Highlights
- Bandai Namco achieved its highest-ever first-quarter net sales with a 33.3% surge in operating profit.
- The video game division suffered a major decline, with digital net sales dropping 15.6% and operating profits tumbling 30.9%.
- Company plans to respawn its gaming momentum by bolstering development capabilities for upcoming home console titles.
Bandai Namco has clocked its most successful first quarter to date, racking up record-breaking revenues driven by overwhelming demand for merchandise and physical amusements. However, the company's video game division struggled to keep the combo going, taking a heavy hit as a significantly quieter release schedule left the Digital segment trailing behind last year's blockbuster numbers.
Despite the gaming slump, the overall financial picture for the Japanese entertainment giant remains incredibly strong for the three months ending June 30. The company generated a massive ¥328.4 billion ($2 billion USD) in total net sales, marking a 9.3% increase year-over-year. Operating profit surged by 33.3% to reach ¥69.2B ($436.7M), while ordinary profit climbed 36.3% to hit ¥74.4B ($469.5M). Additionally, profit attributable to owners of the parent reached ¥51.1B ($322.5M), an impressive 33.4% jump. Bandai Namco proudly touted these results as a record high for a first quarter.
The undeniable MVP carrying this quarter was the Toys and Hobby segment. High demand across mature fan products, trading cards, Gashapon machines, and everyday consumer goods spearheaded the company's growth, with operating profits up to ¥53.9B ($340M).
Established mega-franchises like Gundam, Dragon Ball, and One Piece continued to dominate, while Tamagotchi also pulled in solid numbers. Adding to this momentum, Bandai Namco’s Japanese amusement facilities saw a healthy 7.6% bump in net sales at existing locations, and the company also benefited from a timely refund related to United States tariffs.Bandai Namco Entertainment
Dragonball
Digital Segment Slump
On the digital front, the lack of a major tentpole release cast a shadow over the gaming division. The Digital segment, which houses mobile and home console games, experienced a 15.6% drop in net sales, falling to ¥90.9B ($573M). Operating profit took an even sharper dive, dropping 30.9% to ¥15B ($94.5M), as per Gamesindustry.biz.
The publisher sold 6.9M home console game units during the quarter with just two new titles released, a steep decline from the 10.8M units and 15 new titles recorded during the same period last year. Despite the console slowdown, Bandai Namco noted that its core mobile gaming apps maintained their popularity, providing a stable and reliable earnings base.
Looking ahead, Bandai Namco is determined to respawn its gaming momentum by strengthening its development capabilities and building an optimized title portfolio. Anticipating a turnaround, the publisher bumped up its half-year forecast for the Digital segment, now expecting sales of ¥200B ($1.2B) and an operating profit of ¥26.5B ($167M).
While the company has kept its full-year overall forecast unchanged at ¥1.35T ($8.5B) in net sales and ¥185B ($1.17B) in operating profit, it plans to reassess based on fan needs and the performance of major upcoming titles. The future release slate looks promising, with Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve launching on October 2, 2026, followed by heavy hitters like Dragon Ball Xenoverse 3 and Mobile Suit Gundam RG Project Gundam Rogue Orbit slated for 2027.
