Monster Hunter Drives Rise In Capcom Nine-Month Sales, Profits

Solid performances for major brands like Monster Hunter helped create year-over-year growth for Capcom's sales and profits over the nine months ending in December 2011, the Osaka, Japan-based publisher announced. Top performers during the period included December's PSP title Monster Hunter Freedom 3, which led shipments for the period with 4.1 million units. September's multiplatform title Dead Rising 2 shipped 2.2 million units through the end of the period; April's Super Street Fighter IV shipped 1.6 million; and May's Lost Planet 2 shipped 1.5 million units. In all, four titles broke the million-unit mark for Capcom during the nine months. Those games drove Capcom sales for the period up 42 percent to ¥70.8 billion ($1.5 billion), while profits rose to ¥6.8 billion ($132.6 million) year-on-year. The publisher maintained full-year sales forecasts for the year ending March 31, 2011 of ¥91 billion ($1.8 billion) and full-year profits of ¥6.5 billion ($126.2 million). Outside of sales of retail video game software, Capcom said that during the nine months it focused on development of online and mobile games, in light of the "rapid rise" in popularity of smartphones and social gaming. The publisher reported rising sales of Resident Evil 4: iPad Edition and other App Store games including Ghost Trick, Ghosts 'n Goblins Gold Knights II and other titles. Last fiscal year's App Store releases Street Fighter IV and Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney "also achieved their projected sales," Capcom said.