Tomb Raider’s new guardians, Embracer Group, said it sees “great potential” in sequels, remakes and other content around the franchise.
Earlier this month, Embracer Group announced the acquisition of several Western franchises from Square Enix, including Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, Legacy of Kain and more. The publisher is also believed to have gotten a great price as well, as it bought all the franchises, plus Crystal Dynamics studios, Eidos Montreal, and Square Enix Montreal for just $300 million.
It looks like the group is wasting no time implementing its acquisitions either. In a recent earnings report, Embracer Group commented on the acquisition saying, “We have further strengthened our development capabilities and IP portfolio by entering into an agreement to acquire Crystal Dynamics, Eidos Montreal and Square Enix Montreal, including Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, Rogue and Legacy of Kain and other IPs.
“We see great potential, not only in sequels, but also in remakes, remasters, spin-offs as well as transmedia projects across the Group.”
Embracer Group also added that the acquisition should be confirmed between July and September.
The future of Tomb Raider and Deus Ex
This could be exciting news for fans of each series, as it seemed before it was picked up, Square Enix didn’t have big plans for new games in these franchises.
Tomb Raider had a massive resurgence in 2013 with a successful reboot, which spawned a trilogy of games. Deus Ex also released the much-loved Human Revolution and Mankind Divided, which left things open for a third game that never came.
Going forward, Square Enix will focus more on its Japanese franchises like Final Fantasy. However, this acquisition of the Embracer group potentially changes the future of these western properties. These franchises are some of the largest that Embracer Group currently owns, so it seems in its interest to invest heavily in them in the future.
The question now is whether the band continues the Lara Croft story from the recent Crystal Dynamic games, or should the developer reboot the series with a fresh start? While there’s room for more games after Shadow of the Tomb Raider, the story felt come full circle by the end of the trilogy.