With the release of Team Asobi's delightful platformer Astro Bot now behind us, the complete absence of Square Enix references in the Rescue Mission successor remains a mystery. Studio head Nicolas Doucet said that he finds it "difficult to comment" on why the publisher, whose fortunes have always been closely tied to PlayStation's own, seemingly chose to skip the nostalgic celebration.
Talking to Stephen Totilo's Game File (thanks, Eurogamer), Doucet said that most "partners just raised their hand and said, 'absolutely'", and PlayStation's first-party family was at the head of the line. Square Enix, it seems, wasn't interested, and Totillo put this observation to Doucet, who neatly sidestepped: "It's difficult to comment on [why Square Enix wasn't involved]. We really respect the choice of each publisher."
We might be reading too much into things. Still, this does align with Square Enix's stated multi-platform mandate, and perhaps the storied publisher/developer doesn't want to be seen to be so closely associated with Sony anymore. Considering that both Final Fantasy XVI and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth somehow failed to meet expectations, that might be best for everyone involved.