Company type | Subsidiary |
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Industry | Video games |
Founded | July 8, 1992 in Palo Alto, California, US |
Founders |
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Headquarters | , US |
Key people | Scot Amos (head of studio) |
Products |
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Number of employees | 273 (2022) |
Parent |
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Divisions |
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Website | crystaldynamics.com |
Crystal Dynamics, Inc. is an American video game developer based in San Mateo, California. The studio is best known for its games in the Tomb Raider , Legacy of Kain , and Gex series.
Madeline Canepa, Judy Lange, and Dave Morse founded Crystal Dynamics as a spin-off from The 3DO Company in July 1992. Initially focusing on the 3DO console, the studio's first title, Crash 'N Burn (1993), was the system's pack-in game. In 1994, it became the first developer for the PlayStation outside Japan and soon began converting its older titles for the system. The studio also created Gex (1995) and published Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain (1996), later expanding both into franchises. Facing financial hardships in 1996, the company's investors instituted significant layoffs and the discontinuation of its game publishing business. As fiscal issues persisted, the publisher Eidos Interactive acquired the studio in November 1998.
In 2003, Eidos Interactive put Crystal Dynamics in charge of the Tomb Raider series, and the studio consequently developed a modernized trilogy with Tomb Raider: Legend (2006), Tomb Raider: Anniversary (2007), and Tomb Raider: Underworld (2008). In 2009, Crystal Dynamics became part of the Japanese conglomerate Square Enix as that company acquired and consolidated Eidos Interactive's parent company. The studio then developed the first two games in a Tomb Raider reboot trilogy— Tomb Raider (2013) and Rise of the Tomb Raider (2015)—and shifted into a support role for Shadow of the Tomb Raider (2018) while working on Marvel's Avengers (2020). Square Enix sold Crystal Dynamics to Embracer Group in August 2022.
As of 2022, Crystal Dynamics employs 273 people across three studios under the leadership of head of studio Scot Amos. It is working on another Tomb Raider game, co-developing Perfect Dark , and collaborating with Aspyr on remasters in the Tomb Raider and Legacy of Kain series.
Crystal Dynamics was founded by Madeline Canepa, Judy Lange, and Dave Morse on July 8, 1992, when they spun off from The 3DO Company. [1] [2] Canepa and Lange were previously marketing executives for Sega, where the former's integral role in the launch of Sonic the Hedgehog gave her the nickname "Mother of Sonic". [3] [4] Morse had co-founded Amiga Corporation, the creator of the Amiga family of home computers, and New Technology Group, which sought to design a video game console. [1] [5] In 1990, New Technology Group had partnered with Electronic Arts to create the 3DO, a collaboration that eventually grew into The 3DO Company. [1] At Crystal Dynamics, Lange assumed the president role and Canepa headed the marketing department. [6] [7] While Morse became its chairman and chief executive officer (CEO), he also continued as New Technology Group's CEO until that company was merged into The 3DO Company. [8] [9] Technology Partners and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers provided Crystal Dynamics with seed capital. [10] The studio set up its first offices in the retail space of Palo Alto Airport in Palo Alto, California. [11] [12] Mark Cerny, also from Sega, became its first developer later that year. [13] The studio's first projects were Crash 'N Burn and Total Eclipse , which entered production simultaneously and were announced as launch titles for the upcoming 3DO in April 1993. [6] [12] Cerny was vital in the development of the game engine technology used by Crash 'N Burn, Total Eclipse, and Off-World Interceptor . [5] Developing for the system meant that the company could produce games for the CD-ROM format, avoiding the higher costs associated with cartridges. [11]
In June 1993, Crystal Dynamics hired Strauss Zelnick as its president and CEO, who resigned from the same roles at 20th Century Fox. According to Lange, Zelnick had been hired for his business expertise, whereas creative expertise was already present at the studio, which had twenty-eight developers at that time. [6] Zelnick acquired between 25% and 50% of Crystal Dynamics and brought in further investors through earlier connections: Home Box Office bought 10% in July 1993, followed by King World Productions acquiring 10% for US$7.5 million in September of that year. [6] [14] [15] The combined value of the latter two stakes was estimated at $20 million. [16] Zelnick's background in film and television increased Crystal Dynamics's focus on full-motion video in its games. [11] Crash 'N Burn was released as the 3DO's pack-in game in October 1993. [17] An editorial in Electronic Gaming Monthly from the same month declared the studio "the hottest new video game company on the upscale scene". [18]
