Trapdoor Inc. was a Canadian video game developer based in

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple ...

. Founded in August 2008 by Ken Schachter, the company developed '' Warp'' and co-published Polytron Corporation's ''

Fez Fez most often refers to: * Fez (hat), a type of felt hat commonly worn in the Ottoman Empire * Fez, Morocco (or Fes), the second largest city of Morocco Fez or FEZ may also refer to: Media * ''Fez'' (Frank Stella), a 1964 painting by the moder ...

'', both released in 2012. A third title, ''Heist'', was cancelled after six months in development before Trapdoor was shut down in December 2012.

History

Trapdoor was established in August 2008 by Ken Schachter, formerly the chief technology officer for

American Apparel American Apparel Inc. is an online-only retailer and former brick-and-mortar stores operator based in Los Angeles, California. Founded by Canadian businessman Dov Charney in 1989, it was a vertically integrated company that ranked as one of the ...

and later the studio manager of Gameloft Montreal. By October that year, the company had hired Alex Charbonneau, a former

game designer Game design is the art of applying design and aesthetics to create a game for entertainment or for educational, exercise, or experimental purposes. Increasingly, elements and principles of game design are also applied to other interactions, in ...

for Gameloft Montreal and

Ubisoft Montreal Ubisoft Divertissements Inc., doing business as Ubisoft Montreal, is a Canadian video game developer and a studio of Ubisoft based in Montreal. The studio was founded in April 1997 as part of Ubisoft's growth into worldwide markets, with sub ...

, as lead game designer. Trapdoor stated that it would strictly follow the

International Game Developers Association The International Game Developers Association (IGDA) is a nonprofit professional association whose stated mission is to "support and empower game developers around the world in achieving fulfilling and sustainable careers." The IGDA is incorpo ...

's developer crediting standard. Trapdoor's first game would be an original

intellectual property Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...

for

personal computer A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose microcomputer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or tec ...

PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on November 11, 2006, in Japan, November ...

, and

Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generati ...

. By May 2011, Trapdoor employed 15 people, with Schachter managing the studio. In November 2010,

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the ...

' EA Partners announced a publishing deal with Trapdoor for the game '' Warp''. The game was released for Xbox 360 in February 2012, as well as for

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for ser ...

and PlayStation 3 the following March. Trapdoor announced in March 2011 that it would co-publish the Polytron Corporation-developed game ''

'', which was released in April 2012 for Xbox 360. A third title, codenamed ''Heist'', entered production in early 2012 but was cancelled six months into development. Trapdoor was disestablished on 16 December 2012.

Games

* '' Warp'' (2012) * ''

'' (2012) * ''Heist'' (cancelled)

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite web , url=https://www.destructoid.com/stories/xbla-s-house-party-kicks-off-today-with-warp-221858.phtml , title=XBLA's House Party kicks off today with Warp , first=Bratt , last=Zeidler , date=15 February 2012 , website=

Destructoid ''Destructoid'' is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017, and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022. History ...

, access-date=2 September 2018 {{cite web , url=https://www.engadget.com/2011-03-13-fez-being-co-published-by-trapdoor.html , title=Fez being co-published by Trapdoor , first=Ben , last=Gilbert , date=13 March 2011 , website=

Engadget ''Engadget'' ( ) is a multilingual technology blog network with daily coverage of gadgets and consumer electronics. ''Engadget'' manages ten blogs four of which are written in English and six have international versions with independent editor ...

, access-date=2 September 2018 {{cite web , url=https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/111695/Ubisoft_Gameloft_Vets_Form_Independent_Studio.php , title=Ubisoft, Gameloft Vets Form Independent Studio , first=Eric , last=Caoili , date=October 21, 2008 , website=

Gamasutra ''Game Developer'', known as ''Gamasutra'' until 2021, is a website founded in 1997 that focuses on aspects of video game development. It is owned and operated by Informa and acts as the online sister publication to the print magazine '' Gam ...

, access-date=2 September 2018 {{cite web , url=https://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/124299/Interview_Trapdoor_Studios_On_Warp_And_SmallScale_Development.php , title=Interview: Trapdoor Studios On ''Warp'' And Small-Scale Development , first=Andrew , last=Vanden Bossche , date=4 May 2011 , website=

, access-date=2 September 2018 {{cite web , url=https://www.gematsu.com/2010/11/ea-and-trapdoor-sign-announce-warp , title=EA and Trapdoor sign, announce Warp , first=Sal , last=Romano , date=10 November 2011 , website=Gematsu , access-date=2 September 2018 {{cite web , url=https://www.polygon.com/gaming/2012/3/29/2910635/fez-release-date-xbla-friday-april-13th , title='Fez' release date is Friday the 13th, on XBLA , first=Christopher , last=Grant , date=29 March 2021 , website=

Polygon In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed ''polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two to ...

, access-date=2 September 2018 {{cite web , url=https://www.unseen64.net/2015/06/01/heist-xbox-360-ps3-pc-cancelled/ , title=Heist BLA/PSN/PC – Cancelled, first=Liam , last=Robertson , date=1 June 2015 , website=Unseen64 , access-date=2 September 2018 Companies based in Montreal Defunct companies of Quebec Defunct video game companies of Canada Video game companies disestablished in 2012 Video game companies established in 2008 Video game development companies