Four Onoma (formerly Square Enix Montreal) mobile games are to be delisted next week. The delisting, which applies to games from major franchises like Deus Ex and Hitman, doesn't just mean you won't be able to download them anymore, though; as of January, you also won't be able to play the games, even if you bought them.
Onoma announced this news via its official Twitter account. A tweet sent yesterday evening says that Arena Battle Champions, Deus Ex Go, Hitman Sniper: The Shadows, and Space Invaders: Hidden Heroes will all be removed from sale on both the Google Play Store and the iOS App Store on December 1st, which is next Thursday.
Following this, these games will all be shut down completely on January 4th. When that happens, Onoma says you "will not be able to access the games", so even if you paid money for them (which you may well have done, given that Deus Ex Go is a premium game), they'll be gone from your library.
It's also worth noting that in-game purchases for all four games have already been stopped, so you won't be able to pick anything up from their in-game stores. Onoma also recommends you use your prior in-game purchases before January 4th, as no refunds are planned at the moment.
We first got wind that Square Enix Montreal would rebrand as Onoma back in August, when a trademark was filed with the Canadian Trademarks Database for something called "Studio Onoma". That turned out to be the new name for Square Enix Montreal, creators of the popular Go series of mobile puzzle games including spinoffs for Tomb Raider, Hitman, and Deus Ex.
Embracer Group, which purchased the Montreal studio in May this year, changed Square Enix Montreal's name to Onoma in October. However, just a few weeks later, Onoma was closed down. Phil Rogers, director of Onoma's parent group CDE Entertainment, cited "growth opportunities centered around our premier franchises and AAA games" as one of the principal reasons for closing down Onoma.
We've contacted Embracer Group for comment on this story, especially with reference to the status of other Square Enix Montreal/Onoma games like Hitman Go and Lara Croft Go, and will update this piece as soon as we hear anything further.
