Namco doubles profit projections as Soul Calibur II ignites retail
Japanese publisher Namco has doubled its profit projections for the first half of its fiscal year and increased its full-year projections, mostly thanks to the strong performance of Soul Calibur II in overseas markets.
Japanese publisher Namco has doubled its profit projections for the first half of its fiscal year and increased its full-year projections, mostly thanks to the strong performance of Soul Calibur II in overseas markets.
The company now expects to post a net profit of 3.2 billion Yen (â'¬25 million) for the first half of the year, which is more than twice its original estimate of 1.5 billion Yen (â'¬11.8 million), while its full year projections are up to 6.6 billion Yen (â'¬51.7m) from an original target of 5.8 billion (â'¬45.4m).
Soul Calibur II is the main reason for this boost to the company's results, with the game selling very strongly in the USA and Europe - particularly the GameCube version, which is thought to have outsold both other versions of the game in most overseas markets.
Another GameCube title is also contributing to Namco's strong results, with the Cube-exclusive RPG Tales of Symphonia selling very strongly in Japan - and even driving sales of the GameCube ahead of the PS2 in the week when it launched.
The company also cited the launch of a new range of budget priced software in Asia as a key factor in the growth of its profits for the first half.