Lara Croft

Lara Croft is depicted as an athletic woman with brown eyes and dark auburn hair, frequently kept in a plait or ponytail. The character's classic costume is a turquoise leotard, light brown shorts, calf-high boots, and tall white socks. Accessories include fingerless gloves, a backpack, a utility belt with holsters on either side, and two pistols. The video game sequels introduced new outfits designed for different environments, such as underwater and cold weather. In the later games, Croft wears a crop top, camouflage pants and black or light brown shorts. When exploring, she often carries two pistols, but has used other weaponry throughout the series. She is fluent in several languages. Lara's backstory has changed dramatically over the course of the series. During the first era, beginning in Tomb Raider (1996), game manuals describe the character as the Wimbledon, London-born daughter of Lord Henshingly Croft (Lord Richard Croft in Legend and Survivor timelines). She was raised as a British aristocrat and betrothed to the fictitious Earl of Faringdon. Lara attended the Scottish boarding school Gordonstoun and a Swiss finishing school. At the age of twenty-one, she survived a plane crash, which left her stranded in the Himalayas for two weeks; the experience spurred her to shun her former life and seek other adventures around the world. Croft published books and other written works based on her exploits as a mercenary, big-game hunter, and master thief. These provided her with a replacement source of income after her father disowned her over her change in lifestyle. During the second era, which began with Tomb Raider: Legend (2006), Lara's story was changed to be the daughter of archaeologist Lord Richard Croft, the Earl of Abingdon, and someone who was quickly identified as a highly talented individual while attending the Abingdon Girls School. The plane crash was changed to when Lara was nine years old, This spurs Lara on to seek the reason for her mother's disappearance. The third era, established in Tomb Raider (2013), deviates from the original plot considerably. When Lara was young she travelled with her parents on many of their archaeological expeditions which helped to shape the woman she was becoming. It was on one of these expeditions that her mother, Amelia Croft, vanished and was presumed dead and when her father Richard presumably took his own life a few years later, she was then left in the care of Conrad Roth. Even though she inherited a vast fortune, giving her the means to attend Cambridge with ease, Lara chose to study at University College London. Though this was a much tougher choice, it helped her become more grounded and level-headed than she might otherwise have been. She also ended up meeting her best friend, Samantha Nishimura, during her time at UCL. It was because of Sam's free spirit and a wild streak that Lara was able to experience much more of London than just the universities and museums that she loved so much. After travelling the world, both Lara and Sam end up on an expedition to the Dragon's Triangle off the Japanese coast in search of the lost civilization of Yamatai. It is on this expedition that Lara is stranded on a remote island full of natural, human and supernatural dangers, which enables her to develop from an untested young woman to a survivor. After experiencing the supernatural powers of the ancient world, she comes to realise her father was right about his theories and her hunger for adventure awakens. == Character development history ==

was an early inspiration to Lara Croft's creation. Core Design, a subsidiary of Eidos, created Lara Croft as the lead protagonist of its video game Tomb Raider, which began development in 1994. He initially envisioned a male lead character with a whip and a hat. Core Design co-founder Jeremy Smith characterised Gard's initial design as derivative of Indiana Jones and asked for more originality. Gard decided that a female character would work better from a design standpoint. Gard expressed a desire to counter stereotypical female characters, which he has characterised as "bimbos" or "dominatrix" types. Smith was sceptical of a female lead at first because few contemporary games featured them. He came to regard a female lead as a great hook and put faith in Gard's idea. Gard experimented with different designs, including "sociopathic blonds, muscle women, flat topped hip-hopsters and a Nazi-like militant in a baseball cap". He settled on a tough South American Latina woman with a braid named Laura Cruz. Along with the name change, the character's backstory was altered to incorporate a British origin. Gard was keen to animate the character realistically, an aspect he felt the industry at the time had disregarded. In the first Tomb Raider, Croft's three-dimensional (3D) character model is made of around 230 polygons. Although widely reported that, while adjusting the character model, Gard accidentally increased the breasts' dimensions by 150 percent and the rest of the creative team argued to keep the change, Gard has stated that the notion "came out of a silly remark made in an interview". Core Design hired Shelley