Elden Ring and the release of Shadow of the Erdtree led to a major financial success that came at just the right time for the parent company of FromSoftware.
Who is the parent company of FromSoftware? The Japanese studio is 69.66% owned by Kadowaka, a media company that operates in various sectors. In addition to games, they also release films, such as the critically acclaimed Your Name, celebrated by many anime fans, and print media.
In June 2024, the company fell victim to a cyberattack. A business report shows that Kadowaka suffered significant losses (via automaton-media.com). Fortunately, shortly thereafter, the DLC for Elden Ring was released.
Video games saved the day
What did the losses look like? The attack resulted in data losses and disruptions to the company’s various services. Additionally, compensation payments had to be made. In total, Kadowaka reports losses of about 2 billion yen, which is approximately 12.2 million euros.
For the company, this meant a decline in net profit of 10.1%. Despite these losses, there was a significant increase in profits. The reason? Video games, which helped the parent company of FromSoftware achieve a total profit increase of 84.6% compared to the previous year.
Among the releases are Elden Ring and especially the DLC Shadow of the Erdtree, which also released in June. The expansion was well received by both the press and fans, though it was not without criticism. Overall, it likely brought in considerable revenue for Kadowaka. This is also highlighted in the report. Particularly the sales in Japan, both of the main game and the expansion, were key factors for the tremendous growth. Specific sales figures are not mentioned.
Overall, Kadowaka’s video game sector is growing rapidly and has increased by a whopping 80% compared to the previous year. With such blockbusters like Elden Ring, that’s not surprising.
In this case, the Japanese company had luck in misfortune. The timing of the release of Shadow of the Erdtree was just right and spared the parent company from a significant loss. By the way, the game is full of little details that many of you may not have noticed while playing. A YouTuber has now shown why one of the DLC bosses is a masterpiece in its own right.
