so ok, i'm gonna ramble about this on my own b/c this is my timeline.

core design's lara croft was sexualized in advertisements overtly, and in-game it was done subtly up until about AoD when kurtis was introduced. her neckline plunged a little lower in TRII/III to tease, and

in TLR/Chronicles, not only did her chest increase for no reason in-game but she received an even deeper neckline with a permanent splotch meant to simulate oiled skin glinting in the light. in AoD it got a bit more blatant (but still mostly tasteful) with her exaggerated breast

physics. the biggest one was kurtis' disarming of lara, which was clearly meant to be a "sexy" scene of lara's skin being slowly, achingly caressed. especially given how lara is out of character and just kind of stands still, hangs her head, and admits she was bested by a man

to a lesser degree, there was chronicles' "you want to try the back pockets?" scene, which to my knowledge is the first time we see lara weaponizing her sexuality in a TR game

there's nothing BAD about core lara's sexualization IMO, it's part of her appeal. but it's present, and to pretend it isn't is an insult to lara's history and to core design's philosophies regarding lara in-game.

of course, crystal dynamics ramped it up. low-rise shorts, retaining TLR's in-game neckline for most of the Legend / Underworld / Lara Croft Series outfits. the japan dress, the ripped japan dress, exposed skin on the Legend cold weather outfits, "give me a minute, i'm thinkin'"

and we can't forget Legend's manor bikinis and Underworld's bikini DLC. but this to me says they noticed the small things core did to titillate the audience in-game, and what the marketing department had a history of doing, and implemented it in game proper.

oh, for another core design example of her sexualization: 16-year-old lara croft lifting up her shirt, exposing the underside of her breasts. thanks to my friend for reminding me of that; i try to actively fucking block that out because of how awful it was