With the announcement of a new Tomb Raider, Crystal Dynamics also revealed that the title was a reboot with a whole new look and new start for the protagonist, Lara Croft. Global Brand Director Karl Stewart and Art Director Brian Horton sat down with Game Informer to talk about the new direction and new look of its most famous character. Stewart revealed that originally, the reboot wasn’t a reboot.
“This was originally supposed to be a continuation of Underworld. Instead, it became a case of us realizing that it was not the way we needed to go. We had to stop in our tracks and reevaluate everything in order to choose a new direction,” Stewart said. “A reboot wasn’t at the top of the list to begin with, but it certainly shone through as the direction the franchise needed.”
Horton explained that the first thing Crystal Dynamics wanted to do was move the character away from the hard, over-sexualized aspect. They were looking for a character audiences could relate to and empathize with.
“We wanted to make a version of Lara that you would recognize as Lara Croft, but that felt relevant to today’s gaming audience. We want people to care for Lara at the end of the day,” explained Horton. “What dropped away pretty quickly was the hardness that she had. That was one thing that we all agreed on right away – to try and soften her up enough so that you could step into her life. We didn’t want to make her a sexual object. She is a character that we want you to believe in.”
“As far as sex appeal, we are always thinking about making a character that people want to play, and part of that is a level of attractiveness and being drawn to Lara. But we don’t want to play up sexuality for sexualities sake,” he added. “She is an attractive girl who doesn’t play up her looks, but she is super smart and she is very ambitious. Ultimately, what I think is going to be compelling about this – and what our version of sexy is – is the toughness through adverse conditions.”
The art team spent a lot of time focusing on Lara's new wardrobe, making sure it was functional while still having callbacks to the original designs. In addition, the game will feature a wardrobe that changes due to adverse conditions.
“We had goals of a realistic proportionality and a realistic wardrobe, and we wanted them to feel more like clothing – not an outfit. Lara is beautiful, but she isn’t fashion forward,” said Horton. “The cumulative damage and wear and tear on the clothing is where evolution comes through in the outfit. Lara is just surviving from beginning to end. Through her situation her outfit is going to show the accumulation of that survival story. That is going to mean discoloration and rips and tears. That will sort of progress throughout the entire adventure.”
The full, in-depth interview is over at Game Informer, but some Tomb Raider fans may be disappointed by the true bomb Horton dropped. “No unlockable bikinis.”
