What's next for Tomb Raider? Who will develop it & which direction will it go?

[Samiya]

With the trilogy of the reboot Tomb Raider now over and Square Enix allocating Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal to the upcoming Avengers game(s), I wonder who Square Enix have left in their developer portfolio to continue the series. Will it simply be a different team at Crystal Dynamics who'll take over once the dust has settled from releasing the Avengers game? Or does Square Enix have someone else at the ready, like how Eidos Montreal took over the reins with Shadow of the Tomb Raider? Or will it be outsourced?

Also, creatively speaking, which direction will the next Tomb Raider likely go in? Will it be classic Lara with puzzle-platforming, or will it be nu-Lara with cover-shooting & collectibles, or should it be an entirely new genre or direction a new Tomb Raider? With the Tomb Raider films being a thing, I could imagine that they'll simply continue nu-Lara.

 

[Zonnes]

They should try to make it a horror game

 

[HustleBun]

Give it back to the team that made the first two rebooted games. Team B didn't do the greatest job with the third.

I'm of the controversial opinion (on this forum anyway) that the first reboot and Rise were both excellent games. I really loved the open world area in Rise and couldn't put it down.

 

[Deleted member 5129]

I honestly think it's dead

 

[Mushlikeahusky]

I feel like this is a series that could go dormant again for a while and be brought back with a focus on exploration and discovery when we have the tech to make a huge leap in the gameplay and world department

 

[Van Bur3n]

It go bye bye.

 

[NeoRaider]

We don't have any official info about next TR game. So only thing we can do is speculate.

Only thing they said during the Shadow of the TR promotion is that TR games will continue and that they will be standalone games compared to reboot trilogy.

My guess is obviously reboot Lara and open-world.

 

[Coolsambob]

I hope it's still going, I loved all 3 - though something felt missing with Shadow that I can't quite put my finger on. They kinda teased a remake of TR1 at the end didn't they?

Edit: also hope they keep Camilla on as Lara.

 

[laxu]

It's a shame that Shadow of the Tomb Raider was so mediocre when technically it is pretty great and on PC works really well - supports HDR, DLSS, raytracing, Steam Input, SLI...

Next gen consoles should allow less of the stupid transition sections between areas too so I hope they can have the same team working on the technical side but give the writing and encounter design to someone else. That's primarily where its problems lie.

 

[Samiya]

It's also kind of sad to think that Tomb Raider is the last Eidos IP from the acquisition by Square Enix way back when. Deus Ex got put on the shelf after Mankind Divided underperformed, IO Interactive became independent and took the Hitman IP with them (thank god), and now, only the Tomb Raider IP is left.

I honestly think it's dead

Click to shrink...

With a movie in production and Tomb Raider being one of the biggest IPs in video games, I don't think Square Enix has given up just yet.

 

[NeoRaider]

And to ppl saying: "It's dead", " Bye TR" and similar shitposting: No, it's not. It's one of the most successful franchises for SE and all 3 games from the trilogy were big success for SE.

 

[RocknRola]

I don't think it needs to change developer (though I have no idea how big CD is either) but they need a different concept IMO. I don't think the "survival" aspects were particularly interesting or well implemented and kinda dragged the games a bit down (for me).

Also I'd love to see it focus more on exploration (read: not combat with explorarion, just exploration) and puzzles. Sure keep enemies in, human or otherwise, just less of them. It'd help set the game further apart from other TPS/Action-Adventure games since most of the big ones have a very heavy focus on combat first and foremost.

 

[Vincent Grayson]

I really wish we could have more Tomb Raider games akin to the early ones, with lots of puzzles and exploration and very little dialogue/characters/enemies.

 

[Deleted member 8196]

Pretty sure TR is now "frozen".

Eidos Montreal is working on both Avengers and GOTG game
Both Crystal Dynamics studios are working on Avengers.

Square Enix has a multi-year/multi-game deal with Marvel, so yes, we can look up at 10 years of Marvel Games made by EM or CD.

