Update: Square Enix has now responded to Bloomberg Japan's report, shutting down claims that it could be on the brink of being bought out.
In a new statement released to press, Square Enix explains that it isn't considering selling off the company, and hasn't received any offers. You can read the full statement below.
"Bloomberg has reported today that there is interest from several buyers to acquire Square Enix. However, this report is not based on any announcement by SQUARE ENIX HOLDINGS CO., LTD.
We do not consider selling off the company or any part of its businesses, nor have we received any offer from any third party to acquire the company or any part of its businesses."
While the idea of Square Enix being backed by one of gaming's giants might sound exciting at first, it's probably for the best if it can remain independent. With Bethesda now being gobbled up by Microsoft, the likelihood of new games from the studio coming to Switch and PlayStation is becoming less likely by the day; if a studio remains independent, there's far more chance that all players, regardless of their systems at home, can enjoy new releases.
Original Article (Fri 16th Apr, 2021 03:15 BST): Square Enix, perhaps best known in recent times for the release of games such as Marvel's Avengers, Balan Wonderworld and Outriders, has reportedly got the attention of multiple buyers.
This information comes from the finance news platform CTFN via a Bloomberg Japan report - which claims several potential buyers have shown interest in the Japanese games company. It's all according to two bankers CTFN quoted, who are "familiar with the matter".
It's unclear if these buyers are interested in Square Enix's games department or purchase of the company as a whole.
Some industry analyst have chimed in with their own thoughts and theories, suggesting this may not mean anything:
If we hear anything else about this story, we'll be sure to let you know.
[source bloomberg.co.jp, via twitter.com]
Comments 171
If it is Microsoft or Sony I'm pissed... No leave Square Enix alone! I'm tired of console manufacturers buying major publishers! Even if it's Nintendo put the wallet down and just leave major 3rd party publishers alone!
All this does is make people who own other consoles paranoid if games will still come to their preferred console. That and we just started getting good mainline FF games again!
Yeah they should just leave it alone. Squenix is better without an overlord.
If anybody buys them I predict Sony. They'll want to keep graphics ... aficionados happy.
@Wexter I'm afraid it has to be one of the big three, and my money would be on Sony.
They are losing badly to Nintendo in Japan, and they need a major move to counter Microsoft's purchase of Bethesda.
I could see them opening up their war chest if it gets them the chance to make Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest exclusive.
I doubt any other third-parties can afford to buy Square Enix, Nintendo almost never opens their piggy bank for these kinda deals, and Microsoft just bought Bethesda.
Sony I'm afraid, is the best choice and the one who gains the most from this kinda deal.
@Caryslan and it will be the one that annoys me the most... Nothing against the developers, but the people in charge do not care about history. And Square Enix thrives on it as that's what makes Dragon Quest so good! Also they be on a roll giving love to their older titles! Sony would ruin them.
Also they are the company least willing to play ball with the other companies. Say goodbye to Hero, Cloud and Sephy from the next Smash if they buy them.
As long as its not Tencent
If it gets purchased and all of the games made exclusive to one platform, then that would suck big time. Square Enix is one of my favorite devs/publishers; though they haven't always been consistent in quality, they've made some of the greatest games of all time and still mange to put out good stuff now and then. Sure, some of their games are exclusive to one console or another, but take DQ11 as an example: a great game you can play on many platforms, which is great!
Business wise it makes sense, just as Microsoft buying Bethesda, but as a customer, I don't like the concept. OK if it's a small struggling studio that needs the funding, but I can't believe SE is in any need of that.
Please be Nintendo!
Please God don't let it be Sony, lol.
I really hope that Square refuses. I'm scared that a company that's shady will buy them out and ruin their IPs. Or that their games will be forced exclusives to certain consoles.
Microsoft, Sony, EA, Tencent, Nintendo...... Personally, I think if they really do sell, then Nintendo would do the least amount of damage overall, followed closely by MS. EA and Tencent usually meddle way too much and end up destroying the companies. Sony would further push their censorship ideals.
I wonder is SE in any situation for a hostile takeover like Ubi was back in the day? If that is the case it's possible SE won't even have a say in the matter. If it's a simple buyout situation, money goes on Microsoft if it isn't some random left field like Activision. I can't see Nintendo doubling down on such a purchase and neither see Sony being able to afford such a purchase.
Microsoft on the other hand has billions to burn with no shortage of dosh in sight. Either way will be sad to see, even though most of their modern FF games have been pants to me, they still let some of their talented folk out to play with Bravely series and the like.
Hold them off Squarenix! We're sending backup!
It'd scare me if Microsoft got involved, mainly because they'll force console exclusivity, making it so that you have to buy an xbox to play their games (And I don't plan on buying all three consoles), then with Sony it'll be Console exclusivity as well, meaning series like Bravely Default will probably be forced onto playstation.
Then you have Nintendo, which I hope never gets ahold of square, since that'd mean underpowered tech.. even though I really enjoy Nintendo.
