The fan-created content market is experiencing an unprecedented earthquake. Recent reports from Japan indicate that Square Enix has begun mass removal of numerous erotic doujinshis featuring iconic characters like Tifa Lockhart from Final Fantasy from major digital sales platforms, marking what many call “the end of an era.”

The end of profit and the shadow of Artificial Intelligence

The affected sales platforms include digital distribution giants in Japan like FANZA and pictSPACE. An affected creator confirmed publicly that their Tifa-based works were removed without prior notice due to copyright claims. Although the user accepted full responsibility, they expressed genuine surprise, as Tifa has historically been one of the most common and tolerated muses in fan creations of the fandom.

Industry observers have noted that these sudden removals primarily target paid digital doujinshis. While traditionally hand-drawn art has been affected, the speed and volume of the measures suggest a legal effort by Square Enix’s team focused on stopping mass monetization driven by works generated or heavily assisted by Artificial Intelligence (AI), a practice many readers consider close to piracy and lacking the human touch of traditional fan art.

The reaction of the otaku community

Following the removals, readers left over a hundred comments reflecting sharply divided stances. One fraction of users lamented the situation with comments like “I can’t masturbate with Tifa anymore” and questioned whether characters from other franchises, like Wakka, would suffer the same fate. In contrast, a large part of the community justified the company, arguing that actively profiting from others’ copyrights was a boundary that would bring consequences and directly criticized doujinshis generated by AI, pointing out that this technology accelerated this legal crackdown.

Historically, the company had tolerated non-commercial fan activities under an unwritten agreement, viewing them as a harmless form of promotion. However, the growing commercialization facilitated by new technological tools seems to have forced the corporation to draw a hard line to protect its intellectual properties. While free platforms like Pixiv still retain a large amount of non-monetized art, everything indicates that the days of the profitable market for adult doujinshis based on Square Enix are coming to an end.