The official statement informs about “maximizing player satisfaction as well as market potential,” but you can say that Square Enix isn’t doing well.
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided wasn’t the best title released in 2016 and the game suffered heavy criticism for an ending out of nowhere. The reports confirm that the IP is now shelved and it appears that Square Enix continues the series of hilarious market decisions. Read the statement below:
To maximize player satisfaction as well as market potential going forward, we are focusing our resources and energies on key franchises and studios. As a result, the Company has regrettably decided to withdraw from the business of IO Interactive A/S, a wholly‐owned subsidiary and a Danish corporation, as of March 31, 2017.
This decision has resulted in booking of the extraordinary loss amounting to 4,898 million yen, including disposition of the content production account related to the business and impairment loss of intangible assets, in the financial results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2017.
As a result of this the Company started discussions with potential new investors and is currently in negotiations to secure this investment. Whilst there can be no guarantees that the negotiations will be concluded successfully, they are being explored since this is in the best interests of our shareholders, the studio and the industry as a whole.
It’s sad news because the last Hitman developed by IO Interactive received various positive reviews, with both critics and players praising the final form even though Square Enix decided to publish the game in episodes. Why can’t we have some nice things going on?