Square Enix Achieved "Highest Sales And Earnings" During Fiscal Year 2021

Square Enix just released its annual report for its Fiscal Year 2021, which ended on March 31. If you're wondering why there's a six-month delay between the quarter ending and this report coming out, you're not alone. Still, it's in the wild, and it contains high-level information for investors, which includes the usual flowery language you'd expect about how well the company's products are doing -- as well as some less-than-kind words about an underperforming game.

First, the good news: SE achieved its "highest sales and earnings" for the year, which covered the period when COVID-19 emerged worldwide. Many other game companies experienced similar windfalls, so that's not unusual. Final Fantasy VII Remake was lauded as a "blockbuster" despite its launch occurring just as COVID was disrupting shipping worldwide. Trials of Mana and Bravely Default II were also given some acclaim, while MMO games only got a brief mention, as it was an "off year for expansion packs," with Final Fantasy XIV: Endwalker scheduled to launch later in November, which falls in FY 2022.

Then there was the not-as-good news. Marvel's Avengers was said to have a number of "unexpected difficulties" and "has unfortunately not proven as successful as we would have liked." SE said that new work-from-home initiatives and "taking on the GaaS [games-as-a-service] model" was a significant factor in its disappointing results, which seems odd from a company that has operated MMORPGs for nearly two decades and instituted a permanent work-from-home policy last December. Perhaps this is a case of publisher Square Enix throwing developer Crystal Dymanics under the Hulk.

The rest of the report mostly deals with other aspects of Square Enix's business -- amusement parts, publications, and merchandising -- the latter two of which did fine, while the first understandably took a beating during the pandemic. Square Enix's latest quarterly financial report is expected to drop in the next few days; for now, you can read the 2021 Annual Report here.