Square Enix's business approach to games

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Square Enix says it approached all major platforms for ‘offers’ for Final Fantasy 16 - KitGuru

Last generation with Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts 3, Square Enix made a pretty big deal of su
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In an interview with Game Informer, Final Fantasy 16 producer, Naoki Yoshida, explained the exclusivity process, claiming that Square Enix got in touch with the platform holders early in the development process to see what they could offer:

“Final Fantasy, being one of Square Enix’s very important franchises up there with Dragon Quest and the Kingdom Hearts series – when we do begin development, we do approach multiple platforms, multiple companies, about releasing the game. And when you approach them, they’re going to come back to us with their offers.”
...
While exclusivity and the money that comes with it is one part of the equation, technical expertise and development assistance was also an important factor. Yoshida says that since the team only had to focus on one platform for development, it made things easier, particularly for optimisation. Yoshida also says that PlayStation had engineers and programmers assisting with development to help maximise the game's performance on PS5.

The technical support aspect seems to have been a big deal for Square Enix. Microsoft does also have its own Xbox Advanced Technology team that can assist developers with optimisation efforts, but right now, that team is working with Bethesda on Starfield. It is quite possible that Microsoft didn't have the resources to offer, as they were focused on putting their best foot forward with Bethesda's next big RPG, and the company's first major Xbox exclusive.

While Yoshida didn't go into detail on the bidding war for Final Fantasy 16 exclusivity, it is likely that Microsoft would have had to pay significantly more than Sony to make up for potentially lost sales. If the game had been coming to Game Pass, that could have hurt sales and beyond that, the PlayStation 5 has a larger user base. For reference, back when Microsoft worked with Square Enix to secure Rise of the Tomb Raider as an Xbox One exclusive, the deal was reportedly worth $100 million. Development has only become more costly since then.
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Square Enix said:
The technical support aspect seems to have been a big deal for Square Enix.
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Yeah, no kidding. We all saw Forspoken!
 
Johnny Awesome said:
It's so speculative, not informative. "It is quite possible that Microsoft didn't have the resources to offer,..." Ridiculous.
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I'm am not following what you saying here. Are you saying that it is ridiculous that third largest company in the world, which is also the largest software company in the world, lacked resource to support third party developers on Microsoft's own platform?

Or are you saying what Phil Spencer stated in his recent interview with Kindafunny, which was that they just didn't deploy technical expertise to one of their first party teams, that they owned for two years, that pushed out Redfall is a new low for technical competence? Because neither is defensible.
 
Johnny Awesome said:
It's so speculative, not informative. "It is quite possible that Microsoft didn't have the resources to offer,..." Ridiculous.
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But the devil is in the details:
"The technical support aspect seems to have been a big deal for Square Enix. Microsoft does also have its own Xbox Advanced Technology team that can assist developers with optimisation efforts, but right now, that team is working with Bethesda on Starfield. It is quite possible that Microsoft didn't have the resources to offer, as they were focused on putting their best foot forward with Bethesda's next big RPG, and the company's first major Xbox exclusive."

So what it says here isnt that MS doesnt have the resources, but clearly that they probably didnt have the resources available for Square Enix at the time as they were allocated somewhere else.
 
www.ign.com

Square Enix Promises to Bring Games to Xbox 'Whenever Possible' Following Final Fantasy 14 Announcement - IGN

Today, Square Enix announced that its successful MMORPG, Final Fantasy 14, is on its way to Xbox consoles after years of being a PlayStation console exclusive. And to hear the CEO of Square Enix tell it, it sounds like Xbox has successfully ensured that even more Square Enix games will end up on...
www.ign.com www.ign.com

So, interesting times. FFXIV finally coming to PC Xbox (ooops). Head of Square Enix announces working more closely with Xbox in the future to bring their games to Xbox "whenever possible".

"And one more thing: as CEO of Square Enix, we want to continue to deliver fabulous games to fans across the world. And of course, we want to welcome the Xbox community as well. And starting with today's announcement of Final Fantasy XIV coming in spring 2024, and whenever possible, we are planning to bring our games to Xbox for players around the world to enjoy. We're really looking forward to working closely with Phil and the Xbox team to make this possible."
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"Whenever possible" will likely be for any title that isn't contractually prohibited from appearing on Xbox consoles due to any deals struck with Sony in the past. The wording may or may not indicate that Square-Enix will attempt to avoid any future pure exclusivity contracts with Sony.

So if FF7R never makes it to Xbox that would indicate that Sony had secured permanent in perpetuity exclusivity to the title.

That makes me wonder if MS are potentially paying money to Square-Enix (on par or greater than Sony pays for exclusivity) in order for their titles to appear on Xbox as multiplatform titles?

Either that or Square-Enix no longer feel it is financially viable to exclude Xbox even with compensation from Sony for exclusivity.

Importantly it sends a message that Square-Enix are basically not for sale (currently or in the near future), at least to any console hardware manufacturers.

Regards,
SB
 
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Some people claimed it was always Sony moneyhatting these exclusives. If that were the case, why would SE take that money with it being so much less than they'd get going multiplatform? Never made sense to me. An exclusivity deal would have to be worth more than going multiplatform, which for big titles, not pokey 2nd party AA titles, that's be Big Money. Hundreds of millions of dollars. then again such large payouts would fit Sony's low profit margins. But all in all, I think this news shows there's little big-title moneyhatting and it's been a publisher choice.

Also from the report:

The Group has formulated a new medium-term business plan (covering the fiscal year ending March 31, 2025 through the fiscal year ending March 31, 2027) entitled “Square Enix Reboots and Awakens – 3-years
of Foundation-Laying for Long-term Growth –.”The period covered by its previous medium-term business plan (the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022 through the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024) saw some achievements, including a streamlined portfolio enabled by the divestiture of three overseas studios and select IP,

Same as elsewhere. Seems all the big publishers are doubling down on big IPs and losing studios. Feels like the bottom is falling out the publishing industry. I think anything but a giga-studio needs to be independent and self-publisher these days, or be 2nd partied by a smaller publisher.
 
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