Rise of the Tomb Raider will be an Xbox One exclusive, Microsoft announced today during its Gamescom 2014 presentation.
Yes, despite publisher Square-Enix having revealed that the 2013 reboot of the Tomb Raider series sold below expectations, its sequel will now launch exclusively on one console.
While this is obviously a big boon for Microsoft (though hugely disappointing news for PS4 owners) it’s still an incredibly odd business move from Square-Enix and the game’s developer Crystal Dynamics. While I’m not entirely in the know when it comes to “big business,” surely limiting the reach of your software will only lead to much worse sales?
Still, it wasn’t made clear how long this exclusivity deal will last for. Perhaps it’s permanent, or perhaps the game will make its way to the PS4 eventually, but either way this is an incredibly odd move on behalf of everyone other than Microsoft, who are probably rubbing their hands together greedily right now.
Speaking of the move, Crystal Dynamics’ Head of Product Development Darrell Gallagher took to Tumblr to address the concerns, writing: “Today’s announcement with Microsoft is one step to help us put Tomb Raider on top of action adventure gaming. Our friends at Microsoft have always seen huge potential in Tomb Raider and have believed in our vision since our first unveil with them on their stage at E3 2011.
“This doesn’t mean that we’re walking away from our fans who only play on PlayStation or on PC. Those are great systems, with great partners, and amazing communities. We have Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris coming to those platforms this December, and Tomb Raider: The Definitive Edition is available on PS4.
“We know that there are probably many more questions and concerns. Please do send them to us, and we’ll answer to the best of our ability.”