Blond to voice Croft after the game entered the beta phase of development. Victor Interactive Software asked Core Design to redesign Lara with a larger head and eyes to appeal to a Japanese audience. Illustrations drawn by Hiromasa Ota and a render of the design were faxed through late into development. Gard did not want to alter Lara's appearance; as a compromise, the design was used only in the Japanese manuals and guide. Core Design improved and modified the character with each installment. Other changes included new outfits and manoeuvres. Actress Judith Gibbins took over voice acting responsibilities and stayed on through the third game. The character model was altered to feature more realistic proportions, and Jonell Elliott replaced Gibbins as the voice of Lara Croft. Core Design conducted market research, including fan polls, to aid in The Angel of Darkness development. The development team felt it could not alter the character and instead opted to place her in a situation different from previous games. The PlayStation 2 hardware allowed for more manoeuvres and a more detailed character model; the number of polygons in Croft's model increased to 4,400. Developer switch to Crystal Dynamics , Lara Croft's original designer, left Core Design in 1997, but returned to work with Crystal Dynamics as a consultant. The Angel of Darkness was received poorly, prompting Eidos—fearing financial troubles from another unsuccessful game—to give development duties for future titles to Crystal Dynamics, another Eidos subsidiary. The Legacy of Kain development team began work on a new title (Tomb Raider: Legend), which would essentially reboot the franchise, significantly changing her origin story, with Toby Gard returning to work as a consultant. The development team reassessed the brand value of the franchise and its protagonist. Chip Blundell, Eidos's vice-president of brand management, commented that the designers understood that fans saw the character and brand as their own, rather than Eidos's. The storyline intended for a trilogy of games that started with The Angel of Darkness was abandoned and a new plot was created for Legend. The designers updated Lara Croft's move set to make her movements appear more fluid and continuous. The animations were also updated so the character could better interact with environmental objects. Responding to criticism directed at the character controls in The Angel of Darkness, Crystal Dynamics redesigned the character's control scheme to provide what it felt was the best third-person action experience. Crystal Dynamics updated the character model to add more realism, but retained past design elements. Crystal Dynamics retained the design changes for the next game, Tomb Raider: Anniversary, a remake of the first game. The designers aimed to portray Croft with more emotional depth, and focused on the character's desire to achieve the end goal of the game, culminating in killing one of the antagonists. The developers used the death to evoke guilt in Croft afterward and illustrate that shooting a person should be a difficult choice. portrayed Lara in the most games, starting with Tomb Raider: Legend in 2006. Tomb Raider: Underworld continued the plot line established in Legend. To achieve a more natural appearance, the developers added spherical harmonics to provide indirect lighting to in-game objects like Lara Croft. The developers enhanced Croft's facial model by increasing the number of polygons, bones used in the animation skeleton, and graphical shaders in the face to add more detail and expressive capabilities. The hair was created as a real-time cloth simulation to further add realism to its shape and movement. The developers kept Croft's hair tied back because they felt a real person would not want it flying around while performing dangerous manoeuvres. While previous games used hand-animated movement for the character, Underworld introduced motion capture-based animation to display more fluid, realistic movement and facial expressions. Stuntwoman and Olympic Gold medalist Heidi Moneymaker was the motion capture actress, and advised the designers on practical movements. The blends and additional animations give the character more flexible movement. Crystal Dynamics sought to make the visual appearance of the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 versions identical, although the systems used different techniques to achieve this. Publisher switch to Square Enix Japanese game company Square Enix acquired Eidos in April 2009, restructuring Eidos into Square Enix Europe. Crystal Dynamics remained as developer of the Tomb Raider games. Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light introduced cooperative gameplay to the series, a move that brand director Karl Stewart said was meant to "show [Lara] as a more humanistic character" by placing her in a situation that differed from previous instalments. The game uses the same technology featured in the studio's past Tomb Raider games. In late 2010, Square Enix announced a franchise reboot titled Tomb Raider; the new Lara Croft would be a darker, grittier reimagining of the character. In examining the character, Crystal Dynamics concluded that Croft's largest failing was her "Teflon coating", and that it needed a more human version that players would care about. The second reboot focuses on the origin of the character, and as a result, changes the previous back story. Staff opted to first work on the character's biography rather than cosmetic aspects. Crystal Dynamics sought to avoid the embellished physique of past renditions and pushed for realistic proportions. In redesigning the character's appearance, the designers began with simple concepts and added features that it felt made Lara Croft iconic: a ponytail, "M-shaped" lips, and the spatial relationship between her eyes, mouth, and nose. The company also changed the character's wardrobe, focusing on what it believed was more functional and practical. In designing the outfits, staff aimed to create a look that was "relevant" and "youthful", but not too "trendy" or "hip". To gauge the redesign, Crystal Dynamics conducted eye tracking studies on subjects who viewed the new version and previous ones. Similar to Underworld, the new Tomb Raider features motion capture-based animation. In an effort to present realism and emotion in the character, Crystal Dynamics captured face and voice performances to accompany the body performances. The company revamped Croft's in-game combat abilities. Crystal Dynamics aimed to make the "combat fresh to the franchise, competitive amongst [similar games], and relevant to the story". Among the changes is the implementation of a free aiming system. The studio reasoned that such a system would cause players to be more invested in the action by fostering a "raw, brutal, and desperate" style. Global brand director Karl Stewart stated that such desperation relates to the updated character's inexperience with violence. He further commented that Lara Croft is thrust into a situation where she is forced to kill, which will be a traumatic and defining moment for her. == Appearances ==

In video games Lara Croft primarily appears in the Tomb Raider video game series published by Square Enix Europe (previously Eidos Interactive). The action-adventure games feature the protagonist travelling the world in search of rare objects and mystical artefacts. Croft first appeared in the 1996 video game Tomb Raider, in which she competes against a rival archaeologist in search of an Atlantean artefact. Tomb Raider II (1997) centres on the search for the Dagger of Xian, which is sought by thieves. Tomb Raider III (1998) focuses on meteorite fragments that endow humans with supernatural powers. In Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation (1999), the first depiction of a young Croft, she is accompanied by her mentor, Werner Von Croy. In Tomb Raider: Chronicles (2000), most of the game relates adventures told via flashbacks. The next portable game, Tomb Raider: The Prophecy (2002), was released on the Game Boy Advance, and focuses on three magical stones. Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness (2003) was released on home platforms, centring on the murder of Professor Von Croy. Eidos rebooted the series with Tomb Raider: Legend (2006), which focuses on Lara Croft's search for Excalibur and her mother, altering the character's backstory as part of the redesign. Tomb Raider: Anniversary (2007), a remake of the first game in the series, carried over design elements from Legend. Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light (2010) is a downloadable game that is set in a Central American jungle, and features an ancient warrior who works with Lara Croft. In 2013, the series was rebooted a second time with the game Tomb Raider, which retold the story of Lara's origins and began a new continuity. Its sequel Rise of the Tomb Raider was released in 2015, and the third game, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, in 2018. Outside of Tomb Raider. Lara Croft also appears as a Diana DLC crossover skin in the fighting game Brawlhalla. Additionally, Croft makes a cameo appearance in the PlayStation 5 game ''Astro's Playroom. Lara Croft appears in Fortnite Battle Royale sixth season of the second chapter and was featured in a "Team Up!" mode with Aloy from Horizon Zero Dawn. Fortnite later added a separate Angel of Darkness-styled skin in 2025. Lara Croft also made an appearance in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare IIs Season 5 Reloaded update. Lara Croft appears as a playable character in Hero Wars: Alliance and Hero Wars: Dominion Era as part of a special time-limited event. In July 2024, Croft was added as a playable character in the online horror game Dead by Daylight with the release of the Tomb Raider'' DLC. In films Paramount Pictures acquired the film rights for Tomb Raider in 1998, and released Lara Croft: Tomb Raider in 2001. Producer Lloyd Levin stated that the filmmakers tried to capture the essence of the video game elements rather than duplicate them. Acknowledging the character's "huge fan base" and recognisable appearance, director Simon West sought an actress with acting ability as well as physical attributes similar to Croft. Paramount also received input from developer Core