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Joystiq interview: Crystal Dynamics' Lindstrom talks Tomb Raider: Underworld
There are not many developers who can boast having given rise to both a vampiric anti-hero and an anthropomorphic lizard, but over the last three years San Francisco-based developer Crystal Dynamics has become more well known as the studio that single-handedly breathed new life into the dying franchise that was Tomb Raider and its top-heavy icon Lara Croft. 2006's Tomb Raider: Legend took the series that Core Design had unceremoniously driven into the ground and reminded us all why we fell in love with the franchise a decade prior. And for those still left unconvinced, Crystal Dynamics revisited the 1996 original a year later with Tomb Raider: Anniversary, demonstrating that anything Core could do, they could do better. Now the studio is at it again, this time taking Lara Croft on a new adventure in Tomb Raider: Underworld. Currently in development for multiple platforms, the game marks the eighth outing for the series, and while the game was recently pushed out from its previously expected third quarter 2008 release until the following quarter, creative director Eric Lindstrom told us that when it comes to this project -- "quality" is the team's ultimate deadline. We recently spoke with Lindstrom on the game, and he opened up to us about the project, how he feels it measures up to Naughty Dog's Uncharted, and why he finds next-gen development troubling. Hit the jump for the complete interview. %Gallery-15158%
Eidos returns to open water with Battlestations: Pacific
As the smoke clears following this morning's massive restructuring efforts by Eidos parent SCi, we now know at least one franchise that has not been counted among those projects tossed into the circular file. Eidos has announced that development is underway on a follow up to last year's Battlestations: Midway, unsurprising given the company's known affection for sequels. The new game, Battlestations: Pacific, is being created for both the Xbox 360 and PC. According to Eidos, the sequel will mark a return to the original's "unique blend" of action and strategy with 28 story missions across both U.S. and Japanese single player campaigns. In addition, players can expect a "slew of new air, sea, and land units" as well, including kamikazes and other WWII-era jets, as well as five new multiplayer modes. A final release date for the game has not yet been announced, but as soon as we know we'll pass the word along for those itching to gun down friends and family over the Pacific.%Gallery-17214%
SCi plans radical restructuring with mass layoffs and project cancellations
GamesIndustry.biz is reporting that Eidos parent company SCi plans to radically restructure its business, canceling 14 active projects, as well as laying off 25% of its work force.The restructuring is the result of a six-week business review, following the company's stock plummet and subsequent resignation of several key board members. The 14 projects were canceled after the board evaluated them as being of a low quality, or being unable to generate a satisfactory return on investment. After the restructuring, SCi will operate with a maximum of 800 employees, and will focus on publishing core franchises like Tomb Raider, Deux Ex, and Hitman. With these sizable shifts in business strategy, along with staff relocation, SCi hopes to cut £14 million GBP in annual operating costs by April 2008.
Eidos confirms plans for Just Cause 2 in 2008
With an investor coup and plummeting stock to worry about, investing in sequels to already average properties would seem to be one of the last things on the mind of Eidos parent SCi Entertainment. The game world, however, seldom subscribes to our own brand of logic, as Eidos has announced plans to revisit one of its non-entities in Avalanche Studios' Just Cause, a decidedly tepid – and altogether brief – stunt-focused action game that managed to parachute below most players' collective radar in 2006. Set for release later this year for the Xbox 360, PS3, and PC, the game will once again cast players in the role of vigilante Rico Rodriguez, this time taking him out of the Caribbean and into the fictional island country of Panau in South East Asia. Of course, more over-the-top action and stunts are promised, though if Eidos was unable to make players care about the franchise the first time around, we doubt that "the same but more of it" is enough of a tag line to make anyone but the most ardent action fans blink in the game's general direction.
SCi management out, stock price recovering
SCi shareholders must be celebrating like the Munchkins of OZ after Dorothy dropped a house on the Wicked Witch of the East over the resignations of the company's executive board -- shares rose 44% on the news. The company's stock plummeted last week over the news that SCi had taken itself off the market for a buyout, causing investors to call for the heads of the executive board.The board officially saw the resignation of CEO Jane Cavanagh, Managing Director of Publishing Bill Ennis and Managing Director of Studios Rob Murphy; all resignations were effective immediately and former Corporate Development Director of EA Phil Rogers is now the chief executive. SCi Chairman Tim Ryan says the company needs to restore faith and trust in investors by "under-promising and over-delivering." Meanwhile, SCi will strap on the stilettos and start walking the streets again in search of a potential suitor -- maybe it'll fight for territory with Codemasters on the corner.
