Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis surpasses $100 million

Square Enix’s Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis has surpassed $100 million in gross player spending on mobile in just over a year since it was launched.

Released worldwide on September 7th, 2023, the gacha RPG has now hit $107.1m in mobile revenue, according to AppMagic estimates.

The majority of player spending has come from Japan, accounting for $76 million, or 71%, of mobile revenue to date. The US ranks second, making up $20.9 million, or 20% of spending, of total player spend.

Earliest earnings

Ever Crisis’ launch month was its most successful so far, having generated almost $20.8 million in September 2023, with limited-time weapons for Cloud and Barret as initial highlights. These signature items were only available in a featured banner during the game’s first week.

After this banner, Cloud quickly received his second unique weapon in the Maritime Sword on September 15th - currently Ever Crisis’ most lucrative day, generating $1.5 million.

The gacha-exclusive weapon caused an evident spike in spending as players rolled the figurative dice for its 750% damage boost and a chance to unlock Aerith’s Sun Umbrella.

The banners set a trend for Ever Crisis’ broader gacha strategy, focused more around new weapons, gear and outfits for characters as opposed to unlocking those characters themselves.

On September 29th, 2023, for example, every player received a free Young Sephiroth and unlocked new prequel content showcasing the One-Winged Angel’s origins.

Rather than releasing the fan-favourite Final Fantasy VII villain in the gacha himself, Ever Crisis reserved only his Edged Wings sword and Training Garb outfit to the chance-based system - released on the same day.

Obtaining the sword also unlocked exclusive Edged Wings packs for players to purchase, rewarding duplicates of the weapon and enhancing materials to upgrade it with.

Even with all players receiving the youthful antagonist for free, player spending spiked by 130% on his launch day to almost $1.1 million.

Stuck in a slump

Ever Crisis’ revenue soon declined after its launch month, down to $13.3 million in October 2023 and $11.7 million in November. The then-mobile exclusive was ported to PC in December, at which time its App Store and Play Store earnings plummeted to $7.4 million for the month.

Mobile earnings throughout 2024 have been lower still, peaking with the anniversary in September 2024.

Daily revenue spiked by 327% to $643,000 on September 7th, 2024 specifically as limited-time gear, celebratory content and special events got underway.

Even bringing in reinforcements from fellow Japanese developer Capcom wasn’t enough to reach last year’s highs, as Ever Crisis’ first crossover with an external IP this June brought aboard Monster Hunter-themed weapons and series mascot Rathalos to battle. The collaboration yielded just $342,000 on its start date.

Square Enix hasn’t shied away from shutting down its mobile games in recent years, whether that’s SinoAlice, Bravely Default: Brilliant Lights or $900 million revenue generator Final Fantasy: Brave Exvius.