An oral history of the Tomb Raider game no one wanted to make
The 30th anniversary of Tomb Raider is this month, and a new book delves into its late-1990s heyday. The Making of Tomb Raider: 1997-2000 by Daryl Baxter covers a difficult development period for the series. Read more
The 30th anniversary of Tomb Raider is marked by a new book titled "The Making of Tomb Raider: 1997-2000" by Daryl Baxter. This extract discusses the development of Tomb Raider Chronicles, the fifth main-line title in the series, released in 2000 for the original PlayStation. The team expected to work on a PlayStation 2 Tomb Raider game, but Core Design and Eidos decided against it due to the looming PlayStation 2 launch.
The franchise had reached its peak by the end of 1999, and the team had already become well-acquainted with the engine and team needed to produce a game within nine months. However, Eidos required a new Tomb Raider game by the end of 2000 to maintain its financial stability and public interest. Despite the team's reluctance to create another Tomb Raider game so soon after TR4, Eidos insisted, leading to the team's frustration.
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