Square Enix NA

Square Enix NA, also known as Square Enix North America, is the official North American YouTube channel belonging to the worldwide and widely loved video game development and publisher company Square Enix.

Corporate HIstory
On April 1, 2003 Square and Enix merged, forming Square Enix. In July of that year, they moved its headquarters to Yoyogi, Shibuya, Tokyo.[1]  To strengthen its wireless market, Square Enix acquired UIEvolution in March 2004. In January 2005 Square Enix founded Square Enix China, expanding their interests in the People's Republic of China. The company has a controlling interest in Community Network Software Engine of Beijing, China which focuses on network middle-ware for gaming. On August 22, 2005, Square Enix announced its acquisition of the gaming developer and publisher, Taito Corporation, renowned for their arcade hits such as Space Invaders and the Bubble Bobble series. The acquisition was completed on September 28, 2005.

During the week of September 5, 2006, Square Enix was sued for breaking a contract with Soft-World International.[14]  In December 2007, UIEvolution split from Square Enix to become an independent company. On August 29, 2008 Square Enix made plans for a friendly takeover of Tecmo by purchasing shares at a 30 percent premium with a total bid of 22.3 billion yen,[15]  but on September 4, 2008 withdrew their offer after Tecmo rejected the proposed takeover.[16]  On October 1, 2008, Square Enix transformed into aholding company and was renamed to Square Enix Holdings. At the same time the gaming, contents and publishing businesses were transferred to a spin-off named Square Enix,[1]  sharing the same corporate leadership and offices with the holding.[3] [17]  On February 12, 2009 Square Enix Holdings announced a takeover deal worth £84.3 million (32p per share) for Eidos plc, the holding company for Eidos Interactive, the UK-based publisher of the Tomb Raider, Hitman, Deus Ex, Thief and Legacy of Kainfranchises.[18]  The acquisition of Eidos was completed on April 22, 2009. On March 11, 2010, all games that Taito Corporation published for home consoles and portable systems are handled by Square Enix.[19]  On June 17, 2013 Square Enix started a mobile studio called Smileworks in Indonesia led by Hiroaki Kanamura. Its focus was original content for mobile devices including iOS, Android, Windows Phone and Nokia.[20]  On January 14, 2015, the mobile studio Smileworks in Indonesia closed after 18 months, because it was unable achieve a certain target that was given by the company.[21]

Business Model
The business model of Square Enix is centered on the idea of "polymorphic content", which consists in developing franchises on all potential hardware or media rather than being restricted by a single gaming platform.[22]  An early example of this strategy is Enix's Fullmetal Alchemist manga series, which has been adapted into two anime TV series, two movies, and several novels and video games. Other polymorphic projects include Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Code Age, World of Mana, Ivalice Alliance and Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy. According to Yoichi Wada, "it's very difficult to hit the jackpot, as it were. Once we've hit it, we have to get all the juice possible out of it".[23]

<p style="font-weight:normal;">The standard game design model of Square Enix is to establish the plot, characters and art of the game first. Battle systems, field maps and cutscenes are created next. A typical game of the company involves a team of at most 200 people. Square Enix doesn't usually use other companies' engines, preferring to code from scratch.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Gamasutra_24-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[24]  According toTaku Murata, Square Enix has settled into this game making model since [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Square_Co. Square]'s Final Fantasy VII in 1997 and did not try other approaches since,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-25" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[25]  as Enix did not have any internal development studio. Similar to Sony's Greatest Hits program, Square Enix sometimes re-releases games under the Ultimate Hits label, a designation given to games that have achieved a certain level of sales, at a reduced retail price.

<p style="font-weight:normal;">In 2004, Square Enix began to work on a "common 3D format" which would allow the entire company to develop titles without being restricted to a specific platform: this led to the creation of a game engine, named Crystal Tools, which is compatible with the PlayStation 3, the Xbox 360, Windows-based PCs and to some extent the Wii.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-26" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[26]  Nevertheless, Square Enix has also begun considering other companies' engines and programming languages, licensing Epic Games' Unreal engine in 2007 for use in The Last Remnant,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Forever_Fantasy_27-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[27] and using the Squirrel language for the WiiWare title Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: My Life as a King.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Gamasutra_24-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[24]

Development Organization
<p style="font-weight:normal;">In 2003, Square Enix's development staff consisted of eight Square and two Enix Product Development Divisions  (開発事業部 kaihatsu jigyōbu<sup class="t_nihongo_help noprint" style="line-height:1;font-size:11.2px;"><span class="t_nihongo_icon" style="color:rgb(0,0,238);font-weight:bold;font-stretch:normal;font-size:8.96px;line-height:normal;padding-right:0.1em;padding-left:0.1em;">? ) .<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-vjump_28-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[28] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-rpgfan_29-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[29] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-30" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[30]  Product Development Division 5 had offices both in Osaka and Tokyo.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-vjump_28-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[28]  This organization was known as the Product Development Division System.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-31" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[31]

