To celebrate the release of the mobile version of Tomb Raider (2013), the developers explained how they select and adapt large projects for mobile devices.
Feral Interactive, a studio known for its mobile ports of major PC games, has shared its philosophy on bringing AAA projects to smartphones. In an hour-long interview with the author of the YouTube channel MrMacRight, the developers discussed their work on the mobile version of Tomb Raider (2013), as well as shared statistics and their own observations.
According to the studio, about 70-75% of players prefer to control the game via the touch screen. Approximately 20% use a gamepad, and only a few (4%) connect a keyboard and mouse to their smartphone.
The work on Tomb Raider was a logical continuation of accumulated experience. Previously, Feral Interactive released mobile versions of more measured projects like Alien: Isolation, where the main emphasis is on stealth. Then the team moved on to more dynamic games like Hitman, and only after that did they take on a full-fledged action game. This approach allowed them to gradually refine camera control, shooting, dodging, and QTE for the touch screen.
When choosing projects, the studio focuses on the so-called "stone classics" — AAA games from the PlayStation 3 or early PlayStation 4 era. These projects still look modern, but are also "light" enough for mobile devices from the last four to five years. At the same time, on top-end smartphones, the performance and graphics quality in such ports can already approach console versions.
For example, in the Tomb Raider port on the iPad Pro with the M4 chip, the graphics quality is better than in the version for the Nintendo Switch 2, and a 120 FPS mode is available.
The team pays special attention to the so-called "thermal budget" of devices. This is one of the key limitations when developing mobile versions: the smartphone must withstand at least a 40-minute gaming session even in hot conditions, without overheating or losing performance.
Feral Interactive emphasizes that mobile versions should not turn into cut-down adaptations. For some audiences, a smartphone or tablet is the primary gaming platform, so the developers' task is to preserve the entire game.
"When we port such projects, our goal is for it to be the entire Tomb Raider, not a 'mobile version of Tomb Raider'. No cut levels or modes — it's the same game, just on a different device."
