Forspoken may be available at a substantial discount soon. In a new financial results presentation, Square Enix President Yosuke Matsuda (who’s reportedly stepping down from the company in June) revealed that sales of the new fantasy RPG starring Ella Balinska have been disappointing, describing them as “lackluster” following “challenging” reviews. Matsuda suggested that the project hasn’t been a total loss, however, having earned praise for some of its novel gameplay mechanics (e.g., magic-infused parkour), which the executive believes might strengthen its future games. Featuring a soundtrack by Bear McCreary (God of War) and Garry Schyman (BioShock), Forspoken is currently listed on Steam for $69.99.
From a Square Enix financial results briefing:
[…] I would like to discuss our outlook for 4Q FY2023/3 and for the upcoming fiscal year (“FY2024/3”).
Reviews of “FORSPOKEN,” which we released on January 24, 2023, have been challenging. However, the game has also received positive feedback on its action features, including its parkour and combat capabilities, so it has yielded results that will lead to improvement of our development capabilities of other games in the future. That said, its sales have been lackluster, and while the performance of new titles with February and March release dates will be the ultimate determinant, we see considerable downside risk to our FY2023/3 earnings.
At our IH FY2023/3 Financial Results Briefing session, I stated that we were designating FY2023/3 as a year in which to lay the foundations that will enable us to achieve our medium-term objectives, but that we nonetheless intended to pursue YoY growth in sales and profits. In light of current conditions, however, I have to admit that this will not be easy.
Meanwhile, our pipeline for FY2024/3 and beyond is extremely strong, including some titles that we have yet to announce. In addition, we believe that the overhauls of our development and publishing structures will for the most part be completed during the remainder of FY2023/3. FY2024/3 is the final year of our current medium-term plan, and to end the plan on the best possible note, we are steadily putting into place a structure that will enable further growth. Please look forward to future developments.