From Software buys Tenchu rights

Japanese publisher From Software has acquired the rights to the Tenchu series from Activision, and will be handling the development and publishing of all future titles in the series - with plans to develop the brand beyond games.

The deal covers the worldwide trademark and copyright ownership for the Tenchu series, but it does not apply to previous titles - only to future games, such as the forthcoming Tenchu Kurenai, which is set to arrive in Japan later this month.

From, which published previous titles in the Tenchu series in Japan, also plans to extend the brand into other areas outside of games. No specific plans in this regard have been announced, but it's a fairly safe bet that multi-media avenues such as manga comics and anime TV series are under consideration.

No western release date for Tenchu Kurenai has been announced as yet, but it's expected that Activision will continue to be involved in the publishing arrangements for the title in the USA and Europe if and when the game does appear.