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Square Enix Teases Surprise JRPG for Consoles

• Emma Paquette
• March 17th, 2015

In an interview with Japanese magazine Nikkei Trendy and translated by Siliconera, Square Enix president Yosuke Matsuda threw some light on what fans can expect for the coming year and the company’s presentation at E3 2015. Matsuda described his ambition for 2015 to be a “box of surprise” with a lot of new offerings from both the Japanese and western studios. One particular highlight was his tease of a surprise JRPG for consoles that will possibly release before the end of the year. His indication was that this game will be announced at E3 alongside presentations on Rise of the Tomb Raider and Just Cause 3 and the vague promise of “many other titles that I believe we can have high expectations of.”

Square Enix already has a lot of anticipated JRPGs in development, particularly Final Fantasy XV and Kingdom Hearts III. Final Fantasy XV has been releasing regular updates about its progress while Kingdom Hearts III news has been slow coming since its original announcement at E3 2013. The company has been busy beyond those two titles, however, having recently confirmed a western release for the PlayStation 4 exclusive Dragon Quest Heroes as well as Final Fantasy Type-0 HD hitting shelves today. Whether the mystery JRPG could be a related title or a completely separate game is unclear.

Matsuda also said Square Enix is especially putting effort into online PC games this year. They’ve also got some arcade game releases planned and are currently putting more energy into developing their catalog of eSports, smartphone, and live-tile multiplayer games in Japan. There was particular mention of the eSports game Nosgoth which is managed by the Square Enix European studio. Matsuda wants Square Enix to bring the eSports genre into Japan by finding something that resonates with the typical Japanese lifestyle.

We’ll just have to wait for E3 in June to hear more about possible announcements from Square Enix. Matsuda also promised that the company has plenty in store for the Tokyo Game Show this September.