PlayStation 4 and PC owning fans of Lara Croft can finally rest assured that they'll be able to play Square-Enix's Rise of the Tomb Raider, as the company has officially announced release dates for the game on those platforms:

Rise of the Tomb Raiderwill be available for Windows 10 and Steam in early 2016. The game will be a console exclusive to Xbox One and Xbox 360 for one year after its initial launch, coming to PlayStation® 4 (PS4) in Holiday 2016.

Square-Enix also notes that Crystal Dynamics--the Rise of the Tomb Raider's primary developer--is "leading development ... for additional platforms," presumably to assure consumers that these ports will be up to snuff.

In the year since Rise of the Tomb Raider was announced last E3, there has been a lot of mystery around the details of the game's exclusivity deal with Microsoft. First, it seemed that the game might only ever be playable on Xbox One and PC. Then, in an interview with Eurogamer, Microsoft's Phil Spencer clarified that "the deal has a duration," but couldn't offer specific details on the length of that duration. Things got even murkier in December, when Square-Enix released a statement confirming that Microsoft would be publishing Rise of the Tomb Raider on Xbox One, and explaining that the company would "get behind this game with more support across development, marketing and retail than ever before." While today's announcement doesn't explicitly say who is publishing Rise of the Tomb Raider on the PS4, I have to imagine that Square-Enix will be handling that internally.

It's interesting to think about Rise of the Tomb Raider's timed exclusivity alongside another major console exclusive release: Street Fighter V. When SFV was announced, Capcom announced that the game would be "produced in partnership with Sony," which left some room for interpretation regarding the terms of the exclusivity deal. But over time it became clear that Sony was actually publishing the game, and in an interview with GameSpot's Tamoor Hussain, a Capcom representative shut the door entirely on the possibility that Street Fighter V would appear "in any iteration," on Xbox One:

"One comment we see a lot is that something like a Super Street Fighter 5 is going to come out on Xbox. But the reality is that this is a real partnership. We are console exclusive for this franchise for this numbered run."

Console exclusivity has changed a lot over the years. What used to simply be about locking down content for a company's platform has changed as the market has become increasingly competitive: When a company like Nintendo, Sony, or Microsoft pairs with a developer to keep an interesting project alive, we all benefit--it seems possible that we'd never have gotten Street Fighter V without the deal between Capcom and Sony.

In any case, I'm curious to see how exclusivity deals will continue to change and grow over the remaining years of this console cycle. If these examples are any indication, things will continue to be strange.

woah an entire year? I will just play it on PC I guess.

I'm wondering how this will impact sales for Rise of the Tomb Raider. It's traditionally a PS title but will those fans who only own a PS4 really wait a year before buying it? Will they bother at all?

A year is a long time to wait.

If it's a year long wait for PS4 then it will presumably come packed with whatever DLC is released in between all of that time, or will at least be released at a discounted price. One would hope anywhoo.

Between this news and the game coming out the same day as Fallout 4, I have a feeling a lot of PS4 users will just skip it.

I'll either wait for the XBO version to drop to $30, play it and sell it or just wait for the PS4 version (which a year later will probably include DLC).

Well alright then. It's not really high up on my list of games I wanna play, so the wait's no problem.

I was actually gonna buy this game the day it came out, but if the PC version is this quick of a turnaround I will just wait. Will give me more Fallout 4 or Persona 5 (Please God let this happen this year) time anyways.

I mean, I doubt they're going to put the thing out a year later and not make it a "game of the year" edition with all of the extra stuff they're undoubtedly making. At least more people will get to play it if they want to.

I hope we get to play as Austin Walker in the new Tomb Raider

If an Ultimate/Definitive Edition is what comes to PS4 in holiday 2016 I will be pretty happy about it... but I wonder how sales will pan out for them. I mean, who knows what it might be up against in the marketplace in holiday 2016?

So basically they paid for console exclusivity for a year, it's probably not coming to PC this year since they want to make sure it actually works.

Hmm a year to wait for the PS4 version is quite some time, 6 months whilst still crap would be bearable but a year that's a tad to long, I guess the PS4 version would ship with DLC etc or does Microsoft have the exclusives for that as well ?.

I'll get the Steam version when it releases, there is a fair few games releasing for PS4 next year some even exclusives tomb raider may find itself caught in a no win situation.

I have an Xbox One, and I am tired of this exclusivity nonsense. I will wait for bargain bin, or not pick it up at all. It's just Tomb Raider /shrug

I need to finish the first one on pc still then i'll probably pick this one up. I'm glad pc isn't included in this console war nonsense

Yay, wasn't sure how long I was gonna have to wait but "Early 2016" sounds good.

I might just hold off for the PC version then since I was going to play Fallout 4 over RotTR and that game will take me up right to Just Cause 3.

Still such a weird move when the Tomb Raider: DE sold so much better on ps4 to do this deal. It must have been a good amount of money. I liked the first one but I can definitely wait. (Fallout 4 is coming the same day, so I wouldn't have gotten this when it released anyway)

@austin_walker: "Tamoor Hussain Hu". Unless the Capcom rep was named Hu, I think that's a typo.

I'm in no hurry. Maybe it will be $39.99 on PS4 a year later... even still

Unintentional but hilarious typo1 :)

Why didn't they wait after the game was out on Xbox One to confirm this?

