Square Enix, Konami Suspend Online Games Due To Japanese Power Problems

Tokyo-headquartered companies Square Enix and Konami have shut down servers for their online games due to power concerns following last week's disasters in Japan. As power companies in Japan impose rolling blackouts due to facilities damaged by the recent earthquakes and tsunamis that have devastated the country, companies and households have been advised to reduce their usage of electricity for unnecessary equipment and appliances. Square Enix responded by temporarily suspending services for its Final Fantasy XI and XIV MMORPGs for "at least a week" starting yesterday. The company says that users will not be billed for PlayOnline, the service hub for its online games, throughout the April billing cycle. Additional PlayOnline services typically available through Square Enix's site, such as Friends List Plus, Friend List Application, and others are also unavailable. Support services like password recovery, account cancellation, and anything requiring personal info confirmation are offline, too. The publisher intends to update fans on when the services will be reinstated once it has more information regarding the energy shortages in Japan. The official sites for the Final Fantasy MMOs, their forums, and the Square Enix Support Center remain online for customers to view updates. Konami also shut down its servers for Metal Gear Online due to the power shortages, though it has not provided an estimate for how long the game will be down.