SCi facing investor assault; management asked to resign
SCi Entertainment, parent company of Eidos, is under assault as investors demand the resignation of top executives. The Times reports things crumbled like a booby-trapped tomb after the company's stock plummeted last week following the announcement that management was pulling out of buyout talks; making matters worse was the discovery that SCi borrowed £30 million ($59 million) just to stay afloat until the end of the year.Despite SCi having a recent hit with Kane & Lynch: Dead Men, the announcement that several major titles -- including the latest Tomb Raider -- are not releasing until holiday '08 is causing concerns about the company's financial situation. We'd make fun of how SCi managed to screw things up this badly during a time of record industry growth, but Atari is still light-years ahead of them in that department.[Via GI.biz]
Kane & Lynch sells a million copies; [obligatory reviewer firing joke goes here]
Kane & Lynch: Dead Men has hit the million-sold milestone – and somewhere a journalism fairy just died. Unfortunately, the achievement has been overshadowed by parent company SCi's current woes. Despite strong Kane & Lynch sales, SCi still plans to declare an operating loss for fiscal year 2008.SCi said in a statement that it expects Kane & Lynch to "firmly establish itself as another key franchise" in the company's arsenal. In other words: Sequel confirmed! Start practicing those superlative adjectives game reviewers because Kane & Lynch got no problems rubbing your career out – allegedly.[Via X3F]
Kane & Lynch sells a million
Despite average reviews and its very own scandal, Kane & Lynch: Dead Men has managed to sell one million copies. As you might expect, the announcement of the milestone also included the very important keyword "franchise." Yup, it looks like a sequel to the game is a certainty now. Furthermore, the game has outperformed the same period of 2006 sales for the previous IO Interactive title Hitman: Blood Money. SCi expects sales to remain high for the rest of its fiscal year. That's good news for SCi, especially in light of their recent troubles. Now all we can do is wait for the sequel: Kane & Lynch 2: Even More Deader Men.[Via Evil Avatar]
SCi in trouble, Tomb Raider Underworld delayed
SCi, best known as the parent company of Eidos, isn't doing too well. Shares in the company recently fell the farthest in the company's history. The fall comes in the wake of ended takeover talks (which had included potential buyers Time Warner, Ubisoft, and others) and the announcement that the company would post an operating loss in 2008. It is the given reason for this loss that will interest gamers most though: SCi announced that four of its 2008 titles will be delayed, most notably the upcoming Tomb Raider: Underworld. Lara's latest adventure will be pushed to the 2008 holiday season. That's probably for the best really. After all, those footprint physics take a lot of time to perfect.[Via Joystiq]
SCi pulls out of buyout talks, stock plunges following Tomb Raider delay
Eidos owner SCi has been on the hunt for a potential suitor for some time, reportedly having batted its eyelashes at everyone from Midway and Vivendi to Time Warner and even some mysterious outfit in China, with none showing enough interest to sign their name across the dotted line. However, after having been given the cold shoulder by Ubisoft last October, the British firm has finally gotten the hint and moved on, stating that it had not received any formal offers within the requested timeframe.What this means to you and I is that it may be some time before we see another major release branded with the Eidos logo, as SCi confirmed that it has pushed out the recently revealed Tomb Raider: Underworld until the fourth quarter of 2008, along with three other unspecified titles. The company also announced plans to bring Lara Croft's latest escapade to the DS, Wii and PS2, in addition to the previously known versions for the PC, PS3, and Xbox 360.Way to be strong, SCi, but you might not want to look at your stock this morning. Following the firm's decision to go it alone, SCi's stock hit "rock bottom," and according to a new Bloomberg report, suffered its biggest plummet in more than 18 years, falling some 61 percent after SCi admitted that the aforementioned delays will likely result in an operating loss for 2008 and that the company may need to look to outside parties for the money to stay afloat. Of course, with SCi's share price now swimming with the fishes, we wouldn't be too surprised if another company now swooped in and bought up SCi and its properties at bargain basement prices. You hear that EA? Someone is singing your song.
Ubisoft brushes SCi, Lara Croft aside
Look SCi, Ubisoft wanted me to tell you that they really just want to be friends. Sure, you both had some laughs, and there was a time when things might have even gotten serious, but Ubi has moved on, and really, you should too. What's all this about? Well it turns out that despite last month being linked to possibly purchasing Edios and Lara Croft parent SCi, French-based developer/publisher Ubisoft has now lost interest in any potential deal, with a spokesperson telling Reuters that the company "has no intention of making an offer for SCI-Eidos." Ubisoft was one of a handful of firms that had been reportedly looking at SCi as a possible acquisition, with other companies including current SCi shareholder Time Warner, as well as Electronic Arts and an unspecified Chinese firm, so it will be interesting to see how all this shakes out as we wait to see just where Lara Croft will call home. Until then, keep your chin up Lara. As they say, there's other fish in the sea.
SCi/Eidos admits takeover talks
It seems that somebody wants to buy the company behind Eidos, which owns the rights to Tomb Raider, Hitman and many other game franchises. SCi Entertainment, parent company of Eidos, confirms that they are in discussions of a buyout. Shares rose 13% on the news, but no official proposal was made yet. SCi acquired Eidos right as E3 2005 started. According to Gamasutra, in January of 2006 there were already takeover talks of SCi, including Midway and Vivendi.Although those talks apparently ended early last year, the rumor mill had it that Time Warner was now interested in them, this led to a licensing agreement. It'll be interesting to find out who wants to buy Ms. Croft and Agent 47. Eidos has definitely seen an upturn in recent years, so hopefully whoever buys them will only continue down that path.
