Sudden end of an iOS game: Why a "Final Fantasy" part disappeared

The iOS game "Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles" by Square Enix has come to an abrupt end following a problem with in-app purchases. The developer company announced on its website that it is discontinuing the game with immediate effect. Users who have made in-app purchases since January 2024 can have the costs refunded. Nevertheless, the mystery remains as to what exactly caused these massive problems and why the developer did nothing about it. There were and still are various other titles from the "Final Fantasy" series in the App Store.

Users of the game reported that they were no longer able to use content purchased via in-app purchase in the game despite positive confirmation from Apple and debiting of the amount. Square Enix only stated that "changes to the in-app purchase model" were the cause. "Further investigation revealed that we are unable to fully resolve the issue and implement the new changes, so it is unlikely that we will be able to resume service for the game."

Other platforms not affected

The game "Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles", first released in 2003, was re-released in 2020 in a "Remastered Edition" for the Nintendo Switch, Playstation 4 and for the mobile platforms iOS and Android. Only iOS is affected by the discontinuation of the game – All other platforms will continue to be served, making it clear that this must be a problem specifically related to Apple's App Store.

Based on the user reports and the timing, it seems very likely that Square Enix was apparently surprised by a long-announced technical change in the verification of App Store purchases. Apple announced this several times and with considerable delay. The SHA-256 encryption method was introduced when apps use Apple's API to ask the App Store whether users have paid for content. Apple warned that if apps did not make the switch, there was a risk of exactly what Square-Enix customers have now experienced. Apple previously used SHA-1 certificates.

Change in the App Store with a long lead time

It remains unclear why Square Enix did not make the necessary changes. Market observers have various theories on this. It is likely that the developer would have had to make major changes in order to make the five-year-old source code run under iOS 18. An update of the game engine might also have been necessary for this, which would have meant additional development effort. In the end, there was probably a profitability calculation as to whether the expected revenue could still finance the necessary effort or whether it would make more sense to discontinue and refund the purchases.

However, users do not necessarily have to worry about other older apps and games with in-app purchases. Apple began switching to SHA-256 in the sandbox environment – for testing in-app purchases for developers – back in 2023. So there was plenty of time to make the necessary changes. In addition, only apps that check directly on the device whether a purchase has been made are affected. Many app developers also perform this check on the server (server-to-server). And developers who use Apple's current APIs (AppTransaction and Transaction) don't have to worry too much either.

(mki)