After it was announced by Eidos that the latest Tomb Raider game, Underworld, had performed worse than expected and as a result reduced their annual financial forecasts, Eidos’ stock value expectedly fell by over 25%, which follows the general downward spiral of their stocks, falling 80% in value in the last 12 months.

Eidos’ annual financial revenue forecast is now sitting at between £160 million and £180 million, down from the publisher’s previous guidance of between £180 million and £200 million. Tomb Raider: Underworld’s sales would have a large part to play as Eidos has become heavily dependant on the series’ performance for revenue.

Despite having sold approximately 1.5 million copies worldwide, Underworld was expected to perform better, as Eidos points the blame at the current state of the US economy, as well as the tough competition during the initial sales period.

Fallout from the poorer-than-expected Tomb Raider: Underworld sales includes 30 redundancies at Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics, as well as the possibility of a Lara Croft redesign to attract a wider audience, and keep the character appealing to female players. Eidos CFO Robert Brent said of the proposed plan:

“We need to look at everything, as we develop the next game. Look at how Batman changed successfully, from the rather sad character of the Michael Keaton era to the noir style of The Dark Knight.”

The comparison to Batman holds significance for Eidos as they look forward to their next big game, Batman: Arkham Asylum currently in development at Rocksteady studios and set for a 2009 release.