Chris is a community veteran who has been involved in projects both officially and within the fan community for almost two decades. From creating incredible, in-depth YouTube videos showcasing the beauty of the Tomb Raider games and playing through the original games with his husband, to producing trailers for Murti’s official website and conducting live interviews with Tomb Raider developers, we present the works of Chris, also known as Raidercast. 

Q: How did your Tomb Raider journey start? 

My journey began in 1996 when I was 9, sat in a static caravan which my older brother used as a den, where a tv and PlayStation was linked up to the electric inside the house next door. The moment I saw Lara running down that snowy tunnel, I was absolutely hooked.  

I'd never seen anything like it at the time - it was as much a revolution for gamers as it was for games. 3D gaming was in its infancy, and until that point our brains were geared up for top down or side-scrolling adventures. Getting to grips with Lara, and learning how to navigate through a 3D game space was like an epochal shift. And who better to experience this brave new world with, than a kick-ass explorer?  

I followed every single one of Lara's adventures, loving her developments as a character who learned new skills, while tackling new mysteries and locations. Along the way, I learned about different mythologies and cultures, which, as an adult, would inspire some of my own globe-trotting adventures. Further down the line, Tomb Raider would kindle new friendships, and became something I shared with my husband. To say the series has shaped my life is no understatement.  

Q: What inspired the creation of Raidercast, the Tomb Raider podcast? 

I remember listening to Vic Pheasey and Jason Chester's gaming podcast 'The Vault', and in particular to an episode which they dedicated to Tomb Raider. I believe this was around mid 2020. The Pandemic was in full-swing, everyone was stuck working from home, and I was bored senseless at work. I wanted to develop some new audio editing skills, and after listening to The Vault, I thought 'Hey, why don't I make a regular Tomb Raider podcast?'  

There was nothing regular on the Tomb Raider podcast landscape, so I decided to do it myself. Some readers may know I'm one of those annoying people with plenty of Views (TM) about Lara's adventures: so this became the baseline for Raidercast. I'd ramble on about my own ideas and thoughts, create videos for each episode, and do some interviews along the way.  

Three years later I've interviewed multiple Lara Croft voice actresses, Tomb Raider writers, developers and hardcore fans. Using the series as a springboard, I took the podcast to new heights with in-depth discussions on psychology and therapy, astronomy, archaeology, and marine conservation. I'm now approaching fifty episodes, and the podcast has reached over quarter of a million plays from people around the world. I'd love to be more regular at producing episodes than I currently am, but life has a way of becoming ridiculously busy as soon as you don’t want it to be. Hey, perhaps one day I'll have the means to create a team. That would be a dream!  

Photo by Loft One12

Q: What are some of your favourite Raidercast episodes? (Write a statement for each video) 

I've honestly lost count of the amount of times I've finished editing an episode and thought 'This is it. This is my favourite episode.' And it started early! Right back in season 1, something that would air mid-season but was actually the first proper episode I wrote, was called 'Tomb Raider Endgame' in homage to Marvel. The episode was an attempt to 'unify the series' (before it was cool), based around a conspiracy theory that linked meteorites and crystals. I also had this feeling after a community episode where I invited the fandom to talk about why Lara is important for people who are LGBT+. I'm about to embark on the epic Last Revelation journey with my husband for ‘First Time Tomb Raider 4’ - be sure to check out ‘First Time Tomb Raider 1,2, and 3’, to see why those are some of my favourites. And to this day, I think the Demonology episode is one of my favourite pieces of work, too!

However, I'm a stickler for differentiating between 'Best' and 'Favourite'. So regardless of whether I think they're my best, here are some of my favourites: 

Behind Murti Schofield's Angel of Darkness 

Exploring the foundations of The Angel of Darkness with its writer, Murti Schofield. 

I've always been a massive fan of AOD. Primarily the general vibe of the game is something I love. A gothic noir adventure which reaches back hundreds of years, featuring a cabal of villains controlling history from behind the scenes. A mysterious stranger with supernatural powers. An immortal alchemist spreading fear with blood rituals. A race of mythological creatures. A secret society, a secret war, an artefact split into pieces and hidden around the world. Oh, and then of course there's the only point people seem to focus on - Lara Croft is on the run and wanted for murder.  

