Take Two to publish Square Enix' Drakengard in Europe
Take-Two Interactive has announced that it will be carrying out publishing duties on Square Enix' PS2 RPG title Drakengard in Europe later this year, marking the first time that the two companies have worked together on the publication of a title.
Drakengard sold strongly when it was launched in Japan late last year, although it's been met with less acclaim in North America. No date has been set for the European launch, although Take-Two has confirmed that it will definitely appear this year.
Recent Square Enix titles have been published in Europe by an assortment of publishers including Sony, EA, Atari/Infogrames and Nintendo - with the company negotiating separate deals for each title at the moment, rather than settling on a relationship with any single publishing partner.
Comments made by company executives in Japan of late have implied that Square Enix sees Europe as an increasingly important market, however, and the publisher has committed to releasing all of its products in all key territories - leading to speculation that it may bulk up its European operation into a full-scale publishing unit, negating the need to distribute its titles through other publishers.
Although we don't know any further details about the publishing deal for Drakengard - with matters such as marketing support and release date still up in the air - Take Two Europe president Gary Lewis described the company as "optimistic about the opportunity to distribute, market and support this game."