Anniversary Confirmed for Xbox 360

Following up on our last post, Eidos officially announced that Tomb Raider: Anniversary, the remake of the original Tomb Raider game, will be released on the Xbox 360 as downloadable episodic content for owners of Tomb Raider Legend. The first two episodes will be available this September, with the next two episodes arriving soon after; a full retail release is planned later this year. Each episode will cost 2400 Microsoft points, with the Croft Manor level to be available freely.

“We have created this version of Anniversary specifically for digital distribution as episodic content. This is part of our strategy to grow our presence in online and digital distribution as we believe there are huge growth opportunities arising from this delivery format and we intend to capitalize on the increasing demand for digitally downloaded content,” said Jane Cavanagh, Chief Executive, Eidos. “Lara has always been at the forefront of technology and this world first initiative with Microsoft really highlights that fact. Ultimately we also intend to make the title available at retail so that it reaches the maximum possible audience.”

“We’re continuing to break new ground in getting incredible gaming experiences in the hands of consumers,” said George Peckham, General Manager of 3rd Party Publishing, Xbox, Microsoft. “We’re excited to be able to deliver one of the most well-recognized franchises in video game history with Lara Croft Tomb Raider: Anniversary to our more than six million Xbox Live members worldwide in the form of episodic content.”

Tomb Raider: Anniversary has been released for the PC and PS2, with a PSP version due soon and a Wii version in development.