About Tomb Raider
Core Design’s Tomb Raider came out in 1996 for the Sega Saturn, PlayStation and MS-DOS, published by Eidos Interactive. It introduced Lara Croft, an archaeologist hunting pieces of an ancient artefact, the Scion, through caves, temples and lost cities from Peru and Greece to Egypt and Atlantis. Its mix of 3D exploration, precise jumping and puzzles on a grid-based world made it one of the defining games of its era, and Lara became one of gaming’s best-known characters.
How it runs in your browser
OpenLara is an open-source re-creation of the original game engine by Timur Gagiev, who goes by XProger. It reads Tomb Raider’s level files and runs them with its own code, and its web build uses WebAssembly and WebGL. Pressing Play opens xproger.info in a new tab, where the game starts at the familiar title screen.
The web version includes a demo level, so you can try it without anything of your own. The rest of the game isn’t included. To play other levels, use the Browse Level button to load level files from a copy you own: .PHD files from the PC version or .PSX files from the PlayStation version. The engine also accepts some later games’ level files. The web build was last updated in 2022.
It’s single-player only.
Controls and devices
Keyboard and controller are supported. Tomb Raider’s controls are deliberate: Lara moves on a grid, so line up before a jump, and use walk mode near ledges so she stops at the edge instead of falling off. It’s built for computers; phones aren’t listed.
Who it’s for
It suits anyone who owns the original game and wants to replay it without an emulator, and anyone curious to see how a fan project rebuilt a 1996 classic for the browser.
Is Tomb Raider Free, Safe and Official?
Can I play the whole of Tomb Raider in the browser?
Only with your own files. The web version opens with a demo level. To play other levels, load the level files (.PHD from the PC version or .PSX from the PlayStation version) from a copy you own.
What is OpenLara?
An open-source re-creation of the classic Tomb Raider engine by Timur Gagiev, also known as XProger. It reads the original game’s level files and runs them with modern graphics code.
Is this the official game?
No. OpenLara is a fan project and is not affiliated with Crystal Dynamics or Square Enix, who own Tomb Raider today.
