Smurfs make up for Capcoms console dip

Japanese publisher Capcom has reported a drop in sales for the quarter ending June 30th.

Net sales fell 37.2 per cent to 11,953m. Operating income fell 22.9 per cent to 775m, though ordinary income was up 152.8 per cent at 546m. Net income climbed 58.2 per cent to 338m.

Capcom admits to a lack of big-hitting console titles in the period, with new releases Resident Evil: The Mercenaries and Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition basically achieving projected sales”.

Japanese hit Monster Hunter Freedom 3 continued to perform strongly, however, while iPhone and Facebook success Smurf’s Village was described as an extreme success”. The casual title has now been downloaded over 19m times.

Mobile games in isolation saw net sales rocket 79.8 per cent to 1,223m while operating income jumped 362.2 per cent to 451m, making up for the relatively weak console performance.

Capcom’s Arcade business took a big dent thanks to damage dealt to its Kanto and Tohoku arcades by the Japanese earthquake.

Operating income from Capcom’s licensing operations was up 729.2 per cent at 254m.