Capcom's income in the past six months up 20 percent from last year, breaks own sales record

Capcom reported that its net income increased by 20 percent over the previous year to ¥4,950 million ($50.4 million) in the first half of this fiscal year, according to its latest earnings report.

According to the company, sales and income for the six month period broke its record for the first half of a fiscal year since the company's first consolidated mid-term financial results for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2001.

For the period, its ordinary income increased by 34.8 percent over the previous year to ¥8,190 million ($83 million). Its net sales increased by 16.9 percent over the previous term to ¥53,234 million ($54.8 million) and operating income increased by 15.2 percent to ¥7,509 million ($76.5 million).

According to Capcom, the amusement machine version of Devil May Cry 4 recorded better-than-expected sales and Resident Evil Revelations (1 million copies in the first half), Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Dual Destinies all achieved projected sales. The company notes that Monster Hunter 4, in the six month period, was best selling third-party Nintendo 3DS title in Japan selling 2.8 million units.

Capcom stated that sales of Lost Planet 3 were below expectations, selling 300,000 units, partly because of "intensifying competition in the European and U.S. markets." Its mobile content also did not achieve expected sales for the period, which Capcom attributes to lack of major titles and "the fierce competitive environment."

According to senior research analyst David Gibson, Capcom expects to sell 1.2 million units of Dead Rising 3 on Xbox One. As of last week Capcom moved 3.3 million copies of Monster Hunter 4, including digital sales.

It was reported yesterday that Resident Evil 5 is the top-selling game in Capcom's history, according to the company's recently updated investor relations data. Selling approximately 6.5 million units since its launch in 2009, the game surpassed Street Fighter 2 as Capcom's best selling game.

Earlier this year, Capcom reported a decline in net income attributed to restructuring costs and development costs as the company prepared for the transition to next-gen consoles. In October, it was reported that Capcom Europe will undergo a major restructure, resulting in the redundancies of half its staff. According to the report, the redundancies were attributed to poor sales of Capcom's western branches bigger titles.