Dynamicsappears to already have an idea of what it plans to do with the franchise going forward. Fortunately, it seems Lara will not be losing any of the experience she has gained over the years.
