TGO Daily | May 12, 2021 | It's Financials Day!
TGO Daily | May 12, 2021
In The News
Ubisoft FY Financials
Ubisoft reported their fiscal year financials with $2.7 billion in sales (up 39%) and $128 million in profit (up from a $151 million loss).
Despite initially being announced for a 2018 release, their open-world pirate game Skull & Bones has been delayed once again. It won’t be released any earlier than April 2022. According to VGC, the game has shifted to a constantly evolving online world (much like Fortnite).
Assassins Creed had its best year ever, with the series making a 50% increase over its previous record set in 2012-13. This is thanks to Valhalla as well as strong back catalogue sales.
In terms of their overall strategy, they mentioned that they are moving away from AAA premium titles as their main focus. Instead, they’ll be mixing in some high budget free-to-play games. Their current lineup includes Far Cry 6, Rainbow Six Quarantine, Riders Republic, The Division Heartland, and Roller Champions. No games are planned for the Christmas season.
EA FY Financials
Electronic Arts reported their FY financials with $5.6 billion in revenue (up 2%) and $837 million in profit.
Most of their money came from digital services, with only 29% of their revenue coming from game sales. They sent a lot of props to Apex Legends, which is bringing in more money than ever. The future looks even brighter for them thanks to their acquisitions of Glu Mobile, Codemasters, and Metalhead — all of which have pretty high profile titles.
Their annual conference EA Play Live is now booked for July 22. They normally hold the event close to E3, but they’ve now shifted it to one month after. No schedule is available yet, but it will be fully digital.
Other Financials
Starbreeze reported on their Q1 financials with $3.4 million in sales and a loss of $500,000. That’s a significant improvement for them, having lost millions over the past multiple quarters. As always, the money is coming from Payday 2. Payday 3 now has a publisher funding development with Koch Media, and is planned for release in 2023.
Paradox Interactive reported on their Q1 financials with $43 million in sales and $11 million in profit. Both numbers are down significantly, with the CEO noting her displeasure with the situation. She noted exchange rate and COVID-19 issues, and is confident with the future of their portfolio. Surviving Mars, Planetfall, and Prison Architect are seen as potential games to bring to their core portfolio.
Roblox has their first ever quarterly report as a public company. $387 million in revenue, and losses of $134 million — they have yet to report a profitable quarter. As is typical for major companies, they will make major investments in the company for years before they start reaping the rewards. Roblox certainly seems primed to do that successfully.
The Grab-Bag
“Epic vs Apple - Week One Review: Epic still faces an ‘uphill battle’” Great article about the trial.
DontNod Entertainment (Life Is Strange) have turned down multiple acquisition offers
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