Summary
- Square Enix will move to multiplatform releases after disappointing profit margins from its HD releases, including major PS5 timed exclusives like Final Fantasy 16 and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.
- Final Fantasy 16 did meet sales expectations, but Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's initial sales were apparently weaker than Square Enix's estimates.
- Future mainline Final Fantasy games may be entirely multiplatform, but it's currently unknown whether the third Final Fantasy 7 Remake entry is a PlayStation timed exclusive.
After supposedly recording lukewarm sales figures for Final Fantasy 16 and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, Square Enix has confirmed that it will shift to a multiplatform publishing strategy for future releases. Both of the newest Final Fantasy games launched as PS5 timed exclusives, which many argue is the reason behind Square Enix's woes with their commercial performance.
Square Enix and PlayStation have a tight-knit relationship dating all the way back to the PS1 days, especially when it comes to Final Fantasy. When Final Fantasy 7 launched on the PS1 in 1997, it sold over 10 million copies and established itself as the second best-selling game on the console. Likewise, 2020's Final Fantasy 7 Remake managed very impressive sales when it launched exclusively on the PS4. Square Enix and Sony kept the exclusivity streak going for the PS5, with major releases like Forspoken, Final Fantasy 16, Foamstars, and most recently, Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, all being timed exclusives on the current-gen console.
Final Fantasy 7 Remake Producer Comments on Part 3
Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Rebirth producer Yoshinori Kitase offers his thoughts on what fans can expect in Part 3 of the Remake trilogy.
Unfortunately, a newly published Square Enix earnings report shows that the PS5 timed exclusivity may have been a detriment to mass market adoption for the company's major HD releases. It's worth noting that this briefing was originally held in May 2024, when Square Enix first confirmed plans for a multiplatform push, but the report was made public a few hours ago. Speaking about the results, Square Enix president Takashi Kiryu said that the company launched "multiple new titles" in the "HD Games sub-segment," which includes Final Fantasy 16 and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth, but profits fell short of expectations.
Square Enix Found Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth's "Initial Sales" Disappointing
Kiryu also remarked that the initial sales of Foamstars and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth were "not as strong as expected." However, this shouldn't be taken as confirmation of Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth being a commercial failure, since the game had been out for just over a month when this earnings call was held. Moreover, Kiryu's previous comment doesn't specifically point to Final Fantasy 16 and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth falling short of financial expectations, but rather Square Enix's entire slate of HD releases in the previous fiscal year.
This turmoil surrounding the return-on-investment for PlayStation-exclusive Final Fantasy games happened last year as well. Square Enix's stock price took a major nosedive after Final Fantasy 16 launched in June 2023, leading many to assume that the game commercially underperformed on PS5 and subsequently caused the drop. Square Enix later clarified that Final Fantasy 16 did meet sales expectations, albeit not at the "high end." There's also a case to be made about Square Enix's internal expectations possibly being too lofty.
Regardless, Kiryu's comments suggest that Square Enix is indeed doing away with exclusivity for big future releases. The next mainline Final Fantasy game may well be a multiplatform title, and existing titles like Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Final Fantasy 16 might finally show up on Xbox too. It should also be interesting to see whether PlayStation has a timed exclusivity agreement for the third Final Fantasy 7 Remake entry.
- Date Founded
- April 1, 2003
- Headquarters
- Shinjuku City, Tokyo, Japan
- Parent Company
- Square Enix
- Subsidiaries
- Eidos Interactive, Crystal Dynamics, Luminous Productions
- Known For
- Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Kingdom Hearts, Tomb Raider