NationMaster - Encyclopedia: Square Enix

Square Enix Company, Limited (株式会社スクウェア・エニックス Kabushiki-gaisha Sukuwea Enikkusu^?) TYO: 9684 is a Japanese video game company best known for its console role-playing game franchises, which include the Final Fantasy series, the Dragon Quest series (known as Dragon Warrior in North America from 1989 until 2005), and the Kingdom Hearts series. Square Enix was formed as the result of a merger between rivals Square Co. and the Enix Corporation. On April 1, 2003, Enix legally absorbed Square, with Square stockholders receiving 0.85 shares of stock in the new company compared to Enix stockholders receiving a one-to-one trade. Despite this, many top officials within Square assumed leadership roles in the new corporate hierarchy, including Square president Yōichi Wada, who was appointed president of the new corporation. Image File history File links Square Enix corporate logo File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Tokyo Stock Exchange ), or TSE, is one of the largest stock exchange markets in the world by monetary volume located in Tokyo, Japan, second only to the New York Stock Exchange. ... The Enix Corporation ) was a company that produced Japanese video games and manga. ... is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Square Company, Limited ) was a Japanese video game company founded in September of 1983 by Masafumi Miyamoto and Hironobu Sakaguchi. ... The government of Tokyo has its headquarters in Nishi-Shinjuku. ... Shinjuku ) is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. ... This is one cool cat. ... YÅichi Wada ) is the current president of Square Enix video game corporation. ... Chief Executive Officer (CEO) is the job of having the ultimate executive responsibility or authority within an organization or corporation. ... Keiji Honda (本多圭司) is the current Executive Vice President of Square Enix Co. ... â€œComputer and video gamesâ€ redirects here. ... For other uses, see Book (disambiguation). ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... This article is about the Final Fantasy franchise. ... Dragon Quest logo Dragon Quest ), published as Dragon Warrior in North America until the 2005 release of Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, is a series of role-playing games produced by Enix (now Square Enix). ... The logo of Kingdom Hearts, the first game in the series Kingdom Hearts ) is a series of action role-playing games developed and published by Square Enix (formerly Square). ... Bubble Bobble is an arcade game by Taito, first released in 1986. ... Space Invaders is an arcade video game designed by Tomohiro Nishikado in 1978. ... Look up revenue in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... â€œUSDâ€ redirects here. ... Green up arrow for a positive change in revenue from last fiscal year. ... A fiscal year (or financial year or accounting reference date) is a 12-month period used for calculating annual (yearly) financial reports in businesses and other organizations. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This article is about work. ... is the 90th day of the year (91st in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2007 (MMVII) is the current year, a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar and the AD/CE era in the 21st Century. ... A subsidiary, in business, is an entity that is controlled by another entity. ... The Taito Corporation (ã‚¿ã‚¤ãƒˆãƒ¼æ ªå¼ä¼šç¤¾, taitou kabushikigaisha) TYO: 9646 is a Japanese developer of video game software and arcade hardware. ... Look up slogan in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... A website (alternatively, Web site or web site) is a collection of Web pages, images, videos and other digital assets that is hosted on one or several Web server(s), usually accessible via the Internet, cell phone or a LAN. A Web page is a document, typically written in HTML... The Tokyo Stock Exchange ), or TSE, is one of the largest stock exchange markets in the world by monetary volume located in Tokyo, Japan, second only to the New York Stock Exchange. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article is about the Final Fantasy franchise. ... Dragon Quest logo Dragon Quest ), published as Dragon Warrior in North America until the 2005 release of Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, is a series of role-playing games produced by Enix (now Square Enix). ... North America North America is a continent[1] in the Earths northern hemisphere and (chiefly) western hemisphere. ... The logo of Kingdom Hearts, the first game in the series Kingdom Hearts ) is a series of action role-playing games developed and published by Square Enix (formerly Square). ... The phrase mergers and acquisitions (abbreviated M&A) refers to the aspect of corporate strategy, corporate finance and management dealing with the buying, selling and combining of different companies that can aid, finance, or help a growing company in a given industry grow rapidly without having to create another business... Square Company, Limited ) was a Japanese video game company founded in September of 1983 by Masafumi Miyamoto and Hironobu Sakaguchi. ... The Enix Corporation ) was a company that produced Japanese video games and manga. ... is the 91st day of the year (92nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... President is a title held by many leaders of nothing, companies, trade unions, universities, and countries. ... YÅichi Wada ) is the current president of Square Enix video game corporation. ...

