Update: Publisher Square Enix has now put out a statement reading: "Bloomberg has reported today that there is interest from several buyers to acquire Square Enix. However, this report is not based on any announcement by SQUARE ENIX HOLDINGS CO., LTD. We do not consider selling off the company or any part of its businesses, nor have we received any offer from any third party to acquire the company or any part of its businesses."
Original story: Ever since early reports came flooding in about Microsoft buying up Bethesda (which, of course, turned out to be entirely accurate), there's been no shortage of rumours surrounding additional acquisitions of video game companies. However, up until now, none of this speculation has held any real weight.
There's a new rumour on the block, though, and it comes from a reputable source in Bloomberg Japan. According to a newly published report, multiple parties are interested in scooping up Japanese publisher Square Enix. However, said report is fairly light on details — we don't know whether this is referring to Square Enix as a whole, Square Enix's video game business, or Square Enix's wider entertainment business.
As such, we wouldn't jump to any conclusions yet — but that warning won't stop people from sparking some rampant speculation online. After all, Microsoft's aforementioned $7.4 billion acquisition of Bethesda makes it feel as though anything is possible — although it's assumed that buying Square Enix would be a lot more expensive.
Of course, it's hard not to also think about Sony's situation at this point in time. The PlayStation maker clearly has a close-knit relationship with Square Enix right now, with the likes of Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade (June), Final Fantasy XVI (TBA), and Forspoken (2022), all pinned as PS5 console exclusives. But then, Bethesda had made deals with Sony over Deathloop and Ghostwire Tokyo, hadn't it?
But again, we wouldn't read too much into this report just yet. Massive corporations are always weighing up their options, but that doesn't necessarily mean that anything will actually happen. If more information starts to trickle out in the near future, we'll be sure to keep you updated.
[source bloomberg.co.jp, via nintendolife.com]
Comments 99
I mean, they might be better overall as a business investment, but everyone knows people will buy consoles to play Skyrim and Fallout (solo offline Fallout). I’ve got a Ps5 and have absolutely no desire or want to buy the next gen Xbox but if my wife wasn’t already getting one I’d have no choice but to buy one for those games alone. Get your act together Sony, and give us Days gone 2
You know what I'm almost expecting Sony to be one of them especially after they lost Bethesda
It'll make their platform pretty much the defacto one for JRPG content in the same way Xbox has basically become that for WRPGs on consoles after Bethesda, Obsidian and InXile were all acquired by them, since a huge amount of franchises would then be out of reach for either Microsoft or Nintendo, not to mention the fact that Final Fantasy has a super storied history with them, with entries in that series appearing on almost as many Sony consoles as Nintendo's, not to mention how big stuff like Dragon Quest and Kingdom Hearts are for them
Ideally, Square doesn't get bought out because I buy their games on everything but I think Sony's been really thinking about it
Before anyone loses their mind, I'd reiterate that this is relatively normal in big business. Huge companies are always considering their options — and that means having to scout potential buyouts. It's entirely possible that this brief report is based on something like that.
But because we're all familiar with the name 'Square Enix', I understand that it's hard not to get carried away.
I don't want Sony to buy Square Enix but with MS playing silly buggers of late then it might force their hand. Sony can afford it as a corporation especially if they feel they can leverage their IP across multiple media.
Maybe Bethesda can buy them. Bethesda Square Enix, or Besqueenix. Hire me as your next CEO of marketing.
NINJA APPROVED
Hypothetically if Microsoft got their cheque book out and bought Square Enix it would be the final straw for me, I would jump ship to the Xbox, let’s hope Sony buys it or another 3rd party or they stay status quo
If Microsoft buys Square-Enix, i'll have no choice but to get an Xbox. I am too much of a fan of their games to not play them.
@Vivisapprentice
Agreed. Never once considered Xbox in the past but knowing I can't play the next Elder Scrolls & Final Fantasy 16 or Remake Part 2 would be too much to ignore. I hope it isn't true.
