Square Enix & Microsoft Felt Revealing Rise of the Tomb Raider’s Exclusivity Timing Was In “Everyone’s Best Interest”

As previously discussed, part of the reason Square Enix partnered with Microsoft on Rise of the Tomb Raider is because of their belief and passion in the franchise’s reboot.

Speaking with Game Informer recently, Square Enix America and Europe President and CEO Phil Rogers revealed that the 2013 Tomb Raider reboot didn’t sit well with everyone at the company:

I’m not saying it split the company, but in many ways when you’re trying to reboot a franchise that’s got the history of Tomb Raider, it does divide opinion. We took it in a very fresh direction. I think that at the end of the day, the accolades that we got with Tomb Raider (2013) were great. At the time, not everyone felt that way.

Feeling that Microsoft always helped them with the reboot, and where the series could go in the future, Rogers adds, “So, the evolution of this relationship deepening with the timed exclusive is a very natural one for us, but a tough decision.”

Late last month, Square Enix announced that Rise of the Tomb Raider is releasing on PlayStation 4 in late 2016, one year after the Xbox One version launches in November this year. Typically when it comes to timed exclusivity deals, news on other platforms isn’t revealed until after the game/DLC initially releases.

According to Rogers, they wanted to clear up any confusion right now, and Microsoft agreed:

We felt at some stage, with Microsoft hand-in-hand, that we’d be best off now that this is the date we’re aiming for with PC and we have a 12-month exclusive on console. We just thought that was in everyone’s best interest, for gamers to understand that.

Meanwhile, Square Enix addressed the comment Rogers made about the Tomb Raider reboot being a trilogy. “We’re always thinking about the future of the franchise, but right now we’re focused on the upcoming release of Rise of the Tomb Raider,” Square Enix told GameSpot.

[Source: Game Informer, GameSpot]

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