Final Fantasy XVI and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth have heavily underperformed compared to previous entries in the series, further highlighting the flaws of Square Enix console-exclusive’s strategy.
In its latest financial report, the publisher reports that profits in its HD Games sub-segment for the current fiscal year did not meet expectations despite the release of Final Fantasy XVI and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth. Net sales in the MMO and Games for Smart Devices / PC were also lower than in the previous fiscal year.
Talking specifically about Q4 of the current fiscal year, the report highlights how the two major publisher releases, the initial sales for Foamstars and the already mentioned Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, were not as strong as expected. In addition, an “impairment made to the content production account” resulted in an operating loss.
While Square Enix generally has sometimes unreasonable expectations, it seems like this is one of the rare cases when the publisher is reasonable, as both Final Fantasy XVI and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth really underperformed compared to previous entries in the series, as highlighted by analyst Daniel Ahmad on X.
This is one of the rare cases where Square Enix is being reasonable, as both games really did underperform compared to past entries.
— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) September 18, 2024
It is a real shame that both games have underperformed on the market, as they are both very solid entries in the series. However, things could be turned around by their PC and potential Xbox console release. Final Fantasy XVI has been released this week on PC and seems to be doing well on Steam according to the current Top Sellers list, so hopefully, sales will end up being strong enough for the game not to be considered a commercial failure in the end. You can learn why the game deserves more in terms of sales by checking out Kai’s review.
