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Tomb Raider cover

1996 · Core Design · Action-adventure · Adventure

Tomb Raider

Tomb Raider is a 3D action game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive. The game follows the exploits of Lara Croft, a British female archaeologist in search of ancient treasures.

Released
25 October 1996
Platforms
GameCubeMS-DOSMobileN-GageNintendo 64Nintendo DSPlayStationPlayStation 3PlayStation PortableSega SaturnWiiWindowsWindows MobilemacOS
Genres
Action-adventureAdventurePlatformerPuzzleShooter
Developers
Core DesignCrystal DynamicsNixxes SoftwareUbisoft Milan
Publishers
Eidos InteractiveSquare Enix
Series
Tomb Raider
Perspective
Third person
Themes
ActionSurvival
Country
United Kingdom
Copies sold
100 million as of 2024-10-11

About

Tomb Raider, also known under Lara Croft: Tomb Raider from 1996 to 2008, is a media franchise that originated with an action-adventure video game series created by British developer Core Design. The franchise is currently owned by Embracer Group and operated by CDE Entertainment; it was formerly owned by Eidos Interactive, then by Square Enix Europe after Square Enix's acquisition of Eidos in 2009 until Embracer Group purchased the intellectual property alongside Eidos in 2022. The franchise focuses on the fictional British archaeologist Lara Croft, who traverses the globe in search of lost artefacts, infiltrating dangerous tombs, ruins and militia along her journey. Gameplay generally focuses on exploration, solving puzzles, navigating hostile environments filled with traps, and fighting enemies. Additional media has been developed for the franchise in the form of film adaptations, comics, soundtracks and novels.

Development of the first Tomb Raider video game began in 1994; it was released two years later. Its critical and commercial success prompted Core Design to develop a new game annually for the next four years, which put a strain on staff. The sixth game, Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness, faced difficulties during development and was considered a failure at release. This prompted Eidos to switch development duties to Crystal Dynamics, which has been the series' primary developer since. Other developers have contributed to spin-off titles and ports of mainline entries.

›Story

Lara Croft is a Tomb Raider, an archaeologist who explores ancient sites in search of valuable artifacts, who is hired to retrieve an artifact from a tomb in Peru, which turns out to be one of three parts of the Atlantean Scion. Soon betrayed by her employer, Lara Croft travels to Greece, Rome and Egypt to recover the other parts before this powerful device falls into the wrong hands.

Keywords

  • helicopter
  • hunting
  • exploration
  • dinosaurs
  • bloody
  • murder
  • parkour
  • mascot
  • artifacts
  • death
  • horse
  • run and gun

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Development

The concept for Tomb Raider originated in 1994 at Core Design, a British game development studio. One of the people involved in its creation was Toby Gard, who was mostly responsible for creating the character of Lara Croft. Gard originally envisioned the character as a man: company co-founder Jeremy Heath-Smith was worried the character would be seen as derivative of Indiana Jones, so Gard changed the character's gender. Her design underwent multiple revisions and redrafts during early development.

The game proved an unexpected commercial success, reversing Eidos' then-bleak financial situation. After the success of Tomb Raider, work began on a sequel. Gard was no longer given creative control of the character, and it was stated by development staff that he was both saddened and disappointed by the use of Lara Croft's sex appeal in marketing. Gard left Core Design in 1997, alongside Tomb Raider co-creator Paul Douglas, to found their own gaming company Confounding Factor.

Reception

Upon release, Tomb Raider became an unexpected success, reaching the top of sales charts and remaining for a time. It went on to sell over 7 million units worldwide. Tomb Raider II was a greater commercial success, with debut sales higher than the first game and total worldwide sales of 8 million units. 5 million units.

While The Angel of Darkness met with initial strong sales, it failed to meet expectations due to publisher pressure. Since the release of Legend, the series has picked up in terms of sales, popularity, and critical acclaim. The 2013 reboot sold 11 million units, becoming the most commercially successful Tomb Raider title to date. By 2021, the series had sold over 85 million units worldwide.

Speedruns

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Releases by platformdates and regions as published

PlatformReleasedRegions
Sega Saturn24 October 1996Europe · North America 14 November 1996 · Japan 24 January 1997
MS-DOS14 November 1996North America · Europe 22 November 1996 · Japan 19 January 1997
PlayStation14 November 1996North America · Europe 22 November 1996 · Japan 14 February 1997
Windows Mobile1 July 2002North America
PlayStation 3Digital Compatibility Release13 August 2009North America · Europe 1 September 2010
PlayStation PortableDigital Compatibility Release13 August 2009North America · Europe 1 September 2010
Windows28 November 2012Worldwide
Nintendo 64CancelledUnreleased

Editions and related releases

Included in
Tomb Raider AnthologyTomb Raider 1+2+3Gold Games 3Tomb Raider Collection 1
Derivative works
Lara Croft: Tomb RaiderLara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of LifeTomb RaiderRevisioned: Tomb RaiderTomb Raider: The Legend of Lara CroftTomb Raider comicsTomb Raider novelsTomb Raider : Dark AeonsTomb Raider Collectible Card GameCome AliveFemale Icon
Expanded editions
Tomb Raider: Gold
Ported as
Tomb Raider
Remade as
Tomb Raider: Legacy of AtlantisTomb Raider: 10th Anniversary EditionTomb Raider: Anniversary
Remastered as
Tomb Raider
Basis for
Tomb Raider: LegendTomb Raider (TV series)

In the same series

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Collections1 collection

Reception and records

Description adapted from its source, CC BY-SA 4.0.