Tomb Raider
GameBy Crystal Dynamics · Released Mar 5, 2013
Documents about Tomb Raider
It’s Been a Great Year for Black-and-White Video Games
This analysis highlights a recent trend in independent game development, specifically focusing on the creative success of black-and-white titles.
- Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot anticipates a shift toward an all-digital console market, citing Sony's potential move to phase out physical disc drives by 2028 to reduce hardware costs.
- Microsoft is testing an ad-supported cloud gaming program that allows Xbox users to stream owned titles for one hour in exchange for watching up to two minutes of pre-roll advertisements.
- February 2027 has emerged as a major release window, featuring high-profile titles including the Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis remake (Feb 12), God of War: Laufey (Feb 16), Persona 4 Revival (Feb 18), and Fable (Feb 23).
Sonic Movie Producers, Tomb Raider, Streets of Rage, and Planet of Lana Film Adaptations
The article reports on a panel at the inaugural iicon event in Las Vegas where Story Kitchen co-founder Dmitri Johnson discussed his company’s enthusiasm for adapting several video-game franchises into film and television.
- Story Kitchen is actively developing film and television adaptations for a diverse slate of titles, including Streets of Rage, Shinobi, Toejam & Earl, Sleeping Dogs, Vampire Survivors, and Sifu.
- The 2023 indie title Planet of Lana is officially slated for a live-action movie adaptation.
- Story Kitchen utilizes the success of the Sonic the Hedgehog franchise as a strategic 'gateway' to secure rights for additional Sega intellectual properties.
Amazon Abandons Its Open World Driving Game with Maverick Games
Amazon has officially terminated its publishing agreement with UK-based developer Maverick Games for an unannounced open-world driving title.
- Amazon has terminated its publishing agreement with UK-based developer Maverick Games for their upcoming AAA narrative-led open world driving game.
- Maverick Games, founded in 2022 by former Forza Horizon creative director Mike Brown, confirmed that development of the title remains ongoing as they seek a new publishing partner.
- This move is part of a broader strategic contraction at Amazon Game Studios, which has recently cut MMO development staff, ceased operations on the title 'King of Meat,' and sold the MOBA 'March of Giants' to Ubisoft.
Embracer Group Q3 Financial Results: Fiscal Year 2025/26
Embracer Group’s financial results for the third quarter of the 2025/26 fiscal year, covering the period from October to December 2025, reflect a period of significant structural transition and mixed performance.
- Embracer Group reported Q3 revenue of 5.2 billion SEK ($581.7 million), a 26% year-over-year decline, though management noted the result exceeded internal expectations.
- Despite the revenue drop, the company’s net profit grew by 45% year-over-year to 1.4 billion SEK ($162.2 million).
- Revenue from mobile games experienced a significant 66% decline, falling to 566 million SEK ($63.6 million).
ALDORA Leaderboard: Ubiquity Begets Success, January 2026
The January 2026 ALDORA Leaderboard identifies a structural shift in the entertainment industry, asserting that the most successful franchises are those that function as integrated, multi-channel ecosystems rather than isolated products.
- The most successful franchises in December 2025 were those that functioned as integrated ecosystems across film, gaming, merchandise, and social platforms, rather than relying on single-format content.
- Avatar led the January 2026 leaderboard with an ALDORA Score of 90 and a Momentum Index of 240, driven by its ability to accelerate engagement across gaming, video, social, and commerce.
- LEGO (81.7 score) and Five Nights at Freddy’s (87.7 score) secured the second and third positions by successfully orchestrating audience participation across diverse digital and physical touchpoints.
Which New Games 'Ruled' Interest at 2025's The Game Awards?
The 2025 Game Awards generated significant industry attention, with organizers reporting 171 million global livestreams, an 11% increase over the previous year.
- The 2025 Game Awards reached 171 million global livestreams, marking an 11% year-over-year increase in audience engagement.
- The global games market grew 7.5% in 2025 to reach $197 billion, with PC market expansion driven primarily by premium releases.
