Eidos-Montréal Explained

Eidos Interactive Corporation
Trade Name:Eidos-Montréal
Type:Subsidiary
Industry:Video games
Founder:Stéphane D'Astous
Hq Location City:Montreal, Quebec
Hq Location Country:Canada
Num Employees:481[1]
Num Employees Year:2022

Eidos Interactive Corporation (trade name: Eidos-Montréal) is a Canadian video game developer based in Montreal and part of Embracer Group. The studio was founded by Stéphane D'Astous in 2007 under SCi Entertainment. It became part of Square Enix Europe in 2009 and CDE Entertainment in 2022.

History

Eidos Interactive announced plans to open a Montreal-based subsidiary studio in February 2007.[2] Eidos Interactive Corp. was incorporated in March 2007.[3] Eidos-Montréal formally opened with general manager Stéphane D'Astous on 26 November 2007.[4] According to D'Astous, unlike other video game development studios, Eidos-Montréal's development cycle as characterized by smaller teams (totalling to 350) working over a longer period.[5]

The same year as its founding, the studio announced to work on a Deus Ex project.[6] In May 2009, the studio announced to work on the fourth installment of the Thief series.[7] D'Astous resigned from Eidos-Montréal on 19 July 2013, citing irreconcilable differences with parent company Square Enix.[8] In an 2022 interview, he retroactively called Eidos group a "trainwreck in slow motion", blaming London and Japan headquarters for failing to utilize the full potential of the studios.[9] On 4 March 2014, Square Enix announced that 27 employees were laid off from Eidos-Montréal.[10]

On 26 January 2017, Square Enix announced a partnership with Marvel Entertainment to create multiple video games based on Marvel properties, the first of which was announced as Avengers, based on the comics of the same name, which would be developed by Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal.[11] In May 2018, the studio had over 500 employees.[12] In April 2018, YouTube journalist George Weidman (Super Bunnyhop) reported on a cancelled video game codenamed "Fantasy Project W" that was in development in 2012. Anfossi said to PCGamesN in May that he unable to comment; he found the video "very well done" and "very funny to watch" and explained that, within the video game industry, projects are often started but eventually cancelled.[13] In 2019, Eidos-Shanghai became part of Eidos-Montréal, a studio established in 2008 to handle outsourcing for Eidos.[14]

In June 2020, Square Enix announced new research and development studio Eidos-Sherbrooke, led by Julien Bouvrais. It was envisioned to take advantage of the nearby Université de Sherbrooke and Bishop's University and bring in new computing technology from these schools into their games. It was said to initially operate remotely, with plans move to a permanent location in southern Quebec in 2021 and to grow from 20 to 100 staff.[15] On 13 June 2021, during a panel for E3 2021, it was announced that the company would be developing a game based on Guardians of the Galaxy.[16]

In May 2022, Square Enix reached an agreement with Embracer Group to purchase the studio and other assets of Square Enix Europe.[17] During the announcement of this acquisition, it was revealed that Eidos had several projects in development, all using Unreal Engine 5.[18] On 20 May 2022, Embracer Group (before the acquisition was complete) expressed interest in sequels, remakes and remasters in established franchises of the studio such as Deus Ex and Thief.[19] The acquisition was completed on 26 August 2022, with the assets being held under CDE Entertainment.[20] In November 2022, Eidos-Shanghai was detached from Eidos-Montréal and moved to Gearbox Entertainment, another Embracer Group company, as Gearbox Studio Shanghai.[21] Eidos-Sherbrooke was closed in late January 2023.[22]

In November 2022, Jason Schreier of Bloomberg News reported that Eidos-Montréal was in the "very very early" development stages of a new Deus Ex game.[23] In January 2024, he reported that Embracer Group had cancelled this game, which had been in development for two years, as well as laid off an unspecified amount of employees.[24] Eidos-Montréal then confirmed that 97 people were laid off.[25]

Technology

On 4 December 2014, Eidos revealed their proprietary technology called Dawn Engine which was to be used in future Deus Ex projects, first (and only one utilizing Dawn) of which was later revealed to be .[26] It is based on a heavily modified version of IO Interactive's Glacier 2, which has its roots in .[27] The engine was created after developers at Eidos-Montréal "found that [their] creative vision was somehow limited" by relying on existing engines.[28] [29] The graphics engine has been "almost completely" rewritten. This was done to "fully leverage the power offered by the PC and [<nowiki/>[[Eighth generation of video game consoles|eighth-gen]]] consoles". The creation of Dawn was challenging even for Eidos-Montréal's most experienced staff.[30] The engine was later used for 2021's Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy.[31]

