"Final Fantasy" maker Square Enix Holdings Co. Ltd. announced cutting jobs while unveiling plans to integrate generative artificial intelligence across its game development process.
Square Enix Confirms Restructuring of Western Operations
A Square Enix spokesperson said in a widely circulated statement Nov. 6, the day an internal presentation was released, that the company is restructuring its North American and European operations. The spokesperson said Square Enix aims to strengthen its development capabilities and create a unified global marketing approach, saying leadership made the "extremely difficult decision" after careful consideration and analysis to position the company for long-term growth.
Don't Miss:
- The AI Marketing Platform Backed by Insiders from Google, Meta, and Amazon — Invest at $0.85/Share
- Deloitte's #1 Fastest-Growing Software Company Lets Users Earn Money Just by Scrolling — Accredited Investors Can Still Get In at $0.50/Share.
Approximately 137 positions in the U.K. face elimination, IGN reported, citing sources. However, British labor laws require the company to conduct redundancy consultations, which could reduce the final number of dismissed workers, said IGN.
Strategic Shift Away From Western Markets
Square Enix has been systematically dismantling its Western presence, according to the presentation. The strategy involves “clos[ing] overseas development studios and shift[ing] toward consolidating development functions in Japan.”
The company has been reducing its international footprint in recent years after a period of global growth, Decrypt reported.
Square Enix sold three studios and multiple franchises to external buyers in 2022, including the popular "Tomb Raider" series and was intended to fund the company’s investments in artificial intelligence and blockchain gaming technologies.
The company’s remaining Western portfolio now consists of the "Life Is Strange," "Outriders," and "Just Cause" franchises, according to IGN.
Trending: Missed Tesla? EnergyX Is Tackling the Next $200 Billion Opportunity — Lithium
AI to Dominate Quality Assurance by 2027
Square Enix projects that generative AI will handle 70% of its quality assurance work by the end of 2027, according to the presentation. The company developed these AI initiatives through a partnership with the Matsuo Laboratory at the University of Tokyo. This comes after the company had announced in 2024 its plans to “be aggressive in applying AI and other cutting-edge technologies," according to Square Enix President Takashi Kiryu in a New Year's letter on Jan. 1, 2024.
Early Adoption of Emerging Technologies
Square Enix, an early adopter of emerging technologies, previously used image generation tool Midjourney to create artwork for "Foamstars," a game released in 2024, producer Kosuke Okatani told the Video Game Chronicle.
"AI was used in the creation of the in-game album covers for the music featured in the FOAMSTARS' soundtrack," Square Enix told VGC in a statement.
Square Enix has also experimented with non-fungible tokens in recent years and launched an NFT-powered game called “Symbiogenesis" in 2022 on the Ethereum blockchain. The game, however, shut down following its final story chapter this summer, Decrypt reported.
See Also: Wall Street's $12B Real Estate Manager Is Opening Its Doors to Individual Investors — Without the Crowdfunding Middlemen
Industry-Wide Embrace of AI Tools
Competitors including Ubisoft Entertainment SA have announced significant artificial intelligence initiatives for their development processes, Decrypt reported. Ubisoft, the gaming publisher behind "Assassin’s Creed," introduced Ghostwriter in March 2023 to help developers streamline their workflow.
Chip giant Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) announced in January 2024 that Ubisoft joined a select group of game developers committed to implementing Nvidia’s AI tools to produce more convincing and interactive non-playable characters.
“I’m used to building a character’s backstory, their hopes and dreams, the experiences that shaped their personality, and used all that information to nurture myself into writing dialogue,” Ubisoft Narrative Director Virginie Mosser said March 19 in a blog post while creating characters for the company's NEO NPC project. “It’s very different, but for the first time in my life, I can have a conversation with a character I’ve created—I’ve dreamed of that since I was a kid.”
Read Next: 7 Million Gamers Already Trust Gameflip With Their Digital Assets — Now You Can Own a Stake in the Platform
Image: Shutterstock
