Tomb Raider franchise developer Crystal Dynamics has confirmed what we all rather suspected already – that it is working on the next major game in the series – and that this project will be made in Unreal Engine 5.
The announcement capped off today’s Unreal Engine 5 presentation by Epic Games, which was timed alongside the engine’s general release.
Unreal Engine 5 is the powerful toolset behind Epic Games’ recent The Matrix Awakens demo, and which also runs the ever-changing Fortnite.
“This new engine translates to next-level storytelling and gameplay experiences, and that’s why we’re thrilled to announce today that we’ve just started development of our next Tomb Raider game, powered by Unreal Engine 5,” Crystal Dynamics said today.
“Our goal is to push the envelope of fidelity and to deliver the high-quality cinematic action-adventure experience that fans deserve from both Crystal Dynamics and the Tomb Raider franchise. We can’t wait to take this journey together.”
Crystal Dynamics is incredibly excited about the future of Unreal and how it will help us take our storytelling to the next level. That’s why we’re proud to announce that our next #tombraider game is being built on Unreal Engine 5! pic.twitter.com/UFMiWzJAZc
— Tomb Raider (@tombraider) April 5, 2022
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Crystal Dynamics previously developed Tomb Raider: Legend, Anniversary, Underworld, Guardian of Light and the Temple of Osiris, as well as the series’ big 2013 Tomb Raider reboot and sequel Rise of the Tomb Raider.
Since then, Crystal has been kept busy with the poorly-received live-service game Marvel’s Avengers – leaving 2018’s Shadow of the Tomb Raider to sister studio Eidos Montreal.
Crystal Dynamics is also currently working on the next Perfect Dark game, assisting development at Microsoft’s The Inititiave studio – and a recent report suggested it had taken a much larger role. (All of which begs the question – how much of Crystal Dynamics is now left on Marvel’s Avengers?)
There was no word on when we might hear more on the Tomb Raider project, or when it might see release.