@PoopScoop I hope that Disney keeps their grubby little hands away from the gaming industry as a whole. Don't need them buying up good game series and killing them like they did with Star Wars.
@XenoShaun I agree Nintendo would do the least damage and probably just leave them alone to do their own thing as they have with Monolith and Retro... but PC gamers would be the ones really suffering because Nintendo is not keen to let their games on PC. It be great for Nintendo to basically have a monopoly on JRPGs with Dragon Quest, Final Fantasy and Xenoblade... But, still would suck as sure we'd get solid games and maybe more traditional FF games, but think of the FFVII Remake and how PS gamers would miss out on the next two parts and how forcing those on the Switch could compromise the devs vision...
Also, MS while not my fav is not the worse as they've changed their mindset from the Rareware days and seem cool with publishers and devs bringing their games to other consoles. But, still not my favourite idea in the world with an MS running around with Bethesda and Square Enix. Though I hope this is just fluff as Square Enix is best left as their own entity.
@PoopScoop I thought Disney and SE had major falling outs over KH3 and with Disney pretty much forcing them to make the game a certain way.
Plus Disney have a new gaming division now, LucasFilm Games. Aptly named of course.
Oh joy, another potential big market acquisition that brings us one step closer to the industry being controlled by a handful of monolithic corporations. Don't you just love capitalism?
Can't say I'm too elated for them to be bought by any of the feasible candidates either.
Sony already holds stake in the company, but if they manage to buy the company I will be absolutely pissed. Every game from then on will be some SJW/Woke garbage dude to Cali Sony's putrid influence and that will destroy every franchise we hold dear. Let's hope that never happens.
Geez-are they struggling financially? Or is it just the time for bigger companies to gobble up what they can? I would hate for them to be nailed down to one platform. If they must, I hope for it to be with Nintendo, though I think it’s the least likely of the big 3.
@Bolt_Strike Capitalism is awesome. Calm the ***** down.
@mattesdude I don't think Square is struggling. I just think it's companies trying to gobble up the industry.
@Bolt_Strike It's less a problem with Capitalism, and moreso that big corporations are left unchecked, allowed to grow bigger and bigger due to broken Anti-trust laws that never actually work.
Hopefully they remain independent... if Sony want to buy a Japanese studio I would much rather like for them to buy Capcom... Square Enix is far from being consistent...
@Wexter Yes it would be a shame for any current ongoing 'part' projects and PC if these companies get involved. I'm leaning towards MS as the lesser evil as they are on the losing team, so they actually care to make an effort, just like Sony changed their tune with putting effort to get PS4 back on track over the PS3's middling success early on. But alas it is only a matter of time MS will get complacent again so really wouldn't want to see them acquire a company as a permanent result.
I agree SE should be left alone. If anything they just need to streamline their game engine costs (which they seem to be working quite well towards) then I can't imagine they will have any financial issues to cause such a needed buyout to occur.
@Mando44646 What’s wrong with Tencent? My general impression is they buy stake in everything and just collect money. I mean they own stake in both Epic Games (Fortnite) and Krafton (PUBG) and those companies still compete in the battle royale genre as if nothing changed.
@oconnoclast I hope that Neither tencent nor amazon buy them. Amazon itself.. is just.. not great, and Tencent needs to stay the heck away from gaming as a whole due to being incompetent.
I hate it when game companies started buying one another, it's obvious that the end result will be terrible. You think that when a big company buys a smaller more valuable company that they focus on evolving into something bigger and better but nope a majority of the time they buy them just to bury them. Also why would Square Enix want to sell out anyways? They already got plenty of IPs that are still selling and in development (like Project Triangle Strategy), best to get those done before they sell out to another company. The bad thing about the sellout would be if Square Enix got bought by another company it's likely a majority of their IPs that are not name Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest will likely be ignore.
@Wakkawipeout They're a shady company with backdoors to the Chinese Government. I believe some of Tencent's products (Like phones and such) got banned in America.
I expect MS to try and cement their GamePass library with an acquisition like this, and I don't think Sony has enough cash to afford a buy this big.
If it does happen I just hope Nintendo manages to get the rights to Dragon Quest...
If sony buys them... I'm done.
I don't want Microsoft involved either but they haven't shown signs yet of being the trash sony is becoming.
@VoidofLight Nah, there's other issues with capitalism besides big corporations gobbling each other up, such as automating away jobs and cutting pay making it harder and harder for the average person to afford basic needs, but that's irrelevant to the topic. But more effective anti-trust laws would definitely fix that aspect of capitalism, yes.
@PoopScoop
It would make sense considering they're relatively new CEO, Chapek, worked in merchandising for years which would included working on the business side of video games. He'd be someone who would know the money making potential of the medium.
Compared to someone, like the old CEO, Iger, who definitely seemed to be a firm believer in old media tenets (movie and TV) before everything else, which is why he gave up on both Disney Interactive and LucasArts.
...Please be a company that will get them to make more Fortune Street games...and at least put one of them on a Nintendo system. >:c
I wouldn't be at all surprised if it's Sony especially to counter MS buying Bethesda. It would make sense too since both compose are Japanese and then Sony can use it as I said to counter MS. Want to play Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest games then come to Sony. Want to play Elder Scrolls go to Microsoft.
