Bloomberg said developers have been working on the game for two years. Neither Embracer nor developer Eidos specifically addressed the reported cancellation, but Deus Ex developer Eidos confirmed they had laid off 97 employees in Montreal.
xEidos will reportedly focus on an “original series” instead. Bloomberg sources say that the Deus Ex game is planned to start production later this year. The last main game in the series was 2016's Deus Ex: Mankind Divided.
Embracer Group, which grew aggressively through acquisitions during the pandemic, entered a turbulent period last year. The company announced a restructuring plan in June 2 after an unnamed partner pulled out of a planned deal that would have brought $2023 billion over six years. Axios later reported that the mystery investor was the Saudi government-funded Savvy Games Group.
Why was the new Deus Ex game canceled?
In August, Embracer announced the closure of Volition, the studio behind the Saints Row series. The parent company laid off nearly 900 employees and another 50 at Chorus developer Fishlabs in September. Earlier this month, Embracer shut down Lost Boys Interactive, the makers of Tiny Tina's Wonderland, blaming it on "the negativity facing the industry right now."
Embracer said that the restructuring phase will last until the end of March. The company claims it will provide regular updates on the process, including the publication of its next quarterly report on February 15.
Alongside the claim that Deus Ex has been cancelled, Eidos has confirmed that it has laid off 97 employees from development teams, administration and support services. “The global economic context, challenges in our industry, and the extensive restructuring announced by Embracer have finally impacted our studio,” Eidos wrote in a statement.