Capcom sees 40% first-half profits decline

While Capcom's net profits for its first financial half are down substantially, zombie slaughter sequel Dead Rising 2 has sold two million copies to date, the publisher has revealed.

The sequel was made in conjunction with recent Capcom acquisition Blue Castle, which the Japanese publisher today announced is to be renamed Capcom Game Studio Vancouver.

Sales for the Dead Rising series to date now amount to 4 million.

The success of Dead Rising 2 contributed to Capcom today posting a revenue boost of 4.7 per cent for the first six months of its 2010 financial year.

The publisher turned over ¥40,706 million ($499 million) for the six months ending September 30 2010, compared to ¥38,892 million ($476 million) from the first financial half of 2009.

However, net profit fell 39.9 per cent, to ¥1,784 million ($21.86 million) from ¥2,967 million ($36.35 million) for the same period last year.

Capcom admitted that "overall sales remained stagnant due in part to the delay in the release of Dead Rising 2, in addition to the sharp appreciation of the yen and the substantial underperformance of Lost Planet 2 relative to projections."

Income was also affected by a hike in development costs for its major titles, the publisher claimed.

Things were rosier on the mobile front, with Resident Evil 4 iPad, Ghosts 'n Goblins Gold Knights II, Street Fighter IV and Phoenix Wright apparently performing well.

The firm's revised forecast for its 2010 fiscal year, which draws to a close on March 31 next year, was a net income of ¥6500 million ($79.6 million).

For fiscal year 2009, Capcom posted a net income of ¥8063 million ($98.8 million) - meaning it will see a year-on-year profits decline of 19.4 per cent should its forecasts prove correct.