Please don't let it be EA or Tencent!!!! I hope it is Ubisoft. Ubisoft's switch support has been pretty good recently and they always holds sales on the eshop.
It’s not Microsoft or Sony.
It’s Disney.
@Gus_Campos Oh god don't give Ubi execs more people to sexually harass.
@Tasuki Sony currently seem to want nothing to do with Japan. They are effectively a full on American company now with their HQ being in America, them being registered as an American entity now and owned and ran by Americans. They'd likely cut all the JRPGs and just shill out whatever Eidos teams can do. Or force SE proper to make stuff right out of their wheelhouse. Not that Sony can afford such an acquisition however.
@Gus_Campos Ubisoft buying Square would be nightmareish. All the games would be with forced micro-transactions and DLC, including games like Octopath..
God not again
I doubt that it's Xbox since the JUST bought Bethesda, Sony I hope not, Nintendo would likely be the best case scenario besides SE staying independent, and I can't think of anyone else.
Also, after Balan Wonderworld, why would anyone want their fingers on Square Enix?
Honestly, I think this is just Japanese investors looking to drink up some business. Square Enix's stock has taken a beating lately due to the failure of the Avengers game (as well as the disaster that was Balan Wonderworld).
@Caryslan
I believe that Nintendo has the same net worth as all of Sony.
Meanwhile, I know that Microsoft can afford to buy, both, Sony and Nintendo, two times over.
As an Xbox fan i’m happy with their recent acquisitions but the one company I don’t want anyone to touch is Square Enix. Xbox definitely needs some more SE love, but I don’t want their games to stop coming to Nintendo consoles. I’m hoping Gamepass will change the attitude of Japanese developers towards Xbox for the better.
Sony just annoys me since they pay for timed exclusivity on almost all of SE’s games; but they do have a legacy with them as well so the games should be shared with everyone
At least if it’s Microsoft there is a good chance the games will still be on Nintendo. If it’s Sony then rip.
Assuming it's one of the big three and buying them means their ips become exclusive, I'd hope it's sony considering nintendo would literally make them regress with their horrible hardware and microsoft is microsoft lmao
But please no just leave 3rd party devs alone. They work best as 3rd party devs
For Microsoft, Sony or Nintendo to buy a company like square it's the dumbest of things possible, those publishers make the profit they made by relesing software on as many platforms they could, so to narrow it to just one it's plain dumb.
Square Enix should be left alone.
If one company was to buy Square Enix, it would be Sony but then again it could also be Nintendo as well as Nintendo dominates Japan and Square and Nintendo have worked together before.
But I hope no one buys Square Enix. It should be left alone but maybe some partnership with either Sony or Nintendo could help them. Sony already has a full partnership with Square Enix while Nintendo does their own thing
Also whoever says Capcom should be bought, Capcom doesn't need to be acquired as they had great success with games like RE 2 remake, MH World, RE 7, MH Rise, etc.
Everyone on here is thinking of SquareEnix as that company that makes Square and Enix games. They're forgetting it's the future and SquareEnix is that company that makes Tomb Raider, Just Cause and used to make Hitman.
@EriXz yeah it is dumb imo.
Microsoft out of the 3 would be the most willing to put games on other platforms. Sony prefers to keep it locked their platforms but they also allow PC releases of games as well. Nintendo just keeps it to their platforms only.
Also out of the 3 companies, Microsoft won't acquire Square Enix as I think there are some regulations and restrictions of a American company buying a Japanese one.
So either Sony or Nintendo could acquire. Might be Sony imo
I'd much rather they stay multiplat, but if one of the three console manufactures must buy them, I just hope that it isn't Sony.
@EriXz
Surely, you mean Sony and Nintendo. Microsoft will literally pay the development costs for a thirdy party game just to get it on Gamepass while allowing it to be sold on Sony and Nintendo systems.
@NoTimeForBS and you don't mind if it is ONLY on Nintendo platforms and NOT on PC
@anoyonmus what do you mean? I just said I'd prefer they stay multiplat/3rd party.
@XenoShaun I think Sony could but recovering from it will take a long time as Playstation is practically dead in Japan.
I hope no one buys Square Enix. They can figure this out by themselves. If someone does have to buy Square, I feel like Nintendo should. But most likely if a company wants to buy Square, it would Sony
I hope no one buys them. They deserve to maintain their own identity in the industry.
If Sony buys them, relations may sour yet again between Square-Enix and Nintendo. I do NOT want to see that happening especially with how far they've gotten with Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.
If Microsoft buys them, it gives Microsoft a better chance against Sony in terms of trying to enter the Japanese market; actually having games that cater to the Japanese audience would be a step in the right direction. It also means simultaneous releases on PC. Microsoft has been pretty generous lately, so my opinion of them is actually pretty good.