I just don't see it being Microsoft acquiring them, sure they could out bid Sony, but you have to think of the future, a lot of Square Enix's games have exclusivity to Sony consoles like the article brings up, also FF7R was supposed to be a year-long exclusive, yet it is still a PS4 exclusive and is getting a PS5 version in June, no mention of other platforms. There's also the facts that Sony is selling more consoles than MS and the majority of Square Enix's games sell more on PS consoles. It just makes more sense of them going with Sony because of their relationship. And a Japanese company is probably more likely to sell to another Japanese company instead of a foreign company.
I dunno. Square Enix are a whole lot more than their gaming division. It would be just a little out there, even after the Zenimax deal. Part of me just doesn’t see it happening and certainly not from Sony.
I can just see MS bullying their way into this.
@Netret0120 I never had an xbox console before either, had Atari's, Sega's, Nintendo's and Playstation's but never a microsoft system, but with gamepass and bethesda and potentially one more big move by M$ would have me definitely considering jumping ship
The rumour silly season continues
@Vivisapprentice Their excellent BC already convinced me to get one when they are more available, I skipped the Xbone generation so I can't wait to try Killer Instinct!
@Juanalf Killer Instinct was like the one Xbox exclusive I was hyped about before Sunset Overdrive honestly
I suppose if sony's still serious about anime like they had originally planned, they could take advantage of square enix's manga side along with the games. And i certainly think square enix would be in better hands there than if they were in nintendos or especially microsofts
But I'm hoping it really is just a big nothing. The last thing I want is for another 3rd party dev to be bought up especially one as big as SE
I'm fine with either Sony or Nintendo considering SE's history with them. When I think SE, I always think of JRPG and action RPG (yes they also publish other genre but none of them interested me other than their RPG titles). Usually, if there are exclusive games that SE will make, it's either Playstation or Nintendo. While M$ may have more money to buy them, I just really don't see them clicking together and Xbox was never really known for JRPG games. It's usually Playstation and Nintendo consoles.
Anyway, I still want SE to be an independent company since I don't want any game devs to be under one eco-system just for the sake of monetization. SE is one of my all time favorite game companies out there and I want them to keep supporting multiple consoles.
I hope it's sony.
1. They make single player games and sony supports these games the best.
2. They need japan back
3. Counterpunch to Bethesda.
I hope this is not true. I cant think any scenario that would be good for most gamers.
Sony buys it, they are likely to kill all non-blockbuster development, and things will be PS exclusive.
Microsoft buys it, anything that is not contractually obligated yet will be XBox/PC exclusive.
Facebook buys it, it becomes about Occulus exclusives locked behind Facebook logins.
Amazon buys it, i fear what would happen, they might just fire everyone months later when things dont move as fast as the want.
Its weird but the only realistic hope of keeping the status quo is Tencent, and that makes me shiver.
Isn't it pretty difficult to buy a Japanese company, especially a big one?
Doesn't the government have a say?
I could be wrong.
@Ashkorsair there is no difficult scenario that is impossible for someone with enough money and lawyers, and a thing a lot of people forget is that Microsoft has a Japanese subsidiary, that is still it's own entity with its own CEO. MS can "easily" just proxy any purchases through that entity.
Square Enix does what Microsoft don't
I just don’t see them getting bought but as many said, if they were acquired by Microsoft, I’d have no choice but to get an Xbox.
Don’t assume that Square Enix would just go to the highest bidder irregardless of who that is as if they have no say in the matter. It would have to make sense for them as well.
The only upside of this would be the potential continuation of the Deus Ex franchise. All other aspects seem negative to me.
I’m they’ve thought about it, but the main reason I don’t think Microsoft would be all that interested is because I doubt they want to get into the manga, anime and film game, and they care way too much about their public image to want to face the backlash that would come with shutting those branches down.
Regardless, this news is another step on the road to the games industry becoming privatized, and we really shouldn’t be routing for that outcome.
@DeepSpace5D if the rumor is true, they dont have a say in the matter. This are banks wanting to get rid of stock they dont see as a good investment anymore. They will go for whomever offers the most money.
@Enuo they can always sell those businesses off at a later point. They can also keep them and use them as a source of future IPs.
