Square Enix Is Seeing A Big Shake-Up At The Top

Square Enix president Yosuke Matsuda will step down and be replaced by current company director Takashi Kiryu. The change will be made official in June 2023 after the 43rd Annual Shareholders Meeting of the Board of Directors.

In a statement to investors, Square Enix said, "Under the rapid change of business environment surrounding the entertainment industry, the proposed change is intended to reshape the management team with the goal of adopting ever-evolving technological innovations and maximizing on the creativity of the Company’s group in order to deliver even greater entertainment to its customers around the world."

Kiryu joined Square Enix in June 2020 as General Manager of the Corporate Planning Division until he became the company director in June 2022. Matsuda became president of Square Enix in June 2013 after taking over for Yoichi Wada.

Matsuda advocated for blockchain initiatives at Square Enix, even sending out a New Year's letter reaffirming the company's interest back in January. Last year, a trademark appeared for "Symbiogenesis," which hinted at some sort of possible Parasite Eve revival. However, it turned out to be an NFT collectible art project.

While Matsuda will leave Square Enix soon, players can still encounter him in Nier: Automata as he is a cameo boss battle in the game's DLC.