Now, Nintendo... it entirely depends on how they develop games. If they followed Capcom's model with Monster Hunter Rise, and make a game that fits perfectly on the Switch and could be optimized for more powerful hardware, then I will definitely be good with that. Square-Enix did that with Dragon Quest XI S, which was a timed-exclusive and played very nicely. Unfortunately, you have games like Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3, which... really screamed for the original art style and better hardware.
@NoTimeForBS so you don't mind if Nintendo buys Square Enix because Nintendo will keep the games locked onto their platform only.
I know that you prefer if it is multiplatform but your 2nd statement interests me
@anoyonmus They just hope it's not Sony.. they said nothing about it being locked to Nintendo's platform.
Microsoft has the most money and don't care about spending it. Sony doesn't seem interested in Japanese games. I'd be disappointed to see Microsoft get them.
SE is already a giant corporation of two gigantic JRPG companies combined. We don't need them to be exclusive to anything.
I already hate that Microsoft bought two of the biggest western RPG companies back to back, we don't need this as well. I hope its all bs, especially since SE has been seemingly doing really well, despite the stupid, bad Avengers thing. Like their new game is a huge hit DESPITE massive issues anyway.
@ModdedInkling Microsoft isn't gonna buy Square Enix. There are certain regulations and there are restrictions of an American company buying a Japanese one.
As @XenoShaun said, Sony is practically an American company and only focused on the Western market and sidelining Japan. This all began with the button issue in Japan.
Nintendo on the other hand could be interesting. On one hand, Square could benefit with working with Nintendo. On the other hand, all Square Enix games will have to be Nintendo exclusive
SquareEnix have to think 1000 times before other company want to buy them.
Otherwise, SquareEnix will be ended into Cie'th by given with ridiculous Focus to fulfill (Exclusivity, Tons of DLC, Forced to be Westernized, etc) from the company who bought SquareEnix.
@Caryslan and in another move, Microsoft might be buying either Konami or Sega
@anoyonmus I do mind it. That's why I don't want SE to sell. If I had to choose however, and I was choosing between Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony, I would say "either Microsoft or Nintendo". But that is only if I were forced to choose.
@Wexter I mean, even Nintendo isn't exactly willing as well
@NoTimeForBS hmm ok
Just saying, it is most likely not Microsoft.
There are certain regulations for an American company to buy a Japanese one.
Sony could potentially ruin Square Enix and probably even put them out of business.
@anoyonmus not really... I mean Zenimax bought Tango Gameworks (japanese) and then Microsoft bought Zenimax and got them. That law/regulation only applies to other important buildings/services like postal office, defence, telecommunications etc. A while ago, Japan said they wanted to welcome foreign investment and they sped up the entire process to make things go quicker. SE would go to the highest bidder if they were to sell. That means Microsoft, Tencent, Amazon or someone else.
@NoTimeForBS not all Japanese companies. Only certain ones
It better not be EA. I don't want them to close down the company of beloved games from it.
Sony could potentially ruin them. Nintendo would treat them better imo
@robr If Square Enix got bought by another big company most of those no name IPs you just mention will be thrown out the windows just saying.
@Ghost_of_Hasashi They'd basically be reduced to Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. Say goodbye to Mana, Deus Ex, and any franchise that is not a multi-million seller. I mean Square already ignores Deus Ex since they butchered Mankind Divided... but oh well. Also, depending on the company **cough Sony**... say goodbye to this nice little streak we've had of remastered PSOne games like Legend of Mana or even these nice tight collections like Collection of Mana and Collection of SaGa.
@anoyonmus They're way more okay with the idea than Sony. They okayed cross-platform play years ago... while Sony had to be dragged in kicking and screaming.
I can't see this as anything other than a bad thing.
@AnnoyingFrenzy it is a REALLY bad thing if Sony buys them.
If it is Microsoft, they put games on Xbox and PC and those platforms are relatively cheap. Heck they even support Nintendo as well occasionally.
If it is Nintendo on the hand, I think they might be willing to put games on Xbox and maybe PC as well
But if it is Sony on the hand, they are just stubborn and only put it on their costly systems which suck
@Wexter say good bye to Dragon Quest, Final fantasy, that project triangle strategy game we will never get. It will only be a demo
@Wexter I really loved your analogy on that part.
True Nintendo is willing to cooperate while Sony seems to be stuck up and think they are doing good right now except they are not. Microsoft and Nintendo are doing way much better than Sony imo rn.
If Nintendo were to acquire any company, I feel like Square could potentially be one. Platinum Games and Koei Tecmo have a history of working with Nintendo most of the time as well so Nintendo could potentially buy one of them
@Wexter
"That and we just started getting good mainline FF games again!"
Erm.... we did? XIII and XV were good FF to you? It's all opinion but I didn't like either, especially compared to III-X
@Caryslan I think MS gains as much or more than Sony. It helps ensure they have a footprint for asia gamers that they solely lack in franchises such as Final Fantasy. MS also had exclusive agreements around the Tomb Raider series last gen and may want access to that franchise as their consoles best alternative currently to Uncharted (and an extent Last of Us) that Sony has.
