Square Enix stated in the financial report to investors that Final Fantasy XIV is the main reason for the good financial performance of the Digital Entertainment sector. Other titles released in the fiscal year 2021 were less successful.
What were the flops at Square Enix in 2021? Recently, Square Enix published the annual report to investors for the fiscal year 2021. While the company reported growth in sectors like “Merchandise” and “Publications,” there was a drop in sales of “HD Games” of nearly 10%.
The fiscal year in Japan starts on April 1 and ends on March 31 of the following year, meaning the financial report refers to the period from 1.04.2021 to 31.03.2022. During this time, the following new titles in the category of HD Games were released:
- NEO: The World Ends With You – Sequel to the popular action JRPG The World Ends With You for the Nintendo DS. According to Square Enix, the sales figures for the game were disappointing and lower than expected (via Nintendo Life).
- Outriders – The post-apocalyptic loot shooter, which will soon release a DLC, reportedly did not generate any profits according to the developer People Can Fly (via Tweaktown)
- Guardians of the Galaxy – A game developed in collaboration with Marvel also did not meet Square Enix’s expectations and sold worse than hoped (via. Gamerant)
- In general, Marvel’s Avengers and GotG likely cost Square Enix 200 million in losses (via Dualshockers)
- Babylon’s Fall, a service game with action combat from Platinum Games, has less than 50 active players on Steam. At one point, this number dropped to just one player (via PCGamer).
- Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin has not received any negative comments from Square Enix regarding expectations, but it had the fourth weakest launch of any Final Fantasy game in Japan. Poorer launches could only be recorded by Chocobo’s Dungeon (Wii), FFCC: Crystal Bearers (Wii), and FF Fables: Chocobo Tales (DS) (via VideoGamesChronicle). In comparison, Stranger of Paradise is a multiplatform title for PC, PS4/5, Xbox One, and Series X/S.
The remaining releases consisted of a series of ports and remasters like Nier, FFVII Remake for PC, Legend of Mana, and SaGa Frontier. While they served their purpose, they are not the heavyweights that bring in significant revenue for the company.
Nevertheless, Square Enix’s Digital Entertainment sector recorded an increase in revenue for the year 2021, and they owe this to their once-failed MMORPG.
Final Fantasy XIV as the main reason for growth
The financial report states: It has almost become a tradition for FFXIV to be noted as a positive example of growth in the reports to investors. In 2021, it was labeled as the main reason for the increased revenue.
The “drastically” increased subscription numbers and strong sales of the new expansion Endwalker, which was released in December 2021, have given Square’s Digital Entertainment sector a substantial boost.
The report highlights FFXIV as the main driver of growth in 2021. Compared to the previous year, revenue from the MMO sector (shown in green in the image) rose by over 22 billion yen. That equates to approximately 162 million euros.
The reasons for this are partly due to the release of the expansion Endwalker, which concludes the 10-year-old storyline of the MMORPG. On the other hand, there has also been a significant increase in active players and high media interest in FFXIV, driven by well-known WoW streamers like Asmongold, Preach, and Bellular.
While the revenue of mobile games is also growing, it stands at “only” 2.9 billion yen. Revenue in this area is stable compared to the previous year. Square Enix itself described the performance of these games as “fairly weak”.
Without the strong sales of FFXIV, Square Enix’s Digital Entertainment sector would report a loss.
What’s next for FFXIV? In April 2022, the MMORPG released the major Content Update 6.1, beginning a new story for players. At the same time, the new 24-man raid Aglaia, the ultimate raid Dragon War (Fatal), and extensive PvP overhauls were released. Further sub-updates with new quests and dailies will follow in the coming months.
If the development team sticks to the tight schedule, fans can expect the next update around August 2022. There is no concrete information on this, but the following content can still be expected:
- Continuation of the story quests
- Second part of the 8-man raid Pandaemonium in normal and epic
- New trial in normal and extreme
Generally, according to Director Naoki Yoshida, there are already plans for FFXIV at least 5 years in advance. Therefore, players do not need to fear that their MMORPG will be shut down soon. Work is also already underway on the new expansion, although the content is still being kept secret by the developers.
Considering that the MMORPG started as a total flop, it is now doing very well. However, there has been trouble within FFXIV:
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