TOMB RAIDER BREATHES LIFE INTO GAMES
Copyright 2001 www.videobusiness.com

[ June 30th 2001 ]

A leading videogame retailer and market research firm report heroic increases in sales of Tomb Raider games around the June 15 theatrical release of Tomb Raider, starring Angeline Jolie as gamers' favorite pin-up girl, Lara Croft. "Overall, sales of Tomb Raider computer games and videogames doubled in the week after the movie debuted," said Liz O'Sullivan, director of marketing at Electronics Boutique. The same trend is evident in nationwide sales data compiled by NPD Intellect, with the biggest increase in sales experienced by Tomb Raider computer games. According to senior software analyst Steve Koenig, the 12 PC titles combined posted an increase in sales of 173% between June 3 and June 10, just prior to the movie's opening.

Sales of Tomb Raider Gold, a package that includes the original game plus four additional levels, jumped 635%, while sales of Tomb Raider: The Trilogy, containing the first three games in one box, and Tomb Raider III each climbed more than 360%. According to NPD senior account manager Richard Ow, nine Tomb Raider console titles saw significant, but more modest, gains of 39% combined the week of June 3-10. "However, I would caution it may not be because of the motion picture release alone. Many of these SKUs have been out for a long time and have been substantially discounted," Ow says.