Part 7/11:
Moreover, corporate layoffs, Neon argues, are often a guise for removing employees deemed troublesome or politically inconvenient. The departure of John Heinik, Square Enix's former chief publishing officer for the West, exemplifies this. Heinik, who publicly announced his resignation, criticized the company's mismanagement and hinted at internal disagreements over the direction of Western operations and cultural conflicts.
The Loss of the Classic Square Enix
Neon rings a lament for the company's former glory days, when Squaresoft was an innovative powerhouse. During the 1990s, Square Enix produced a string of groundbreaking titles—Mystic Quest, Secret of Mana, Chrono Trigger, Vagrant Story, and many more—that helped define the JRPG genre.