DeNA reallocating resources to Nintendo titles
Following liquidation of Western development, company doubling down on Nintendo partnership
Only a few weeks ago, mobile publisher DeNA shuttered DeNA Global and ngmoco LLC as the company decided to renew its focus on Japan and China while claiming that titles developed in the West did not meet expectations. Now, with the announcement of its Q2 operating results, DeNA has made it very clear that joint development on Nintendo titles is its "highest priority," as noted in a tweet by analyst Dr. Serkan Toto.
Indeed, DeNA stated in its operating results that it's "reallocating resources, with a focus on the Nintendo partnership" and that the much anticipated Super Mario Run remains on track for December while Animal Crossing and Fire Emblem are still planned for the 2016 fiscal year. DeNA reportedly has around 100 people internally working on all three Nintendo mobile titles.
Super Mario Run will be a very interesting test for Nintendo's iconic IP. While Pokemon Go set numerous mobile records, it was ultimately to Niantic's benefit since Nintendo only owns a small stake in The Pokemon Co. If Super Mario Run is the "mega hit" that Toto anticipates, however, it will have a notable impact on Nintendo's bottom line. Toto is forecasting over 1.5 billion downloads for the title worldwide.
As for DeNA, the company saw its Q2 revenue rise 3% to 38.2 billion yen, with operating profit up 7% at 7.9 billion yen. Isao Moriyasu, President and CEO of DeNA, commented, "As we announced in the previous quarter, we expect to achieve a year-on-year profit increase for fiscal year 2016 through growth in the curation platform business and increased contribution from many of our other businesses. Factoring in the upcoming titles from our alliance with Nintendo, we expect an even larger increase in profit growth."
DeNA stressed that even though it's no longer developing in Western markets, it will "try to capture the West market primarily through collaboration with external partners." The publisher is also aiming to have about five new apps ready for Japan and China in its second fiscal half of the year, outside of its Nintendo partnership.