Square Enix’s Move to the 360, a terrible mistake?
The Future of Eastern Gaming -
Square Enix’s Moves – Now What?
The Great OXCGN Debates
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Square Enix is the amalgamation of two very successful companies, both having strong roots in producing top-tier Japanese Role Playing Games. With the gaming industry a different ‘beast’ this generation, Square Enix have to widen their horizons and pursue the Western Markets with an increased emphasis on supporting the Xbox 360. So here it is, the first of many ‘The Great OXCGN Debates‘
• For the Affirmative we have -
by Lame360Gamer:
©2008 Warren Marshell:
A few days ago OXCGN’s Sutton Dagger brought us the news about Square Enix opening a US Studio to handle development of games into the Western Market and asked me the question – ‘What do you think?‘
For the casual gamer it seems that at the moment (if they are even aware) it would be a stirring of press releases and corporate mumblings, but take a step back for a moment and take a look on how this will impact the consumer themselves. Whether you know Square Enix by title or not, if you have played a few RPG’s chances are you have played one of their games.
They have become the godfather of the Japanese roleplaying industry with acclaimed titles such as the Final Fantasy series, Dragon Quest and Kingdom Hearts but don’t be fooled by the fact that Square Enix has only been dabbling in games since 2002.
This company was a merger between Square Company Ltd and Enix. Both companies on their own were once seen as rivals since their beginnings in the 1980′s with both releasing countless classic RPG’s.
They know the gaming industry, they know the market and most of all they know RPG’s. However for years there has always been the East/West division in gaming.
The cultures, developments, traditions and many other factors all have an influence in the overall game that we play but a move such as this will mean they will be immersing themselves into another country where they can learn from one another, adopt varying styles to try and develop a seamless amalgamation of east meeting west.
A huge task ahead of them but could be a fantastic outcome for us, the gamers.
2008 has already been such a big year for games but has also become such a cut-throat market to stay afloat if you are working on these games behind the scenes. The investment, time and workload needed to make sure they have a stand out title has become so demanding that these developers are having to put it all on the line and hold nothing back.
Holding the licences to some of the most popular games doesn’t always mean smooth sailing for these developers either (take a look at Ensemble Studios & Halo Wars) and it was only a matter of time before drastic changes were going to be made for their survival.
The announcement of the next Final Fantasy installment being released for both the Playstation 3 and the Xbox 360 should have been the first sign of changes to come. They have recognised a larger market of gamers out there that aren’t necessarily going to ‘console lock’ themselves.
Regardless of platform, there is money to be made out there and while many of Novembers releases have paved the way for Christmas sales and kept everyone busy (and their wallets a little lighter!) it’s time to look at the next twelve months and onwards.
There will be a learning curve but essentially it is a move that if approached correctly could see some bigger games coming out, changing RPG’s and other games that we have grown to love.
Sure we will still have our JRPG’s (Japanese Roleplaying Games) but here is an opportunity to amalgamate styles into the one game and even if it only stays afloat for a short period of time I am sure it will deliver something special.
It is a big step for any company such as Square Enix and wont be cheap, however the gamble could really pay off. With all these changes however it is us the gamers that benefit. With the dedication and care that this company usually puts towards its games, they could be sitting on the next evolution of some well known game titles or create a new special series.
The gamer wins either way and I am sure there are many other companies who will be keeping a close watch to see just how well this venture goes. Nobody wants to be left behind in these crucial months once the dust settles and I am sure it is going to lead many developers to start adapting to what was once very foreign to them.
©2008 Warren Marshell:
• For the Negative we have -
by Sutton Dagger
©2008 Steven Sutton:
As a hardcore JRPG fan, I have to lay all my cards on the table. I could sit here and tell you that Square Enix’s support for the Xbox 360 has brought about a wonderful new era in gaming, or that their 360 outings have produced stellar results, but I won’t. I won’t try and convince you otherwise because we both know it’s not true.
Last Remnant is currently in my Xbox and I’m contemplating how the mighty have fallen (stay tuned for the full Last Remnant review coming soon…). There is (in my mind) a prominent reason for this catastrophic change, a focus on the Xbox 360 platform which has resulted in a complete change of mindset, both in the ways games are produced and developed.
