Astrashift & Square Enix Fumbled the Bag
What seemed to be an easy layup turned into a marketing failure, and both parties need to be hold accountable
Ah, Square Enix… I wrote an earlier article about their three-year plan to get back on track. At the time, Square cut their deal to be exclusive to Sony platforms and seemed to be doing just like they said. Final Fantasy 16 came out on Steam on September 17, 2024, over a year after the PS5 release date.
They even sweeten the deal by giving you a demo, and the base game price is cheaper than the PS5 version!
So it seems like they’re on the right track, but I did say to wait and see if they can keep up the momentum. A few months later, Square Enix fumbled yet again! This time, however, is especially egregious, as a game they happen to publish got caught in the crossfire. The game I’m talking about is Little Goody Two Shoes, developed by AstralShift.
What Happen?
How I describe what the game is upon first impression is- 90’s anime Horror RPG Maker adventure game with higher production values. It features a day/night cycle, many mini-games, German cultural influences, and anime tropes, all while sheltering a witch out of the public eye who is religious.
I played the demo (which is still available) last year at a Steam Fest months before the official release. Despite not being the target audience, I enjoyed my time with it, as it succeeded in its art direction and creepy-pasta elements.
Too bad both Square and Astrashift botched their potential by being incompetent in the latest marketing stunt…
How the situation started came ahead: Square Enix was promoting the game in October this year, with Halloween coming up soon and Little Goody Two Shoes’ 1st anniversary happening on the same day. To put it into basketball terms, this was an easy layup from a marketing standpoint! They didn’t do that and opted to instead of misrepresenting the game at an event where it felt out of place.
While the game does have elements where you can form relationships with three other characters of the same gender, you don’t have to since LGTS1 has multiple endings. You can also play through the game without romancing anybody, should you choose to do so. It's up to the player at the end of the day, as it should be.
I have to ask… Why put LGTS in that type of event in October? A few months ago would’ve been more appropriate, but we’re in October. Halloween is coming soon! A simple post along the lines of:
“We’ll give you quite a spook for Halloween by celebrating Little Goody Two Shoes’ anniversary! Don’t let its cute looks fool you, for there’s something unsettling underneath it all. It’ll be on sale for (insert whatever percentage here) off on October 31st.”
Would’ve done more for LGTS than whatever Square’s doing. So easy to do, but alas...
Consequences
To say Square Enix screw up LGTS marketing is an understatement. They’re entirely tone-deaf and misrepresenting this game. My ire goes towards whoever’s handling Astrashift’s social media, who isn’t helping and attacking potential customers.
Even if this were the case, I would like to see some evidence of these accusations from the developers. It would’ve been better if they hadn’t addressed this in the manner they’re doing and worded things differently. Most of the discussion surrounding LGTS was what I asked earlier: why are you doing a Pride event for a game that doesn’t fit what you’re promoting during the month of October?
What they should be doing is asking why Square Enix botched up their game’s marketing. Better yet, where was Astrashift when this was going down? After all, they made Little Goody Two Shoes; shouldn’t they also be marketing the game, not just Square?
These are the questions people should be asking, but they got lost in the sauce with the sh*t-slinging. We may never know in the near future. Astrashift looks very unprofessional on these posts and needs to address Square Enix's screw-ups and non-involvement in marketing their games. This sort of “damage control” isn’t helping these matters, only leading to confusion and petty squabbles, which don’t address any core issues at the matter.
Results
After that ordeal, it had two peaks on the weekend before dropping back to between 40 and 30 players playing. Whether these are new players or old ones coming back, I can’t say anything beyond speculation other than that it should be higher. It looks like the quote: all press is good; press doesn’t hold water this time.
It’s a shame this happened to a game that holds its weight and ends up getting shafted by Square Enix and Astrashift. Their sheer incompetence, especially Astrashift's, hampered Little Goody Two Shoes and any future projects by misrepresenting their game and not addressing any of it.
However, LGTS is still worth a look, as I’m just a messenger. Whether or not to purchase despite what happened didn’t deter you, then, by all means, don’t let me and what’s going on any thought.
I’d rather get Omari instead than deal with all of this thank you…
Source
Square Enix Twitter with Nitter Frontend (I'll never X/Twitter!); JP account of Square Enix
Little Goody Two Shoes SteamDB
A previous entry of Square Enix’s if you want to check it out. Compete in contrast to their actions from before.
Little Goody Two Shoes as an acronym
This whole culture war is getting so tiresome. People, if you don't like a game, just move on. If you really feel like you need to stand for something, go find a sports team to support.
On an aside, this game's graphics look cool. I love rich pixel art.
I mean it sounds to me like the actual developer is tweeting that they support lgbtq and the game does reflect that. Who cares? Apparently a lot of people just want to hate about things. There is no way this will not get much much worse after the election.