Square Enix's HD games business went from a ¥5.0 billion profit to ¥13.0 billion in a year, and the company named Final Fantasy VII Rebirth on Xbox Series X|S, Switch 2 and Windows as a driver. The two-year PS5 exclusive window looks even worse in hindsight.
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth spent more than two years locked to PS5. Square Enix just showed what happened once it got out. In its results for the six months ended September 30, 2026, published today, Square Enix says sales and profit in its HD games business rose on “solid performance from new titles including ‘FINAL FANTASY VII REBIRTH’ for Nintendo Switch 2, XBOX Series X|S, and Windows,” plus stronger catalog sales.
The numbers behind that line are big. Group net sales rose 21.9% to ¥163.2 billion, and operating income jumped 42.2% to ¥38.8 billion, according to Square Enix’s consolidated results. GamesRadar+ puts the sales figure at about $1.03 billion. The part that matters most for Xbox players is the HD games unit, the division that makes the big console and PC releases. Its net sales climbed from ¥24.0 billion to ¥35.6 billion, and its operating income went from ¥5.0 billion to ¥13.0 billion, per Square Enix’s results briefing slides.
“Expanded multiplatform releases”
Square Enix didn’t leave the reason up for debate. Its progress report on the medium-term plan says flatly: “HDG’s profitability improved substantially, driven by expanded multiplatform releases and stronger catalog title sales.” The same report charts how far that division has come. In the April to September 2023 half, HD games lost ¥3.6 billion. Three years later, the same six months earned ¥13.0 billion at a 37% margin.
The slides list Rebirth’s Xbox Series X|S and Xbox on PC launch as June 3, 2026, the same day it hit Switch 2. That was more than two years after it launched as a PS5 exclusive in 2024. Square Enix also pointed to Rebirth on Xbox and Switch 2 in its first-quarter results back in August, so this is now two straight reports where the company credits a late Xbox launch.
To be fair to the other side of this argument, Square Enix does not break out sales by platform, so nobody outside the company knows exactly how many of those copies were sold on Xbox. Switch 2 ports did a lot of the work too, and the slides list several Switch 2 releases this year. The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales also got a shout-out. The bottom-line profit number gets a boost from last year, when Square Enix took a ¥9.8 billion restructuring charge, as Famitsu notes. None of that changes the main point. Square Enix itself says going multiplatform is why its console games business turned around, and Xbox is one of those platforms.
Units tell the same story. Square Enix sold 14.87 million units across HD and MMO games in the half, up from 9.93 million a year earlier. North America and Europe accounted for 9.20 million of them, up from 6.93 million.
The Sony deal looks worse every quarter
Here’s our take. Timed exclusivity deals are sold to fans as a win, but this one kept a hit game away from a huge group of paying players for more than two years. Square Enix now has two straight earnings reports showing that letting those players in is good business. If you’re a PlayStation fan defending the deal, the case is that Sony’s money helped fund a giant game, and that’s a real argument. But Square Enix’s own numbers say the bigger audience is where the money is.
Rebirth hit Xbox two years late. How do you feel?
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That’s why the next one matters. Final Fantasy VII Revelation, the final part of the trilogy, launches April 8, 2027 on Xbox Series X|S, PC via Steam, Epic Games Store and Xbox on PC, Nintendo Switch 2 and PS5, all on the same day. Standard is $69.99, Premium is $99.99 with the Story Expansion Pass and 24-hour early access, and Premium Plus is $109.99. The digital Trilogy Edition is $84.99 and includes Remake Intergrade and Rebirth right away. No waiting this time.
Square Enix’s Profits Jump 42% After Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Finally Hit XboxIf you want to catch up first, Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade joined Game Pass on October 29, and Rebirth is out now on Xbox Series X|S and PC.
Square Enix raised its full-year forecast on the back of these results. It now expects ¥310.0 billion in net sales, up from ¥298.0 billion, and ¥59.0 billion in operating income, up from ¥49.0 billion, according to its forecast revision notice. Square Enix’s reason is simple: strong performance in the first half, “particularly in the Digital Entertainment business.” Xbox players had a hand in that.
Image: Square Enix
Sources
- Square Enix Holdings: Press Release for the Six-Month Period Ended September 30, 2026
- Square Enix Holdings: Results Briefing Session slides, six months ended September 30, 2026
- Square Enix Holdings: Progress Report on the Medium-Term Business Plan
- Square Enix Holdings: Notice of Revisions to Full-Year Consolidated Financial Forecasts
- Square Enix Holdings: IR News
- GamesRadar+: Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth and other JRPG hits help Square Enix to a 21.9% sales boost
- Famitsu: Square Enix interim results
- Pure Xbox: Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Has Solid Start On Xbox, Despite Launching Two Years Later
- Final Fantasy Portal: FINAL FANTASY VII REVELATION Releases April 8, 2027
- Xbox Wire: Coming to Xbox Game Pass: Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade
- OnPoint 4 Gamers: Final Fantasy VII Remake Hits Game Pass This Week
- YouTube: FINAL FANTASY VII REVELATION Release Date Trailer (Square Enix)