The use of the American developed Unreal Engine 3 is a worrying sign and one that seems likely to continue with Square Enix President, Yoichi Wada, claiming it was to “become a cornerstone for [their] worldwide strategy”.
Call me cynical, but do any westerners have an unbreakable affinity to ‘home-grown’ gaming engines; I don’t think so? These Japanese developers have had limited encounters with the Unreal Engine and it becomes apparent in their work.
Slow-down, texture pop-in and other technical mishaps are the bane of any title, so why are Square Enix pursuing the Engine when it obviously isn’t achieving great results. It is because they believe that is what it takes for a game to ‘break down cultural barriers’.
With the use of the Unreal Engine 3 in creating these titles, it seems like this philosophy is extending over to actual gameplay mechanics. What happened to the intense turn-based combat of old, where subtle tactics and forward planning were the cornerstones of any decent JRPG?
Are westerns that daft that we must have limited combat choices and essentially no control over any party members other than the protaganist? The new direction in the core development and gameplay mechanics of Square Enix RPG’s are a worrying sign for JRPG enthusists.
Though my words may be construed that I am echoing the thought that Square Enix shouldn’t be making games for the Xbox 360, that is not the crux of my position. I simply want Square Enix to develop titles that respect the legions of loyal fans that have experienced their games.
We don’t need ‘Western’ style gaming engines or simple mechanics to enjoy our JRPG’s, we need games that push the boundaries and open up different avenues in this ‘genre’ I have come to know and love.
I await Final Fantasy XIII for Square Enix’s redemption…
©2008 Steven Sutton:
And Finally
• As The Observer:
by XboxOZ360
©2008 Grant Smythe:
One thing that was brought up and rightfully so is Square Enix’s adoption of the Unreal Engine 3 as their “cornerstone” now.
Someone should tell them that the UE3 is now being surpassed by many other great engines that leave it for dead with regards to detail, destructibility, environments, interactivity within those environments, and even versatility.
Codemasters EGO Engine is just brilliant and only getting better, which powers The Colin McRae DiRT series, Racedriver GRiD, and the new Operation Flashpoint 2: Dragon Rising, which is 
capable of rendering an entire island from satellite maps. DICE’s Frostbite Engine, which was used in Bad Company and *Mirror’s Edge (*ED Note: my bad – thanks to “Fredrik Näslund & ARA for picking that up“. . it was meant to say – “and Mirror’s Edge uses Procedural’s CiyEngine to generate its Cityscapes which), is nothing short of beautiful and solid as a rock.
LucasArts Euphoria and its associated middleware are breaking new ground, and a new guy on the street (literally) is Procedural’s CityEngine which can generate “real world cities” from google-maps within an extremely short period of time, cutting down HUGE amounts of development costs, time, resource spending etc, and allowing the development teams to get on with making games, not the engines to run the games.
Microsoft is of course pushing Epic’s Unreal Engine 3, as it now has extremely close ties with Epic, creators of the Gears franchise. With other developers using the UE3 as well, it helps MS help Epic, and keeps them onside.
So it’s little wonder Square have taken on the UE3 as they are siding with MS and using that as a guide to what Western games and the Western demographic are about.
Perhaps it’s not such a good idea after all, especially considering that Square Enix also acquired Gas Powered Games last week, just two days after it announced they were opening up a new US development studio. So they open a studio and acquire another all within a few days of each other…
So the push really is on to move West, but as pointed out above, at what costs?
©2008 Grant Smythe:
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Filed under: 1st Party Titles, Console gaming, Editorial, Xbox 360, Xbox 360 News, Xbox Community Network Tagged: | CityEngine, Codemasters, DICE, EGO, Final Fantasy, Final Fantasy XIII, Forstbite, Ga Powered Games, JRPG, Last Remnant, RPG, Square Enix, Unreal Engine 3
This I think was a great move. Square Enix when they are making titles of franchises they already have make great ones. Final Fantasy on 360 I do not think will be downgraded. I think PS3 fanboys should shut up, and take a look at the business side. They also aqcuired Eidos and will apparently publish future Tomb Raider games. So yeah it was a great move.