Dawn Engine features improved conversation system and cutscenes compared to Glacier 2. Built on an "entity system", Dawn allows designers to create new behaviours without the assistance of programmers.[32] Hair technology is an improved version of AMD's TressFX,[33] which has been developed by the in-house research and development team Labs. Dawn features systems for volumetric lighting and air density, as well as support for dense indoor and outdoor areas, and many dynamic objects. Not all objects are rendered at the same time, the engine makes use of Umbra occlusion culling.[34] With Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy, ray tracing and DLSS support was added,[35] as well as working in-game mirrors.

Eidos-Montréal subsequently abandoned work with the Dawn Engine after 2022, adopting Unreal Engine 5 for their ongoing work to "focus on content" rather than technical hurdles of developing a game and its engine simultaneously.[36] With the foundation of Eidos-Sherbrooke, research and development work was mostly offloaded to that studio including Eidos-Labs department.[37]

Games developed

YearTitlePlatform(s)Publisher(s)Notes
2011Mac OS X, PlayStation 3, Wii U, Windows, Xbox 360Square EnixAlso developed the downloadable episode The Missing Link (2011)
2013Tomb RaiderLinux, Nvidia Shield, OS X, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Windows, Xbox 360, Xbox OneSupportive development for Crystal Dynamics
2014ThiefNvidia Shield, OS X, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox 360, Xbox One
2016macOS, Linux, PlayStation 4, Windows, Xbox OneFeral Interactive, Square Enix
2018Shadow of the Tomb RaidermacOS, Linux, PlayStation 4, Stadia, Windows, Xbox OneSquare Enix
2020Marvel's AvengersPlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Stadia, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/SCrystal Dynamics, Square EnixSupportive development for Crystal Dynamics
2021Marvel's Guardians of the GalaxyNintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Windows, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/SSquare Enix
2025FableWindows, Xbox Series X/SXbox Game StudiosSupportive development for Playground Games