Design on casting. Producer Lawrence Gordon felt she was a perfect fit for the role. Jolie braided her hair and used minimal padding to increase her bust a cup size to 36D for the role. She felt that Croft's video game proportions were unrealistic, and wanted to avoid showing such proportions to young girls. Jolie trained rigorously for the action scenes required for the role, occasionally sustaining injuries. Directed by Jan de Bont, the 2003 film focused more on the character's development. De Bont praised Jolie's understanding of Lara Croft, as well as the character's strength, saying he "hates women in distress". Producer Levin commented that the film staff tried to handle the character properly, and consulted with the video game developers on what would be appropriate. Jolie was still optioned to play the character in a third film as late as 2007, though she had commented in 2004 that she had no intention of reprising the role again. Development for a third film was announced in 2009, with Dan Lin as the producer. Lin intended to reboot the film series with a young Croft in an origin story. In 2011, Olivia Wilde denied rumours that she would play the role, but still expressed interest. The film, originally meant for a 2013 release, and produced by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in partnership with King's studio GK Films. Alicia Vikander was cast in 2016 to play Lara in the next film adaptation. Tomb Raider, directed by Roar Uthaug, was released in 2018 and takes inspiration mostly from the rebooted series that started in 2013. A sequel was in development, but was cancelled in July 2022 after MGM lost the film rights to the franchise due to its expiration. In other adaptations Beginning in 1997, the character regularly appeared in comics by Top Cow Productions. Lara Croft first appeared in a crossover in Sara Pezzini's Witchblade, and later starred in her own comic book series in 1999. The series began with Dan Jurgens as the writer, featuring artwork by Andy Park and Jon Sibal. The stories were unrelated to the video games until issue 32 of the Tomb Raider series, which adapted Angel of Darknesss plot. Other printed adaptations are Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Amulet of Power, a 2003 novel written by Mike Resnick; Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Lost Cult, a 2004 novel written by E. E. Knight; and Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Man of Bronze, a 2005 novel written by James Alan Gardner. GameTap released Revisioned: Tomb Raider in 2007 via the GameTap TV section of its website. The web series is a collection of ten short animated films that features re-imagined versions of Croft by well-known animators, comic book artists, and writers, including Jim Lee, Warren Ellis, and Peter Chung. Episodes ranged from five to seven and half minutes in length, featuring Minnie Driver as Croft. The creative staff was given considerable freedom to re-interpret the character; they did not consult the video game designers, but were given a guide listing acceptable and unacceptable practices. Hayley Atwell voices Lara in the Netflix animated series, Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft. A Tomb Raider streaming series, featuring Sophie Turner as Lara, is currently in production, to be released on Amazon Prime Video. == Promotion and merchandising ==

Eidos's German branch and the KMF agency handled marketing for Lara Croft. According to Eidos, no focus groups or scientific studies were consulted when devising the marketing strategy for the character. Eidos marketing manager David Burton oversaw marketing efforts, which attempted to portray the character as attractive and pleasant. However, interaction with the press, especially those in Europe, resulted in less clothing depicted in promotional images. Following Square Enix's acquisition, Eidos's marketing duties were transferred to the Square Enix Europe subsidiary. The character has also been featured on the cover of non-video game publications such as British style magazine The Face, American news magazines Time and Newsweek, German magazine Focus, and the front page of British newspaper the Financial Times. By April 2025, she had made over 2,300 cover appearances, earning a Guinness World Records for the "most magazine covers for a video game character". Eidos licensed the character for third party advertisements, including television ads for Visa, Lucozade drinks, G4 TV, Brigitte magazine, and SEAT cars (Seat Ibiza, Seat Cordoba, Seat Alhambra and Seat Arosa). Picture advertisements appeared on the sides of double-decker buses and walls of subway stations. German punk band Die Ärzte's 1998 music video for "Men are Pigs" () also features Croft. Music groups have dedicated songs to the character, culminating in the release of the album A Tribute to Lara Croft. Bands and artists including Depeche Mode, Moby, Faith No More, Jimi Tenor, and Apollo 440 donated their songs for the album. Near the end of 2006, Lara Croft became the spokesmodel for the Skin Cancer Awareness Foundation of Minden, Nevada as part of its Sun Smart Teen Program. The foundation felt that the character