 

[Deleted member 61326]

The first reboot game was excellent because everything was new, but the other two kind of felt like more of the same. Not bad games, just not very memorable.

But if the games sell, keep doing them. I'll buy them for a fun 10 hour adventure.

I otherwise think a horror setting would work pretty well. Or a pure exploration / puzzle game with literally no combat.

 

[ItIsOkBro]

reboot it again. this trilogy had poorer planning than the star wars sequel trilogy.

 

[Linus815]

I hope they keep current Lara, the design is great and Camilla really came into the role in Shadow. and they left her in a pretty good place with Shadow's ending. No real reason for a nu-nuLara, they can just do a few year timeskip.

I'm pretty confident that there will be more TR games, but probably not for a few years due to a lack of dev teams to actually do it. But if it does come back it will likely have completely revamped gameplay. I wouldn't be surprised if RE going back to its roots would inspire SE to try a more "traditional" TR game where navigation/movement is the main challenge, rather than having auto parkour/objective markers.

 

[Xadra]

For now, nothing.
Maybe in a couple of years (middle-end of the next gen) they start developing a new instalment, maybe a new reboot or another game.

 

[chromatic9]

Digital Foundry need a game to test next gen systems.

Good point with the new film coming out. Perhaps they could do a game based on that.

I think the recent TR film story premise was much better than the games story and would've worked better for the games although one major thing wrong with the film was no supernatural elements. If this second film is good then it could be a good base to put a game around it.

Also when I say if the film is good, I just mean decent for what it is and serviceable. I enjoyed the first film but I'm not saying it has to be one for the films of the decade or year, just in case someone wants to quote me saying it won't be good.

 

[Jawmuncher]

Tomb Raider ain't dead, despite the performance of Shadow it's still one of the most iconic gaming series in the world brand wise (this why we're getting another movie).

I do think we might have to wait a bit for the next entry however, as the formula is likely getting vastly overhauled. Part of me thinks they go for an open-world route as that seems the next logical step from a company who wants AAA money & engagement on the franchise with long-term sales.

 

[ThreepQuest64]

I don't mind as long as I see more of Lara. Really enjoyed the new trilogy despite getting worse with each iteration. Improve on the gunplay, add more puzzles and make it less about Lara and more about being isolated and raiding tombs and it's good.

 

[rusty chrome]

I think the series is done.

 

[gogosox82]

They probably won't do anything with it for a while. Probably reboot for next gen. Would love to see them to a classic TR with the next one but that probably won't sell so it will probably be some forgettable open world game.

 

[Garlador]

Lara was at one point considered by Guinness Book of Records as the 2nd most recognizable video game character next to Mario himself, and the most recognizable heroine in the industry.

I would suggest a heavy push towards making Lara over-the-top fun and adventurous again, and to hit the 90s nostalgia hard.

She doesn't have to have the body of an inflatable love doll, but stick her in a big bright turquoise shirt again, give her dual-wielding pistols, a sassy and fun-loving attitude that craves adventure and archaeological discoveries, and face her off against over-the-top temple trials that are goofy and memorable. More Legends of the Hidden Temple, less torture porn and melodrama.

Embracing the camp and supernatural elements of the franchise - don't make it grounded. Kick start your adventure off with a big fight against a T-Rex or something equivalent with a big, impressive setpiece that isn't "gritty" but is instead imaginative and smile-inducing.

I don't think the series needs to be "M"-rated. There's no reason the series needs Lara gunning down thousands of human mercenaries with increasingly brutal and psychotic glory kills. Platforming, puzzle-solving, exploration, and exciting parkour elements have always been where the series thrived most.

 

[Cardon]

They should make it fun again. Don't get me wrong, I enjoyed the first TR reboot entry and can appreciate a franchise taking a different approach but Rise of the Tomb Raider was just too damn dour.

Like damn, having to walk through a series of corpses for the fifth time or going on an epic murder spree in Shadow just drained my soul.

It would be nice to see the franchise gain some levity and sense of fun in its exploration and gameplay, kind of like the flashback segment in Shadow, while still having a mature tone (no bikini Lara, dumb jokes) with the corresponding sandbox/set piece game design to accompany it.

