Shadow of the Tomb Raider received mixed reviews upon its release on September 14. The final arc in Lara Croft’s origin story gives the trilogy closure once the game is complete, but it seems that there was a different ending that players could have uncovered. What exactly is this Shadow of the Tomb Raider deleted alternate ending then?
What Was the Shadow of the Tomb Raider Deleted Alternate Ending?
According to Kotaku, there was an additional ending that Shadow of the Tomb Raider players could have unearthed. The Shadow of the Tomb Raider deleted alternate ending was a post-credits scene that involved the antagonist from Tomb Raider‘s very first game—Jacqueline Natla—and was only discovered by accident by one fan.
The scene in question sees a letter from Jacqueline propped up on Lara’s desk as she’s brought tea by her butler. Many didn’t believe the fan who had found the Shadow of the Tomb Raider deleted alternate ending until Square Enix posted a statement confirming that the scene was, in fact, supposed to be included before it was axed—alongside others—for one standalone ending.
[Editor’s note: I, Michael Leri, reviewed the game for this site and also came across this alternate ending during my first playthough.]
Can I Get Shadow of the Tomb Raider Deleted Alternate Ending in the Game Now?
Unfortunately not. Well, not if you stay connected to the internet. The Square Enix team, alongside those at Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montréal, discovered that it had been kept in by mistake and removed the ending out via the Shadow of the Tomb Raider Day One patch. You can watch the Shadow of the Tomb Raider deleted alternate ending above if you don’t mind spoiling it for yourself, but there’s no way to get it in the game itself now unless you play without the patches.
It seems strange that the Shadow of the Tomb Raider deleted alternate ending would make it into the final product without the teams realizing that it needed to be patched out, but we guess that’s what patches are for.