Corporate developments

Square Enix has regional operations, including Square Enix, Inc. (for all of North America) and Square Enix Ltd. (for Europe and other areas that use the PAL-television standard). In July 2003, Square Enix relocated their headquarters to Yoyogi, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo. In March 2004, Square Enix acquired UIEvolution, Inc. in order to strengthen its wireless market. On August 22, 2005, Square Enix announced its acquisition of the amusement gaming developer and publisher, Taito Corporation, renowned for their arcade hits, Space Invaders and the Bubble Bobble series. By September 28, 2005, Square Enix had wholly acquired Taito. In January 2005, the company expanded operations to Beijing, China by establishing Square Enix (China) Co., Ltd as a wholly owned subsidiary. The company also has a controlling interest in Community Network Software Engine of Beijing, China which focuses on network middleware for gaming. For other uses, see Europe (disambiguation). ... For other uses, see PAL (disambiguation). ... UIEvolution is a software company based in Bellevue, Washington. ... is the 234th day of the year (235th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Taito Corporation (ã‚¿ã‚¤ãƒˆãƒ¼æ ªå¼ä¼šç¤¾, taitou kabushikigaisha) TYO: 9646 is a Japanese developer of video game software and arcade hardware. ... Space Invaders is an arcade video game designed by Tomohiro Nishikado in 1978. ... Bubble Bobble is an arcade game by Taito, first released in 1986. ... is the 271st day of the year (272nd in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday (link displays full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... â€œPekingâ€ redirects here. ... A subsidiary, in business, is an entity that is controlled by another entity. ... Controlling interest is to have control of a large enough portion of voting stock in a company such that no other stock holder can oppose you. ...

Square Enix has just recently acquired an Unreal Engine 3 license, to help in the development of future titles and game development tools.^[1] The Unreal Engine is a widely-used game engine developed by Epic Games. ...

Production teams

As of September 2003, Square Enix' production staff were divided in eight different Square teams:^[2]

In addition to two Enix teams:^[2] Square Enix producer Yoshinori Kitase has been credited on the following games: Final Fantasy X-2 Kingdom Hearts Final Fantasy X Final Fantasy Anthology Final Fantasy VIII Ehrgeiz: God Bless the Ring Final Fantasy VII Chrono Trigger Final Fantasy VI Final Fantasy V Final Fantasy Adventure He is currently working... Akitoshi Kawazu (æ²³æ´¥ç§‹æ•) is a Japanese game producer. ... Hiromichi Tanaka ) (January 1, 1962 â€“ ) is a Japanese video game developer working at Square Enix. ... Final Fantasy XI ), also known as Final Fantasy XI: Online, is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) as a part of the Final Fantasy video game series. ... Yasumi Matsuno ) is a former director at Square Enix (previously called Squaresoft). ... Toshiro Tsuchida is the man behind the Front Mission series. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... An editor has expressed a concern that the subject of the article does not satisfy the notability guideline for Biographies. ... Koichi Ishii is a video game director for the Square Enix corporation. ... The Mana series, known in Japan as Seiken Densetsu lit. ...

As of May 2005, Production Team 10 was headed by Yoshinori Yamagishi and was responsible for producing tri-Ace's games.^[3] Yusuke Hirata left Square Enix in June 2005 to join Aquaplus,^[4] while Yasumi Matsuno left in August 2005 for speculated reasons.^[5] Dragon Quest logo Dragon Quest ), published as Dragon Warrior in North America until the 2005 release of Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, is a series of role-playing games produced by Enix (now Square Enix). ... The correct title of this article is . ... Leaf is a Japanese visual novel studio under the publisher AQUAPLUS (ã‚¢ã‚¯ã‚¢ãƒ—ãƒ©ã‚¹), and has offices in Yodogawa-ku, Osaka, and Tokyo. ...

Properties

Computer and video games

By far, Square Enix's video gaming properties are its most valued assets. Square Enix's Dragon Quest franchise is considered the second most popular game series in Japan after Pokémon, and each new installment of the series routinely reaches the top of Japanese sales records, selling over 41 million units so far, with about 39 million from Japan. Overall, the Final Fantasy franchise can be considered the company's most important asset, with total worldwide sales of over 75 million units as of 2007.^[6] More recently, Square Enix's Kingdom Hearts series (developed in collaboration with Disney's Buena Vista Games) has become massively popular worldwide, adding another valuable asset to the company. ImageMetadata File history File links Dragon_Quest_VIII_Journey_of_the_Cursed_King. ... ImageMetadata File history File links Dragon_Quest_VIII_Journey_of_the_Cursed_King. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... List of games developed or published by Square Enix. ... 1973: Astro Race, Davis Cup, Elepong and Pro Hockey 1974: Attack UFO, Basketball and Speed Race 1975: Western Gun - First Japanese game to ever be exported to the U.S. (Released in the U.S by Midway under the name Gun Fight) 1976: Attack, Crashing Race (1976) and Speed Race... Dragon Quest logo Dragon Quest ), published as Dragon Warrior in North America until the 2005 release of Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, is a series of role-playing games produced by Enix (now Square Enix). ... The official PokÃ©mon logo. ... This article is about the Final Fantasy franchise. ... This does not cite its references or sources. ... â€œDisneyâ€ redirects here. ... Disney Interactive Studios is the video game publishing division of The Walt Disney Company. ...

