Embracer Group shuts down Onoma, formerly Square Enix Montreal, one month after rebranding

Embracer Group has shut down Onoma, formerly known as Square Enix Montreal, just about one month after the studio announced its rebranding, according to a Bloomberg report by Jason Schreier citing “people familiar with the situation.”

The company reportedly informed staff today that some employees would be transferred to sister studio Eidos Montreal.

Embracer Group announced the purchase of Square Enix Montreal, as well as former Square Enix studios Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal, on May 2, and closed the acquisition on August 26. Square Enix Montreal only just announced its rebranding to Onoma on October 3.

The studio’s closure is reportedly part of a cost-cutting initiative by Embracer Group, which also led Eidos Montreal to reduce the scope of an unannounced project and cancel another—a Stranger Things-inspired “kids on bikes” game. The studio is currently said to be working on a new intellectual property (the aforementioned unannounced project), a new Deus Ex game ‘very early’ in development, and co-development partnerships with companies such as Xbox Game Studios on Playground Games‘ Fable.

(Additional information via @JasonSchreier.)