4 ms·

I'd be interesting to see the full list of IP they've sold. The article only gives three examples, one game I've never heard of, one recycled shooter from the

I'd be interesting to see the full list of IP they've sold. The article only gives three examples, one game I've never heard of, one recycled shooter from the 2000s and then there is Tomb raider - a series with twenty instalments, already milked to dust for pre-sequels, squeals and reboots more times then seems fair. Clearly someone thinks they can squeeze a few more dollars out of people here but personally im not seeing it.

egypturnash 4y ago
If you are curious, the game you’ve never heard of is definitely in the realm of “cult classic”. The Legacy of Kain series is flawed in many ways; its reach exceeds its grasp in every installment, but there is a lot of solid vampire angst in between the places where the budget ran out. When it comes together it’s great IMHO. Start with Soul Reaver, where you are a vampire who is killed in the opening cinematic, then resurrected as a Double Vampire who eats vampire souls in a dying world while railing against your Inevitable Doomed Destiny. Which, just so you know, is not resolved until Soul Reaver 2. Which IMHO you should play before either of the Kain games if you enjoy Soul Reaver. These games are goth as fuck. If you do not have an inner goth then it’s probably going to feel like a bunch of pretentious whiny shit. But if you have an inner goth, she will eat this series up. My inner goth is quietly vibrating and squealing at this tiny, vague possibility of more Legacy of Kain.
- astrange 4y ago
  It’s too bad the newer White Wolf/Vampire games are in complete development hell, and the rest of the series can’t figure out how to balance adding current events, being modernly inclusive, and being as edgy as possible. (Also, it seems like all their series that aren’t Vampire are kinda boring.)
bentcorner 4y ago
Eidos Montreal's recent work with Guardian's of the Galaxy is really well done and I think overshadowed by the absolute failure of Crystal Dynamic's Marvel Avengers game. I think they'd succeed with a GotG 2 or another 3rd-person action adventure game with a different IP.
johnnyanmac 4y ago
>I'd be interesting to see the full list of IP they've sold. well, here's a start: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Eidos_Interactive_games https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Eidos_Interactive_game... Apparently the only IP's SE definitely kept was Just Cause and Life is Strange
- astrange 4y ago
  They still have Power Wash Simulator.
tenebrisalietum 4y ago
VR Tomb Raider would be neat.
- Arrath 4y ago
  Ah yes I can look down and see the branch sticking out of my stomach, or the bear trap around my ankle.
WillPostForFood 4y ago
The three Crystal Dynamics Tomb Raider games sold 38 million units, so probably something like a billion in revenue. Plus whatever value in Film/TV income, plus some decent mobile games. They can probably recoup the cost with effective management of Tomb Raider, and then the other IP is where they can mine for some value and make the deal look good. They got two great AAA studios with Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal. One Tomb Raider game + one Deus Ex/Thief/Legacy of Kain Reboot + 50 game back catalog remaster/re-release is a solid strategy.
- mehlmao 4y ago
  The newer Tomb Raider games were all very heavily discounted soon after launch. I think I paid ~$10 for each of them within a year of them coming out.
  - mrtranscendence 4y ago
    Hell, the Epic store gave them all away free not that long ago.
jerf 4y ago
I can't speak for the intention of the purchaser, but in their position I'd be looking to just unlock the teams. My impression of Square-Enix is that they've frankly just never been a company comfortable with being international, and it has shown for a very long time now. Just let the teams go produce something without the Eastern and Western design, management, marketing... heck, nearly all the philosophies clashing and producing much less than the sum of the parts. (Since I know how things work nowadays, I'm not saying the philosophies necessarily intrinsically clash or that they can't be reconciled by other entities, just that to my eye, Square-Enix in particular is a company with a multi-decade track record of failing to do so.)
- morelisp 4y ago
  Specifically, this is Enix. Square had a considerably more international outlook and viewpoint, but even a lot of that seems to have been squeezed out since the merger. You can look at the spun-off/second-party studios to see - from Square Monolith and AlphaDream consistently pushing formal boundaries of the JRPG, vs. from Enix tri-Ace's extremely conservative approach to Star Ocean and... I can't think of any other studios.
  - astrange 4y ago
    Enix was I think a smaller company which is now notable because their remaining people are still working even though they’re really old. That can be good (Yuji Horii has a game sensibility nobody younger would) or bad (they were stuck with their composer who was mainly known for being a far-right Japanese nationalist).
- KTallguy 4y ago
  This is the correct take. SQEX has a pretty poor reputation when it comes to outside studio management in general (both domestic and international). Their in house development has produced the most hits. Also, SQEX desperately wants a Destiny style live game that they can run for many years, like the domestic mobile titles that keep them afloat. Marvel Avengers, Outriders, and Babylon’s Fall were all attempts at this model but none of them captured a significant market. They’re also pushing harder in the mobile space, trying to get at least one international moneymaker. We’ll see if their bets pay off in the next few years.

