Kadokawa hails Armored Core 6 as a success, acquires Octopath Traveler developer
Kadokawa Corporation, the majority owner of FromSoftware and Spike Chunsoft, has purchased a majority stake in Acquire, the development studio behind Octopath Traveler, making it a wholly owned subsidiary. Though it worked with Square Enix for Octopath Traveler and self-published its Akiba’s Trip series, the studio founded in 1994 has worked with both FromSoftware and Spike Chunsoft on Tenchu and Way of the Samurai respectively, so there’s an established history of collaboration between all parties.
“By acquiring the company, which has produced million-seller hit titles, we expect to generate synergies with our existing game-related subsidiaries, strengthen our planning and development capabilities Groupwide, and enhance our lineup of console games,” Kadokawa wrote in its newly released financial results.
Armored Core 6 did well commercially on top of being a critical hit.
FromSoftware
In this report, the company also hailed the success of FromSoftware’s Armored Core 6 in 2023, which has “contributed beyond expectations” to the company’s revenue. It did not disclose any exact sales numbers, though.
Though numbers in total were on the lower side than in the previous year, which probably wasn’t a surprise to anyone since Elden Ring launched in 2022, Kadokawa’s gaming segment showed an increased operating profit in the period between October and December 2023 year-on-year.
In terms of upcoming releases, the company set its hopes into FromSoftware’s Elden Ring DLC, about which we should hear more soon, and Spike Chunsoft’s Shiren the Wanderer 6.
Like many companies in the industry, Kadokawa sees much potential in leveraging its IP from other media in the gaming segment. It emphasized that its mobile games saw increased sales due to being linked with popular anime series Eminence in Shadow and specified plans to use the Re:ZERO IP in an upcoming mobile project.