Awards

Eidos-Montréal was recognized as one of the Best Places to Work by GamesIndustry.biz,[38] and Montréal's Top Employers by Canada's Top 100 Employers competition.[39]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Embracer Group acquires Eidos, Crystal Dynamics, and Square Enix Montréal . . May 2, 2022 . 7 . September 14, 2022 . September 14, 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220914215828/https://embracer.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Embracer_Presentation_Eidos_Crystal_Dynamic_SE_Montreal_2022.05.02.pdf . live.
  2. Web site: Eidos Sets Up Development Arm In Montreal . Simon . Carless . 15 February 2007 . . 6 May 2021 . 7 May 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210507121611/https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/103738/Eidos_Sets_Up_Development_Arm_In_Montreal.php . live .
  3. Web site: March 31, 2021 . Corporate Data . Square Enix Holdings Company Limited .
  4. Eidos Montreal officially opens . French . Michael . 26 November 2007 . . . 4 December 2016 . 24 February 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170224082811/http://www.develop-online.net/news/eidos-montreal-officially-opens/0102002 . live .
  5. Web site: Q&A: Stephane D'Astous On Eidos Montreal's Next-Gen Plans . Dobson . Jason . 19 February 2007 . . . 4 December 2016 . 20 December 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161220220839/http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/103763/QA_Stephane_DAstous_On_Eidos_Montreals_NextGen_Plans.php . live .
  6. Web site: Develop . 30 November 2007 . Q&A: Stephane D'Astous, Eidos Montreal . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20170224110745/http://www.develop-online.net/analysis/q-a-stephane-d-astous-eidos-montreal/0116068 . 24 February 2017 . 4 December 2016 . . NewBay Media.
  7. Web site: Thief 4: It's Official . Crecente . Brian . 11 May 2009 . . . 4 December 2016 . 11 December 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20171211224519/https://kotaku.com/5248907/thief-4-its-official . live .
  8. Web site: Eidos Montreal GM resigns, cites 'lack of courage' at Square Enix . Ray Corriea . Alexa . 23 July 2013 . . . 4 December 2016 . 26 January 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210126131021/https://www.polygon.com/2013/7/23/4549044/eidos-montreal-general-manager-resigns . live .
  9. Web site: Square Enix's Western studios were a "train wreck in slow motion" . 2022-07-26 . GamesIndustry.biz . 26 July 2022 . en . 26 July 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220726222552/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2022-07-26-square-enixs-western-studios-were-a-train-wreck-in-slow-motion . live .
  10. Web site: Schreier . Jason . 4 March 2014 . Big Layoffs At Thief Developer Eidos Montreal . 4 December 2016 . . . 29 December 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20161229113110/http://kotaku.com/big-layoffs-at-thief-developer-eidos-montreal-1536315021 . live .
  11. Web site: Frank . Allegra . 2017-01-26 . Square Enix teams up with Marvel for The Avengers project . 2022-05-15 . Polygon . en-US . 15 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220515112851/https://www.polygon.com/2017/1/26/14397916/the-avengers-trailer-square-enix-marvel . live .
  12. Web site: Square Enix teams up with Marvel for The Avengers project. Dring. Christopher. Gamesindustry.biz. May 11, 2018. May 11, 2018. 11 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180511175335/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2018-05-11-eidos-montreal-we-have-to-try-new-models-for-single-player-games. live.
  13. Web site: Capel . Chris J . Eidos Montreal head responds to Final Fantasy Project W rumours . PCGamesN . 11 May 2018 . 15 August 2020 . 1 October 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201001042446/https://www.pcgamesn.com/eidos-montreal-final-fantasy-project-w . live .
  14. Web site: Eidos opens Shanghai Office . James . Lee . 22 September 2008 . . 16 November 2022 . 16 November 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221116163341/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/eidos-opens-shanghai-office . live .
  15. Web site: Square Enix announces new Eidos-Sherbrooke studio . June 16, 2020 . June 16, 2020 . Marie . Dealessandri . . 19 October 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211019034459/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/2020-06-16-square-enix-announces-new-eidos-sherbrooke-studio . live .
  16. Web site: Save the Universe (Probably) with 'Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy'. 2021-06-14. Marvel Entertainment. en. 14 June 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210614000303/https://www.marvel.com/articles/games/marvels-guardians-of-the-galaxy-game-announcement. live.
  17. Web site: Square Enix Selling Tomb Raider, Deus Ex & Thief Studios (And The Games As Well). 2022-05-02. Yahoo Finance. en. 2 May 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220502082051/https://finance.yahoo.com/news/square-enix-selling-tomb-raider-064000314.html. live.
  18. Web site: Strickland . Derek . 2022-05-02 . Eidos Montreal has multiple games in development using Unreal Engine 5 . 2022-05-27 . TweakTown . en-US . 2 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220502163639/https://www.tweaktown.com/news/85958/eidos-montreal-has-multiple-games-in-development-using-unreal-engine-5/index.html . live .
