Tomb Raider or Lara Croft: Tomb Raider is a franchise that originally released in 1996. It was at this point where the original Tomb Raider video game was released on Sony’s PlayStation, Sega Saturn, and the PC.
The franchise is known to be an action-adventure game that features a female protagonist known as Laura Croft.
The game is centered around Laura Croft who works as a British archaeologist and she travels around the world in search of lost artifacts.
Her travels take her through dangerous tombs and she frequently encounters hostile enemies looking for the same things she is.
As of now, there have been numerous games released in the franchise (main games, spin-off titles etc). Below, we will be going over each of the main titles of the series with brief description of each one.
The games below are in order of chronological release.
1. Tomb Raider (1996)
By Source, Fair use, Link
As mentioned, the original Tomb Raider that started it all was released in 1996. It was released for PC, Sega Saturn, and PlayStation.
During the course of this game, Laura Croft had been hired in order to recover various pieces of an ancient and invaluable artifact.
Throughout the game, you are tasked with exploring tombs to find these ancient artifacts and platforming to avoid the various obstacles that get into your way.
As mentioned, the gameplay elements found in this game rely heavily on platforming, puzzle-solving, and combat. This game took place in 3D worlds and it was truly ahead of its time in various facets.
2. Tomb Raider II (1997)
By Source, Fair use, Link
This entry in the Tomb Raider series continues to follow Laura Croft as she travels around the world in order to retrieve a valuable artifact (The Dagger of Xian) which is said to possess mythical powers prior to it falling into the hands of a villain.
The game itself holds a very similar premise as the first one. It goes more into depth with its game mechanics and it was released for Microsoft Windows PC and PlayStation.
As mentioned, this particular game featured a lot more mechanics than the previous iteration. Not only did it have new weapon varieties, but it gave Laura brand new moves and even a set of vehicles that she could use.
Instead of forcing a player to have crystals to save the game on PlayStation, players were given the freedom to save the game pretty much throughout the entire game.
3. Tomb Raider III (1998)
By Source, Fair use, Link
The 3rd entrant into the series continued to follow the same foundation as the previous games released before it.
This game was published by Eidos Interactive and it was released on the Microsoft Windows and PlayStation platforms.
While the previous games were developed on the same engine, this one was developed on a brand new engine that featured greater efficiency and better graphics.
In this engine, developers were able to utilize triangular polygons and colored lighting which allowed them to be able to create much better and more detailed character models and even level designs.
The plot of this game had Laura Croft following clues which took her on an amazing journey to meet something that had never been seen before.
This game required high-speed action combat, platforming, and puzzle-solving.
4. The Last Revelation (1999)
By Source, Fair use, Link
This was the fourth game in the Tomb Raider series. This was a game that was released in 1999 on PlayStation, Microsoft Windows, PlayStation Portable, and the Dreamcast.
This is a game that was extremely successful largely because they took many more risks with this game. For gameplay, they integrated a lot more new moves that could be used throughout the game.
This was the first game in the series that allowed Laura to swing from ropes hanging from the ceiling. Likewise, she was able to climb up and down these ropes.
Because the graphics improved so much in the newer engine, Laura didn’t look as ‘blocky’ which created a much more realistic looking appearance for greater immersion.
In this game, Laura was thrust into action by discovering a lost tomb and ends up unleashing the evil power that laid within it. Throughout the journey, she is tasked with solving puzzles and dealing with everything that gets in her way.
5. Tomb Raider: Chronicles (2000)
By Source, Fair use, Link
This game was originally released on Microsoft Windows, PlayStation, and Dreamcast. In Chronicles, Laura Croft finds herself missing in Egypt and presumed dead.
It’s then when the people closest to her visit her estate and talk about all of her past exploits which have largely been clouded in mystery up until this point.
This game is split into four different locations and it largely focuses on modern-day exploration much more than the previous iterations.
This particular game is shorter than it’s predecessors as well. It remains one of the worst-selling games in the Tomb Raider series.
6. Angel Of Darkness (2003)
By Source, Fair use, Link
This entrant in the Tomb Raider series was released in 2003 and it was made by the same developers and published by the same studio.
It is said that this game took as many as 3 years of development prior to it getting released. It released on the PlayStation 2 and Microsoft Windows.
This game focused on largely the same core game mechanics as the previous iteration. However, they did manage to add going her hand to hand melee combat, a super jump, and army crawling to force Laura into situations that call for using them.
This game puts Laura into conflict with an Alchemist from the past and various other powerful individuals in this mysterious setting.
