Eidos, the computer game company which, in Lara Croft, created a cyber heroine, has signalled that it is open to offers after announcing a second profits warning in three weeks.
Eidos shares plunged more than 12 per cent in early trade.
The company said that it had launched a review into "strategic alternatives" after noting the increasing importance of financial muscle in the maturing games market.
Increased levels of competition and the soaring costs of game development had left Eidos "increasingly reliant" on the performance of key titles, such as the Lara Croft Tomb Raider games which raised the company to global prominence.
The company, which has been the subject of periodic takeover speculation, added: "The board is mindful of the potential benefits of scale in reducing the exposure caused by these factors."
The statement came as Eidos revealed that it was postponing the release of the Shellshock: Nam '67 game, citing the "unexpected softness" in the games market which prompted the company last month to reduce by £9 million its estimate of profit from reorders.
The delay to Shellshock would reduce earnings in Eidos's current financial year, which ends on June 30, leaving the company expecting to report "breakeven to small loss" for the period.
Nonetheless, analysts said that the company could represent an attractive takeover opportunity for a company with the muscle to exploit fully the potential of assets such as Lara Croft.
Eidos stock, which lost more than one-third on last month's warning, slipped to 98.75p in early deals before recovering some ground to stand down 3.75p, or 3.3 per cent, at 109.5p in afternoon trade.
Eidos had distributed Championship Manager for Sports Interactive for the past eight years, since it was first released, and witnessed the game grow into one of the best selling pieces of PC games software. Championship manager has proved particularly successful as a repeat purchase, selling 4.5 million globally, as its fans have rushed to buy the latest version each season, with updated team lists and statistics. And unlike many other games, Championship Manager has proved to be a hit with older PC users, especially fans of fantasy football games.
When Eidos and Sports Interactive parted company, Eidos retained control of the Championship Manager brand while Sports Interactive retained ownership of its huge football statistics database and code to the game.
Sports Interactive believes that it will carry the loyalty of its fans and take a large slice of the market to its new distributor.
As part of the "amicable" separation deal, Sports Interactive bought back the 25 per cent stake Eidos owned in their company, but Sport Interactive declined to say at what cost.
"We had been working together for a long time and we had grown apart. We wanted to go our separate ways," a spokesman said.
