Starbreeze Studios pre-tax loss triples to $11.3m in Q3 2018
Payday 2 accounts for two-thirds of company's Q3 revenue as it prepares to launch Overkill's The Walking Dead
Having enjoyed a rare period of profitability in Q2, Starbreeze Studios has once again posted a pre-tax loss for the latest quarter.
Net sales were down around 45% year-on-year to $3.7 million from $8.5 million, while pre-tax loss trebled to $11.3 million from $3.9 million in the same period last year.
On June 30, Starbreeze Studios completed the sale of publishing rights for Dead by Daylight, leading to an anticipated decline in revenue for Q3.
As a result Payday 2 accounted for roughly two-thirds of the company's revenue for the period, with sales worth $2.9 million.
However, according to CEO Bo Andersson Klint, Starbreeze Studios is on target to deliver positive EBITDA on an annual basis going forward.
Despite posting a net loss EBITDA of $4.1 million for the period -- an increased loss year-on-year of nearly 60% -- EBITDA for the year so far is in the green at $7 million, up from a loss of $6.6 million for the first nine months of 2017.
"Today's the day of our biggest release since Payday 2 more than five years ago," said Klint. "Overkill's The Walking Dead is an important release for Starbreeze and is obviously our main focus right now.
"The game is the first we are releasing of the eight major games we have invested in to establish Starbreeze as a major and successful game company that is in it for the long haul."