Current Events > "Life is Strange: Double Exposure was a 'large loss' for Square Enix"

(+) Yeah! (+)

Good.

https://www.eurogamer.net/life-is-strange-double-exposure-was-a-large-loss-for-square-enix-report

The latest Life is Strange game did not perform well for publisher Square Enix, it's been claimed.

Life is Strange: Double Exposure, which launched last autumn to a mixed response from fans, resulted in "large losses" for the company, Kabutan analyst Hideki Yasuda stated (thanks, ResetEra/TheGamer).

Officially, Square Enix is yet to comment on Double Exposure's performance - and there's been no word on Double Exposure's sales figures pubicly at all. Deck Nine, the game's developer, previously announced layoffs at the studio in the wake of the game's launch, and it's unclear what's next for the franchise - despite Double Exposure ending with a message stating that protagonist Max Caulfield would "return".

Last week, Square Enix issued its most recent financial results - which largely focus on the sales of Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D Remake and the successful launch of Final Fantasy 14 expansion Dawntrail.

Perhaps tellingly, there's no notice of how Life is Strange: Double Exposure sold. Instead, Square Enix simply says that its HD gaming division's revenues had fallen due to the fact that unnamed "new titles generated lower sales" than Final Fantasy 16, Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster and Dragon Quest Monsters: The Dark Prince did over the same period during the previous year.

Square Enix doesn't state what the new titles that underperformed were, but does say that the launch of Dragon Quest 3 HD-2D helped offset these losses, as it had performed better than initially expected.

Eurogamer has contacted Yasuda and Square Enix for more detail. The company is yet to release a transcript of the financial briefing that includes shareholder questions.

Life is Strange: Double Exposure launched amidst a major backlash from fans upset at how the game handled the ongoing storyline of returning protagonist Max Caulfield, and the impact of players' choice at the beginning of Life is Strange 1.

The situation turned uglier when Square Enix removed leaked development material from a popular Life is Strange fan reddit, including posts by several anonymous commenters who provided proof they worked at Deck Nine, and who made a number of claims regarding how Double Exposure's story had changed through development, shaped by feedback from Square Enix itself. In response, Square Enix said it had acted to remove the content based on "appropriate legal requirements" for "intellectual property violations".

"Like its own hero's dabbling with time travel, Life is Strange: Double Exposure highlights the troubles of trying to revisit old memories, while raising unanswered questions about the future," I wrote in Eurogamer's Life is Strange: Double Exposure review.

What game isn't a loss or underperforming for Square these days? What the hell are they doing over there?

Darkninja42 posted...

What game isn't a loss or underperforming for Square these days? What the hell are they doing over there?

Interestingly it seems their HD-2D games like Dragon Quest, Octopath, Triangle Strategy, and live a live have done well enough that they haven't been said to be disappointing.

StarSpangled posted...

Interestingly it seems their HD-2D games like Dragon Quest, Octopath, Triangle Strategy, and live a live have done well enough that they haven't been said to be disappointing.

Probably cheaper to make.

Huh, looks like the Thanos meme doesn't work here.

StarSpangled posted...

Interestingly it seems their HD-2D games like Dragon Quest, Octopath, Triangle Strategy, and live a live have done well enough that they haven't been said to be disappointing

Yet they shuttered that studio did they not?

WingsOfGood posted...

Yet they shuttered that studio did they not?

Did they? I have not heard of that.

I liked it, but its probably the worst in the series

Nothing is worse than Before the Storm

What? Before the Storm is great.

Are the sequels written as poorly as the first one?

Maybe selling it as one big gamr was fail.

LiD and Bts were to by ep which built up the hype.

But how many people are actually playing these games? Seems very niche

Shame.

Squareeniz is poop nowadays

DodogamaRayBrst posted...

Double Exposure's story had changed through development, shaped by feedback from Square Enix itself.

Maybe they should stop doing this shit here and let the devs develop the game.
Awesome that they get to kill yet another franchise with a cliffhanger.

Double Exposure didn't end with a cliffhanger

DodogamaRayBrst posted...

Good

No, not good unless SE gives the LiS property back to Don't Nod

Tho "Tell Me Why" is better than any LiS game so maybe they don't need the property

I would prefer that SE kills the franchise to them continuing to let Deck Nine make more games in it.

You seem angry with Deck Nine.

Deck Nine has done a good job

The popularity of the Life is Strange games is one of gaming's greatest mysteries. I legitimately understand why people like total dogshit like Starfield more than this series.

dancing_cactuar posted...

The popularity of the Life is Strange games is one of gaming's greatest mysteries. I legitimately understand why people like total dogshit like Starfield more than this series.

Because it's good and Starfield isn't

Total_Lost2 posted...

You seem angry with Deck Nine.

I mean, Square is responsible for letting them have a franchise they dont understand.

Most I heard about it was that Chloe wasn't a part of it. Makes sense in two ways. First, if you chose to save the Bay, obviously she wasn't around. Second, if you chose Bae, then you should have already been aware that her just taking off and leaving Max was completely in character.

They alienated the fanbase of the first game by making the ending choice of LiS1 completely irrelevant, and failed to draw in a new audience because the story of Double Exposure itself is just a mess and it's not interesting from a gameplay perspective.

