Original Tomb Raider Creators Resisted Calls from Japanese Publisher to Make a ‘Manga-Style’ Lara Croft

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One of the original designers of Tomb Raider‘s iconic Lara Croft has revealed that Core Design’s then-Japanese publisher had asked for the character to be given a “Manga” redesign to “appeal” to Japanese players.

Responding to one fan who had unearthed a comment from him a few years ago, Tomb Raider co-creator and programmer Paul Douglas confirmed there had been a little pressure “quite late in Tomb Raider’s development” when publisher Victor Interactive Software “faxed over some of their own designs” over fears the western character design wouldn’t “go down well” in Japan.

“Victor wanted us to change in-game Lara to appeal more to a Japanese audience,” Douglas revealed on BlueSky. “Huge eyes/head etc. They faxed through examples really late in dev. [Co-creator and designer] Toby Gard really didn’t want to alter Lara. As a compromise, all that was changed was the manuals [and] guide. Not sure who did that render or illustrations.”

The mysterious rendering Douglas is referring to can be seen in the first image appended to this BlueSky post, republished below:

An example of a “Manga-style” Croft and Jacqueline Natla is also displayed below:

https://twitter.com/cnhyv/status/1362414839889559554?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw

The tweet above originates from a similar thread in 2021 in which Douglas explained: “I think they just assumed altering all the models would only take a few days of work. It was early days of 3D… It started out as a request to change all the in-game and cutscene models. Then just in-game. Then just Lara. Then just Lara’s head…”

“This drawing from the Japanese manual is *perhaps* all that remains…” Douglas added.

As for current-day Lara? Tomb Raider: Catalyst — an all-new adventure scheduled for a release sometime in 2027 — is set in the wake of a mythical cataclysm that has unleashed ancient secrets and awakened the mysterious forces that guard them. Before then, though, we’re expecting Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis at some point in 2026 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X and S, and PC via Steam. Alix Wilton Regan will now play Lara Croft in both with Camilla Luddington, who portrayed Lara Croft in the Survivor Trilogy, issuing a heartfelt goodbye to the character at the end of last year.

Some Tomb Raider fans are bracing themselves for retcons, given the need to fit both Legacy of Atlantis and Catalyst in a new, unified Tomb Raider timeline, as well as the upcoming Amazon TV show. The live-action Tomb Raider Prime Video series, which will star Game of Thrones alum Sophie Turner, will “reinvent the franchise on a massive scale” and interconnect “live-action television series and video games into a unified storytelling universe.”

Image credit: NixieTube / BlueSky.

Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.