After first playing AOD, I became obsessed with the concept of the Nephilim and how they related to other pieces of mythology. I scoured internet forums, read books, and watched films about them. I love how the game ties together myths and reality from our own world, (from ancient forbidden texts and the crusades, to World War 2) and mixes it with other fictional mythos, such as the works of Lovecraft and beyond.  

Speaking to Murti, AOD's writer, is always a pleasure, and creating this episode was even more so. Contrary to the dark themes of AOD, Murti is always jovial and wildly funny. Peeling back those layers and exploring the depths of his inspiration for Lara's sixth adventure allows us to see the reasons why The Angel of Darkness has the vibe that it does. 

Death In Tomb Raider 

From the afterlife and rebirth, to immortality and beyond: how does Tomb Raider tackle the concept of death? 

This episode was inspired by a discussion with friend and fan-legend and author Jenni Milward, regarding the mummified horrors scattered throughout the series. Just like in real life, death in Tomb Raider is unavoidable. Occasionally subtle, occasionally blatant, the narrative of each game deals with the concept. Whether it's a villain trying to escape death, or someone trying to cause it, we're presented with a myriad of views on what it means to depart this life. More often than not, we see these views through the lens of Lara, who herself undergoes more than one 'death and rebirth' arc across the games.  

In a twist that may be surprising to some, this episode isn't the dark and depressing descent you might imagine. By the end, I hope you'll agree that due to Lara's own perceptions, it becomes somewhat heartwarming and uplifting. It's one of my favourites because its message still resonates with me today.   

Letters To Lara  

This is your episode. Why are Tomb Raider and Lara Croft important to you? 

After conducting a couple of interviews for the first season, I knew I wanted to do this. I knew it would be a hell of a task to accomplish too, but an important one for the community. It's upsetting that every fandom, not just Tomb Raider's, seems to delight in tearing itself apart. Fan-wars rage over which game is better, or which Lara is the best. This episode was my attempt to bridge gaps. To show the community that no matter our preferences, that they're all valid, and that every game and every iteration of Lara means something to someone.  

In this video you'll find stories of bonding, and of memories of those passed. Stories of courage and hope. Heartbreaking and heartwarming testimonies of how Lara has provided sanctuary and comfort to those in need. Regardless of this being one of my favourite episodes, I believe it's one of my most important. We're all fans. Lara brought us all together one way or another, and we'd do well to remember that.    

An Interview with Rhianna Pratchett - Rebooting Lara Croft 

Behind the scenes with the writer of Tomb Raider (2013) and Rise of the Tomb Raider. 

There have been many articles written online which fanned the flames of discourse when it came to parts of Lara's survivor origins trilogy. I reached out to Rhianna Pratchett for a discussion on the process of rebooting an icon, and the truth behind some of the controversial aspects of this 2013 retelling.  

This was a fascinating episode. Rhianna is so laid back and friendly, and offered many interesting stories to tell regarding her time on the series. Admittedly, I've never been the most enthusiastic fan of this trilogy, but hearing her speak, hearing about what she wanted to write vs what ended up in the game and the dangers of too many cooks; I came away from this interview with fresh perspective and appreciation for Lara's reinvention. It's one of my favourite episodes for precisely this reason; it made me reconsider, reevaluate, and grow as a fan. This is something I felt once again when Steve of Warr interviewed Rhianna on stage at the Tomb Raider event in Derby in 2023.  

Q: You've conducted a couple of Raidercast episodes live at the annual Tomb Raider event in Derby. What were some of the most enjoyable and challenging aspects of hosting a live interview? 

These interviews were dreams come true! "Never meet your heroes" is a commonly heard phrase, but meeting and interviewing Judith Gibbins (Lara Croft in TR2/3) Jonell Elliott (Lara Croft in TR4/5/6) and Eric Loren (Kurtis Trent in TR6), and discovering they're wonderfully warm and friendly people? Unbeatable. I found myself occasionally closing my eyes briefly and nodding along as they spoke, and thinking to myself "Oh wow, it's actually Lara!" - a thought which made the interviews very surreal experiences for me.  

