“We are extremely disappointed that Battalion 1944 is no longer available to players,” the developer said.
The developer Bulkhead Interactive behind Battalion 1944 is no longer affiliated with Square Enix.
In a statement shared on Steam, the company said it had “officially ended” its relationship with Square Enix and that it was “deeply disappointed that Battalion 1944 was not released”. Kickstarter backers will be refunded and Battalion: Legacy, a “final version of Battalion 1944” will be released for free on Steam on August 16.
Battalion 1944 is no longer published by Square Enix.
Battalion 1944 was successfully crowdfunded on Kickstarter in 2016, promising both PC and console versions of this game. The PS4 and Xbox One versions were never released but the game launched on PC in May 2019.
Bulkhead Interactive previously partnered with Square Enix Collective for the previous title, The Turing Test, which is also now marked as self-publishing on Steam.
Square Enix acquired a 20% stake in Bulkhead in 2018. Earlier this year, the Japanese company sold Crystal Dynamics, Eidos Montreal and Square Enix Montreal to Embracer.
A few weeks ago, Eidos Montreal founder Stephane D’Astous suggested that there were lingering problems with how Square Enix handled its Western studios. “We will refund all Kickstarter backers,” Bulkhead said. Thank you to everyone who loved the console version and we apologize for the long time it took to fix this.”
As for Square Enix, the publisher previously announced the opening of Tomb Raider and Deus Ex studios, Crystal Dynamics and Eidos Montreal as they focus on their Japanese operations.
Square Enix was formed in April 2003 from the merger of Square and Enix, the latter of which was exchanged for 0.85 shares of Enix common stock. At the time, 80% of Square Enix’s employees were former Square employees.
As part of the merger, former Square president Yoichi Wada was named president of the new corporation, while former Enix president Keiji Honda was named vice president. Yasuhiro Fukushima, shareholder of the combined corporation and founder of Enix, becomes chairman.
In October 2008, Square Enix conducted a corporate spin-off between its corporate business and video game operations, reorganizing itself as the parent company Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd., while the operations of Square Enix Holdings Co., Ltd. domestic video game company established under its subsidiary Square Enix Co., Ltd.
