As of late, I find myself contemplating the precarious state of many of Square Enix's time-honored franchises. The publisher's latest fascination with the burgeoning field of NFTs is obviously coming at the expense of leveraging the potential of its dormant IPs, but I wouldn't say I'm really bothered by that; let Square Enix indulge in its newfound obsession all it wants. My uneasiness stems from the frustrating recent trend of the company's underwhelming attempts to revive these IPs through new sequels and reboots like Valkyrie Elysium, Neo: The World Ends With You, and Star Ocean: The Divine Force.
Before we start pointing fingers at Square Enix, it's important to note that almost none of these games has seen a lot of success critically or commercially. Take Valkyrie Elysium, for instance — it only sold about 40,000 copies during its debut week in Japan, Star Ocean did about as well, and NEO: TWEWY (to make that names less of a mouthful) didn't even reach the 30,000 sales milestone, ultimately failing to outperform Square Enix's similar releases from the previous year. Moreover, unlike their predecessors, none of these games have managed to break the 80 score barrier on Metacritic. It's safe to assume that these titles have failed to make any significant paradigm shifts worthy of their revered names, and that there's a vexing pattern secretly at work here.
These figures become even more lackluster when compared to the reverberating success of modern game ports with less new content or visual glamour such as Tactics Ogre Reborn (boasting a remarkable 84-86 Metacritic score), or the remastered edition of Chrono Cross' Radical Dreamers (which generated substantial revenue). The triumph of sequels to games that haven't been around as long, such as Octopath Traveler 2 (a critical and commercial hit on Steam) adds to the mystery and begs us to question what these underperforming titles have in common, as well as what makes Square Enix's revivals click with gamers and critics alike.
I've taken notice of many fans expressing their disappointment with the inadequate marketing efforts for these games. However, in my humble opinion, I don't think slapping their names on cereal boxes and backpack ads would have made much of a difference. I firmly believe that a game’s quality should speak for itself, and that releasing a good game is more than enough in today’s Internet-drive era. The real issue isn't how they are getting these games out there; it’s more about people not knowing what to expect from 'em.
For example, releasing Valkyrie Profile: Lenneth first and giving it time to simmer could have done wonders for building anticipation for Elysium, instead of burying it in an expensive $74.99 deluxe edition. New fans wouldn't risk that amount to explore the origins of an unfamiliar title. Similarly, if you're planning a sequel for PlayStation and PC fans, it would have been wise to release The World Ends With You outside of the Switch and Android platforms first, in the same vein as Octopath Traveler. As for Star Ocean, it's not that it's necessarily doing anything wrong, apart from not releasing the best games on modern platforms (cough cough Second Story), but that's kind of the problem — it doesn't really stand out in any particular way.
When it comes to blending sci-fi and fantasy, Star Ocean ain't exactly one of a kind anymore, with games like Tales of Arise and Xenoblade Chronicles already dominating the scene (although revealing their sci-fi side might be a bit spoilerish, so forgive me for that). Even the concept of having multiple protagonists with different perspectives is becoming more commonplace in JRPGs, as demonstrated by the likes of Scarlet Nexus and Nier Automata stealing that spotlight. Fans are no longer lacking options that offer what Star Ocean brings to the table, so I don't think the real problem is only raising awareness for these games, but their inherent design philosophy.
It's more about Square Enix looking at what sells, not what is correct for each respective game.
Marketing is all about addressing a problem and creating a need for a product in the current marketplace, and unfortunately, these sequels and reboots weren't designed from the start to take into account the changing times. For example, the Einherjar gimmick in Valkyrie Profile isn't particularly rare anymore given the proliferation of other games that allow players to control and recruit NPCs, such as Caligula Overdose, Octopath Traveler, and even Watch Dogs Legion. The Norse mythology market is getting oversaturated as well these days, with an abundance of titles featuring its folkloric tales and allegories from God of War to Hellblade and even Skyrim.
Not only has Square Enix developed these games with this glaring lack of market foresight, but it also stripped away the very things that made these games unique and charming in the first place. I was already in love with The World Ends With You’s touchscreen integration and how I am able to draw attack patterns like an artist, but the sequel replaced all of that with watered-down and button-mashy 3D-action gameplay that made it almost indistinguishable from Final Fantasy XV and so many other modern action JRPGs.
Valkyrie Profile suffered a similar fate, losing its turn-based tactical identity in favor of yet another 3D-action-styled template. I am sure the original creators who devised these innovative systems wouldn’t have wanted them to just wither away, so I believe it's more about Square Enix looking at what sells, not what is correct for each respective game. Star Ocean: The Divine Force's clichéd story also dimmed in comparison to its predecessors and their mind-bending meta-twists that have kept fans talking to this day, so maybe Square Enix wanting to play it mundanely safe here ended up inadvertently backfiring.
Tactics Ogre and Chrono Cross do well to maintain the original charm of their first releases while enhancing them, and Octopath Traveler 2 goes to great lengths to improve on the missteps of its predecessor without forsaking its classic Octo-pathic identity. On the other hand, these sequels and reboots fail to provide a continuing identity that fans can invest in over the long term — like Final Fantasy's Fabula Nova Crystallis or Kingdom Heart's story sagas — develop interesting and marketable gimmicks, or even improve on the original charm of their predecessors.
I am sure the big suits would look at the numbers and say there is no thirst for these names anymore, but when you look at all the factors and development decisions, these IPs never had a chance to be relevant to our generation from the start. Dearest Square Enix, love takes time and effort, and by not giving it to your games, you're also denying it to your fans. Stop trying to mold your games into something they're not, and consider embracing their unique qualities and allowing us to appreciate and grow to love them over time. Cultivate this relationship, and surely players will flock to your games with adoration and fervor, as they have done so for decades.