Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness is a bit of a mystery within the Tomb Raider franchise. It came out in 2003 for PlayStation 2 and PC after a long development period, and reviews were generally mixed.
This game marked Lara Croft’s first appearance on Sony’s newest console. The story begins with Lara falsely accused of killing her mentor, Von Croy, and she’s on the run to clear her name.
The game starts in Paris with Lara dodging the police. She quickly embarks on a mission to find the Obscura Paintings, stolen by the villain, Eckhart.
The Angel of Darkness introduced several new features to the Tomb Raider series. Players could now control a second character, Kurtis Trent, and the game included RPG-style interactions, requiring conversations with non-player characters. Lara also had a strength meter that players could upgrade, famously prompting the line, ‘I feel stronger now.’
As the game neared completion at Core Design, problems arose. They had to remove content, such as the Germany level, and weren’t able to fix all the bugs before release. Consequently, reviews were generally negative, with publications like Eurogamer criticizing the frustrating controls, limited guidance, and weak artificial intelligence.
Like many players, I was excited for The Angel of Darkness, but I ended up returning it after just two days. I found the controls difficult to use, and was disappointed that there weren’t any tombs to explore at the beginning of the game.
A remastered version released in February 2025, bundled with remasters of Tomb Raider IV and VI, addressed many bugs and brought back some lost content and dialogue. However, the core issues with The Angel of Darkness remain.
Despite the team at Saber Interactive’s best efforts, the AOD remaster was limited by factors like the deserted streets of Paris and a clunky control system.
Now that Crystal Dynamics is releasing Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis, they should think about remaking another older title – specifically, a fresh take on The Angel of Darkness. This would be a great opportunity to finally deliver the game the attention and quality it deserves.
Back into the Darkness
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Work on The Angel of Darkness started in 2000, while a different team was completing Tomb Raider: Chronicles for PlayStation 1, Dreamcast, and PC, which was scheduled to release later that same year.
The initial idea was for a three-game series following Lara Croft’s adventures from Paris to a World War II base in Antarctica. Murti Schofield, the writer for AOD, has a website where he shares detailed information about the original plans for these games and what could have happened if they’d been made.
According to Richard Morton, the lead game designer for The Angel of Darkness, the game holds up remarkably well even though it came out in 2003. He explained that it was innovative for its time with a compelling story and fun gameplay, looked great on the PlayStation 2, and offered players a lot of depth to discover.
A lot of content was removed from Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness to meet its June 2003 release date. One significant cut was an explanation of how Lara escaped the tomb at the end of the previous game, Chronicles. However, thanks to fans, a restored cutscene now shows her escape, aided by a character named Putai. A welcome addition is that Jonell Elliott, who previously voiced Lara in Tomb Raider 4, 5, and Angel of Darkness, returns to perform the voice acting.
This updated version brought back some previously missing features, such as the ability to purchase items from the pawn shop, but a complete remake could offer even more improvements.
Despite these flaws, it’s easy to get frustrated and give up on AOD. However, doing so would mean missing out on enjoyable parts of the game, such as the level set in the Louvre.
Morton also expressed his enthusiasm for other areas within the game, particularly the Louvre. He felt they perfectly captured the galleries, but highlighted the Hall of Seasons and its traps as his proudest achievement – a fresh take on classic Tomb Raider gameplay. He also enjoyed designing the industrial rooftops, calling them ‘pretty cool’.
There are so many unforgettable parts of Angel of Darkness that people still talk about – Morton highlights a bunch of them! But imagine if they took all those classic sections and completely rebuilt them for today’s gamers? It could finally give the game the comeback it deserves, and really let Angel of Darkness shine.
Faster, Better, Stronger Now
Morton has shared some thoughts on how he’d reimagine The Angel of Darkness. He’d focus more on Kurtis and his psychic abilities, fully incorporating them – including the co-op levels – and revert the game’s controls to a better version from about six months before the original release. He’d also improve the AI of non-player characters, add back the missing locations, and, importantly, include Putai.
Building on the vision of the original creator, and with input from other developers who worked on the game, a remake of AOD could offer something for both longtime fans and new players. Picture a reimagining similar to the Final Fantasy VII Remake, staying true to Schofield’s initial concepts.
After talking with the developers, a good first step would be to significantly reduce the size of Paris. This would allow the game to begin closer to the Hall of Seasons. We could still use Le Serpent Rouge as an introductory area, with Lara running in to escape the police after leaving Von Croy’s apartment.
The game could really benefit from stealth sections within crowded areas, complemented by Pete Connolly’s excellent music. These would lead players underground and ultimately to the Hall of Seasons. The developers are envisioning a story divided into three parts: the first being ‘Angel of Darkness,’ followed by ‘The Lost Dominion,’ and a third part that incorporates concepts from the cancelled Kurtis Trent game.
While there’s plenty more source material to draw from, even just these elements give us a good idea of how amazing a modern remake of AOD could be.
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Honestly, I’m really excited about this remake because the original Angel of Darkness felt like a missed chance. It’s easy to forget, but the early 2000s were a wild time for gaming. Everyone was figuring out how to make games for the new consoles – think Sonic, Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy, all jumping to that 128-bit era. We’d just seen games like Super Mario 64, Tomb Raider, and Half-Life completely change the game, and everyone was trying to build on that!
While most games in the series transitioned well, The Angel of Darkness unfortunately didn’t succeed. It was overly ambitious, leading to a lot of cut content, and the developers were pressured to release it by a strict deadline set by Eidos’ investors.
The 2025 remaster has understandably brought a lot of appreciation for the game, and some of the developers, like Morton, are touched that a new generation of players are experiencing it. As Morton said, “It’s great that a classic Tomb Raider game – even with its imperfections – is now easily accessible to a younger audience, and I’m thrilled new fans are finding AOD.”
Fans were surprised to see Kurtis Trent featured briefly in the recent Tomb Raider: Legacy of Atlantis trailer, appearing on the cover of a magazine. Plus, players who pre-order the Deluxe Edition will be able to play as Lara wearing her outfit from Angel of Darkness. These additions seem to be more than just nods to the 2003 game, and with story DLC already planned, many are hoping we might revisit the Paris locations from that title in the future.
Crystal Dynamics has been planning a connected storyline for the Tomb Raider series for a while, and they’re now getting ready to launch two new installments: Legacy of Atlantis and Tomb Raider: Catalyst.
Since 2028 marks the 25th anniversary of The Angel of Darkness, it seems like the ideal time to finally address a long-standing issue that has negatively impacted the series.
Read more on Tomb Raider:
- I wrote the book on Tomb Raider – here’s how Sophie Turner and Alix Wilton Regan will rewrite Lara Croft’s history
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Authors
Hey, I’m Daryl, and I write books! I’ve already got three under my belt – ‘The Making of Tomb Raider,’ ’50 Years of Boss Fights,’ and I’m working on another ‘Making of Tomb Raider’ book that’s coming out later this year. Pretty excited about that one!
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2026-06-09 12:38