egypturnash 4y ago

If you are curious, the game you’ve never heard of is definitely in the realm of “cult classic”. The Legacy of Kain series is flawed in many ways; its reach exceeds its grasp in every installment, but there is a lot of solid vampire angst in between the places where the budget ran out. When it comes together it’s great IMHO. Start with Soul Reaver, where you are a vampire who is killed in the opening cinematic, then resurrected as a Double Vampire who eats vampire souls in a dying world while railing against your Inevitable Doomed Destiny. Which, just so you know, is not resolved until Soul Reaver 2. Which IMHO you should play before either of the Kain games if you enjoy Soul Reaver. These games are goth as fuck. If you do not have an inner goth then it’s probably going to feel like a bunch of pretentious whiny shit. But if you have an inner goth, she will eat this series up. My inner goth is quietly vibrating and squealing at this tiny, vague possibility of more Legacy of Kain.

astrange 4y ago
It’s too bad the newer White Wolf/Vampire games are in complete development hell, and the rest of the series can’t figure out how to balance adding current events, being modernly inclusive, and being as edgy as possible. (Also, it seems like all their series that aren’t Vampire are kinda boring.)

bentcorner 4y ago

Eidos Montreal's recent work with Guardian's of the Galaxy is really well done and I think overshadowed by the absolute failure of Crystal Dynamic's Marvel Avengers game. I think they'd succeed with a GotG 2 or another 3rd-person action adventure game with a different IP.

johnnyanmac 4y ago

>I'd be interesting to see the full list of IP they've sold. well, here's a start: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Eidos_Interactive_games https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Eidos_Interactive_game... Apparently the only IP's SE definitely kept was Just Cause and Life is Strange

astrange 4y ago
They still have Power Wash Simulator.

tenebrisalietum 4y ago

VR Tomb Raider would be neat.

Arrath 4y ago
Ah yes I can look down and see the branch sticking out of my stomach, or the bear trap around my ankle.

WillPostForFood 4y ago

The three Crystal Dynamics Tomb Raider games sold 38 million units, so probably something like a billion in revenue. Plus whatever value in Film/TV income, plus some decent mobile games. They can probably recoup the cost with effective management of Tomb Raider, and then the other IP is where they can mine for some value and make the deal look good. They got two great AAA studios with Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal. One Tomb Raider game + one Deus Ex/Thief/Legacy of Kain Reboot + 50 game back catalog remaster/re-release is a solid strategy.

mehlmao 4y ago
The newer Tomb Raider games were all very heavily discounted soon after launch. I think I paid ~$10 for each of them within a year of them coming out.
- mrtranscendence 4y ago
  Hell, the Epic store gave them all away free not that long ago.

jerf 4y ago

I can't speak for the intention of the purchaser, but in their position I'd be looking to just unlock the teams. My impression of Square-Enix is that they've frankly just never been a company comfortable with being international, and it has shown for a very long time now. Just let the teams go produce something without the Eastern and Western design, management, marketing... heck, nearly all the philosophies clashing and producing much less than the sum of the parts. (Since I know how things work nowadays, I'm not saying the philosophies necessarily intrinsically clash or that they can't be reconciled by other entities, just that to my eye, Square-Enix in particular is a company with a multi-decade track record of failing to do so.)

morelisp 4y ago
Specifically, this is Enix. Square had a considerably more international outlook and viewpoint, but even a lot of that seems to have been squeezed out since the merger. You can look at the spun-off/second-party studios to see - from Square Monolith and AlphaDream consistently pushing formal boundaries of the JRPG, vs. from Enix tri-Ace's extremely conservative approach to Star Ocean and... I can't think of any other studios.
- astrange 4y ago
  Enix was I think a smaller company which is now notable because their remaining people are still working even though they’re really old. That can be good (Yuji Horii has a game sensibility nobody younger would) or bad (they were stuck with their composer who was mainly known for being a far-right Japanese nationalist).
KTallguy 4y ago
This is the correct take. SQEX has a pretty poor reputation when it comes to outside studio management in general (both domestic and international). Their in house development has produced the most hits. Also, SQEX desperately wants a Destiny style live game that they can run for many years, like the domestic mobile titles that keep them afloat. Marvel Avengers, Outriders, and Babylon’s Fall were all attempts at this model but none of them captured a significant market. They’re also pushing harder in the mobile space, trying to get at least one international moneymaker. We’ll see if their bets pay off in the next few years.