Lara Croft origin story pushed back to allow Crystal Dynamics to "fully deliver the very highest quality game"; new screenshot teasing upcoming E3 content.

The upcoming Tomb Raider title currently in development at Crystal Dynamics has been delayed from Q3 2012 to Q1 2013.

The announcement came today via a post on the official Eidos Games forums, in which Crystal Dynamics studio head Darrell Gallagher outlined the developer's reasons for delaying the title:

Lara is going to have to hang out just a little bit longer.

"Our priority now is to make sure we fully deliver the very highest-quality game," Gallagher said in the message. "In order to do this, we have decided to move the game's release date by a few months, from fall 2012 [spring in Australia] to the first quarter of 2013."

"We're doing things that are completely new to Tomb Raider in this game, and the additional development time will allow us to put the finishing touches into the game and polish it to a level that you deserve. We believe this is the right choice, and I guarantee it will be worth the wait."

As a consolation prize, the studio also released a screenshot in preparation for more information about the game, which will be revealed during this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo in June.

Last year, it was revealed that Crystal Dynamics would be exploring Lara Croft's beginnings in the upcoming Tomb Raider title. Earlier this year, the studio also announced that it had no plans to release the game on the Wii U.

Set for release on the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC, Tomb Raider is the first installment in the series since 2010's downloadable multiplayer-focused Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light, and the first stand-alone game since 2008's Tomb Raider: Underworld.

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