In early 2003, Square Enix's U.S. subsidiary registered the Dragon Quest trademark, retiring the Dragon Warrior moniker, which was necessitated in 1989 due a trademark conflict with the now defunct TSR, Inc. In May 2004 Square Enix announced an agreement with Sony Online Entertainment for the Japanese publishing rights to EverQuest II. As of 2006, Square Enix has produced titles for the Sony PlayStation 2, Nintendo GameCube, and Microsoft Xbox 360 video game consoles, as well as for the Nintendo Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable handheld game consoles. The company has announced titles for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and Wii consoles, as well as for the Nintendo DS. In addition, they have published games for Microsoft Windows-based personal computers, and for various models of mobile phone. Square Enix mobile phone games are available on the Vodafone network in some European countries, including Ireland, Great Britain, Spain, and France. Twenty five of Square Enix's video games were included in Famitsu magazine's top 100 games, seven being in the top ten list, with Final Fantasy X claiming the number one position. ^[7] Square Enix's other franchises lag behind many non-Square Enix franchises saleswise. TSR, Inc. ... Wikipedia presents. ... Input Keyboard, Mouse EverQuest II (EQ2), based upon the popular EverQuest, is a fantasy massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) developed by Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) and shipped on November 8, 2004. ... Sony Corporation ) is a Japanese multinational corporation and one of the worlds largest media conglomerates with revenue of $66. ... â€œPS2â€ redirects here. ... Nintendo Company, Limited (ä»»å¤©å ‚ or ãƒ‹ãƒ³ãƒ†ãƒ³ãƒ‰ãƒ¼ NintendÅ; NASDAQ: NTDOY, TYO: 7974 usually referred to as simply Nintendo, or Big N ) is a multinational corporation founded on September 23, 1889[1] in Kyoto, Japan by Fusajiro Yamauchi to produce handmade hanafuda cards. ... The Nintendo GameCube , GCN) is Nintendos fourth home video game console, belonging to the sixth generation era. ... Microsoft Corporation, (NASDAQ: MSFT, HKSE: 4338) is a multinational computer technology corporation with global annual revenue of US$44. ... It has been suggested that Xbox 360 Elite be merged into this article or section. ... â€œGame consoleâ€ redirects here. ... â€œGBAâ€ redirects here. ... â€œNDSâ€ redirects here. ... The PlayStation Portable , officially abbreviated as PSP) is a handheld game console released and currently manufactured by Sony Computer Entertainment. ... A handheld game console is a lightweight, portable electronic machine for playing video games. ... The PlayStation 3 , trademarked PLAYSTATIONÂ®3,[3] commonly abbreviated PS3) is the third home video game console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment; successor to the PlayStation 2. ... It has been suggested that Xbox 360 Elite be merged into this article or section. ... The Wii (pronounced as the pronoun we, IPA: ) is the fifth home video game console released by Nintendo. ... â€œNDSâ€ redirects here. ... Windows redirects here. ... Vodafone Group Plc is a mobile network operator headquartered in Newbury, Berkshire, England, UK. It is the largest mobile telecommunications network company in the world by turnover and has a market value of about Â£84. ... Cover art for Issue 1 of FamitsÅ« magazine, June 1986, then known as Famicom TsÅ«shin FamitsÅ« abbreviated ãƒ•ã‚¡ãƒŸ Fami) is a Japanese video game magazine published by Enterbrain, Inc. ...

Before its launch, Michihiro Sasaki, senior vice president of Square Enix, spoke about the PlayStation 3, saying "We don't want the PlayStation 3 to be the overwhelming loser, so we want to support them, but we don't want them to be the overwhelming winner either, so we can't support them too much."^[8] Square Enix continued to reiterate their devotion to multi-platform publishing in 2007, promising more support for the North American and European gaming markets where console pluralism is generally more prevalent than in Japan^[9].

