A number of IO Interactive co-founders have left the Eidos-owned Hitman, Freedom Fighter and Kane & Lynch developer to form a new studio under the name of Reto-Moto.

No projects have been announced, though the company noted it is "committed to redefining the online multi-player space."

Among the company's staff are Hitman director Jacob Andersen, previous IO VP David Guldbrandsen, former lead character designer Jesper Vorsholt Jorgensen, and old sound engineering lead Martin Pollas. All were co-founders of IO Interactive.

The four are joined by Neil Donnell, who served as an executive producer at Eidos Interactive.

Originally founded in 1997, Reto-Moto's first act was to create IO Interactive in a joint-venture with Nordisk Film. Publisher Eidos acquired IO in 2004.

Eidos Interactive owner SCi Entertainment has announced that it will be canceling 14 projects and terminating 25% of its staff under a new effort to restructure the company.

No details were provided on the canceled titles, though the company noted they were "unlikely to generate an acceptable return on investment or are not of appropriate quality."

Going forward, SCi will focus on what it described as its "cornerstone products," including Tomb Raider, Hitman, Championship Manager and Deus Ex. Of those franchises, new Tomb Raider and Deus Ex titles are known to be in development.

Other properties held by the company include Carmageddon and Kane & Lynch: Dead Men.

In addition to cutting 25% of its staff, bringing its workforce down to 800 people, SCi will also relocate much of its production staff from London to Montreal. The ... Read more