Square Enix and Bioware

Square Enix and Bioware

Introduction

I choose Square Enix and Bioware for my two companies to analyze their presence on social media, facebook and twitter in particular, as they are two of my favorite video game designers and publishers. I am well versed in their work dating all the way back to the early days of Final Fantasy when Square Enix was known as SquareSoft and early Bioware titles such as Jade Empire and Knights of the Old Republic.

Advent of Social Media

Seeing both companies evolve over the years has been fascinating. Back in the early days of video games I relied solely on Game Informer and Xbox Magazine for my video game news. There was no social media presence for either company to share announcements and the internet was so slow at my house growing up that using online resources was a chore. Now things have changed. With Twitter you literally have up to the minute coverage of news and announcements. Events like E3 are so much more exciting than ever because of constant posts and updates with pictures and video. There is more content than ever before and it is so incredibly easy to follow.

Square Enix’s Presence

Just by googling Square Enix you are bombarded by ways to keep up with the company.

Facebook
Square Enix Facebook.JPG

Twitter
Square Enix Twitter.JPG

As you can see both pages are layed out nicely and are kept clean and precise. They are also updated very regularly showing that they care about keeping their audience engaged and informed. Most of their target audience ranges from about 15 - 40 years old. That is quite a wide range of people but most people that age have and know how to use social media so it is a perfect strategy for them to use for their followers and customers.

Bioware’s Presence

When I googled Bioware even more results came up than for Square Enix. The companies are about the same size so it is interesting to me that Bioware puts for so much more effort to make a presence on google and social media. It may have something to do with the fact that Square Enix is a Japanese company and Bioware is based in Canada/US, but I am not sure.

Facebook
Bioware Facebook.JPG
Twitter
Bioware Twitter.JPG

Bioware seems to have the same clean and concise look as Square Enix although a much more prevalent presence on Twitter as Bioware has over a million followers and Square Enix only has about 70,000. Huge difference! That shows that Bioware must put forth a lot more effort than Square Enix when it comes to keeping their fans and customers up to date. Again maybe Twitter is a more prevalent here in the US and Canada than it is in Japan.

Conclusion

Both companies clearly know what they are doing when it comes to utilizing social media to its fullest. Googling either one immediately brings up Twitter along with other links to different pages such as their websites or Facebook and Youtube. Social media has come a long way in the decade or so it has been around and companies that have been around longer like most video game companies seem to be acclimating themselves nicely with the trends.

Comments

  1. Hey Ryan,
    I really enjoyed your post. My husband and boys follow the different updates as well for the games. We have spend quite a lot of time conversing about the changing that have come as technology has evolved right before our eyes. One of my favorite things about Square Enix is the how organized the websites are. They make it very convenient for all gamers of all ages to know release dates while also providing pretty decent offers. Have ever heard about Squaresoft? Even wit different developers, it is very similar to Square Enix.

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  2. Smart choices! It's interesting to see how each handle their social media tools. Both are big enough companies to afford social media managers but somehow Square Enix doesn't seem to invest as much importance in them. I feel that as developers, they should be providing customers with as many mediums as possible to provide feedback. As long as they interact it would still make it positive to have these tools.

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  3. Amazing companies you chosen, I am a gamer myself they are well organized developers. I use to play Final Fantasy MMO on Square Enix. I really admire these companies they are amazingly good at making such interesting games.

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  4. I like the cultural diversity in the companies you've picked. A Japanese company versus a US/Canada company. It is interesting to see how each handles social media. I liked your observation of twitter maybe not playing as big a role in Japan as the US/Canada. I think it's all interesting to think about.

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  5. Great choices, especially Bioware! Given all the fan and critical outcry following Mass Effect: Andromeda, it's great to see that Bioware has been so proactive in letting fans know that they are working to address the numerous issues with the game. I wish more companies would be as transparent as they've been in acknowledging problems with their product.

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  6. Nicely Done, im a big fan of both companies, and to really know how they handle everything. Especially Bioware with the ME:andromeda controversy, they handled it with great finesse.

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  7. Great report Ryan! i am not a fan of video games but your report outlines the gap that can exist between two companies in the way they use social medias. The screenshots look great, is that 3D?

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  8. Great report Ryan! i am not a fan of video games but your report outlines the gap that can exist between two companies in the way they use social medias. The screenshots look great, is that 3D?

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  9. I am shocked to see that Square Enix has only 70,000 followers. I am familiar with both companies as I am a "gamer" and for the games that Square Enix develops, I would expect at least a half a million. I guess that effort put into social media really pays off, especially when you compare these two companies.

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  10. This is a great read, but i would like to point out one thing. That pic you show of Square Enix is not the official twitter for them. This would be:
    https://twitter.com/SquareEnix?lang=en
    I know this doesn't make a huge difference in your blog, but it still makes a bit, especially for the followers as Square has almost 300,000.

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  11. This is great info Ryan!! Good Job!!

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  12. Great post, loved your incorporation of screen shots of the twitter profiles. Two companies I knew very little about, so thank you for the information. Great blog!

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  13. Nice post. I am also a follower of both companies and am happy they have kept up in the social media scene as well as their field.

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