  19. Web site: Ivan . Tom . 2022-05-20 . Embracer sees 'great potential' in Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal sequels, remakes and remasters . 2022-05-22 . VGC . en-GB . 22 May 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220522080931/https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/embracer-sees-great-potential-in-crystal-dynamics-and-eidos-montreal-sequels-remakes-and-remasters/ . live .
  20. Embracer Group completes acquisition of Crystal Dynamics, Eidos-Montréal, Square Enix Montréal amongst other assets . . 26 August 2022 . 26 August 2022 . 26 August 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220826131110/https://embracer.com/release/embracer-group-completes-acquisition-of-crystal-dynamics-eidos-montreal-square-enix-montreal-amongst-other-assets/ . live .
  21. Web site: Eidos Shanghai becomes Gearbox Shanghai . Brendan . Sinclair . 15 November 2022 . . 16 November 2022 . 15 November 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221115151558/https://www.gamesindustry.biz/eidos-shanghai-becomes-gearbox-shanghai . live .
  22. Web site: Eidos n'a plus de studio à Sherbrooke . fr . Eidos no longer has a studio in Sherbrooke . Simon . Roberge . 7 April 2023 . . 28 November 2023.
  23. News: 2022-11-01 . Embracer Group Shuts Down Montreal Video Game Studio . 2024-01-29 . Bloomberg.com . en.
  24. News: 2024-01-29 . Embracer Group Cancels ‘Deus Ex’ Video Game . 2024-01-29 . Bloomberg.com . en.
  25. Web site: 2024-01-29 . Eidos Montreal lays off 97 staff, new Deus Ex game reportedly canceled . 2024-01-29 . Gematsu . en-US.
  26. News: Savage . Phil . 2014-12-04 . Eidos introduce the engine behind the upcoming Deus Ex . en . PC Gamer . live . 2022-05-27 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141206024725/https://www.pcgamer.com/eidos-introduce-the-engine-behind-the-upcoming-deus-ex/ . 6 December 2014.
  27. Web site: Eidos Montreal shows off the Dawn Engine, the "cornerstone" of Deus Ex Universe . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20141208191236/https://www.pcgamesn.com/eidos-montreal-shows-off-the-dawn-engine-the-cornerstone-of-deus-ex-universe . 8 December 2014 . 2022-05-18 . PCGamesN . 4 December 2014 . en-GB.
  28. Web site: 2014-12-05 . Eidos announces its next-gen game engine: the Dawn Engine . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20160818072542/https://hexus.net/tech/news/software/78053-eidos-announces-next-gen-game-engine-dawn-engine/ . 18 August 2016 . 2022-05-18 . HEXUS.
  29. Web site: OXM Staff . 2015-04-21 . Designing Deus Ex's futuristic Dawn Engine . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20160402012737/https://www.gamesradar.com/deus-ex-mankind-divided-engine-interview/ . 2 April 2016 . 2022-05-18 . gamesradar . en.
  30. News: 2015-02-11 . How the Dawn Engine is powering the next wave of Deus Ex games . en . MCV . live . 2022-05-18 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210123045057/https://www.mcvuk.com/development-news/how-the-dawn-engine-is-powering-the-next-wave-of-deus-ex-games/ . 23 January 2021 . 1469-4832.
  31. Web site: 2021-09-27 . Eidos Confirms Guardians Of The Galaxy And Avengers Use Different Engines . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20211027153229/https://www.thegamer.com/eidos-confirms-guardians-of-the-galaxy-avengers-different-engines/ . 27 October 2021 . 2022-05-18 . TheGamer . en-US.
  32. News: 2015-02-11 . How the Dawn Engine is powering the next wave of Deus Ex games . en . MCV . live . 2022-05-18 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210123045057/https://www.mcvuk.com/development-news/how-the-dawn-engine-is-powering-the-next-wave-of-deus-ex-games/ . 23 January 2021 . 1469-4832.
  33. Web site: Paras . Archie . 2015-03-17 . Dawn Engine – First Slide Showcasing AMD's TressFX 3.0 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20150319192249/https://wccftech.com/dawn-engine-slide-showcasing-amds-tressfx-30/ . 19 March 2015 . 2022-05-18 . Wccftech . en-US.
  34. Web site: Improving Geometry Culling for 'Deus Ex: Mankind Divided' (presented by Umbra) . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220601145958/https://www.gdcvault.com/play/1023678/Improving-Geometry-Culling-for-Deus . 1 June 2022 . 2022-05-18 . www.gdcvault.com.
  35. News: 2021-12-18 . Guardians of the Galaxy's RT upgrade adds extra shine to a brilliant game . en-gb . Eurogamer.net . live . 2022-05-18 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220512085854/https://www.eurogamer.net/digitalfoundry-2021-guardians-of-the-galaxys-ray-tracing-upgrade-adds-extra-shine-to-a-brilliant-game . 12 May 2022.
  36. Web site: Palumbo . Alessio . 2022-05-02 . Eidos Montréal Has Adopted Unreal Engine 5 Over In-House Tools . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220502225449/https://wccftech.com/eidos-montreal-has-adopted-unreal-engine-5-over-in-house-tools/ . 2 May 2022 . 2022-05-18 . Wccftech . en-US.
  37. Web site: WorldGen: Painting the world, one layer at a time . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210504104635/https://www.eidossherbrooke.com/en/news/worldgen-painting-the-world-one-layer-at-a-time/ . 4 May 2021 . 2022-06-09 . Eidos-Sherbrooke . en-US.
  38. Web site: Dring . Christopher . 2021-11-08 . Revealed: Just who are the best games companies to work for in Canada? . 2023-05-20 . GamesIndustry.biz . en.
  39. Web site: Top Employer: Eidos Interactive Corporation . 2023-05-20 . reviews.canadastop100.com . Mediacorp Inc..

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