Atlus releases better JRPGs imo.
I agree with some of the comments here, including that they should focus on the Japanese market and then expanding to the rest of the world afterward. I don’t blame SE for wanting to reach more gamers but they should stick to what works.
JAPANESE RPGs are, well, Japanese for a reason. If I wanted a western RPG I’d play… wait… I’ve never played a western RPG (not counting MMOs, WoW to be exact). And I probably won’t any time soon.
I’m not happy about FFXIII being on the Xbox but I want to keep an open mind and just hope that the game will be really good. I’m trying not to expect too much though. I don’t want to be disappointed.
On a side note, most of the games I owned on older consoles such as the PS2 are JRPGs. The last one I played was FFXII and Crisis Core (which, I think, technically is considered as an action RPG). I’m tired of being able to control only one character.
I do like the more dynamic feeling of action RPGs and systems like that of FFXII, but I miss choosing the exact actions of each party member. I hope that they can come up with a sort of hybrid between the two.
Something like FFXII’s system but the player is given a choice between that and a turn based system. The difference would be that when it’s the turn of a character, time “freezes” for everyone save that character and the target/s.
…or something…
*ramble*
Are you joking do you think it really is a bad idea wow!Are you a PlayStation lover?
To those who believe we shouldn’t “discuss” this> Everyone has a pro or con about the things that go on in the world. It’s a viable and legitimate thing to debate the various issues as to why some believe one thing, and others something else.
Usually, when sensible and rational discussion ocures, some that have a perticular thought around one sissue get to see valid reasons that are opposite to their own thoughts and ideas. Opening up the possibility of them having a different opinion or event changing their minds, or better still, where both parties come to a common ground where their thoughts are “SHARED” on a subject . . .
It’s what we as humans do . .it’s called conversation and debate. No one says you HAVE to believe what another says, or adopt their thoughts, but they, like you, are fully entitled to voice those opinions and discuss them. That is what a “community” does.
It’s how we as a society get tp see different ways of thinking, rather than being told how to act and what to believe. That’s called a dictatorship (of a sense). I know that I have had great discussion through this site and on forums around such issues, and learnt many things through someone sharing information I did not know, and visa-versa . . . it’s how we “LEARN” . . . I appreciate those ppl that can show me new information about a subject I may have not known, and hope that I too can do the same for others.
Square Enix has chosen to move to the 360 as well as the Sony platform. So it can be discussed, and it does get discussed by 360 owners as well as Playstation owners. But do you see ppl hoping into the PS3 sites where discussion is going on saying “what the hell are you talking about it for etc etc ” no . .
Square Enix is a PUBLISHING house and a Development studio, It has 3rd party developers as well under it’s “umbrella” the “produce” prioduct under “licience” for them. SO in the end, they (Square Enix) are in fact responsible for the things that a company does on their behalf.
JUst like say MS or Sony having a component go wrong in their machines which is perhaps made by a 3rd party. The company – MS or Sony or even Nintendo are the ones responsible, even though the company that produced the item did it, they also followed “direction” of the parent company.
So what happens with any of SE’s 3rd party developers is reflected on SE as a company . . You can not just say SE didn’t do this or that, another developer did. SE had them make something using their help and funds . .therefore they are not only legally responsible, but ethically.
That’s the trouble with Fanbois . they do not like their favourite object discussed in a negative tone, even if it does make poor choices. All companies do, SE has made some major gaffs of late, this could work for them, it may not. They may well have upset many of their userbase from Japan, they may not, which is why we DISCUSS the issue as “ADULTS”.
This has nothing to do with the 360, this is about Japanese developers perhaps making poor decisions in an effort to make more money, and or appeal to western markets.
Why do you have to go and make this out to be 360s fault some how? If PS3 was doing better in the US, SqEnx would be dumbing down their games just the same, only on PS3 instead, 360 just happens to be the route you take if you want to make money in this business these days. PS3 is a bluray seller, not a game seller.
