NCsoft annual profits up 3% to $150m

NCsoft's yearly financials are in, showing a three per cent growth in net profit, year-on-year, to a total of ₩159 billion ($150m). Revenue remained essentially flat at ₩757 billion ($714 million), with savings on marketing and staff costs pushing the publisher's profit up slightly.

Ncsoft's flagship MMO Guild Wars 2 showed a decline in sales and revenue, making ₩34 billion ($32 million) in Q4, 2013. That's down from ₩119 billion ($112 million) in the prior year's quarter, when the game launched - a clear reflection of its subscription-free model. However, with the title still to launch in Asian territories, traditionally NCsoft's strongest market, those numbers are expected to climb again soon.

Territory-wise, the lack of releases also manifested in lower sales and revenues. In North America, quarterly revenue fell from ₩71 billion ($67 million) to ₩25 billion ($24 million) year-on-year, while European revenue fell from ₩51 billion ($48 million) to ₩11 billion ($10 million).

Surprisingly, the company's most improved product in terms of revenue was also its oldest: Lineage, first released in 1998, earned ₩75 billion ($71 million) in revenue for the quarter, up from ₩65 billion ($61 million) in the prior year quarter. Across the entire year, its performance was more impressive still, climbing from ₩205 billion ($194 million) to ₩288 billion ($272 million).

The business as a whole had a weaker fourth quarter than in 2012, with revenue falling 26 per cent year-on-year to ₩210 billion ($198 million), and net profit tumbling 55 per cent to ₩46 billion ($43 million). However, it should be noted that this is largely the result of Guild Wars 2's winter 2012 release skewing the comparison.