The most challenging aspect of an interview is what to do if a question falls flat: if the answer is so simple that it only takes up moments of time, and improvisation is required. Thankfully, as nervous as I was, this didn't happen. However I was so caught up in the nerves, that when asked what my favourite cutscene starring Judith as Lara was, I confidently answered a cutscene in TR2, which in retrospect, featured no voice acting by Judith. Yikes. I was also asked 'What does it mean to you to be sat here conducting this interview?' and even now the answer is still the same. If I could tell 9 year old Chris what I'd be doing 25 years later, I think he'd explode with glee.  

Q: For the franchise's 25th anniversary, you collaborated with Tomb Raider and conducted interviews with developers from both Core Design and Crystal Dynamics, discussing the game creation process. How did you approach these interviews, and what were some of your favourite moments? 

As a podcaster and Tomb Raider fan, these 25th anniversary interview projects were pivotal for me. It genuinely made me feel that the sky is the limit with Raidercast. Along with community team members Meagan Marie and Neha Nair, I conducted interviews with the developers of Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness, Legend, Anniversary, and Underworld (L/A/U), to hear their stories of creating some cult-classic titles in the series.  

In the Tomb Raider: Angel of Darkness interview I got to learn more about the true vision the team had for this game, from additional move sets, a fully-fleshed-out Kurtis (complete with psychic abilities) to more information about additional locations like Castle Kriegler and Cappadocia. Hearing that work on AOD2 had actually begun was a hard pill to swallow. 

The interview with the L/A/U developers from Crystal Dynamics was insightful and offered many intriguing allusions to early development of the games. Even while this is the sort of thing I dream about hearing first-hand from a developer, one of my favourite moments came when I had the opportunity to grill studio creative director Noah Hughes about the location of Tihocan from Tomb Raider: Anniversary, and whether or not those pesky Atlanteans really are behind everything mysterious in the series. 

Chris's long-time dream came true when he finally visited Mexico and followed in Lara's footsteps in Underworld and Shadow. We're thrilled to present the new episode of Raidercast:

Tombs, Temples, and Tacos - A Raidercast Adventure in Mexico

Q: Is there a message you want to convey to the Tomb Raider community? 

I could talk and talk about how the fandom should follow in Lara's footsteps and unify against our differences. About how the fact we're all fans of Lara and Tomb Raider in one way or another should negate divisions and bridge gaps. But instead, I'm going to say 'Let Tomb Raider Be Your Muse', and ask two things of you: Create and Explore. 

1. Create.  

To echo the sentiments of AOD's Murti Schofield: get creative. It doesn't matter how or what; just do. Whether it's writing or painting. Create 3D renders. Create Tomb Raider inspired music. Songs. Doodles. Carvings. Videos. Let Tomb Raider be your muse. We're currently 12 main games and several spin-offs in, so let your imagination run wild. Getting creative with Tomb Raider themes keeps your passion alive, and there's no greater feeling than creating something that brings you joy. 

2. Explore.  

Interpret this as you like, but please do it. Whether exploration and travel as inspired by the series, or just as part of your general love for all things Tomb Raider. At nearly 30 years into the series, let's have more discussions on lore and myths than the pantone of Lara's hair and nails or style of belt. 

What actually was Vilcabamba? How did the Scion power the pyramid of Atlantis? Where did Excalibur come from? How did the Lux Veritatis operate in secret for so long? Are the Nephilim connected to Tomb Raider 1? Who created the Silver Box and Key of Chak Chel? What was the true goal of Marco Bartoli? Is there a link between Natla and Trinity?  

If any of the questions above have sparked your interest, then my friend, you've got it bad. The stories and fiction of this series is rich and expansive, so become a real-life Tomb Raider and explore the myths and legends of Lara's world. Start projects. Read related books. Explore ancient history, and please, let Tomb Raider be your muse.  

Happy raiding!  

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