Tomb Raider: Anniversary
"Tomb Raider" is the first game in the titular franchise, and introduced the series' gameplay standards and its protagonist Lara Croft. Developed by British studio Core Design, "Tomb Raider" was a commercial and critical success, and was followed by five successive games between 1996 and 2000. Their sixth "Tomb Raider" game "" was beset by developmental problems and rushed to release, resulting in low sales and mixed critical reception. The game's failure and Core Design's fatigue with the series prompted franchise publisher Eidos Interactive to move development of "Tomb Raider" to the American studio Crystal Dynamics, who rebooted the franchise with "". "Legend" released in 2006 to critical and commercial success.
Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness
"The Angel of Darkness" was unveiled under its official name in March 2002, with a fuller demonstration appearing at E3 that year. Problems with the game were sensed at an early stage, as Heath-Smith forgot himself and began swearing at the game while trying to demonstrate the opening level at a buyer's conference. A release date was announced for November 2002, but the game got delayed into spring 2003. Eidos believed "The Angel of Darkness" would benefit from additional marketing support from "", the sequel to the . Despite the delays, the company pushed Core Design to release the game in time for the marketing support. The team at Core Design later said that they felt Eidos forced them to get the game out before it was ready. The game went gold on 18 June 2003, two days before its original release date, although there was some confusion as the game had reportedly gone gold on 2 June. The game was finally released in the summer of 2003, alongside "The Cradle of Life".