Tomb Raider is a media franchise consisting of action-adventure games, comic books, novels, theme park rides, and films, centring on the adventures of the female fictional British archaeologist Lara Croft. Since the release of the original Tomb Raider in 1996, the series developed into a franchise of the same name, and Lara went on to become a major icon of the video game industry. The Guinness Book of World Records recognised Lara Croft as the "Most Successful Human Videogame Heroine" in 2006. Six games in the series were developed by Core Design, and the latest six by Crystal Dynamics. The games were first published by Eidos Interactive; Eidos became part of Square Enix in April 2009. Embracer Group owns the rights to the Tomb Raider trademark and characters of the franchise.[1] Three films were released: Lara Croft: Tomb Raider, Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life and Tomb Raider. The first two star American actress Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft, and the third Swedish actress Alicia Vikander.[2]
The Tomb Raider video games have together sold over 100 million units,[3] making it one of the best-selling video game series of all time.[4]