Ever since the firstThe World Ends With Youreleased for the Nintendo DS in 2008, its fans had prayed endlessly for an eventual sequel, despite it being a relatively niche title. The odds of a sequel did improve when it wasre-released for the Nintendo Switchin 2018, which included a new epilogue with a pretty blatant sequel hook. Cut to November 2020 andNeo: The World Ends With You, a bona fide sequel, was announced.
Between the sequel and an anime adaptation of the first game, both of which released earlier this year, no doubt many fans hoped that this would mark the start of a resurgence ofThe World Ends With YouIP. Unfortunately, that may not happen if Square Enix’s latest financial report is to go by.
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According to Square Enix president Yosuke Matsuda, whileNeo: The World Ends With Youwas received positively by critics and fans (the Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 4 versions have Metacritic scores of 82 and 80 respectively), it has apparently underperformed and didn’t meet the company’s sales expectations. The report makes no mention of specific sales figures or what Square Enix’s expectations for the game were.
It’s difficult to point to whyNeo: The World Ends With Youmight have underperformed. It certainly wasn’t due to lack of accessibility. Unlike the original DS game,Neo: The World Ends With Youlaunched on multiple platforms, specifically the Switch and PS4. Only two months later, it released for PC as well via the Epic Games Store. Some have already argued that it’s down to a lack of marketing on Square Enix’s part.
In addition, the report reads that the overall net sales of Square Enix’s entire HD games sub-segment are down compared to the last fiscal year. BesidesNeo: The World Ends With You, the company releasedOutriders, theNier: Replicantremaster, andLife is Strange: True Colorsthroughout 2021. While all three games performed well, both critically and financially, they collectively failed to outperform last year’s releases, which includedMarvel’s AvengersandFinal Fantasy 7 Remake.
While this by no means rules out Square Enix continuingThe World Ends With You, fans may be concerned that the sequel’s underperformance has hurt its chances of getting a follow-up any time soon. With any luck, the recent free trial forThe World Ends With You: Final Remixand subsequent discounts for it andNeo: The World Ends WithYou have attracted some new fans who will be eagerly requesting even more games in the future.
Neo: The World Ends With Youis available for Nintendo Switch, PC, and PlayStation 4.
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