Strong year for Square Enix as Final Fantasy 14 offsets non-MMO game decline
Marie Dealessandri
Features Editor
Friday 13th May 2022
Square Enix
Square Enix's net sales rose 9.8% to ¥354 billion ($2.84 billion) during FY2022, but non-MMO game sales declined.
In its financial report for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2022, the Japanese company reported that sales in its MMO sub-segment grew, due to the "sharp rise" of Final Fantasy 14 subscribers and the release of its expansion pack, Endwalker.
But the HD Game sub-segment that includes titles such as Outriders, Nier Replicant ver.1.22474487139 and Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy has seen "net sales decline versus the previous fiscal year," the report said. FY2021 had seen the launch of Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Marvel's Avengers.
People Can Fly's Outriders had a decent launch in April 2021, with Square Enix saying at the time that it was seeing it as its "next major franchise." But the studio confirmed earlier this month that the title didn't make a profit in 2021.
More recently, Guardians of the Galaxy also "undershot initial expectations" when it launched in October 2021.
Overall, Square Enix's Digital Entertainment category (which contains both its MMO and 'HD game' sub-segments, but also mobile and PC games) saw a 6% increase in net sales to ¥279 billion ($2.1 billion) and 16.7% growth in operating income, reaching ¥58.9 billion ($457 million).
Operating income across all Square Enix businesses grew 25.5% year-on-year to ¥59.2 billion ($460 million).
It's worth noting that the company's Amusement segment, which includes its arcades, is back on the rise (33.6% increase in sales year-on-year) after a difficult FY2021 due to COVID-19.
Earlier this year, Square Enix had raised its forecast for the full year, expecting around $305 million in profit, due to
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