A major investor in Final Fantasy maker Square Enix has published a 100-page document criticizing the company’s performance and calling for a “fundamental reassessment” of its business, citing perceived “sluggish” revenue and profits.
In a press statement, 3D Investment Partners — Square Enix’s third-largest investor, holding around a 14% stake — claims there has been a “significant deterioration in earning power” despite the company owning some of the world’s biggest franchises and being a “preeminent Japanese game developer.”
“What Square Enix once brought to life was a ‘culture’ that shaped an era, and an ‘industry’ that fascinated the world. Is Square Enix really giving birth to something genuinely new, or has Square Enix turned away from the challenges before it and let its steps falter?” the document asks, imploring that the firm “surprises us, moves us, and ignites that passion we once felt,” as “gamers across the globe have been waiting, endlessly, for that irreplaceable experience.
“However, under the newly established management structure, the past three years have been marked by a pronounced stagnation in both revenue growth and profitability, with a significant deterioration in earning power, as evidenced by declines in operating income, return on equity, and other key performance metrics.”
Calling this “the most critical management challenge” currently faced by the Japanese company, 3D1P calls for the firm to “devise and rigorously implement concrete countermeasures addressing critical management issues,” including the “excessive fragmentation of the development portfolio, product design, and promotional strategies that have led to declining tie ratios, and inflated expenditures such as development costs.”
“We respectfully urge a fundamental reassessment of the medium-term management plan, with the objective of fully unlocking the potential of Square Enix’s distinguished intellectual property and thereby maximizing corporate value.”
Best Mainline Final Fantasy Games
Best Mainline Final Fantasy Games
After directly comparing Square Enix with Japanese competitors like Capcom, Sega, Konami, Bandai Namco, and Nintendo — and cherry-picking “harsh” responses from Metacritic of both new and established IP — the investment firm revealed that it had been “engaged in ongoing dialogue” with Square Enix since last summer.
“Since July 2024, we have been engaged in ongoing dialogue with SQEX HD. In October 2025, we explained to President Kiryu and Outside Director Abdullah the management issues of SQEX HD as seen from the market. We also presented to President Kiryu our proposals.
“However, in response to this request, President Kiryu replied only with a brief email stating, without addressing any of the specific management issues or solutions we had raised, and without providing any concrete explanation of his reasoning.”
3D Investment Partners is now sharing its views on the perceived management issues “with all shareholders” to “collect [their] frank views, and, based on the views we receive, engage in constructive dialogue with SQEX HD to enhance its corporate value again.”
IGN has asked Square Enix for comment.
Former Square Enix exec and CEO of Genvid, Jacob Navok — the same exec that recently claimed “Gen Z loves AI slop” — also weighed in, saying that the presentation from 3DIP essentially has two themes: “sales are bad” and “dev costs are high.”
“These are the same issues I addressed in 2024 when discussing the problems with Square Enix’s sales for FF16 expectations for sales were set correctly,” he added. “They were not met because Square Enix sales were poor, and the game cost too much to make.”
The very public complaint comes just weeks after Square Enix announced mass layoffs, impacting over 100 individuals, alongside a broader effort to consolidate its publishing organization and focus its development work in Japan. It had also already sold Crystal Dynamics, Eidos-Montreal, Square Enix Montreal, and a number of associated IPs to Embracer Group, and laid off workers across its western operations in 2024.
Square Enix also expects 70% of its QA work to be handled by generative AI by the end of 2027. The company has stated in the past that it intends to be “aggressive in applying AI” across both development and publishing.
Vikki Blake is a reporter for IGN, as well as a critic, columnist, and consultant with 15+ years experience working with some of the world’s biggest gaming sites and publications. She’s also a Guardian, Spartan, Silent Hillian, Legend, and perpetually High Chaos. Find her at BlueSky.
