Square Enix Won't Abandon Just Cause, Life Is Strange and Outriders Brands
Despite selling its western studios to Embracer Group, Square Enix does not intend to limit itself to Japanese productions and will continue to develop brands such as Just Cause, Life is Strange and Outriders.
Yesterday we wrote that Embracer Group has acquired Crystal Dynamics, Eidos-Montreal and Square Enix Montreal studios, along with the rights to many brands such as Tomb Raider, Deus Ex and Legacy of Kain. Now the former owner of these teams and series has issued a statement that this does not mean a complete abandonment of the western series.
- Square Enix has confirmed that it still owns the Just Cause, Outriders and Life is Strange brands and they will be further developed.
- The publisher also assures that it will continue to release games under the Square Enix External Studios and Square Enix Collective groups in addition to Japanese titles.
- Square Enix External Studios is a division located in London that is responsible for coordinating with large indie developers.
- Square Enix Collective, on the other hand, is a division dedicated to publishing small indie games.
The publisher's announcement means that Square Enix still intends to invest in the productions of developers from outside Japan. However, the company does not want to own such teams.
It is worth mentioning that last month Square Enix CEO Yosuke Matsuda gave an interesting interview, in which he stated that it would be a mistake to force Japanese studios to create games with Western tastes in mind. For a publisher, performance on the global market is important, but success in this field cannot be achieved by imitating the style of developers outside the Land of the Rising Sun.
