Tomb Raider: Catalyst Is The Closest We May Get To Another Long-Awaited Franchise Revival

Franchise revivals are a dime a dozen lately. As remakes and legacy sequels of classic IPs become more popular, it’s more likely than ever that dormant franchises will find a way to be brought back. For example, new Fable, Prince of Persia, Plague Tale, and Old Republic games are in development, with Tomb Raider enjoying a particularly momentous revival.

Unfortunately, as some video game franchises are revived, others are left to gather cobwebs. Inspired by Tomb Raider itself, Naughty Dog’s Uncharted series ended when its potential was at its highest. It’s unknown what chances there are of Uncharted ever having a revival of its own, and Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis and Tomb Raider: Catalyst may be the closest it gets for the foreseeable future.

Tomb Raider Endures As A Massive Franchise

Tomb Raider has lived many lives over a handful of generations and is about to debut two brand-new ones. There may be pockets of Tomb Raider fans who’ve clung to individual incarnations or eras, such as Core Design’s original six Tomb Raider games or the live-action Angelina Jolie Lara Croft: Tomb Raider movies.

Similarly, there are likely fans who were introduced to the IP via Tomb Raider’s prequel trilogy, the live-action Alicia Vikander Tomb Raider reboot, or maybe Netflix’s animated Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft show. Now, a live-action Amazon Tomb Raider series starring Sophie Turner as Lara Croft is scheduled to begin filming this month.

Beginning its new era on Unreal Engine 5 this year, Tomb Raider has two games releasing relatively soon: Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, a remake of the first Tomb Raider game, releases in 2026; and Tomb Raider: Catalyst, a continuation of the mainline franchise following Tomb Raider: Underworld, releases in 2027. So, while now’s as good a time as any to bandwagon on Tomb Raider hype, the same could easily be said for every era and iteration of the character since the mid- to late-1990s.

Tomb Raider may have had a bit of time on ice itself, with its most recently released entry, Shadow of the Tomb Raider, launching eight years ago. However, it is highly unlikely that Uncharted will have the same luxury of thawing from cryostasis and being emboldened by a new era.

Naughty Dog’s Fortune-Hunting Darling Is On Ice

Uncharted’s last outings clashed awkwardly. While Uncharted 4: A Thief’s End penned what could well be a definitive and satisfying conclusion to Nathan Drake’s story, Uncharted: The Lost Legacy leaped back into the fray and proved that the franchise could still be special without its lead protagonist.

Because Uncharted went nowhere afterward, The Lost Legacy is a tease of what could have been but never really was. Plus, it’s egregious that Uncharted was shelved right when it had traversed to a modern suite of satisfying gameplay mechanics and stunningly hyperrealistic visuals.

Tomb Raider has plenty of mainline Tomb Raider games, plus its Tomb Raider: Anniversary remake of the first game and spin-offs/mobile-exclusive titles. Uncharted only has five mainline games, as well as its own spread of spin-offs/mobile titles, with The Lost Legacy being more comparable to a half-sequel that’s pared down in scale, like Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales.

A franchise revival would be much more difficult to navigate for Uncharted than Tomb Raider because, despite there being so many more Tomb Raider games than there are Uncharted games, Naughty Dog has already retired Nathan Drake. Meanwhile, Lara Croft has led every single Tomb Raider game (with co-op, multiplayer, and other briefly playable characters scattered throughout), and she doesn’t seem to be going anywhere as Tomb Raider: Catalyst continues her journey.

Uncharted was already poised for a franchise revival with The Lost Legacy, wherein it was believed that Chloe Frazer, Nadine Ross, or even Samuel Drake could lead the franchise. Instead, plucking Nate from the equation shouldn’t be reversed purely for the sake of nostalgia, and it might be tough to sell the idea of the IP anymore if players aren’t fully interested in its side characters a decade later.

Uncharted Isn’t Coming Back Any Time Soon

Naughty Dog has gone on record confessing that Uncharted is finished, but nobody is going to truly believe that, and this will only be validated when a new Uncharted game releases. Even if one never does, there will always be hope that it’s possible against all odds. Notwithstanding, there is little to no room for an Uncharted revival alongside Tomb Raider’s, unless Naughty Dog has been busy and its “multiple projects” secretly include a surprise for players.

The focal point for Naughty Dog right now is Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet, its new sci-fi IP. But with Intergalactic: The Heretic Prophet’s development beginning as early as 202 0— the same year that The Last of Us Part 2 was released — and no release window in sight, it’s unclear whether a hypothetical new Uncharted game will suffer a comparable ordeal.

If Uncharted is what Naughty Dog chooses to fall back on beyond its new IP in an attempt to distance itself from The Last of Us a bit, it’s still unsure if it will be released within the next few years. So far, the best evidence that Naughty Dog’s unannounced single-player game could be Uncharted-related is that it’s being helmed by Shaun Escayg, who co-directed and co-wrote The Lost Legacy.

The Last of Us’ HBO show also had a hotly contentious season of television with its loose adaptation of The Last of Us Part 2, and Naughty Dog choosing to revert to Uncharted as a dependable safety net could be favorable. Still, The Last of Us has held Naughty Dog in high esteem for more than two decades as easily its most popular IP, and a third season of the HBO show is on its way.

Taking this opportunity to develop The Last of Us Part 3 and provide closure to the series might be in its best interest, though each game thus far has done a brilliant job of ending with as much resolution as there is open-endedness to justify another sequel if Naughty Dog wanted to pursue it. Uncharted doesn’t seem to be in the same boat, but hopefully, it could follow Tomb Raider in carving out its franchise revival sooner rather than later.