On Twitter, Kando said, “This is a personal matter, but as of May 31, I have left Square Enix. Over the past 29 years, I’ve had the opportunity to work on many projects, including Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, and The World Ends with You, and the experiences I’ve gained are irreplaceable.

“The support from everyone who played the games has been incredibly encouraging, and it served as a driving force that pushed me forward in development every day. I’m deeply grateful. Thank you so much!

“Going forward, I will continue doing my best to create enjoyable content that brings smiles to everyone’s faces.” It’s unknown whether Kando will continue his career in another company, so stay tuned for further updates.

NEO: The World Ends with You launched in July 2021 for PS4 and Nintendo Switch, followed by PC in September 2021. Despite solid critical acclaim, Square Enix revealed that the action RPG had performed lower than “initial expectations.”

The franchise has been on ice ever since with no indication of follow-ups. You can read our review – we rated it an eight out of ten, praising the writing, art direction, soundtrack and combat system. However, the technical issues on Switch and the poor pacing of some segments impacted our enjoyment.

Other titles include Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot, Haven, Life is Strange: True Colors, Rainbow Six Extraction and Tchia on PS4 and PS5. PS4 players also get Final Fantasy Type-0 HD, Immortals Fenyx Rising, Life is Strange 2, NEO: The World Ends with You, RAGE 2, Street Fighter 5 Champion Edition, and Untitled Goose Game. Of course, these are all playable on PS5, thanks to backward compatibility.

For Premium subscribers, Ape Escape 2 and Ridge Racer Type 4 for PlayStation One are coming along with Syphon Filter: Dark Mirror from the PlayStation Portable era. The latter benefits from up-rendering, quick saving, video filters and a rewind function. Stay tuned for more details when the above titles go live next week.

It includes seven songs, including “Ardent Rhythm” from Romancing SaGa: Minstrel Song. The LIVE A LIVE Pack is second, launching on March 1st and features four songs, like “Megalomania.” The World Ends with You Series Pack arrives on March 15th with six songs, such as “Your Ocean” from NEO: The World Ends with You.

NieR fans can look forward to the NieR Series Pack on March 29th with five songs (including NieR: Automata’s “A Beautiful Song”). The SaGa Series Pack Vol. 2 launches on April 12th with eight songs, like “The Celestial Protectors” from SaGa Scarlet Grace: Ambitions.

If that weren’t enough, even more characters have been confirmed, unlockable through Series Quests. Check them out below:

Final Fantasy 11

• Shantotto
• Prishe
• Aphmau
• Lilisette

Final Fantasy 13

• Lightning
• Snow
• Hope
• Vanille
• Cid Raines

Final Fantasy 15

• Noctis
• Gladiolus
• Ignis
• Prompto
• Aranea

Final Fantasy 13-2

• Serah
• Noel

Lightning Returns: Final Fantasy 13

• Lightning #2

Final Fantasy Type-0

• Ace
• Machina
• Rem
• Kurasame

Final Fantasy: Record Keeper

• Tyro

Final Fantasy Fables: Chocobo’s Dungeon

• Chocobo

Theatrhythm: Final Bar Line launches on February 16th for PS4 and Nintendo Switch. Head here for more details on the gameplay styles, Music Stages, and more.

Mass Effect Andromeda

Mass Effect Andromeda tried to do a lot. It tried to tell a new story with a brand new cast, with the team behind Mass Effect 3’s stellar multiplayer in charge. It also opted for much larger play spaces and more build diversity. However, from the very outset, there were issues, whether it was the plan to have randomly generated planets, Frostbite being a mess, high-level departures, etc. Despite being decent in several ways, Andromeda flopped hard enough that publisher EA reportedly cancelled DLC and put the franchise on ice for a few years.

NEO: The World Ends with You is a sequel to The World Ends With You, which was originally released on the Nintendo DS. It takes place years after the events of the first game, focusing on Rindo and Fret who find themselves in the Shibuya Underground. Not long afterwards, they have to team up with characters like Nagi and Sho Minamimoto as they fight for survival in the Reapers’ Game.

