New Square Enix CEO uses debut to dunk on the teachers who told him to stop playing games: 'They would be very surprised!'
There's been some confusion over the leadership of Square Enix recently, with the company announcing that its president and CEO of 10 years, Yosuke Matsuda, would be handing over both roles to Takashi Kiryu… and then business continuing as normal. It appears the handover period is now complete, however, with Kiryu taking to the stage at the Final Fantasy 16 pre-launch celebration to announce his appointment, and instantly win the hearts and minds of Square Enix fans.
Kiryu appeared after the latest trailer for Final Fantasy 16, and immediately began milking the applause for the game, encouraging the crowd's cheers. Then he launched into a remarkable reminiscence about his childhood, his own connection to Square Enix's games, and sleeping in class because you can't stop playing games.
«Welcome to this celebration for Final Fantasy 16,» said Kiryu. «We thank you for being a part of our show, but when I say our show I mean all this is your show. Our fans whose constant support over the years have driven our developers over the years to achieve miracles: as for me, I'm just a fan like you. A fan who is honored to serve as the new CEO of Square Enix».
Our man is just getting warmed up, and this is when you start to realise Square Enix has made a really good choice.
«Now, I dunno how you felt when watching that trailer,» said Kiryu. «But I felt like a kid again. Like a young boy in winter in 1987, who loved RPGs, who loved Dragon Quest, which came out the year before, and was amazing. I had to get my hands on the big new thing, so as a reward for helping my parents pick oranges, and after begging them for an early Christmas gift, my father bought me the very first Final Fantasy».
A minute or two into his first big public
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