Capcom have announced a revision to their earnings forecast for the ongoing fiscal year. They’ve lowered their net income forecast by 33.7% and their operating income forecast by 36.7%.
There are two reasons for the revision. The first is the delay of Monster Hunter 4, which was initially slated for a March release but has been postponed to the summer in order to give Capcom time to improve the game further.
The other reason is Resident Evil 6. Sales of Resident Evil 6 were initially strong, but subsequently weakened, Capcom report. As a result, sales of the game are “certain to fall short of the plan”.
As previously reported, Capcom’s initial sales forecast for Resident Evil 6 was 7 million copies by the end of March 2013. Capcom later lowered this number to 6 million. They haven’t announced another new forecast in light of their earnings revision yet.
In their most recent earnings Q&A a couple of months ago, Capcom stated that they felt Resident Evil 6 had been “successful to a degree,” in light of the game’s poor critical reception. They added that they were confident the game would continue to sell strongly, regardless, but that they would take user feedback into account for the future.
Since its release, Capcom have been updating Resident Evil 6 with free update patches that make changes to the game. The first patch unlocked Ada Wong’s campaign from the start, gave her an optional co-op partner, and improved the game’s camera options. The next patch will add further improvements.
