Many consider Final Fantasy 16 a return to form for the series, but after a new report, some are beginning to believe Square Enix may have just suffered an incremental loss due to the title. This comes despite the fact that Final Fantasy 16 sold three million units, both digitally and physically, in its launch week.
Final Fantasy 16 may have been one of the most divisive launches of the year. Square Enix’s long-running franchise was built around turn-based party combat, but with FF16, the focus shifted to action combat with little to no control over your party.
This, coupled with the fact that the game is still only available on PS5, has led to some speculation on the title and Square Enix’s subsequent success.
Square Enix Faces Nearly $2 Billion Drop in Value Since the Release of Final Fantasy 16
A new report by Bloomberg suggests that, despite being a success on its own, Final Fantasy 16 wasn’t able to pull in enough profit to make up for the poor performance of Square Enix’s flops, Marvel’s Avengers and Forspoken.
The game also didn’t manage to make up for the losses of mobile games like Echoes of Mana, which were shut down soon after launch.
According to current and former Square Enix employees, producers were given a lot of control over the direction of projects. The company has recently shifted its focus to more big-budget blockbusters, while keeping the lower-budget games on the sidelines.
This decision comes from the new CEO, Takashi Kiryu, who wishes to make a bigger impact on the company’s net income.
A source close to IGN has said that the new CEO is changing things up across the company globally. Some believe that the company still lacks a clear vision, which has significantly impacted the company’s product quality.
Also Read: Final Fantasy 14 Will Bring Two New Jobs with it when it Launches on Xbox
Is Final Fantasy 16 Really to Blame for Square Enix’s Loss?
Many are blaming Final Fantasy 16 for the company’s underwhelming sales, but the blame may be misplaced. Not only did the game perform well critically, but it was quite a commercial success all things considered.
The game only launched on the PS5, which, compared to older-gen consoles, still doesn’t have that many units across the world. Square Enix has previously said that it also considers the game a success, as the title sold three million units in its first week and the sales were ‘extremely strong‘.
Despite this, many fans and news sites have flocked online to bash the game. Some are rightfully defending the title as well as critiquing Square Enix’s overreliance on the franchise to improve its financial situation.
Square Enix /has/ to stop relying on FF to hold it’s company up. Games media has to stop pretending FF can hold SE up.
— jake (Starfield) 👻 (@JakeAGame) September 13, 2023
It’s unclear in which direction Square Enix will go after this loss. But it definitely seems as though it will be relying a lot on the Final Fantasy IP for years to come.
But what do you think? Do you consider Final Fantasy 16 a success? Let us know in the comments!
Source: Bloomberg
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