In an evolution from its predecessor, NEO: The World Ends with You features fully 3D combat. It also features unique abilities that help in various aspects of combat as well as exploration, with abilities that let you remind characters of specific thoughts through time.

NEO: The World Ends with You is also available on PS4 and Nintendo Switch. For more details about the game, check out our review.

While only time will answer that question, the prospects of there being another new game in the series entirely bleak. Speaking recently in an interview with Nintendo Life, NEO: The World Ends with You producer Tomohiko Hirano said that while no decisions have been made yet regarding the future of the series, there are still many things Square Enix could do with another The World Ends with You game. Hirano says that if fans are passionate enough about the series, there might be a third instalment in the future.

“Frankly speaking, nothing has been decided in terms of a next installment,” Hirano said. “However, as a game based on an actual city, there are still many areas that we still haven’t been able to bring to life in the games, so a part of me wants to realize that in some way. If players convey their passion for the game to us, our company may decide to let us make a sequel!”

Of course, that isn’t entirely reassuring- fans were really passionate about the first game, after all, and that took 14 years to finally receive a sequel. That said, it is at least somewhat reassuring that Square Enix could at least be willing to another new game in the series- hopefully this one won’t take over a decade.

NEO: The World Ends with You is available on Nintendo Switch, PS4, and PC. You can read our review of the game through here.

Dungeons and Dragons: Dark Alliance

Much has been said about Dungeons and Dragons: Dark Alliance, from its dull combat and story to the multitude of bugs. Even if it didn’t have a huge marketing push leading up to release, it was receiving more than its fair share of hype (not to mention that the Dark Alliance and Dungeons and Dragons names had recognition). Predictably though, its sales were nothing to write home about. It debuted in 23^rd place on Gfk Chart-Track’s UK boxed charts but didn’t even receive a mention in The NPD Group’s June 2021 report, failing to even crack the top 20. Whatever deal was made for its Xbox Game Pass release may have helped recoup some revenue. But the sheer lack of sales data from publisher Wizards of the Coast seemingly points to it wanting to forget about this disaster as much as everyone else did.

And that’s something that Square Enix has now confirmed as well. In a recently published quarterly financial briefing, Square Enix wrote that though NEO: The World Ends with You was received well by players, the game “has underperformed our initial expectations.”

It’s funny that Square Enix should say that, because the pre-launch marketing for the RPG was absolutely horrible- almost entirely non-existent, in fact. So what exactly were you expecting, Square Enix? A sequel to a niche game that came out well over a decade ago isn’t going to sell on its own.

It’s a shame, because NEO: The World Ends with You is a really good game, too. Here’s hoping strong word of mouth will lead to sustained sales over a long period, because the way the publisher itself handled the game really hasn’t done its commercial performance any favours.

NEO: The World Ends with You is available on Nintendo Switch, PS4, and PC.

Set years after the first game, the story focuses on Rindo and Fret who suddenly find themselves in the Shibuya Underground. It’s not long before they have to fight for survival in the Reapers’ Game, teaming up with the likes of Nagi and Sho Minamimoto. Many features like using pins for attacks and engaging in lengthy conversations still exist.

However, new gameplay features include fully 3D combat, unique abilities that range from completing puzzles to Remind individuals of certain thoughts to time travel, and much more are also implemented. Check out our review for more details on the same. NEO: The World Ends with You is also available for PS4 and Nintendo Switch.

NEO: The World Ends with You originally released on July 27th for PS4 and Nintendo Switch, and serves as the long-awaited sequel to the 2007 cult-classic. The story focuses on a new cast of characters, namely Rindo, as he leads the Wicked Twisters to survive Reapers’ Game in the Shibuya Underground. New mechanics include Remind for prompting NPCs to remember vital details and Rewind for going back to previous times in the day.

Combat is also fully 3D as players swap between different characters (each having their own assigned button and Pin) to string together combos. Build enough Groove by successfully stringing together combos and you can use powerful Mashups to decimate foes. Check out our official review for the game here and stay tuned for more details on its PC release.