 

[Dodgerfan74]

It's dead for a while but of course it will be back. There's nothing that gets suits more excited than rehashing an old franchise or rebooting/remaking something. Hopefully they at least leave it dead until they have some good ideas for making it new and fresh again. Kill Lara though.

 

[BigBoss]

Give me Tomb Raider Anniversary 2 and bring back Keely Hawes.

 

[Ferrs]

I just hope CD isn't doing it. Eidos Montreal did a so much better job in Shadow. Still with faults, but a way into a good direction, I think they're more capable of doing a new TR that mix Classic and Modern design philosophies better.

Also, keep Shadow's Lara model. Classic model sucks compared to her, and I say this as a Classic TR games. But finally we got in Shadow a Lara Croft that looks like a Tomb Raider, not a sex doll.

Just don't make her that boring.

 

[Lant_War]

And to ppl saying: "It's dead", " Bye TR" and similar shitposting: No, it's not. It's one of the most successful franchises for SE and all 3 games from the trilogy were big success for SE.

Click to shrink...

They had insane sales expectations though.

 

[thejpfin]

Whatever the next tomb raider game might be, I hope it goes back to it's roots and has actual tomb raiding.
So pretty much just modernize Tomb Raider 1. I was really disappointed with the newer tomb raider games that they have very little supernatural elements.
When I play tomb raider, I want to see shit like this:

And imo open world would be a bad idea, not everything needs to be open world. Also bring Camilla back, she's great Lara.

 

[cgpartlow]

I really hope they keep making them. I love the new Tomb Raider games, although Shadow lost a little something. The platforming and exploration are just so good. I hope they go even more in that direction and minimize the combat and other elements. Bigger, longer tombs with more complex puzzles. With Ray Tracing being a big next gen feature maybe puzzles focused more on light and shadow and reflection?

 

[Kholdy]

Lara was at one point considered by Guinness Book of Records as the 2nd most recognizable video game character next to Mario himself, and the most recognizable heroine in the industry.

I would suggest a heavy push towards making Lara over-the-top fun and adventurous again, and to hit the 90s nostalgia hard.

She doesn't have to have the body of an inflatable love doll, but stick her in a big bright turquoise shirt again, give her dual-wielding pistols, a sassy and fun-loving attitude that craves adventure and archaeological discoveries, and face her off against over-the-top temple trials that are goofy and memorable. More Legends of the Hidden Temple, less torture porn and melodrama.

Embracing the camp and supernatural elements of the franchise - don't make it grounded. Kick start your adventure off with a big fight against a T-Rex or something equivalent with a big, impressive setpiece that isn't "gritty" but is instead imaginative and smile-inducing.

I don't think the series needs to be "M"-rated. There's no reason the series needs Lara gunning down thousands of human mercenaries with increasingly brutal and psychotic glory kills. Platforming, puzzle-solving, exploration, and exciting parkour elements have always been where the series thrived most.

Click to shrink...

Yes, this is what I want from TR.
TR reboot should have been a new IP, like Assassin's Creed was born from a Prince of Persia game.

 

[Hey Please]

Let the IP slumber for now.

The reboot was a fine but I did not like the direction they were going. Come RoTTR, it felt contrived; trying too hard to be Uncharted. It exhausted me to the point where I don't even care to play SoTR despite it being on GP.

Personally, it would be nice to have her be akin to Doctor Indiana Jones instead of merely destroying everything she touches. Be a more third person adventure than a third person shooter with a few interstitial puzzles and platforming.

As for Lara herself, I do appreciate the work her VA does but stories and especially dialogues (which make her feel like an angsty selfish teenager at times) themselves are so mediocre (especially for RoTTR) nothing about her is memorable. Honestly, the only character in the entire series that I can remember because of grounded they felt is Jonah.

 

[4 Get!]

Make it first person next time around and focus on the puzzles and platforming as the primary form of danger again, instead of tons and tons of enemies to shoot.

