Who owns the best game developers?

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We find out which publisher wins in the battle of the studios

EIDOS INTERACTIVE

Snaffled by SCi in 2005 - who beat off competition from the Bono-led Elevation Partners - Eidos is one of the UK's biggest publishers. Things are so good, in fact, that plans for a Canada-based studio were announced earlier this year, with web rumours suggesting (read: praying) it heralded a return for Deus Ex.

Still, with powerhouse franchises like Tomb Raider, Hitman and Conflict all locked down in Eidos' studio vault, it certainly isn't suffering a lack of recognisable games.

PUBLISHER SCORE: 74%

IO Interactive| Acquired 2004
The Hitman series has given IO a strong reputation, with Agent 47's compelling assassination action pulling in big review scores. Kain and Lynch, however, appears to be more of an acquired taste. Either that, or it's just a bit rubs...
Studio score: 79%

Crystal Dynamics| Acquired 2005
Credited with reviving Lara Croft's appeal after the Angel of Darkness debacle, Crystal Dynamics has also succeeded with its own IP in the form of Legacy of Kain and Project Snowblind.
Studio score: 78%

PivotalGames| Acquired 2005
We once went to a superb Vietnam-themed press event for Conflict: Vietnam, showing that Pivotal really 'gets' war and how to present it. It also did The Great Escape though. Nevermind.
Studio score: 64%

Ben_Richardson

Ben Richardson is a former Staff Writer for Official PlayStation 2 magazine and a former Content Editor of GamesRadar+. In the years since Ben left GR, he has worked as a columnist, communications officer, charity coach, and podcast host – but we still look back to his news stories from time to time, they are a window into a different era of video games.