Modern Deus Ex developer Eidos Montreal is reportedly aiming for an immediate return to the cyberpunk franchise, and hopes to surpass Cyberpunk 2077 in the process.
These rumors come from prolific insider Jeff Grubb, who spoke on Giant Bomb’s Game Mess Mornings podcast. Grubb noted that it’s too early for any internal discussions about Eidos Montreal’s next project, but said the studio is eager to return to Deus Ex.
“It’s still early. The rumble I hear is that the studio wants to get into Deus Ex right now. They want to get back to that state right away. They want to challenge — they want to do things that Cyberpunk 2077 can’t do, that sort of thing. That’s it. We’ll see if that happens. It’s too early, like what that’s going to be. But with Square Enix right now, that kind of conversation can’t start, right? ?
Square Enix was the former owner of the Eidos Montreal and Deus Ex franchises, but sold the two, along with Crystal Dynamics and Tomb Raider IP, to Embracer Group as part of a $300 million deal. Embracer named Deus Ex, along with Tomb Raider, Thief and Kane’s Legacy, as one of the franchises it sees “huge potential”, hinting that the sequel will have “remastered, remastered” system, derivative, [and] Transmedia projects. “
Embracer also said that Eidos Montreal and other newly acquired studios are “preparing for a very large-scale AAA experience,” including “the much-loved franchises we’ll have as well as original IP.” A new Tomb Raider game was announced ahead of the Embracer launch.
Square Enix expresses concern that these Western games will “Cannibalizing” sales of its Japanese portfolio.