In January 1994, Zelnick drafted plans for Star Interactive, which was to publish third-party games by outsourcing the management and distribution to Crystal Dynamics and the manufacturing to a third company. [19] [20] Crystal Dynamics was to receive annual payments of $1.5 million and 10% of Star Interactive's profit for the management role, plus 22.5% of its gross receipts for the distribution. Star Interactive's management was to consist of The Software Toolworks's former senior vice president (VP) Mark Beaumont as CEO, in addition to Crystal Dynamics's VP of sales Allen Chaplin, and Lange, then the company's executive VP. [21] In February, Zelnick announced his intent for Crystal Dynamics to, like a movie studio, produce games internally while also releasing titles from independent developers. [3] It hired Fred Ford and Paul Reiche III of Toys for Bob, initially as contractors and later as employees, to release The Horde , which they had pitched to Canepa and Lange during their time at Sega. [22] Another potential publishing project had been Naughty Dog's Way of the Warrior , which the developer showed to multiple companies during the 1994 Consumer Electronics Show. [23] In March 1994, Bertelsmann Music Group (BMG), which Zelnick had been consulting, agreed to handle marketing and distribution for Crystal Dynamics and Star Interactive outside North America. [24] However, as Star Interactive failed to raise the targeted $30 million, the plan for this company was scrapped in early 1994 and Lange soon departed Crystal Dynamics. [8] [25] In August, the studio had more than 100 employees. [26]
Also in 1994, Crystal Dynamics became the first developer for the PlayStation outside Japan. [11] [27] Zelnick had wanted to move away from the struggling 3DO for some time, and Cerny traveled to the headquarters of the PlayStation maker Sony in Tokyo on the company's behalf. [11] [13] Although PlayStation contracts were limited to companies in Japan at the time, Cerny spoke Japanese fluently and signed the agreement in that language, which was approved by Shuhei Yoshida. [13] [27] As Cerny was hired as the head of Universal Interactive Studios shortly thereafter, he never used the PlayStation game development kit the company received. [13] By October 1994, the 3DO's poor commercial performance had a significant impact on the company. [8] John Eastburn, the studio's chief operating officer, estimated that 3DO game developers could not break even unless its consumer base expanded from 75,000 to 500,000. [28] In December 1994, the studio partnered with the 3DO manufacturer Matsushita Electric, enabling its 3DO games to be distributed through 10,000 consumer electronics stores. [29] In January 1995, Zelnick left Crystal Dynamics to manage BMG's North American operations, remaining a director and shareholder in Crystal Dynamics. [30] After this move was announced in September 1994, the vacant CEO position attracted several parties interested in acquiring the studio. Although The 3DO Company and Spectrum HoloByte were frequently rumored as potential buyers, Morse stated that Crystal Dynamics was not for sale, having spare savings of $20 million and a newly acquired loan of $5 million from Silicon Valley Bank. [1] [8] He subsequently took up the CEO role and became significantly more involved in the studio. [9] [31] The company hired Randy Komisar from LucasArts as president and CEO in May 1995. [31] Under Komisar, Crystal Dynamics began converting its older 3DO games to the PlayStation and Sega Saturn. [32] [33]
Crystal Dynamics sought to emulate major game companies by designing a mascot character, resulting in the 1995 game Gex , which features an anthropomorphic gecko of the same name. [11] Around this time, Crystal Dynamics published Slam 'N Jam '95 and Blazing Dragons , while also was working with Canada-based Silicon Knights on Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain . The latter project began to lose focus as it grew in scope, so the publisher engaged Amy Hennig to make the game more engaging. [11]
By 1996, due largely to the unexpectedly slow growth of the CD-ROM games market, the studio was financially stricken. [34] [35] In June, the company revealed plans for a reorganization: The board of directors appointed Ted Ardell, a general partner at Technology Partners, as CEO. Komisar, Canepa, and Eastburn were ousted and a third of the company's 102 employees were laid off over three months. [10] [33] Crystal Dynamics subsequently ceased publishing efforts to focus solely on internally developed games. [34] Surplus computer hardware and office equipment were auctioned off in September of that year. [36] Ardell managed the day-to-day operations, and the studio lacked a president until Rob Dyer, previously senior VP and general manager, was promoted to this position in April 1997. [37] [38]
