Rumor: Next Mainline Tomb Raider Game Might Be Open World

04.05.2024 - 01:56 / gamerant.com / Ediz Guner

The next mainline installment in the Tomb Raider franchise might be completely open world, according to recent claims made by an insider regarding the upcoming game. If this does end up being true, such a shift in design would mark a major departure from the gameplay formula established by previous entries in the Tomb Raider series, which have been largely linear and level-based up to this point.

Crystal Dynamics, the developers behind the first two entries in the critically acclaimedTomb Raider reboot trilogy, announced at the State of Unreal showcase back in April 2022 that another installment in the long-running franchise had officially begun development. Outside of revealing the fact that the new Tomb Raider game would be made using Unreal Engine 5, however, the company behind the upcoming release has yet to share much information on the contents of the title itself. In the two years since the game's official unveiling, the only thing of note that Crystal Dynamics has formally revealed so far is the new redesign that Lara Croft will sport in the upcoming game. Other than that, it's been nothing but silence on the mainline Tomb Raider game front for quite a while now. However, some recently shared rumors may give gamers a glimpse of what to potentially expect from the upcoming installment in the iconic franchise.

According to information shared by an insider named V Scooper on Twitter, the next Tomb Raider game will reportedly be «fully open world and set in India.» Elaborating on this statement, the insider claimed that the title will feature «vast sceneries» and new transportation methods to help players easily traverse and overcome obstacles across a wide, unrestricted landscape. The new forms of transportation in question are said to include things like motorcycles and parachutes, in addition to existing traversal methods that prior versions of Lara Croft made use of in previous games.

After being asked when exactly the new Tomb Raider game would release, V Scooper claimed that although they didn't really have a clue, they did hear that it «might be soon» since the next installment in the beloved 90s video game franchise is allegedly «supposed to release in less than a year if there are no delays.» Scooper did note, however, that this release window is not totally locked, so the title might still come out later than expected.

Assuming this is all accurate information, the decision to abandon the linear level design of past games in favor of a completely open world might end up being a bit divisive among Tomb Raider fans. In the end, though, it ultimately depends on how exactly Crystal Dynamics handles the layout of the world itself and the way traversal plays a role within it. Before getting