Nintendo, which will launch the latest version of the Zelda series of games on Friday, made a net profit of 432.8 billion yen ($3.18 billion) in the 2022-2023 fiscal year that ended in March, down more than 9% year-over-year. . However, it was better than the company’s forecast of 370 billion yen. Its operating profit fell nearly 15% to 504.4 billion yen.
The company’s annual revenue of around $11.86 billion, down 5.5%, was notably buoyed by its game sales, in light of the success of “Pokemon” games. Scarlett and Violet”, “Splatoon 3”, “Nintendo Switch Sports” and “Mario Kart”. 8″ deluxe.
In contrast, sales of the company’s console, Switch, fell 22% year-on-year to 18 million copies. The company attributed the decline to a shortage of semiconductors, an issue that plagued its production until last summer, in addition to the boost that usually accompanies sales during the holiday season. year was less than expected.
As for the 2023-2024 financial year, the group, based in Kyoto (western Japan), was very cautious about its expectations, since it estimated its net profit at 340 billion yen (2.52 billion dollars), a decrease of 21% per year. -on-year.
The company expects an operating profit of 450 billion yen (-11%) and sales of 1.450 billion yen (-9.5%), betting on its modern version of the game series ” Zelda”, which should be released on Friday.
And ‘Kantan Games’ analyst Serkan Toto says the new version of the game, which bears the title ‘Tears of Kingdom’, will be Nintendo’s ‘biggest contributor to sales this fiscal year’, according to Agence France- Press. .
The latest game in “The Legend of Zelda” series, released in 2017, has sold 29 million copies.
“The Power of Attraction” According to Toto, the newest version of the “Zelda” game series, which is generating great excitement on the Internet ahead of its launch, “has the ability to attract, which will not only increase the sales of games for the business, but also to increase console sales.”
The expert considers that “Nintendo can attract customers who have never acquired (Switch) and users who will buy the modern version with a better screen for this game.”
Nintendo expects another significant drop in Switch sales for the 2023-2024 fiscal year, with sales of 15 million copies (-16.5%) recorded.
Although the impact of the semiconductor shortage on its production is easing, the Switch is entering its seventh year since its launch, and is therefore “in the last stage of its life cycle”, explains Toyo Securities analyst Hideki Yasuda, according to his interview with Agence France-Presse. .
Despite persistent rumors, Nintendo has yet to announce a new console, which analysts say could see the light of day by the end of the next fiscal year, specifically in March 2025.
The “Super Mario Brothers” movie, which debuted in April and was co-produced by Nintendo, is a worldwide hit, with revenue recently exceeding $1 billion.
However, the impact of this success on the Japanese giant’s results should be limited, because “Nintendo’s investment in the film is not very high”, according to Yasuda.
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