Following the release of the second Gex game, Gex: Enter the Gecko , Crystal Dynamics began producing Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko . [11] By this point, many developers—including most of the Gex team and Enter the Gecko's lead designer, Daniel Arey—had left the company, with some of them joining Naughty Dog. [11] [39] Bruce Straley, a designer on Enter the Gecko, was offered the director role for the third game, but he chose to join his friends at Naughty Dog instead. [11] Crystal Dynamics further began the development of a second Legacy of Kain game, codenamed Shifter, without Silicon Knights's involvement. While Hennig and Seth Carus created original characters, Silicon Knights filed an injunction, accusing Crystal Dynamics of plagiarizing the characters from Blood Omen. In a private settlement, the two companies agreed that Crystal Dynamics could use Blood Omen's characters as long as Silicon Knights was credited as their creator. Shifter ultimately became Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver . [11] Toys for Bob, as part of Crystal Dynamics, developed Pandemonium! and The Unholy War , while consulting on Pandemonium 2 . [22]
Following losses of $1.5 million in its 1997 fiscal year, Crystal Dynamics agreed to be bought by the British publisher Eidos Interactive in September 1998 for £28.4 million (equivalent to $47.5 million) paid in cash. [40] [41] The studio had returned to over 100 employees by this time. [42] Originally set to close on October 31, the acquisition was completed on November 5, 1998. [41] [43] [44] Dyer and Crystal Dynamics's VP of marketing, Scott Steinberg, subsequently acceded to Eidos Interactive as president and senior VP of marketing, respectively, in January 1999. [45] Toys for Bob's final project under Crystal Dynamics was Disney's 102 Dalmatians: Puppies to the Rescue . The team was subsequently fired during a Christmas party. [22]
Among Crystal Dynamics's early projects under Eidos Interactive were Mad Dash Racing (2001) and Whiplash (2003). The publisher also sought a first-person shooter with a sci-fi setting akin to Deus Ex , ultimately mandating it be part of the series. This decision was reversed six months before the game's completion, and it was released as Project: Snowblind in 2005. [11] In the meantime, the Eidos Interactive studio Core Design was completing its work on Tomb Raider: The Angel of Darkness , its sixth game in the Tomb Raider series within seven years. Released as a commercial failure in 2003, developers at Crystal Dynamics believed the game to be in a poor final state. Eidos Interactive consequently assigned the series to Crystal Dynamics, with several staffers excited about the possibility of working on a large franchise they had played before. [11] [46] Hennig, who had since been the director for most Legacy of Kain games, requested to be involved with such a project but was directed to design another Soul Reaver game instead. This led her to leave the studio and join Naughty Dog, where she created the Uncharted series. [11]
For Tomb Raider: Legend , the developers at Crystal Dynamics played through all previous games and read guides to gain a better understanding of their design. They intended to return to the series's roots of exploring abandoned places while adding an original feel, particularly through a new control scheme. [11] The game was released in April 2006 and proved successful, selling 2.9 million copies within its first few months. [47] Its designers then pitched Tomb Raider: Anniversary , a remake of the original Tomb Raider based on the gameplay of Legend. They worked with Toby Gard, one of the series's creators, to understand the intentions behind certain scenes and unrealized concepts from the original game. The game's scope was reduced to roughly half of the original game, which had been deemed too large to remake entirely, and the studio needed to deviate from the original design where it did not suit the newer gameplay. Anniversary was completed in nine months. [11]
The last game in Crystal Dynamics's original Tomb Raider trilogy was Tomb Raider: Underworld . Around this time, a team within the studio pitched a new intellectual property called Downfall, a post-apocalyptic, open-world game set in San Francisco. However, the studio considered working on two large projects simultaneously as too ambitious and decided to halt development on Downfall. [11] Eidos Interactive laid off roughly 30 people from Crystal Dynamics in January 2009, citing the studio's increased focus on Tomb Raider, and installed Darrell Gallagher as the head of studio. [48] [49]
