As part of the Tomb Raider 20th anniversary celebration, Crystal Dynamics has revealed Tomb Raider Archives, a four-volume set collecting the classic Top Cow comics originally published between 1999 and 2006.

Andy Park, the series' original artist, made the official announcement during the SDCC panel "20 Years of Tomb Raider: Lara Croft's Multimedia Empire." The book will include a foreword by Park and feature his artwork, as well as the work of renowned comic artists Michael Turner, Marc Silvestri, David Finch, and many more. Writers include Turner, Dan Jurgens, and others. The set will be published by Dark Horse, which produces the current Tomb Raider and Lara Croft comic series.

Here's a breakdown of the four volumes:

Tomb Raider Archives Vol. 1: Issues #1-15
Tomb Raider Archives Vol. 2: Issues #16-24, #26-34
Tomb Raider Archives Vol. 3: Issues #35-50, #0, #½
Tomb Raider Archives Vol. 4: Tomb Raider Journeys #1-12, one-shots

Volume 1 will go on sale November 30, 2016. It will have 408 pages in an 8" x 12" hardcover format. Volumes 2 through 4 will follow next year.

Apparently issue #25, "Endgame," a Tomb Raider–Witchblade crossover, could not be included for legal reasons. That's unfortunate, but if you simply must know what happened, copies of this issue can usually be found at reasonable prices on Amazon and eBay.

ADDENDUM (8/21/16): Check out Treeble's comment below the post for more info about which issues are needed to follow crossover plot completly. Thanks, Treeble!

The Top Cow Tomb Raider comics were previously collected in a single massive paperback called the Tomb Raider Compendium, which has been out of print for many years and fetches premium prices on used book sites.

For more info about the Tomb Raider Archives and other #TombRaider20 festivities, visit the official Tomb Raider Blog.

In case you missed the Tomb Raider panel discussion last weekend at San Diego Comic-Con, I've uploaded the best video I was able to find. It's split in to five roughly 10-minute segments. The quality is not fabulous, but imagine you're sitting in the back row behind a tall girl with a Bayonetta beehive talking on her cell phone. It's like you're really there. ;) Enjoy!

Tomb Raider is once again in the spotlight, this time at Comic-Con, which runs through Sunday in sunny San Diego. Last night Gamespot aired a live stream from the show floor, in which convention visitors had a chance to spend some hands-on time with the game, and Crystal Dynamics Global Brand Director Karl Stewart showed off a few previously unseen areas.

Highlights included the introduction of several new NPCs, more combat mechanics, and an extended segment showing exploration, pathfinding, and the mechanics of the "Survival Instinct" help system. I wasn't sure how all this was going to work, but I'm rather digging the RPG elements like experience points and the "salvage" system for item crafting. The scenery is as gorgeous as you'd expect from a Tomb Raider game, and the on-demand help seems subtle and well implemented.

But don't take my word for it. Watch the demo yourself and let me know what you think. Leave a comment below, post on my Facebook page, or send me a tweet @stellalune.


For a complete listing of Tomb Raider events at the con, check the Official Tomb Raider Blog, and bookmark my Tomb Raider SDCC playlist for more videos as they become available.