It's time for Namco Bandai to bring out the katamari and roll up some loose change, as profits dipped 63% from the same quarter last year. GI.biz reports the company went from making $26 million in profit during Q108 to making only $9.2 million in Q109. The video game section of the company was the only division to see growth at 3.8% this quarter.
Much of Namco's sales this period came from Europe and Asia, with Dragon Ball Z Budokai Tenkaichi 3 selling 420,000 units in the former territory. Japan brought sales with Taiko Drum Master and Tales of Symphonia at 260,000 and 215,000 units, respectively. The company expects sales to pick up over the year, but has already forecast a 31% drop in profits for the full year. Hey, at least they're just making less profit and not sending cash into the ether like Midway.
Reader Comments (15)
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:11AM (Unverified) said
Well at least their Soul Calibur 4 game is super fun.
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:11AM ZombieX said
Should have bet on Wii.
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:14AM baby sea tuna said
Unless you're, well...Nintendo, Wii is not exactly a safe bet for developers.
Reply
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:23AM FernandoRocker said
Well... Taiko Drum Master and Tales of Symphonia sold very well.
And there are several titles that Namco Bandai is developing now, on Nintendo platforms: Tales of Hearts for the DS, and a new Tales for Wii, and it will be a mothership title.
Also, Fragile: Farewell Ruins of the Moon (this is the game I'm waiting the most) and Sky Crawlers. Both games looks very good, with excellent quality.
They are doing good, specially with the DS. They have dozens of good games on that little system.
Reply
And there are several titles that Namco Bandai is developing now, on Nintendo platforms: Tales of Hearts for the DS, and a new Tales for Wii, and it will be a mothership title.
Also, Fragile: Farewell Ruins of the Moon (this is the game I'm waiting the most) and Sky Crawlers. Both games looks very good, with excellent quality.
They are doing good, specially with the DS. They have dozens of good games on that little system.
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:13AM (Unverified) said
Well Soul Calibur 4 is fun. I love seeing the customization of characters online. Good Job company.
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:23AM (Unverified) said
Soulcalibur should help balance that out a bit...
Maybe now they'll release Katamari for Wii & PS3 and Ace Combat for PS3...dammit.
Also...some of us would like another, better Ridge Racer game that really uses the PS3/360 properly...
Maybe now they'll release Katamari for Wii & PS3 and Ace Combat for PS3...dammit.
Also...some of us would like another, better Ridge Racer game that really uses the PS3/360 properly...
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:23AM samfish said
Poor Namco (and poor, poor Sega, too!) =(
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:23AM ScottG13 said
Namco can eat a bowl as far as I'm concerned. Their DLC policies have convinced me to not buy any Namco games this gen till they halt these policies.
I am not buying DLC that already exists on the disc. When Vader/Yoda DLC pops up next month for $10 on SC4, don't say I didn't warn you.
I am not buying DLC that already exists on the disc. When Vader/Yoda DLC pops up next month for $10 on SC4, don't say I didn't warn you.
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:24AM (Unverified) said
Do their financial year books start really early or something? Well they have SCIV and Tales of Vesperia to count on for profit boosts i guess.
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 11:32AM (Unverified) said
Q109 sounds like a weird planet from Star Trek.
Q1'09 would make the quarter and year easier to identify.
Q1'09 would make the quarter and year easier to identify.
Posted: Aug 6th 2008 2:31PM Shogan said
One thing that made me hold off even trying Katamari on the 360 was the DLC. I hope Namco and other companies soon realize that the DLC is great if you get a full-featured game, and later have bonuses... rather than offering half a game and some pretty uninspired DLC.
Featured Stories
Super Joystiq Podcast 004: 38 Studios meltdown, Gravity Rush, Civilization 5: Gods & Kings, Dragon's Dogma
Posted on May 25th 2012 3:30PM




