Eidos Financial Woes Looming After Tomb Raider: Underworld Sells 1.5 Million

Tomb Raider: Underworld failed to meet publisher Eidos' internal projections, despite internal estimates that the game has sold 1.5 million units since its November debut.

As with many publishers in recent months, Eidos cited a "difficult North American economy" for "a lower start in North America." As a result, Eidos lowered its earning expectations for the fiscal year, from between $273-303 million to $242-273 million.

The lowered expectations may require Eidos to enter into discussions with its lending bank, the company said, along with word of passing its "peak net debt position." Though the company reports that it has "sufficient headroom" in its "committed banking facility," lower-than-expected profits may require it to seek more funding from the bank.

Since the announcement this morning, Eidos' stock has dropped over 30%.

Developed by Crystal Dynamics, the action-adventure game arrived on PC, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and Nintendo DS. A PlayStation 2 release is due later this year.

Upon the game's release, Eidos was caught in a public relations snafu, as its PR firm Barrington Harvey admitted it was attempting to "manage" review scores in the game's opening weekend, citing a belief that it deserved a score of 8/10 or higher.

Eidos' next major release is Rocksteady Games' Batman: Arkham Asylum, which arrives on PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 at some point in the summer months.