'Rise Of The Tomb Raider:' Square Enix Explains Xbox Exclusivity Deal On Tumblr

Square Enix, the publisher of "Rise of the Tomb Raider" addressed fans on Tumblr over the weekend about the decision to make the game exclusive to Microsoft's Xbox One and 360 consoles.

The publisher decided to answer the most asked questions in a FAQ format and plainly stated that, "'Rise of the Tomb Raider' is coming Holiday 2015 exclusively on Xbox One and Xbox 360."

The publisher also revealed that the exclusive deal does have an expiration date but won't reveal the deals duration.

"Yes, our deal with Microsoft has a duration. We aren’t discussing details of the deal, and are focused on delivering a great game on Xbox One and Xbox 360," the publisher said.

It was also revealed that the game's developer Crystal Dynamics knew about the deal and said the developer was excited to work with Microsoft.

Lastly, the FAQ revealed that the decision wasn't made "lightly" and that the publisher had no intentions of confusing fans with the original Xbox exclusive announcement.

Microsoft announced that "Rise of the Tomb Raider" will be an Xbox One exclusive during a press briefing at Gamescom 2014, according to IGN.

Crystal Dynamics Head of Studios, Darrell Gallagher spoke about the big news in a recent Tumblr post. Gallagher mentioned the reasoning behind their partnership with Microsoft and said he thinks it will be the right direction for the "Tomb Raider" brand.

"Our friends at Microsoft have always seen huge potential in Tomb Raider and have believed in our vision since our first unveil with them on their stage at E3 2011," he said. "We know they will get behind this game more than any support we have had from them in the past - we believe this will be a step to really forging the Tomb Raider brand as one of the biggest in gaming, with the help, belief and backing of a major partner like Microsoft."

Gallagher also revealed that they are not abandoning other consoles and will be releasing other games for the brand.

"This doesn’t mean that we’re walking away from our fans who only play on PlayStation or on PC. Those are great systems, with great partners, and amazing communities," he said. "We have Lara Croft and the Temple of Osiris coming to those platforms this December, and Tomb Raider: The Definitive Edition is available on PS4."