Sq. Enix is trying to make extra of its sport releases multiplatform, following a pattern that has been catching on throughout the trade of late. In its newest earnings report revealed on Could 13, Sq. Enix says it plans to “aggressively pursue a multiplatform technique” for future sport releases. Sq. Enix is a storied writer that has had releases on quite a few consoles over the previous 30 years.
Over time, nevertheless, most of the writer’s largest franchise titles have routinely been locked to a specific console. The latest examples of this are video games like Last Fantasy XVI and Last Fantasy VII: Rebirth. Each of that are nonetheless obtainable completely on PS5. Last Fantasy VII: Remake, the predecessor to Last Fantasy VII: Rebirth, launched as a PS4-exclusive title again in 2020, however then made its method to PC on the finish of 2021. It has but to make the leap to Xbox consoles or Nintendo’s fashionable Swap handheld.
This technique of console exclusives, timed or in any other case, has led to much less folks attending to expertise these video games. That is one thing that Sq. Enix desires to keep away from sooner or later, stating that it hopes multiplatform releases of its greatest titles will permit extra folks to take pleasure in them. It’s a technique that each Microsoft and Sony have been exploring as nicely. Microsoft introduced Hello-Fi Rush to PS5 earlier this yr, and Sony is poised to launch the beforehand PlayStation-exclusive Ghost of Tsushima on PC this week.
Extra Sq. Enix video games going multiplatform may very well be resulting from decrease gross sales
Sq. Enix doesn’t state that low gross sales of a few of its newer titles are the motivation behind this determination to pursue multiplatform releases extra closely. Nonetheless, as The Verge factors out, the writer’s most up-to-date AAA launch, Last Fantasy VII: Rebirth, could not have carried out in addition to Sq. Enix hoped.
That is in distinction to different video games within the franchise. Equivalent to Last Fantasy XV, which was launched on Xbox and PlayStation concurrently and went on to grow to be one of many best-selling Last Fantasy video games of all time. It might make sense then that Sq. Enix desires to spice up income by bringing extra video games to extra platforms. With none type of exclusivity. Sq. Enix can also be trying to restructure its US and EU companies by asserting upcoming layoffs.
Future Sq. Enix releases to incorporate Xbox and Nintendo
It’s value stating that each Xbox and Nintendo have video games revealed by Sq. Enix. And never simply older titles. Disaster Core: Last Fantasy VII Reunion launched in 2022 for Xbox One, Xbox Sequence X|S, and Nintendo Swap. This was alongside the PS4 and PS5 releases along with its Home windows launch. Different video games like Nier Replicant and Outriders additionally launched on Xbox consoles concurrently their PlayStation counterparts. As did Dragon Quest XI and Stranger of Paradise: Last Fantasy Origin.
Nonetheless, Sq. Enix’s largest releases have remained outdoors of the Xbox and Nintendo ecosystems. Particularly, the bigger mainline Last Fantasy titles talked about above. The writer doesn’t point out something with regard to what will probably be making the leap or when.