7 Years Have Passed and Still No New Tomb Raider
Crystal Dynamics announced at the end of 2022 that it was working on a new Tomb Raider game in collaboration with Amazon. However, despite the passage of nearly two years, neither a promotion nor official details about the game have been shared. Apart from Lara Croft’s updated design, all developments remained at the rumor level, and it was said that the studio was having difficulty with the project.
Why Did Tomb Raider Development Take So Long?
According to Ethan Gach from Kotaku, Crystal Dynamics is currently experiencing serious problems in the Tomb Raider development process. This claim is supported by information in Embracer’s financial report. The report states that a big-budget project developed by the studio has been postponed to the 2026/2027 fiscal year, and this project is thought to be Tomb Raider. In addition, the studio signed a new agreement with an external partner regarding the rights to the project during this period.
Although there are some reports that the new game is “entering the final stages of development,” this is considered to be a misinterpretation. The studio’s hired “strike teams,” which are small teams focused on a specific problem, can be assigned to solve critical technical problems, not always the final stages.
The last main game in the Tomb Raider series was released in 2018. After 7 years, Lara Croft’s new adventure is still a mystery. It is not yet known how the new game will continue the series, or whether Lara will train a new generation of tomb hunters and take on the task of protecting historical artifacts as rumored. An official statement from Crystal Dynamics is currently awaited.
