Telling Lara’s Story: An Analysis of the Tomb Raider Reboot Trilogy Video Games and 2018 Film as Narratives
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Authors
Dr Janine Engelbrecht
Issue Date
2026
Type
Article
Language
en
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
The Tomb Raider franchise has, since its inception in 1996, branched to various media platforms, and Lara Croft has now thoroughly become a transmedial entity. While Lara Croft’s narrative and various biographical details are left vague from Tomb Raider I to Tomb Raider Underworld, she is given a solid origin story in the 2013 franchise reboot, simply titled
Tomb Raider. Following the release of the second game in the reboot trilogy, Rise of the Tomb Raider in 2015, a film based on Lara’s traumatic origins explored in Tomb Raider and Rise of the Tomb Raider was released in 2018. In this chapter, the author argues that while film is considered a primarily narrative or representational medium and video gaming a ludic or simulational one, Lara’s origin story is, ironically, better told by the two video games than the film.
Description
Citation
Janine Engelbrecht, 2026. "Telling Lara’s Story: An Analysis of the Tomb Raider Reboot Trilogy Video Games and 2018 Film as Narratives", Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Legacy of Lara Croft: Studies of Culture, Fandom and Gender, Natalie Le Clue
Publisher
Interdisciplinary Perspectives on the Legacy of Lara Croft: Studies of Culture, Fandom, and Gender