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Tomb Raider: Ascension, the canceled project that helped create the 2013 franchise reboot, can still work now as Lara Croft’s next adventure.
Before Square Enix released the widely successful 2013 Tomb Raider reboot, there was another project in development. However, it was ultimately canceled, clearing the path for the most recent trilogy. Now that Square Enix and Crystal Dynamics are working on a game to connect the Tomb Raider of old with the more modern, grounded action hero, it’s time to look back at that canceled project. There in the dust, as any good Tomb Raider would know, may be a hidden gem (or collectible).
Some time after the Legend trilogy ended with Tomb Raider: Underworld in 2008, developer Crystal Dynamics started working on a new game: Tomb Raider: Ascension. Concept artwork began circulating throughout the early stages of development, showcasing a number of horrifying, creepy monsters that Lara Croft would have had to face. More recently, gameplay footage from Ascension was released, showcasing some of the 3D models in action, as they would have appeared if the project had been completed.
The video shows that a lot of elements from the canceled project were used in 2013’s Tomb Raider — many of them being horror elements. In fact, it wasn’t just the atmosphere, but parts of the story as well. Ascension would have seen Lara explore a haunted Japanese island, facing off against its wrathful spirits and monsters with only a small companion to aid her. In early versions of the game, this companion was a little six-year-old girl named Izumi, but this would later be changed into a monkey to simplify the story. A lot of the monsters would have been gargantuan creatures, seemingly inspired by the epic battles of Shadow of the Colossus and other similar games.
So what makes Tomb Raider: Ascension the perfect game to bring back for a sequel? There are a lot of elements that fans of the newer franchise and the older games alike would find appealing. Development may have only been in the early stages, but there is already so much that would work in a game whose goal is to pull the franchise back towards its roots.
Every saga in the Tomb Raider franchise has taken a step toward darker storylines and horror. With Lara’s tendency to uncover ancient, forgotten tombs that are crawling with lethal critters, undead beings and wild animals, the horror genre seems like a natural place to go. The original saga attempted to take Lara in that direction with Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness, while the Legend trilogy ended there with Underworld. In contrast, the Survivor trilogy started in the horror genre and slowly worked its way back toward the kind of mysticism-filled adventures that Lara Croft was known for in the beginning.
The old Tomb Raider games might have featured a far more lighthearted tone and cartoonish quality, but the monsters were nightmarish and the boss fights were big — just like Ascension‘s boss fights would have been. All appearances suggest they would have been every bit as gritty and violent as the fights in the Survivor trilogy, just far larger. Let’s not forget Tomb Raider‘s T-Rex battle, or the transmogrified Dr. Mark Willard in Tomb Raider III.
Additionally, Tomb Raider: Ascension would have included all the weapons fans from both sides of the franchise would have enjoyed. Lara would still be able to wield her pickaxe and bow, but she would also have her iconic dual pistols, which have only ever been teased in the Survivor trilogy. More importantly, the game has the potential to bring that confidence and adventurous attitude back, which the new Lara never quite developed. Once again, it would be the perfect transition between the two very different iterations of Lara.
Connecting the Survivor trilogy with the classic Tomb Raider games requires time and subtlety, which is why Ascension would work so well if Crystal Dynamics and Square Enix were to bring it back. Instead of presenting a drastic transformation in the franchise’s tone, Ascension could present a much-needed step back from the grounded storylines gamers have been experiencing in the most recent Tomb Raider games and a return to the wild adventures that longtime fans know and love.
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