@Tharsman Which rumor are you referring to? The article linked here is in Japanese.
@DeepSpace5D the one about Tencent going SICKO MODE
I doubt it will happen but if square Enix is bought by MS that would ultimately be the nail in the coffin for me and I would switch consoles.
Tencent has much higher chances on buying SE than MS...
Anyhow, this is rumor territory... for all we know Kodansha or CyberAgent Inc. are the companies interested in buying SE, and Sony and MS aren’t even in the conversation.... Maybe SE isn’t actually interested in selling.... Maybe...
@ElMarko after fallout 4 and fallout 76 i don't think people are exited about buying a console just to play a new fallout, not even with obsidian involved because MS hasn't the best record in excellent videogames after buying something.
s-e is worth over $1b. i honestly don't know if sony has the capital to make such an acquisition. heck, they hesitated to purchase insomniac for all those years at just over $200m which is a bargain. they have not acquired bluepoint or housemarque either... why? if sony was in a position to spend this kind of money they would have made some more moves by now.
that said, i don't think s-e would sell to an american company like microsoft. not in a million years. nintendo would be a better fit for them socially and culturally , but the problem lies in nintendo's hardware which is not suitable for the graphical fidelity of s-e games. so... the only possibility is sony but with the big caveat of whether or not it is even capable of a $1b+ investment like this. obviously, i think s-e would be right at home as a sony 1st party company... so long as jim ryan doesn't lose his ***** and interfere too much.... which is a real possibility.
i think we need to ask ourselves: does s-e have any reason to sell in the first place? they seem to be doing well financially. their stock has risened over the past couple years and the ff vii remake has only ignited more interest in the company. they went through a dark period on the ps3 with the ff xiii sequels, but they appear to be in a better place now.
@DeepSpace5D It's a bit of speculation from various sites, but there seem to be thoguhts that this is the stockholders (and usually its mostly bankers that hold stock in large numbers)
Some of the stuff was dug out from tweets and bloomberg on the PushSquare's sister site, Pure XBox:
https://www.purexbox.com/news/2021/04/several_parties_interested_in_buying_square_enix_according_to_report
To be clear, no one really knows for sure, but this being a publicly traded company, the only way it would be "up for sale" is if large stockholders dont want to hold onto their shares anymore, and they wont simply dump them, they will try to get a cash out deal.
At the same time, this might just be smoke without a fire.
@Porco Sony Paid That Much For Crunchyroll They Have More Then Enough Money For Square Enix.
@Areus sony [tried] to buy it for 1b (last i heard Japan stopped or slowed down the acquisition due to fears of monopoly)
But @Porco fell short by 6 billion. Square Enix is worth 7 billion.
Edit: sony does have about 40billion in cash so they might be able to do it, (if any of this is true) but it will be hard for them to go on a bidding war with all other parties with the money to do so. Microsoft, Amazon, Facebook and Tencent all are more likely to offer more than Sony will be willing to part with on a bidding war.
I buy all consoles so I'm not concerned about not being able to play what I want. That said, I really don't like the idea of these big, third party multiplat publishers getting bought up. Acquisitions like Playground Games to MS, Insomniac to Sony and Next Level Games to Nintendo make sense but what happened with Bethesda was sickening and given how much I like each companies' games, it'd be even more sickening to see Capcom, Sega, SquareEnix or Ubisoft sell out to one of the console makers.
@Tharsman It Was The US That Slowed Down The Deal For About Another 6 months Or So While They Review Everything.
@Tharsman do you have a source? i searched a few articles and they all show up as just over $1b net worth.
If this is true then I called it when I said that people cheering for Microsoft's acquisition of Bethesda were just cheering for the start of bidding wars. Would the Xbox fanboys still be laughing if Sony actually went and bought up SE? If they lost franchises like Final Fantasy, Nier, Tomb Raider, Just Cause, Dragon Quest etc?
Limiting options is always BAD for consumers.
