Paul Douglas, one of the co-creators of the Tomb Raider series, has has revealed that publisher Victor Interactive (the game’s Japanese distributor) wanted the developers to alter Lara’s in-game look to resemble a more anime-style appearance, in an effort to “appeal more to a Japanese audience.”
This involved the pistol-wielding archaeologist to sport features such as “huge eyes/head etc,” and the publisher even sent over a fax late in Tomb Raider’s development featuring design ideas for Lara. However, Douglas noted that Tomb Raider mastermind Toby Gard “didn’t really want to alter Lara.”
The team later compromised by keeping Lara’s more realistic look in-game but the manual featured “manga-style” characters, although Douglas admitted he’s “not sure who did that render or illustrations.”
Tomb Raider celebrates its 30th anniversary later this year, having first launched on the Sega Saturn in October 1996 and arriving on PC and PlayStation the following month. Crystal Dynamics, the current developer on the franchise, is working on a full remake of the 1996 original known as Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis.
[Source – Paul Douglas on BlueSky via Eurogamer, @CoreDesign]