<p style="font-weight:normal;">As of May 2005, Product Development Division 10 was headed by Yoshinori Yamagishi.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-team_10_32-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[32]  In June 2005, Yusuke Hirata, the former head of Product Development Division 5, left to join Aquaplus.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Hirata_33-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[33]  In August 2005, Yasumi Matsuno, the former head of Product Development Division 4, left due to prolonged sickness.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-rpgfan_29-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[29] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-34" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[34]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">According to Yoichi Wada, the development department is no longer organized with the Product Development Division System since at least March 2007. The staff is now structured on a project-based system.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-35" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[35]  At present, the teams in charge of the Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy, Dissidia Final Fantasy and the Kingdom Hearts series are collectively referred to as the 1st Production Department  (第1制作部 dai-ichi seisakubu<sup class="t_nihongo_help noprint" style="line-height:1;font-size:11.2px;">[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:Installing_Japanese_character_sets <span class="t_nihongo_icon" style="color:rgb(0,0,238);font-weight:bold;font-stretch:normal;font-size:8.96px;line-height:normal;padding-right:0.1em;padding-left:0.1em;">? ] ), however with no 2nd and 3rd Production Departments existing. The current structure of the 1st Production Department is the result of a fall 2010 merger between Square Enix's Tokyo and Osaka development studios. Shinji Hashimoto is its corporate executive.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-36" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[36]

Video Games
<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">Square Enix's main concentration is on video gaming. Of its properties, the Final Fantasy franchise is the best-selling, with a total worldwide sales of over 110 million units as of June 2014.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-square-enix2_37-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[37]  Square Enix's Dragon Quest franchise is considered one of the most popular game series in Japan and new installments regularly outsell other games at the times of their release, with a total worldwide sales of over 64 million units as of June 2014.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-square-enix2_37-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[37]  More recently, Square Enix's Kingdom Hearts series (developed in collaboration with Disney's Buena Vista Games) has become popular, with over 20 million units sold as of March 2014.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-square-enix1_38-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[38]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">In early 2003, Square Enix's U.S. subsidiary registered the Dragon Quest trademark, retiring the Dragon Warrior moniker, which was necessitated in 1989 due a trademark conflict with the now defunct [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TSR,_Inc. TSR, Inc.]. In May 2004, Square Enix announced an agreement with Sony Online Entertainment for the Japanese publishing rights to EverQuest II. In the seventh generation of video game consoles, Square Enix released new installments from its major series across all three systems, including Final Fantasy XIII on both thePlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, and Dragon Quest X on the Wii. Square Enix has also developed titles for handheld game consoles, including the Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, PlayStation Portable, Nintendo 3DS and PlayStation Vita. In addition, they have published games for Microsoft Windows-based personal computers, and for various models of mobile phones. Square Enix mobile phone games are available on the Vodafone network in some European countries, including Ireland, United Kingdom, Spain, and France. Twenty-seven Square Enix games were included in Famitsu magazine's 'Top 100 Games Ever', seven being in the top ten list, with Final Fantasy X claiming the number one position.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Famitsu_39-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[39]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">Before its launch, Michihiro Sasaki, senior vice president of Square Enix, spoke about the PlayStation 3, saying "We don't want the PlayStation 3 to be the overwhelming loser, so we want to support them, but we don't want them to be the overwhelming winner either, so we can't support them too much."<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Sasaki_40-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[40]  Square Enix continued to reiterate their devotion to multi-platform publishing in 2007, promising more support for the North American and European gaming markets where console pluralism is generally more prevalent than in Japan.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-SquareHaven_41-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[41]  Their interest in multi-platform development was made clear in 2008 when the previously PlayStation 3-exclusive game Final Fantasy XIII was announced for release on the Xbox 360.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-EGxbox_42-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[42]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">In 2008, Square Enix and Gas Powered Games announced partnership on the game Supreme Commander 2.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Gas_Powered_Partnership_43-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[43]  On July 8, 2008, Square Enix released their first game for theiPod, Song Summoner: The Unsung Heroes. Square Enix made a new brand for kids gaming that same year, known as Pure Dreams. Its purpose is to create games suitable for kids. The brand is now planning more games. Pure Dreams have just completed their first two games, Snoopy DS: Let's Go Meet Snoopy and His Friends (released in Japan on October 9, 2008) and Pingu's Wonderful Carnival (released in Japan on November 6, 2008). Fortress was the codename of a video game that was to be a spin-off of Square Enix's Final Fantasy series. It was envisioned as an action game set in the fictional world of Ivalice, and was intended for the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows platforms.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-PlayUK_44-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[44] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Bj.C3.B6rn_Albihn_45-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[45]  Although not yet officially announced, the project's existence was revealed after the closure of the original developer, GRIN, by former members of the development team and sources in the video game industry. The game was cancelled,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-46" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[46]  along with Highlander: The Game, Qwirkle,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-QWIRKAND_47-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[47]  Downfall: San Francisco,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-48" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[48]  Gun Loco,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-49" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[49] Catacombs,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-50" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[50]  and Project Dropship.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-51" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[51]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">In 2009, Square Enix acquired Eidos, the company responsible for popular game series such as Tomb Raider, Hitman, Deus Ex, Thief and Legacy of Kain, as well as the publishing of the Windows versions of Final Fantasy VII and VIII and Western release of Dragon Warrior Monsters. Square Enix has absorbed Eidos into a new division calledSquare Enix Europe. Square Enix also helped deliver Ubisoft games to Japan since 2009.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-52" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[52]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">Square Enix has developed two notable in-house game engines. The first, Crystal Tools, was a middlewares engine created for seventh generation consoles and Microsoft Windows.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-gamewatch_53-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[53]  It was first shown off at a tech demo shown off at E3 2005, and was later used for Final Fantasy XIII based on the demo's reception.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-XIIIinfo_54-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[54] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-IGNupdate_55-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[55]  Crystal Tools was also used for Final Fantasy Versus XIII before its re-branding as Final Fantasy XV and shift onto next-gen platforms.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-andriasangXV_56-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[56]  Refinement of the engine continued through the development of Final Fantasy XIII-2,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-gamespot_57-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[57]  and it underwent a major overhaul for Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy XIII.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-gamer.ne.jp_58-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[58]  The second is the Luminous engine, which was originally unveiled at E3 2012 through a tech demo titled Agni's Philosophy.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-59" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[59] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-60" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[60] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-61" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[61]  The first major console title to use Luminous was Final Fantasy XV.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-andriasangXV_56-1" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[56]  Luminous's development was done in tandem with XV, and the game's development helped the programming team optimize the engine.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-Famitsu_1281_62-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[62]

