Murti Schofield, the lead narrative designer and concepts for Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness, joined Core Design in 2000 to help craft a new story for a mainline Tomb Raider game with the possibility of going into subsequent games. His work also included developing a new character, Kurtis Trent, envisioned for a potential spinoff series. Murti was able to incorporate many of his personal interests into his writing, which were connected to archaeology, ancient history, mysterious societies, and secretive characters with hidden personas. 

The Angel of Darkness is often celebrated as having one of the most ambitious stories in the Tomb Raider franchise. Its grim, noir-inspired narrative continues to captivate fans' imaginations after more than two decades, with The Angel of Darkness' Lara often regarded as one of the most intriguing interpretations of the character.

With the upcoming release of Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered, we spoke with Murti about his vision for a darker, more serious Lara Croft, the introduction of Kurtis Trent as the franchise's first secondary playable character, and the creative process behind bringing them to life. 

Q: How did you prepare for your role as lead narrative designer to ensure you captured Lara Croft's character effectively? 

Murti: I made sure to research all available documents from all the previous games. I didn’t want to contradict anything that had gone before in terms of Lara’s essential core nature. This wasn’t to be a transgression, chucking out any of her admirable trademark qualities - more of a transformation into something darker, more noir, grittier than before. 

Q: Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness begins in medias res, with Lara and her former mentor Werner Von Croy arguing. Von Croy begs for help, while Lara remains less than receptive. Could you provide insight into where Lara is mentally at the beginning of The Angel of Darkness and what led her to become so closed off? 

Murti: It seemed to me that her personality hadn’t evolved during the five existing games and I felt there was a great well of potential storylines to be explored in what might have happened following her being abandoned in the Pyramids by her mentor Werner von Croy – as she saw it. Surely she would have been traumatised to some extent, however tough, remarkable and independent spirited. She did survive, clearly, so, what form would that trauma take – and how did she work through it? How exactly did she escape from the tombs and recover during her time in the desert regions of North Africa before returning to Europe to get some answers? 

Well, that was my starting point. The possibilities began to align themselves. We would be following a newly emergent, grimmer Lara Croft scarred by the events described and trying to pull her life together. And question, questions, questions - did she manage to recover alone or was she helped…guided, even, by some intervening character or characters or higher force? (cue haunting, ethereal music for the enigmatic Shaman Putai, and the equally mysterious Bantiwa Tribe…) 

So how would these changes manifest? My instinct was that she would be significantly less interested in tomb raiding and more intent on getting answers from the individual she understood to have abandoned her in Egypt. It did not occur to Lara to question what she perceived as a stone hard fact – Werner’s betrayal. When she tracked him down the encounter would certainly be a tough one for Werner. He was clearly in line for a good arse kicking. Our heroine wanted answers! So many answers! 

Q: We saw Lara obtain her iconic backpack during her Cambodian adventure with Von Croy in Tomb Raider: The Last Revelation. In Tomb Raider: Chronicles, Von Croy was seen discovering her backpack after she was presumed dead. In Angel of Darkness, Lara loses her backpack for good following Werner's murder. Would it be fair to say that losing her backpack symbolized the end of the Lara we knew up until that point? 

Murti: To match the ‘noir’ feel I wanted to evoke, it was a no-brainer that she would dress differently, darker, more ‘street’ including the way she would express herself through her makeup and general manner. Granted she would retain her trademark backpack but if she were to lose this in the mean streets of Paris, where she had tracked Werner down, this would further emphasise the different path she was taking, leaving her previous incarnation behind. 

It was coming together. A driven, highly motivated avenging angel with a mission – and in no mood for taking prisoners! Game on! 

What and who would she run into in Paris, which at that time was being terrorised by an entity called The Monstrum? Aaaaaargh, the tension would be unbearable….shriieeeekkkk!!! 

Q: You were tasked with creating a new playable character, a first for the franchise at the time. What inspired Kurtis Trent and what was the most enjoyable part of his creation? 

Murti: Creating Kurtis was an opportunity one rarely gets in my line of work. I was soooo excited because I could cherry pick traits from all of my favourite heroic characters, ones I have admired since I was a kid. 

