What are Square Enix working on - A look at their studios
When 2022 started, Square Enix looked as if they were in a strong place, stronger than they had been in a while, with new games on the way for Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest, plus so many more games.
The company actually shipped some 15+ titles, which is a lot and while most were in their RPG wheelhouse, they did do a few different genres as well. The biggest surprise of last year was that they sold off the American studios they owned, so Eidos-Montreal and Crystal Dynamics are now owned by Embracer, click here to see what their 100+ studios are up to. As of the time of writing this, we know there are two Final Fantasy games aiming to release this year, but what else do they have? Let us take a look.
Creative Business Unit I
Series known to them: Final Fantasy series, Kingdom Hearts series, SaGa series
2022 was a bit of a quiet year for this group, they announced and released Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion, the modern remake of the PSP title that acts as a prequel to Final Fantasy 7 and surprisingly it hit all platforms. Beyond that game and the final of the Pixel Remasters hitting PC and mobile, they really didn’t release much and given it was the 25th anniversary of Final Fantasy, it was perhaps a bit of a letdown.
Perhaps the biggest part of the 25th anniversary stream was the announcement of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, the next title in the trilogy of remakes of Final Fantasy VII. Currently the game is dated for release in late 2023, but there is no telling how far along the game is and given the trailer we had was quite short, it could slip. Beyond Final Fantasy, we know the group is working on Kingdom Hearts 4, as they announced that in April of last year, but since the reveal development has gone quiet. The first game from this group this year will be Theatrhythm Final Bar Line and while not developed by them, they are overseeing it. So two dated games and two maybes, all of which are big deals, it is clearly going to be a big year for this team.
Creative Business Unit II
Series known to them: Dragon Quest series, Nier series, Bravely series
2022 was a slow year for this group, well outside of a new Dragon Quest game, a NieR port to Switch and a new title in Triangle Strategy, which came to both Switch and PC. Of course, the Dragon Quest game that did release was Dragon Quest Treasures, a spin-off of Dragon Quest XI.. I am not typing the full name. While it has its fans, it was not the Dragon Quest that people were hoping for, so worry not they also announced a new Dragon Quest game, Dragon Quest: The Adventure of Dai – Infinity Strash.
With the Dai spin-off, the group are overseeing three Dragon Quest games, as the Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake title is still in development and of course, Dragon Quest XII is on its way. Officially (well currently) called Dragon Quest XII: The Flames of Fate, it was first announced back in 2021, so the team have been working on it for a while now. While we only knew the game was coming via Unreal Engine 5, so sorry fans of the 3DS version of DQ11, since then we have learnt that there are two external studios, HEXADRIVE and Orca helping to develop the game, but that is all we know. Thankfully late last year, Dragon Quest series creator Yuji Horii, released this statement to fans via Famitsu.
“We’re working hard on Dragon Quest XII and Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake! I can’t say much yet, but we might be able to deliver more news on DQIII soon. We’re grateful that people are putting big expectations on DQIII too.”
Now while you might think that is good news for DQ XII, I am looking at the Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake, as since that was announced almost 2 years ago, there has been nothing on it. Oh, let us not forget that Octopath Traveler II is set to release this February and unlike the first one, it will launch on more than just Switch on day one. 2023 is going to be a busy year for this group, but beyond the games that are dated, we will likely need to wait until Dragon Quest Day in May to learn more about the series.
Creative Business Unit III
Series known to them: Dragon Quest Builders series, Final Fantasy MMO series
If there is one group that might be the busiest of them all, then this one is certainly at the top. 2022 saw a wealth of content release for both Final Fantasy XI and Final Fantasy XIV, the two MMOs that the company has for Final Fantasy. Later in the year they did give us a new trailer for Final Fantasy XVI and the release date of June 22nd for it.
While Final Fantasy XIV is going to get content drops throughout the year, they just had a big one, the focus for this group is going to be on the PlayStation 5 exclusive, Final Fantasy XVI. As we get closer to the launch of Final Fantasy XVI, expect to see more trailers about the game, for combat, characters, summons and more. Beyond that however, there isn’t a lot known about the rest of the plans from this group. This year marks 5 years since the last Dragon Quest Builders title released, at least in Japan and that game has since hit all platforms and mobile devices. For that though, we might need to wait until Dragon Quest day, until then, when is the next trailer for Final Fantasy XVI due?
Creative Business Unit IV
Series known to them: Mana series, Million Arthur series
Primarily aimed at mobile games, this group had a busy 2022, as Final Fantasy Brave Exvius kept getting content and at the end of the year Romancing SaGa got a release. The group also oversaw the release of the final Pixel Remaster games for mobile devices to start off the year.
2023 seems to be more subdued, at least for now, expect more content for a host of mobile games, even if the games are exclusive to Japan. The Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters were announced late last year for Switch and PlayStation, so they might have a hand in that, but beyond that, things are going to be quiet for this group.
Tokyo RPG Factory
Series known to them: I Am Setsuna, Lost Sphear, Oninaki
The last game to release from this group was way back in 2019, since then they have been very quiet. Takashi Tokita was the man who oversaw the development of the three games that the studio worked on, even being Creative Director of Oninaki, he stepped away to work on the remake of Live-A-Live. The studio confirmed in late 2019 that their next game was in development, but since then it has been radio silence.
If the studio has been working full time on their next game, then 2023 has to be the year we see it, if not get it, but it is possible that the studio was asked to assist with development of other titles, a 16th mainline entry comes to mind. Whatever is coming from them though, should be interesting as they tend to try new things with each game, we just have to wait to find out what that might be.
Luminous Productions
Series known to them: Forspoken
Last year I said that the game was dated for May, which was true, but then it was delayed and then delayed again and now the new release date is finally here. Given the release date is set for a few weeks from the time of this story going live, another delay is unlikely. With the studio in the final moments of development, expect them to be all in on that, but there will be more content as some DLC is coming. Called Forspoken: In Tanta We Trust, this will arrive sometime later this year and is included in the Digital Deluxe Edition, check out our bargain guide to score the best deal you can.
Square Enix London Mobile
Series known to them: Tomb Raider Reloaded
With the group overseeing Tomb Raider Reloaded in 2022, which did release, you might think they are going to focus on that. However with Square Enix selling off the Tomb Raider IP to another company, that could have left the group out in the cold. They have since partnered up with Navigator Games to bring Avatar Generations to mobile, which set to launch in the early months of this year.
PlayOnline
Series known to them: Final Fantasy XI
What once was a vibrant system, designed to make the online titles of Square Enix work for many, PlayOnline have slowly been fading away, as the system they created couldn’t change to meet the demands of modern games, whilst keeping the ones they had, going.
The only title still making use of it is Final Fantasy XI and when that game does, this division will like shutter as well, so don’t expect anything new from them.
Taito Corporation
Series known to them: Space Invaders series, Bubble Bobble series
Not having released anything in 2022, the studio did reveal their next game, Puzzle Bobble Everybubble! would be coming to Switch in 2023. Beyond that, the studio will likely licence out some of their older games to ININ Games, to remaster and release on modern platforms, like they have done with a number of games already, but what games is the question.
We know there is another Front Mission remake coming this year, plus an all new title in the series, but what else could there be? Given Square Enix is shifting to having outside companies make games for them, there could be a lot more coming than we expect. Out of the 22 games they released last year, they only developed 5 internally.
But for our guesses, did we do good, did we do bad? Let us know in the comments.
