Everyone knows Lara Croft. The strong, charismatic and athletic (not to mention buxom) frontwoman of the famous Tomb Raider franchise has been a media revelation since she first burst onto the scene in the mid 90's. The 'female Indiana Jones', has scoured the globe, battled bad guys, starred in movies and even appeared on the cover of The Face; giving guys a virtual pinup, girls a gaming role-model, and helping to raise the profile of the industry in the process. Quite a feat for a curvy pile of polygons.
For so long synonymous with Sony's first PlayStation console, it's quite strange to realise that Lara's debut actually arrived on the not-so-successful Sega Saturn. But since that fateful, genre-defining release we've had a wealth of Tomb-trawling escapades on all manner of machines, from the first 3D consoles to numerous handhelds, last-gen systems and the new HD-ready home formats.
But for all of Lara's celebrity status, there's one factor that gamers care about. Tomb Raider has endured most of all because the games themselves continue to deliver top-notch fun. Blending athletic adventuring with intense run-and-gun action and devious head-scratching puzzles, Lara's exploits present a powerful lesson in great videogame design that continues to this day with the latest in the celebrated series, Tomb Raider Underworld.