By January 2009, Underworld had sold 1.5 million, falling short of Eidos Interactive's expectations. The publisher blamed this largely on issues distributing the game in North America. Eidos plc, Eidos Interactive's publicly traded parent company, then significantly lowered its sales forecast, and its share price fell to its lowest point in mid-January. [50] [51] The Japanese video game company Square Enix subsequently offered to acquire Eidos plc, citing particular interest in the Tomb Raider franchise and the prospect of expanding its Western operations. [51] The buy-out was approved by Eidos plc in March and completed in April. [52] Under Square Enix, another 25 staffers were dismissed from Crystal Dynamics in June 2009 "to focus resources". [53] Gard, who had led a team for an unannounced project for a few months, left the studio in September. [54] In November, Square Enix integrated Eidos Interactive into its European operations to form Square Enix Limited. [55] [56] Gallagher was later promoted to oversee all Square Enix studios in Europe and North America while retaining his role at Crystal Dynamics. [57]
Crystal Dynamics continued to work on the Tomb Raider series, with intentions to reboot the series for new audiences. Over several years, the team discarded many concepts that would have drastically changed the core gameplay, before deciding on a modern, story-driven game with survival elements. The story was planned over three games, beginning with a new origin story. In the meantime, Crystal Dynamics sustained the franchise with the 2010 release of Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light , a spin-off with different gameplay. The first game in the reboot trilogy, titled Tomb Raider , was released in 2013. [11] The studio followed up Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light with Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris in 2014. Rise of the Tomb Raider was released in 2015. [11] In December of that year, Gallagher left the studio and was replaced by Scot Amos and Ron Rosenberg, long-time producers at the company. [49] [58] Brian Horton, the senior art director for Tomb Raider and director of Rise of the Tomb Raider, left in 2016. [59]
In January 2017, Square Enix announced a partnership with Marvel Entertainment to create multiple video games based on Marvel characters, with Crystal Dynamics developing Marvel's Avengers . [60] The studio had pitched a single-player game akin to Tomb Raider that would see the player take control of the Avengers group of superheroes, switching between characters as the story progressed. However, the studio found that playing one character at a time failed to capture the team dynamic of the Avengers, leading them to refocus the project on multiplayer gameplay. [60] With Crystal Dynamics working on Marvel's Avengers, the third game in the Tomb Raider reboot trilogy, Shadow of the Tomb Raider , was handed to the sister studio Eidos-Montréal, with a small team at Crystal Dynamics working on minor parts of the game. [11]
In August 2018, Crystal Dynamics opened the satellite studio Crystal Northwest in Bellevue, Washington, to support the development of Marvel's Avengers. [61] The late stages of the development saw the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and consequent shift to work from home, which the studio had not been used to. Because the developers mostly worked alone during this time, the game launched with several issues they had been unaware of and needed later addressing. Afterward, Crystal Dynamics implemented hybrid work and remote hiring. [11] In May 2021, Crystal Dynamics opened Crystal Southwest in Austin, Texas, under the leadership of Dallas Dickinson, who had been an executive producer for the company. [62] Later that year, Crystal Dynamics joined Gallagher's newer studio, The Initiative, in developing a reboot of the Perfect Dark series. [11] [63] Crystal Dynamics was initially to replace the departed Certain Affinity as a support studio but soon took over several unfilled lead roles as the game's development was restarted. [64] The studio further announced another Tomb Raider game in April 2022. [65]
In May 2022, Embracer Group announced it would acquire several games and studios, including Crystal Dynamics with its Tomb Raider and Legacy of Kain series, from Square Enix for $300 million. [66] At the time, the studio had 273 employees across its three studios. [67] Square Enix told investors it feared the studios would subsist off the revenue of the group's Japanese-made games, so their sale "could improve capital efficiency". [68] Embracer Group expressed interest in continuing the studio's established franchises, including Tomb Raider and Legacy of Kain, through sequels, remakes, and remasters. [69] The acquisition was completed on August 26, 2022, and Crystal Dynamics became a part of the new CDE Entertainment operating group. [70] Square Enix retained the Gex franchise and announced ports to modern platforms with Gex Trilogy in July 2023. [71]