personified the benefits of a healthy body, and that young teenagers could relate to Croft. Lara Croft's likeness has been a model for merchandise. The first action figures were produced by Toy Biz, based on the video game version of the character. Graphic designer Marc Klinnert of Studio OXMOX released -scale model kits of the character, and later built a full-scale version. Arcade: The Videogame Magazine and PlayStation Magazine promoted life-size Croft statues as contest prizes. Spurred by a rumour that Eidos provided Lara Croft autographs, fans wrote to the company to obtain them. The quantity prompted Eidos to quickly produce autographed cards to meet demand. Xbox Live Marketplace released Xbox 360 avatars in conjunction with Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light. Eidos released a brand of Lara Croft apparel and accessories, marketed under the label "LARA". The line included wallets, watches, bathrobes, and Zippo lighters. Other third-party apparel are hiking boots, backpacks, leather jackets, and thermoses. In October 1997, Eidos held an art exhibition titled "Lara Goes Art" in Hamburg, Germany to promote Tomb Raider II. The exhibit featured selected artwork of the character submitted by artists and fans. Pieces included oil and airbrushed paintings, photo comics, and Klinnert's model; SZM Studios provided the computer-generated footage it had created for Die Ärzte's music video and the Brigitte magazine television commercial. Promotional models Eidos hired several models to portray Lara Croft at publicity events, promotions, trade shows, and photo shoots. Initially Eidos employed four models to dress as Lara for a photo call at a trade event, but after witnessing the unusually large crowd the models drew, they decided to expand the concept by casting a single official Lara who would role-play the character. Nathalie Cook was the first model to assume the role individually, portraying the character from 1996 to 1997. Cook was followed by British actress Rhona Mitra from 1997 to 1998. Eidos then updated the Croft costume to match its video game depiction. McAndrew portrayed Croft from 1998 until 1999, when Eidos fired her for posing in Playboy, which used the character and Tomb Raider franchise to promote the McAndrew's issue without Eidos's approval. Eidos later donated McAndrew's Tomb Raider costume to a UNICEF charity auction. Lara Weller followed McAndrew from 1999 to 2000. Subsequent models were Lucy Clarkson from 2000 to 2002 and Jill de Jong, who wore a costume based on Lara Croft's new appearance in Angel of Darkness from 2002 to 2004. Karima Adebibe became the model from 2006 to 2008, and wore a costume based on the updated version of Croft in Legend. Gymnast Alison Carroll succeeded Adebibe in 2008 and featured apparel based on the character's appearance in Underworld. Crystal Dynamics discontinued the use of models as part of the franchise's second reboot. The number of models prompted Guinness World Records to award the character an official record for the "most official real life stand-ins" in 2008. == Reception and legacy ==

Lara Croft's introduction was widely regarded as an innovation in the video game market, with Rob Smith of PlayStation: The Official Magazine describing her as a video game icon of that generation of games. Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine stated alternatively that Tomb Raiders PlayStation success propelled the character to prominence, making her a mascot for the system. PlayStation Magazine credits coverage in the Financial Times in 1997 as the starting point of the character's mainstream attention. IGN editor Colin Moriarty stated that while she began as an intelligent and strong female character, her games grew bland and Lara Croft became more like a "virtual blow-up doll". Crystal Dynamics' rendition of Croft in Legend garnered wide, though not universal, praise; many publications described the portrayal as a successful reboot. Game Informer named Lara Croft the number six top video game hero of 2006, citing the character's successful reprise in popularity. The magazine cited the character's alterations in Legend as the reason for her resurgent success. Others, such as Schedeen and GamePros Patrick Shaw, felt that the makeover did not improve the character. Fans also disapproved of the changes, especially the switch from the braid. Jeremy Smith stated that the minimal personality allows players to form a relationship with the character, and that rather than taking on the role of the character they were sharing the game's experience with her. More than 100 such sites were present by the end of 1998. One admirer rode a bike over from Amsterdam to Derby wearing Lara Croft-brand clothing to meet the developers, who welcomed him after learning of the trip. and received a star on the Walk of Game in San Francisco. Magazines, including ''Guinness World Records Gamer's Edition, have also described her as one of the iconic and best female video game character of all time. Game Informer commented that the character is well liked around the world, particularly in England. Hartas called Croft one of the most famous game women, praising