 

[reKon]

I know this would never happen but I'm interested on what a Naughty Dog Tomb Raider game would be like

 

[Deleted member 437]

I wonder how these sold.

I never really got attached to them. Played 1 and 2, and haven't even played 3 yet. I really have little desire. I think this whole reboot was a bust for me.

 

[BAD]

Pretty sure TR is now "frozen".

Eidos Montreal is working on both Avengers and GOTG game
Both Crystal Dynamics studios are working on Avengers.

Square Enix has a multi-year/multi-game deal with Marvel, so yes, we can look up at 10 years of Marvel Games made by EM or CD.

Click to shrink...

I thought we heard all three were below sales expectations and disappointed. The first one was controversial when that info came out because people thought Square had silly expectations, but to them it was a disappointment nonetheless at least at first. Rise was Xbox exclusive and i thought also didn't chart as expected. Shadow wasn't much of a blockbuster at all and had mediocre reviews.

That said, the comments saying it's dead are wrong anyway, as it did sell millions in the end. But I still think it didn't do what they expected with their investments.

 

[Trieu]

The new Tomb Raider games are something I never understoond why they got mixed reviews/reception. Not many people seem to get excited over those, but I loved all three of them and one of the few games I actually enjoyed 100%ing.
Even though they are no 10/10 masterpiece games I'd still be thrilled if they were to release a new one.

 

[IDontBeatGames]

Tomb Raider should go dormant for a couple of years. Whoever makes the next game should really go back to the drawing board and figure out what made the first two games so much better than the third game which seemed to be very disliked. I think this is one of those IPs that can afford to truly go dormant for 2,3 years before a reveal because it seems like everyone also got burned out on the franchise after the third one. Also, people didn't like the second one having Xbox exclusivity for the first year kind of burned everyone out on too who owned a Playstation and making us wait a year I believe? So I think they need to go back and figure out how to make this IP great and try to build some sort of universe that's similar and just as lovable as Uncharted. I'd love to see what they do in the future though.

 

[Ferrs]

Let the IP slumber for now.

The reboot was a fine but I did not like the direction they were going. Come RoTTR, it felt contrived; trying too hard to be Uncharted. It exhausted me to the point where I don't even care to play SoTR despite it being on GP.

Personally, it would be nice to have her be akin to Doctor Indiana Jones instead of merely destroying everything she touches. Be a more third person adventure than a third person shooter with a few interstitial puzzles and platforming.

As for Lara herself, I do appreciate the work her VA does but stories and especially dialogues (which make her feel like an angsty selfish teenager at

Click to shrink...

Shadow is more like that. There's barely any shooting until late game.

Tomb Raider should go dormant for a couple of years. Whoever makes the next game should really go back to the drawing board and figure out what made the first two games so much better than the third game which seemed to be very disliked.

Click to shrink...

I think people don't even know what they want. You see people dislike the heavy focus on combat and less exploration and puzzles on them, yet they hate Shadow when it does what people asked.

True there's more focus on the story in some parts like Paititi that gets annoying but still.... It's something that I don't get.

 

[Linus815]

I thought we heard all three were below sales expectations and disappointed. The first one was controversial when that info came out because people thought Square had silly expectations, but to them it was a disappointment nonetheless at least at first. Rise was Xbox exclusive and i thought also didn't chart as expected. Shadow wasn't much of a blockbuster at all and had mediocre reviews.

That said, the comments saying it's dead are wrong anyway, as it did sell millions in the end. But I still think it didn't do what they expected with their investments.

Click to shrink...

https://www.gamesindustry.biz/artic...matsuda-on-growing-square-enixs-global-empire

well, fwiw the CEO later admitted their expectations were unrealistic and was generally pleased with the reboot series performance.

 

[Deleted member 13250]

I think gameplay wise the reboots are fun. Just stop making them dumb melodramas. The stories for this trilogy are soooooo bad.

 

[RagnarokX]

Make it a puzzle platformer like the old games where you actually raid tombs and you don't have to shoot.

Lara was at one point considered by Guinness Book of Records as the 2nd most recognizable video game character next to Mario himself, and the most recognizable heroine in the industry.

