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Square Enix has said that it plans to focus more on a global market due to an aging population in Japan, brought about by record low birth rates in the country.
In a financial report published by Square Enix, it explained that an aging population means that it'll no longer be able to rely on a consumer base that might grow out of the medium. The report says: “Achieving major growth in the game industry is difficult now for companies that compete primarily in the Japanese market, given its graying demographics.”
“As such, it is critical for our business that we produce hit titles that speak to the global market, which offers greater scale in terms of both customers and sales volumes.”
This position is on the back of striking statistics from Japan, which shows an aging population. As reported by The Guardian, the number of babies born in Japan in 2021 was a record low of 811,604, 3.5% fewer than in 2020. While it may seem small now if that number continues to fall, Japan will be facing an older population, and potentially fewer prospective customers to sell to.
Square Enix has certainly seen critical success in the West, especially with Final Fantasy 7 Remake and the continued momentum of Final Fantasy 14. However, the developer will have to continue to find hits in the West if it's to reach its targets.
Complicating that, the company has recently cut away many of its Western developers, Eidos-Montreal, Crystal Dynamics, and Square Enix Montreal. A few years before that, it also let IO Interactive go, meaning that the company’s presence in the West is greatly diminished. The company’s next big attempt to break the Western market is Forspoken, a new IP from the publisher. That said, players are going to have to wait to see if the game is a success, as it was delayed into next year earlier this summer.
If you're still invested in Japanese-made games, why not check out our list of the best JRPGs in 2022?
