Microsoft and Square Enix’s working relationship has seen its fair share of ups and downs, but once Final Fantasy stopped being exclusive to PlayStation back in the PS3/Xbox 360 era, the assumption was that the road would be much smoother going forward. In recent years, however, that hasn’t necessarily been the case.
While the likes of NieR: Automata and Dragon Quest 11 have been ported over to Xbox consoles, several Square Enix titles haven’t seen similar treatment. Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Final Fantasy 16 are major titles that have remained exclusive to PlayStation, but smaller-scale releases like LIVE A LIVE, Octopath Traveler 2, Tactics Ogre Reborn, Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster, and many others have also ended up getting releases for pretty much every platform except Xbox.
As some may have guessed, it seems that’s a reflection of a tough relationship between Microsoft and Square Enix. In a recent report published on Windows Central, journalist Jez Corden claimed that he’s been hearing an increasing amount of rumours that “something is functionally wrong” with the relationship between the two companies. Corden goes on to say that there’s “no sign of the relationship improving any time soon”.
Interestingly, in follow-up tweets, he’s also suggested that that might actually be Microsoft’s fault more than Square Enix’s, contrary to suggestions that Square Enix games are being kept off Xbox because Sony has been paying the Japanese company to do so.
