When Mike Fischer took the reins of the U.S. subsidiary of Square Enix in 2010, the Japanese developer of Kingdom Hearts, Final Fantasy, and Dragon Quest had just merged with Britain’s Eidos, creator of Tomb Raider, Hitman, and Deus Ex.
It was a marriage of two gaming companies and Eastern and Western
sensibilities. Complicating matters was the changing gaming landscape
thanks to exploding social media and mobile platforms.
As CEO of Square Enix North America,
Fischer was tasked with bridging cultures in both managerial and
content development capacities, and navigating through new gaming genres
and platforms. Those directives are now coming to fruition in such
disparate forms as Final Fantasy XIII-2, the latest installment of its 25-year-old flagship title that released Jan. 31; The Great Outdoors, a hunting/fishing-themed MMO (massive multiplayer online game); and Quantum Conundrum, a whimsical puzzle game from rising star Kim Swift.