Square Enix has revealed that a new seventh generation middleware game engine called the White Engine will power the PlayStation 3 exclusive Final Fantasy XIII and other future games. In addition, the company has licensed Epic Games' Unreal Engine 3 for use outside White Engine projects. Final Fantasy XIII ) is an upcoming console role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix exclusively for the Sony PlayStation 3 as a part of the Final Fantasy video game series. ... Final Fantasy XIII ) is an upcoming console role-playing game developed and published by Square Enix exclusively for the Sony PlayStation 3 as a part of the Final Fantasy video game series. ... Epic Games, also known as Epic and formerly as Epic MegaGames, is a computer game development company based in Cary, North Carolina, United States. ...

Image File history File linksMetadata Final_Fantasy_VII-_Advent_Children_DVD_Cover. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Final_Fantasy_VII-_Advent_Children_DVD_Cover. ... Final Fantasy VII Advent Children[1] ) is a 2005 computer-animated film directed by Tetsuya Nomura, co-directed by Takeshi Nozue, written by Kazushige Nojima and based on the highly successful 1997 console role-playing game Final Fantasy VII. The film is set two years after Final Fantasy VII and...

Square Enix game series

Dragon Quest logo Dragon Quest ), published as Dragon Warrior in North America until the 2005 release of Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, is a series of role-playing games produced by Enix (now Square Enix). ... Sony MSX 1, Model HitBit-10-P MSX was the name of a standardized home computer architecture in the 1980s. ... This article is about the Final Fantasy franchise. ... Nes is: A municipality in the county of Akershus in Norway, see Nes, Akershus. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This article includes a list of works cited or a list of external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks in-text citations. ... For the entire Game Boy series of handheld consoles, see Game Boy line. ... The Mana series, known in Japan as Seiken Densetsu lit. ... The Chrono series is a video game franchise owned by Square Enix (formerly Square Co. ... The Super Nintendo Entertainment System, also known as Super Nintendo, Super NES or SNES, is a 16-bit video game console released by Nintendo in North America, Brazil, Europe, and Australia. ... Parasite Eve ) is a survival horror console role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix). ... The Sony PlayStation ) is a video game console of the 32/64-bit era, first produced by Sony Computer Entertainment in the mid-1990s. ... Front Mission (Japanese: ãƒ•ãƒãƒ³ãƒˆãƒŸãƒƒã‚·ãƒ§ãƒ³) is a series of turn-based tactical strategy video games produced by Squaresoft, now Square Enix. ... Star Ocean is a franchise of role-playing video games developed by tri-Ace and published by Square Enix (originally Enix). ... The Sony PlayStation ) is a video game console of the 32/64-bit era, first produced by Sony Computer Entertainment in the mid-1990s. ... The logo of Kingdom Hearts, the first game in the series Kingdom Hearts ) is a series of action role-playing games developed and published by Square Enix (formerly Square). ... â€œDisneyâ€ redirects here. ... â€œPS2â€ redirects here. ... Drakengard (Drag-On Dragoon in Japan) is a PlayStation 2 action game published in Japan by Square Enix on September 11, 2003 and in North America on March 5, 2004. ...

Online Gaming

Square Enix first started its online gaming business phase back in 2000^{[citation needed]}. The first online game Square Enix created was Final Fantasy XI. Final Fantasy XI was first released in Japan on May 16, 2002, for the PlayStation 2. In March 2004, Square Enix released the game worldwide. With the huge success from Final Fantasy XI, Microsoft had the game ported into the Xbox 360 in April 2006, making it the first Final Fantasy game ever to be on the Xbox franchise. Due to the success of their MMORPG, Square Enix began a new project called Fantasy Earth: The Ring of Dominion. GamePot, a Japanese game portal, got the license to publish Fantasy Earth in Japan and it was released in Japan as "Fantasy Earth ZERO." In November 2006, however, Square Enix dropped the Fantasy Earth Zero project, giving acquisition to GamePot. Final Fantasy XI ), also known as Final Fantasy XI: Online, is a massively multiplayer online role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix) as a part of the Final Fantasy video game series. ... Microsoft Corporation, (NASDAQ: MSFT, HKSE: 4338) is a multinational computer technology corporation with global annual revenue of US$44. ... It has been suggested that Xbox 360 Elite be merged into this article or section. ... World of Warcraft. ...