New video of Age of Conan
Not to be confused with the recently announced Conan, a new video of Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures has been released. The video features a city known as Khemi, the capitol of Stygia. Age of Conan is an MMORPG with a twist. The game offers a robust single player campaign. Upon completion of the single player campaign, the MMO world opens up to players. The Games for Windows version is expected late this year, with the 360 version following (possibly in 2008). Expect to hear more about Age of Conan from GDC next week.[Thanks, Darksaviour69]
Eidos acquires mobile developer Rockpool Games
Under the Eidos label, UK publisher SCi has acquired Manchester-based mobile developer Rockpool Games along with sister companies Ironstone Partners and SoGoPlay. The 36 members of Rockpool's staff will join Eidos' New Media division, which was established in 2003 to pursue, in part, a mobile gaming strategy; and has since produced iterations of Tomb Raider, Hitman, and Championship Manager. "We believe that the global market for mobile games is set to grow considerably over the next few years from around US $3 billion in 2006 to US $10 billion in 2009," said SCi chief exec Jane Cavanagh.Rockpool is previously responsible for mobile versions of Worms, MotoGP (pictured), and TOCA Race Driver. Ironstone Partners is the company's licensing division and also manages the Epyx back catalog (California Games, Impossible Mission), while SoGoPlay develops casual games for mobile and PC platforms.
WB comes to PSP
SCi and Eidos are about to have their release schedule look like a day at Six Flags since they acquired the rights to 11 Warner Bros franchises. If you like toons than you may be happy to know they have access to Looney Tunes and Hanna Barbera proprieties as well as Batman. Those into teen soap operas may want to stop cutting themselves and perk up at the inclusion of The OC license. The rights to all these franchises didn't come cheap though as it's reported to cost upwards of $80 million. It looks like Lara Croft will have to hold off on that boob job she was planning until Eidos recoups some earnings from this deal. The best news though is that all games are scheduled for PSP. So soon you may be throwing a batarang with Batman, racing the road runner, working for Spacely or cheating on whoever that guy is on The OC. Let's just hope that unlike most licensed games, Eidos isn't relying on the license selling the games and will back them up with quality gameplay. [Via Games Radar]
Warner Bros. to distribute Codemasters games
The on-again, off-again game-industry history of Warner Bros. seems to be "on," with the announcement just days ago that the company plans to buy 10 percent of SCi; now Warner Bros. says it will distribute Codemasters games in North America. According to Reuters, the distribution deal will begin in April, 2007 and will run through May, 2008. Financial details haven't been announced.Time Warner has maintained a positive attitude about its online distribution-and-publishing business, GameTap; could the Warner Bros. announcement be a step towards original retail publishing?
Age of Conan MMO extended to Xbox 360
Development of an Xbox 360 version of the Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures MMORPG will soon be underway. The PC version was lauded by numerous media outlets as the 'Best MMO of E3' this year, certainly fueling the decision to extend the game's reach to Microsoft's console. Age of Conan has not yet been confirmed for cross-platform or Live Anywhere support.Age of Conan begins as a single-player adventure, and once complete, morphs into a persistent world, online-multiplayer game; highlighted by activities like city building and PvP siege warfare. Brutal gameplay is defined by a "Real Combat" engine, which relies on active combo-inputs.
Time Warner looks to grab 10% of SCI
Media conglomerate Time Warner is looking to purchase a 10 percent stake in developer SCI Entertainment (Tomb Raider, Hitman). According to website The Business, Time Warner initially wanted to buy SCI, but that was lowered to 20% and then halved to 10% of stock.A complete buyout of SCI may be in the plans for the future; Time Warner executives are "preoccupied with a share buyback and the restructuring of AOL," according to the article. (For sake of full disclosure, Time Warner owns AOL owns Weblogs Inc. owns Joystiq.) SCI's Tomb Raider franchise was turned into a film franchise by Paramount Pictures, a rival of Time Warner's movie studio Warner Bros. Pictures. Will there be a conflict of interest should a third Tomb Raider movie materialize? [Via Gamasutra]
Tomb Raider Legend coming to DS
Chief Executive Jane Cavanagh of SCi, the company that acquisitioned Eidos in early 2005, recently spoke with MCV about the company's plans going on into the future, attempting to recover from a multi-million-dollar loss last year. One of the company's goals is that the next Tomb Raider and Hitman games see a lot of success, and with the Tomb Raider title, this means releasing on as many consoles as they can. So the upcoming Tomb Raider Legends, slated for release on the PS2, Xbox, PSP, and Xbox 360, will now see an incarnation on the GameCube, GBA, and more importantly, the DS. Sadly, however, nothing was said in regards to how the game will interact on the handheld in regards toward the touch screen or when it will release.[Via Nintendo Gal]