@Classic603 we literally didn't.
I think like FF 12 was the last good one imo
@Smigit I think so too.
While I prefer Square Enix to remain multiplatform, I would prefer either Microsoft or Nintendo to buy them. Microsoft could potentially put all new SE games on Game Pass and have some be exclusive. Same with Nintendo.
Also Xbox and Nintendo are much more cooperative compared to SONY.
Sony could ruin them and the PS5's are expensive and they are actually not even that good at all. Also not everyone could afford one. People think PS5 is better because of the exclusives but if you look at the console, JUST LOOK AT THE CONSOLE AND THE FEATURES... it is not even that great. It has some good games, but Sony is being the Sony from the PS3 era right now
@anoyonmus
I'm curious why Final Fantasy started moving away from the "staples". Even XII the classes and summons weren't the standard, XIII went further beyond and then XV got rid of all the classics... and fun... lol
@Classic603 The XIII Trilogy is hot garbage. Final Fantasy XV is good if you play Royal where they expanded the final level, added in the ability to swap party members on the fly and fixed a lot of the small stuff. It's not my favourite maybe near the middle of the pack... but VII Remake is fantastic! And I'm not even a VII fanboy and that gameplay was TIGHT!
I'm just not a fan of Sony making FF conform to the Sony "exclusive" template of basically playing like Last of Us, but with swords. I liked the new God of War, but that camera was arse and it's clear Sony has a template and they want their studios to follow it.
EDIT: As for XII that was an Ivalice game. It is super good and a ton of fun! But, it really did not fit the FF mainline niche as it was built on the back of the Tactics games. The main reason the franchise had an identity crisis was that Sakaguchi left and without his vision, they kinda handed the series around to directors.
Looks like someone is interested in Balan them out.
@anoyonmus I think you'd have to back further than that.
@tseliot I really don't want it to be Sony even though I think it could be Sony
@Wexter
Lol okay so you don't actually think we have been getting good mainline FF. I'm just glad we have Bravely, as that's the closest to my ideal FF as I'm gonna get these days.
Also, XIII-2 is at least more fun that XIII lol
@Classic603 Not since XII. That is why I said starting to as XV was a step in the right direction for me, but VIIRemake was fire and FFXVI is being done by the FFXI and XIVReborn team and they have a proven record of doing great work.
@Wexter idk... I kinda like these old school RPGS more than what we see nowadays
@anoyonmus I think Koei Tecmo would be a great fit for Nintendo. Not sure how I'd feel about Dead or Alive and how that fit with the Big N, but Ninja Gaiden would be a solid fit for them considering they published Razor's Edge and helped fix the mess that was Ninja Gaiden 3. That and they've shown with P* that they are willing to let a studio do their thing even if it is mature.
As for where Final Fantasy is... I'd prefer them going back to how things were with FFX, but without Sakaguchi that will probably never happen. They are too busy chasing the mainstream with making it an action RPG and I'm willing to give FFXVI a shot considering it is being worked on by the FFXIVReborn team who have been on fire with critical acclaim. But, I don't see Sony respecting the old-school RPGs which is why I don't see them letting Square Enix experiment with stuff like Bravely Default or the little one-off Tokyo RPG Factory produce... Sony would be too busy trying to push out more Final Fantasy and Eidos games and making them conform to the Sony style rather than allow experimentation.
This would absolutely not be good for gaming as a whole. Just... leave third-parties the way they are.
@Caryslan Microsoft seems more likely to me. If they bought Square Enix they would vastly improve their market share. Right now, people who buy Square Enix titles are much more likely to own a Sony system. Also Microsoft has been making huge purchases of late
Though Tencent is a possibility too.
Nintendo seems least likely to me.
@anoyonmus "Also Xbox and Nintendo are much more cooperative compared to SONY."
They are? Like how?
@backup368 ahhh lets see.
Nintendo and Microsoft are more than willing to have cross play while Sony was being stubborn and arrogant as hell on that .
Banjo and Steve in Smash bros thanks to cooperation between the two.
@anoyonmus Don't forget Ori and Cuphead coming to Switch!
I'd rather they remain independent, but Sony makes the most sense with all their already exclusive dealings with them. Nintendo would probably be the best because they share a creative spirit with Square Enix the other two don't have. Microsoft being the worst, I have nothing against them but their games post 360 have little to no soul, and their almost mandatory microtransactions that kinda put a damper on all their titles.
@Wexter well Cuphead was funded by Xbox so it isn't essentially Xbox published game but I see what you are saying.
Thanks for reminding me about Ori tho.
So you see @backup368 how Nintendo and Xbox cooperate.
Now take a good look at Sony. A REAL GOOD LOOK AT SONY. They are being stubborn as hell when it comes to cross play and they reluctantly allowed it on their platforms. Playstation also doesn't care about their past hence the PS3 store closure. Sony rn is being the Sony from the PS3 era.
So now Xbox is kinda ahead with big deals in gaming and stuff and Nintendo surprise revealing showcases and surprise dropping games
No please don't do this to me please don't be true, If it is true I think sony.
