Redwood City, CA (October 4, 2011) — Crystal Dynamics, a Square Enix studio, is proud to celebrate 15 years of TOMB RAIDER® with an initiative created for fans.
TOMB RAIDER was first unleashed on the world in October 1996 by creator Toby Gard and Core Design. Little did they know how successful their adventurer would become; Lara Croft skyrocketed to become a household name within a year and carved a place in history as a pop-culture icon transcending the gaming space.
“Rebirth” by Andy Park
To celebrate the 15 year anniversary, Crystal Dynamics is playing curator to a unique digital art exhibition, commissioning eight original pieces of art to be created by a selection of esteemed artists and released during the month of October. The pieces will be created to showcase the new vision for Lara Croft in the eagerly anticipated new TOMB RAIDER game, whilst embracing the individual style of each of the selected artists.
The exhibition will begin on October 4th and starts with a piece created by Andy Park, artist on the original TOMB RAIDER comic book series. The month ends with a featured piece by Toby Gard, creator of the TOMB RAIDER series. All art can be viewed over the course of the month at www.tombraider.com/15 in collaboration with Hiptic.com.
“This is the perfect opportunity to celebrate TOMB RAIDER’s history by looking at Lara’s promising future,” said Karl Stewart, global brand director, Crystal Dynamics. “We can’t wait to share each artist’s unique interpretation of what it means to be Lara Croft.”
During the month a series of events will be held to mark the celebration, including a signing by artists at New York Comic Con on October 14.
As a finale to the event, a limited selection of T-shirts and posters will be available for purchase from The Nerd Machine’s website www.thenerdmachine.com with a portion of the proceeds to benefit Child’s Play charity http://www.childsplaycharity.org/
To date, the TOMB RAIDER franchise has sold over 35 million copies worldwide as of October 2011 and inspired one of the most successful video game film adaptations in history, grossing over $300 million at the box office worldwide.
TOMB RAIDER is in development for a multi-platform release, and is slated to launch fall 2012.
For announcements of each artist over the course of the month visit www.tombraider.com, Facebook.com/Tombraider or follow on Twitter @tombraider.