Online Gaming
<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">Before the merger, Enix published its first online game Cross Gate in Japan, mainland China, and Taiwan in 2001 and Square released Final Fantasy XI in Japan on May 16, 2002 for the PlayStation 2. With the huge success after Square Enix released Final Fantasy XI worldwide in March 2004, Microsoft had the game ported into the Xbox 360 two years later, making it the first Final Fantasy game ever to be on the Xbox console. Due to the success of their MMORPG, Square Enix began a new project called Fantasy Earth: The Ring of Dominion. GamePot, a Japanese game portal, got the license to publish Fantasy Earth in Japan and it was released in Japan as "Fantasy Earth ZERO." In November 2006, however, Square Enix dropped the Fantasy Earth Zero project, giving acquisition to GamePot. Square Enix released Concerto Gate, the sequel to Cross Gate, in 2007.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">A next-gen MMORPG code named Rapture was developed by the Final Fantasy XI team using the company's Crystal Tools engine.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-gameinformer_63-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[63]  It was unveiled at E3 2009 that the MMO,Final Fantasy XIV, for PlayStation 3 and Microsoft Windows, would be released on September 30, 2010. The release date for the PlayStation 3 version was soon postponed.Dragon Quest X was announced in September 2011 as an MMORPG being developed for Nintendo's Wii and Wii U consoles,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-EDGE_Online_DQX_Wii_U_64-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[64]  which released on August 2, 2012 and March 30, 2013 respectively. Like XIV, it used Crystal Tools.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-65" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[65]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">Square Enix is also making browser games and Facebook games, like Legend World, Chocobo's Crystal Tower and Knights of the Crystals,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-CCTall_66-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[66] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-KOTCall_67-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[67]  and online games for [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yahoo!_Japan Yahoo! Japan], such as Monster x Dragon,<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-68" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[68]  Sengoku Ixa, Bravely Default: Praying Brage, Star Galaxy and Crystal Conquest.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-69" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[69]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">On May 8, 2012, Square Enix announced a collaboration with Bigpoint Games to create a free-to-play cloud gaming platform that "throws players into 'limitless game worlds' directly through their web browser".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-70" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[70]  The service was launched under the name CoreOnline in August 2012.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-71" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[71]  Claiming "limited commercial take-up," the free service was reported as cancelled on November 29, 2013, including the free-to-play browser title GameGlobe.