In September 2023, at a time when Embracer Group was implementing cost reduction measures, Crystal Dynamics laid off nine marketing personnel and one IT worker. [72] The studio had previously stated that such layoffs would not impact its Perfect Dark and Tomb Raider projects. [73] Crystal Dynamics collaborated with Aspyr, another Embracer Group company, on two collections with remasters of Core Design's six Tomb Raider games. Tomb Raider I–III Remastered was released in February 2024, and Tomb Raider IV–VI Remastered is scheduled for February 2025. [74] [75] The two companies also worked on Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered, to be released in December 2024. [76]
Year | Title | Platform(s) | Publisher(s) |
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1993 | Crash 'N Burn | 3DO | Crystal Dynamics |
1994 | Total Eclipse | 3DO, PlayStation | |
Off-World Interceptor | 3DO, PlayStation, Sega Saturn | ||
Samurai Shodown | 3DO | ||
1995 | Gex | 3DO, PlayStation, Sega Saturn, Windows | Crystal Dynamics, Microsoft |
Solar Eclipse | PlayStation, Sega Saturn | Crystal Dynamics | |
1996 | 3D Baseball | PlayStation, Sega Saturn | |
1997 | Pandemonium 2 | PlayStation, Windows | Midway Games |
1998 | Gex: Enter the Gecko | Nintendo 64, PlayStation, Windows | |
1999 | Akuji the Heartless | PlayStation | Eidos Interactive |
Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko | Nintendo 64, PlayStation | ||
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver | Dreamcast, PlayStation, Windows | ||
2000 | Walt Disney World Quest: Magical Racing Tour | Dreamcast, PlayStation, Windows | |
2001 | Soul Reaver 2 | PlayStation 2, Windows | |
Mad Dash Racing | Xbox | ||
2002 | Blood Omen 2 | GameCube, PlayStation 2, Windows, Xbox | |
2003 | Legacy of Kain: Defiance | PlayStation 2, Windows, Xbox | |
Whiplash | PlayStation 2, Xbox | ||
2005 | Project: Snowblind | PlayStation 2, Windows, Xbox | |
2006 | Tomb Raider: Legend | GameCube, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Windows, Xbox, Xbox 360 | |
2007 | Tomb Raider: Anniversary | macOS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Wii, Windows, Xbox 360 | |
2008 | Tomb Raider: Underworld | macOS, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Wii, Windows, Xbox 360 | |
2010 | Lara Croft and the Guardian of Light | Android, BlackBerry PlayBook, iOS, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 3, Stadia, Windows, Xbox 360 | Square Enix |
2013 | Tomb Raider | Linux, macOS, Nvidia Shield TV, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Windows, Xbox 360, Xbox One | |
2014 | Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Windows, Xbox One | |
2015 | Rise of the Tomb Raider | Linux, macOS, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Windows, Xbox 360, Xbox One | Microsoft Studios, Square Enix, Feral Interactive |
2018 | Shadow of the Tomb Raider | Linux, macOS, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Windows, Xbox One | Square Enix |
2020 | Marvel's Avengers | PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Stadia, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S | |
2024 | Tomb Raider I–III Remastered | Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S | Aspyr |
Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1&2 Remastered | |||
2025 | Tomb Raider IV–VI Remastered | ||
TBA | Perfect Dark | TBA | Xbox Game Studios |
Untitled Tomb Raider game | TBA | Amazon Games |
Year | Title | Platform(s) | Developer(s) |
---|---|---|---|
1994 | The Horde | 3DO, MS-DOS, PlayStation, Sega Saturn | Toys for Bob |
Star Control II | 3DO | ||
PaTaank | 3DO | PF.Magic | |
1995 | Slam 'N Jam '95 | 3DO | Left Field Productions |
1996 | Slam 'N Jam '96 Featuring Magic & Kareem | MS-DOS, PlayStation, Sega Saturn | |
Blazing Dragons | PlayStation, Sega Saturn | The Illusions Gaming Company | |
Pandemonium! | PlayStation, Sega Saturn, Windows | Toys for Bob | |
Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain | PlayStation, Windows | Silicon Knights |
Tomb Raider, known as Lara Croft: Tomb Raider from 2001 to 2008, is a media franchise that originated with an action-adventure video game series created by British video game developer Core Design. The franchise is currently owned by CDE Entertainment; it was formerly owned by Eidos Interactive, then by Square Enix Europe after Square Enix's acquisition of Eidos in 2009 until Embracer Group purchased the intellectual property alongside Eidos in 2022. The franchise focuses on the fictional British archaeologist Lara Croft, who travels around the world searching for lost artefacts and infiltrating dangerous tombs and ruins. Gameplay generally focuses on exploration, solving puzzles, navigating hostile environments filled with traps, and fighting enemies. Additional media has been developed for the franchise in the form of film adaptations, comics and novels.
Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd. is a Japanese multinational holding company, video game publisher and entertainment conglomerate. It releases role-playing game franchises, such as Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest, among numerous others. Outside of video game publishing and development, it is also in the business of merchandise, arcade facilities, and manga publication under its Gangan Comics brand.
Lara Croft is a character and the main protagonist of the video game franchise Tomb Raider. She is presented as a highly intelligent and athletic British archaeologist who ventures into ancient tombs and hazardous ruins around the world. Created by a team at British developer Core Design that included Toby Gard, the character first appeared in the video game Tomb Raider in 1996.
Gex is a platformer video game series, developed by Crystal Dynamics, that details the adventures of an anthropomorphic gecko named Gex. He has served as the mascot of Crystal Dynamics, appearing on their company logo for several years up until the year 2000. In the North American version, Gex is voiced by the comedian Dana Gould; the United Kingdom version features Gould as well as Leslie Phillips and Danny John-Jules as the voice of Gex. Gex was voiced by Mitsuo Senda in the Japanese release of the second game.
Legacy of Kain is a series of dark fantasy action-adventure video games primarily developed by Crystal Dynamics and formerly published by Eidos Interactive. The first title, Blood Omen: Legacy of Kain, was created by Silicon Knights in association with Crystal Dynamics, but, after a legal battle, Crystal Dynamics retained the rights to the game's intellectual property, and continued its story with four sequels. To date, five games comprise the series, all initially developed for video game consoles and later ported to Microsoft Windows. Focusing on the eponymous character of Kain, a vampire antihero, each title features action, exploration and puzzle-solving, with some role-playing game elements.
Eidos Interactive Limited was a British video game publisher based in Wimbledon, London. Among its notable franchises were Championship Manager, Deus Ex, Hitman, Thief, and Tomb Raider. Domark was founded by Mark Strachan and Dominic Wheatley in 1984. In 1995, it was acquired by software company Eidos. Ian Livingstone, who held a stake in Domark, became executive chairman of Eidos and held various roles including creative director. Eidos took over U.S. Gold in 1996, which included developer Core Design, and merged its operations including Domark, which created publishing subsidiary Eidos Interactive. The company acquired Crystal Dynamics in 1998, and owned numerous other assets. In 2005, parent Eidos was taken over by games publisher SCi. The combined company, SCi Entertainment Group, which was briefly renamed Eidos, was itself taken over by Square Enix in 2009.
Crash 'N Burn is a futuristic racing/shooter video game developed by Crystal Dynamics and released for the 3DO in 1993. The game was the launch title for the system and was included as a pack-in game with Panasonic's original 3DO console.
Tomb Raider: Legend is an action-adventure video game developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Eidos Interactive. It is the seventh main entry in the Tomb Raider series, and is described as a "reimagining" of the series and its protagonist Lara Croft. The game was released in 2006 for PlayStation 2, Windows, Xbox, Xbox 360, PlayStation Portable, GameCube, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, and mobile phones. A PlayStation 3 port was released in 2011 as part of The Tomb Raider Trilogy.
