Capcom’s fiscal record wasn’t stellar in 2012, but the company expects improvement thanks to after-sales policies.
Capcom’s last fiscal year, ended March 2012, was not a happy one, with lower sales and profits as compared to the previous year. However Capcom hopes for improvement, and to achieve this it intends to get those sequels out there just as fast as it can. Its two strengths, according to the report, are its developer creativity and its back catalogue of world-class content. Capcom feels that the best way to make use of those strengths is to shorten development time as much as it can.
“Among the multitude of major titles held by Capcom,” said COO Haruhiro Tsujimoto , “such as Monster Hunter, Street Fighter, Resident Evil, Devil May Cry, Lost Planet, Dead Rising and many others, we will promote shortening of the sales cycle in pursuit of further earnings stabilisation and growth.” Capcom’s current production rate is a launch every 3-4 years, and it intends to slash that time to 2.5 years. Capcom’s about to hire an additional 1,000 staff over the next 10 years to help cope with what will be an increased workload. “In addition,” Tsujimoto added, “we will increase the number of titles released in a single year and expand earnings using a hybrid development model whereby the core portions of the project are developed in-house by Capcom and the process-work is outsourced to outside development companies.”
Increased attention to after-sales profit opportunities is a big part of Capcom’s strategy. Development teams will be working on sequels and DLC at the same time they’re putting together the main launch. 15 titles in 10 years is their target, with popular content spreading out into every possible gaming niche. Smartphone apps, merch, concerts, film; Capcom intends to spread the love as much as physically possible.
“There is no doubt that the business environment is undergoing tremendous changes,” Tsujimoto acknowledged, “However, I think these changes offer new opportunities for growth … Traditional business ended with package games sold at stores, but now it begins after sales.”