Arcade Gaming
<p style="font-weight:normal;"><span style="color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;line-height:22.4px;">With the merger of  Taito Corporation<span style="color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;line-height:22.4px;"> businesses into Square Enix, the company gained possession of Taito's arcade infrastructure and facilities. With this, Square Enix entered the arcade market in 2008. The company has mostly imitated business models introduced by  Sega<span style="color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;line-height:22.4px;">, with trading card game machines ( Lord of Vermillion<span style="color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;line-height:22.4px;">) and network features ( NESiCAxLive<span style="color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;line-height:22.4px;">) being a priority.

Other Media
<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">The company has made two forays into the film industry. The first, Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001), was produced by Square subsidiary Square Pictures prior to the merger (Square Pictures is now a consolidated subsidiary of Square Enix).<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-72" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[72]  Its box-office failure caused Enix to delay the merger, which was already considered before the creation of the film, for fear of associating itself with a company that loses money.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-73" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[73]  In 2005, Square Enix released Final Fantasy VII Advent Children, a CGI-animation moviebased on the PlayStation game Final Fantasy VII, set two years after the events of the game. A Deus Ex film is currently in pre-production.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-74" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[74] <sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-75" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[75]

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">The company also has a manga publishing division in Japan (originally from Enix) called Gangan Comics, which publishes content for the Japanese market only. However, in 2010, Square Enix launched a digital manga store for North American audiences via its Members services, which contains several notable series published in Gangan anthologies.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-76" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[76]  Titles published by Gangan Comics include Black God, Durarara, Papuwa, Haré+Guu, ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pani_Poni_Dash! Pani Poni], Spiral, He is My Master, Yumekui Kenbun, Doubt, Bamboo Blade, Heroman, Pandora Hearts, Black Butler, Sumomomo Momomo, Soul Eater, Zombie Loan, Tasogare Otome x Amnesia, Fullmetal Alchemist, Space Dandy, No-Rin andHigurashi no Naku Koro ni''. Other titles include manga adaptations of diverse Square Enix games, like Dragon Quest, Kingdom Hearts and Star Ocean. Some of these titles have also been adapted into anime series.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">Fullmetal Alchemist is the most successful title of Square Enix's manga branch, with more than 64 million volumes sold worldwide.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-77" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[77]  It is licensed in North America by Viz Media, while its two anime adaptations are licensed by Funimation Entertainment. Kingdom Hearts and Spiral were licensed in North America by Tokyopop; Tokyopop dropped Spiral, but the title was later licensed again by Hachette's Yen Press, which has licensed other Square Enix titles including Soul Eater, Bamboo Blade and Higurashi no Naku Koro ni. Other titles like Soul Eater, Sekirei, Bamboo Blade and Black Butler also were adapted to anime and licensed to other countries.

<p style="margin-top:0.5em;margin-bottom:0.5em;line-height:22.4px;color:rgb(37,37,37);font-family:sans-serif;font-size:14px;font-weight:normal;">Square Enix created figures for franchises such as Mass Effect and Halo.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-78" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[78]  The company also has a smartphone subsidiary, HipposLab.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-79" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[79]

Subsidiaries

 * Square Enix Co., Ltd. (Japan, Headquarters), located at the Shinjuku Bunka Quint Building in Shibuya, Tokyo.
 * Square Enix Montreal, located at the sixth floor of 2001 McGill College in Montreal,Canada.
 * Square Enix, Inc. (North America), located at the third floor of 999 North Sepulveda Boulevard in El Segundo, California, United States and Honolulu, Hawaii, United States.
 * Square Enix Ltd. (Europe/PAL areas), located at the second floor of the Castle House inBorough of Islington in London, United Kingdom.
 * Square Enix Europe, located at the Wimbledon Bridge House, 1 Hartfield Road, Wimbledon, London.
 * Beautiful Game Studios, based in the same building as Square Enix Europe
 * Crystal Dynamics
 * Eidos Montreal
 * Eidos Shanghai
 * IO Interactive
 * Square Enix (China) Co., Ltd., located at Room 716 of Golder Plaza, No. 10 Huayuandonglu in Haidian District, Beijing, People's Republic of China.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-80" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[80]
 * Digital Entertainment Academy Co. Ltd.
 * Square Enix Mobile
 * Taito, headquartered in Japan, founded in 1953, acquired on September 28, 2005.
 * Visual Works, a CGI studio previously known as Square Visual Works.
 * Shinra Technologies, Inc. (cloud service)<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-81" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[81]  Closed in January 2016.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-82" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[82]

Reviews and Ratings

 * The company won IGN's award for Best Developer of 2006 for the PlayStation 2.<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-IGN_83-0" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[83]
 * Square Enix's North American subsidiary, Square Enix, Inc., joined The Better Business Bureau in July 2007 and was assigned a rating of "C++". The BBB rating has since been upgraded to "A+".<sup class="reference" id="cite_ref-84" style="line-height:1;unicode-bidi:isolate;white-space:nowrap;font-size:11.2px;font-weight:normal;">[84]