@Dubbicakes well, even Nintendo has exclusive dealings with Square Enix as well. I think some of them passed already but we are still awaiting info on Project Triangle Strategy.
So either Sony or Nintendo could acquire Square Enix. Nintendo would be the best for creativity and stuff like that. Nintendo usually doesn't ruin other companies work and they encourage it to bring it to Nintendo platforms and even make them exclusive. Like what we saw with bayonetta 2, bayonetta 3 and astral chain where Nintendo allowed Platinum to do their own thing and acting as an overseer and also drop some helpful advice
I hope that, whoever it is, they won't be preventing their games from releasing on Nintendo platforms in the future...
@Yosher unless if it is Sony then sure
@anoyonmus That's true, but their dealings with Nintendo aren't nearly as big as Final Fantasy VII and Final Fantasy XVI being exclusives to Sony.
I really hate this trend. Stop f**** buying everything.
And Microsoft, you have IPs that people crave to see resurrected, why don't you use them.
@Dubbicakes true but they are notable games still.
Square and Nintendo do cooperate in Smash bros too. We have Cloud, Hero and Sephiroth in smash rn and I hope Square can bring more of their characters to smash
@Deihnyx honestly I would prefer what Microsoft is doing with Xbox rather than Playstation
@anoyonmus Oh yes, the typical blanket arguments.
Nintendo and Microsoft are more than willing to have cross play while Sony was being stubborn and arrogant as hell on that.
So? You can have cross platform play with PC.
Banjo and Steve in Smash bros thanks to cooperation between the two.
Minecraft is owned by Mojang and they make decisions on their own apart from Microsoft. Banjo happened because Phil Spencer wanted it and Sakurai's took his bait. Wouldn't surprise me if a Banjo sequel is in the works for Series X now.
@anoyonmus Why not? Sony's been the console leader for the most part since they first entered the market. They see no cross platform play as a benefit to them since that encourages more system and software sales.
@backup368 sorry but Sony has to put cross play due to angry fans from them.
That might be true but what about people who can't afford to buy another console. Thats why cross play is important. It makes it kinda easier to get around.
Sony recently has been making some questionable moves in the market recently and a lot of fans aren't happy with them
@VoidofLight I think it’s lease grow bigger more like buy up IP’s for exclusive content.
@anoyonmus Not to discount how great the games are, but they are small projects handled by B teams.
In the end it's not in Nintendo's character to buy a major studio. The same goes for Sony, but Microsoft is pushing their hand a little this generation. Microsoft being an American company with a bloated platform makes them less attractive if Square has a choice in the matter. Tencent also would be out because the Japanese aren't fans of the Chinese plain and simple.
Companies that might be doing this:
1. EA
2. Microsoft
3. Tencent
4. Epic
5. Disney
6. Apple
7. Sony
Nintendo really doesn't buy large publishers.
If it's Apple, there will never be another sqeex game for nintendo.
How about we don't.
@anoyonmus Yes. They are S-A-W-F-T.
@anoyonmus Square Enix is doing fine on its own though.
I've yet to see Microsoft buy something and do anything good with it.
I sense a disturbance in the Mana
Ahmad can say sound things when not quoting everyone's favourite Sasquatch of the game industry aka "Insider" to fan the rumour flames on his own. There are hundreds more "buyout" talks and rumours than there are buyouts.
And on a humorous-slash-somewhat-cynical note, fellow commenters - are you worrying that a console maker who recently moved house from Japan and just trimmed its prized Japanese studio to a borderline Dwayne Johnson hairstyle... might buy out a Japanese publisher? To cater to a market they currently refuse to cater to or to sell more stock in a country they allegedly don't bother shipping much stock to? Quite a load of money to splurge on all the Final Fantasies and Just Causes that PS5 will be getting anyway. Especially after you just shared one of your own first-party productions with Game Pass of all services.😄
That Balan Wonderworld has really turned some heads!
In all seriousness though, I hope they get left alone. Or left to continue their own course, at least.
@JSDude1 Nintendo can’t afford buying a company as big as SE
Sony would be the absolute worst case scenario. I would rather see them go to the CCP via a Tencent acquisition than see them die under Sony (Tencent is not popular with Japanese markets, but China is slowly, worringly, finding increasing success with some titles in the region. A Square Enix acquisition would not be unexpected). Naturally it would be ideal to see them return to being a Nintendo second party, but that is unfortunately unlikely. It's 2021, only the most soulless corporations on the board can play this game.
@JimmySpades There is a good chance Nintendo is one of them, they have many similarities and follow a lot of similar game design philosophies. Plus we could finally get a proper Super Mario RPG2.
I wouldn't doubt that Microsoft is interested, given their recent acquisitions. I could see Sony being interested too given that they've been paying for exclusive and early content with the Final Fantasy 7 Remake releases. For some reason I can really picture Sega and Square merging, but I don't think Sega has the kind of money right now to be making that kind of purchase.
