Another day, another failed Square Enix mobile project - although, this time, they barely gave FFXIV Mobile a chance to succeed. The game launched in June of last year in China, and was in theory going to hit locations worldwide, but it's all over now - the game will end service on September 20, 2026. That means, unless you have a stellar VPN, you'll never get your hands on the mobile edition of the MMORPG, and even if you do, you're running out of time.
"Changes in the market environment" are cited as an explanation in the official announcement, but the details behind the decision remain unclear, at least officially. That being said, it's likely that Chinese fans weren't responding to the game in the way Square Enix and Tencent, who helped develop it, had hoped. This probably led to either one or the other parties involved pulling out, making licensing impossible going forward. I just feel sad that global fans won't be able to support the game, because different regions respond differently to projects like these - I suppose that the studios weren't willing to take the risk.
This is a pretty devastating blow to Final Fantasy fans. As a franchise, it remains pretty committed to remakes of old titles, including FF7 Rebirth, which sold well but didn't meet expectations, according to internal communication. FFXIV Mobile also shows that this strategy doesn't always pay off. Hopefully, Final Fantasy Resonance will prove that the IP still has staying power and demonstrate to Square Enix that new experiences are what the people want.
This news also means that mobile gaming as a whole has taken a hit. The decision to pull FFXIV Mobile from the Chinese market shows that Tencent, which worked with Square to develop the game, was struggling to get even its home region excited about the mobile version of FF14. This could mean that other mobile ports are at risk, even as the mobile gaming market booms in this era of gaming.
Get in your final sessions on your phone while you still can, and let us know what you think about this move via the Pocket Tactics Discord server.