Square Enix has been in the spotlight for selling its western studios to Embracer Group. One reason appears to be losses from Marvel’s Avengers and Guardians of the Galaxy. David Gibson (Senior Analyst, MST Financial) says Square Enix lost $200 million from these games.
Marvel – that’s the reason why Square sold its NA team for $300m. Because in a little under two years they lost $200m on two Marvel games. But it still looks like a low price given the optionality on probably 4 AAA titles coming through. #SquareEnix #Embracer
— David Gibson (@gibbogame) May 2, 2022
The remaining $100 million of the purchase price could be for costs associated with the North American branch. Lifetime sales for the Tomb Raider and Deus Ex franchises look good, but Eidos-Montréal has had minimal profit margins in recent years.
The bulk of profits for Square Enix is coming from its mobile gaming, Final Fantasy, and MMO offerings.
Who else forgot that Square Enix makes so much money from smartphone/browser games?
— Derek Strickland (@DeekeTweak) February 4, 2022
Square Enix total 9 month game segment revenues – $1.836 billion
• Browser/smartphone – $848.888 million (46%)
• HD games – $568.556 million (31%)
• MMO – $418.368 million (23%) pic.twitter.com/rWwAUzyLTA