Square Enix has ordered a complete review of its developmental pipeline to increase the quality of future games and streamline, optimise, and synergise its way into increased profit margins. That's under the direction of Square Enix Holdings president Takashi Kiryu, responsible for the company's "aggressive" pivot to AI, who announced the news during Square Enix's latest financial results briefing.
Bloomberg reports that Kiryu's comments indicate a new strategy of self-reliance for the combination publisher/developer as it attempts to reduce the need to outsource development. During a conference call held on Monday, Kiryu said: "We are reviewing from scratch what the organisational structure is to materialise the contents of the pipeline and what is best.'' It doesn't sound like we'll have too long to wait and see what form this shakeup will take, either, with Kiryu narrowing things down further: "We will announce it at least this spring."
Kiryu only joined Square Enix in 2020 and, at just 49 years young, has risen rapidly through the ranks of the old guard. He was appointed President and Representative Director of Square Enix Holdings itself last year, the apex of the company's Corporate Governance structure. Naoki Yoshida recently voiced a desire to inject fresh blood into the ageing company, and we imagine this is just the beginning. That Kiryu is ordering a review of the company's production pipeline while simultaneously trumpeting the wonders of generative tech is a potential cause for concern for our beloved RPG factory, so rest assured we'll monitor the situation closely.
What do you think of Kiryu's bold vision for the future of Square Enix and, by extension, Final Fantasy? Let Darkstar off the leash before escaping via helicopter into the comments section below.
[source bloomberg.co.jp, via eurogamer.net]
Comments 7
So Takashi Kiryu is the real life Rufus Shinra, bringing a reorganization to the Shinr... I mean Square Enix company?
The question is does he want better games? Or more profitable games? Those don't necessarily go hand in hand oftentimes.
@ATaco Hopefully both, because those should go hand in hand.
Well, so much for creativity and smaller projects where people are able to learn and experiment on the job
@MrMagic Keyword being "should". BG3 makes a case for best game of the decade. Meanwhile, Call of Duty still outsells everybody despite being mediocre at best. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and while RPGs (for what SE is known for) are my favorite genre and eagerly await those kind of games, millions more wait for the next CoD to drop. Every. Single. Year.
Meanwhile, Final Fantasy 16 took 7 years to complete. Octopath Traveler 2, 3-4 years. FF7R atleast 6 years. I think they want to pump out more, but I really fear for quality, since I really love those previously mentioned games.
I see Square-Enix as being one of the most diverse and experimental companies already. They release such scattershot games of varying quality and differing audiences. And they never seem to be satisfied with how their games sell.
And to be clear, I think in some ways this is admirable. I like developers and publishers to experiment and try new things, and even attempt to tap into smaller gaming spaces. For every dud like Forspoken, we get a classic like NieR Automata. For every disappointment like Valkyrie Elysium or Stranger of Paradise, we get a hit like Final Fantasy VII Remake or Dragon Quest XI. We get highly rated games that don’t particularly sell and poorly rated games that actually sell well. They dabble in online and live service (Outriders, FFXIV) and also in niche genres (Life is Strange, Just Cause).
Sometimes it seems like they just throw it all against the wall just to see what sticks, which can be pretty fun as a gamer to experience. So I hope this new direction with Kiryu doesn’t mean that all we get going forward is the cash cow of Final Fantasy and service games.
The production pipeline of Square Enix has been dodgy for a decade now, and badly needs fixing.
Even in their good games, there's a strong sense of asset outsourcing where games don't have a consistent art style and objects don't fit the tone/environment.
Leave A Comment
Hold on there, you need to login to post a comment...