As part of its 25th anniversary celebrations for Tomb Raider, Square Enix has revealed footage and details of Tomb Raider: Ascension, an early survival-horror-like prototype created by Crystal Dynamics as it explored ways to reimagine the series – with various aspects of the project ultimately making their way into the developer’s 2013 reboot.
“After narrowing in on the concept of a survival story on a remote island,” explains Square Enix over on YouTube, “[Crystal Dynamics] began developing what was internally called Tomb Raider: Ascension.” The project is said to have “felt closer to a horror game than a Tomb Raider title” at one point, although this aspect would eventually fade into the background as the studio opted to focus in on survival elements.