During the game, she is accused of murdering a mentor from the past and she is forced into becoming a fugitive because of it.
7. Tomb Raider: Legend (2006)
By Source, Fair use, Link
Tomb Raider: Legend takes Laura through various different places throughout the globe (7 locations) in search of artifacts which causes a cataclysmic chain of events that lead her to have to face some of her previous nemesis rivals from her past.
In this game, Laura is forced into having to use both her intelligence and her muscle to explore even greater sized tombs full of more challenging puzzles than ever before.
This game introduces a range of new weapons and communication devices that you have to use to get through the various tombs.
This game was the first that was developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Square Enix. It was released in 2006 on a variety of platforms including the PlayStation 2, Xbox, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows, GameCube, Nintendo DS, and Game Boy Advance.
8. Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary (2007)
By Source, Fair use, Link
This game was co-developed by Crystal Dynamics who did the previous game, and a newer development studio known as Buzz Monkey Software and it was published by Eidos Interactive.
It was released in 2007 on the Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Xbox 360, Wii, and PlayStation 3.
This game pushes Laura to (4) different locations scattered throughout the world as she is on a mission to recover the famous and legendary Scion artifact.
Because of the brand new engine that was featured in the Legend release and the enhancements they made to it, this game offered brand new gameplay experiences and better graphics than ever before.
This game brought on acrobatic gunplay elements, the danger around every corner with wildlife being unpredictable, and various environmental obstacles you had to figure your way around.
It ultimately took everything previous games did well and made it even better and bigger.
9. Tomb Raider: Underworld (2008)
By Source, Fair use, Link
This is another entry in the Tomb Raider series developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Square Enix.
It was released in 2008 and it came out on Microsoft Windows, Nintendo DS, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, Wii, and the Xbox 360.
In this game, you get to experience even more immersive elements considering it was one of the first with breathtaking high-definition graphics.
It introduced a brand new core gameplay mechanic allowing for a new range of combat options including the ability to target multiple enemies at once.
Likewise, it featured much more verticality than ever before and the ability to interact with the world around you.
10. Tomb Raider (2013)
By Source, Fair use, Link
This is known as the Tomb Raider reboot. It was developed by Crystal Dynamics and it was published by Square Enix.
It was released in 2013 and it came out on the Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Linux Platforms.
It is widely considered and referred to as a Tomb Raider reboot because it reintroduces Laura Croft and alters her origins.
The gameplay turns much more into survival exploration rather than a complete focus on exploration. This game was highly praised as being a stellar one because it had a very tight narrative and better gameplay mechanics than ever before.
It takes gamers down the path of seeing how Laura Croft went from being a young woman to a survivor.
11. Rise Of The Tomb Raider (2016)
By Source, Fair use, Link
This is another stellar game delivered by Crystal Dynamics and published by Square Enix. It was released in 2016 on the Xbox 360, Xbox One, Microsoft Windows, Linux, and PlayStation platforms.
This game is really one of the major diversions from the previous games in which combat becomes the core gameplay mechanic with a range of weapons that she can choose from.
As with the 2013 reboot, this game forces Laura into survival situations with seemingly the entire world hunting her down from animals to bad guys.
The tombs that these game offers are bigger and better than the ones offered in the 2013 release and they feature more traps and puzzles than you can wrap your head around.
12. Shadow Of The Tomb Raider (2018)
By Source, Fair use, Link
This particular game was developed by Eidos Montreal and published by Square Enix. It was originally released as a timed console exclusive with Microsoft having the console release rights for a period of one year.
It eventually came out to PlayStation a year later. However, it’s original release was only Xbox One and Microsoft Windows.
This game is the biggest of the franchise and it added a core mechanic of buying and selling resources.
The game features a lot more of the same elements that you got from the original reboot and on forward including survival situations and elements in a jungle setting.
Throughout the game, Laura must adapt to the jungle and use it to her advantage to get through all kinds of enemies in her way.
The tombs are bigger, darker, and more terrifying than ever before with a lot more complex puzzles and platforming objectives found within them.
Final Words
As you can see, there are plenty of different games in the Tomb Raider series. It is easily one of the longest-running series in the video game industry spanning over 22 years.
Tomb Raider is a video game franchise that truly changed the way developers made games in the past and the newer entries in the series are pushing the industry forward from its high graphical fidelity standard and more.
You can expect more great games to be released within the Tomb Raider series as the game continues to intrigue gamers even after all these years.
References: https://store.steampowered.com/
Viktor says
The legendary game.