During a recent internal meeting, publisher Square Enix confirmed that it intends to sell some of the company’s shares in studios in Europe and the US.
It is said that Square Enix’s goal is to “improve the efficiency of capital operations” and reinvest most of its resources into games in Japan.
Earlier this year, Square Enix sold Eidos Montreal, Crystal Dynamics and SE Montreal Studios to Swedish game publisher Embracer Group for $300 million. At the time, it said that the company plans to use the money to acquire new studios and invest in blockchain, AI, and other areas.
According to game industry analyst David Gibson, the sale of the three studios mentioned above is part of Square Enix’s new strategy. The studios in Europe and the US are wholly owned by them and decided to sell some shares of the studio to the companies. “Certain studios will remain 100% owned by Square Enix, but others will undergo changes,” Gibson said in a tweet.
Gibson points to reallocating resources within the team as part of the reason Square Enix decided to sell its stake in the studio. According to him, the company claims that some of the recent European and American games released by the company have consumed other games’ money and R&D resources. With these adjustments, Square Enix was able to “allocate key resources to Japanese games.”
Gibson speculates that major companies like Tencent and Sony may be interested in acquiring stakes in the studios owned by Square Enix. Earlier this year, it was rumored that Sony was planning to acquire Square Enix. He also pointed out that after selling three studios, Square Enix now has $1.4 billion in cash and no debt, and even without selling any studio stock, it still has ample cash to expand. its business.
In fact, the relationship between the Japanese headquarters of Square Enix and the European and American facilities is not compatible. Stephane D’Astos, former founder of studio Eidos Montreal, said in a recent interview: Square Enix has always lacked faith in European and American studios. Market games Tomb Raider (released in 2013), Marvel’s Avengers (2020) and Marvel Guardians of the Galaxy (2021) were “disappointing”, sales falling short of the company’s expectations.
At the end of 2021, People Can Fly, the developer of Outriders, announced that because the game was not yet profitable, they had not received the share of the profits Square Enix provided.
Although Square Enix plans to sell shares of studios in Europe and the US, in May this year the publisher said that after selling three studios to Embracer the company will continue to release European games. and America, like Outriders and Just Cause.