There’s a new Tomb Raider game (but not the one you expected – or wanted)

You’ll be able to play a brand-new Tomb Raider experience sometime soon, but it’s not the AAA Square Enix title you were perhaps expecting.

While we know there’s another Tomb Raider title on the way from Square Enix, there’s a movie coming sooner – March 16 to be exact – and that means some promotional material needs to be released. 

That material will apparently take the form of a fully-fledged arcade game, which will appear across the US in select Dave & Busters restaurants. As far as video game movie promotions go it’s one that makes a great deal of sense, even if it lacks imagination.

Movie magic

Pictures of the arcade unit have been posted on Reddit, and Arcade Heroes reports that the Tomb Raider arcade game will be a gun game which draws heavily on the format of the Rabbids Hollywood arcade game. In fact, it appears that both games use the very same cabinet, just with different artwork and Lara's pistols to suit. 

From the logo and artwork used it appears that the game will have three levels, just like Rabbids Hollywood, and will be an adaption of the Tomb Raider reboot first released by Square Enix back in 2013. Given there are four guns on the unit, it must involve some kind of multiplayer element. It's possible we could even see something more akin to the series' multiplayer titles, like Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light.

While it’s not a brand-new Tomb Raider title on console, it does tide fans of the franchise over by giving them the chance to experience the original reboot in a brand new way. There’s no word on whether or not the Tomb Raider arcade experience will make its way to other territories before the film’s release – it doesn't seem likely, but we live in hope. 

We’re hoping to hear more about the upcoming Square Enix Tomb Raider title at this year’s E3 in Los Angeles.

Emma Boyle

Emma Boyle is TechRadar’s ex-Gaming Editor, and is now a content developer and freelance journalist. She has written for magazines and websites including T3, Stuff and The Independent. Emma currently works as a Content Developer in Edinburgh.