Part One

As many of you know I'm the Global Community Manager at Eidos. This means that a) I'm very, very lucky and b) I'm responsible for working with the fan communities for all of Eidos' titles, from the brutal and murderous Hitman to the cute and sweet Pony Friends. It's a fantastic job and would be a massive task in itself, even without the gargantuan behemoth that is the Tomb Raider community which makes sure I'm kept amazingly busy (it's also the best community to work with - but don't tell anyone else I said that). One of the things I like most about community management is that the interaction with the community makes the world a very small place. In my day to day duties I can answer questions and speak to Tomb Raiders from around the world; a Tomb Raider fan in Mexico wants to know if Lara will be wearing trousers in Underworld, one in Australia wonders when the next bit of goodness will be released, another in Russia has translated all the cut scenes from TR1 and 2, I love it.

Indeed, when I go on holiday these days I normally encounter some Tomb Raider fans somewhere along the way. Last year when I was on a family holiday in Finland I ended up meeting with some fine Finnish TR fans on an impromptu community day in Helsinki, around 10 guys turned up and a lovely day was had by all, eating strawberries under the Nordic sun, chatting about Lara, Natla and Anniversary. So, when I had made arrangements to visit the west coast of the good old US of A, it seemed inevitable that it would include Tomb Raider in some way. The fact that I was flying into San Diego and making my way to San Francisco meant there was only one outcome - my first visit to Crystal Dynamics to see where the magic happens! So, while you're waiting for the next update on the awesomeness that is Underworld, I thought I'd give you all a behind the scenes look at Lara's studio.

The first part of my holiday was taken up with the journey from San Diego, which took in the ridiculous (Hollywood is seriously crazy) to the sublime (coastal Highway 1, flanked by the Pacific on one side and rolling hills on the other is a beautiful way to see what California has to offer) before arriving in San Francisco. SF is a lovely place. It's a compact, liberal and welcoming city with splendid architecture and tasty sourdough bread (not to mention quite a famous bridge). The sharply inclined streets which carry the famous Trolley Cars are framed by grand buildings exuding atmosphere which lead down to the ocean - but most importantly of all, it's home to Crystal Dynamics.

Kathryn (who is the brand manager and general goddess of the TR brand from Eidos HQ in London) was out in Crystal at the time and she had spread the word that I would be visiting. On the morning of my visit, I set off from my hotel just off Union Square. As my taxi sped south down the 32 lane freeway (OK, I exaggerate but Californian roads are big) I spotted a futuristic and plush looking office complex glinting in the distance. I had seen photos of Crystal D before, and I was sure this was it. I wasn't wrong and with-in a couple of minutes I had arrived and found myself standing outside Tomb Raider HQ.

This fine building houses Crystal Dynamics and the US branch of Eidos. It was great to finally have the opportunity to be here, because I frequently exchange emails with a lot of the people that work behind the swanky glass façade. As I made my way in I spotted a small an unassuming chap with shortly cropped hair, a goatee and round rimmed glasses, but more about him later. I introduced myself at reception where Morgan Gray (some of you may recognise the name from an Anniversary Wii video we released a while back) was sitting on the comfy sofas catching up with the industry latest from some computer magazines. Before I knew it, Kathryn appeared and ferried me into the offices.

---