Tomb Raider is a 1996 action-adventure video game developed by Core Design and published by Eidos Interactive as the debut entry in the Tomb Raider media franchise. It was first released on the Sega Saturn, followed shortly by versions for MS-DOS and the PlayStation. Later releases came for Mac OS (1999), Pocket PC (2002), N-Gage (2003), iOS (2013) and Android (2015). The game follows archaeologist-adventurer Lara Croft, who is hired by businesswoman Jacqueline Natla to find an artefact called the Scion of Atlantis. Gameplay features Lara navigating levels split into multiple areas and room complexes while fighting enemies and solving puzzles to progress. An expansion pack subtitled Unfinished Business was released in 1997, containing new standalone levels.
Gex is a platform game developed by Crystal Dynamics. It was originally released for the 3DO in 1995; ports of the game for the PlayStation and Sega Saturn were later developed by Beam Software, and a Windows version was released by Microsoft. It was a pack-in game for Panasonic models of the 3DO later in the console's life. It is the first in the Gex series of video games, and introduces players to the title character, a wisecracking, television-obsessed gecko voiced by comedian Dana Gould, who must venture through the "Media Dimension" and defeat Rez, the overlord of the dimension who wants to make Gex into his new network mascot.
Tomb Raider: Underworld is an action-adventure video game developed by Crystal Dynamics and published by Eidos Interactive for Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and Nintendo DS in November 2008. Later versions were released for mobile in December 2008, PlayStation 2 in 2009, and OS X in 2012. Various companies ported or developed the different versions. The ninth overall entry in the Tomb Raider series and third in the Legend trilogy, Underworld follows archaeologist-adventurer Lara Croft as she searches for Mjolnir, an artefact key to entering the realm of Helheim, while confronting adversaries from her past. Gameplay features Lara navigating levels set across the world through platforming, fighting enemies and solving puzzles to progress.
Eidos Interactive Corporation is a Canadian video game developer based in Montreal and part of Embracer Group. The studio was founded by Stéphane D'Astous in 2007 under SCi Entertainment. It became part of Square Enix Europe in 2009 and CDE Entertainment in 2022.
Legacy of Kain: Dead Sun is a cancelled action-adventure video game that was in development by Climax Studios for Square Enix Europe, with an accompanying multiplayer component developed separately by Psyonix. Conceived as the sixth entry in the Legacy of Kain series, Dead Sun entered production for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, and Xbox 360. It was cancelled in 2012 after three years of development. Square Enix Europe and Psyonix salvaged the planned multiplayer mode, which they reconceptualized as Nosgoth, a standalone free-to-play title.
Square Enix Montréal was a Canadian video game developer based in Montreal. It created the Go series of turn-based puzzle games for mobile devices based on former Eidos Interactive intellectual properties.
Square Enix Image Studio Division, is a Japan-based CGI animation studio dedicated towards creating video game cut scenes and full-length feature films for Square Enix. Square Enix Image Studio Division was founded as Visual Works, the CGI department for Square that was responsible for creating the pre-rendered CG sequences for the company, starting with Final Fantasy VII in 1997.
Shadow of the Tomb Raider is a 2018 action-adventure game developed by Eidos-Montréal and published by Square Enix's European subsidiary. The game is the sequel to Rise of the Tomb Raider and is the twelfth mainline entry in the Tomb Raider series, as well as the third and final entry of the Survivor trilogy. It was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in September 2018. Versions for Linux and macOS, and Stadia, were released in November 2019. After release, the game was expanded upon with downloadable content in both a season pass and as standalone releases.
Nixxes Software B.V. is a Dutch video game developer based in Utrecht. It was founded by former demoscene developer Jurjen Katsman in 1999 to port the game Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver to the Dreamcast. In July 2021, the company was acquired by Sony Interactive Entertainment to help bring its games from PlayStation platforms to personal computers. As of 2020, 40% of Nixxes' work comprises game ports, with the remainder being co-development efforts like the production of art assets.