Square Enix recently announced a major change in its development strategy, taking over $140 million (¥22.1 billion) in what the company calls “content abandonment losses.”
This announcement was made as a word of warning to investors, stating that it would recognize this major loss for the fiscal year concluding in March 2024, as reported by IGN.
The change in approach concerns the development of high-definition (HD) video games for PC and consoles. According to Square Enix, the intention behind the change is to be “more selective and focused in the allocation of development resources.”
As of now, we do not have any specific titles affected by the revisions or cancellations. This decision comes amidst optimistic projections, with a 16.8% increase in full-year sales back in February (approximately $2.3 billion / ¥360 billion), and anticipating flat profits of approximately $350 million (¥55 billion). Yet, these projections are now being reevaluated to account for the impact of the writedown.
Still, in spite of these challenges, Square Enix has pushed out incredible releases over the past year, including Final Fantasy XVI, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, and upcoming titles like the new Dawntrail expansion for Final Fantasy XIV and games like Dragon Quest XII.
Back in January, Final Fantasy series production lead Naoki Yoshida (Yoshi-P) expressed his belief that the next core entry in the franchise should be directed by someone from the next generation.
