Crystal Dynamics Confirmed Unified Timeline for Lara Croft Video Games

Crystal Dynamics is officially working on two new Lara Croft games: Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis and Tomb Raider: Catalyst. Both projects were announced last December at The Game Awards, and one of the main questions on fans’ minds is how these games fit into and relate to the “Survivor” trilogy—Tomb Raider (2013), Rise of the Tomb Raider, and Shadow of the Tomb Raider. It now seems clear how both games fit into the overall timeline.

As is well known, Legacy of Atlantis is a remake of the original Tomb Raider, released in 1996, and at the same time a reimagining of the franchise, while Catalyst is a brand-new installment in the series. GamesIndustry has released a new interview with Raul Siqueira, game director at Crystal Dynamics, taken during Gamescom last week, in which Siqueira confirmed that the studio is establishing a unified timeline for the Tomb Raider universe and that the Lara Croft featured in Legacy of Atlantis is the same character who appeared in the Survivor trilogy. You can check out more detailed comments on this below:

“Obviously, we are making the games together. However, it is very important for us to distinguish that Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis is completely its own project and we are making sure that we are staying faithful to the original game. When it comes to specifics of where Lara is in her journey moving forward, we want to be respectful to both the games that came before and the games that came after.

The Lara you see here is the same Lara from the Survivor era - Tomb Raider 2013, Rise of the Tomb Raider, and Shadow of the Tomb Raider, which tell Lara’s origin story - and it will be the same Lara in our projects moving forward.”

In the Legacy of Atlantis context, the situation seems to have been clarified, but the developers previously confirmed that Tomb Raider: Catalyst is a sequel to Tomb Raider: Underworld, released in 2008. So far, the studio hasn’t provided any further details, but it’s possible that the upcoming remake will lay the groundwork for Catalyst and establish the other Lara Croft games as canon—for instance, by referencing their events through various documents, emails, character dialogues, and so on.

There have also been recent rumors that Crystal Dynamics, in collaboration with Flying Wild Hog, is already working on remakes of the second and third Tomb Raider games, and there is also information regarding enhanced versions of games such as Tomb Raider: Legend, Tomb Raider: Anniversary, and the aforementioned Tomb Raider: Underworld. However, the studios have not yet commented on the matter.

Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis will release on February 12, 2027. The release date for Tomb Raider: Catalyst is currently unknown, but Embracer’s recent financial report confirms it will be launched in the 2027/28 fiscal year - between April 2027 and March 2028.