How to play the newly-resurfaced Tomb Raider remake

Raid tombs, old school-style

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A lost edition of Tomb Raider: 10th Anniversary has leaked online, and anyone can play it.

The game was originally developed in 2006, when Core Design was working on a remake of the original Tomb Raider forSonyPSP. Despite being “almost finished” – that’s according to studio manager Gavin Rummery (viaEurogamer) – it was canned in favour of a cross-platform remake by Crystal Dynamics, later released as 2007’s Tomb Raider: Anniversary.

Allegedly, the canceled project was picked up and reskinned into an Indiana Jones game, which also never saw the light of day following the shutting down of Core Design in 2010.

Now, the assets have been rediscovered and posted in aninternet archive, allowing nostalgic fans to launch and play a 15-year-old incarnation of Lara Croft. Steps to do so sound confusing, but are actually pretty simple, so we’ll break down the basics.

How to play the Tomb Raider remake

First, you’ll need to download a patch intoMicrosoftVisual Studio, ensuring you also have access to a PS4 or Xbox 360 controller (keyboard controls haven’t been figured out just yet). Then, you’ll want to download artbase and extract it to C: drive (with a folder structure of C:\artbase\tombraider etc. – otherwise, the game won’t run).

From here, you can use run.bat to launch Tomb Raider: 10th Anniversary. All the files for the game can be found in theinternet archive, and a more detailed guide fromTomb of Ashreveals all the info on bug fixes, cheats and general updates to the game’s functionality.

When you do make it into the game, there are no enemies – consider it a more scenic experience – but you’ll be able to explore levels in Greece, Peru and, of course, Croft Manor.

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Fans behind the resurrection of the canceled project say they made several requests to license holders for permission to publish the game, but never received a reply. Thankfully, anexemptiondesigned to help the Internet Archive preserve vintage software means this 15-year-old Lara is likely to stick around for as long as is needed to climb, jump and swim your way through Tomb Raider: 10th Anniversary’s pixelated nostalgia.

Axel is TechRadar’s UK-based Phones Editor, reporting on everything from the latest Apple developments to newest AI breakthroughs as part of the site’s Mobile Computing vertical. Having previously written for publications including Esquire and FourFourTwo, Axel is well-versed in the applications of technology beyond the desktop, and his coverage extends from general reporting and analysis to in-depth interviews and opinion. 

Axel studied for a degree in English Literature at the University of Warwick before joining TechRadar in 2020, where he then earned an NCTJ qualification as part of the company’s inaugural digital training scheme.

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