Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, Thief, and a variety of other IPs have been swept up alongside development studios Crystal Dynamics, Eidos-Montréal, and Square Enix Montréal by Embracer Group. Fans of Tomb Raider will know all too well that this isn’t the first time that the beloved series has passed hands either, as in 2009 Square Enix purchased Eidos, adding Tomb Raider to its library of IPs. At the time, this acquisition worried a lot of fans, but Square managed to deliver a solid trilogy, albeit not quite what we fans of the classic series wanted. Now with Tomb Raider being in the hands of Embracer Group, what does the future have in store for Miss Croft?
I’ve played nearly every iteration of the series, including the N-Gage game, so – so yeah, you can certainly say I’m a big Tomb Raider fan. I have many hopes but also many worries when it comes to Embracer Group snatching up one of my most beloved franchises in gaming.
So far we know that Lara Croft is currently underway getting her 13th instalment in the mainline series, a new logo has been showcased, and the next Tomb Raider will be created using the new Unreal Engine 5. That is, presuming that the Embracer deal doesn’t change any of those facts. Outside of that, we don’t know much in terms of what direction the next game was heading in, or whether it will now change course.
This is something that I and a lot of fans were hoping to see with Square’s trilogy – unfortunately, by the end of the third game it still didn’t feel like reboot Lara was quite on the same wavelength as classic Lara. She didn’t have the same bite and wit of classic Lara, something I missed dearly in my playthrough. I am aware that reboot Lara is supposed to be her own person, a new take on the old, but as someone who grew up with classic Lara and was empowered by her, reboot Lara just felt like a bit of a miss
The idea of merging the best aspects of both characters together is exhilarating – what I would give to have the duel pistols back with their unlimited ammo, the famous blue tank top, brown shorts, the bottomless backpack, the iconic ponytail, and of course Lara’s winning personality from the originals. In regards to Square Enix-era Lara, I would love for her to keep the climbing axe, bow, and the stunning locations we visited around the world. Combining all these elements I think we would have an absolute winner when it comes to the next Tomb Raider game.
Crystal Dynamics is incredibly excited about the future of Unreal and how it will help us take our storytelling to the next level. That’s why we’re proud to announce that our next #tombraider game is being built on Unreal Engine 5! pic.twitter.com/UFMiWzJAZc
— Tomb Raider (@tombraider) April 5, 2022
We have no information if that’s the direction Square Enix was planning to take – it’s based purely on speculation from the fans and my personal hopes – but with the games now out of its control, I can certainly see that vision becoming more likely. Tomb Raider changing hands could be the biggest blessing the series has received and I hope that lessons can be learned from the previous trilogy.
So that is my thoughts and feelings when it comes to Embracer Group taking the reins for the next instalment of the Tomb Raider franchise. I’m personally hoping to see a lot more of classic Lara Croft in the next game, and I’m confident that’s what we’ll get – whether Square was intending to do that or not. While Square’s Tomb Raider games are no write-offs, hopefully this is the start of a new era for a series I, and many others, have adored for years.