Please not Sony. I've already lost Squaresoft once when the PlayStation 1 rolled around, I can't lose them again...
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Hypothetical thinking, but what if it were Capcom? Could you imagine the crossovers?
@Abweegee Nintendo totally could, they've got more than enough money.
Having said that, I really don't think they're part of the talks here. I just don't think they feel a need for them. Square is known for their JRPGs and the like, and when Nintendo already has strong big name IPs like Pokemon, Xenoblade Chronicles, and Fire Emblem, I don't think they would have a great interest in making a dev like Square exclusive to them.
Reckon it will be Sony if anybody.
Not convinced they are a great fit for Microsoft other than adding additional pressure on to their competitors to allow game pass on their platforms
@anoyonmus What kind of restrictions would there be on an American company buying a Japanese one? Like Sharp was bought by a Taiwanese company and Toshiba was recently in talks of being bought out by an English company.
why everyone think that if Sony buy Square Enix it could ruin Square Enix and it franchises?dint many of Square Enix franchises become well know thanks to PlayStation?like Final Fantasy 7.
Sixteen years after the dawn of “AAA Gaming”, the weaknesses of the games industry has been exposed. Various wealthy companies, outside the reach of antitrust laws, begin to devour suffering companies weakened by the proliferation of “AAA games”. Game design has regressed as gaming plunges into turmoil from the outbreak of various corporate wars. The heat death period has begun!
If it's Sony good bye to all other platform releases.
If it's Microsoft at least only playstation will lose out.
Nintendo would be new to such a big third party buy out (it tends to buy smaller studios that have been working on its ips beforehand) can't recall them buying anything like huge before.
Let me guess: Tencent?
Nintendo won’t buy it....it just lets strong third party producers get sold off to other companies.
If square is up for sale I imagine they will just sit by and watch.
I would like to see all Square Enix games come to GamePass. Also SEGA games.
Square really should have made FF7 for the N64. By not submitting to sony back then, now they would be strong and independant like Nintendo.
Hope it not Sony, Microsoft or EA to be honest. Still don't see anyone paying 1 billion to buy the company at the moment
@glaemay
That's not why they did not release FF7 for the n64. The game could never have bin put on an cartridge as it needed 4 cd disks from what I remember
@glaemay You're right, FF7 should have been on N64, but it was most likely technically impossible. The biggest possible cartrige was 64MB ; compare to 3x700MB disks. So they had to submit to Sony, unfortunately.
Could only have worked with the 64DD, but needing an external peripherical would doom the game.
@Arnold-Kage No one had forseen anyone outright buying Bethesda, and yet...
Just please, for the love of all ***** sake, don't ever let Disney acquire them.
I hope they keep making games for all three systems. It’s great that everyone has access to all these titles. I know it make more sense them being with Sony as they have timed exclusives but on Xbox they have included most the of the final fantasy titles, dragon quest 11, Octopath traveller, kingdom hearts and Outriders on game pass recently. So I think it’s hard to say who it could be now if the rumours are true.
That update is for the best. I mean, Squenix could not be telling the whole story of course, but I am doubtful that is the case. I think SE would be better staying as it's own entity.
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That said, bring back the Chrono series!
As I suspected it, this was a big nothingburger.
Bring back Square Soft
I want Square Enix to stay autonomous but put more effort to deliver unique experiences "under all trees". I'm not happy with just Octopath and Bravely Default. I want a proper Final Fantasy game for Switch like the excellent Before Crisis: FF VII for PSP. Maybe FF VII remake for the Switch Pro?
Ahh yes! Bloomberg! The outlet that has said a Switch Pro is imminent for the last 3 years.
See? Bloomberg isn't infallible. No Switch Pro for you!
This rumor is hilarious because Squareenix goes around eating and buying other companies.
The original report came from CTFN and NOT Bloomberg but people are gonna blame bloomberg since they're a name they know and not the other place which started this report.
keep scrolling
@Kamalen
True, but Bethesda had more financial problems then square does at the time.
Never believed it for a minute. As If. Stupid internet rumors! If you heard it on the internet it must be true!
Bloomberg are starting to become a bit like that snivelling little wart that hangs around all the parties listening to everyone, making stuff up to seem more interesting than they are and starting sh@t between people.
I don't know why other media outlets hold them in such high regard. Jason Schreier has such an inflated opinion of himself and his writing too. He loves the sound of his fingers tapping away on a keyboard, that's for sure.
Good to know the rumor ain't true, not with a big corp like Square Enix.
Yay! Was worried that the Switch would have been shafted.
Hey Square, do you wanna sell us your company?
Square-Enix responds:
@Abweegee Nintendo can 100 percent afford to buy Square Enid because of their success
Oh good they are not. Better that they stay multi platform in my opinion
Bloomberg .... is that one who keeps spreading those bogus switch pro rumors
I never believed the rumors to begin with. Let's start off by asking, who has the money to purchase SE? SE would cost a lot more to purchase than what MS paid for ZeniMax. SE has more franchises, more studios, and generates more revenue than ZeniMax. SE publishes more games than ZeniMax. Also, people tend to forget that SE bought Eidos, so all those studios and properties are there as well.
