Square Enix’s financial report for the period ending in December 2022 shows a marked decline in sales and MMO revenue, though the publisher hopes it can turn its fortunes around with “multiple” new titles and IP. One of those, Forspoken, already launched, and Square Enix is planning to release Octopath Traveler 2 and Theatrhythm Final Bar Line in February.
Net sales in the company’s digital entertainment totaled 184 billion yen, down 27 billion from the same nine-month period in 2022. Sales in its HD games section – anything that isn’t an MMO or mobile game – dropped to their lowest point since 2021, despite Square Enix releasing several new games, including Star Ocean, Valkyrie Elysium, Harvestella, and Live A Live. These were all comparatively small, special interest releases, at least compared to the company’s heavy hitters like Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Dragon Quest XI in previous years.
MMO sales dropped compared to 2022, unsurprising given Final Fantasy XIV’s Endwalker expansion released in the previous fiscal year, though they remain higher than they were in 2021.
Mobile sales also declined, as Square Enix said new titles could not make up for the existing games’ underperformance. The report made no mention of Square Enix’s NFT projects, which are reportedly still going ahead.
The Final Fantasy maker’s experience is similar to several other publishers across the games industry, both in terms of revenue decline and the lack of major releases, thanks in part to the global cost of living crisis.
Square Enix said it plans on encouraging more player time and spending in its MMO section with “a variety of operational initiatives.” While it’s unclear what the publisher’s release schedule looks like beyond summer 2023, the highly anticipated Final Fantasy 16 is set to launch in late June.
Written by Josh Broadwell on behalf of GLHF
