Before Square Enix became a unified entity, the former half was known as SquareSoft and had one of the greatest video game runs of all time. Founded in 1986, the company managed to bring us all-time-great franchises like Final Fantasy and Kingdom Hearts, and decades of memories. After nearly two decades in operation, it combined with Dragon Quest steward Enix in 2003.
SquareSoft wasn’t just the “Final Fantasy Factory,” though. Its output varied widely and gave us gems like Brave Fencer Musashi, as well as big-ticket AAA RPGs like Final Fantasy 8, often in tandem.
It’s one of the most celebrated game companies in history, up there with Nintendo and Capcom for a reason, and there’s one particularly incredible game on PS1 that’s been forgotten over time.
Back in 1997, SquareSoft released Einhänder by director Tatsuo Fujii, and it captured the imagination of shoot ’em up (shmup) fans everywhere. I remember picking it up because of that classic Final Fantasy/Saga-adjacent box art, and loving it on its own merits. Often described as a forgotten gem, Einhänder is extremely striking aesthetically. It has a distinct style, a unique narrative (a parallel to Greek myths), and a stellar sound direction, including an electronic-heavy score.
Even though it had several difficulty levels in tow, the game wasn’t a cakewalk, prompting many players to bounce off in the intro level, which didn’t hold back for newcomers. A lot of folks got their first taste of the game in a PlayStation Underground disc, back when physical demo discs were commonplace.
As the first game of this genre by SquareSoft, the company called in a favor to get Fujii, who had worked on the Gradius series. It also benefited from the development of Final Fantasy 7, as Square better understood the system’s architecture, enabling it to craft more impressive visuals for Einhänder.
Sadly, Einhänder is mostly lost to time. It’s stuck on the original PlayStation outside of Japan (where it also resided on the PSN), with no credible rumors or leaks of a remaster or remake at any point. For those who played it, it remains in the hearts of shmup and Square fans everywhere, even influencing some Gummi Ship elements in Kingdom Hearts 3 with the same developers involved in both.
The late ’90s were an extremely experimental period for SquareSoft as a whole. By way of developer DreamFactory, the publisher partnered up to release Ehrgeiz, an oddball 3D fighter that featured several Final Fantasy 7 characters. It was a truly wild time for SquareSoft fans, as you’d get a completely off-the-wall release alongside these AAA RPG masterpieces that became playground legends.
That’s not including iconic franchises crafted during the PlayStation era, like Parasite Eve and Xenogears, which have fans who hold them in high regard to this day. For many publishers, even just having one of these hits in their portfolios would be considered a success, but SquareSoft was ahead of the curve.
As the industry has become much more tumultuous and risk-averse, many big publishers have shied away from projects that made their pedigrees so prolific. But Square Enix has consistently delivered those sorts of experiences, whether they’re financial hits or not.