I doubt this will go through. But if Microsoft is in play, Sony needs to get off their butt and make an investment. Blah blah blah internal development is good and all that, but if Microsoft went from 10 studios less than you to 10 studios more than you in less than one console generation, you should definitely be worried about your market share. If you're not, well, I wonder what games will be out on PC...
The thought of Microsoft buying Squeenix scares me, as every studio they buy ends up turning to ***** every e.g. Rare, Lionhead, Bizarre Creations, or ends up just releasing the same generic shooters like Gears over and over.
@dudeAmarillo I think in general, yes absolutely you’re right if you’re talking about those sales numbers being ridiculously high they won’t be. Just cos of 76 though. Personally I loved 4 though. I think regardless of where it rates it’s definitely a legit fallout game. Fallout does have a pretty big fan base of ppl that really love it and I guarantee they’ll all play it whether that be PC if they already have one or if not they’ll buy the new Xbox. Same goes for Skyrim. As for Microsoft’s record with new acquisitions I have no idea. Xbox may be the second best console (in terms high end powerful ones) but in reality they’re several levels below Sony and I don’t pay attention to what they do so I wouldn’t know lol. I’ll happily take your word for it though
@Porco That 6 Billion Is Their Market Cap.
I go where SquareEnix goes im afraid. I can't see Nintendo being involved in these kind of discussions as Square like to push the envelope graphically for many of their games so this doesn't fit their MO, and Nintendo don't need Square Enix.
As many comments here show however, if the opportunity is there, Microsoft are right in the mix. I count a handful of people including myself who say they would jump ship. That's all the motivation they need to make a bid.
Should be noted that as good as Sony's relationship with Square is, Microsoft's has also improved. Getting all the Final Fantasy games on GamePass, Outriders on day 1 and Octopath Traveller too. Strong rumours persist FF7 Remake will launch day 1 on GP too
Those who championed the Bethesda deal and didn't believe it was anti consumer are so naive. It was the start of the house of cards collapsing and represents the beginning of the consolidation of the game industry under massive corporations. It was always bad for gamers.
If Square has to be acquired by anyone, obviously id like it to be Sony, but i have no idea whether Sony's cheque book is big enough. But obviously anyone being deprived from these franchises seems wrong in my view
Maybe it's Disney.
Either way, companies will be fighting to add Balan Wonderworld to their portfolio. It's going to be a massacre.
Whoever buys them, make another Deus Ex.
@Tharsman
It still seems like quite the stretch to come to the conclusion that Square would not have a say in the matter and just go to the highest bidder. That Purexbox article doesn’t really state anything I saw that would lead to that conclusion, and the CTFN report on that page only says two bankers claim there is Merger & Acquisition interest in Square.
We’re not even sure yet what branch of Square would be available or if it would be the whole company. Or if Square even wants to sell for that matter.
hoping sony will buy square enix. since Square release the FF7 Remake first on PS4 and also they release the Yuffie DLC only on PS5
Japanese companies tend to value their independence highly and I can't see anyone buying them, even if they have the cash. Having said that, out of the people who could buy them, I'd rather microsoft than amazon or tenscent. Tenscent makes the most sense given their huge mobile gaming footprint, imaging that ff7 br mobile game takes off in China, print your own money! Or a gatcha version of final fantasy a la genshin impact?! We probably need to face facts that sony doesn't have the capital required for takeovers of this size.
@Porco you need to search for market cap (the sum of the current value of all existing stock)
Here is a link, look at the market cao there:
https://finance.yahoo.com/quote/SQNXF
@DeepSpace5D the only way SE has a say is if SE itself owns enough of its own stock to not be out voted by the majority of stock holders.
If that was the case, it's likely this rumor would hit even be a thing.
I’m getting really concerned about the potential partisan future of video games. For the last few decades the VAST majority of titles were multi platform. But with the Bethesda buyout new battle lines have been drawn up.
While I have both platforms and the competition is personally good for me, it isn’t good for gaming in general.
SE as a whole would make more sense for Sony, since they also publish the movies and music, something Microsoft is not into.