This timed exclusive is a strange thing. On the one hand, this game may not have been made without Microsoft's help so this exclusive makes sense from "co-marketing"/money standpoint. On the other hand, it's the exact opposite of consumer friendly. I'm happy that the game is coming out but by the time I am able to play it I night not even care anymore. We'll see what happens.

Where are you getting these dates from? Holiday 16 on both of those games is a pretty broad.

Remember how the TR reboot was considered a failure because of its sales?

I hope this deal doesn't Spirits Within Square-Enix or Eidos.

Huh? I think you misunderstood the post.. This is coming out for Xbone November 10th this year, the same day as Fallout 4. I was saying I have no problem waiting because even if it wasn't a timed exclusive I'd be getting Fallout anyway(and then a ton of other games are coming out around that time too).

As a consumer I'm really not fussed waiting a year.

I mean if you're not caught up in a release zeitgeist most games I forget about for ages anyway.

Plus due to the nature of it, the PS4 will have its own little release zeitgeist with it that'll still scratch that itch. (Plus probably DLC in 'GOTY' edition?)

I doubt MS is helping to make TR otherwise their funding a game on a competing platform also SE don't need the money like Capcom.

Phil Spencer

"Now, obviously if I'm going to partner on it, I'm a platform holder, I'm hardly going to invest to go make the PlayStation version of any game."

http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/2014-08-18-xbox-boss-phil-spencer-makes-case-for-tomb-raider-exclusivity-deal

I'm surprised this is keeping a 2015 date on Xbox. People will choose Fallout over this.

Good catch. I've been found out ha

MS gets a timed deal with Tomb Raider everyone boos and vilifies MS. Sony gets an exclusive deal with Street Fighter and they're praised and patted on the back for getting exclusives. I love the fickle gaming community.

Seems weird on Microsoft part to take a game series that is big in UK where PlayStation is dominant.

I can only imagine that there hoping it will persuade people in UK to switch over but it seems like more of fuck you too Sony move.

Either way I just play it on PC.

Cool. My PC can wait until spring.

Except Street Fighter V wouldn't even be a thing without Sony where as Tomb Raider would probably continue to exist. A better example is Sony getting Destiny Content for a year.

@finaldasa: They either wait and don't buy it, or wait and buy it. My money is on the latter. Loads of titles in the past prove this again and again.

@mems1224: Capcom is broke Ono said we wouldn't see SFV until at least 2018 Sony stepped in to fund SFV to release quicker, only change for MS is in 2018 it'll be SF6. TR is another story SE don't need the money and the prev TR sold really well the sequel was already being made plus TR was awkwardly announce with Spencer being vague after the fact, unlike Capcom and Sony with SFV honesty is the best policy.

http://www.gamespot.com/articles/no-street-fighter-v-until-2018-capcom-producer/1100-6412556/

I've got a PS4 and a pretty good PC so this isn't so bad. Tons of other games worth playing this holiday like Just Cause 3, Fallout, etc.

This is one of my most anticipated games but I'd much rather play it in my PS4 then my X1. I don't think I can wait though, so I'll probably end up buying the game twice.

I really hope Microsoft paid them a lot for this exclusivity window, after the game being out for a year I don't really anticipate wanting to buy it at full price for PC or PS4 when it'll likely be on sale for Xbox One. I can see this easily halving sales overall and hopefully that doesn't destroy them or the franchise, I actually kinda liked this reboot of the character.

Well, 360 was very popular in the UK last generation, so it makes sense to me that they would want that demographic back.

And no one was surprised.

To this day I find it incredulous that Capcom would not have been able to make SF V without outside funding from Sony. Especially when they have been pumping money into stuff like Resident Evil Revelations 2.

Don't care how long it will take, I'm waiting for the PS4 version. It'll be worth it.

just curious, does the SFV exclusivity bug you in the same way?

I never really minded and it's a way (if artificial) to help differentiate very similar consoles. i mean, you can make the same grumbles about first party games too (well i guess people already do in Nintendo's case).

Ha.

"Windows 10 and Steam"? That makes it sound like they are planning on selling it in the Windows Store too.

@twinsun: UK always been Strong market for Sony so I suppose your right. But either way its better then Microsoft wasting effort in Japan.

Thank goodness for that! That exclusivity never really made sense to me: SE wants TR to do really well, it does, but because SE are nuts when it doesn't do what they hoped it would they decide to halve its audience? Crazy. But, that's all academic now.

Guess I'll be playing this on PC then. Sucks for PS4 owners though, Holiday 2016 is pretty far away.

Yeah, good luck with that one MS.

@ripelivejam: It bugs me in the same way, yeah. When you have two consoles that are 90% similar and only differ on a small handful of exclusives, it doesn't really make too many people choose one anyway, so it just locks people out of games for no real benefit. I made my console choice based on price, tradein serendipity, and timing, basically, so now I feel like I'm just locked out of Uncharted and Last of Us and such for no real reason. I'd feel the same about Halo and Forza if I went the other way. I'm not going to buy two consoles that overlap that much just to play one or two games, just like no amount of wanting to play Mario Kart 8 would make me buy a WiiU.