Film

Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within is a science fiction movie by Hironobu Sakaguchi, the creator of the Final Fantasy series of video games. ... Square Pictures, located in Honolulu, Hawaii, was a computer-animated film division of Square Co. ... Final Fantasy VII Advent Children[1] ) is a 2005 computer-animated film directed by Tetsuya Nomura, co-directed by Takeshi Nozue, written by Kazushige Nojima and based on the highly successful 1997 console role-playing game Final Fantasy VII. The film is set two years after Final Fantasy VII and... Computer-generated imagery (commonly abbreviated as CGI) is the application of the field of computer graphics (or more specifically, 3D computer graphics) to special effects in films, television programs, commercials, simulators and simulation generally, and printed media. ... The bouncing ball animation (below) consists of these 6 frames. ... This article is about motion pictures. ... The Sony PlayStation ) is a video game console of the 32/64-bit era, first produced by Sony Computer Entertainment in the mid-1990s. ... Final Fantasy VII ) is a console role-playing game developed and published by Square (now Square Enix), and the seventh installment in the Final Fantasy video game series. ...

Manga

The company also has a manga publishing division in Japan (from Enix) called Gangan Comics. It publishes manga for the Japanese market only. Titles published by Gangan Comics include Papuwa, Pani Poni, Spiral and Fullmetal Alchemist. Also contains manga adaptations of diverse Enix, and later Square Enix games, like Dragon Quest, Kingdom Hearts and Star Ocean. Some of these titles were also adapted into anime series. Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. ... Fullmetal Alchemist Vol. ... Serialized in Monthly Shonen Gangan Original run February 2002 â€“ still running No. ... This article is about the comics published in East Asian countries. ... Gangan Comics is a manga publishing division of Square Enix (originally Enix). ... Pani Poni Dash! ) is a Japanese series based around the concept of parody, for it frequently references Japanese culture in a wide array of ways. ... Serialized in Monthly Shonen Gangan Original run February 2002 â€“ still running No. ... Dragon Quest logo Dragon Quest ), published as Dragon Warrior in North America until the 2005 release of Dragon Quest VIII: Journey of the Cursed King, is a series of role-playing games produced by Enix (now Square Enix). ... This article contains information on the first Kingdom Hearts video game. ... Star Ocean is a franchise of role-playing video games developed by tri-Ace and published by Square Enix (originally Enix). ...

Fullmetal Alchemist so far is the most successful offspring of Square Enix's manga branch.^{[citation needed]} The anime series obtained great popularity in Japan and even spawned a movie sequel. Both series and movie are licensed to many locations worldwide (in North America by FUNimation Entertainment). The same occurs with its manga series, licensed in North America by Viz Media. Serialized in Monthly Shonen Gangan Original run February 2002 â€“ still running No. ... FUNimation Entertainment (previously known as FUNimation Productions) is an American entertainment company formed by Gen Fukunaga in the early 1990s to produce, merchandise and distribute anime and other entertainment properties in the United States and international markets. ... Viz Media, LLC, headquartered in San Francisco, California, is a major American anime, manga and Japanese entertainment company formed by the merger of Viz, LLC, and ShoPro Entertainment. ...

Kingdom Hearts and Spiral were licensed in North America by Tokyopop, however, due to unknown reasons, Tokyopop dropped Spiral, and the title is now pending release by Hachette's Yen Press. For the music movie, see Tokyo Pop. ... Hachette Book Group USA (HBG) is a publishing company owned by Hachette Livre, the largest publishing company in France. ... Yen Press is a new manga division of Hachette Book Group USA. Among other things, it will release a monthly anthology. ...

Pani Poni Dash!, an anime series based on the Pani Poni manga, was licensed in North America by ADV Films. Pani Poni Dash! ) is a Japanese series based around the concept of parody, for it frequently references Japanese culture in a wide array of ways. ... â€œAnimÃ©â€ redirects here. ... This article is about the comics published in East Asian countries. ... A.D. Vision (commonly referred to as ADV) is a Houston, Texas based international multimedia entertainment company, active in home video production and distribution, broadcast television, theatrical film distribution, merchandising, original productions, magazine and comic book publishing and is the largest anime company in North America. ...

Studios

Osaka ) is a city in Japan, located at the mouth of the Yodo River on Osaka Bay, in the Kansai region of the main island of HonshÅ«. The city is the capital of Osaka Prefecture. ... For other uses, see Tokyo (disambiguation). ... â€œPekingâ€ redirects here. ... UIEvolution is a software company based in Bellevue, Washington. ... Location of Bellevue within King County, Washington, and King County within Washington. ... For the capital city of the United States, see Washington, D.C.. For other uses, see Washington (disambiguation). ...

Public opinion

For other uses, see IGN (disambiguation). ... The Better Business Bureau (BBB), founded in 1912, is an organization based in the United States and Canada. ... This article is about evaluation of school work. ...

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