While not entirely unexpected, this is certainly very sudden.
After reporting some really terrible numbers to their investors, Square Enix has announced that their CEO, Yoichi Wada, is resigning from his current position. Taking his place (for now at least) is Yosuke Matsuda, long time Director and CFO of SQUARE ENIX HOLDINGS CO., LTD amongst other positions.
What does this mean? Well, it could mean a lot of things.
It's no secret that Square Enix has been having financial troubles this generation. The massive failure of Final Fantasy XIV resulted in setbacks for a host of titles due to the shifting of resources. Final Fantasy XIII, like the game or not, sold well but had a generally poor reception, leading to not so great numbers for its sequel. Dragon Quest X is likely underperforming as well, though that's hardly a surprise given it's an MMO that has only been around for a short period of time. They needed a major change, and I'm hoping this is the kind of shake up that can help them regain their footing.
For the record, I've adored SE's handheld output these past few generations. I want them to get their act together, and it looks to me like they're on the right track. They have a steady amount of games lined up currently, and this year is a good chance to really hit hard.
I'm personally feeling pretty optimistic about this whole thing. What about you folks?
EDIT: I've added a few slides that cite poor sales of western titles, and hold a few other bits of info on the situation.
[via 4Gamer]
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