Square Enix has announced that it has decided to withdraw from the business of IO Interactive. The development studio is known for its involvement in the development of the shooter game Hitman.
In a recent press release Square Enix states that it decided part way with IO Interactive because the company wants to focus on key franchises and studios, taking into account maximization of player satisfaction and market potential.
According to Square Enix the decision will cost the company an extraordinary loss amounting to 4,898 million yen, roughly $43 million USD.
Square Enix further states that it has already started discussions with potential new investors and is currently in negotiations to secure this investment. Whether the negotiations will be successful still remains to be seen.
Although Hitman did reasonably well in terms of sales, the game's seasonal downloadable content model was both loved and hated for various reasons and may have been a major factor in the profitability of the title.
Square Enix acquired IO Interactive when it bought its parent company Eidos Interactive in 2009. Whether the recent decision will have an effect on future content updates or upcoming titles is still unknown.
Comments
This comment has been removed. Boo, i always thought Squeenix and IO where a great match :(
This comment has been removed. Yep, same here. This may have been a big mistake because IO was still able to reboot the Hitman franchise. Though the DLC model I didn't like and was the main reason why I didn't buy the game.