Developer Crystal Dynamics was hoping to get some of its mojo back with the recent release, Tomb Raider: Underworld. Parent company Eidos is openly admitting that the latest release in the Tomb Raider franchise did not live up to expectations.

With the lay off of 30 employees, the developer looks to sharpen their focus on the Tomb Raider franchise, which is the major asset that the company owns. This means, of course, that other unannounced projects that Crystal Dynamics had in development are likely to be abandoned or suffer because of this commitment to the Tomb Raider franchise.

According to sources, Eidos was pleased with the performance of the latest Tomb Raider installment outside of North America, but the North American sales numbers of just 1.5 million units were far under the predicted sales for North America. It seems that Lara Croft was just not able to make a mark with North American gamers, although the game was released on multiple platforms.

Several of our attentive moles are suggesting that this news could be the catalyst for a possible attempt to buy Crystal Dynamics from Eidos. Some suggest that the reason to acquire Crystal Dynamics may be nothing more than an attempt to lay hands on the Tomb Raider franchise.