I wasn't even aware a new Life is Strange game was released

HighSeraph posted...

Because it's good

Not when Chloe exists. Then the others without her all had gigantic clownshoes levels of writing, they're the absolute bottom of the barrel of in the western VN genre barring Beyond Two Souls specifically.

Whats wrobg with Chloe from a writing perspective?

DodogamaRayBrst posted...

Whats wrobg with Chloe from a writing perspective?

Most unlikable character in existence, and a relationship more toxic than the elephant's foot. The Canon ending is a mistake in more ways than one.

WingsOfGood posted...

Yet they shuttered that studio did they not?

They did not shutter Creative Businesses Unit II. After Dragon Quest III HD-2D they've been working on Dragon Quest I+II HD-2D.

Neither of those makes her a bad character. Considering her history and situation she seems mostly realistic for an annoying teenager.

dancing_cactuar posted...

Most unlikable character in existence,

Not when Vincent from Catherine exists

Warren is a worse character than Chloe, also one of the characters is a legit sexual abuser

Total_Lost2 posted...

Double Exposure didn't end with a cliffhanger

Yeah that wasn't exactly related to the topic and I should have omitted it. I'm just still salty over Deus Ex.

dancing_cactuar posted...

Most unlikable character in existence

You gotta be kidding me

DodogamaRayBrst posted...

Neither of those makes her a bad character. Considering her history and situation she seems mostly realistic for an annoying teenager.

It is clear they made her out to be the jerk with a heart of gold friend, but they forgot the gold part. She was already bad, but her fate as being as being beyond redemption in my eyes was sealed when she got mad at Max for being more concerned at the time about the person who was literally suicidal than her. Fuck Chloe and people who excuse her repulsive behavior.

UnholyMudcrab posted...

You gotta be kidding me

Perhaps a tad hyperbolic, but let's just say the bay was saved before Episode 1 ended.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]

It was an obvious product of pure desperation ala Mass Effect Andromeda or SW Episode 9, and like them the desperation was visible on every frame.

dancing_cactuar posted...

It is clear they made her out to be the jerk with a heart of gold friend, but they forgot the gold part. She was already bad, but her fate as being as being beyond redemption in my eyes was sealed when she got mad at Max for being more concerned at the time about the person who was literally suicidal than her. Fuck Chloe and people who excuse her repulsive behavior.

Perhaps a tad hyperbolic, but let's just say the bay was saved before Episode 1 ended.

To be fair, she does apologize for that. Not that the initial reaction was good but it also isn't like she (really) knows Kate or that she was suicidal.

I don't think anyone knew Kate was suicidal. Honestly one of the reasons I hate the bay ending is because it just undoes Kate's suicide/attempt even though it's one of the best/emotional scenes in the game.

Darkninja42 posted...

What game isn't a loss or underperforming for Square these days? What the hell are they doing over there?

Basically every low budget title exceeds expectation for them, and every high budget title is a loss.

I really like DE but just like True Colors it falls a bit apart during the final 2 chapters. It's a bit of the opposite of LiS 2 which isn't great early on but nails the ending.

Max is still great throughout.

DodogamaRayBrst posted...

Neither of those makes her a bad character. Considering her history and situation she seems mostly realistic for an annoying teenager.

I knew a lot of annoying teenagers in that exact mold in highschool, never had any problems with them. Chloe fucking SUCKS.

I rarely have the desire to bother spending the energy to truly hate something, but there are 3 exceptions. Chloe, Katekyo Hitman Reborn, and Lords of the Fallen. Seeing the scene where she shoots herself and then Max blames the gun made me cry laughing.

Total_Lost2 posted...

To be fair, she does apologize for that.

If you save Kate.

The first Life is Strange is a story where literally every side character is more interesting than the deuteragonist.

KajeI posted...

I knew a lot of annoying teenagers in that exact mold in highschool, never had any problems with them. Chloe fucking SUCKS.

I rarely have the desire to bother spending the energy to truly hate something, but there are 3 exceptions. Chloe, Katekyo Hitman Reborn, and Lords of the Fallen. Seeing the scene where she shoots herself and then Max blames the gun made me cry laughing.

Stupid gun!

dancing_cactuar posted...

If you save Kate.

The first Life is Strange is a story where literally every side character is more interesting than the deuteragonist.

Protagonist too, Max is whitebread.

DodogamaRayBrst posted...

Stupid gun!

Unrelated, but I've been playing MHwo recently as my first MH and I now know what your name is a reference to, also, that stupid bastard keeps taking pot shots at me while I'm fighting other monsters and I'm real sick of his shit.

Dodogama Poogie suit is S+++ tier though.

Good. I really hope SE goes bankrupts for this.

[LFAQs-redacted-quote]


It's a good game.

I get why people invested in the relationship from the first game would be disappointed in it, but honestly it's a bit embarrassing just how much vitriol the Max/Chloe shippers throw at DE because of that (and I say that as someone who picked the Bae ending).

Honestly, 99% of the complaints about the game that people have disappear if the protagonist just has a different name rather than being Max (which would be easily done tbf given the absence of any previous supporting characters, the new grown-up character model, and the completely different powers that Max has this time around.)

I read spoilers for the end and it sounds like complete dogshit no matter how you frame it