Computer games developer Eidos has announced another set of disappointing quarterly results but reckons that good times are just ahead. Revenues fell 27 per cent year-on-year to £12.2 million but pre-tax losses narrowed from £22.3 million to £15.4million. The company also managed to improve its margins by 12 per cent so losses before interest, tax etc fell from £17.7 million to £10.6 million.

Ignore all that though, says Eidos, because it is seeing signs of an upturn in the market, particularly in the US. Maybe it is, or perhaps it's the boy crying wolf again. Either way, Eidos has to say this not only because its results have been poor again but because it has a whole range of new titles coming out this quarter.

These include Commandos 2, Who wants to be a millionaire 2, Championship Manager for the 2001/2 season, Soul Reaver II (what do you mean it looks like the company has no fresh ideas?) plus (aha!) Project Eden and Mad Dash.

Eidos' share price has been up and down like a tart's knickers over the last year (check out chart below (pinched from etrade.co.uk)). The news today saw it rise initially by 3p (1.5 per cent) but now it's gone down by nearly 2p.

Of course, no corporate statement would come complete without mention of the terrorist attacks. Eidos seems to think they may affect worldwide consumer confidence. Seems somewhat unlikely. Maybe Eidos is just preparing us for the next set of poor results. ®