The second of many Tomb Raider franchise installments is being reimagined with the graphics and game engine capabilities of today. Tomb Raider: The Dagger of Xian is a fan remake of Tomb Raider 2, originally released in 1997, and recently Dagger of Xian‘s developers have released a free demo for download.
Lara Croft’s considerable presence in the world of gaming has lasted decades, from the first ever Tomb Raider‘s release in 1996 to the recent franchise reboot and the subsequent sequel in 2013 and 2015 respectively. The original Tomb Raider 2 follows Lara’s investigation into the legend of the Dagger of Xian, an artifact with the power to transform an individual into a dragon. Lara’s quest takes place in China, where she faces off against mob boss Marco Bartoli who, naturally, is seeking the dagger for more nefarious reasons.
Tomb Raider: The Dagger of Xian is being built in Unreal Engine 4, with heavily updated graphics and gameplay. A fan known as Nicobass is heading up the project and has acknowledged other collaborators for contributions to the game. Inna Vjuzhanina was credited for artwork, Dean Kopri for music, Alexandre Serel for a new script, and Jennifer Milward for the voice of Lara Croft. The demo takes players through a section of the Great Wall of China, offering roughly an hour of gameplay.
The game is still very much in development, so there’s no release window yet; promisingly, however, Crystal Dynamics (the company behind the Tomb Raider reboots) is reportedly okay with the fan remake of Tomb Raider 2. Tomb Raider: The Dagger of Xian‘s demo can be downloaded here, for PC only.