Embracer Group Shutting Down Onoma, the Studio it Acquired Just Months Ago

Swedish-based game studio monopolizer Embracer Group is shutting down Onoma, the studio formerly known as Square Enix Montréal which Embracer acquired in May of this year and rebranded just a few weeks ago in October.

The news comes from a report in Bloomberg, which explains this decision as part of “a larger cost-cutting initiative. Eidos Montreal has reduced the scope of one unannounced project and will cancel another one, said the people familiar with the situation who asked not to be identified because they were not authorized to speak publicly.”

The studio had been making games since 2012 including the GO series (Hitman, Tomb Raider, Deus Ex) as well as an in-development Avatar: The Last Airbender mobile MMO via its London studio as well as helping Microsoft to develop a game in the Fable franchise (unclear whether this was Playground Games’ Fable or not).

The closure affects over 200 employees who are being laid off.