It seems that Time Warner is the front runner in the race to acquire Britain-based publisher Eidos Interactive. The latest sign is the fact that the American media giant has acquired another 10 million shares in the videogames company, even as rumors about its problems amplify. Time Warner already had a stake in Eidos, recently renamed from SCi. At the moment, there’s an agreement between the two prohibiting Time Warner from owning more than 30% of the stock Eidos issues.

The rumor market is also talking about Japanese publisher Square Enix, well known for the Final Fantasy series, being interested. Big players like Electronic Arts and Ubisoft are also said to be taking a closer look at Eidos. The biggest assets of the company are the Hitman and the Tomb Raider intellectual properties. Hitman has been underused since a movie adaptation failed to reach audiences.

The partnership between Eidos and Time Warner goes beyond shares and ownership. In 2006, the two companies signed an agreement that allowed the game developer to use intellectual properties from the media company to create videogames, one of the results being the upcoming Batman: Arkham Asylum. If a company like Electronic Arts or Ubisoft bought the developer, it’s likely that this licensing deal would be over, with the result being a diminished game line up for Eidos.

Eidos has recently released Tomb Raider: Underworld, the latest chapter in the long running series of adventure games featuring Lara Croft. The new title manages to deliver solid gameplay, with Lara being more mobile than ever, underwater or on ground.

On the one hand, the puzzles and the adventuring parts are well constructed, even if the whole experience seems to be rushed at times. On the other hand, the combat is pretty limited and feels very repetitive, with most enemies being much tougher than they should be.