I had always been drawn to the idea of the Loner, the Soldier of Fortune, a dashing, fiercely independent individual carving his own path through life and winning against all odds. 

There was Alan Quartermain from the stories by H. Rider Haggard; Robin Hood; Tarzan; Biggles; Hawkeye in The Last of the Mohicans; Alan Breck, the swashbuckler in Robert Louis Stevenson’s Kidnapped, Raymond Chandler’s classic P.I. Philip Marlowe (“I test very high for insubordination.”). 

The list goes on: James Dean; Jeremiah Johnson, the Frontiersman par excellence; Marlon Brando in The Wild One. Then of course Steve McQueen in The Great Escape and inevitably Indiana Jones…of course. What a treasure trove of heroes to draw from. I was spoilt for choice. 

Now if only I could distil some memorable portion of these characteristics into the, as yet, unformed Kurtis Trent, last of the Secret Order of the Lux Veritatis, a fiercely dedicated group locked in a battle with Forces of Darkness that has lasted throughout history. 

I had the most incredible fun weaving together his back story and identifying how his unusual upbringing would form him into the Lone Blade Disc Slinger he was to become. It was important that he have a fully realised pre-history and life – he would be a freelance agent, a gun for hire, raised as a Lux Veritatis initiate but rejecting the role prepared for him by changing his family name and joining the French Foreign Legion. 

Also, I could give him all kinds of esoteric abilities that would be brought into vibrant existence within the newly created game world of what became The Angel of Darkness. And he wouldn’t only have finely trained Lux Veritatis instincts and abilities; having a Navajo mother he inherited the otherworldly ‘Wolf Sense’ that enable adepts of that tribe to intuit and detect threats from obscure levels of reality. In short, he would be a true archetype in the heroic mould, as outlined in Joseph Campbell’s Call to Adventure of the Mythic Hero. 

Q: We've seen Kurtis use telekinetic powers in the cutscenes, but players never got to experience those abilities in the game. With Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered, Kurtis' abilities have been restored, including being able to use his discus-like blade, the Chirugai, his psychic shield ability, and a few other improvements. Did you ever expect that one day, fixing Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness might become a reality, and how do you feel about it? 

Murti: Kurtis would have Far-see ability, could generate a psychic shield, was able to telekinetically control the LV Irenwaepns such as the Chirugai, and had a few other esoteric tricks to make him a truly unique playable character [ at that time anyway ]. So to hear that those abilities might actually be restored in the Remastered version of AOD is fantastically exciting for me, as I’m sure it will be for the multitude of enthusiasts and fans out there, in what is called ‘the real world’.

Q: Is there a particular highlight from the development of The Angel of Darkness that you'd like to share? 

Murti: In conclusion I just want to say that the absolute highlight of the entire experience of working on AOD was the recording sessions in London. Directing a team of supremely capable voice talents such as Jonell Elliot, Eric Loren and Joss Ackland was a joy and a privilege. Within the first hour I realised that the world I’d been carrying around in my head and the characters within it actually worked. They came alive and the world began to take solid form, which is not to say that the recording sessions were a walk in the park – they were tough work. But I was buoyed up by the exceptional people I was working with and exhilarated by the knowledge that the characters had their own lives now - they were REAL. There’s nothing like that as vindication of all of one’s efforts.

I also want to share my appreciation of all the many fans of the game who, in the last twenty odd years, have shown that they value the work that went into AOD, my own and everyone else’s on the creative team. I am unendingly grateful to them for their words of appreciation and enthusiasm.

Thank you…..and HAPPY DAZE, forever!

Discover the vast world of Murti's work by visiting his official website murtischofield.com 

If you're interested in hearing Murti delve into the creation of Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness, its lore, and the plans for future games, we recommend the following interviews: 

Murti Schofield - Beyond the Story 

Behind Murti Schofield's Angel of Darkness - 20 Years of Tomb Raider AOD 

Survivor Reborn Podcast Episode #3: #AOD15 SPECIAL: An Interview with Murti Schofield PART 1 

Murti Schofield's lecture at Yale College, 2011 

Video Games

Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness

Tomb Raider IV-VI Remastered