I would suggest a heavy push towards making Lara over-the-top fun and adventurous again, and to hit the 90s nostalgia hard.

She doesn't have to have the body of an inflatable love doll, but stick her in a big bright turquoise shirt again, give her dual-wielding pistols, a sassy and fun-loving attitude that craves adventure and archaeological discoveries, and face her off against over-the-top temple trials that are goofy and memorable. More Legends of the Hidden Temple, less torture porn and melodrama.

Embracing the camp and supernatural elements of the franchise - don't make it grounded. Kick start your adventure off with a big fight against a T-Rex or something equivalent with a big, impressive setpiece that isn't "gritty" but is instead imaginative and smile-inducing.

I don't think the series needs to be "M"-rated. There's no reason the series needs Lara gunning down thousands of human mercenaries with increasingly brutal and psychotic glory kills. Platforming, puzzle-solving, exploration, and exciting parkour elements have always been where the series thrived most.

Click to shrink...

Eh, no thanks. Going hardcore camp was a misstep of the Legend trilogy imo. It felt like a parody of Tomb Raider and too Angelina Jolie. Just make a game with great level design and gameplay and keep the story and character at a minimum.

 

[Samanosuke Akechi]

Just make it like the classics.

 

[IDontBeatGames]

I think people don't even know what they want. You see people dislike the heavy focus on combat and less exploration and puzzles on them, yet they hate Shadow when it does what people asked.

Click to shrink...

I think what they need to before worrying about combat and all of that is to make Tomb Raider as light hearted as Uncharted and find a way to create funny/interesting/lovable characters like the Uncharted universe has. That's why so many people love it (outside of graphics, gameplay, story etc). I think or maybe it's just me, felt like Tomb Raider felt a lot more serious than I wanted it to be because I was so used to a treasure hunting adventure filled with a fun time to go with it from the Uncharted games.

 

[Ferrs]

I think what they need to before worrying about combat and all of that is to make Tomb Raider as light hearted as Uncharted and find a way to create funny/interesting/lovable characters like the Uncharted universe has. That's why so many people love it (outside of graphics, gameplay, story etc). I think or maybe it's just me, felt like Tomb Raider felt a lot more serious than I wanted it to be because I was so used to a treasure hunting adventure filled with a fun time to go with it from the Uncharted games.

Click to shrink...

This I agree, as I said as much as I like NuLara design the character herself it's not as charismatic and the new trilogy takes itself too seriously. The side cast and the villains are just boring.
Not to say it should be Legends tier of camp, but they need to find a better middleground.

 

[Hey Please]

Shadow is more like that. There's barely any shooting until late game.

Click to shrink...

Perhaps I may give it a try some day. Suffice it to say though, I find pigeonholing Lara as a "saviour" absolutely abrasive.

Just make it like the classics.

Click to shrink...

It would be nice for Lara to NOT just up and kill previously thought extinct species and/or endangered ones. She is like a god damn plague.

 

[Tora]

I feel like this is a series that could go dormant again for a while and be brought back with a focus on exploration and discovery when we have the tech to make a huge leap in the gameplay and world department

Click to shrink...

Isn't that basically now?

No game developed from today would be for this gen.

 

[IDontBeatGames]

This I agree, as I said as much as I like NuLara design the character herself it's not as charismatic and the new trilogy takes itself too seriously. The side cast and the villains are just boring.
Not to say it should be Legends tier of camp, but they need to find a better middleground.

Click to shrink...

Exactly, they need to find a way to build characters up that are actually interesting, funny or at least memorable. The Uncharted universe has several characters that you can talk about and be like "Yeah I remember that!" or remember funny things they said simply because the writing is that good for them. Tomb Raider is about Lara of course just like Uncharted is about Nathan Drake but the thing that makes Uncharted work is that it's Nathan Drake and memorable friends.

 

[Mechaplum]

Reboot her again into the fun, adventure seeking Lara but keep the current 3D model. Also lose the crazy collectibles and crafting.