Tomb Raider: The Ride – The Story Behind Kings Island’s Lost Blockbuster Attraction

Tomb Raider: The Ride was one of the most ambitious attractions ever built at Kings Island. Opening in 2002, it brought a massive, cinematic experience to the park, themed to the blockbuster Tomb Raider films. Using a familiar ride system transformed through large scale theming, practical effects, atmospheric sound and an immersive storyline, the attraction turned a standard top spin into a full theatrical spectacle housed inside a towering show building. Explore the complete history of Tomb Raider: The Ride, from its planning and development under Paramount Parks to the design choices, theming elements, and special effects that made it unlike anything else at a regional park. Discover how the ride operated, how guests experienced its dramatic set pieces, and why the attraction’s enormous scale, licensing challenges, and operational demands ultimately led to its decline. After the Paramount era ended, the ride was reimagined as The Crypt, a stripped back version that struggled to recapture the original’s impact before its eventual closure. Through detailed research and historical footage, this video uncovers the rise and fall of one of Kings Island’s most iconic lost attractions, and examines the unique place Tomb Raider: The Ride holds in the history of themed entertainment. 00:00 - Immersive Journey 00:46 - Kings Island 04:50 - Paramount Ownership 09:09 - Planning Begins 12:01 - Tomb Raider is Coming 14:46 - Opening Day 19:55 - What’s Inside? 22:34 - Expanding the Brand 24:31 - Changing Industry 28:30 - Closure of the Crypt 30:33 - Ambitious Visions ____________________________ 🎢 Personal Coaster Count: 596 🎢 📺 Video Credits 📺 Amusement Park Life -    • Madame Fatale’s Cavern of Terror at Kings ...   Attractions Magazine -    • The Conjuring: Beyond Fear - Premium Exper...   augustv123 -    • 1993 Paramount's Kings Island Opening Comm...   Cincyborn -    • Kings Island 20 Anniversary Special (1992)   Coaster ace -    • Coasterace Retro Amusement Park Videos: Ki...   CoasterBob62 -    • Paramount's Kings Island 1993 from WCMH-TV   CoasterBob62 -    • Paramount's Kings Island 1999   CoasterBob62 -    • Kings Island media day 1999   CoasterBob62 -    • Kings Island November 2009   CoasterBob62 -    • Kings Island - Sunday, August 7, 2011   CoasterBob62 -    • Kings Island July 2009 Son of Beast closed   Coaster Mania Media -    • Tomb Raider: The Ride (The Crypt) Queue Li...   Dave Cobb -    • TOMB RAIDER: FIREFALL (2005)   David Hahner -    • Paramount's Kings Island June 2000   F5roller -    • Tomb Raider: The Ride official POV   F5roller -    • Tomb Raider: The Ride Preshow Video   FilmIsNow -    • LARA CROFT: TOMB RAIDER (2001) | Behind Th...   HD Retro Trailers -    • Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001) Original Tr...   interactiveWDW -    • 1993 Walt Disney World Vacation Planning V...   Kings Island -    • Feel the Grip of Vortex - 50th Anniversary...   Kings Island -    • Step into the Danger Zone with Top Gun - 5...   KIngs Island -    • Explore Tomb Raider: The Ride - 50th Anniv...   Kings Island -    • Sights from the Eiffel Tower - 4K Cinemati...   Kings Island Central -    • Tomb Raider: The Ride National Geographic ...   Matt’s 80’s    • Altont Towers on Channel 5's "Attractions"...   Menachem Piekarski -    • 2007 videos tomb raider the ride canadas w...   MyManBud -    • Roller Coasters At Kings Island- 2007   Nicholas Roedl -    • Tomb Raider The Ride at Kings Island   Ntoob -    • 1972 Kings Island Cincinnati Ohio Opening ...   Paramount Movies -    • Forrest Gump - Trailer   Psyclonesteve -    • King Cobra,Stand Up Roller Coaster at King...   Psyclonesteve -    • Texas Twister, Geauga Lake 1993.   Retro Games -    • Busch Gardens - The Dark Continent - 1988 ...   Rotten Tomatoes -    • Braveheart (1995) Trailer #1 | Movieclips ...   Sean Flaharty -    • Son Of Beast Off-Ride Footage - Paramount'...   Sean Flaharty -    • Tomb Raider: The Ride - Announcement - Jul...   Sean Flaharty -    • Tomb Raider: The Ride -  Media Day - Param...   Stuff that I Like -    • Universal Studios Orlando - The Magic of M...   The theme park social Network -    • Movie World 1991 Commercial!   TTDFan -    • Kings Island 2008 Part 3: The Crypt   Vampire Robot -    • Inside Kings Island theme park in 1972   WCPO -    • Kings Island opening day   WCPO -    • Riders on The Beast at Kings Island, 1979   WLWT -    • Changes at Cincinnati's Kings Island   Xennial -    • 4/14/1989 Kings Island Beast Roller Coaste...