- Tomb Raider: Legacy Of Atlantis, Star Wars: Fate Of The Old Republic, Phantom Blade Zero, Resident Evil Requiem, and Divinity emerged as the top five most impactful announcements based on combined wishlist, trailer, and media metrics.
Industry Snapshot: Games, Platforms and Major Announcements (Weeks 49–50)
The snapshot covers weeks 49–50 of 2025, highlighting a mix of award successes, new releases, platform initiatives and industry events that signal sustained momentum across the video-game sector.
- The indie title 'Clair Obscur: Expedition 33' achieved over 5 million cumulative sales, including 3 million units via Game Pass in its first month, while securing Game of the Year honors.
- NetEase’s 'Where the Winds Meet' reached 9 million players in its first two weeks and hit a peak of 251,000 concurrent users on Steam.
- Nintendo expanded its internal development capacity by acquiring Bandai Namco Singapore to establish Nintendo Studios Singapore.
The Game Awards Reveals That Blew Up on Steam
The Game Awards serves as a significant marketing platform for the gaming industry, capable of driving measurable audience interest and immediate commercial success for featured titles.
- Following its nine-award win at The Game Awards, Expedition 33 saw daily sales volume increase by 6x, averaging 69,000 copies per day compared to its previous 12,000-copy average.
- Expedition 33 sold over 200,000 additional copies post-awards, with 76% of sales occurring on Steam, 21% on PS5, and only 3% on Xbox, suggesting Game Pass cannibalized premium sales on the latter platform.
- Total War: Warhammer 40,000 emerged as the top new-game reveal by Steam engagement, gaining 51,000 followers and demonstrating strong resonance with existing Warhammer franchise fans.
Hero Wars: Dominion Era Hits $650 Million in Revenue
The browser-based title Hero Wars: Dominion Era has reached a significant financial milestone, generating $650 million in lifetime revenue over its eight-year operational history.
- GDEV's browser-based game 'Hero Wars: Dominion Era' has reached $650 million in lifetime revenue and 75 million downloads over its eight-year lifespan since October 2016.
- The mobile version, 'Hero Wars: Alliance,' has surpassed $1.5 billion in in-app purchase revenue with over 150 million global downloads.
- A recent collaboration with the Tomb Raider franchise, which added Lara Croft as a playable character, resulted in a 25% increase in new paying users for both versions of the Hero Wars IP.
Our Industry News (13/05/24 - 19/05/24)
The weekly industry bulletin covers a mix of corporate developments, market performance highlights, and new game releases for the week of 13–19 May 2024.
- Sony has restructured PlayStation leadership, appointing Hermen Hulst and Hideaki Nishino to replace Hiroki Totoki as acting CEO.
- Sony reported a 17% increase in fiscal year revenue to $28 billion, bolstered by the success of Helldivers 2, which sold 12 million units in its first 12 weeks.
- The record-breaking performance of Helldivers 2 may signal a strategic pivot for Sony toward live-service titles over traditional single-player narrative games.
Plus: Nightingale, Balatro, Pacific Drive All Score on Steam
The current landscape of the video game industry shows a robust period for mid-sized and independent releases, characterized by high engagement across Steam and major console platforms.
- Balatro significantly outperformed expectations by selling 250,000 copies in its first few days and reaching 28,000 peak concurrent users on Steam.
- Nightingale achieved a strong Steam debut with 47,000 peak concurrent users, though its performance was tempered by mixed reception regarding technical stability.
- Pacific Drive demonstrated solid engagement for the survival genre, reaching 13,700 peak concurrent users on Steam.
Which New in 2024 Games Are People Still Playing?
This analysis examines player retention and market performance for PC and console games released in early 2024, specifically addressing the industry discourse surrounding player "drop-off" rates.
- High-performing games on Steam typically stabilize at 20% of their peak concurrent users (CCU), while average titles retain only 6%.
- Palworld leads the 2024 market by maintaining 500,000 CCU, representing approximately 25% of its peak player count.
- Helldivers 2 exhibited rare viral growth, with its CCU increasing from 81,000 to 250,000 within a single week.