TheTomb Raiderfranchise introduced the world to one ofgaming’s most beloved female protagonists—Lara Croft: the hardcore, relentless, and occasionally nerdy main lead of the series, with a penchant for getting herself in trouble by getting involved with cursed objects and ancient, long-forgotten secret organizations. She may be an archeologist by trade, but her parkour skills, superior gear, and generational wealth essentially just make her a more opportunistic version of Batman.
However, Lara Croft’s presence alone is not what makes theTomb Raidergamesso intriguing. This series not only has some of the best-written villains but also some of the finest, most impactful side characters in gaming history. And that’s saying something considering how most of the narrative largely revolves around Croft, leaving little spotlight for these supporting characters.
Conard Roth was a major supporting character in the 2013 reboot ofTomb Raider. He was the captain of Endurance and was Richard Croft’s, Lara Croft’s father, expedition partner. His association with the Crofts naturally made him a major presence in Lara’s life. Even after Richard’s death, he continued to be a crucial part of Lara’s life and upbringing,serving as her mentor, voice of reason, and emotional support. As the captain of Endurance, with a whole crew under his belt, he undoubtedly had great leadership skills, in addition to being skilled with guns and hand-to-hand combat—attributed to his time with the military.
During the events of the reboot, Roth accompanies Lara on her expedition, just like he did with her father. Throughout the journey, he keeps her grounded and on the right path, even going as far as to ultimately lose his life to protect her. Roth’s guidance and resilience serve as a guiding light for Lara, helping her navigate through the most hopeless of situations.
The villains in theTomb Raiderfranchiseare nothing short of extraordinary; most of them have very intricate and multidimensional personalities, regardless of how small their role in the plotline is. One such character is Lara Croft’s bestie-turned-enemy, Amanda Evert, who was first introduced inTomb Raider: Legendas its main villain and later as a secondary one in Underworld. Despite the impression Amanda gives off in the early cutscenes—appearing somewhat flat, loud, and maybe even insufferable at times—she is very smart and holds a deep fondness for mysticism and ancient history. It’s more or less one of the major reasons she’s so desperate to get her hands on powerful ancient artifacts.
As the game progresses and her story is revealed, her motives start to make sense. Her desire for power and vengeful intentions towards Lara stem from her traumatic past of being abandoned and left to die alone at the Peru dig site—they’re essentially a survival instinct. Even with the palpable animosity between the two throughout the two games, there is an undeniable complexity to their dynamic that goes beyond just friends to enemies.
3Jonah Maiava
Deserves More Credit For Going Through The Wildest Situations For Lara
Jonah Maiava stands as yet another rebooted character who manages to leave a long-lasting impact on not only the series but on Lara’s life as well. He sticks out as one of the rare,genuinely trustworthy friends Lara hasin the reboot trilogy. He is first introduced in the 2013 game but subsequently plays important parts in the other two installments as well.
At the start of the reboot trilogy, Jonah is a part of the Endurance crew and works as its cook. He’s also one of the few to survive its notorious wreck in the lost kingdom of Yamatai and works as Lara’s companion as they try to find (and fight) their way off the island. Jonah is a typical gentle giant with a knack for helping everyone around him, even if he has to put himself in harm’s way to do it. He’s also the one character who incorporates a bit of ‘humanity’ in Lara’s personality with his very humane interactions with her.
Ana, first introduced inRise of the Tomb Raider, was Richard Croft’s lover before his death and was established as the primary antagonist of the 2015 installment. She was initially portrayed as a soft, graceful, and compassionate woman who cared deeply for Lara’s well-being, even subtly advising her tonot become like her father. And while one could argue that she was warning her, or foreshadowing what was about to come, or maybe even threatening her, it’s undeniable that Ana possessed the most intricate traits among all the villains in the franchise.
While Ana wasn’t an outright psychopath like her brother, she certainly was a cold, calculating, and occasionally radical woman. However, she never showed blind allegiance towards anyone, not even Trinity. Most of her complexity comes from her duality between being a master manipulator and a vulnerable human being. She was definitely not a ‘good person’, but ultimately most of her actions were a result of very logical fears. And although her actions had major negative consequences, it’s clear she truly cared for Lara and her father.
All the other antagonist entries on this list have had some sort of redeeming quality to them, portrayed through either traumatic histories or flawed perceptions of the world. However, Pieter Van Eckhardt stands alone as the only character who is unequivocally malevolent. He embodiesevery archetype of an ‘antagonist’and is genuinely a menace.
Pieter Van Eckhardt was the main antagonist in the 2003 installment,Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness, and was also known as The Black Alchemist throughout the game. He was a near-immortal being who was imprisoned in an ancient prison because of his crimes and intentions. He planned on reviving and controlling an ancient powerful race known as the Nephilim, who’d help him ‘dominate the world’, as is typical of downright evil characters. Regardless of how he met his end or how ambitious he became in his quest for power, his evil persona made him a character no one felt bad for.
