Montreal is already a huge gaming hub, and Square Enix is looking to squeeze in just a few more developers into the bustling Canadian city. Today, the company said that it’s opening up more than 100 jobs at Square Enix Montreal and Eidos-Montréal.
Square Enix also plans on renovating and expanding Eidos-Montreal’s 55,000 square-foot office, adding in a new motion-capture studio, a photogrammetry studio, and a user research lab. Eidos-Montreal most recently released Shadow of the Tomb Raider on consoles and PC, and is currently working on an Avengers game with Marvel.
Square Enix Montreal, meanwhile, will “more than” double in size in 2019, according to the press release. Known for making bite-sized spinoffs of Square Enix’s IPs — such as Lara Croft Go and Hitman Go — the studio is now focused on making free-to-play mobile games. While the team hasn’t announced any new projects, Square Enix already has a strong F2P footprint on iOS and Android with games like Dissidia Final Fantasy: Opera Omnia and Star Ocean: Anamnesis.
In total, Square Enix has 700 employees in Canada, which is its largest workforce outside of Japan.
The job news was part of a joint announcement between Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and Japanese prime minister Shinzō Abe about creating a closer collaboration between the two countries. Another Japanese company, Naruto Shippuden developer CyberConnect2, will also expand its presence by adding 20 jobs to its Montréal office.
