Yoichi Wada to Step Down from Square Enix

By Jorge Ba-oh 26.03.2013 8

Yoichi Wada to Step Down from Square Enix on Nintendo gaming news, videos and discussion

The longstanding president of Japanese RPG giant Square Enix, Yoichi Wada, will be stepping down this year.

Square Enix revised is financial forecast today, revealing that instead of losses of ¥3.5 billion, the decline has risen to ¥13 billion.

Reasons for the "extraordinary loss" include a decline in sales from outside Japan in both the retail and digital sectors, particularly in the North American and European markets. Because of this, Wada has confirmed that he will be leaving his position from June, with Yosuke Matsuda set to replace him.

What do you think of the announcement - should Wada step down due to these financial reasons?

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Vorash Kadan 26.03.2013#1

Well this is a wonderful idea, wonder if Square will actually make respectable RPGs again once he's gone.

It is not wise to speak on subjects you do not know all facts about, nor is it smart to judge a game based on looks alone. PSN: Nintendo_Gamer 3DS: 4296-3029-7422
 
Azuardo is online! Azuardo 26.03.2013#2

Vorash Kadan said:
Well this is a wonderful idea, wonder if Square will actually make respectable RPGs again once he's gone.

Only if they get rid of Toriyama, too. Hopefully this will be the start of a big shake up for the company.

 
JoshSL is offline. JoshSL 26.03.2013#3

Part of me thinks this stepping down is less to do with changing the company and more to do with the dishonour in this level of failure. Japanese work ethic is a lot more strict than we think; which might be why rumours of Iwata stepping down spread too.

Either way I'm not sure what this means for Square's own developed games in the future. Hopefully it'll have a good impact, or Wada may have actually been good for the company and their struggle will continue.

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jb is offline. jb 27.03.2013#4

I always wonder how much influence CEOs have anyway, whether them not being in the picture has that much push on how a company can go and what games they can produce.

I keep having dreams of Reggie saying, in his booming voice:

"And now... an adventure you've been waiting for..."
"And no. It's not Zelda..."

A train pulls up into a station. A prickly haired blonde chap leaps out.

"Final Fantasy VII - Wii U Edition".

Kodak theatre in silence. Nintendo wins E3.

Ah, dreams.

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Vorash Kadan 27.03.2013#5

SuperLink said:
Part of me thinks this stepping down is less to do with changing the company and more to do with the dishonour in this level of failure. Japanese work ethic is a lot more strict than we think; which might be why rumours of Iwata stepping down spread too.

I PRAY this is true, I place most blame on him for Nintendo's strange business decisions. No way it's Miyamoto cause he doesn't want the stress of being in charge & Satoru is the CEO of Nintendo. I do respect his classic gaming values & that graphics are NOT the most important aspect of a game but Nintendo needs to do more & needs to be more aggressive with gaining stronger 3Rd party support as well as giving the graphic whores what they want to an extent.

It is not wise to speak on subjects you do not know all facts about, nor is it smart to judge a game based on looks alone. PSN: Nintendo_Gamer 3DS: 4296-3029-7422
 
JoshSL is offline. JoshSL 27.03.2013#6

Vorash Kadan said:
I PRAY this is true, I place most blame on him for Nintendo's strange business decisions. No way it's Miyamoto cause he doesn't want the stress of being in charge & Satoru is the CEO of Nintendo. I do respect his classic gaming values & that graphics are NOT the most important aspect of a game but Nintendo needs to do more & needs to be more aggressive with gaining stronger 3Rd party support as well as giving the graphic whores what they want to an extent.

Dude Iwata is among the only people at Nintendo Japan trying to make a difference, he's pushing online features, HD and third party support where most of Nintendo would rather cower behind Miyamoto. There were strong rumours too that Miyamoto was strongly opposed to making the WiiU as online-focused as it is.

Keep in mind that a company isn't just its CEO. A CEO is just one man, and quite often just one scapegoat. There are layers and layers and layers of management and Iwata is truly trying to push Nintendo into a new generation. The Directs have been genius, they were his idea and he features in them personally.

I know it's easy to play the blame game, but Iwata is great. It'd be tragic if he felt forced out of Nintendo due to honour, I would honestly worry about them at that point.


( Edited 27.03.2013 18:27 by SuperLink )

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Vorash Kadan 28.03.2013#7

SuperLink said:
Vorash Kadan said:
I PRAY this is true, I place most blame on him for Nintendo's strange business decisions. No way it's Miyamoto cause he doesn't want the stress of being in charge & Satoru is the CEO of Nintendo. I do respect his classic gaming values & that graphics are NOT the most important aspect of a game but Nintendo needs to do more & needs to be more aggressive with gaining stronger 3Rd party support as well as giving the graphic whores what they want to an extent.

Dude Iwata is among the only people at Nintendo Japan trying to make a difference, he's pushing online features, HD and third party support where most of Nintendo would rather cower behind Miyamoto. There were strong rumours too that Miyamoto was strongly opposed to making the WiiU as online-focused as it is.

Keep in mind that a company isn't just its CEO. A CEO is just one man, and quite often just one scapegoat. There are layers and layers and layers of management and Iwata is truly trying to push Nintendo into a new generation. The Directs have been genius, they were his idea and he features in them personally.

I know it's easy to play the blame game, but Iwata is great. It'd be tragic if he felt forced out of Nintendo due to honour, I would honestly worry about them at that point.

Well I'd definatly like a quoted source for your defense of Iwata, I'd like to believe you but Nintendo started going downhill shortly after Iwata replaced Hiroshi Yamauchi...& it doesn't seem like a coincidence either.

It is not wise to speak on subjects you do not know all facts about, nor is it smart to judge a game based on looks alone. PSN: Nintendo_Gamer 3DS: 4296-3029-7422
 
kingdom (guest) 28.03.2013#8

I agree with superlink. Iwata deserves respect, I think he's a smart man. Conviction and courage like that in business is a rare thing. it would not be his fault if he had to step down. I would feel tremendously sorry for him.

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