WTH is this if the games are not good is because the company that do the game not the company that represents the console… Its entirely up to them used or not the UE3 so WTH
Why is it bad that more people will be able to play Square Enix’s games? Their technology choices are in the long run beside the point when it comes down to the average gamer who won’t know or more likely doesn’t care what tech they’ve used as along as they are enjoying the game.
These truly are hard times for people who enjoy quality and art, and not quantity and realism. For what happens on the game market right now, I´ve come to think of not buying any games at all.
Squaresoft, we want you back at old strengths! Not the old games of course, especially square enix has always proved there is a way to create something new without adapting western market obligatories.
Sometimes I wish I liked playing the 200th WW2 Shooter, it would all be much easier then
You had 60 percent of the fanboys for Final Fantasy starting to digg the grave for Square – Enix. Almost everyone got pissed and outraged when it was announced to Xbox, you have to be retarded not to understand that it was a bad move after all that negativity.
Only a few people were cheering, mainly the fans who had bought Xbox instead of PS3, wishing that the old FF series that they loved would come over to their new console. But when the Final Fantasy series has sold over 80 million, the userbase of 19 million to Xbox pales in comparison.
I think Square also gathered a lot of hatred by the way they announced this. Here you have a company that started showing off FFXIII for three years, since E305, as a Playstation title. Then half a year before release, they go “oh and we’re also making this for Xbox 360 btw”.
Rule number one, if you have millions of angry fans because of announcement like this, that is not a good sign. You don’t want to make people angry. Especially if they’re supposed to invest money in your product
Yes I think that was a great mistake of the SE
move to X360. But no, simply move to X360, but
turn in a multiplatform developer. FFXIII will have
a great downgrade of quality for this.
@ Fredrik Näslund, and ARA
Thanks for that, i actually missed finishing a sentence there dohhh, so thanks for picking that up for me, most appreciated . . . Check the Procedural’s CityENgine out, it’s bloody amazing. I thanked you guys in the article. Again, most appreciated
Nice article Grant.
I really agree with you about all this changes that SE is doing.
Maybe I’m just an old idea fanboy (Japanese games means Japanese culture games for me), maybe me, like many other, just can’t accept that a Jap studio goes on an American (even if great like the 360) console. Maybe I just fear that we won’t see any other great game coming from such a big software house like we had in the past generation.
Hope this is all wrong, but at least I believe in Testuya Nomura and his FFvsXIII/Kingdom Hearts for this generation that seems more the money gen more than the HD one,
PS: Yeah, white engine really looks fantastic… UE3 is not bad at all anyway, it’s just that what they’ve done with TLR is just unacceptable.
Hate to break it but Mirror’s Edge uses Unreal Engine and not Frostbite.
Mirrors edge didnt use the Frostbite engine its uses Unreal 3
I think that Sqaure-Enix moving over to the 360 is a mistake of sorts. But if you look at the development costs of games, especially ones on the scale of Final Fantasy, I really couldn’t blame them. But why make some of their games exclusive to the 360. If it is a case about money-making, why not do the same game on the PS3? If they try and reach a wider audience why make some of their games 360 only? This is really puzzling to me as I own a PS3 and the shortage of JRPGS on my console is actually really worrying. And also, to wait another year (or two) for FF13 is a real irritation, when the 360 gamers will also be getting it, Eventually…
I really enjoy the JRPG scene although I’m not as hardcore-a-player but I don’t think that westernising things is the best idea, 2 reasons, influence and emigration. Influence because take Bioware for example, swallowed up by EA, and the fist RPG they bring out is sub-par. Whilst trying to cater for a bigger market the magic was lost and that causes concerns for what we will see in the future. Second for emigration I turn to film, westernised movies based on Japanese origin are mostly sub-par as well. The stories are transformed into what they think we want to see or what will appeal to our market. Granted some are so con deluded that they make no sense to us but again it’s what made us enjoy them in the first place.
I understand it’s a lot about the money and moving to a bigger market, also I could be wrong but the east will always be the east and the west will always be the west. Not matter how you swing it they’ll always be opposite.
They should follow their old magic formula:
focus themselves to the Japanese market and AFTER that distribute their products as they are to the rest of the world, it worked all this years and they should get back to that formula.
squares ‘White’ engine looks fantastic, i don’t see why they would change it…