Square Enix wants a three-way race

Before the PlayStation 2 launched in 2001, Square Enix shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange were trading for about 2,000 yen (about $17.07). The stock has had its ups and downs over the last five years, but these days it's trading for about 3,000 yen (about $25.61). Clearly a generation of Sony domination on the console gaming front--one in which Square Enix devoted its biggest games to the PS2--hasn't treated the publisher too harshly. But according to a company official, Square Enix wants the console wars to shake out a little differently this time around.

In a Wall Street Journal article about Sony's new system, Square Enix senior vice president Michihiro Sasaki told the paper, "We don't want the PlayStation 3 to be the overwhelming loser, so we want to support them. But we don't want them to be the overwhelming winner either, so we can't support them too much."

The article also says that Square Enix is planning to support Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo's consoles more evenly than it did in the last generation, having already committed two games to each system so far (Final Fantasy XI and Project Sylpheed for the Xbox 360, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: The Crystal Bearers and Dragon Quest Swords: The Masked Queen and the Tower of Mirrors for the Wii, and Final Fantasy XIII and Final Fantasy Versus XIII for the PS3).

And while Sony's system will still be home to the latest proper installments in the Final Fantasy franchise, the Wall Street Journal reports that Square Enix "hasn't yet decided" which console will play host to the Kingdom Hearts series going forward.