Radio 1's gaming expert Julia Hardy charts how the Tomb Raider star has changed over the years, and asks whether the portrayal of female characters is finally becoming more representative.
Lara Croft has been the queen of gaming characters since the original Tomb Raider dropped back in 1996. She broke the mould: finally, a female action hero who was as athletic, intelligent and fearless as the male characters dominating the games world. Before Lara, it was all about the muscle-bound men, portly plumbers and blue hedgehogs.
We can see Lara's legacy today in the women who are cast in leading roles and their more realistic in-game representation in titles like Uncharted, Horizon Zero Dawn, Overwatch and Hellblade.
Julia Hardy meets experts on Lara’s place in the gaming world, as well as her co-creator Ian Livingstone, and Tomb Raider story writer Rhianna Pratchett. She also visits Guerrilla Games in Amsterdam to discuss how Miss Croft inspired Aloy, the heroine of their 2017's mega-hit Horizon Zero Dawn. And to complete the circle, the all new movie Lara Croft, Oscar-winner Alicia Vikander, gives her view on the transformation of this gaming icon.
If you're in the UK, you can watch the full 18-minute documentary on BBC iPlayer - http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p05zw79m
The Gaming Show: Lara Croft - The Legacy ─ BBC Radio 1
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