Scott Dodkins, European managing director for Eidos, talked to MCV last week and gave partner  Britsoft its props for enabling its upcoming Tomb Raider Anniversary title to have fast distribution channels both via download and retail.

Microsoft Xbox 360 owners in the UK will be getting Tomb Raider Anniversary in a not-so-regular way later this year as Eidos announces that its partnership with Britsoft has yielded an innovative result.

Starting this autumn, Xbox 360 owners who have the previous installment, Tomb Raider Legend, will have the ability to download the new game on Xbox Live. The digital version will come ahead of the boxed version which will be released later within the year.

"The industry is changing and the way that consumers want to acquire products is changing, so we have taken the initiative to look at delivering content in a different way,” he said.“We are the first company to do that, which we are very proud of," says Dodkins.

In addition, Dodkins expressed optimism that having games distributed via downloads can be a boon to the hardware part of the gaming industry. "If offering content to consumers in these new ways means that we can encourages hardware sales, then that’s good for everyone," he concludes.