Naoki Yoshida: There are no obstacles for developing the Xbox version. We were able to undertake development and provide our service thanks to the immense efforts that Phil has invested. For that we are truly grateful!
The sole factors are the workload and the order of steps. Now when it comes to the Xbox version, there’s unfortunately not much I can say presently but just that we cannot work on all the steps simultaneously and need to follow the order for proceeding with these things. Since we’re currently involved in the development of Endwalker and preparing the PS5 version to follow on from the title’s service on PS4, it’d be appreciated if we can return to touch upon the Xbox version once things have settled! Final Fantasy 14 Endwalker interview: Yoshi-P on Xbox, job quests, deep dungeons, and heading to the moon | VG247
On whether FFXIV is ever coming to Switch or Xbox
“Unfortunately there has not been any sort of change in our situation, because our stance has not changed,” Yoshida said. “We have had conversations with [Xbox boss] Phil Spencer three times over the last year. It’s just a matter of a few more clauses being waived. But at this point we don’t have much of an update. Considering how far into the discussion we’ve gotten with Microsoft, we might have made a little more progress in the Xbox discussion versus the Switch. We’ve also run into an issue with Sony - being able to play cross-platform. That’s another issue that we’d have to take care of as well. In terms of our conversations regarding the Switch, we’re still in continuous discussion with Nintendo on that one as well.”
On whether Sony will allow Final Fantasy XIV to have cross-play with platforms beside PC
“We had discussions with Andrew House before, but with the transition to a new president I’m afraid we have not properly met them yet, had proper introductions, or sat down for a discussion,” Yoshida said. (Sony’s new president, Kenichiro Yoshida, started in April.)
Bumping this, because Square’s announcements over the last few months (Romancing SaGa Minstrel and now Tactics Ogre Reborn) make this topic pertinent again.
Why are so many Square games skipping Xbox, and what can Xbox do to address this issue?
Square doesn’t seem tied to one specific platform, outside of Sony with their main Final Fantasy releases, but I’d guess it’s the same cycle Xbox has been caught in for a while. Japanese games don’t come out on Xbox, so people who want to play Japanese games don’t buy Xbox, which means Japanese games don’t sell on Xbox, so Japanese games don’t come out on Xbox and so it repeats. I mean, take Final Fantasy XV - the figures we have available suggest a 79-21 split between Playstation and Xbox sales and that wasn’t even that long ago.
It’s fixable, it’s just going to take time and investment in the Japanese market - which is what MIcorsoft is doing. They need to keep working with Japanese developers and streamers, keep pushing game pass and the Xbox series S in japan and start investing more in Japanese development teams. The more Japanese games come to Xbox the more the audience for them buy the console and the more value there’ll be in getting these games on Xbox for Square.
Or Xbox could y’know, buy them. I’d be into that too.
Square ties FF to PlayStation, and its mid budget games and HD2D line (Octopath, Triangle, Live A Live) to Nintendo, other than that, I think they are fairly liberal and generous with spreading their games across PlayStation, Nintendo, and PC as necessary. The issue is Xbox’s inclusion is inconsistent and scattershot. Xbox gets DioField Chronicle but not Tactics Ogre? SaGa comes to Switch, PS, PC, and even iOS and Android, but not Xbox? Dragon Quest made it over to Xbox, but not stuff like Trials of Mana and The World Ends With You? Octopath made the jump to Xbox, but none of the other HD2D games? Stuff like ActRaiser and Dungeon Encounters skips Xbox for no reason.
Square is too risk averse and doesn’t want to grow a fanbase on Xbox. Potential solution:
Game Pass incentives
bigger presents in Japan
more japanese games on Xbox should lead to more gamers who play those kind of games on Xbox
Marketing deals
Acquisition
Pressure by the media
But does it really matter ? The media doesn’t care at all when Xbox doesn’t get a Square game. To this day we still don’t know if FF7 is full exclusive (highly likely) and the situation of FF14. Last update was last year and the reason was “resource problems”. People actual believed that.
Sony and Square are basically in bed with each other.
FF brand manager retired from his Square job to join Sony. Basically nepotism.
You might as well give up on square games coming to Xbox, they are in bed with Sony. Xbox has a good relationship with Sega, that’s why atlus is putting more games on there.
Excluding contracts with Sony for certain games, in order for Xbox to get more Square Enix games, Microsoft would most likely have to pay for the actual port of the game and possibly even a Game Pass deal.
@CryOn@anon85340516 I don’t agree that “Square is in bed with Sony”, given the sheer volume of games they put on Switch; there are more Switch exclusive games from Square than there are PlayStation exclusives. This year alone, they are releasing five Switch exclusive games, in addition to the multilatfoprm games they put on there, but not Xbox. Even in the PC marketplace, Square has no issues spreading exclusives around (stuff like KH and TWEWY remains EGS exclusive, stuff like FFXV and DQXI never came to EGS).
Square clearly has no issues spreading the love, it’s very specifically Xbox in particular where they are showing zero consistency.
Yeh that’s true, switch is probably where most of their sales is nowadays. Ff7 and 16 would definitely not be so exclusive if the switch hardware was more powerful.
All the games I actually want from them are the ones skipping the atform. The mana games, tactics ogre, as well as the saga games, I’d love those on Xbox!
Live a Live is honestly my favorite game this year so far. I talk a lot of shit about Square but Team Asano never misses. I’d like to see this on GP more than FF7R lol
Theres no way Sony make deal with SE that involves games on Swtich and not Xbox. Thats a new low even for Sony. Also Sony don’t benefit from having games released on Switch. If they pay for Exclusivity they’d want it on their console and not switch. This is SE decision and them being lazy
This is just a backwards step from SE and more evident theyre trying to butter up to sony by avoiding xbox.
Xbox can focus on other better JPN devs. SE clearly have their rear occupied by Sony. If it wasn’t for Switch dominating Japan so much they probably wouldn’t put any games on Switch either.
I think most of it has to do with risk assessment and how likely they think a certain game would be a success on Xbox. It explains why they are willing to put a game like Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 on Xbox but not Tactics Ogre Reborn. The former has the name recognition that they likely believe will bring success, even on a non-Japanese centric platform, where they likely think the latter would be ignored due to the lack of brand recognition. Remember, the vast, vast, vast amount of gamers don’t pay too much attention to developers and publishes but they know game names. Those of us on message boards, forums, discord channels, social media, etc. that discuss publisher relationships and such are in the minority when looking at the 200+ million console gamers.
Not sure what can be done that isn’t already being done. Didn’t Xbox open an office in Japan? Maybe they need to be more involved? Hopefully the Series S continues to sell well enough in Japan so that the Xbox mindshare increases in the region. Maybe for games like this, Square would have ported it if the game was approved for Gamepass to help circumvent the recognition issue?
Japanese support on Xbox is a multi-level issue that isn’t just a problem with SE unfortunately. There’s a reason why it took so long to get the Persona games on Xbox. The brand just doesn’t have the install base and mindshare in the region. So the people at Xbox have to work 2-3x as hard to be part of the conversation.
Pretty sure that’s not how any of this works. Developers aren’t lazy and most businesses don’t sabotage potential deals and relationships to “butter up” with another company without reason.
