Square Enix opened its cloud-focused division Shinra Technologies – named after the eponymous company in Final Fantasy VII – back in September 2014, with former Square president Yoichi Wada taking the reins.
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That future looks uncertain now, though, with Develop reporting that Square Enix is to close Shinra Technologies after less than two years in operation, as the division faces a loss of $16.8 million for its current financial year.
Square Enix announced in a press release (translated by Gematsu) the cloud-gaming company would be dissolved, resulting in a ¥2 billion, just short of $17 million, loss. Shinra was testing its cloud-gaming technology with Google Fiber in Kansas City and Verizon Fios in Texas. The lack of support and funding led Square Enix to make the decision to shut down operations. The power of the cloud from Microsoft aims to do something similar to Shinra but is also yet to impressive the world with its offerings, and developers are still forced to fit their designs beneath a performance ceiling. As fans now know, there is no official multiplayer mode with the game, though it was something that had been hinted at.
Financial documents detailing the dissolution of Shinra say that Square Enix took an “Extraordinary loss”.
Square Enix squares off pretty well in the fight to be the top gamer in Japan.
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Were you excited about the potential of Shinra Technologies or had you forgotten about this altogether?