In other news Pushsquare is really really hoping to be bought by Bloomberg, details were scarce but an insider was quoted as saying "I would do anything, and I mean anything for bloomberg to recognize me "
I don't see this happening. Hopefully just rumors. It would make sense for Sony to buy square Enix but doubt they have the capital. Although PlayStation is the home of j-rpgs . Idont think Microsoft would get away with j-rpgs as I'm sure it would be anti-competition .
@Subsided lol brilliant 🤣
If there is any truth to this then do it Sony and make Sleeping Dogs 2!!!!
@Tharsman I don’t know much about company acquisitions, but say for example Square leadership deems an offer by company A as healthier for Square in the longterm despite being slightly lower in overall cash than an offer by company B.
Square might be able to convince shareholders that the offer from company A makes more sense for the longterm growth of the company.
But it all just feels like alot of what if scenarios and speculation with no real details about anything.
Surely they all want a piece of Balan.
Considering Sony saved them many years ago, and the ongoing close relationship, it’s a possibility of course. Not a fan of platform holders buying out multiplatform developers though honestly.
Everyone here is talking about Sony and Microsoft buying them but imagine if its 2K 💀💀💀💀
I hope this is just a rumour. If it's not, I hope MS doesn't get them -it's not healthy for the competition and consumers if one side just uses its "parent's" money (Xbox on its own could never afford these buyouts) to buy its share of the market.
I'm sure some CEOs saw the many 10/10 user scores for Balan Wonderworld on metacritic and thought "I need to buy that company"
If everything is owned by one company that is not really a good thing. And if its Microsoft its not only Sony that will lose games also Nintendo. Whats next Microsoft going for Nintendo who will profit on that well its not the consumers.
Rumorsquare at it again I see.
Come on Sony, do it. Put all those Walkman profits to good use and make them an offer they can’t refuse.
In all seriousness, Sony needs good Japanese Dev talent but I’d rather SE stay independent. And the idea of Microsoft buying SE is like nightmare fuel to me.
This story has already been debunked by Square Enix themselves rumorsquare .
It's very hard for a foreigner company to buy a japanese one. It's likely the japanese government will veto it. Especially in the case of Microsoft atempting it cause it goes against national interests, which is the continued business of Sony and Nintendo, two big national companies.
Only one i could see doing it is Disney. So, i'm not worried.
The government would not allow FF and DQ, national symbols, to suddenly be blocked to most japanese in a system that no one in japan wants. The backlash would be massive. MS just doesn't have a chance, imo.
Sony would be better off buying capcom too, imo.
https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2021/04/square_enix_says_its_not_for_sale_shoots_down_acquisition_rumours1 this story has been debunked Bloomberg is a joke.
👏👏👏👏👏 bravo Square for debunking rather than let rumours fester
@ATaco I doubt most Xbox fans would care if Sony bought SE... Most of SE games like Final Fantasy, Nier, Dragon Quest never sold great on Xbox in the first place. Anyone sadden by the lost of these games are probably people who own both systems or is planning on buying a Playstation specifically for these games. The % of people who refuse to buy a Playstation for these games are in a small minority.
Debunked already and I sure am glad it was
Good to see S-E shoot this down quickly. Microsoft just agreed to buy Nuance for 20 Billion so it might have taken them a day or two to scrape together the cash for S-E anyway.
@CupidStunt - Microsoft never owned Bizarre Creations, it was Activision that bought and subsequently shuttered them, prior to that they were an independent studio.
The more companies that remain third party the better
By all means, please believe every rumour posted by Bloomberg.
Makes so much sense.
Bloomberg is just a smoke factory at this moment. Never trust them. Said that, I would love to see Sony buying Square Enix.
Timed PlayStation exclusives. Im sure the games will end up on other consoles in about a year just like the bethdea games
Bloomberg's source "two bankers". Seems legit!
Glad it wasn't true. I'd rather see SE remain independent.
@Shepard93n7 I wonder who recently joined them and started encouraging this?
Glad that's been settled. Square Enix is pretty much my second favorite studio/publisher, it would be a huge loss if they were bought by any company.
