Key Takeaways
- Bandai Namco has officially approved the dissolution and liquidation of Montreal-based developer Reflector Entertainment.
- Reflector is best known for developing Unknown 9: Awakening, which launched in October 2024 and received a mixed response from players.
- The studio says it will cease all activities immediately, although the formal liquidation process will continue under local laws.
- Bandai Namco expects to record an extraordinary loss of approximately €21 million (around 3.5 billion yen) following the closure.
- Reflector had CA$14.66 million in net sales for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026, according to Bandai Namco’s financial disclosure.
The gaming industry has suffered another major studio closure, and this time it’s a developer owned by one of Japan’s biggest gaming publishers. Bandai Namco has officially confirmed plans to dissolve and liquidate Reflector Entertainment, the Montreal-based studio best known for developing Unknown 9: Awakening.
The decision comes roughly two years after the release of Reflector’s debut game, which failed to generate the response the publisher had hoped for. While the studio had been expected to contribute to other Bandai Namco projects and develop additional games, those plans ultimately failed to provide a sustainable future for the company.
Reflector has also confirmed the news through its official LinkedIn account, stating that it will cease all activities immediately. The announcement marks another unfortunate development for the gaming industry, particularly for the developers who have now been left facing an uncertain future.
Bandai Namco Officially Confirms Reflector Entertainment Closure
Bandai Namco announced its decision on November 10, 2026, confirming that its board of directors had passed a resolution to dissolve and liquidate Reflector Entertainment Ltd. The studio operated as a wholly owned subsidiary of Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe.
In its official disclosure, Bandai Namco explained that it regularly reviews its business portfolio and internal development structure to support its medium- and long-term growth. After considering future development plans, the additional investment required, and the possibility of maintaining a profitable business, the company decided that continuing Reflector’s operations was no longer justified.
The publisher also confirmed that it would follow all applicable local laws and regulations throughout the liquidation process. However, there is currently no confirmed timetable for completing the procedure.
Reflector’s own announcement was equally direct. The studio said that after reviewing its latest project, future development requirements, and the current conditions of the gaming market, Bandai Namco had concluded that it could not justify several more years of additional investment.
You can read the official Bandai Namco announcement regarding Reflector Entertainment’s dissolution and liquidation for the complete corporate disclosure.
Unknown 9: Awakening Was Reflector’s Only Released Game Under Bandai Namco
Reflector Entertainment was founded in 2015 and acquired by Bandai Namco in September 2020. The Montreal developer eventually became part of Bandai Namco Europe’s operations, with plans to contribute to the publisher’s wider portfolio of intellectual properties.
However, the studio’s most significant release during its time under Bandai Namco was Unknown 9: Awakening, an action-adventure game that arrived on October 17, 2024, for PC, PlayStation, and Xbox platforms.
The game follows Haroona, a young woman known as a Quaestor who possesses the ability to enter a mysterious dimension called the Fold. Throughout her journey, players explore different locations, uncover hidden knowledge, and use supernatural abilities to fight the Ascendants, a secret organisation attempting to manipulate the course of human history.
Developed as part of a larger transmedia universe involving novels, comics, and other storytelling projects, Unknown 9 was supposed to establish a new intellectual property for Bandai Namco.
Unfortunately, the game struggled to connect with players. Unknown 9: Awakening currently has a Mixed rating on Steam, with approximately 55% of its 284 user reviews marked positive. Its reception was far from the kind of response needed to establish a successful new franchise.
Although the game showed some potential before release, its final reception raised questions about the future of the ambitious project. Bandai Namco and Reflector eventually abandoned plans to expand Unknown 9 into a larger multimedia franchise.
Reflector Had Already Suffered Layoffs Following Unknown 9’s Failure
The studio’s closure didn’t come entirely out of nowhere. Reflector had already gone through multiple rounds of layoffs and project cancellations following the disappointing performance of Unknown 9: Awakening.
Just one month after the game’s release in November 2024, Reflector announced that it was reducing its workforce by approximately 18%. At the time, the studio said the restructuring was necessary to ensure its employees were focused on projects that could benefit from their skills.
The situation became more difficult in January 2025, when CEO Herve Hoerdt announced another round of layoffs and confirmed the cancellation of an unannounced project that was still in its conceptualisation phase.
Hoerdt openly connected that decision to the commercial failure of Unknown 9: Awakening, acknowledging that the game had fallen well short of the company’s expectations.
Despite those setbacks, Reflector continued operating under Bandai Namco, with hopes of contributing to other projects within the publisher’s portfolio. However, the studio has now reached the end of the road after Bandai Namco decided that further investment was not financially sustainable.
Bandai Namco Expects a €21 Million Loss From Reflector’s Liquidation
Interestingly, Bandai Namco’s announcement also revealed some financial details that help explain the seriousness of the decision.
According to the publisher’s official disclosure, Reflector reported approximately CA$14.66 million in net sales for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026. Its share capital was listed at approximately CA$46.03 million, while its reported net assets stood at negative CA$89.54 million.
Bandai Namco also confirmed that the closure is expected to result in an extraordinary loss of approximately €21 million, equivalent to around 3.5 billion yen.
This estimated loss is expected to be reflected in Bandai Namco’s consolidated financial statements for the third quarter of the fiscal year ending March 31, 2027, and thereafter. The company has stressed that the figure remains an estimate, with the final amount and timing of its recognition still under review.
For Bandai Namco, the decision appears to be part of a wider effort to reassess its development structure and investments. The publisher has clearly decided that continuing to fund Reflector’s operations and future projects is no longer a viable option.
What Happens to Reflector Entertainment’s Developers?
While the financial implications are significant for Bandai Namco, the biggest concern surrounding the announcement is what happens to Reflector’s employees.
The studio’s LinkedIn page previously listed its workforce in the 51-to-200 employee range, although that figure does not establish how many people were still working there when the closure was announced. The developer has not provided a confirmed breakdown of the employees affected by the shutdown.
Reflector has said it intends to work with stakeholders during the transition and help its developers navigate the process. However, with the studio preparing to cease its activities immediately, the future of its remaining team members remains uncertain.
This is another difficult situation for an industry that has already experienced widespread layoffs, cancellations, and studio closures over the past several years. Developers who spent years building Unknown 9 and working on other projects now face the challenge of finding new opportunities elsewhere.
Bandai Namco has not provided a specific completion date for the legal liquidation, meaning the corporate process could continue after the studio’s development activities have stopped.
Another Studio Closure Raises Questions About the Gaming Industry
Reflector Entertainment’s closure is an unfortunate end to a studio that was originally expected to become an important part of Bandai Namco’s development network. The publisher acquired the Montreal developer in 2020 with the potential to build new intellectual properties and contribute to its existing franchises.
Unknown 9: Awakening was supposed to be the beginning of something much bigger, but its disappointing reception and the cancellation of subsequent projects gradually weakened that ambition.
Now, nearly two years after the game’s release, Bandai Namco has decided that further investment in Reflector is no longer justified. The studio will cease operations, while the formal liquidation process moves forward under Canadian regulations.
It’s another reminder that even developers backed by major publishers aren’t immune to the financial pressures affecting the gaming industry. For the people who worked at Reflector, the announcement is particularly disappointing, as an ambitious new franchise has ultimately ended with the closure of the studio behind it.
For more gaming industry news, check out our coverage of PlayStation Plus November 2026 games featuring Death Stranding 2, the new 8BitDo Ultimate 3C+ Wired Xbox Controller, and the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 4 November 10 update.
