Update: Square-Enix has responded to reports that multiple companies are looking to acquire it, saying it "does not consider selling off the company".
The short response also states they have yet to receive any offers from third parties, after an earlier report claimed several unnamed companies are considering making an acquisition offer.
The statement reads: "Bloomberg has reported today that there is interest from several buyers to acquire Square Enix. However, this report is not based on any announcement by SQUARE ENIX HOLDINGS CO., LTD.
"We do not consider selling off the company or any part of its businesses, nor have we received any offer from any third party to acquire the company or any part of its businesses."
This news comes from Bloomberg Japan, with the relatively short and snappy post claiming that multiple companies are currently interested in acquiring Square Enix, although the report doesn't name any of the companies that are currently pursuing the potential acquisition.
However, don't take this as a guarantee that Square Enix will actually be acquired by another company. As the NPD Group's Mat Piscatella notes in the tweet just below, just about every big-name publisher in the games industry looks into potential partnerships, mergers, and acquisitions, but it's incredibly rare that something like this actually goes ahead.
Just about every big publisher is continuously running evaluations on potential acquisitions, mergers or partnerships. I would do dozens of slate and revenue scenarios every year. Sometimes something happens, almost always it doesn't. Shrug.April 16, 2021
That being said, the video game industry has been shaken with blockbuster acquisitions of late. Last September, Microsoft announced the acquisition of Bethesda, including every individual developer that the Maryland-based company oversaw, such as Arkane, Tango Gameworks, and more.
Just last month in early March 2021, the European Union's trade body officially gave consent to the acquisition of Bethesda by Microsoft moving ahead, with Xbox then officially announcing its acquisition of the company on March 9.
It's certainly an exciting and intriguing prospect for both companies. Arkane game director Harvey Smith, for example, said that the two companies "fit perfectly" together, while Xbox boss Phil Spencer revealed that Bethesda will run "semi-independently" from Microsoft following the acquisition.
Still, whether or no Square-Enix is the next company on the acquisition list, it has a busy year ahead, with the release of Final Fantasy 7: Intergrade, as well as several other upcoming titles in the form of Final Fantasy 16 and Forspoken.
For a complete list of every game coming out over the coming year, head over to our new games 2021 guide for more.
