A new ‘Just Cause’ game is in development

A recent Square Enix financial report has revealed that the next entry in the open-world sandbox franchise, Just Cause, is in development.

The statement in the report reads; “We especially revisited our studio and title portfolios from the perspective of stepping up our offering of online titles that we develop for the North American and the European market. We want to focus on creating new titles that align with our strategy, including ones that leverage new IP. The Just Cause franchise will remain our IP, and we are at work developing a new title in the franchise.”

From the above statement, it seems like Square Enix will be taking a more online-focussed approach with its next Just Cause release.

The last entry in the Just Cause franchise was 2018’s Just Cause 4, which released to a mixed critical reception. One common point of contention was the game’s technical issues and lack of innovation. Although its open-world sandbox and destruction remained a point of praise, as with previous entries.

Just Cause 4 was stated to have unperformed according to a previous Square Enix financial briefing, so a new entry might come as a bit of a surprise.

This also comes off the heels of Square Enix selling three of its western studios to Embracer Group – Crystal Dynamics, Square Enix Montréal and Eidos – alongside iconic IP such as Tomb Raider, Deus Ex, Thief, and over 50 back-catalogue titles. According to Square Enix president Yosuke Matsuda, this sale will no longer be used to fund investments in NFTs and blockchain.

Square Enix recently showcased a new trailer for Final Fantasy 16 during the June State of Play, which is slated to launch summer 2023 for PlayStation 5.

In other news, a new survival mode mod for Elden Ring makes the game even tougher.