her independence. Karen Jones of Official U.S. PlayStation Magazine described the character as "one of the biggest stars on the PlayStation". Time magazine writer Chris Taylor called her "the foundation of one of the most successful franchises in video-game history". Guinness World Records named the character the best-selling video game heroine, following the Tomb Raider'' franchise surpassing 100 million units sold, in November 2025. Schedeen stated that Croft is among the first video game icons to be accepted as a mainstream sex symbol. Several publications listed big breasts as one of the character's most famous attributes. After interviewing players in 1998, Griffiths commented that players regularly mention Croft's breasts when discussing her. GameDaily placed Lara Croft number one on a similar list that same year, and PlayStation: The Official Magazine awarded her honourable mention for Game Babe of the Year. Croft has appeared in several issues of Plays Girls of Gaming special and PlayStation Magazines Swimsuit special. Layouts portray the character partially nude, in bikinis, and in revealing cocktail dresses, though Tomb Raider: Underworlds creative director Eric Lindstrom criticised such poses as out of character. While the developers were annoyed by the rumour, Eidos management viewed it as good publicity and internally recommended including it when new games were being developed. PlayStation Magazine featured an April Fool's parody of Croft and the rumoured code referred to as "Nude Raider." Fans developed software patches to remove Lara Croft's clothing in the personal computer game releases. Reactions from groups have been mixed. The journal Leonardo noted some feminists' negative reaction to her design; though males were identifying with their feminine side through Croft, she reinforced unrealistic ideals about the female body. Australian feminist scholar Germaine Greer criticised her as an embodiment of male fantasies. In 1996, Electronic Gaming Monthly argued that rather than altering the state of women in games, Croft simply continued the trend of female characters in video games being large-breasted and scantily clad in an effort to appeal to the predominately male gaming audience, which had the overall impact of teaching gamers to see women as sex objects. PlayStation Magazine staff commented that Croft could be seen as either a role model for young independent girls or the embodiment of a male adolescent fantasy, though they later stated that the character does little to attract female demographics and was obviously designed with a male audience in mind. Jonathan Smith of Arcade: The Videogame Magazine similarly noted that male players often see themselves as "chivalrous protectors" while playing the game. GamesRadar editor Justin Towell nonetheless commented that he couldn't imagine a Tomb Raider game without a sexualised female lead. Griffith described Lara Croft as a flawed female influence. He stated that though the character is a step in the right direction, too many women view her as a "crudely realised male fantasy figure". Kaiser Hwang of PlayStation Magazine commented that she "brought girl power" to video games. Several publications have used her as the standard to which later female video game characters have been compared. Multiple video game publications have labelled the character a video game and cultural icon. The title character in the 1998 German film Run Lola Run has often been compared to Croft. Comparisons were also made to Bond girl Christmas Jones from the 1999 James Bond series film The World Is Not Enough. Additionally, both Eidos Interactive senior executive John Davis and character spokeswoman Susie Hamilton noted the character's similarities to Lara Croft. Jeremy Smith credits Croft with exposing the Tomb Raider games and video games in general to a wider audience. The Derby City Council opened a public vote in 2009 to name its new ring road. The winning choice, with 89% of over 27,000 votes, was "Lara Croft Way", which later opened in July 2010. In 2019, the city unveiled a star for Croft in their Made in Derby walk of fame, the only fictional character with such an honour. In 2020, Croft appeared on four commemorative UK postage stamps issued by the Royal Mail to celebrate classic UK video games. A 2024 poll conducted by BAFTA with around 4,000 respondents named Lara Croft as the most iconic video-game character of all time. Yahoo! Movies and IGN credit Jolie's role in the first Tomb Raider film with significantly raising her profile and propelling her to international super-stardom, respectively. Jolie commented that young children would ask her to sign objects as Lara Croft. IGN's Jesse Schedeen described Croft as one of few characters to receive a decent videogame-to-movie adaptation. By 2008, the first Tomb Raider film was the highest-grossing video game film and the largest opening ever for a movie headlined by a woman. It became the second highest-grossing video game movie in 2010, after the release of Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time, with Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life as the fourth. == See also ==