I could see a company like Capcom, or Namco Bandai being bought, but not SE. SE is one of the largest game producers / publishers out there at the present time. Their only real peers in that department are MS, Sony, Nintendo, and possibly The company that owns THQ Nordic (and all the other studios it acquired recently) as well as Ubisoft. All other publishers are smaller.
@Caryslan If Sony actually cared about their performance in Japan, they would make almost none of the moves they have been making in general. Tim Ryan doesn't care about Japan, because the United States is nearly thrice the size and Europe is an entire continent. He sees dollar signs and that's all. If hey did by Square Enix, it would mostly be for their name and then they would only pump out Tomb Raider and some shell of what Final Fantasy used to be. There certainly wouldn't be Dragon Quest anymore.
Sony doesn't have the cash to buy S-E. They can barely moneyhat a few games. They're not poor by any stretch but they don't have the kind of money required sitting around to buyout huge companies like this on a whim. Sony also doesn't care about Japan's market at all which they've made abundantly clear. They're only interested in what performs globally.
Microsoft isn't in the business of hostile takeovers. If SE says it's not for sale, MS isn't trying to do it covertly. There's not one instance in the post Ballmer-Gates era of them doing this in any industry. Their acquisitions have all been mutual. We did find out recently they actually were once set to sell to MS and then it fell through, but that was when they were performing very badly.
So if it's happening we're looking at tech/media companies. Tencent, Apple, Google, Amazon. They could buy them from the rounding errors on a balance sheet and buy some coffee with the change. Or media companies like AT&T, Disney, Vivendi, Comcast, etc. Plus hedge funds and the like that could try to just extract value or use them to whitewash debt. It doesn't seem that likely though.
@Wakkawipeout Most big "companies" in China aren't "companies" in the traditional Western sense. All companies in China operate only with the blessing of the government, which is to say, the party. But the big ones in particular are more deeply connected than that, operating more or less as a branch of government, with management from the party. Tencent is one of the most connected of them all, operating as a function of the government/party to the point that there's no real distinction of where one ends and one begins. They are also the key contributor along with Ali to operating the "social credit" (total surveillance) system.
Think of Tencent like the Chinese statist version of a CIA front company responsible for monitoring and recording the activities of every single human buying up as much controlling and influential stake of the entertainment and technology industry as it can, and giving control of those industries more or less directly to the party itself.
I would say even Google and Facebook controlling everything is a better outcome, but Facebook is distressingly tied to the US and Chinese governments both, and would gladly sell one to the other if it meant a pat on the back. And Google, I think, would rather replace both governments with themselves.
@roboshort That's sad, I hadn't heard about Sharp being bought out. Toshiba isn't surprising, they've been circling the drain for over 10 years, and it was expected they would have closed up a number of years ago. The government's been handing them welfare like cotton candy for a long time and they really had nothing to show for it. At this point whoever buys them will just get a name and some facilities/real estate.
Good, we don't need large corporations ruining them
@NEStalgia Wow, thank you for the education! Corporations are truly a scary thing.
@Wexter Not as quickly as Microsoft would ruin them, like they did to RARE.
However, if SE says no one has offered to buy, and they aren't looking to sell, then why worry?
@Wexter Nintendo isn't keen to let their games be on anything. Lol
@XenoShaun Lucas games were around for decades before Disney got hold of them.
@Wexter Actually it was Sony who asked MS from cross play years ago. MS didn't want to play ball because the 360 was ahead. When the tables turned last gen, it was MS who was asking Sony. Naturally Sony said no, and MS wanted to paint narratives to make Sony look bad. Funny everyone forgets that.
I don’t believe Bloomberg. I don’t believe Square Enix. The good news is: I don’t care. 😂
@Kamalen I think a N64 FF7 technically could have been possible, they'd have just had to cut out the pre-rendered cutscenes. Having everything play out in in-engine graphics like Ocarina of Times cutscenes.
Just the N64's strengths (Fast loading, large 3d environments) didn't really play to FF7's focuses. Since you were mostly just moving cloud around static pre-rendered scenes
Would really hate it if Sony bought them, I don't want their california influence over Dragon Quest as well as having to waste money on a PS5.
@Wexter No, but apparently you didn't read my post either. I was agreeing with you. Sorry, next time I promise I'll contradict you. How's that sound?
@Tempestryke Sounds good! Sorry lol I thought you were being sarcastic! Hahahahahah though all good bro!
Also, deleted my earlier post as there is no reason to leave it up now lol
@Wexter points finger melodramatically I contradict thee!
sWiTcH pRo cOnFiRmEd?
@Chamver
I'm not worried about any of the "woke" stuff. I'm just done with their systems in general and don't want to have to potentially buy another one of their boxes to play SquareEnix games. At that point, they will definitely not be getting any more money for me.
@VoidofLight I don't have these feelings on ubisoft games. Never bought dlc from them and never felt the need to.
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