Square Enix is significantly overhauling how they make games, said the company’s director and president Takashi Kiryu in an interview with Bloomberg Japan. They are set to “radically reform” the company’s structure which will be announced in spring 2024 and implemented at the start of April.
This is following Square Enix’s sales being flat for nine months till December 2023 from the start of the ongoing fiscal year. This period, in fact, saw sales from the company’s digital entertainment business down by 4.7%. This is despite the June release of Final Fantasy 16, a mainline entry to the publisher’s one of most premier franchises.
Final Fantasy 16 launched as a PS5 exclusive, with its PC port still in development. It sold three million copies in its launch week in June, which raised some eyebrows considering the mass appeal of mainline Final Fantasy titles. Although the publisher seemed happy about the sales numbers back then, this decision to restructure does not make us think that’s the case anymore.
Square Enix attributed declining sales in the digital entertainment business to declines in Final Fantasy 14 and mobile game sales. Besides, they also addressed ballooning development costs and advertising spending as factors affecting profit.
As for the short term, Square Enix has Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and the second DLC for Final Fantasy 16 launching before their announced company overhaul.
