Computer games company Eidos, the creator of Tomb Raider star Lara Croft, in effect hoisted the "for sale" sign yesterday as it warned on profits again.

The company postponed this month's launch of its newest game, ShellShock: Nam '67, until September blaming continuing weakness in the games market. As a result, Eidos will not make a profit this year.

Eidos, which called off talks with French rival Infogrames four years ago, added that a strategic review is under way and it is "mindful of the potential benefits of scale" as it seeks to reduce its reliance on big name game releases.

Analysts said the statement meant the firm was "in play". Recent speculation has centred on American publishers Activision and Electronic Arts being interested in buying Eidos.

Last month Eidos said sales of its Hitman: Contracts game had softened after its launch. As a result it dropped plans to make a further 700,000 copies, on top of the 1.5m that supported the launch, losing £9m in repeat revenues. Eidos shares lost a third of their value on the news.