Square Enix has been telling us for quite some time that it’s going full multiformat, with its strategy seemingly shifting after “disappointing” sales of timed PS5 exclusives, like Final Fantasy 16 and Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth.
The publisher’s presumably realised that releasing its games elsewhere at a later date hobbles its sales, and it’s something we’ve seen reflected by other third-party firms.
To be fair, it’s probably not wrong, and so pursuing a multiformat strategy makes sense.
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But the company has been increasingly p*ssing off the PlayStation fanbase by not practicing what it’s been preaching.
This week, it released Bravely Default: Flying Fairy HD Remaster – itself originally a Switch 2 exclusive – on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, and PC.
The inclusion of Play Anywhere indicates some kind of deal with Microsoft, although that’s our own speculation.
It follows the release of the acclaimed visual novel Paranoramasight: The Mermaid’s Curse earlier in the year, itself only available on Switch, PC, and mobile.
And there have been dozens of other inconsistencies pointed out by fans: Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince, Harvestella, and Dragon Quest Treasures all launched in the last few years without PS5 ports, with no plans on the horizon.
Now to be fair, the likes of Octopath Traveler et al have been ported to PlayStation at a later date, so we suppose Square Enix would say it is acting on its promise, as it eventually ports its wares everywhere.
In this specific case, we have no doubt Bravely Default will end up on PS5 eventually.
But PS5 fans are paying attention: if Square Enix is pursuing this new multiformat strategy, like it keeps reminding us, then why are so many titles skipping Sony’s consoles all of a sudden?