Shadow of the Tomb Raider Goes Dark in Closing Lara Croft’s Origin Trilogy

Thursday’s Square Enix event in London showcased the forthcoming Shadow of the Tomb Raider, which is being billed as the conclusion to Lara Croft’s origin trilogy. The event provided the first hands-on experience with the game, and the consensus feeling is that the finale of Croft’s formative adventures plays much like its predecessors while carrying a much darker tone.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider follows Croft’s attempts to save the world from an impending Mayan apocalypse through the usual tomb traversal and combat, but the game also displays a desire to explore a darkness within Croft. The series has chronicled her development from an inexperienced explorer to a skilled survivalist and killer, and that development carries convictions and conflicts that she must confront. This internal struggle will play a pivotal role in the game’s narrative, though some doubt persists around the coexistence of such personal introspection and the act of killing a copious amount of enemies.