If MS buys Square it would be a death blow for Japanese gaming and Square. Square is one of the only big publishers making Japanese centric games and those will never sell on Xbox anywhere never mind Japan. It's sad, I'm playing through FF12 and Chrono Cross again and thinking to myself how much better gaming was years ago.
Yeah I had my doubts that Square was looking to be purchased. They seem to be doing just fine.
@DeepSpace5D when investors are selling, all they care about is their own pockets, sadly. That's why the only way they can influence sale process is to be majority shareholders themselves.
Even then, there are laws that protect investors. A publicly traded company that goes up for sale can't just take the lowest offer "because it's best for the company long term", don't know the minutia, but they can't hide the higher offers from the shareholders.
The best SE can do, as far as I understand, is set anti-hostile takeover "poison pills" that could discourage a hostile takeover, by making it very unattractive to force-buy stock, but don't think that is what is being talked about right now. Don't think those clauses are viable when the stockholders are are willing to sell (and force changes to any such clauses.)
I just hope their "not considering selling" statement is ture and not just empty words to protect product sales. I do hope they have enough stock ownership to block any sale effort, because it would suck to have SE go under any of the few potential buyers.
Another day. Another useless Bloomberg article.
I could make a laundry list of things that I wish Sony would do before buying Square Enix. From where I see things Sony aren´t even being able to proper manage the studios they already have.
We were here, just a couple of days ago, talking about the financial difficulties and how hard it is for SIE to invest in the development of new games. That SIE used the profit of the last big title to develop the next. Now we are evaluating if Sony should or should not buy a whole studio like Square Enix?
I think the "era" of acquisitions is over (or ending) and now people are much more interested in knowing what the big gaming companies are creating to offer us. June is coming and I have a feeling it will be a important one for the gaming industry.
If Microsoft buy square enix then it could spell the end for franchises like trials of mana and dragon quest as those titles are loved by the the majority of Japanese gamers and they still wouldn't buy an xbox. I just can't see a big Japanese developer selling to an American company.
You hear stories like this all the time and 9 times out of 10 they're never true. Nothing to worry about.
Nintendo buying them is not an option. Nintendo has it's own stable of characters and games that sells boatloads of systems for them without forcing them to get into this kind of business pissing contest. When it comes to buy outs or corporate mergers, Nintendo don't give a *****.
@Floki SE has A LOT of franchises besides the JRPGS they are well known for. Outriders, for example, is a SE published game. Not to mention Tomb Raider, which used to launch on Xbox first. So while a lot of the franchises might not appeal there are still definitely a lot that would.
Taking away our options by buying up the big third parties is just not the way to go to try and snatch up a fanbase.
@UltimateOtaku91 I bet they would buy GamePass and play games on their phone, PC and soon TV.
@ATaco The only real lost would be Tomb Raider since Square Enix doesn't own Hitman any more, and Deus Ex was more or less killed off for that failure that is Avengers. Outriders is a waste of time right now. But now that Microsoft have Indiana Jones so...
EDIT: The only stuff that Square Enix releases that worth their salt is their JRPGs, and most of the time Xbox doesn't get them... Saga frontier remaster released today, and it on every platform but Xbox.
Bloomberg making up news as it goes 🤣
@UltimateOtaku91 I think you are overstating this. Big part of the reason the Xbox does not sell in Japan is lack of Japanesse-centric games, if they suddenly had to buy an XBox to play Dragon Quest, they would.
Even if they didn't want to get xbox, they could play streaming (their internet infrastructure is so much better than the US) and/or PC, and that would be within Microsoft's interest.
I do hope Square-Enix stays it's own entity, though.
I wouldn't be surprised if there were offers but they never advanced enough.
Either way I am happy this didn't happen.
Oh what a time we live in when any idiot can spout nonsense ,and get it taken as fact ,god I wish it was the 80s again.
Bloomberg seem to be writing a lot of bizarre articles lately.
@vict0RGM Sorry what? All their games are quality stop smoking what you are smoking even their worst games are still decent. 🤪
Do not ever refer to Bloomberg as a “reputable source”.
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